Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

The Jew that Sheikh Qaradawi couldn't stand to be near

I noted last week that Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi, influential Muslim preacher and terror supporter, refused to attend the 10th annual Doha Conference for Interfaith Dialogue" because he did not want to share the stage with Jews, who he blames for "usurping Palestine."

So who is the Jew who he snubbed?

Apparently, the only Jew to attend this conference - and he has attended it for years - is Reuven Firestone, a left wing reform rabbi, professor of medieval Judaism and Islam at Hebrew Union College, and founder and co-director of the Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement. He has written books about Judaism for Muslims and about Islam for Jews.

In 2007, Firestone was invited to give a lecture at Ain Shams University but he ended up causing an uproar when it was revealed that he was Jewish - and a rabbi, to boot.

The furore has caused ripples beyond academia, with 20 parliamentary members quick to jump on the bandwagon and demand that the speaker of the People's Assembly summon members of the parliament's Educational Committee for an urgent meeting to determine who is responsible for the convening of such seminars.

They have also demanded that Hani Helal, the minister of higher education, be sacked.

"We are not going to allow Jews to desecrate our universities, spread their Zionist views and brainwash our students," railed independent MP Gamal Zahran.

A video tape and Arabic translation of the lecture are currently being studied by a committee formed by the university to investigate whether there is any substance to claims that the lecture was offensive to Islam.

His book about Judaism for Muslims (available online in Arabic for free) also came under withering attack in major Arab media, aghast that a different perspective is available where Muslims might accidentally read it.

Firestone is as pro-Islam as it is possible for a non-Muslim to be, but his very existence is threatening to many Muslims - because he is a Jew.

He wrote a paper about "contextualizing" anti-semitism in Islam. I don't have access to the full text, although in the first page extract you can see that he admits that there is plenty of Jew-hatred in Egypt, where he lived for a time. I would love to know how this specific brand of hate can be "contextualized."

But no matter how he can find excuses for Islamic Jew-hatred, it will never make the haters like him one bit more.

By the way, the anti-semite Qaradawi plans to visit his Gaza fans on May 8.

"Moderate" Fatah behind terrorist murder in Tapuach Junction

From YNet:

A 31-year-old Israeli man was murdered by a Palestinian terrorist Tuesday morning at a bus stop at the Tapuach Junction in the northern West Bank. The victim was identified as Evyatar Borovsky, a father of five from the settlement of Yitzhar.

Shai Sub-District Police said the terrorist apparently stabbed the Israeli and then snatched his gun. The terrorist proceeded to open fire at Border Guard officers, who returned fire and moderately wounded him, according to police.

Magen David Adom spokesman Meidan Ben Yoash said Borovsky was pronounced dead after efforts to resuscitate him failed.

Ynet learned that the terrorist is a Fatah operative from a village near Tulkarem. He was imprisoned in Israel for three years after being convicted of stone throwing and was released less than six months ago.

The terrorist's brother is currently jailed in the Palestinian Authority for allegedly collaborating with Israel.

Palestine Today identifies the terrorist as named Abu Salam Salam - or "Peace Peace," which might ironically be his nom de guerre. Ma'an arabic says his name is Salam Asaad Mohammed Zaal.

On the Ma'an English website - representing the most educated, secular Palestinian Arabs - the death is being celebrated by commenters and the victim is being called a criminal.

Apparently, a checkpoint 30 meters away from the attack was removed recently, and the area has been the scene of other attempted attacks in recent weeks and days - which most people don't hear about.

The story of a tablecloth

On Monday, at Sotheby's, the first part of a highly anticipated auction of Judaica - the Steinhardt Judaica Collection - was held.

While there are exquisite pieces of all types, including a beautiful illustrated Mishneh Torah worth millions of dollars, today's auction included an unanticipated bidding war over a 19th century tablecloth.

The estimated price for this piece was between $20,000 and $30,000. It sold for an astonishing $137,000.

Here is what it looks like and the explanation:

This colorful Sabbath tablecloth embroidered with images of the holy sites of Israel is one of an exceptional group of decorative textiles created in the Holy Land in the nineteenth century. In the central panel, the artist has featured an idealized vision of the sacred sites of the Temple Mount; the Midrash Shlomo (Solomon’s school) Bet Ha-Mikdash (The Temple) and the Kotel ha-Maaravi (the Western Wall). Surrounding the central panel are ten pavilions each denoting a tomb of one of the famous men or sages of Israel. In addition, the well of Miriam is also depicted and a fanciful chained lion represents the tomb of Rabbi Solomon Luria (known by his acronym as Ha-Ari = the Lion). In the outside corners are depictions of the tombs of Rachel, Samuel, Hulda the prophetess and the Kings of the House of David. Several prayers recited on Friday evening at the start of the Sabbath meal, (including Shalom Aleichem) are decoratively inscribed in concentric circles.

Scholarly research has identified a total of only nine clothes created in this style; these include seven highly similar tablecloths:
1. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. First half of the nineteenth century (161/58)
2. The Jewish Museum, London. First half of the nineteenth century (no. 366)
3. The Jewish Museum, New York. First half of the nineteenth century (F1789)
4. The Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Dated 1850 (755-1900)
5. The Wolfson Museum Heichal Shlomo, Jerusalem. Dated 1906 (#2185)
6. The Wolfson Museum Heichal Shlomo, Jerusalem. Early twentieth century (#257)
7. The Jewish Museum of Greece, nineteenth century

and one related Torah Ark Curtain in the collection of the Jewish Museum, London (#53).

The present cloth is the only one of this group to be both signed by an artist, Nachman the son of Hillel the Yerushalmi, as well as dated, 1821. More importantly, it is both the earliest example of this genre as well as one of the earliest extant dated objects of Judaica to be created in Jerusalem in the modern period.

Why would a tablecloth sell for such an astonishing amount?

Perhaps because this is simple yet powerful proof of the centrality of Jerusalem, and specifically the Temple Mount, to Jews - a truth that too many people nowadays downplay or ignore. The tablecloth also displays a small inkling of the richness of Jewish history in the Land of Israel, and it beautifully demonstrates how Jews and their land are inexorably linked.

(h/t D)

Monday Links Part 2

From Ian:

Boston bombers and 'liberal' cringe

Obviously, neither the Jews nor the American far right were responsible for the Boston marathon bombings, as some Middle-Eastern media outlets have hilariously claimed. In the West, blaming the Jews can be a sign of paranoia, but coming from the Middle-East, it’s usually a cynical tactic to appeal to those same Western paranoid types.
Judging by some British reporting of the Boston terrorist attack, one might get the impression that the British liberal media establishment wished it could blame anyone but those involved – Chechen jihadists.

Multiculturalism and the Decline of American Values

Liberal academia has always displayed a notoriously poor track record of anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism. So it should come as no surprise then that professor emeritus of international law and practice at Princeton University and United Nations Human Rights “expert” on Palestine, Richard Falk, declared moral bankruptcy on Tuesday, when he blamed the Boston terrorist attack on America.

Barry Rubin: The Truths About Terrorism Whose Names They Dare Not Speak

The current conventional wisdom about terrorism, Islamism, and the Middle East is being bent, but not broken, by two events. On one hand, there is the Boston bombing; on the other hand, developments in Syria and to a lesser extent Egypt. What’s happening?
In the Middle East, the misbehavior of Islamist movements is becoming more apparent. In Egypt, there is the repression of the Muslim Brotherhood regime, which may actually intend to create a non-democratic Sharia state! Parallel behavior in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Tunisia, and Turkey is under-reported but occasionally surfaces.

Harriet Sherwood and Phoebe Greenwood take steps towards understanding Palestinian incitement

As such, it was encouraging to read a recent story by the Guardian’s Harriet Sherwood, entitled ’Gaza schoolboys being trained to use Kalashnikovs‘, April 28, which reports on news that Hamas is now providing Gaza schools with military training for young boys. The program, which includes the use of firearms and explosives, will likely be extended to girls next year.

BBC discovers the word antisemitism

In the ‘Sussex’ category of the ‘England’ section of the UK page on the BBC News website we find a report entitled “Crowborough UKIP candidate Anna-Marie Crampton suspended” dated April 25th. Somewhat surprisingly – given its record when reporting similar recent cases of antisemitic remarks made by other politicians and public figures in the UK – this time the BBC has found itself able to accurately describe the nature of the statements made.

