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AN ISRAELI STRIKE ON SYRIA KINDLES DEBATE IN THE U.S
Posted by Gabrielle Goldwater, October 10, 2007. |
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In the essay below, Mr. Riedel said Israel would not have launched the strike in Syria if it believed Damascus was merely developing more sophisticated ballistic missiles or chemical weapons. "Those red lines were crossed 20 years ago," he said. "You don't risk general war in the Middle East over an extra 100 kilometers' range on a missile system." ....... [Question: What ramifications does this experience have vis-a-vis Israel's working relationship with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's team given that she clearly has the attitude that Israel's survival is hardly at the top of her list of concerns.... Which shows strongly in ALL her demands made for the longest time towards Israel ... who is really Condoleezza Rice ] This article is called "An Israeli Strike on Syria Kindles Debate in
the U.S." and it was written by
Mark Mazzetti and Helene Cooper; it appeared today
in The New York Times
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WASHINGTON, Oct. 9 -- A sharp debate is under way in the Bush administration about the significance of the Israeli intelligence that led to last month's Israeli strike inside Syria, according to current and former American government officials. At issue is whether intelligence that Israel presented months ago to the White House -- to support claims that Syria had begun early work on what could become a nuclear weapons program with help from North Korea -- was conclusive enough to justify military action by Israel and a possible rethinking of American policy toward the two nations. The debate has fractured along now-familiar fault lines, with Vice President Dick Cheney and conservative hawks in the administration portraying the Israeli intelligence as credible and arguing that it should cause the United States to reconsider its diplomatic overtures to Syria and North Korea. By contrast, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her allies within the administration have said they do not believe that the intelligence presented so far merits any change in the American diplomatic approach. "Some people think that it means that the sky is falling," a senior administration official said. "Others say that they're not convinced that the real intelligence poses a threat." Several current and former officials, as well as outside experts, spoke on the condition of anonymity because the intelligence surrounding the Israeli strike remains highly classified. Besides Ms. Rice, officials said that Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates was cautious about fully endorsing Israeli warnings that Syria was on a path that could lead to a nuclear weapon. Others in the Bush administration remain unconvinced that a nascent Syrian nuclear program could pose an immediate threat. It has long been known that North Korean scientists have aided Damascus in developing sophisticated ballistic missile technology, and there appears to be little debate that North Koreans frequently visited a site in the Syrian desert that Israeli jets attacked Sept. 6. Where officials disagree is whether the accumulated evidence points to a Syrian nuclear program that poses a significant threat to the Middle East. Mr. Cheney and his allies have expressed unease at the decision last week by President Bush and Ms. Rice to proceed with an agreement to supply North Korea with economic aid in return for the North's disabling its nuclear reactor. Those officials argued that the Israeli intelligence demonstrates that North Korea cannot be trusted. They also argue that the United States should be prepared to scuttle the agreement unless North Korea admits to its dealing with the Syrians. During a breakfast meeting on Oct. 2 at the White House, Ms. Rice and her chief North Korea negotiator, Christopher R. Hill, made the case to President Bush that the United States faced a choice: to continue with the nuclear pact with North Korea as a way to bring the secretive country back into the diplomatic fold and give it the incentive to stop proliferating nuclear material; or to return to the administration's previous strategy of isolation, which detractors say left North Korea to its own devices and led it to test a nuclear device last October. Mr. Cheney and Stephen J. Hadley, the national security adviser, also attended the meeting, administration officials said. The Israeli strike occurred at a particularly delicate time for American diplomatic efforts. In addition to the North Korean nuclear negotiations, the White House is also trying to engineer a regional Middle East peace conference that would work toward a comprehensive peace accord between Arabs and Israelis. The current and former American officials said Israel presented the United States with intelligence over the summer about what it described as nuclear activity in Syria. Officials have said Israel told the White House shortly in advance of the September raid that it was prepared to carry it out, but it is not clear whether the White House took a position then about whether the attack was justified. One former top Bush administration official said Israeli officials were so concerned about the threat posed by a potential Syrian nuclear program that they told the White House they could not wait past the end of the summer to strike the facility. Last week, Turkish officials traveled to Damascus to present the Syrian government with the Israeli dossier on what was believed to be a Syrian nuclear program, according to a Middle East security analyst in Washington. The analyst said that Syrian officials vigorously denied the intelligence and said that what the Israelis hit was a storage depot for strategic missiles. That denial followed a similar denial from North Korea. Mr. Hill, the State Department's assistant secretary for East Asia and Pacific affairs, raised the Syria issue with his North Korean counterparts in talks in Beijing in late September. The North Koreans denied providing any nuclear material to Syria. Publicly, Syrian officials have said Israeli jets hit an empty warehouse. Bruce Riedel, a veteran of the C.I.A. and the National Security Council and now a Middle East expert at the Brookings Institution, said that American intelligence agencies remained cautious in drawing hard conclusions about the significance of the suspicious activity at the Syrian site. Still, Mr. Riedel said Israel would not have launched the strike in Syria if it believed Damascus was merely developing more sophisticated ballistic missiles or chemical weapons. "Those red lines were crossed 20 years ago," he said. "You don't risk general war in the Middle East over an extra 100 kilometers' range on a missile system." Another former intelligence official said Syria was attempting to develop so-called airburst capability for its ballistic missiles. Such technology would allow Syria to detonate warheads in the air to disperse the warhead's material more widely. Since North Korea detonated its nuclear device, Ms. Rice has prodded Mr. Bush toward a more diplomatic approach with North Korea, through talks that also include Japan, Russia, South Korea and China. Those talks led to the initial agreement last February for North Korea to shut down its nuclear reactor in exchange for fuel and food aid. That deal angered conservatives who believed that the Bush administration had made diplomacy toward North Korea too high a priority, at the expense of efforts to combat the spread of illicit weapons in the Middle East. "Opposing the Israeli strike to protect the six-party talks would be a breathtaking repudiation of the administration's own national security strategy," said John R. Bolton, former United States ambassador to the United Nations. But other current and former officials argue that the diplomatic approach is America's best option for dealing with the question of North Korean proliferation. "You can't just make these decisions using the top of your spinal cord, you have to use the whole brain," said Philip D. Zelikow, the former counselor at the State Department. "What other policy are we going to pursue that we think would be better?" Gabrielle Goldwater lives in Switzerland. Contact her at III44@aol.com |
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QUESTION FOR PREZ PERES
Posted by Paul Lademain, October 10, 2007. |
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Mr. Peres--we have a question. Just how far are you willing to go "for peace". You have been blathering about "Israel making painful concessions for peace." Now tell us, how far will YOU go, personally, "for peace"? Will you sell pieces of Israel to the Arabs and convert to Islam "for peace." Or just for the money the oily Islamics are willing to pay to your NGOs? (Yes, we know about your secret deals with your dearest bosom pal Yasser and about your O-so-secretive Cayman Islands corporation which you set up in the tax haven in Georgetown, Grand Cayman Island.) Ask Olmert if he will abandon his religion and obey Saudi mullahs "for peace." Ask the Jane Fonda Jews who aid and abet Islamic invaders if they, too, will abandon their Israeli citizenship and become Muslims "for peace." Isn't this just what the invading Islamics and al Qaeda want you Jews to do? So why don't all you daft people who are aiding and abetting your dear arab friends just go ahead and do it ... and then you will be allowed to have all the "peace" your tired and aching old hearts desire. (Yehrite--the peace of the dead) So instead of trying and trying and trying to sell off pieces of Israel "for peace" why don't you just sell yourselves? (Israel would be better for it, if your kind would just vamoose to Riyadh. P.S. Be sure to take Condi and Colin P with you when you leave.) We are the NON-evangelical Christians for Zion. We stand by the Patriots of Israel who are battling the disloyal and dangerous seditionists within Israel. We stand by the Patriots of Israel who are struggling to free Israel from their self-aggrandizing tyranny. We say: Restore Jewish Palestine from the ocean to the sea, the way Israel was originally intended to be. If we can say this then so should YOU. |
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THE NECESSARY TEMPLE OF JERUSALEM
Posted by N. Natan, October 10, 2007. |
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Why -- by God! -- should the Jews rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem now?
