Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Egypt's Mufti threatens Israel

The Grand Mufti of Egypt, Dr. Ali Gomaa, who is considered a moderate cleric, said on Saturday that "the grave violations against holy sites" in Jerusalem requires urgent international Islamic intervention.

He said that Israel's temporary closing of the ramp to the Mughrabi Gate on the Temple Mount - which Muslims do not use - was the latest violation against the sanctity of Jerusalem.

Presumably these "grave violations" also include the fact that Jews are allowed, with severe restrictions, to visit their own holiest site.

Gomaa further warned that if Israel would continue to ignore their feelings, it would feel the wrath of one and a half billion angry Muslims.

Gay Men's Chorus singing "Chanukah in Santa Monica"

A bonus Chanukah video, unlike any I've ever seen.

I was actually surprised that they didn't create a big menorah with their hands at the end; their stage was already in roughly the right shape.

(h/t DM)

"Silwan stone-throwers were checking cars for Jews"

I noted that an AFP photographer won a photo-journalism award for his shot of a stone-throwing youth being hit by a swerving car in Silwan.

The photographer, Ilia Yefimovich, was interviewed by "Achbar HaIr" about his photo and what happened that day.

He recounts what happened:

That day there was a funeral in the neighborhood of Silwan in East Jerusalem, and I went up to Jerusalem to photograph it for the Russian news agency. At the funeral there was a commotion and disturbances, so we expected a mess. I stood at a major intersection located above the where they have the tent demonstrations in the neighborhood, just below the Cinematheque, and there were bunch of kids who were throwing stones at passing vehicles. For every vehicle they checked if the driver was Jewish and [if so] threw stones at him. At one point, a string of cars passed and the children ran toward the vehicle and began to throw stones at it; the driver pulled the steering wheel and hit the children.

This picture undoubtedly is highly debatable. My job as a photographer is to document the scene - the events I shoot were happening with or without the presence of the camera. I started taking journalism because I wanted to see with my own eyes how everything looks, on the news every reporter puts his personal views . The press here in Israel have a very big problem when the photographer becomes part of the news - then it's not news, it's propaganda. The average reader should be able to read between the lines and understand the truth, and not the opinion of some writers and editors.

You will recall that no photographer bothered taking a shot of the shattered back window of that same car.

(h/t Dan)

Hamas, PIJ say they want to change the PLO, not adapt to it

From JPost:

Hamas is joining the PLO not as a result of a change in its ideology but because it wants the PLO to stick to its original platform – liberating Palestine and achieving the “right of return” for Palestinian refugees, Hamas leaders explained over the weekend.

The Hamas leaders’ clarifications came in response to claims that Hamas’s decision to join the PLO was a sign the Islamist movement was moving toward moderation and would abandon its radical ideology.

Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other radical Palestinian groups agreed on Thursday to join a provisional leadership of the PLO that would look into ways of “activating and reconstructing” the Fatah-dominated organization.

The decision was announced following a meeting of representatives of several Palestinian groups in Cairo.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad are demanding the PLO reconsider its political strategy by scrapping the Oslo Accords and its recognition of the two-state solution.

Hamas’s “foreign minister” Osama Hamdan, said the decision to join the temporary PLO leadership did not mean Hamas would become part of the peace process with Israel.

“Anyone who thinks Hamas has changed its positions and now accepts the PLO’s defeatist political program is living in an illusion,” Hamdan stressed. “Hamas cannot make the mistake of joining a process that has proved to be a failed one over the past 20 years.”

He was quoted by the Quds Press news agency as saying Hamas’s decision to be part of a provisional PLO leadership was aimed at “reconstructing the organization and reconsidering its political program.”

Hamdan emphasized that Hamas remains committed to fulfilling the aspirations of Palestinians, “first and foremost the liberation of our lands from the sea to the river and achieving the right of return.”

By seeking reconciliation with Fatah, Hamas hopes to achieve the Palestinians’ goal of liberating all their lands and securing the return of the refugees to their original homes inside Israel, Hamdan said.

Another Hamas leader, Khalil Abu Leila, said his movement would not join the PLO under the latter’s current political program.

One of the main tasks of the provisional PLO leadership was to “bring the PLO back to its correct path and the goal for which it was established, namely the liberation of Palestine,” he said.

Abu Leila said Hamas had long been demanding the PLO be “reactivated” and reconsider all agreements signed by the organization. His remark was seen as a reference to the Oslo Accords, which were signed between the PLO and Israel in 1993.

Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ramadan Shallah also denied the decision to join the provisional PLO leadership was an indication his group would abandon its ideology.

“We still haven’t joined the PLO,” he said. “In future discussions with other factions, we will talk about incorporating Islamic Jihad into the PLO. Thursday’s meeting was just the beginning of this process.”

Shallah told London-based Al- Hayat newspaper it has already been made clear no organization would be asked to abandon its program as a condition for joining the PLO.

On the other hand, he added, no group has been asked to accept the PLO’s political platform as a condition for joining the organization.

“In principle, there is a Palestinian consensus that the PLO is an address for all Palestinians,” Shallah said. “We are seeking to make this an appropriate address.”

He said that during last week’s discussions in Cairo, PLO and PA leader Mahmoud Abbas made it clear the Palestinians would still preserve the right to “armed resistance” against Israel, despite the talk about the need for a “popular uprising.”