Polish politician to receive Elie Wiesel Award

Bartoszewski was a former Auschwitz concentration camp prisoner, the Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs and an honorary citizen of Israel. He is currently the Secretary of State in the Prime Minister’s Office. During the World War II, Bartoszewski was involved in the rescue of Jews for which he received the Righteous Among the Nations medal from Yad Vashem in Israel.

Israeli startup powers the sensors that power agriculture

Sensor-based innovations are helping farmers grow more food, and Sol-Chip’s technology is helping them do it more efficiently

Int'l Company Brings Optic Solution for Bandwidth Challenges

The Ciena company has announced the launch of its new network architecture, aimed at bringing a solution to bandwidth challenges.

What Israel Did for IBM and What IBM Did for Israel

An interview with Meir Nissensohn, former general manager of IBM in Israel.
Doug interviews Meir Nissensohn, former general manager of IBM in Israel. Mr. Nissensohn explains why IBM came to Israel, what investment opportunities Israel offers to large, multinational companies and what these companies can give to Israel in return. Also find out why Israel has so many startup companies and why businesses and the Israeli economy continue to prosper on the second part of this week’s Goldstein on Gelt podcast.

Several Israelis "discreetly" visited Tunisia during Djerba pilgrimage

This past weekend Jews from throughout the world descended to Djerba, Tunisia for an annual pilgrimage festival to the ancient El Ghriba synagogue there.

Tunisian authorities pulled out all the stops to ensure that the event would not be marred by violence or terror
attacks. Tourism is an important part of the Tunisian economy, and tourists are skittish about visiting in wake of the Islamist government there, so the leaders wanted to be especially careful about this event - because if Jews can visit Tunisia safely, all the more so should everyone else feel safe there.

According to one Egyptian site, about 20 Israelis of Tunisian origin managed to "discreetly "visit during the weekend as well, flying via Rome to Tunisia.

There are a number of groups in Tunisia that oppose "normalization with the Zionist enemy" and they tried to add a paragraph to the new constitution to criminalize any contact with Israel.

By the way, there was also at least one Jewish pilgrimage to Morocco yesterday; my guess is that it was to the grave of Rabbi Amram ben Diwan although there are a number of such pilgrimages on Lag B'Omer in Morocco.

Ha'aretz allows antisemitic comments on its Facebook page

For the past nine days, on Ha'aretz' Facebook page, you can see comments like:

I recall 100 million Christians being killed last century by Jewish Bolshiveks

Maybe you also forgot about the Armenian Holocaust in 1915? The event the coined the term "genocide" The 1.5 million who were slaughtered by the "Young Turks" who in fact were all Crypto-Donmeh Jews.

Heil Hitler, I wish he was still around! At least Israel would have not existed.

Granted, there are many idiots on Facebook, from all sides, and it is hard to police every comment.

But a year ago, Haaretz slammed Binyamin Netanyahu for allowing racist comments on his Facebook page in the hours after he expressed his condolences for a horrific crash that killed ten Arabs. And they also condemned Walla for allowing similarly disgusting comments.

Netanyahu expressed sorrow over the accident, but his aides did not remove the racist comments from his Facebook page or denounce them.

Eventually, the comments were removed from Netanyahu's page.

So why exactly are hate statements considered unacceptable by Ha'aretz for some online forums - but perfectly OK on Ha'aretz' own page? Is Ha'aretz not obligated to remove or denounce hate statements on its own forums?

Or is Ha'aretz-style morality only applicable to people it doesn't like?

(h/t Miguel)

If only we understood their motivations, we can soothe their anger!

Another loss for Ha'aretz

I noticed today that Avi Issacharoff, one of Ha'aretz' few remaining good reporters, now writes for Times of Israel.

Curious as to when his last article for Ha'aretz was, I looked at Google News and found this:

But clicking on the link one finds that Issacharoff's name has been scrubbed from the article!

Classy! Far from acting like the "New York Times of Israel," this is the sort of stunt that one would expect to see from the National Enquirer of Israel.

Perhaps this helps explain why Ha'aretz' website analytics have been going steadily down while Times of Israel's has been on its way up:

Monday Links Part 1

From Ian:

UN Watch: Victory: UN Reverses Course, Condemns Richard Falk
Falk defenders lash out: “UN Watch crafted the smoking gun, better watch itself”

Falk’s defenders, outraged at UN Watch, have now begun to rally, lashing out against us in lengthy manifestos. “UN Watch crafts the smoking gun,” screams a headline on Mondoweiss, a leading anti-Israel website. “UN Watch Better Watch Itself,” warns the headline of an essay by Jeremy Hammond, the publisher of Falk’s article.
Why are they so angry?
Because thanks to UN Watch pressure, their hero, the world body’s most vicious hater of America, Israel, and Western democratic society, was exposed, denounced, and shamed by world leaders—including by the head of the United Nations himself. And rightfully so.

UN’s Disgraced Richard Falk to be Honored Tomorrow by Famed US Financier in Beirut

A famous San Francisco tech finance pioneer is being called upon to cancel his sponsorship of a lecture tomorrow night that will honor a UN official who was denounced by world leaders last week for suggesting that the Boston bombings were somehow the fault of the U.S. and Israel.

Richard Falk’s Publisher ‘Foreign Policy Journal’ is just a 1-man, Truther-run website

In reality, “Foreign Policy Journal” appears to be a one-man website, dedicated to extremist anti-American and anti-Israeli rants, with that one man, Jeremy R. Hammond, who describes himself as self-employed and living in Cross Village, Michigan, being a prolific 9/11 Truther.

VIDEO: Ken Livingstone makes excuses for Boston bombers

Labour's former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, has used his Press TV pulpit to make anti-imperialist excuses on behalf of the Boston bombers

Bombers’ mother told older son to go to ‘Palestine’

In a conversation tapped by Russian authorities, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva suggested that her sons go to Palestine during a discussion about jihad. The Russian security service intercepted the 2011 phone conversation as part of a wider monitoring programme, the fruits of which have now been turned over to US officials.

Glenn Greenwald on the sage foreign policy wisdom of the ‘Underwear Bomber’

In addition to smearing as ‘Islamophobic’ anyone who suggested, in the early hours and days of the investigation into the attack which left 3 dead and over 200 injured, that the culprits may be Islamists, his reaction once it seemed clear that the terrorists were radicalized Chechnyan Muslims was to argue, in a fashion similar to Richard Falk, that such attacks should ‘inspire’ us to reflect on US policy in the Mid-East.

European activist attacks IDF officer in Hebron

A Palestinian youth and a European activist were arrested by IDF soldiers near Hebron on Sunday for throwing rocks.
According to the IDF, the foreign activist resisted arrest and attempted to grab an officer’s weapon. He also reportedly attacked another IDF soldier before being subdued.

Hamas terrorist gets 24 yrs for shootings, bombings

IDF announces the Samaria Military Court convicts Muhammed Haruyash for involvement in and attempts to carry out terror attacks.

Syrian PM 'Survives Damascus Car Bombing'

Syrian Prime Minister Wael al-Halaqi survived a bomb attack that targeted his convoy in central Damascus on Monday.

Oren: Syria Military Action 'Very,Very Complex’

Oren said air strikes on chemical weapons bases pose a risk of collateral damage to civilians if agent is dispersed, and under international law the attacker would be at fault.
"That's why Israel is not making, urging any action by the United States in Syria, because we understand the complexity of it and we share the concerns of the United States and our neighbors," Oren said on Fox News Sunday.

What is the Motivation Behind Erdogan Visiting Gaza and Snubbing Kerry?

In the same manner as countless Middle Eastern leaders before him, Erdogan figures that going on the offensive on the Palestinian front will win him back some much-needed credibility. According to Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, the purpose of Erdogan’s trip is to secure precisely the outcome that the U.S. and the PA fear will be set back—namely, reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas.

Defected Syrian general confirms chemical weapons use, says Iran helping weaponize them

Al Arabiya in English reports:

The Syrian government ordered the use chemical weapons against the Free Syrian Army (FSA) during select battles with Syrian regime forces, a defected general told Al Arabiya late Saturday.