Without the Moral Magnet of the Temple of Jerusalem, Israel
THE JERUSALEM TEMPLE IS FATHER OF DEMOCRACY Let Caliph Omar and Caliph Abd el-Malik build Al-Aqsa (638) and Dome of the Rock (688) wherever they want (even on the spot of the ancient Jewish Citadel which overlooked and protected the Temple)... But, NOW, it is the Jews' Duty to restore the Jerusalem Temple -- on its authentic site, indicated (downstream) to David by YHWH. Let's make the first and unique scientific study of the Temple's hydraulic system which has been miraculously preserved, to this very day in the rocky underground of the Jewish Citadel (nowadays Haram) and which can be checked by any one in Jerusalem... This grandiose, innovative, unique (and totally ignored!) antique religious hydraulic system, installed from King Solomon to King Herod, with meticulous underground cascades, had been, thus, designed to constitute the "Water Tower" which stored and provided, downstream, by sole gravitation, the Jerusalem Temple with the live Source Waters of Etam: These purifying living Waters had to ever flow, without the least interruption, according to the meticulous exacting Jewish religious prescriptions, in order to allow daily purifications of all israel, as required in the Cult of the Temple by YHWH. So, WHY -- by God! -- should the Jews rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem now? Two Answers: 1/-- FOR THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN *GOD* 1/-- FOR THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN *GOD*: -- Because the Temple is an eternal and irreducible prescription given to Moses as sign of Covenant between God and Mankind, a magnetized prescription definitely fulfilled by David and Solomon, and fully enlightened by Jesus. Under the pressure of historical and persecution events, and in order to ensure the survival of Judaism, the Rabbis, for two millenia, had to put the disappeared magnetic Temple into spiritual brackets (which they did manage quite cleverly and efficiently). But now that Israel is reborn, the time has come to restore the Temple of Jerusalem in its full splendour and meaning, as the necessary moral compass and consciousness of the human community. Indeed, individual and collective rites are the only mental and cohesive procedures which maintain the moral fundamentals, intimate motors of all human societies on this planet. 2/ -- FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT BELIEVE IN *GOD*: --- BECAUSE among all mythologies, religions or ideologies invented by mankind to guide the organization presiding to their daily life and to inspire the political legislation of their social ruling, only the Temple of Jerusalem did actually engender the founding Moral Concepts of Democracy, which germinated in the Judeo-Christian civilizations, and which are, willy nilly, progressively blossoming all over the planet; (or, at least, are being, sooner or later, acknowledged as the ultimate universal reference benchmark, as only, democracy can ensure and guarantee an unrestrained human creativity which is the condition of progress). - In other words: from mankind'd genome the Jerusalem Temple Cult intuitively extracted and expressed mankind's destiny or finality. - And the nowadays secular rites, even shaded off from their original rites, constantly need to reassess and refuel their genuine root power, in order to be able to accomplish their tasks. Incidentally, in this respect, one may note the naïve and generous impulse of some US presidents who made the same misleading Ideological error: that is to say, among all the main mythologies, religions or ideologies invented by mankind, two are radically not compatible, and will never be compatible, with the concepts of democracy: 1/ ISLAM, for Koranic reasons
Contact n.natan@jerusalem-4thtemple.org |
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THE GREATER THREAT
Posted by Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis, October 9, 2007. |
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This is continued from last week. To see "Shameful" Click here. |
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Events unfold so rapidly in our society that before we can quite absorb one situation, something new erupts. So, Ahmadinejad speaking at Columbia University is already tired news. But tired as it may be, we have to stop and consider how it was possible that such a grotesque travesty was permitted to take place on a New York City campus on which many of the University's Board members, professors and students are Jews. In last week's column on the Columbia University fiasco, I posed a question which I left largely unanswered: How can Americans be so self-destructive? I was specifically referring to academicians who bend over backwards to provide a platform to those who hate us and seek our demise (to say nothing of the politicians and members of the media). The question is especially troubling to us Jews, since those who hate America and seek her destruction, hate Israel even more. So how, you might ask, can freedom loving Americans who cherish democracy justify giving a stage to these hate-mongers? In all good conscience, how can they allow them to spew forth their venom and infect the world? As I pointed out, this question is even more perplexing since the Jewish presence on Columbia's campus, both on the executive level and among the student body is substantial. To dismiss the entire issue under the banner of "freedom of speech" would be dishonest, for the same university that saw fit to host Ahmadinejad, who called for the annihilation of Israel, would never grant such a privilege to someone who would advocate the elimination of Moslems, Africans, or other minority groups. So why is Israel fair game? This challenge is all the more vexing, since ours is a generation that can still recall the Holocaust and its horrific consequences. We can still hear the voice of the madman who, with his venomous tongue, set the world aflame and killed six million of our people. So, again I ask how is it possible that a man who advocates genocide for Israel should be feted on a New York City campus? And more, how is it possible that the students did not cry out, but applauded this terrorist murderer? A renowned American Jewish philanthropist, who has devoted much of his resources to outreach, was reported as saying that he "blew" one hundred and twenty-five million on Jewish education during the past decade, with no real results. Assimilation and intermarriage, continue to eat away at the innards of our people. A recent poll conducted by sociologists Stephen Cohen and Ari Kelman, demonstrates that half of American Jews under the age of thirty five would not view the destruction of Israel as a personal tragedy. Truly a devastating report! So yes, one must wonder, together with that philanthropist, what really was accomplished with all the well-intentioned efforts at outreach to secular Jews? What happened to the dream that secular Jews harbored -- that dedication, and support for Israel would be a constant? How is it that, despite all the work on college campuses, we are still witness to leftist anti-Israel sentiments among our own Jewish youth Tragically, it's not only in the United States that we behold this defection. Incredibly, we see it manifested in Israel as well. Unfortunately, mere living in the land does not imbue our youth with a sense of purpose, with ideals, with an understanding of who they are as Jews. So if we cannot accomplish this in Israel, how much more are our young people at risk in the United States? Although millions of dollars have been spent on outreach, the anticipated results never materialized. But what sort of outreach are we talking about? Parties, clubs, trips, cruises, Jewish music and art or discussions on "How to find happiness" and other related subjects? I am afraid that none of these endeavors will do it. Yes, they may attract many young people, and organizations may delude themselves into believing that they have succeeded, but close scrutiny will reveal abysmal failure, for the ultimate goal of genuine Jewish commitment has not been achieved. Nor are visits to Israel an answer (as I pointed out, Israeli youth are also defecting). Even a trip to Auschwitz will fail to do it. So, if nothing works, what is the solution? What hope do we have? Have no fear -- the truth is that everything works! All these aforementioned programs are great vehicles for outreach IF -- and here is the big IF....IF these programs are presented within the context of serious Torah study. It is not being in Israel, but what we do there and the voices we hear there that are determinants. If we expose our youth to the sanctity of the land, the beauty of Shabbos and Yom Tov.... if we resuscitate their parched souls with the divine wisdom of Torah; if we teach them the language of prayer, we will not only succeed, but we will imbue them with new life, conviction and faith. And this holds true for every form of outreach. A trip to Auschwitz can indeed be traumatic, even devastating, leaving people shattered and speechless, but genuine Jewish commitment must be based on something more than the barbaric slaughter of six million. So, here too, the visit must be accompanied by serious Torah study. It is Torah that is our raison d'etre... it is the Torah that imbues us with vision; it is the Torah that connects us to our land; it is the Torah that tells us who we are and what our destiny is....and it is through the Torah that the voice of G-d speaks to us in every generation. So yes, outreach works, but it must be Torah outreach and not some homogenized pap. So whether it is a social event or a trip, whatever the venue, Torah must be the focus. Only thus can we succeed in revitalizing our people. Can it work? Absolutely! I know -- for it is thus that I have been reaching out for the past forty-five years, and Baruch Hashem, today, we are reaping magnificent fruit. Three and even four generations of Torah families, and every week, we gather more and more young people who, only yesterday, were seriously considering marrying out, but today are living splendid Jewish lives Torah outreach works because Hashem planted a spark of Torah in every Yiddishe neshama at Sinai, and when that spark is ignited, it bursts into an eternal flame of faith. I have never seen it fail. Still, you might protest that the poll giving American Jewish youth such a dismal rating is an exaggeration. Secular Jewish youth may not be knowledgeable of the Torah -- may be detached from observance, but that does not mean that they would betray their Jewishness or the land of Israel. They are just open-minded and not afraid to express criticism. And I have no doubt that, in their minds, that is exactly what they believe. But that does not alter the fact that, willy- nilly, they have joined forces with those who would demonize Israel. In every generation, anti-Semitism surfaces in different guises, depending upon what is in vogue and what appeals to the masses. So, throughout the centuries, every accusation has been leveled against us. We have been vilified as communists, capitalists, war mongers, poisoners of wells, killers of Christian children, global manipulators, bloodsuckers, etc, etc. Every culture has its own biases and anti-semites always know how to exploit them, and Jews are always the convenient scape goats. Today's anti-Semite will never concede his prejudice. Quietly, he will protest, even as Ahmadinejad did at Columbia, that he has nothing against Jews -- it is Israel and Zionism that are the scourges. This liberal leftist philosophy that is being espoused today views Israel as an anathema, and it emanates from the most respected academic and political circles. Israel is portrayed as an "apartheid state", an occupier, an oppressor of the downtrodden -- so it is little wonder that this insidious bias has impacted on vulnerable assimilated Jewish minds. Whereas, in the early days of the state, even the most secular Jews took pride in the stunning victories of Israel's fledgling army, today, that same army has become a source of embarrassment to liberals who view the military as occupiers of an apartheid state...and again, I emphasize that this labeling is being leveled at Israel, not by fringe lunatics, but by a former president of the United States. The Israel lobby in Washington is viewed as a "Jewish cabal" that pressured America into war in Iraq and is now pressing for the same action in Iran. This new anti-Semitism is insidious precisely because it emanates from the most unexpected sources. A study by Harvard and University of Chicago professors advanced the same ideas, and this bias is not limited to America, but unfortunately, is world wide. In short, anti-Semitism today is manifested through anti-Zionism. Where once, those who hated us vilified us for being Jews, today, Israel and Zionism have become the demons. But whether they call us Israelis, Zionists or Jews, the end result is the same, and let no Jew delude himself into believing that he will be safe if Israel is attacked, So, what is the solution? We must re-educate our people, for if we do not know who we are and what our purpose and life-goal as a nation is, then the battle is surely lost. No programs -- regardless of how imaginative and exciting, can imbue our youth with genuine commitment to their Jewishness. That goal can be realized in only one way ....and that is Torah, Torah, Torah! But you will protest -- our youth is not interested in Torah. That is a gross mistake. Every Jewish soul yearns to be connected. We need only have the guts, the perseverance and the conviction to make that connection for them. It's time for American and world Jewry to wake up. -- Make no mistake about it. This is not a matter of Orthodox, Conservative or Reform -- this is a matter of Jewish life. Our history testifies that every anti-Semite, from Pharaoh on, has failed. They rise to power only to disappear in the sands of time. We have encountered them all and triumphed, but this triumph is not contingent upon armies or weapons, but upon return to Hashem, the Almighty G-d -- all that befalls us, all the suffering that we have experienced, are wake-up calls from our Heavenly Father who is yearning for us to return to Him.. "If only My people would heed Me; if Israel would walk in My ways, in an instant I would subdue their foes and against their tormentors turn My Hand..." (Psalm 81) for it is He who will do battle for us, It is He who is the source of our lives. Let us wake up and reach out to our people with genuine Torah. It's time to become serious Jews and reconnect with our G-d. Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis is founder of Hineni which includes the Hineni Foundation Center in New York City (http://www.hineni.org) and a Jerusalem chapter. She writes a column called "The Rebbetzin's Viewpoint" for the Jewish Press. |
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FROM ISRAEL: SPEECHLESS
Posted by Arlene Kushner, October 9, 2007. |
