Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Notable EoZ blog posts of 2012 (part 2)

April:

Thomas Friedman and Ha'aretz whitewash a terrorist

Hamas leader: "Half of Palestinians are Egyptian, the other half Saudi"

Poster: Homocrites (and the post it was inspired by on "Homonationalism and Pinkwashing")

The "As-a-Jews" of the New York Times

How to misuse statistics: Israel accused of jailing too many journalists

Mike Wallace interviews Abba Eban, 1958

May:

Ben White proves the hypocrisy of the anti-Israel crowd (may be the post of the year)

Latest nonsense from Shlomo Sand - "The Land of Israel is a myth"

Purpose of J-Street is not to reflect US Jewish opinion, but to change it

June:

Arab political cartoons on the eve of the Six Day War (later turned into a video)

Gaza's kindergarten jihadist wannabes

Hilarious boycott of Israeli goods by tiny cafe in Olympia

Debunking the "Bride is beautiful, but she is married to another man" myth

Reuters vs. the truth about the Temple Mount

The Euro-Mid Observer for Human Rights, a Geneva-based NGO, has released a 72-page report (Arabic-only) detailing the names, photos and details of 41 children they claim were killed in Gaza by Israel.

Some of the "children" listed were, in fact, adults.

Some were Hamas terrorists.

And at least one was killed by a Hamas rocket.

Here are some details:

Muhammad Hani Ibrahim Hani Al-Kaseeh was - according to Euro-Mid! - born on July 29, 1994, making him 18 years old when he was killed on November 14, 2012. PCHR admits that he was a terrorist, as the motorcycle he was on together with Essam al-Meiza was targeted.

Ahmed Taqfiq al-Nassasra was identified as a member of Hamas by the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terror Information Center. He was 17.

Muhammad Kamel Salame Abu Udwan was born in March of 1994, making him 18 years old. I could not find him in the known lists of people killed.

Abdallah Tal'at Ahmad Ibrahim was also born in March 1994, making him 18 years old as well. I could not find him either.

Ouda Arafat al-Shindi was 17 years old, according to Euro-Mid. PCHR notes that he was a terrorist, but does not mention his age.

And Mahmoud Sadallah, 4, was killed by a Hamas rocket, a fact admitted even by HRW.

These are only the ones I could identify. But it shows a pattern.

These are not simply mistakes. The inclusion of all these names in this glossy, professional report is meant to serve only one purpose - to demonize Israel as much as possible. Very few people would question a report that looks as slick as this one does, replete with photos of the dead, and even fewer would bother doing research to see if it is accurate. The prestigious-sounding name of the NGO, its Geneva address, and the trappings of professionalism, together with an audience that is already predisposed to believe the worst of Israel, together creates a culture where anti-Israel "researchers" can lie with impunity and with little worry about being exposed.

The NGO itself is more than sketchy. I could not find out the sources of funding for the Euro-Mid Observer for Human Rights, and its webpage doesn't even list the names of its founders or leaders. A press release mentions Dr. Ramy Abdu as the chairman of its board of directors, and he is also the head of the Council for European Palestinian Relations, which exists purely to pressure Europe to pressure Israel. The Twitter account of Euro-Mid says explicitly that the purpose of this report is to kick off an international campaign against Israel.

In any sane world, finding out that an NGO is purposefully fabricating its data should be enough to get it disbanded, to get its donors to cut off all funding, and to force the leaders to answer for their lies. But we don't live in a sane world.. Anti-Israel NGOs will continue to proliferate and attract attention with lying reports that convince those who want to be convinced.

(h/t Al Gharqad and CHA)

Egyptian secularists turn to satire

Now that the Egyptian constitution has become law, secularists in Egypt have turned to satire in order to keep their sanity.

At least, for as long as it lasts.

Jew-hatred increasing in even liberal parts of Turkey

From Die Welt, December 20, by high school student Ege Berk Korkut:

Jew-hatred has become an everyday phenomenon in Turkey. Although I live in Izmir, the most democratic city in Turkey, [even here there is] growing anti-Semitism. Everywhere I meet Jew-haters and enemies of Israel, listen to their prejudices on the daily bus trip or during a visit to a popular fast-food restaurants.

Many of them admired Hitler, wish he would have his "mission" brought to an end and not stop at six million murdered Jews. Though it disgusts me, I can do nothing. I belong to a minority in this country and I know that the government will not protect my rights, which is why it would not be a good idea to respond.