A former army general from the chemical weapons branch, Zahir al-Sakit, said he was instructed to use chemical weapons during a regime battle with the FSA in the southwestern area of Hauran.

But instead, Sakit disobeyed the orders and swapped the chemicals with disinfectant water he called “Javel water.”

“I was given orders to execute the use of poisonous chemicals in caves and tunnels that are used by the Free Syrian Army, but I mixed all chemicals with water and used Javel water instead,” Sakit said.

According to Sakit, prior to his defection, no chemical weapons were used on his watch in battles against the FSA.

“I assure you that I ordered all chemical weapons to be buried and I can point out the exact locations of those chemicals,” Sakit added.

His actual interview in Arabic, however, also says that he knows specifically where and when chemical weapons have been used by Syria:

Following are excerpts from an interview with Syrian army defector Brigadier-general Zaher Al-Saket, former head of chemical warfare in the 5th division, which aired on Al-Arabiya TV on April 27, 2013:

Zaker Al-Saket: There are three types of chemical weapons: harassing chemical agents, incapacitating agents, and lethal agents. When the demonstrations started, the regime used harassing agents, like any country in the world using tear gas to disperse demonstrations. As for incapacitating and lethal chemical agents - the regime used incapacitating agents at first, but when the world remained silent about this, and the regime thought that the international community did not care, it used lethal [chemical] weapons in more than 13 locations. The last incident was in Utaybah. The regime used sarin gas on three occasions, and I am increasingly afraid that they will use agents more powerful than sarin. They have VX gas and mustard gas, also known as iprit.
[…]
The regime's accusation that the opposition has used chemical weapons is the most compelling proof that the regime itself has used them, because the opposition does not have the means to use chemical weapons. The means of using chemical weapons are known to the whole world: airplanes, missiles, helicopters, and artillery. Worst still, this regime has binary chemical weapons. The world must understand that there are binary chemical weapons in Syria, and [Bashar Al-Assad] will use them against his people, because he is the Nero of our age.

Binary chemical weapons consist of two non-toxic agents, which are placed in incubators that are loaded onto artillery shells. Then, the shells are launched, and when the two agents mix, a toxic substance is formed.
[…]
[Al Assad] has a complete arsenal of chemical weapons. Some came from the former USSR, and some are being manufactured right now.
[…]
Iranian experts are working with Syrian officers in the Mazzeh military airport. They manufacture incubators for the toxic substances, which will be loaded onto warheads carried by airplanes. When these warheads hit the ground, they release a toxic cloud.
[…]
I was given an order to use these substances, but I replaced them with liquid bleach. This was the reason for my defection from Al-Assad's army.
[…]
In the Amoud Horan battle in Busra Al-Harir, I was given an order to launch toxic agents into the trenches and caves to which the F.S.A. was heading. But, Allah be praised, I replaced this substance with liquid bleach, which I diluted with water and launched into the trenches.
[…]
I buried these substances with my own hands, so my commander would not find out and send me to prison.
[…]
In Utaybah, near the Damascus international airport, the regime used sarin gas three times, because it is close to the airport. The next time chemical weapons were used was in Khan Al-Assal. First, they used incapacitating agents, and then they used lethal agents, because the F.S.A. forces had managed to reach the military academy, which is the main regime stronghold.
[…]
The chemical weapons are kept in heavily fortified places in the mountains. I know exactly where they are.
[…]
The U.S. can seize control of these weapons right now, but if I reveal their location in the media, they will vanish immediately.
[…]
The chemical weapons are kept in several places: In Aleppo, in the Hama region, in Damascus, and in Latakia. The chemical weapons are there.

Many media outlets reported the sanitized Al Arabiya version, but none seem to have noticed that the full interview was more damning.

Hamas and Fatah "unity" sham goes on - and Fatah leaders get bombed

Hamas and Fatah are still trying to negotiate a framework for negotiating a way for them to have meetings that are meant to lead to more talks to give gullible observers the pretense that they are interested in unification.

The latest is that some mid-level members of Hamas and Fatah will meet in Cairo to discuss the composition of an interim government even though they disagree on whether or when actual elections should take place after the supposed creation of this government. The talks are described as "crucial."

Prime minister Fayyad has not been replaced, and he is seemingly still doing what he was doing before he "resigned." Given how unlikely it is that Hamas and Fatah will agree on a new government soon, I think he will be the "outgoing prime minister" for months to come.

But to know how things really are doing between Hamas and Fatah, just check this out:

Assailants bombed the car of a Fatah leader in the southern Gaza Strip at dawn Monday, police said.

The attackers planted a 500-gram explosive device targeting the car of Monther al-Bardawil outside his home in Rafah, said police spokesman Ayman al-Bandakji.

Witnesses told Ma'an the explosion shook the neighborhood.

The Fatah official's car was damaged but no injuries were reported. Al-Bandakji said police had opened an investigation into the incident.

Earlier in April, assailants set fire to the car of Fatah's secretary-general in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.

Mahmud Hussein's car was torched outside his home in Rafah on April 18.

That is a more accurate barometer of how much Fatah and Hamas want to work together than any number of preliminary meetings.

Report: Qatari royal to visit Israel in November

Israel's business site Calcalist reports that Prince Khalifa Al-Thani, the a member of the royal family of Qatar, is expected to visit Israel this November. This would be the first official visit of the Qatari royal family to Israel, and is meant to promote high-tech cooperation between Qatar and Israel.

Al-Thani will visit Israel to launch the Israel-Palestine Commercial Arbitration Center (also known as the Jerusalem Arbitration Center), a venture led by the President of the International Chamber of Commerce Oren Shachor and Palestinian Arab businessman Munib al-Masri, which is meant to solve disputes between Israeli and Palestinian businesses for amounts of up to seven million shekels.

There are unofficial trade relations between Israel and Qatar but they generally do not include high-tech products. According to the Calcalist, the Qatari government is interested in strengthening its local high-tech sector by acquiring knowledge and technology and by encouraging the Israeli high-tech companies to export jobs and development projects to Qatar, rather than to India or Eastern Europe.

Al Thani and Shachor

The visit was set during a meeting last weekend between Al Thani and Shachor to promote commercial relations between the two countries. The prince is considered very close to the Emir and other Qatari leaders.

Qatar has been in the forefront of sending aid to Hamas-ruled Gaza, both fuel and building materials.

"Summer marriages" (Islamic prostitution) booming in Egypt under MB rule

From Now Lebanon:

Rich Gulf nationals go to Hawamidiyya, especially during the summer, to contract marriages for a definite period of time in return for a meager amount of money, some of which goes to the broker. The rest goes to the family of a young woman, often a virgin under 18 years of age, so that a rich man about the same age as her father can have sex with her while on vacation in Egypt.

During the years before the 2011 revolution, women’s and human rights organizations in Egypt followed several courses of action in their struggle to end such practices, including awareness-raising marches in areas where ‘tourism marriage’ is popular, in order to disseminate the dangers it entails. Rights groups have also advocated the promulgation of a law that criminalizes marriages if either one of the spouses is under 18 years of age. However, these efforts regressed after the revolution and such practices came back with a vengeance, against a backdrop of economic crisis and weak local authorities. Illegal practices, like changing the young woman’s age through falsified medical evidence attesting that she is over 18 years of age has also become widespread.

The growing phenomenon of ‘tourism marriage’ in Egypt’s governorates and towns was profiled in the US Department of State report on human trafficking last year, which estimated the number of such marriages to be in the hundreds. According to the report, “minor girls are entering into temporary marriages with Arab Gulf tourists during the summer in return for money” with “underage girls being taken into sexual slavery and forced to work as servants.”

Dr. Hoda Badran, president of the Egyptian Women’s Union, told NOW that poverty is the main factor behind the spread of this phenomenon, asserting that “tourism marriage is a form of slavery or of selling women.” Badran explained that she met with several “summer wives,” some of whom gave birth to children and struggled to inform the husband of his paternity. ‘Tourism marriage’ victims may have to abandon their newborns at an orphanage or childcare center so as not to become an ‘outcast’among her family members, the same people who may have sold her in the first place.