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No quite. It takes a lot to render me speechless. But the events of the last few days push me in that direction. The foolishness, the essential errors in thinking, the dangers of statements that are being made take my breath away. I will not belabor those statements here. It is too wearying. But I will touch on some essential points... ~~~~~~~~~~ Olmert addressed the opening session of the Knesset yesterday and said much the same as he had said to the Cabinet a day earlier. "The current Palestinian leadership is not a terrorist leadership," he declared. And I say, "HUH?" Abbas has superb terrorist credentials. "An atmosphere of personal trust [between himself and Abbas] has been created," he explained. How does one deal with this drivel? I tried yesterday to find and could not locate the source, but only a few months ago, before there was so much sweetness and light between Abbas and Olmert, Olmert made a public statement complaining that Abbas had not kept his word about anything. And I've already pointed out that Abbas is dealing with Hamas, even as he deals with Olmert. Trust? ~~~~~~~~~~ Olmert presented a scenario in which there is no choice -- we must create a Palestinian state or we'll be "contending in tears." The fact is that there will be tears if there IS such a state, and there is a choice. I will return again and again to this: MK Rav Benny Elon, bless him, with the initiative that he is launching, offers a choice. See his website for details: http://www.israelinitiative.com/Default.aspx This requires thinking out of the box, and it's about time. ~~~~~~~~~~ And then there's Defense Minister Ehud Barak. He gave a report to the Knesset State Control Committee today, in which he said that in a few years (?) we would have 90% coverage from missile attacks of any kinds. I will not here belabor the details. All well and good; this is a necessary defensive tactic. But it's being approached the wrong way. Barak has implied that our withdrawals from Judea and Samaria should be timed to the construction of this defensive field. That is, it's OK to let terrorists establish themselves at our border, as long as we have equipment that will repulse their missiles and rockets. Wrong wrong wrong. Our task is to stop the terrorists and to take out their ability to hit us. Barak's approach smacks of a siege mentality. It's as if he's resigned to the fact that we are on the edge of creating a situation that presents us with strategic dangers. ~~~~~~~~~~ And after him there's Marc Otte, who is the EU's Special Representative to the Middle East Process. Said he yesterday, the failure of the "process" now would cause greater repercussions than it did in 2000. So much is this the case, that he agrees with Condoleezza Rice that "failure is not an option." Really, now. He explained that if the Middle East did not achieve stability [by which he means a negotiated deal], it would be a "black hole in globalization." What fascinates me is his assumption that the Middle East will achieve stability if we turn over half of Jerusalem and all of Judea and Samaria to terrorists. He hasn't the remotest notion that stability in the Middle East starts with a strong Israel. ~~~~~~~~~~ Ah, but then we have PA Minister for Jerusalem Affairs Adnan Husseini. He has told The Jerusalem Post that any solution to the conflict will require turning over to the Palestinians ALL of east Jerusalem. Nothing less will do: "The outline for Jerusalem is very clear, east Jerusalem is for the Palestinians and west Jerusalem is for the Israelis." The Old City, with the Temple Mount, the Kotel, and the Jewish Quarter with its abundance of old synagogues and ancient Jewish history, as well as all of the many modern Jewish neighborhoods established beyond the Green Line. He should live so long, is my first response. But I'm glad he's demanding this. For he may save us from ourselves. He asks too much to expect a positive response, not from Olmert or Ramon or Livni or Barak. And certainly not from Lieberman. Let me note here, one more time, that the notion that "east" Jerusalem is "Arab" is highly fallacious. East Jerusalem is the heart of Jewish heritage. It was only during the 19 years of Jordanian occupation, during which it was made Judenrein, that it came to seem Arab. ~~~~~~~~~~ Meanwhile, Syria has said that it would attend the conference if the Golan Heights were put on the table. But Olmert has indicated it will not be. Assad has indicated that he would go to war to get the Heights back. ~~~~~~~~~~ For the first time Eli Yishai, head of Shas, which is part of the coalition, spoke out against negotiations with the PA, saying Olmert should stop until terrorism is halted. "Coming to a summit while terrorism continues is a decision that is doomed to failure. The summit is liable to bring about more terrorism, which happened when Barak went to Camp David. Olmert needs to cancel. Drafting a document would be artificial and pointless. "Jerusalem is stronger than all Israeli governments past and future. I am against talking about what to give up, because it only damages us." Better than criticizing, let him pull out. ~~~~~~~~~~ More is becoming apparent about the recent Israeli raid inside of Syria. The latest is that Israel wanted to strike as early as July, and supplied clear and detailed intelligence on what was going on in Syria to US officials, who were astounded by the images provided. But, while some US officials were in favor of the raid, others were not. And guess who led the nay-sayers? None other than our good friend Condoleezza Rice. She offered to publicly condemn Syria for having a nuclear facility instead. That would have really shamed Syria into stopping. What was the concern of those opposed? That the raid might have a "negative influence" on the whole region. More people who don't get it. The influence on the region was fantastic. ~~~~~~~~~~ Justice Eliyahu Winograd has let us down. His commission, which is scheduled to release its final report on the failures of the War in Lebanon, has decided it will not name names for "fear of causing political upheaval." It will point no fingers regarding who was responsible, and will not recommend that Olmert step down. He started out like a house on fire, and I wonder what sort of pressure was brought to bear on him. ~~~~~~~~~~ The IDF is reporting that there's been a steep rise in smuggling of weapons, including rockets, into Gaza in the last several weeks. Hamas has taken over from clans in controlling the smuggling routes. ~~~~~~~~~~ Olmert was questioned for over four hours in his home today regarding the allegedly illegal role he played as finance minister in order to help a friend better acquire the controlling interest in Bank Leumi. More questioning will follow on Thursday. It would be nice if one of these investigations actually led to something. Contact Arlene Kushner at akushner@netvision.net.il and visit her website: www.ArlenefromIsrael.info |
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CITY LIBRARIES OFFER TERROR 'RECRUITING' ISLAMIC TEXTS
Posted by Michael Travis, October 9, 2007. |
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This was written by Robert Gearty, Daily News staff writer. It appeared yesterday in New York Daily News. |
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Hard-line Islamic books that justify violence against non-Muslim societies -- including texts used as terrorist "recruiting tools" -- are freely available in New York City public libraries. A Daily News spot check found a book by an Islamic theorist who inspired Osama Bin Laden and terror Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, as well as others that promote the hatred of other religions and one with the misogynistic title: "Women Who Deserve to Go to Hell." Several of these texts can be found at the Brooklyn Public Library's main branch, a mile from the Al Farooq mosque, where Rahman once inspired followers to try to blow up New York. In the main stacks sits "Milestones," a notorious work revered by Bin Laden and Rahman and penned by Seyyid Qutb, a Muslim Brotherhood member executed in 1966 for trying to overthrow the Egyptian government. In its final report, the Sept. 11 Commission noted Rahman and Bin Laden's attraction to Qutb: "Bin Laden shares Qutb's stark view, permitting him and his followers to rationalize even unprovoked mass murder." An August NYPD report on the "homegrown threat" of terrorism contended Qutb believed "militant jihad had to be used ... to overthrow non-Islamic governments and to bring about a 'pure' Islamic society." Qutb's treatise is hardly the only hard-line book on library shelves in New York and Long Island, The News found. The reference room of the Brooklyn main branch carries "Fundamentals of Tawheed." In it, author Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips writes, "Un-Islamic government must be sincerely hated and despised for the pleasure of God." In the research section of the New York Public Library in Manhattan, The News found Islamic Fatawa Regarding Women and Women Who Deserve to Go to Hell. "We have no intention to accuse women when we say that they will be a majority in hell," wrote author Manssor Abdul Hakim. The availability of such controversial books in public libraries points out the difficulties a society faces in balancing an aversion to censorship against the need to prevent terrorism. "These are also recruiting tools," said counterterrorism consultant Ilana Freedman of the Gerard Group International. Freedman said she was not suggesting banning books, "but without balance, without counterpoint, children cannot make informed decisions." Librarians said it is not up to them to decide what belongs on their shelves. "We don't censor what people read," said Mary Haines, director of the South Country Public Library in Bellport, L.I., which just added "Milestones" to its collection. Brooklyn Public Library spokeswoman Ruth Wagner said libraries have the responsibility to be inclusive, and "efforts are made to represent the widest possible diversity of views." Contact Michael Travis at michaelmgr@gmail.com |
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OXFORD U. HOLDS A "DEBATE" ON WHETHER ISRAEL SHOULD BE DESTROYED
Posted by Steven Plaut, October 9, 2007. |
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Oxford U. holds a "Debate" on Whether Israel should be Destroyed and guess who it thinks should represent Israeli opinion! Tutu as a Tumtum (moron, although in the Talmud TUMTUM means something else). 1. "Tutu: man of peace?"
by Edward Alexander ---
Special to The Daily at Washington University
05/06/2002
For 81 years, this university has awarded no honorary degrees. Breaking with tradition to honor Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu dishonors the University. Administration spokesmen have praised Tutu as "a man of peace." Is he? In an April speech in Boston, Tutu praised his own courage in repeating the usual slanders against the state of Israel: "People are scared in [the United States] to say wrong is wrong because the Jewish lobby is powerful -- very powerful. Well, so what? Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin ... were all powerful, but in the end they bit the dust." Beautiful and touching words -- but familiar ones to those conversant with Tutu's long record of hostility to Jews, Judaism and Israel. In 1989, Tutu stood before the Yad Vashem memorial in Jerusalem to the millions of dead Jews murdered by Hitler and prayed for the murderers while haranguing the descendants of their victims. "We pray for those who made it happen, help us to forgive them and help us so that we in our turn will not make others suffer." This, he said, was his "message" to the Israeli children and grandchildren of the dead. Moral obtuseness, mean spite and monstrous arrogance don't produce sound ethics and theology. Members of an injured group are not licensed, even by the most unctuous of preachers, to forgive on behalf of the whole group. Forgiveness issues from God alone. The forgiveness Tutu offers the Nazis is truly pitiless because it forgets the victims, blurs over suffering and drowns the past. Tutu has always been far less moved by the actuality of what the Nazis did ("the gas chambers," he once wrote, "made for a neater death" than apartheid resettlement policies) than by the potentiality of what, in his jaundiced view, Israelis might do. His speeches returned obsessively to licentious equations between South Africa's system and Jewish practices, past and present. "The Jews," he stated in 1984, "thought they had a monopoly on God" and "Jesus was angry that they could shut out other human beings." He has repeatedly declared that "whether Jews like it or not, they are a peculiar people. They can't ever hope to be judged by the same standards which are used for other people." Certainly Tutu has never judged Jews by the standards he uses for other peoples. That is why he now thinks they should passively allow themselves to be blown up at holy places like Passover seders or secular ones like pizza parlors and not strike back at their murderers. His double standard may explain an otherwise mysterious feature of his anti-Israel rhetoric. He once asked, "How it was possible that the Jews, who had suffered so much persecution, could oppress other people?" In other words, Jews, according to Tutu, have a duty to behave particularly well because they have suffered so much persecution. The mad corollary of this proposition is that descendants of those who have not been persecuted do not have a special duty to behave well, and descendants of the persecutors themselves can be excused altogether for behavior it would be hard to excuse in other people. This perverted logic may explain not only Tutu's decision to pray for Nazis while berating descendants of their victims but also his passionate attachment to Yasser Arafat, who is both the biological relative and spiritual descendant of Haj Amin el-Husseini, the Arab leader who assisted Hitler in the destruction of European Jewry. Rabbinical tradition, however, provides a simpler explanation of Tutu's eagerness to "forgive" the Nazis while excoriating the descendants of their victims: "Whoever is merciful to the cruel," the rabbis warn, "will end by being indifferent to the innocent." Edward Alexander is a UW professor of English. 2. From the British blogosphere:
The Oxford Union prides itself on being "the world's most prestigious debating society." On October 23, 2007 its Middle East Debate will examine the motion: "This House Believes that One State is the Only Solution to the Israel-Palestine Conflict." Speaking in favour will be Avi Shlaim, Ilan Pappe and Ghada Karmi. Opposing them will be Peter Tatchell, Lord Trimble and Norman Finkelstein. Let's take a look at the ghastly bunch on the proposition side. - Avi Shlaim consorts with Paul Eisen and Daniel McGowan. Eisen has said: "I do not say that there were no gas chambers at Auschwitz, but I have looked at both sides and the weight of the evidence to suggest there weren't any is compelling." He sends out emails headlined, "Why I Support Ernst Zundel." Daniel McGowan writes articles published on Ernst Zundel's official website asking: "Is it really `beyond international discourse' to question the efficacy and the forensic evidence of homicidal gas chambers?" But that's just the proposing side. Surely the Oxford Union, that bastion of fair and open debate, will have chosen some unflinching supporters of Israel to balance this motley collection of bigots and fanatics? Of course not! If one side includes virulent enemies of Israel and supporters of terrorists and anti-Semites, then so must the other. That's why the opposing side includes the notorious Norman Finkelstein. In his book The Holocaust Industry he referred to Jewish leaders as "caricatures straight from the pages of Der Stuermer and the Protocols of the Elders of Zion." On his website, he called Deborah Lipstadt the "Elsie the Cow Chair in Judeo-Yenta Studies." He also referred to the Nobel Peace Prize winner and Auschwitz survivor Elie Wiesel as the "resident clown of the Holocaust circus." Is it any wonder that Zundel's wife praised Finkelstein's book and referred to him as "a Jewish David Irving"? Holocaust historian Daniel Goldhagen -- another target of Finkelstein's insults -- writes that he has made a career out of such tactics as likening Jewish supporters of Israel to the Gestapo. If Finkelstein is speaking against the motion, would it be uncharitable of me to suggest that this debate is a cynical charade? But suppose you're a paying member of the Oxford Union and you decide to skip this "debate." You can always go and hear David Icke on November 7. This is the man who believes that "the Rothschild cabal" are seeking "global control" -- the (Chamishite) man who writes: I strongly believe that a small Jewish clique which has contempt for the mass of Jewish people worked with non-Jews to create the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and the Second World War. This Jewish/non-Jewish Elite used the First World War to secure the Balfour Declaration and the principle of the Jewish State of Israel (for which, given the genetic history of most Jewish people, there is absolutely no justification on historical grounds or any other). They then dominated the Versailles Peace Conference and created the circumstances which made the Second World War inevitable. They financed Hitler to power in 1933 and made the funds available for his rearmament. Oxford students do have other choices. They can go and hear
Al Sharpton on November 8. As the author Edward Alexander
reminds us
The Oxford Union -- "The World's Most Prestigious Debating
Society" indeed.