...I visit the twelfth grade of an [exclusive] high school. During a lesson the religious teachers talk about the operation "Pillar of Cloud" in Gaza.

Some students began to complain about Israel. They became more and more violent, and the teacher, an official of the Turkish state, said, "Do not worry, Israel will be destroyed one day, and the day is near that all Jews will pay for it." After the teacher had incited the students some students began to praise Hitler, while others expressed their readiness to drive the Israelis into the sea.

I was surprised. I did not expect that a teacher, a Turkish government official, would incite students to kill people just because they are different, especially in Izmir, where the people are known for their tolerance.

Jew-hatred is spreading and the influence of Sharia law have changed the secular society, even in the most advanced parts of Turkey, such that it is no longer possible to ignore it, at least as a Jew.

I have no hope that the situation will improve in the future. On the contrary, it gets worse every day. This is not surprising. Biased media and politicians spread the manipulative rhetoric, and the textbooks that are issued by the Turkish state are dripping with hatred of Jews.

In a country where children are taught to hate, true respect for diversity cannot thrive, which is the foundation of any free society. While the secular society collapses, the growing power of the Islamists continue every day. Therefore I am not pessimistic, but realistic when I say that Turkey's future is not rosy.

There were Arabic reports yesterday that the number of Turkish Jews moving to Israel have increased in the last two years, although I couldn't find the original article in Turkish.

(h/t Lachlan)

Hamas again outmaneuvers Fatah; no Fatah rally in Gaza

Fatah in Gaza has announced that it is canceling its planned rally to celebrate the 48th anniversary of its first terror attack.

Hamas refused to let Fatah use any of the large public squares in Gaza for the rally, Fatah was offered alternate venues, such as a soccer stadium, but they could not accommodate the expected 100,000 people Fatah was hoping for.

Fatah in Gaza decided not to complain too loudly about this in order to keep the facade of unity between Hamas and Fatah. Instead, they are calling on members to fly the yellow Fatah flag at their homes and to wear the keffiyeh, as a symbol of the movement.

This is actually a fairly big deal. Fatah allowed Hamas to hold a large public rally in Nablus. Which means the net effect is that Hamas is ascendant in the West Bank while Fatah is publicly invisible in Gaza. Hamas' refusal to allow a Fatah rally in the large public squares is being interpreted as a desire to ensure that Hamas has no visible competition in the sector.

"Unity," to Hamas, is only one way - for it to gain influence the West Bank without giving any quarter to Fatah in Gaza.

Once again, the Islamists completely outmaneuvered their opponents in the Middle East.

UNRWA closes three offices in WB following violence

From Ma'an:

UNRWA is closing three of its West Bank offices because protests are threatening the safety of its staff, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees said Wednesday.

The UN Relief and Works Agency said in a statement that it was forced to close the offices after protests shifted from peaceful demonstrations to "illegal acts."

During protests, demonstrators stopped UN vehicles and their drivers, and one vehicle was chased away by protesters carrying stones. A female employee was treated badly by protesters, the agency said.

Protests have been held in refugee camps across the West Bank over UNRWA's decision not to renew the contracts of 114 employees due to budget cuts.

"UNRWA reiterates that the decision related to the 114 contracts was the best possible choice we had. We wanted to avoid harming our services as a result of budget limitations. As we made clear before, the safety of our properties and our employees is a red line," the agency said.

UNRWA asked the Palestinian Authority to put an end to the protests, which it said were disrupting operations.

The statement is not on the UNRWA site.

It is unclear exactly what the protesters were doing - and whether UNRWA is downplaying their violence ("carrying stones" and treating someone "badly.")

I find it fascinating that UNRWA decides to stop providing services when their employees are under seemingly little danger. After all, the IDF still works to provide aid to Palestinian Arabs - during wartime - when literally under fire.

Does this mean that the IDF cares more about Palestinian Arabs than UNRWA does?

And the nation with the second highest percentage of Jews is....

Gibraltar?

Pew just came out with statistics showing the religious populations of every nation.

The nations with the highest percentage of Jews are:

1) Israel 75.6%
2) Gibraltar 2%
3) United States 1.8%
4) Monaco 1.7%
5) Belize 1%
6) Canada 1%

JTA looked at Gibraltar's impressive Jewish community a year ago:

Four synagogues, a mikvah, a kosher coffeehouse and separate boys and girls religious high schools.