Nohad Abu al-Qomsan, president of the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights, told NOW: “Slavery and servitude have acquired a legitimate cover in some countries, including that of summer marriage, which has spread in many Egyptian villages, not only in Hawamidiyya, due to poverty and other pretexts.” Qomsan noted that, in many cases, a girl is married off several times in a sort span of time without heeding the customary waiting period, which might cause confusion as to the identity of the child’s father.

Qomsan argued that some Islamists want to “turn the poor into a pool of abominations, which can be traded on the pleasure market, with clients seeking multiple wives or marriage for pleasure.” She also underscored the phenomenon of marrying displaced Syrian women in Egypt.

This has been a problem for years, but there was some headway being made against the phenomenon before the Islamists took over Egypt. Now it appears to be back.

More Arabs move to Jewish neighborhoods than vice versa in Jerusalem

The world is up in arms over Jews moving to "East Jerusalem," with countless articles about this "illegal" settlement of Jews in Israel's capital city.

But there is a curious silence about Arabs who have been streaming into Jewish neighborhoods of Jerusalem. Not Arab citizens of Israel, but Arabs from across the Green Line who refuse citizenship but are still moving into the "Jewish" part of the city.

Israel's Channel 10 counts 2,537 Jews who moved to "Arab" parts of "east Jerusalem" - and 3,378 Arabs who are not even Israeli citizens who moved to "Jewish" neighborhoods.

Some move because it is cheaper, and less time consuming than waiting for building permits. Yet, even though there is some opposition to the moves by some Jews, this shows yet again that the idea that there is anti-Arab "apartheid" in Jerusalem is a lie.

(h/t Yoel)

Despite threats from haters, St. Andrews holds "Matzah Ball" party

As mentioned in Friday's linkdump, a hotel in Scotland canceled a Friday night party sponsored by two Jewish college organizations at St. Andrews after receiving threats from Israel haters upset that two of the charities that stood to benefit from the ball were Friends of the IDF and the JNF.

I had received word on Friday that the event would go on, but I was asked not to provide any details so the haters couldn't organize against it.

Here is what happened:

A charity ball held last night and organised by St Andrews’ AEPI Jewish fraternity and the Jewish Society was forced to change location from the Golf Hotel after staff received threats from protesters linked to the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign and several other activist groups.

The activists called for the event organisers and hotel to end their support for two charities, the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and the Friends of Israel Defence Forces (FIDF). Protestors labelled the JNF an “openly racist” organisation, claiming that the JNF takes over Palestinian land and does not lease or sell land to non-Jews. They also described the FIDF as an “occupation force that brutalises, humiliates, kills and maims Palestinians.”

Two days before the event was due to take place, the Golf Hotel cancelled the event over safety concerns. Fears arose that the protest would turn violent when anti-Semitic comments were posted on Facebook. One protester wrote: “Friday we send them into hell.” Another, commenting on the police’s presence at the ball, said: “Mi5 Mossad boot boys don’t stand a chance.”

We Are All Hana Shalabi, Scotland’s Youth and Student Palestine Solidarity Movement and one of the organisations connected with the protest, told The Saint that they had urged the hotel not to host to event but denied that those who threatened staff were linked to the official demonstration.

“We are encouraged that the call for the Golf Hotel to withdraw its support for the event was heeded, it illustrates the increasing anathemitisation of organisations such as FIDF and the JNF, and the scale of opposition to their activities.

The hotel only canceled because of the threats - and the haters are pretending that that their thuggish tactics had anything to do with it!

However, despite the reports, The Saint can reveal that the ball took place at a secret location. Guests were not told the venue but were picked up by taxis from pubs and bars around St Andrews. Six members of security were provided for the event, some of whom, a senior member of the organising committee told The Saint, were plain clothed police officers.

A spokesperson for Police Scotland confirmed that “appropriate measures” were taken in case there were protests but she would not confirm if plain clothed officers were present. Guests were asked at the door not to tweet or post on Facebook details of the venue.

The senior member of the organising committee told The Saint: “The safety and security of our guests was always our first priority and we worked closely with St Andrews police, a private security firm and volunteers to ensure that the event could go ahead as planned.

“At no point was the event cancelled and we are delighted that it was such a success, both in terms of the amounts raised for charity and the enjoyment of all our guests.”

The organisers had initially aimed to raise around £350 from the event. However, the change of venue and donations received from those who sympathised with the threatened students resulted in a final total of around £1,000. One man donated £230 to cover security and taxi costs to and from the venue to ensure the safety of guests.

A senior member of the Jewish society said she felt disgusted that the protesters had turned to threats of violence rather than engage the organisers in an open dialogue. She said: “I am a firm believer in freedom of expression but the problem came with their extremely offensive comments.

“They latched onto a party of 35 friends and decided that it was a massive Jewish conspiracy. I’ve lived in Israel, I’ve worked in Palestinian communities and I’ve never felt more threatened in my life by people who don’t even know who I am,” she said.

She described the Golf Hotel’s decision to cancel the event as “pathetic.” She added: “They [the Golf Hotel] had no right to violate their part of the contract. The Golf Hotel is scared of them. A victory does not come from bullying people into submission, it comes from engaging people and opening their minds.”

After speaking to Niall Thompson, the Golf Hotel’s manager, Paul Morron of the Glasgow Jewish Representative Council reportedly said: “I conveyed the extent of the concern of the Jewish community that a hotel of its stature had caved in so easily to intimidation – something that would damage its reputation.”

“I contacted Inspector Meek, of St Andrews Police, and he told me that they had not had any serious concerns about policing the event.

“We regard this as a very serious incident, setting a worrying precedent in Scotland. “It’s not up to others to dictate to the Jewish community what charities they should support. That’s just not acceptable.”

Scottish Jewish Chaplaincy chairman Nicola Livingston added: “Students should be allowed to go about their ordinary business without fear of intimidation.

“This was purely a social event. Most of the charities are welfare ones, including Save a Child’s Heart, which saves the lives of children from around the world, including Palestinian children.

“Giving in to bully-boy tactics doesn’t do the reputation of the hotel any good at all.”

Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan discriminating against Syria refugees of Palestinian descent

Al Ahram reports:

Dozens of Palestinians refugees fleeing violence in Syria protested at the Palestinian embassy in Cairo, demanding better treatment from Palestinian and Egyptian authorities.

Gathering under a banner reading “don’t kill us twice,” Palestinian refugees began their open ended sit-in before the Palestinian embassy in Egypt on Tuesday morning, demanding to be recognised as refugees by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Children held signs spelling out the slogan while protestors broke out in various chants, including "down with the Ambassador." In the afternoon, protestors said they were threatened by police, who told them that “thugs” in the neighbourhood might attack them. Embassy bodyguards also secured the perimeters.

Frustrated over being denied refugee status by UNCHR, protestors, who previously lived in refugee camps in Syria, say that they should be given the same rights as Syrian refugees in Egypt.

“They [protestors] cannot register themselves as refugees. They can't put their children in schools. They’re not given healthcare nor do they have any kind of humanitarian services,” Hanine Hassan, organiser and Palestinian human rights activist said at the sit-in.

UNHCR cannot register the refugees because the Egyptian government does not officially recognise them as such. The agency refused to comment, saying that the matter lies entirely with Egyptian authorities.

Egypt is not one of the states that UNRWA works in, which means that the refugees from Syria who are ostensibly "Palestinian" have no agency that can help them.

But UNRWA's existence is not making Syria refugees of PalArab descent any more comfortable in Lebanon:

Palestinian refugees who have fled violence in Syria held their weekly sit-in outside UNRWA office in the Beddawi Palestinian refugee camp in north Lebanon, demanding the U.N. agency to do more.

With the tragic living conditions of Palestinians continuing to deteriorate in the camp, the protesters entered the UNRWA offices and disrupted work for two hours.

Representatives of the popular committees and institutions took part in the protest and demanded the U.N. carry out its duty in aiding the refugees, and devise an emergency plan aimed at providing temporary shelter or offer them allowances for rent.

The protesters also demanded health care coverage and the enrollment of Palestinians children in UNRWA-run schools and help college students.

UNRWA has said that more than 40,000 Palestinians from Syria had registered with the agency while activists estimate some 10,000 had not approached UNRWA.