You realize what this means? If passed, anti-Semitism will be the only remaining form of hate speech that is not a hate crime or illegal in the UK or even or not even frowned upon at Oxford, on the BBC and in the New Statesman!!! Steven Plaut is an American-trained economist, a professor of business administration at Haifa University and author of "The Scout." He frequently comments -- both seriously and satirically -- on Israeli politics and the left wing academic community. His website address is http://www.stevenplaut.blogspot.com. Or write him at splaut@econ.haifa.ac.il |
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FILM EXPOSES ACADEMIC LIBERAL AGENDA
Posted by Ken Timmerman, October 9, 2007. |
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This appeared in www.Newsmax.com
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A rip-roaring exposé by first-time documentary film-maker Evan Coyne Maloney, Indoctrinate U presents a searing and often hilarious portrait of campus absurdity, where gender, race, and multi-cultural politics have crowded out learning and the free exchange of ideas. Thor Halvorssen, founder of the Moving Picture Institute, remembers when Maloney sounded him out about backing the film. "When Evan Maloney first called and told me he'd never made a film before, I couldn't get him off the phone fast enough," Halvorssen said at the recent world premier of the film at the prestigious Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. "But there was something persistent about him." Indeed, Maloney made a short film called "Brainwashing 101" on spec, then shot a sequel, "Brainwashing 201 -- the Second Semester," that so impressed Halvorssen that he decided to throw his considerable weight behind the project. As the first executive director and CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), which defends students who run afoul of speech codes and political correctness on campus, Halvorssen was no newcomer to the left-wing bias in academia. But Maloney's persistence, and his trenchant wit, paid off. "When we think of college, we think of intellectual freedom," Maloney said. "We imagine four years of exploring ideas through vigorous debate and critical thinking. But the reality is very far from the idea." After training his portable camera on more than twenty campuses across the country, from the Ivy Leagues to large state universities, Maloney said he concluded that "higher education is systematically defrauding students, parents, and taxpayers." While that may be a very serious "message," it's Maloney's telling of his story that merits watching this film. The packed crowd at the Kennedy Center burst into uproarious laughter as Maloney and his cameramen searched campuses in vain for the "Men's Study Center." They howled with knowing delight when Maloney filmed campus free-speech advocates putting on a "diversity bake sale," to poke fun at so-called affirmative action in college entrance requirements. (Hint: each category of cookie sold at different prices, with some going at a steep discount). One left-wing professor explained with utmost seriousness how "whiteness is oppression." Maloney was wise enough to let him go on and on about the useless of studying the U.S. Constitution (written by "dead white men"), and the horrors of modern-day America and capitalism. One conservative professor read from his college's academic code book, which instructed all teachers to craft their course syllabus "to develop a sense of race, class and gender." Those requirements were imposed on all subject-matter -- "even physics... and horticulture!" he quipped. He called this vast left-wing agenda "a social engineering project," intended to create new generations of Americans with no sense of American history, American exceptionalism, or American freedoms. The left-wing "academics" portrayed in Indoctrinate U have an almost comic-book-like rigidity, and yet they take themselves with the utmost seriousness. The absurdity of campus life was summed up by conservative professor, Michael Munger, in a line that had the entire Kennedy Center audience hooting and cheering. After describing how most university classes %G–%@ whether it be English, science, or government -- tend to begin with a long political harangue by the teachers to condemn the war in Iraq or ridicule George W. Bush, he concluded: "What most faculty want is for students to validate their pathetic life experiences." A recent study by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute shows the devastating impact the 1960s generation %G–%@ now in control of most of the nation's liberal arts campuses -- has had on civic literacy. Called "Failing Our Students, Failing America," the report found that incoming freshmen at Yale University had a greater knowledge of the basic facts of American history than did Yale seniors. Four years at a $45,000 per year institution of higher learning actually "stalled" the learning of those students, the study found. "Higher education is a $325 billion business," said Josiah Bunting, III, chairman of ISI's National Civic Literacy Board. "Ironically, based on our research, the lowest gains in knowledge in America's history and institutions are found at many of these elite universities where their presidents are simply not doing enough to help preserve our traditions of freedom and representative government." The group put its quiz on-line at www. americancivicliteracy.org. Evan Maloney and the Moving Picture Institute's Thor Halvorssen have launched an unusual marketing experiment to organize local screenings across the country through an inter-active website, www.indoctrinateu.com "This may be the most important documentary you aren't able to see this year," they said, because commercial distributors "don't want you to see it." So far, more than 25,000 people had signed up in groups of 500 to organize a screening in their local area. Parents worried about what their children will face in college -- and why they should go so deeply in debt for the experience -- should watch this movie. It is a hilarious yet ultimately sobering portrait of how absurd our universities have become. As the parent of three children who have already gone through college, and two more who are fast approaching that experience, I have seen the differences between engineering and liberal arts faculties. The engineers tend to be more conservative %G–%@ okay, perhaps not openly so, but with a healthy respect for empirical knowledge and objective fact. The liberal arts faculty tend to be leftist, and are often impervious to the facts. The engineers laugh. "There's no politically-correct way to build a bridge. If your calculations are wrong, the bridge falls down." But we should hold our liberal arts academies to the same standard. For if our education in American civics is wrong, our society will collapse. +++ Kenneth R. Timmerman is President, Middle East Data Project, Inc. He authored "Countdown to Crisis: The Coming Nuclear Showdown with Iran" and is a contributing editor to Newsmax.com His latest non-fiction books is a thriller called Honor Killing, available at www.kentimmerman.com. Contact him by email at timmerman.road@verizon.net |
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"IF I FORGET THEE O JERUSALEM" CAMPAIGN TO SAVE ISRAEL
Posted by Barbara Sommer, October 9, 2007. | |
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This comes from Tsafrir Ronen, an Israeli activist dedicated to preventing the present administration of the State of Israel from destroying Israel in the name of "peace". | |
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The Achilles' heel of the secret agreement between Olmert, Abu Mazen, and Rice to turn the Land of Israel into Palestine is the intent to divide Jerusalem and give up the Temple Mount. The Arabs well understand what Israel's governing clique does not, and won't agree to any deal that doesn't turn the City of David and the Temple Mount into Al Quds. Thank G-d, there is widespread opposition across the political spectrum to dividing the city. The purpose of the Campaign for Jerusalem is to stoke that opposition into a prairie fire of public fury, and thereby undermine the entire agreement. Campaign Name: "If I forget thee O Jerusalem" These words from Psalms connect Jerusalem personally to every Jew and to every human being who believes in the Bible. Their deep emotional and spiritual resonance go way beyond the merely political. Even the most secular Israeli utters these words on the day of his or her wedding. The Campaign's Message: With its intention to abandon the Temple Mount, the government has declared war on the Jewish People. Not on the Right, not on the Settlers, but on the WHOLE Jewish People. The reaction must be swift and strong. The first counterstrike will be a mass aliyah le'regel, a mass march and rally in Jerusalem in which hundreds of thousands issue the cri de coeur and cri de guerre "If I forget thee O Jerusalem ..." The First Stage: The first order is to arouse public outrage and to direct that outrage into a declaration of rebellion by the Jewish People against their government. This is the stage of gathering force and gathering forces. Great care is being taken to fashion a movement that will be non-sectoral so that the media won't be able to dismiss it as a religious or settlers' protest. To this end, prominent and respected public figures will be chosen to stand at its head. Representatives of a wide spectrum of Israeli society and the Jewish world will convey the campaign's message. The Opening Shot: A mass march and rally in the area of the Temple Mount. Jerusalem may be the one issue that Jews of all stripes can agree upon. Therefore, it's the place from where a Jewish people that's been robed of their identity, their justice, their truth, and their confidence, can begin to return to themselves. Jerusalem must also continue to be the eternal capital of the Holy Land for the Christian Bible and Western tradition to maintain their coherence. The Execution: People will park their cars outside the city and stream into Jerusalem from the four directions to declare their faithfulness to Jerusalem. The march will culminate in a huge rally with giant video screens and speaker systems around the city for the many who won't be able to squeeze into open areas of the Kotel, the City of David, and outside Jaffa Gate. The crowds, which God willing will number in the hundreds of thousands, will not only hear stirring speeches, but will be presented with a plan to force the government's hand. They will be asked to personally commit to the plan and to become proactive. Date of Rally: October. A final date hasn't yet been set. Budget for March and Rally: $100,000 of which $10,000 has already been promised if we raise the rest. Organization with Primary Responsibility for Campaign: To the outside eye, the campaign will be a joint endeavor of major and minor Jewish organizations in Israel and throughout the world, all operating under and out of a joint central committee. In actual fact, a core group of Israeli activists will produce and direct the campaign. They will remain very much behind the scenes to prevent the media from tagging the campaign as the product of 'right-wing extremists.' Associated with the Campaign: We aim to build as broad a coalition as possible. Anyone and everyone ready to fight against the abandonment of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount will be welcome. Nir Barkat (Kadima's mayoral candidate for Jerusalem), Otniel Shenlar (Kadima MK), Knesset lobbies, Chareidi groups, Chabad, the Yesha Council, American Zionist organizations, American Orthodox organizations, Christian Zionists, Druze, etc. The rally will be a worldwide, united, show of strength demonstrating a readiness to do whatever it takes to defend Jerusalem. Short-term goals: To isolate Olmert and his government, and to expose them as acting against the will of the people and without their support. Only widespread public unrest will move Knesset members to open their mouths, but once they do, the coalition's strength can be undermined. Another aim is to send a clear and resounding message out to the world that Jerusalem is ours, now and forever. This message also needs to be heard by the Jewish people themselves, who over the past decades been cowed and silenced into submission by the false and deceitful post-Zionist narrative. Further Stages: Jerusalem will be the focus of our efforts as long as its unity and integrity remain in question. During this stage of a 'united front', we will work to forge close contacts both with organizations and individuals who are and aren't our natural allies. We will use this expanded platform to publicize the message that what's true for Jerusalem is true for Judea and Samaria, that just as the Arabs are engaged in 