Combined, they suggest a community far larger than just 750 Jews. But Gibraltar -- the tiny British overseas territory of 30,000 that sits at the foot of Spain and at the gateway to North Africa and the Mediterranean -- has spent centuries cultivating its individuality.

"We've got an infrastructure that could cope with a community of 2,000, and we've only got 700," said Mark Benady, a native Gibraltarian and vice president of the territory's Jewish community.

From the tables, we can also see how many nations have more Jews than Muslims:

Israel, United States, Monaco, Belize, Cayman Islands, Aruba, Netherlands Antilles, San Marino, US Virgin Islands, Uruguay, Chile, and Hungary. Moldova is a tie, along with many nations that have less than 0.1% of both.

Notable EoZ blog posts of 2012 (part 1)

January:

An open letter to 17-year old Jesse Lieberfeld

HRW director finds fault with Israel for willingness to help Arabs

Latest libel: Israel's doctors are too careful with their patients' lives

To Reuters, they aren't just "Jewish settlers" anymore

February:

Fake photo of soldier stepping on girl goes viral

BDS professor at Penn explains how to demonize Israel IN EVERY CLASS and followup response from Penn

Disgusting BBC piece sympathizing with a child-killer terrorist

Criminal disingenuity from Peace Now's Lara Friedman

March:

Newspapers captioning Iron Dome as "firing rockets into Gaza"

Palestinian Arabs lie about teenager death

Turkish cosmetics company uses Hitler in commercial (This story truly went viral and was picked up by wire services. My video had over 225,000 views on YouTube)

972mag attacks Judaism

And:

Here's one that proves UN hypocrisy that for some reason was not very popular. Trying to give it a second chance .

I've also been tweeting some other posts that are worth revisiting..

Wednesday linkdump

From Ian:

Why Arabs Hate And Kill Palestinians by Khaled Abu Toameh

The Arab League did not hold an emergency meeting to discuss what Palestinians describe as "massacres " against the refugees in a Syrian camp, home to more than 50,000 people. Those who meddle in the internal affairs of Arab countries should not be surprised when bombs start falling on their homes. Palestinians are not always innocent victims. They bring tragedy on themselves and then want to blame everyone else but themselves.

After UN status upgrade, Palestinians seek to join other international organizations
Israel attempting to block move by pressuring Washington, host countries; Foreign Ministry memo reportedly warns EU will seek to impose Palestinian statehood, bypassing negotiations

"In the wake of its successful November UN status upgrade bid, the Palestinian Authority is now seeking to join other international organizations, Maariv reported on Wednesday. The list of organizations the Palestinians have applied to join include: the Universal Postal Union (UPU), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Health Organization (WHO)."

How will European-Israeli relations look in 2013?

“Though Europe remains mired in a massive financial crisis, European capitals continue to fund NGOs that seek to undercut Israel’s democracy.
Prof. Gerald M. Steinberg, the head of NGO Monitor who teaches political science at Bar- Ilan University, wrote the Post, “Europeans also need to practice the values that they preach, particularly with respect to democracy and transparency. The recent confused decision of the European Court of Justice, which allowed the EU to keep all documents and procedures relating to funding of political NGOs as super-sensitive secrets, and the ECJ’s failure to hold a single session to hear oral arguments, highlights the gap between lofty principles and anti-democratic practice. After the Israeli elections in 2013, the conflict over EU secret funding for NGOs promoting political warfare against Israel is likely to intensify.”

A divided message of peace
Palestinian threats force Jews and Arabs to hold separate Christmas coexistence events.

"With the help of American aerial artist John Quigley, Israelis and Palestinians had planned to form a large human sculpture of a peace sign, with the concrete barrier running through it.
But at the last moment, threats from Palestinian hard-liners to sabotage the project forced organizers to scrap the barrier event out of safety concerns."

Palestinians allegedly planned to kidnap Israeli in the West Bank
Security services arrest 10 on terror charges; hostage was to be used as bargaining chip in bid to release jailed terror chief

"Two of the suspects were allegedly planning to kidnap an Israeli citizen or soldier. According to suspicions, the kidnapped Israeli was to be held as collateral and released in exchange for Ahmad Saadat, the leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine."