Most of the refugees, who fled after the Yarmuk Refugee Camp in Syria was bombarded last year, are currently living in or near one of the country’s already overcrowded 12 refugee camps.

They warned they would take escalatory measures by threatening to enter the office of the UNRWA head, and forcefully turn schools and U.N. institutions into temporary shelters if UNRWA fails to meet their demands, primarily rent allowance.

Jordan also singles out Palestinian Arabs from Syria for "special" treatment:

Faced with surging numbers of shell-shocked Syrian refugees, Jordanian forces have begun turning Palestinian families away at the border, forcing them to return to a country ravaged by a ruthless dictator and to a civil war with no end in sight.

In a facility known as Cyber City near the border city of Ramtha in Jordan, 200 Palestinian families await their fate. Many of them have already been turned away from the neighboring Zaatari camp, which has stopped accepting anyone without Syrian identification. Anyone with a Palestinian ID is automatically directed to Cyber City, where they are detained until approved for asylum status. Eyewitnesses say the facility looks like a worn-down, six-story dormitory, its occupants forbidden from stepping outside its walls for any length of time.

At Salon, Bill Frelick of Human Rights Watch and Meera Shah at Harvard Law School's International Human Rights Clinic describe the camp's deplorable conditions. In some cases, four families are squashed into one room -- and those are the families that have managed to stay together. The authors spoke with a Syrian refugee who recounted what the Jordanian authorities told him as he approached the border with his family:

"You can come, but she is not allowed because she's Palestinian." I told them our house is burned down and that we have no house to go back to. The Border Patrol officer said, 'That is not our problem.' I begged him. My wife and children were begging and crying not to be sent back. He said, 'It is impossible,' and put us in a military vehicle and took us to the border."

According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, close to 4,569 Palestinians from Syria have managed to enter Jordan since the conflict in Syria began. But the number that have been turned away at the border is estimated to be significantly larger. However distressing, the government of Jordan has made no secret of its harsh policy of refusal. In October, Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour announced the plan in the Arabic-language daily Al-Hayat, "Jordan has made a clear and explicit sovereign decision to not allow the crossing to Jordan by our Palestinian brothers who hold Syrian documents."

The common denominator is that a decision made some six decades ago to treat Palestinian Arab refugees differently from every other refugee in the world has repercussions, today. Two UN agencies, with differing goals, differing definitions, differing rules, different mandates and different budgets being played against each other and the entire Arab world happily discriminating against one type of refugee - all because they want to ensure that Palestinian Arabs remain miserable and stateless.

Sunday Links

From Ian:

Obama understands that Abbas doesn't want peace deal

"U.S. President Barack Obama understands today that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is not interested in reaching an agreement with Israel," a senior Israeli diplomatic source has said.
According to the official, a regular participant in policy-making, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is willing to make significant progress toward a peace deal, but "everybody knows" that Abbas will not allow this.

Italian Jews irked by Abbas’s honor in Naples

PA president ‘denied the Holocaust… and never distanced himself from Palestinian terrorist attacks,’ says prominent rabbi

PA’s ‘Moderate’ Fayyad Calls to Free All Terrorists

PA second-in-command says it is wrong to imprison Arabs for terrorism against Israel.
The Palestinian Authority’s outgoing Prime Minister, Salam Fayyad, called Saturday to free all PA resident Arabs imprisoned in Israel. Many are serving time for terror-related offenses, including murder and attempted murder; some were imprisoned for other violent crimes including assault and rape.

Marathon as political warfare

Palestinian Olympic committee member Itidal Abdul- Ghani told The Times of Israel on April 22, a day after the race, that “Israelis weren’t welcome to join the marathon while their military occupies Palestinian lands.” Haaretz reported that a number of Israeli runners were turned back and their registration fees returned.

Connecting the dots: Hezbollah, Iran’s web of plots

As the European Union grapples with a ban of the Lebanese Shi’ite organization Hezbollah within its territory, reports emerged last week of foiled Iranian and Hezbollah terror and criminal plots against targets spanning Bulgaria, Nepal, Canada and the US.
Will the mushrooming patchwork of global terrorism push the EU to include Hezbollah in its terror list? An EU designation could deal a one-two punch to the Lebanese group and its chief proxy Iran.

Bosnia expels two Iranian diplomats

Minister of security declares Iranian embassy secretaries "persona non grata"; unclear involvement in past terrorist plots.

Richard Millett: Jon Snow lunges for my phone while I question him about his “Jewish lobby” comment.

Last night Channel 4 news presenter Jon Snow was at the London School of Economics to chair a panel of hardcore anti-Israel polemicists but as I was questioning him face to face about his own use of the term “the Jewish lobby” (Clip 1 below) he violently grabbed my mobile phone attempting to dislodge it from my hand accusing me of trying to secretly record our conversation. He then repeatedly called me “a creep” and claimed a breach of his human rights.

US, Israel plotting to oust Assad by June, Iranian official claims

Legislator in Tehran warns that American intervention would result in blowback against Jewish state

Syrian Army Ordered Chemical Weapons Use, Says Defected General

Syrian regime ordered use chemical weapons against the Free Syrian Army during select battles, a defected general told Al Arabiya.

IDF: Preparing for the unthinkable

Although millions of Israelis who are busy with the routine of daily life don’t feel it, there are 200,000 rockets and missiles pointed at the country’s population, and any future war could involve an initial onslaught of enemy projectiles.
Additionally, while the probability of a missile or terrorist attack on Israel involving unconventional weapons is very low, the threat cannot be dismissed out of hand.

This 1,000-Year-Old Minaret Was Destroyed in Aleppo Syria Last Week

With few signs of international action to stop the terrible harm to flesh and blood, we add another reminder here of the catastrophe: the great destruction to the mortar and stone of Syria's magnificent historical heritage. The minaret was built almost 1,000 years ago as part of Aleppo's Great Mosque.

Beirut bans award-winning Lebanese film shot in Israel

Doueiri dismissed the ban as "foolish and unfair", and noted that several Palestinian films shot in Israel with Israeli actors "and even with Israeli financing.. were allowed to screen in Lebanon."
"Why them and not this film? Are the Lebanese supposed to carry the Palestinian flag higher than the Palestinians themselves?" Doueiri asked.

Draining cash, Egypt on $30 billion search for aid

Egypt’s need for funds is dire. After the 2011 uprising that toppled Mubarak, foreign investment in Egypt shriveled and tourism — a top revenue source — took a heavy blow. Neither has recovered since, with investors and tourists still scared away by the country’s unrest and political uncertainty.

Record attendance at J'lem ANZAC Day ceremony

Aussie ambassador at the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery: Peace and goodwill can flow from even the fiercest of conflicts.
It is customary for Australian and New Zealand diplomats to hold commemorative services for the ANZACs in the countries in which they served, and to pay tribute not only to them but to Australian and New Zealand Forces wherever they have served and died since.

Israel Daily Picture: Jews Celebrate Lag B'Omer This Week.

How was it commemorated 90 years ago?
Today Jews around the world are celebrating Lag B'Omer, the end of a month-long mourning period when traditional Jews refrain from weddings or joyous gatherings.

Did Jews rule Jerusalem in 614 CE?

One of the reasons given for today's Lag B'Omer celebrations is to commemorate the Bar Kochba revolt of 132-136 CE. Most Jews believe that this was the last time of Jewish sovereignty over the land of Israel before the 1948 War of Independence.

However, there may have been another brief period of Jewish sovereignty over Jerusalem, many centuries later.

In "A History of the Jewish People" by Haim Hillel be-Sasson, we learn:

In the last days of Byzantine rule over the Land of Israel the Jews made an attempt to exploit the rivalry between the powers ruling the orient - Persia, Byzantium and Rome - in order to regain their political independence. For hundreds of years they had repeatedly hoped that the redemption of the Jewish people would come with the conquest of Palestine by Persia; and now the time seemed to have arrived. At the beginning of the seventh century, the Persians set out on their conquests in the East, and in the year 614 they reached the borders of Palestine. Their approach set off a powerful messianic fermentation, which is reflected in several works written at the time whose theme is the Redemption. The Armenian historian Sebeos reported (Chapter XXIV): 'As the Persians approached Palestine, the remnants of the Jewish nation rose against the Christians, joined the Persians and made common cause with them.' The Jews assisted the invaders materially in their conquest of Galilee. From there the invading army turned to Caesarea and continued its conquests down to Apollonia, then eastwards to Lydda and from there to Jerusalem, which was captured in May 614. Jewish forces also took part in the conquest of Jerusalem. Sophronius, a contemporary monk who lived near Bethlehem, wrote in a poem: 'God-seeking strangers and citizens of the city [Jerusalem]; . When they faced the Persians and their Hebrew friends/Hastened to close the city gates.'