'identity theft' when it comes to Jerusalem, their grand strategy with regard to all their claims is to steal our identity and hence our rights to our land. Realistically, when the time comes to focus our struggle on opposing the creation of a "Palestinian" state, giving up Judea and Samaria, and a mass expulsion of Jews from their homes, we will be a lot more isolated. The different organizations will operate under a central command, and will each be tasked with doing what they do best, whether it be lobbying the Knesset, lobbying the American Congress and Senate, mobilizing evangelical support, public relations in Israel and among American Jewry, education, "panim el panim" (door to door campaigns), etc. The required budget will be $1 million and will include dozens of pinpoint campaigns. Summary: "If I Forget Thee O Jerusalem" is a non-sectoral, widely inclusive, campaign built from the bottom up. Given a Knesset whose prime motivation is to cling to their seats, the immediate goal is to threaten the stability of the coalition by arousing a level of public anger and unrest that can't be ignored. The more long-term goal is to educate, empower, and mobilize as much as the public as possible for the long struggle ahead against the post-Zionist, anti-Jewish ethos that has infected every nook and cranny of Israeli public life. Once we succeed in penetrating the stale and toxic public atmosphere in Israel with the first fresh breezes, we believe that the amcha, who are with us but who are discouraged and disempowered, will awaken and yearn for more. We truly believe that the tremendous power embodied in shivat tzion, the return of the Jewish people to their homeland, is dormant but not dead. A tremendous battle lies ahead, but "Let us ascend and we shall gain possession of it, for we can surely do it!" (Numbers 13; 30) We Need Your Help: Donations can be sent to the Central Fund of Israel: L'Eretz Yisrael HaShleima. Best Regards
To receive a U.S. tax deduction, U.S. dollar checks should be made out to the Central Fund of Israel -- L'Eretz Yisrael HaShleima" Mail checks to:
Contact Barbara Sommer by email at sommer_1_98@worldnet.at.net
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THE BEST ADVICE
Posted by Dan Friedman, October 9, 2007. |
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This is my recent reply to yet another Israeli's pitiful appeal for USA Jews to petition USA Jewish & gentile leaders to stop the next "peace agreement" with the Arabs. |
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The intentions of Israel's anti-Jewish, anti-Zionist leaders have been unmistakable since the death -- and instant rebirth -- of Oslo in 2001: rid Gaza, Judea and Samaria of Jews and rid Israel of Gaza, Judea and Samaria, along with much of Jerusalem too. Never mind that this will rid Israel of its heart and place it in the hands of the Arabs who will then grind it into dust, in the twisted, self-hating minds of your elected officials this is the price that must be paid to achieve a secular Jewish state and a "normal" nation among nations (a suicidal oxymoron). At least six years have gone by since their aim has been out in the open, plain as day, and now that they've seen the people lack the energy, the spirit, the will and the simple Jewish pride to stand in the way of their schemes, crimes and usurpations, the emboldened regime is rushing headlong and unopposed to seize this "opportunity." Frankly, and I've been saying this for years, no one can do for Israelis what you won't do for yourselves. Your problems aren't made in America and they won't be solved here. Only if Israelis lead is there a chance American Jews will follow. Israelis, if you love your country and your Jewish soul, the time to save Israel, or lose it, is now. Into the streets!! -- while the streets are still yours!!! Dan Friedman lives in New York City. Contact him at topcopy@gmail.com |
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CHALLENGE TO THE MEDIA
Posted by Emanuel A. Winston, October 8, 2007. |
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An event is about to take place but, you are acting as the New York Times did throughout WWII wherein they said "unsubstantiated reports are claiming the Germans may be killing Jews". They had reporters in Berlin who knew exactly what was going on. Is this then to be your legacy when someone wishes to quote your reportage from the days Israel was over-run by Muslims and you will say -- what? "I didn't know." A Mid East "Peace" Conference is to take place at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, guided by the hand of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice with James Baker guiding her head. When you read who is to attend what can be nothing more than an arranged Lynching of Israel, your credentials as honest journalists will be up for renewal. The only thing missing will be if Rice could conjure up Adolph Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Henry Ford pushing his anti-Semitic newspaper. Are you too young to know what these people did in their time? The following gives you an idea who will Israel be facing like the bull in the corrida making a few passes before the picador stabs the neck of the bull so its neck muscles causes it to drop its head lower and lower. Finally, the brave matador is ready to drive his sword through the neck and into the bull's heart. This is what is supposed to be happening to Israel in Annapolis. Olmert's head is already dropping for the sacrifice and the audience will rise up and cheer. Is this what you want to be a part of? Are these the credentials you want to carry with you all the rest of your life? That you had chance to report the truth but you decided to remain silent and stay pals with the Presidential Administration and U.S. State Department. They need a legacy and you are going to give it to them. It's a big hustle and you know it. If you believe the Muslims are going to give anyone a day of peace, especially the Jewish State of Israel, then that's the story you will write. If not, then dump your credentials because they are only garbage -- or will be soon. What follows is a long list of some 40-odd nations that will be the invitees to the U.S.-sponsored International Peace Summit scheduled for November 15th or 26th at Annapolis, Maryland. When you see this list, do you have any doubts that they are merely an anti-Israel, pro-Arab, pro-Muslim Inquisitorial Court? Can anything that resembles fairness, security or sovereignty be given to Israel by these forces? You don't even have to use your imaginations to picture what will happen to the 7 million people in Israel. ### PEACE CONFERENCE INVITEE LIST REVEALED
Bethlehem -- Ma'an -- Palestinian Information Minister Riyad Al-Maliki revealed a long list of invitees to the US-sponsored international peace summit scheduled for November. According to Al-Maliki, US President George W. Bush plans to invite the members of the international Quartet, the G-8, all permanent members of the UN Security Council, the Arab Follow-Up Committee, and three additional predominantly Muslim countries. The Quartet is composed of the US, European Union Russia, and the United Nations. The addition of the G8 countries means that Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom will be invited. As a member of the Security Council, China will also be invited. The Arab League Follow-Up Committee, established to pursue implementation of the Arab Peace Initiative, includes Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Palestine, Qatar, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Oman, Algeria, Bahrain, Yemen and Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa. Finally, Turkey, Indonesia, and Malaysia have been added to the guest list. Al-Maliki said President Abbas and other countries would ask the conference sponsors to invite India, South Africa, Brazil, Greece, and Spain. The minister told a press conference in Ramallah Thursday that the negotiations will be based on a joint declaration which Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert are expected to develop over the coming weeks in bilateral talks. The declaration, according to Al-Maliki, will tackle the final-status issues such as the borders of a future Palestinian state, the status of Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees. Al-Maliki said the declaration will be submitted to the Palestinian people for approval in a referendum. President Abbas expects the negotiations to last no more than six months, because previous negotiations have already completed a considerable part of the work. Al-Maliki said the declaration will be submitted to the Palestinian people for approval in a referendum. Emanuel Winston is a commentator and Middle East analyst. His articles appear often on Think-Israel and Gamla. He is a member of the Board of Directors and a research associate of the Freeman Center For Strategic Studies (http://www.freeman.org/online.htm). Contact him at gwinston@gwinston.interaccess.com |
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ARAB-ISRAELI FATALITIES RANK 49TH
Posted by David Meir-Levi, October 8, 2007. |
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This was written by Gunnar Heinsohn and Daniel Pipes and it
appeared today on Front Page Magazine; it is archived at
Professor Heinsohn is director of the Raphael-Lemkin-Institut für Xenophobie-und Genozidforschung at the University of Bremen. Mr. Pipes is director of the Middle East Forum. |
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The Arab-Israeli conflict is often said, not just by extremists, to be the world's most dangerous conflict -- and, accordingly, Israel is judged the world's most belligerent country. For example, British prime minister Tony Blair told the U.S. Congress in July 2003 that "Terrorism will not be defeated without peace in the Middle East between Israel and Palestine. Here it is that the poison is incubated. Here it is that the extremist is able to confuse in the mind of a frighteningly large number of people the case for a Palestinian state and the destruction of Israel." This viewpoint leads many Europeans, among others, to see Israel as the most menacing country on earth. But is this true? It flies in the face of the well-known pattern that liberal democracies do not aggress; plus, it assumes, wrongly, that the Arab-Israeli conflict is among the most costly in terms of lives lost. To place the Arab-Israeli fatalities in their proper context, one of the two co-authors, Gunnar Heinsohn, has compiled statistics to rank conflicts since 1950 by the number of human deaths incurred. Note how far down the list is the entry in bold type. Conflicts since 1950 with over 10,000 Fatalities* 1 40,000,000 Red China, 1949-76 (outright killing, manmade famine, Gulag)
This grisly inventory finds the total number of deaths in conflicts since 1950 numbering about 85,000,000. Of that sum, the deaths in the Arab-Israeli conflict since 1950 include 32,000 deaths due to Arab state attacks and 19,000 due to Palestinian attacks, or 51,000 in all. Arabs make up roughly 35,000 of these dead and Jewish Israelis make up 16,000. These figures mean that deaths Arab-Israeli fighting since 1950 amount to just 0.06 percent of the total number of deaths in all conflicts in that period. More graphically, only 1 out of about 1,700 persons killed in conflicts since 1950 has died due to Arab-Israeli fighting. (Adding the 11,000 killed in the Israeli war of independence, 1947-49, made up of 5,000 Arabs and 6,000 Israeli Jews, does not significantly alter these figures.) In a different perspective, some 11,000,000 Muslims have been violently killed since 1948, of which 35,000, or 0.3 percent, died during the sixty years of fighting Israel, or just 1 out of every 315 Muslim fatalities. In contrast, over 90 percent of the 11 million who perished were killed by fellow Muslims. Comments: (1) Despite the relative non-lethality of the Arab-Israeli conflict, its renown, notoriety, complexity, and diplomatic centrality will probably give it continued out-sized importance in the global imagination. And Israel's reputation will continue to pay the price. (2) Still, it helps to point out the 1-in-1,700 statistic as a corrective, in the hope that one day, this reality will register, permitting the Arab-Israeli conflict to subside to its rightful, lesser place in world politics. David Meir-Levi is an American-born Israeli, currently living in Palo Alto. His expertise is in Near Eastern studies and the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict. He is Director of Peace and Education at Israel Peace Initiative (www.ipi-usa.org). Contact him at david_meirlevi@hotmail.com |
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ISRAEL SIGNALS SHIFT ON JERUSALEM SPLIT
Posted by Barbara Sommer, October 8, 2007. |