Stretch of West Bank Highway Has Become Known as “Roulette Road” After Increase in Arab Attacks on Israeli Drivers

"A stretch of Highway 60 that crosses the territory has become known as “Roulette Road” because of the threats travelers face while traversing it. Only last week three Israelis were injured while traveling down the road, including an IDF officer who suffered a wound to the head so severe that it required surgery. The latest incident, which left one Israeli lightly hurt, occurred on Monday."

Court: End of Free College for Terrorists
The High Court ruled Tuesday that terrorist security prisoners were not eligible for free university education in Israeli schools.

Senior Hamas leader calls for third intifada By Khaled Abu Toameh
Head of Hamas J'lem Dept calls for renewed confrontation with Israel over plans to build new housing units in e. J'lem.

Hamas outlaws contact with Israeli media outlets By Khaled Abu Toameh
Gaza-based terror group calls "zionist" media outlets "hostile," bans Palestinians from contact with Israel.

Haniyeh: Israel is a 'Cancerous Tumor'
"Israel is a cancerous tumor that must be removed and uprooted," Hamas's PM says in a conference on education.

MEMRI: Saudi Cleric Al-Munajid Issues Fatwa Permitting Hacking into "Jewish Websites”

CIF Watch: ’The Jewish State Which Ruined Christmas in Bethlehem’: A Guardian Production

"Yet, like a holiday ritual, Harriet Sherwood, in the spirit of Phoebe Greenwood’s ugly Guardian piece last year (‘If Jesus were to come this year Bethlehem would be closed’, Guardian, Dec. 22, 2011) chose to advance, as if by rote, a predictable Christmas tale of Israeli oppression against Christians."

Honest Reporting: Editor’s Picks: 10 Best Blog Posts of 2012

Report: Syria Converted Combat Aircraft to Drones with WMDs
A MiG-21 combat aircraft flown by a Syrian pilot who defected was found to have been upgraded back in Syria to carry chemical weapons.

"A MiG-21 combat aircraft flown by a Syrian pilot who defected to Jordan in June was found to have been upgraded back in Syria to carry chemical weapons and to fly without a pilot, the Yisrael Hayom daily reported on Tuesday."

Iran media report new cyberattack by Stuxnet worm
An Iranian semi-official news agency says there has been another cyberattack by the sophisticated computer worm Stuxnet, this time on the industries in the country's south.

Weapons of mass distraction
Female Russian technicians at Iranian nuclear plant violate dress code, have ‘corrupting’ influence on their coworkers

"A Tuesday report by the semiofficial ISNA news agency quoted Mahdi Mousavinejad, a representative of the southern Iranian port of Bushehr, where the plant is located, as saying violation of the dress code by the Russian workers has had a “corrupting and negative impact” on his constituency."

How soccer turned Russian Jews into Brits

In a new book, journalist Anthony Clavane explores how a single sport kickstarted a new, nuanced identity for an immigrant minority
"If you want to make the historical link between London’s Tottenham Hotspur soccer club and its famous Jewish following, a good place to start is Russia in 1881, the year Czar Alexander II was assassinated."

Sudanese minister says his country will not be ruled by "Jews and their conspirators"

During a national celebration, Sudanese Interior Minister Ibrahim Mahmoudh said that the conspiracy against Sudan with "Jews and conspirators" will not succeed in ruling the country.

Iran pays Russian women nuclear technicians to wear hijab

From Al Arabiya:

An Iranian lawmaker has complained that female Russian technicians working at the Bushehr nuclear power plant are not respecting the country’s dress code despite that they are being paid to wear the Islamic headscarf, known as the hijab.

Bushehr’s Russian women technicians receive a “hijab payment” but “do not properly observe” what is required by their contracts, said Seyyed Mehdi Mousavi Nejad, a member of parliament from Dashtestan in southern Bushehr Province, told Sepas News Agency.

He said despite that there is a “special gathering” for Russians in Bushehr but the female workers often appear in markets and streets without the hijab or with a “poor hijab.”

He urged Russian women to fulfill their “commitments” as written in their work contracts.

On the plus side, paying women to accept their second class status is somewhat better than arresting them for failing to do so.

The Arab woman and the rabbi

From Arutz-7:

The assistant director of the Kashrut department at the rabbinate of the northern Israeli city of Akko was attacked by Arabs on Monday evening.

The attack occurred as the man was standing and talking with the chief rabbi of the city of Akko, Rabbi Yosef Yashar.