The Persians handed Jerusalem over to Jewish settlers, who proceeded with the expulsion of the Christians and the removal of their churches. At the head of Jerusalem stood a leader whom we know only by his messianic name: Nehemiah ben Hushiel ben Ephraim ben Joseph. The sacrificial cult may even have been resumed. Jewish rule in Jerusalem lasted three years. In 617 there was a reversal of Persian policy. For reasons that are not sufficiently clear, the Persians made peace with the Christians. The Jews, on the other hand, did not, and the Persian authorities were forced to fight them: 'And they waged war against the saints and brought down many of them. and Shiroi [the king of Persia] stabbed Nehemiah ben Hushiel. and sixteen of the just were killed together with him (Book of Zerubabel, page 101).

There are other accounts of this episode as well.

The Jews saw another opportunity to take back Jerusalem in the early seventh century, just before the rise of Islam. The Persians conquered what had been Judea from the Byzantine Empire, capturing Jerusalem in 614 CE. The Armenian historian Sebeos described the Jews' reaction to the Persian campaign: "As the Persians approached Palestine, the remnants of the Jewish nation rose against the Christians, joined the Persians and made common cause with them." The Persians even installed a Jew, Nehemiah ben Hushiel ben Ephraim ben Joseph, to rule the city.

But this regime was short-lived. Hoping to accommodate their Roman Christian subjects, the Persians apparently withdrew their support for any Jewish self-government. Moreover, in 629 CE the Byzantine emperor Heraclius reconquered Jerusalem, where the former anti-Jewish edicts were again renewed. The city's new rulers banned public recital of Judaism's core prayer, the Shema, and executed many Jews or evicted them to neighboring countries. Five years later, the Byzantines required all the empire's Jews to become baptized. This harsh regime did not last long, however, for in 638 CE Muslim armies from Arabia conquered Jerusalem, thus opening a whole new chapter in the Holy City's history.

Thirteen hundred years would pass between the last Jewish self-government in Jerusalem in 614 and the establishment of a Jewish national home under the British that would later become the State of Israel. During that time, Jerusalem would remain the center of Jewish national aspirations as well as religious ritual. But the quest to return to Jerusalem was not left as an eschatological task for the distant future. Jews returned to Jerusalem whenever the bans on Jewish settlement were lifted; thus many Jews came back to the Holy City after the second caliph of Islam defeated the Byzantines, establishing a new Jewish Quarter that was populated until the First Crusade. Jerusalem's main Jewish synagogue in the first decades of Islamic rule, known as "the Cave," was located under the Temple Mount, at the point along the Western MA closest to the Holy of Holies.

The Jewish Encyclopedia does not mention this, however.

There aren't any pro-Western rebels in Syria. None.

From the NYT:

CAIRO — In Syria’s largest city, Aleppo, rebels aligned with Al Qaeda control the power plant, run the bakeries and head a court that applies Islamic law. Elsewhere, they have seized government oil fields, put employees back to work and now profit from the crude they produce.

Across Syria, rebel-held areas are dotted with Islamic courts staffed by lawyers and clerics, and by fighting brigades led by extremists. Even the Supreme Military Council, the umbrella rebel organization whose formation the West had hoped would sideline radical groups, is stocked with commanders who want to infuse Islamic law into a future Syrian government.

Nowhere in rebel-controlled Syria is there a secular fighting force to speak of.

Syrian officials recognize that the United States is worried that it has few natural allies in the armed opposition and have tried to exploit that with a public campaign to convince, or frighten, Washington into staying out of the fight. At every turn they promote the notion that the alternative to Mr. Assad is an extremist Islamic state.

The Islamist character of the opposition reflects the main constituency of the rebellion, which has been led since its start by Syria’s Sunni Muslim majority, mostly in conservative, marginalized areas. The descent into brutal civil war has hardened sectarian differences, and the failure of more mainstream rebel groups to secure regular arms supplies has allowed Islamists to fill the void and win supporters.

The religious agenda of the combatants sets them apart from many civilian activists, protesters and aid workers who had hoped the uprising would create a civil, democratic Syria.

When the armed rebellion began, defectors from the government’s staunchly secular army formed the vanguard. The rebel movement has since grown to include fighters with a wide range of views, including Qaeda-aligned jihadis seeking to establish an Islamic emirate, political Islamists inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood and others who want an Islamic-influenced legal code like that found in many Arab states.

“My sense is that there are no seculars,” said Elizabeth O’Bagy, of the Institute for the Study of War, who has made numerous trips to Syria in recent months to interview rebel commanders.

So much for the idea that Syria could possibly turn out OK in the foreseeable future. Either Assad will win - or radical Islamists. People still hoping for a secular, pro-Western state have been living in a fantasy world.

Seculars or those with a more pragmatic bent are going to get the hell out of the war zone, leaving nobody left but people who thrive on violence.

There are now 1.4 million refugees from Syria.

Fatah leader: "Jews do not follow any moral standard of conduct"

Classic antisemitism from our moderate Fatah friends:

Following are excerpts from an interview with Fatah Central Committee member Abbas Zaki, which aired on Al-Mayadeen TV on April 10, 2013:

Abbas Zaki: Many institutions have determined that Israel, in its stupidity, attacked the U.S. administration and was responsible for 9/11, and was greatly involved in it. In Europe, there are attacks on Jews these days. In 2011, there were 522 attacks. In 2012, there were 686 attacks. In other words, they caused an increase.

They do not abide by the law, they do not belong to the international community, and they do not follow any moral standard of conduct. So where does the strength of the Jews and Israel lie? Why does Obama want to change the constitution, and establish a Jewish state for all the Jews in the world? They exploit the weakness of the Arabs. The Arabs are non-existent. Therefore, we should negotiate on the basis of non-surrender, and rise to the challenge...

Abbas Zaki's cellphone rings

Interviewer: Saved by your cellphone...

Notice how Zaki uses the old excuse for antisemitism, that if people hate the Jews it must be because the Jews deserve it.

Zaki often speaks the truth about how "moderate" Palestinian Arabs think but he is too old to know how to censor himself (like substituting "Zionists" for "Jews.")

In the past, he has stated that forcing Israel to abandon Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria would be the first step in Israel's destruction:

With the two-state solution, in my opinion, Israel will collapse, because if they get out of Jerusalem, what will become of all the talk about the Promised Land and the Chosen People? What will become of all the sacrifices they made – just to be told to leave? They consider Jerusalem to have a spiritual status. The Jews consider Judea and Samaria to be their historic dream. If the Jews leave those places, the Zionist idea will begin to collapse. It will regress of its own accord. Then we will move forward...

Egyptian gunmen stop construction materials to Gaza

Arabic media are reporting that unidentified gunmen cut off the road between El Arish and Rafah to prevent the passage of vehicles filled with construction materials destined for the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing.

Many residents of the Sinai object to the introduction of building materials and other goods to the Gaza Strip worth millions of dollars, while the people of Sinai do not benefit from any aid themselves.

This especially rankled Egyptians in the Sinai because, in general, people living in the Sinai have a worse standard of living than Gazans do.

Egypt started allowing construction material to go through the Rafah crossing in recent months, a project bankrolled by Qatar to the tune of $400 million.

Rocket fire from Gaza steadily increasing

Tonight, as Israelis started their outdoor Lag B'Omer celebrations, a rocket from Gaza exploded in the Sdot Negev regional council.

After a two-month lull following Operation Pillar of Defense, the terror rocket attacks have been steadily increasing:

The 14 so far this month include 10 rockets and 4 mortars.

This does not include the Grad rockets from the Sinai to Eilat on April 17, or mortars that fell short in Gaza. Nor does it include the sporadic but also increasing fire from Syria.