“No one has the right to say armed resistance is illegitimate and the Palestinians cannot resort to it,” Shallah said.

But who are you going to believe, terrorists or Time magazine Middle East experts?

Archaeologists confirm detail of Chanukah story

From Ha'aretz:

Israeli archaeologists have uncovered the first archeological find to confirm written testimony of the ritual practices at the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.

An Israeli Antiquities Authority archaeological survey at the northwestern corner of the Temple Mount yielded a tiny tin artifact, the size of a button, inscribed with the Aramaic words: “Daka Le’Ya,” which the excavation directors on behalf of the IAA, archaeologists Eli Shukron and Professor Ronny Reich of the University of Haifa, explain means “pure for God.”

Researchers believe the artifact, dated to the first century, towards the end of the Second Temple period, is a seal similar to those described in the Mishnah. If they are correct, this is the first time physical evidence of the temple ritual was found to corroborate the written record.

The team believes the tiny seal was put on objects designated to be used in the temple, and thus had to be ceremonially pure.

In this vein, and in the spirit of Hanukkah, Jerusalem District archaeologist of the Israel Antiquities Authority, said: “It is written in the Talmud that the only cruse of oil that was discovered in the Temple after the victory of the Maccabees over the Greeks, “lay with the seal of the High Priest” – that is: the seal indicated that the oil is pure and can be used in the Temple. Remember, this cruse of oil was the basis for the miracle of Hanukkah that managed to keep the menorah lit for eight days”.

In addition to this artifact, the dig also yielded other Second Temple artifacts, some older from the time of the Hasmonean Dynasty rule, including oil lamps, earthenware pots, and containers filled with oils and perfumes, as well as coins bearing Hasmonean kings such as Alexander Jannaeus and John Hyrcanus.

Wiktionary translates "Daka" as "to cleanse, to purify."

Intriguingly, Jastrow translates "Daka" as "humble" or "crushed." And the Genesius Lexicon translates it similarly:

Is it possible that "Daka l'Ya" doesn't only mean "pure for God" but perhaps "crushed for God" - meaning it is a seal meant specifically for olive oil produced for the Temple service?

(h/t Dan)

Fatah leader begs Christians to stop leaving "Palestine"

Mohammad Shtayyeh, a member of the Central Committee of Fatah, spoke at a Fatah-organized dinner in Bethlehem on Friday night.

During his speech, Shtayyeh asked Palestinian Christians to stay and to stop emigrating to other countries, quoting Matthew 5:13, "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?" He said that no one deserves the land more than Palestinian Christians and that they are part of the "mosaic" of Bethlehem.

Ma'an English did not bother mentioning his appeal to Palestinian Christians. Their exodus from the territories, mirroring the Christians fleeing from every single Muslim-majority country, is something that must be downplayed.

He also threatened the Israeli government, saying that if it doesn't distinguish between Har Homa and Tel Aviv, the Palestinian Arab leaders will not distinguish between Ramallah and Jaffa.

Of course, judging from the Fatah logo, they never did. Except between 1964-1967, when they said they have no political interest in the West Bank.

Given that, Shtayyeh's Christmas card that he sent out to his friends is more than a bit ironic:

At Christmas, all roads lead to Jerusalem and Bethlehem

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year hoping that next year we celebrate together in liberated Palestine

Not a single Palestinian Arab leader ever expressed that wish when those areas were under Jordanian control. Which means that "liberated Palestine" doesn't mean an independent Palestine, but a land liberated from Jews.

(h/t SM)

Stone throwers for UNICEF

Every week we can find lots of photos of people throwing and slinging stones at high speeds towards Israeli policemen, in what are called "peace protests."

The irony gets lost after a while.

But sometimes, a protester will wear something that brings it all back.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a repeat of this photo I found last year:

UPDATE: The UNICEF shirt is a Barcelona football shirt. (h/t Ian)

Egyptian tourism down; man cuts off penis

From Reuters Arabic:

An Egyptian newspaper reported that a young man from the city of Luxor in the south cut off his penis and buried in a graveyard after suffering depression as a result of the decline in tourism since the outbreak of popular protests that led to the removal of former President Hosni Mubarak in February.

Most residents of Luxor, about 690 km south of Cairo, work in the tourism trade as it has many of the most famous ancient Egyptian antiquities, including the Temple of Luxor and the Temple of Karnak, in addition to the large number of tombs of kings and queens of the Pharaohs from the era of the Egyptian empire (about 1567-1085 BC.)

The newspaper al-Wafd in the Sunday early edition reported that the man is 35 years old and married and that his psychological state worsened "due to lack of income due to tourism downturn."

The newspaper added that the Luxor International Hospital received the young man with heavy bleeding and they performed surgery, but attempts to re-attach his penis were unsuccessful.

That will definitely increase tourism!

"Nittel-nacht" open thread

It is "nittel-nacht," and one of the time-honored customs is to avoid blogging all night. (Or something like that.)

Here's an open thread.

Egyptian gas line to Israel blown up again

For the eleventh time this year, the gas line from Egypt to Israel and Jordan was blown up.

The company responsible for the line, GASCO, sent investigators out to see the extent of the damage. It also informed the Misr Insurance Corporation of the damage so it could be compensated.

Hmmm.

Earlier this week, Jordan and Egypt negotiated new pricing for the gas.