"We concluded a working meeting this evening with the Kashrut department and as we stood near the building of the rabbinate, several young Arabs passed by, beat the assistant department head and fled," Rabbi Yashar recalled in a conversation with Arutz Sheva.

He said that he and the assistant director began chasing the attackers until "we encountered police officers nearby and they continued the chase and managed to arrest them."

Rabbi Yashar said that the attack is not a first, and that Akko's Jews have been suffering from violent attacks by local Arabs.

An Arab woman, Annette Haskia, was so upset over this attack that she met with the chief rabbi of Acre to express her disgust. They spoke in public; here is the audio and a rough partial transcript in English:

Anet Haskia: "..This is not my city [Acre] I don't live here but I have nephews and family [here] and by no means whatsoever do I want that they will start to think that the Jew is their enemy. Because he is not. I lived in the other side [the 'Jewish' side] for many years and that [perception] is wrong. I know that the Islamic movement is making inroads. It tempts the young. It buys [things] for them etc."

Rav Yashar: "I am happy to hear your words. There is a saying [in Judaism] 'words of truth are recognizable' (ניכרים דברי אמת). ... I think that there is a certain reality here that we encounter and it completely doesn't matter if we want it or not. There is what one wants and there is what one faces. It could be that according to what one wants, Jews want to live in a Jewish-only environment and the Arabs want to live in an Arab-only environment. That is what one may want. But the reality is not like that. The reality is that we all exist here. Muslims are here and Christians are here and Jews are here. Now, what should be done? To expel?"

Anet Haskia: "No"

Rav Yashar: "Should Jews expel the Arabs?"

Anet Haskia: "No. Definitely not."

Rav Yashae:"Should Arab expel the Jews?"

Anet Haskia: "Definitely not. Definitely not".

Rav Yashar: "It is not realistic. It is not human..."

Anet Haskia: "No. Right"

Rav Yashar: "And one should not even think in this way".

Anet Haskia: "Indeed. Indeed. I agree with you."

Rav Yashar: "We have here... We are all here and need to stay together and live together".

Anet Haskia: "Indeed".

Rav Yashar: "Of course, how do we live together [in peace]? Only... there is only one formula: when everyone recognizes and respects the customs of the other and the culture of the other and the religion of the other then ones can live together."

Anet Haskia: "Indeed".

Rav Yashar: "If I respect your religion and you respect my religion then it is fine".

Anet Haskia: "Indeed. It was like that".

Rav Yashar: "Now, I want to live my life..."

Anet Haskia: "Indeed".

Rav Yashar: "... that no one would interfere, exactly as you want to live your life."

Anet Haskia: "Sure. Indeed. Indeed"

Rav Yashar: "So why should we disturb each other?"

Anet Haskia: "Also, why live in fear?"

Rav Yashar: "And it also doesn't disturb me... Someone came and said that the muezzin [muslim call for praying] disturbs him. To tell you the truth, the muezzin does not disturb me. Really, it doesn't disturb me... When one makes it very loud then, obviously, it is deafening. But in principle - I respect [it]. For them, the Muslims, the muezzin is calling, so that's fine. I don't see anything bad..."

A comment from someone in the 'audience': "Yes, but I lived in Wolfson. They put a loudspeaker in Wolfson..."

Rav Yashar: "... I'm not talking about provocations. The religion [Islam] does not tell them to make a provocation. Does the Islam tell them to make a provocation? To put a loudspeaker there to annoy [people]? No. You can put loudspeakers. There are rules. There is religion. There is tradition. There are laws. There is Halacha. Now, as you say, we respect [the use of muezzin]. It does not disturb me. When I see the Arabs celebrating Ramadan should I come and disturb them deliberately? Absolutely not. I respect them and I also come to them. I come to respect them. And I want that they will also respect me, let me celebrate my festive days. Now, if I cannot celebrate my festive days we have a problem here and you are right... I fully believe that those who behind this [the recent attack on the Acre rabbinate by Arabs] are [motivated by] political factors..."

Anet Haskia: "Yes".

Rav Yashar: "... They want to gain a political gain of this. I don't believe that the residents... the ordinary Arab resident would do something like that. What one thinks it doesn't matter. An Arab is allowed to think that he would prefer to be here without Jews. To think so is fine. But you cannot do it. You would not expel the Jews from here..."

Anet Haskia: "No".

Rav Yashar: "...And the Jews would not expel the Arab from here. It would not help. We will live here together..."

Anet Haskia: "Indeed. There is the reality"...