By the way, tonight's rocket was described in the Fatah-leaning Palestine Press Agency as landing in "the settlement of Netivot in the south of the occupied Palestinian territories." Of course, this is within the Green line, showing that even the "moderate" Palestinian Arabs consider all of Israel to be "occupied."

Saturday Links

From Ian:

Sarah Honig: Another Tack: The lesson of April 26

It was less than three weeks before David Ben-Gurion would proclaim Israel independent but the Arabs were already plotting their invasion of the yet-to-be-born state. On that April 26 Transjordan’s King Abdullah announced belligerently that “The only way left for us is war. I will have the pleasure and honor to save Palestine.”

Barry Rubin: How Much Did U.S. Policymakers Learn about the Middle East in Forty Years? Some Proof

“Israeli pessimism seems largely if not entirely unwarranted. It seems based on an extraordinary lack of understanding of what happened in the Arab world in the last year and a half. Rather than girding their loins for the fifth, sixth, seventh Israeli-Arab wars. The Israelis might examine more carefully than they seem to have done so far the alternative of a peaceful accommodation with the Arabs."
This is not a reference to the "Arab Spring." No, it's from a dispatch sent from the U.S. embassy in Saudi Arabia, January 9, 1975. It concluded that the lack of peace in the Arab-Israeli conflict was Israel’s fault. That dispatch could be published—as we will see in a moment—word for word today, 38 years later, with just as little accuracy.

BDS – Belligerent, Disruptive and Silly

It is summertime in Israel and apart from expecting the influx of tourists who visit us every year, we are gearing up to welcome a plethora of famous faces that includes Depeche Mode, Cliff Richard, Alicia Keys, Rihanna and another lady you may have heard of (and in my opinion Jewish royalty) Ms Barbra Streisand. We are the start up nation – a natural investment haven for major technology brands like Apple, Google, Microsoft and others who see this as a R&D haven. But don’t take my word for it – ask Warren Buffett or Stephen Hawking…
Perhaps one of our fabulous start ups will invent some technology that will allow BDS activists to hear the anguished cries of our neighbours who wonder why nobody is paying attention to how their autocratic governments are trampling on their human rights…
Their failure to do so and their singling out of Israel for opprobrium just enforces the fact that they are belligerent, disruptive and downright silly!

Islamic Extremists vs. White Supremacists
We rightly condemn the KKK but fail to extend the judgment.

We do not hesitate to condemn utterly the behavior and the beliefs of the Ku Klux Klan (the perpetrators of this bombing and others) and their white-supremacist fellow travelers. We do not worry that reviling white supremacists and their grotesque deeds will somehow taint all white people. (Though some on the left won’t mind if you generalize about white people.)
But when it comes to other groups and other motives for the same kind of terrorism — we lose our moral focus. Bill Ayers, Bernardine Dohrn, and Kathy Boudin have become honored members of the faculties at leading universities. Ayers is even a friend of the president of the United States. Regarding his own record of setting bombs that kill and dismember innocent people, Ayers told the New York Times on the ironic date of September 11, 2001, that “I feel we didn’t do enough. . . . [There’s] a certain eloquence to bombs, a poetry and a pattern from a safe distance.” So says a retired “distinguished professor” at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Canada’s train terror plot raises deportation questions

Raed Jaser, a Palestinian arrested over alleged al-Qaeda-backed scheme, had been spared deportation in 2004 after his arrest

Bulgaria conducts reenactment of Burgas bombing

Bulgarian authorities conducted a reenactment of the Burgas bus bombing which claimed the lives of five Israelis and a Bulgarian bus driver last July, Bulgaria's state radio reported Friday. The two suspects, Hezbollah operatives, are still at large.

Europol: Hezbollah linked to 2012 Bulgaria bombing

The European Union’s police body, Europol, said in a report that “indications suggest possible links” between Hezbollah and a deadly terrorist attack in Bulgaria last year.
The statement, published Friday by the news site EuObserver, suggests Europol has adopted the findings of a six-month-long investigation by Bulgarian security services into the July 19, 2012 bombing of a bus of Israeli tourists in Burgas that left five Israelis and a Bulgarian dead and dozens wounded. In February, a Bulgarian minister said the attack was carried out by agents of Hezbollah’s military wing with funding provided by the Shiite group.

Would-be NY Synagogue Bomber Gets 5 Years

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Michael Obus said during the hearing, "The conduct contemplated is well beyond what can possibly be tolerated in a civilized society… That's especially apparent in light of recent arrests."

If Obama’s Syria Promises Mean Nothing, How Can We Trust Him on Iran?

With even ardent Obama supporters like Jeffrey Goldberg reminding the president he has made it crystal clear that chemical weapons use would be a red line that would trigger a strong U.S. response, what follows will not only tell us whether that promise would be kept. It will also illustrate just how seriously to take other pledges the administration has made, specifically its vow never to allow Iran to go nuclear. With the White House desperately trying to buy time before making a decision on Syria, it’s fair to ask why anyone should regard American rhetoric on Iran as anything more than an elaborate bluff if Obama won’t keep his word about Assad’s behavior.

Douglas Murray: Memo to Iran’s apologists: President Ahmadinejad has denied the Holocaust

Has President Ahmadinejad ever denied the Holocaust? David Morrison, co-author with Peter Oborne of a new apologia on the Iranian ‘government’, appears to think that he has not. In a bizarre and disgraceful interview with the Telegraph, alongside his co-author, Morrison recites the main claim of their book – which is that the Iranian regime is not pursuing nuclear weapons. Oborne’s Telegraph colleague Con Coughlin too kindly skewers that claim as ‘delusional’.

Parson Students Launch Petition Against Galliano Hire

The petition asks: “This is a person who was fired from Dior for his anti-semitic remarks, who Natalie Portman refused to work with because of his remarks, so why is Parsons The New School for Design hiring him?”

Azerbaijani FM: Negotiations underway to open embassy in Israel

Negotiations are under way on the opening of the Azerbaijani embassy in Israel, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said at a press conference on Friday.
"Azerbaijan will continue to develop relations with Israel and Palestine," Mammadyarov said commenting on the results of his recent official visit to the Middle East. (h/t Zvi)

Turkey honors Israeli company

Turkey's industry minister has awarded an Israeli company with a prize for an innovative project during a technological parks convention in Istanbul.
The company, Adam Elktronik, is based in the GOSB Teknopark – an industrial park built by Israeli businessman and philanthropist Stef Wertheimer in Turkey. (h/t Zvi)

Friday Links Part 2

From Ian:

LATMA: An interview with GOC Central Command Leitzan Balloon and the FBI fights terror

Scottish hotel cancels Jewish event after "threats"

Student from St Andrews University have reportedly been stopped from holding a charity event due to threats sent to the venue - the St Andrews Golf Hotel.
Jewish students were due to hold a black tie Matzah Ball at the prestigious location with almost 100 expected to attend from around the UK. Money raised was to be sent to seven Israeli charities supported including the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and Friends of the Israel Defence Forces (FIDF).
But following pressure from the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign (SPSC), as reported by the Jewish Telegraph, hotel manager Niall Thompson cancelled the booking.

ZOA Criticizes Dustin Hoffman For Being Special Guest At Radical, Anti-Israel Muslim Public Affairs Council Gala

MPAC is headed by Salam al-Marayati, who has called for Israel’s destruction, and has said that Israel may be responsible for the 9/11 attacks. Even left-wing Los Angeles rabbis have ceased to speak to him. The following is a small sampling of his record of Islamist extremism.

A Pallywood Hijacking

The photo above appears in the Facebook group “I acknowledge Apartheid Exists”
So why am I posting it? Because it’s typical Palestinian lies and nonsense.
They hijacked a photo from 2005, which had the original caption:
Title: "Religious Jews Protest Against The Desecration Of Ancient Graves"

Birthday Party for Adelle at Hospital: 'May She be a Miracle'

Adelle Biton's family celebrated her third birthday Thursday at the Schneider Children's Hospital, where she is still unconscious after an Arab rock ambush last month.
Adelle's mother, Adva, exuded optimism and unshakable faith at the celebration.