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This was written by Karin Laub, Associated Press Writer and it
appeared today in the Washington Post
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JERUSALEM (AP) -- Two senior Israeli politicians, including the prime minister's closest ally, talked openly Monday about dividing Jerusalem, signaling a possible shift in Israeli opinion about one of the Mideast's most contentious issues. The dispute over Jerusalem has derailed negotiations in the past, and the latest comments come at a time when Israeli and Palestinian teams are trying to agree on principles guiding future peace talks. The ideas raised by Israeli Vice Premier Haim Ramon still fall far short of Palestinian demands to establish their capital in all of the city's eastern sector, annexed by Israel after the 1967 Mideast War. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, meanwhile, told his parliament he will not be deterred from seeking a peace deal with the Palestinians. He said Israel has missed opportunities in the past, and warned that continued failure would mean a "demographic struggle steeped in blood and tears." Olmert was unusually impassioned but short on specifics. He made no mention of Jerusalem. Later Monday, Israeli and Palestinian teams met for the first time to start drafting a joint declaration of principles that would guide negotiators if peace talks were to resume after a seven-year freeze. The document, which is to address the key disputes -- borders, Jerusalem, Israeli settlements, Palestinian refugees -- will be the centerpiece of a U.S.-hosted Mideast conference in November. Olmert's speech appeared to be a careful balancing act -- sending an encouraging message to the Palestinians, while not giving his hardline critics at home too much ammunition by going into detail. His central theme was a pledge not to miss an opportunity to reach a long-elusive peace deal, even if it requires costly concessions. Olmert said Israelis will have to led go of some of the beliefs that "fed the national ethos for many years," a reference to giving up West Bank land. Olmert praised Mahmoud Abbas, whom he has met six times since the spring, as a trustworthy partner, but at the same time portrayed the Palestinian president, known as Abu Mazen, as weak. "I know that the gap between the honest and fair intentions of Abu Mazen and (Palestinian Prime Minister) Salam Fayyad, and their ability to translate that into reality is troublesome and arouses concerns," Olmert said. Olmert was heckled occasionally, but interruptions were mild for Israel's freewheeling parliament. "Is Jerusalem a dream?" legislator Reuven Rivlin shouted when Olmert, a former Jerusalem mayor, told parliament Israelis would have to forego some of their national dreams and aspirations. It's not clear whether Olmert could muster the political support to push through a peace deal. His popularity dropped sharply after last summer's war against Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, and he is the target of several corruption probes. On Tuesday, he is to be questioned by police about allegations that he fraudulently bought a Jerusalem home well below market value, while serving as a Cabinet minister. Indictment would force him to step down. Palestinian officials largely stayed out of Israel's internal debates Monday, including over Jerusalem. Abbas adviser Nabil Abu Rdeneh took issue, though, with Olmert's reference to Abbas' purported weakness. "We hope that these statements are not meant to place obstacles in the way of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations that started today," Abu Rdeneh said. Earlier Monday, Olmert's closest ally, Ramon, raised the idea of a possible division of Jerusalem in interviews on the two main radio stations. Later in the day, Avigdor Lieberman, the leader of the hardline Israel Beitenu Party, a member of Olmert's coalition, told a news conference he is ready to hand over some Arab neighborhoods of the city. The proposals of Ramon and Lieberman would fall far short of a Palestinian demand to set up their future capital in all of the Israeli-annexed eastern sector of the city. The eastern part contains the Old City, home to major Jewish, Muslim and Christian shrines. Still, the public debate was remarkable. Ramon suggested that there's been a shift in the Israeli consensus, noting that the three main parties in Olmert's coalition all favor a division, and disagree only about where the line should be drawn. Israeli leaders have proposed possible solutions for the city in the past. Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak was harshly criticized for raising the idea of division in failed 2000 peace talks. Ramon said that under his plan, Israel would not hand over the Old City and neighboring areas -- known as the "holy basin" -- but he spoke of a special arrangement in the Old City. He did not elaborate, but the term would suggest less than full Israeli sovereignty there. Contact Barbara Sommer by email at sommer_1_98@worldnet.at.net |
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FROM ISRAEL: DANGEROUS DELUSIONS
Posted by Arlene Kushner, October 8, 2007. |
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Prime Minister Olmert made a statement at the Cabinet meeting yesterday. Said he: "The situation is different than in the past. For the first time, there is Palestinian leadership that wants to reach peace based on two states living side by side in security, and where Israel will be a Jewish state." I read this and I want to gag. Could it possibly be that Olmert is so self-deluded that he really believes this? Because he has met face to face with Abbas and Abbas said the right things to him? Or is it because he's so damn eager to give away our heritage that he doesn't care how he does it? Or because it serves him politically? Just yesterday, I quoted Avi Dichter, Minister of Internal Security, and a member of Olmert's own Kadima party, who said, "For seven years the PA did not lift a finger to stop the terrorism..." Was Olmert not paying attention? I know what his response would be: Well, Abbas wanted to do something about terrorism, but he wasn't strong enough. To which I would respond, "Garbage!" This is Abbas's ploy. In Gaza, Fatah was stronger than Hamas -- they had more men, better equipment and better training. But they walked -- or ran -- away because they didn't want to take out Hamas. Abbas has never wanted to take out Hamas. How is it that Olmert trusts his sincerity regarding peace when Abbas joined the terrorist Hamas in forming a unity government even though it didn't recognize Israel, and is now holding secret negotiations to get back in bed with Hamas? How is it that he trusts Abbas's sincerity when not so many months ago he stood before a crowd in Ramallah and told them that it's forbidden to aim their guns at each other -- all their guns should be aimed at Israel? ~~~~~~~~~~ Olmert explained that we would be proceeding in two stages: The "talking stage" and the "implementing stage." We will give them that "political horizon" but deliver on nothing until the PA "passes the test of implementing what it needs to." Does it sound reasonable and safe to you? I assure you, it's not -- it's a horror. The PA -- under Arafat and now under Abbas -- has a perfect record. It never honors commitments. Let me provide a small example here out of the hundreds that exist: We agreed to provide amnesty to certain wanted members of Al Aksa Brigades -- a Fatah-affiliated terrorist group -- with the understanding that they had to relinquish their weapons. It was the PA's job to collect those weapons. But it turns out that these guys still have their weapons. Or, to give just one more example, how about the fact, which I alluded to very recently, that Abbas made a public statement saying he would have nothing to do with Hamas ever again, even as he was secretly negotiating with Hamas. Abbas, who was Arafat's deputy, learned "forked tongue" techniques from him very well. Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said at a press conference as recently as September 4, that " we will also have to consider...the fact that the parties with which we are conducting the dialogue are not capable of carrying out the commitments that we will be demanding." Was Olmert not paying attention then either? Not able to honor commitments, not wishing to. Ultimately it doesn't matter because the bottom line is that the PA will NOT honor commitments. So why proceed to offer something, even on paper, if this is understood at the get go? ~~~~~~~~~~ And here we come to the most dangerous part of this scenario: If the PA has a perfect record of not honoring commitments, the Israeli government has a near perfect record of not insisting that it do so before moving ahead. Let's return to the examples I provided above. Did Olmert note that Al Aksa gunmen still had their weapons and say that the deal was off and there would be no "amnesty"? You bet your boots he didn't. The guys with the guns are still free from pursuit. And, worse, did Olmert say that Abbas promised not to deal with Hamas and that since he is speaking with its leaders again, our negotiations with Abbas must terminate? That's a rhetorical question. We all know he didn't do that. Again and again and again, we've averted our eyes and continued down the path in spite of PA noncompliance. So what will happen now if Olmert makes certain promises conditioned on PA compliance? Very very dangerous, I tell you. ~~~~~~~~~~ And with all of the above, the clincher is probably this: Olmert warns that we have to grab this opportunity to deal with the "moderate" Abbas while we can, for in a couple of years we'll be facing a Hamas leadership instead. I would suggest that Olmert has it exactly backwards. If we cannot trust that Abbas and his confederates will retain power, and we are able to predict that Hamas is almost certain to co-opt Abbas and gain control of the PA before long, why would we want to promise the PA anything, even on paper? It means that if we make territorial concessions to the PA, down the road we'll have Hamas at our doorstep in the east as well as in the west. ~~~~~~~~~~ Olmert tried to mollify his ministers by assuring them that the conference would not be the place for negotiations, but only for setting a tone. Besides, he said, it was clear to everyone that a condition for participation in the conference was recognition of Israel as a Jewish state. That is a blatant misrepresentation, however. Nations that avowedly don't recognize Israel -- such as Syria and Saudi Arabia -- are being encouraged to come. What Rice said was that participants should be on board with the two-state solution, but that is something else. There are Arab states who will endorse the "two-state" solution as an interim step towards getting rid of Israel, without recognizing Israel's legitimacy at all. This distinction must be made clearly. In fact, the refusal of the Arab world to recognize Israel's right to exist here as a Jewish state is at the heart of the issue. ~~~~~~~~~~ In spite of all of this, I still believe, however, that nothing will come of it. PA demands are too maximalist. The PA leadership, for all the noises to the contrary it is making, does not want a two-state solution and end of conflict. It wants us finished. And so those maximalist demands will ensure that nothing really happens. No one is sure at this point that the conference will even come off. Olmert said again yesterday that he would be bringing nothing but a general and carefully worded declaration, which has not been drafted yet. But just yesterday I cited Qurei, PA negotiator, who said they wouldn't be coming to the conference unless specifics are set down ahead of time. So what will happen remains anyone's guess. ~~~~~~~~~~ Then there is still the issue of Hamas. Let me say first that even though Olmert is willing now (which he shouldn't be) to continue talking with Abbas in spite of the fact that he is exploring rapprochement with Hamas, I remain convinced that if there really is a unity government again it will shut down our government's readiness to proceed. What is more, I believe that the closer Abbas gets to forming that unity government, the more he will find ways to not attend the conference: this is likely to be a stipulation from Hamas. Guaranteed, one way or another, Hamas is looking to make sure negotiations don't proceed. ~~~~~~~~~~ Haim Ramon raised again at the Cabinet meeting the notion -- which met with a negative response before -- of giving Arab neighborhoods of Jerusalem to the PA. This time, to the shock of many, myself included, Yisrael Beitenu head Avigdor Lieberman signed on to this to some extent: his idea is that we could trade the Arab neighborhood of Jerusalem for certain areas of Judea and Samaria. As