Dutch Newspaper Utilizes Nazi Imagery to Defame Israel

“I referred to the respected Ebert Foundation poll that showed over 38% of Dutch respondents said that Israel is exterminating Palestinians the way the Germans exterminated the Jews! Shocking? Perhaps not, considering decisions like your paper's to publish a cartoon depicting Israel as the lying hooked-nosed religious Hassidic Jew commiserating with a North Korean counterpart over their nuclear capabilities,” said Rabbi Cooper, referring to the abhorrent cartoon.

‘Amazon Jews’ on Their Way to Israel

Hundreds of descendants of Peruvian Jews are planning to make aliyah (immigrate) to Israel, the Jewish Agency reports.

Why U.S. Companies Are Drooling Over Israel’s Amazing Startup Scene

U.S. companies and investors are falling over themselves to get a piece of Israel’s startup action these days.
There are at least two dozen accelerator programs in the Tel Aviv area, including some run by Microsoft and Google.
It seems like every U.S. VC has at least one Israeli startup in its portfolio. Some even have full offices here, like Battery Ventures, Benchmark, Bessemer, Sequoia, according to the Mapped In Israel startup map.

Israeli firm named Bloomberg New Energy Pioneer

The Israeli “smart water” network and software management firm Whitewater was named a 2013 Bloomberg New Energy Pioneer at a ceremony in New York earlier this week.
Whitewater received the award at the sixth annual Bloomberg New Energy Finance Summit, along with what Bloomberg describes as nine other “game-changing companies in the field of clean energy technology and innovation.”

Revealing secrets

His most recent publication is a book in Hebrew on Israel’s major military operations, coauthored by Nissim Mishal.
“It looks at the IDF’s 30 greatest operations, such as the Entebbe raid [in 1976], Sabena [the flight 571 hijacking in 1972], up until Pillar of Cloud [last November] which was the last one. There is even a last chapter about the operation that has not been carried out; about the attack on Iran, with a detailed description of how we shall try to do it.”

Menachem Begin: A Life, by Avi Shilon (REVIEW)

Indeed, Shilon positions Begin as the most Jewish of Israeli leaders. Although he never ducks from documenting Begin’s flaws, he ultimately presents a fine man and a loving leader. Begin was a humble man and a loyal husband. Such qualities were rare enough among the politicians of his era, nowadays they are rarer still. If only there were more of his calibre in politics now.

Tunisia riled up over Taekwondo match with Israel (update)

From Middle East Monitor:

The Tunisian public was surprised to hear the news that its national Taekwondo team would participate in a match against the Israeli national team, which is considered a form of normalisation with Israel. This participation has caused the issue of normalisation with Israel to resurface in Tunisia.

Once the news of the match spread, the Tunisian Ministry of Youth and Sports immediately expressed its condemnation of the national Tunisian Taekwondo team's participation in the international championship with Israel and described the participation as "a mockery."

In a statement aired by the official Tunisian radio station on Sunday, the Tunisian ministry said that it opened an immediate investigation of the "participation of members of the national Taekwondo team in an international championship in Belgium who are competing against Israel without prior discussion with the Supervising Authority."

It also explained in its statement that this investigation "aims to find out reasons for this participation" described as a "mockery."

The Tunisian Taekwondo Federation called for "immediate discontinuation of the activities of those causing this mockery - including the technical and administrative members accompanying the Tunisian delegation - until the investigation is over and accountability is established."

The Tunisian Taekwondo team has participated in the Belgian Open with Israel in the past, where some members of the Tunisian team competed against Israelis, which angered former coach of the Tunisian national Taekwondo team, Murad Al-Souli, who spoke out against what he considered "normalisation with Israel."

Al-Souli expressed his anger over this participation, pointing out that the Tunisian team has never participated in any match with Israel. He held the Tunisian Taekwondo Federation responsible for this, as well as the head of the Tunisian delegation participating in this championship.

In addition to this, activists on social media networks launched a campaign against the temporary Tunisian government, accusing it of normalisation with Israel. This explains the statement mentioned earlier by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, an effort to tone down this anger.

One coach, trying to avoid being lynched upon his return, claimed that one of the athletes didn't know he was competing against an Israeli.

UPDATE: Zvi adds:

It is time for global sporting federations to stop treating this disgusting behavior as normal behavior and to start censuring and expelling member organizations that refuse to participate in international competition against other countries.

The US and the USSR had no problem with competing against each other in sports for decades, even when they were aiming massive arsenals of nuclear weapons against each other and attempting to destroy each other through overt and covert means.

The behavior of the Arab sporting federations with regard to Israel is disgusting, the kind of behavior in which poor losers and small-minded bigots engage.

Israel, on the other hand, is happy to participate in sporting events anywhere and to compete against other countries - even ones that seek to destroy it - because international sporting and culture are supposed to be above politics in our global athletics system. Israel's stance is the stance that the nations of the world have embraced - all but a few regimes run by small-minded bigots.

Israel embodies the ideal of all sporting federations. Her enemies embody the antithesis of these ideals. This should be highlighted EVERY time one of these stories arises.

This week's Egyptian Muslim attack on a church

Seems to happen a lot, doesn't it?

Ahram Arabic website reported that clashes broke out between protesters and security forces at Saint George's Church in Beni Suef, with eight people injured and 11 arrested.

Angry Muslim protesters attempted to storm Saint George’s Church in Al-Wasata city in the governorate of Beni Suef on Friday.

Tensions erupted in the city recently after reports that a 21-year-old Muslim girl had disappeared, with her family accusing a Christian family in the city of forcing her to convert to Christianity and facilitating her travel to Turkey with a Coptic Christian man.

Local Islamist groups had given the Christian family a deadline to return the girl, which expired on Friday, reported Ahram's Arabic language website.

Security forces fired teargas grenades at angry protesters, who attempted to storm the church following the Friday Muslim prayer, and arrested five people for throwing Molotov cocktails at the church.

Security vehicles and forces are reportedly surrounding churches in the city.

A number of traders have already closed their shops, particularly Christian jewelers who fear they will be targets.

It's remarkable that so many Copts haven't fled yet.

Iranian terrorist in Bangkok claims he was "stunned" to find bombs in his cupboard

Remember the three Iranian men found last year to be targeting Israeli diplomats using identical magnetic devices as the New Delhi attack?

One of them - who actually threw one of the bombs at police - claims it is all just a huge, huge misunderstanding:

An Iranian man whose legs were blown off during an alleged botched bomb plot last year against Israeli diplomats in Bangkok said Friday he found the explosives and was trying to dispose of them safely when they detonated.

Saeid Moradi, 29, told a Bangkok court that he was about to leave Thailand when he found four bombs hidden inside radios in a cupboard at a rented house in the city.

Two of the devices exploded as he ran into the street to throw them into a nearby canal -- the second tearing off his legs, he said.

Moradi and Mohammad Khazaei, 42, are among five Iranians suspected of involvement in the February 2012 blasts that followed attacks in India and Georgia and saw Tehran accused by Israel of a terror campaign.

Giving his evidence first, the younger defendant said he accidentally triggered one of the bombs when he opened a cupboard in the apartment.

“I was stunned and threw it into the corner, believing it was a smoke bomb,” the wheelchair-bound suspect said via a translator, adding he grabbed two other bombs and ran outside to throw them into a nearby canal.

He did not refer to the fourth device.

Prosecutors accuse Moradi of hurling one bomb at a taxi and a second at two police officers as they approached him on the street, but it instead detonated near the suspect.

The defendant gave a different version of events saying he dropped one of the devices near the taxi by mistake, and tried to throw the other away as the policemen approached fearing it would detonate and hurt them.

“I knew if the police stopped me I’d have to drop the bomb which may have endangered them and people nearby.

“So I threw it about a metre in front of me,” he said, adding he blacked out and woke up at hospital later to find his legs had been torn off in the blast.

He just innocently tried to dispose of the four bombs, that mysteriously popped up in his apartment for no apparent reason, in three different spots.

Of course, finding four bombs in your apartment is not a reason to run outside and call the police.

He was instead being a hero, trying to save lives, by disposing the bombs himself - throwing one towards, but not of course at, the police.

I can't wait for the testimony of his roommates. What are the odds that they blame the Mossad for planting the bombs?