wrong-headed as this is, I note here that it falls way short of what the Palestinians are demanding. Lieberman wants to keep the Old City and Mount Scopus. The Palestinians want it all. ~~~~~~~~~~ The London paper Al-Quds al-Arabi claimed this morning that Olmert and Abbas had reached an agreement to turn the Temple Mount over to Jordan and that the Arab residents of Jerusalem would have Jordanian citizenship. Olmert is denying this (for whatever that denial is worth) and I haven't seen a comment from Jordan or Abbas. Jordan already has special consideration on the Temple Mount, but this is not the same as total control. Commented Mk Aryeh Eldad (NU): if Israel willingly gives up sovereignty of the Temple Mount to a foreign power "it will lose its moral, historical, legal and religious justification for existence." Indeed. Jordan has been resisting giving Palestinians living outside of Jordan citizenship -- even though that was the situation during the 19 years that Jordan controlled Judea and Samaria. ~~~~~~~~~~ MK Benny Elon (Chair NU) has come forward with another plan involving Jordanian citizenship for Palestinians that does not involve territorial compromise by Israel. "The political discourse in Israel consists of old-fashioned concepts and mistakes. The assumptions are that in order to achieve peace, we must relinquish territory; that the Palestinians are a partner; and that Israel is prohibited from dealing with the refugee problem. These conceptions have failed and brought us to the place we are today: No peace, terror, Hamas controls Gaza and is threatening to seize control of Judea and Samaria. We must reexamine all the underlying assumptions that brought us to this current situation, and think differently, 'outside the box.'" His plan: Israel would retain control of Judea and Samaria while the Arab residents would become citizens of Jordan. Additionally, there would be a focus on rehabilitating the refugees according to a humanitarian rather than a political solution. I vigorously applaud this approach. The wrong-headed focus has been on their "right of return" -- which in actuality has kept them in a miserable limbo for almost 60 years and has been used as a weapon against Israel. It's time to start helping them individually get their lives together with permanency. UNRWA, the agency that has promoted "return" and kept them in limbo, would be dismantled; the refugees would be rehabilitated -- with permanent housing, grants to get them on their feet and citizenship -- and the camps would be dismantled. Rav Benny says that surveys indicated that 30% to 50% of the Palestinian refugees are interested in such a plan, which would provide rehabilitation in a third country, and that for the first time, because of the current political climate, there are Arab nations interested in cooperating. He has launched a million dollar campaign to promote this idea, which he is calling the Israel Initiative." Right on! Contact Arlene Kushner at akushner@netvision.net.il and visit her website: www.ArlenefromIsrael.info |
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ZIONISM=RACISM: THE WAR AGAINST THE JEWS
Posted by Alex Grobman, October 8, 2007. |
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This is an excerpt from Nations United, How the UN Undermines
Israel and the West, published by Balfour Books, Green Forest, AR,
2006.
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Nations United traces the transformation of the United Nations (UN) from an organization that voted to partition the former British Mandate of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states -- making Israel a nation state -- and then passed a Zionism=Racism (Z=R) resolution to delegitimize and dehumanize that nation. Anti-Zionism Becomes International In Scope For more than 20 years after the establishment of the State of Israel, anti-Zionism was a regional phenomenon -- a clash between Arab and Jewish national movements in the Middle East. In the Soviet Union and in Eastern Europe, the Soviets exploited antisemitism for political purposes, but it was rarely part of international debate until after the Six-Day War in 1967. By the end of the 1960s, and since 1975, anti-Zionism became international in scope. It first appeared in the universities in the West where the New Left, in cooperation with Arab student associations, attacked Israeli policy.[19] When the United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 3379 on November 10, 1975, and declared "Zionism is a form of racism and racial discrimination," it significantly expanded anti-Zionism into the sphere of international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and therefore into Third World countries. This was accomplished in a collaboration between the Arabs and the Soviet Union that endowed anti-Zionism with legitimacy and official recognition.[20] After the First World War, the Arabs expected Greater Syria -- which included Palestine and Lebanon -- to become a vast, united, and sovereign Arab empire. Instead, the French and the British divided the area into what the Arabs considered "irrationally carved out" entities that became the present-day states of Saudi Arabia, Syria, Trans-Jordan (later Jordan), Iraq, and Israel. The Arabs were outraged that a "non-Arab embryo state in Palestine" had been inserted into an area where it would never be accepted. They claimed that this shattered their dreams of unification and impeded their search for a common identity.[21] The fight against a Jewish homeland became an integral part of their struggle "for dignity and independence." Israel's existence, they claimed, "implied that not only a part of the Arab patrimony, but also parts of Islam, had been stolen. For a Moslem, there was no greater shame than for that to happen." The only way to eliminate this deeply felt affront -- this "symbol of everything that had dominated them in the past" -- was to rid the area of "imperialist domination."[22] Zionism has been branded as the official enemy of the Arab national movement, but Arab governments have long been accused of using the Arab-Israeli confrontation to divert attention from their own critical domestic social and economic problems. When confronted, they respond that if this were not a real concern, it would not resonate so strongly among the Arab masses.[23] Bernard Lewis, professor emeritus at Princeton University, the dean of Middle Eastern scholars in the West, says Arab fixation with Israel "is the licensed grievance. In countries where people are becoming increasingly angry and frustrated at all the difficulties under which they live -- the poverty, unemployment, oppression -- having a grievance which they can express freely is an enormous psychological advantage."[24] The Israeli-Arab conflict is the only local political grievance that can be openly discussed. If the population were permitted freedom of speech, Lewis believes that the obsession with Israel would become far less important. Like most people, Arabs are concerned about their own priorities. For the Palestinian Arabs, who view themselves as the permanent victims, the main issue is their struggle with Israel. If Arabs in other countries were permitted to focus on their own problems, they would do so.[25] For Arabs, the attempt to blame Western imperialism is nothing more than an excuse to attack Israel, as another historian asserted: "For decades the Arabs have been obsessed by memories of past glories and prophecies of future greatness, mocked by the injury and shame of having an alien and despised race injected into the nerve center of their promised pan-Arab empire, between its Asian and African halves, just at a time when the colonial powers had started their great retreat from their colonial possessions in Asia and Africa."[26] To lessen their feelings of shame for losing every war against Israel, the Arabs attributed the success of Jewish settlement in Palestine and the Israeli military triumphs of 1948 and 1956 to Western imperialism. As the representative of the Great Powers, Israel became the Arabs' scapegoat whenever they became frustrated in their attempt to transcend "centuries of social, economic, and cultural development, and catch up" with the West. This anti-Israel fixation precipitated a methodical "Manichean metaphysic, the focus of an entire philosophy of history, with the Jew as the devil incarnate from the days of patriarch Abraham himself till his assumption of the role of the linchpin of an American-Imperialist-Zionist world-plot against the Arab world, the Socialist Commonwealth and all colonial peoples."[27] Anti-Zionism entered the international scene when Israel and Egypt reached political rapprochement after the Yom Kippur War by signing an interim agreement on September 1, 1975. That agreement emphasized, "The conflict between them and in the Middle East shall not be resolved by military force but by peaceful means." [33] Concerned that this might lead to peace, the Soviets, Syria, and the PLO tried to exclude Israel from international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), like UNESCO, "for having transgressed the United Nations Charter, and having failed to adopt its resolutions." When this strategy failed, they began to question Israel's legitimacy and discredit and condemn Zionism in the UN, and to internationalize their propaganda against her. [34] Political Antisemitism Irwin Cotler, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, wrote: Traditional anti-Semitism was the denial of the right of individual Jews to live as equal members in a society. The new anti-Jewishness is the denial of the right of Jewish people to live as equal members in the family of nations. ... All that has happened is that we've moved from discrimination against the Jews as individuals to the discrimination against the Jews as a people.[35] Demonizing Israel has turned it into a physical target for terrorist organizations, and into a political target for left wing and reactionary forces. Whether there are fatwas (legal rulings by Muslim clerics that routinely legitimize suicide terrorism) or there are organizations demanding divestment from Israeli corporations, destruction of Israel -- physical, spiritual, or economic -- is one of the mantras of the day. This is what Cotler calls political antisemitism.[36] For the majority of the member states in the UN, Israel is a locus of evil, deserving international condemnation -- unlike many countries in the UN that practice ethnic cleansing, offer no rights to women or the poor, starve their own people for political reasons, and commit genocide. These same nations, in the halls of an institution that was designed to prevent exactly this from happening, deny Israel her rights even in the courts of international law. Israel is the target of the majority of UN sanctions, is vilified by the International Court of Justice at the Hague for defending herself, and is singled out by the Geneva Convention as the utmost violator of human rights.[37] It has been suggested that this deliberate delegitimization leads to gradual erosion of Israel's stature and ultimately her right to exist. Those targeted are the last to recognize the transformation until the consequences of ostracism become evident. This occurs when remarks by the country's spokesman are seen as irrelevant, and when the leadership is no longer regarded as worthy of engaging in legitimate discourse with other countries.[38] Branding Israel as racist portrays her as a country that harms civilian populations, oppresses minorities, and establishes restrictive immigration laws and religious statutes as part of its ideological raison d'etre. Thus, Israel's wars -- its military response to terror and laws passed by the Knesset -- are racist. A significant danger to Israel is that if this charge becomes a new stereotype through popular culture, the media, literature, and daily speech, it will taint the Jewish state and become a part of the legacy of the West.[39] How does one respond to such charges? No logical argument ever succeeded in disputing the blood libels or any other spurious allegation leveled against the Jews. Yet, limited response to Z=R ensured that anti-Zionist resolutions continued to be passed. To counter the process of delegitimization, the charges have to be seen as a "corruption of language and thought," a threat to freedom, and a campaign of disinformation orchestrated by the Arab states and the Soviet Union.[40] Nations United examines the initial reactions to the Z=R resolution by the United States, Israel, and others, the political and cultural environment at the UN, and the provocative roles played by Arab states, the Former Soviet Union (FSU), African nations, and NGOs in the new war against the Jews. Endnotes 19. Yohanan Manor, "Anti-Zionism," (Jerusalem: World Zionist Organization, 1984), p. 8.
Dr. Alex Grobman is author of "Battling for Souls: The Vaad Hatzala Rescue Committee in Post War Europe" [KTAV]. He is also co-author of "Denying History: Who Says The Holocaust Never Happened?" (University of California Press, 2000). This is an excerpt from his latest book "Zionism=Racism: The New War Against The Jews". |
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BUSH KICKS OFF NOVEMBER MIDDLE EAST SUMMIT
Posted by David Bedein, October 8, 2007. |
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This appeared in the Philadelphia Bulletin. |
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Jerusalem -- U.S. administration sources confirm that President George W. Bush plans to launch his Middle East Summit on Nov. 15 at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., the 300-year-old city that once hosted the early days of the U.S. Continental Congress. The choice of Nov. 15 coincides with the annual "General Assembly" of more than 3,000 well-organized Jewish community councils and Jewish federations from all over the United States, which convenes under the aegis of the United Jewish Communities. The General Assembly takes place this year in Nashville, Tenn., between Nov. 13 and Nov. 15. Representatives of the Bush administration and the Israeli government are scheduled to address the UJC general assembly on Nov. 14. It is hoped that those speeches will generate grassroots enthusiasm amongst American Jews for the planned summit. As a matter of policy, the UJC promotes the policies of the government of Israel, no matter how unpopular the policies are in Israel itself or how unwise they may be. Throughout the 1990s, the UJC enthusiastically supported Israel's controversial initiatives with the PLO terror organization with great alacrity. The UJC even decided to honor PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat with the Isaiah Peace Award in October 1999. Only after the UJC decision to bestow an award on Arafat was publicized prematurely did the UJC decide not to grant Arafat that award. Meanwhile, although the list of prospective invitees to the November Middle East Summit has not been finalized, assessments are that Syria will be invited and will send representatives to the conference. U.S. officials said they believed that Syria would try to exact a number of preconditions before announcing its acceptance of the invitation. Aside from Syria, representatives from Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and the Quartet-Russia, the European Union and the United Nations will also be invited. The decision to invite Syria constitutes a reversal in U.S. foreign policy, since the administration has refused to engage in any contact with Damascus, which it has accused of being a member of the "axis of evil" and of sponsoring terrorism. The reason for the change in the American position apparently lies in the American recognition that it would be better for Syria to be part of the process than to have it try to torpedo it. American sources who were quoted by the wire services said that the decision to invite Syria was geared to spur the other Arab states to attend the conference. PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas also asked to have Syria invited so as not to break Arab unity. Regarding Saudi Arabia, the U.S. administration considers it to be of great importance to have the kingdom attend the conference and play an active role in it. Riyadh has yet to announce whether it intends to attend. What complicates matters is that Saudi Arabia remains in a formal and active state of war with Israel since 1948, having never agreed to any peace treaty (like Jordan and Egypt) or truce (like Syria and Lebanon). Preparations for the conference are to begin next week. A sophisticated media center is being constructed to house the thousands of journalists who are expected to cover the conference. In public statements, administration spokesmen have been trying to lower expectations, but behind the scenes feverish efforts are being made to make the summit a grandiose and significant event, an event that will earn President Bush a few diplomatic points at the end of his term. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is going to chair the summit. However, President Bush intends to play an active and meaningful role in the talks. The assessment is that the president's expected presence will spur the invited countries to send high-ranking delegates. King Abdullah of Jordan hinted this week that he intended to send his foreign minister to attend the conference. "Only if it becomes evident that the conference is going to deal with substantive issues and the final settlement will we agree to send a high-ranking delegation, which will be headed by the prime minister," he said. Egypt has also hinted that it intended to dispatch its foreign minister to attend the Summit, but this weekend Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak held talks with the Saudi king about the possibility of raising the level of the delegation sent. Syria, if it accepts the invitation, is expected to send Foreign Minister Walid Muallem, who formerly served as its ambassador to the U.S. David Bedein is Bureau Chief, Israel Resource News Agency. (http://Israelbehindthenews.com). He is president of Center for Near East Policy Research. Contact him by email at media@actcom.co.il |
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AN OPEN LETTER TO THE UJC'S G.A.
Posted by Emanuel A. Winston, October 7, 2007. |
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I strongly recommend that whoever receives this memo please send it on to the Administration of the U.J.C. (UNITED JEWISH COMMUNITIES) with your own comments. See bottom for addresses. As you no doubt are aware that while your crucial discussions at our Annual Conference of all the Jewish Federations and Jewish Organizations are proceeding from November 10 to 13, the Bush-Rice-Baker consortium will be having their own Conference, called a Mid East Summit for "Peace in Our Time" at U.S. Naval Academy Annapolis, Maryland. It will be very easy for them to restrict access of potential protesters and/or media. Their schedule has been shifting from November 15 to November 26th, which will make it difficult for protesters to make plans. They plan to disassemble the Jewish State of Israel under the Chamberlain-style rubric of "Peace in Our Time". The American coalition led by C. Rice of so-called "Peace-Makers" expect your support if not your silence. There is deep concern that the U.S. State Department will provide speakers to pacify you and get your applause as well as you support. In other words, they expect you to shut up and act like obedient Jews who do not dare protest government policy -- including bad policy decisions by the Israeli government. Their assumption is that, as Jews you will applaud even James Baker, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, or anyone who said things tuned to your ears so you will feel "moved" to applaud. While your work in the field of helping Jews is commendable, there is the other job of really protecting Jews world-wide. That especially includes Israel -- particularly with its flawed leadership under Prime Minister Olmert who is now under investigation for all sorts of criminal activities. The United Jewish Communities have invited PM Ehud Olmert and FM Tzipi Livni to their final plenum session at the GA. Presumably they hope to encourage your belief in another State of Palestine by dividing Jerusalem, including forfeiting the Jewish Temple Mount, surrendering 2/3rds of Israel's fresh water resources, abandoning the Golan Heights, giving up the Jordan Valley and gifting Israel's ancestral heartland of Judea and Samaria to the Muslim Arab Palestinian Authority. They want you to believe that this is a wonderful opportunity to appease the Muslim Arab world and its radical Muslim Terrorists. Granted, honoring the office of Prime Minister or President of Israel is proper but, when life and death of our Jews in Israel is to be considered, you cannot be silent or applaud the manipulators of Israel's dismemberment on the remote chance that the Muslim Arabs will cease terror both against Israel, America and against the non-Muslims world-wide. A dismembered Israel, left in vulnerable pieces will bring "Jihadists" (Holy Warriors for Islam) in swarms -- as happened in Afghanistan and most certainly in Iraq. These murderers are called "Mujahadin" (also Arabic for Holy Warriors for Islam). Bush, Rice, Baker and Olmert are counting on the Jews to remain silent as they were through the years of WWII, fearful of causing anti-Semitism if they protested too loudly. We lost 6 million Jews due to that silence of shame. I cannot help but wonder how American Jews (you) will be treated after Israel loses her ability to protect and defend herself? Please contact your Congressmen and women, both before the G.A., during any of your visits to the Hill and your follow-up afterward. Please speak to the candidates running for President whether Democrats or Republicans. Have them make public statements and don't be put off by vague and slippery promises of "I'll look into it." The Jewish people count on you so don't shirk your most solemn responsibilities by avoiding confrontation with the political establishments in Israel but, particularly the Bush Administration and the U.S. State Department. Don't be a Jew torn with guilt when things go bad for Israel, knowing you avoided speaking out when you could! Those of you who belong to AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) might give them a call. Their spines could also use some stiffening right now and at their coming convention October 28-29 in Philadelphia. The AIPAC Policy Conference includes a televised satellite address by Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak. For those who might not know Barak's background, recall that it was he who, as Prime Minister at Camp David in 2000, offered Yassir Arafat 97-98% of Judea, Samaria and Gaza or the exact policy that is now being offered to the Muslim Arab Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (aka Abu Mazen). Arafat refused that offer and initiated his Second Intifada or the Rosh Hashanah War of 2000 on September 28th during which his Terrorists killed 1500 Israelis wounding hundreds of thousands more, many maimed for life. Also recall that it was Barak (as Prime Minister) who ordered a midnight run out of the security zone in Lebanon in 2000, leaving the vacuum that was filled by Hezb'Allah that resulted in the Hebz'Allah War from Lebanon, launching 4,000 of their 12, 000 Katyusha Missiles that devastated Northern Israel the summer of 2006. Hezb'Allah is now said to have re-armed to at least 20,000 missiles. Then there is the question of whether he received financial commissions for selling an AWACs-type aircraft to China while he was an IDF General. I wonder what Barak has cooked up for his AIPAC appearance, given that only those who could afford $4,000-5,000 will be there for his "massaging" by remote TV? Reading the registration forms for the AIPAC Policy Conference, I was disappointed to learn that the only grass-roots activists allowed to attend the October AIPAC Policy Conference are those who can afford to give $3,600 annually, plus $195 registration fee, plus hotel and airfare. I remember when AIPAC was truly for grass-roots activists who came to learn the issues and then spent a day on Capital Hill, lobbying their Congresspersons. ### Addresses for UJC & GA. Browse www.ujc.org for in-depth information, but many of the sites referred to were down due to computer problems. Here are some email addresses: President & CEO of UJC (United Jewish Communities) howard.rieger@ujc.org Emanuel Winston is a commentator and Middle East analyst. His articles appear often on Think-Israel and Gamla. He is a member of the Board of Directors and a research associate of the Freeman Center For Strategic Studies (http://www.freeman.org/online.htm). Contact him at gwinston@gwinston.interaccess.com |
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WOULD A PALESTINIAN STATE ADVANCE U.S. INTERESTS?
Posted by Yoram Ettinger, October 7, 2007. | |||
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1. While the US honors the 9/11 victims, Abu Mazen's daily, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, honors the perpetrator of 9/11, Bin-Laden (per enclosed cartoons)! 2. (Hate) education is the most authentic reflection of one's ideology and vision. The enclosed cartoons, published by Abu Mazen's directed-media, echo sermons and text books in Abu Mazen's controlled mosques and schools. 3. Abu Mazen's PA/PLO has been a systematic ally of Bin-Laden, Saddam, Iran, No. Korea, China and Russia. It has been a deadly threat to the Hashemites and moderate Gulf regimes, a role-model of inter-Arab treachery, hate-education, terrorism, homicide and car bombing, hijacking and murder of diplomats (e.g. murdered US ambassadors in Sudan), human rights violation, oppression of Christian Arabs and corruption. PLO mentors were allies of the Nazis and of the ruthless communist regimes in Moscow and E. Europe. 4. Palestinian terrorists fought US GIs in Iraq and Afghanistan. 5. A Palestinian State would provide US enemies and rivals an east Mediterranean platform. 6. A Palestinian State would add another anti-US vote at the UN. 7. A Palestinian State and US interests would constitute a classic oxymoron! 8. U.S. support of, and aid to, the Palestinian Authority has convinced the PA that it can get away with murder and systematic violation of commitments and be rewarded. These cartoons were published by Abu-Mazen's controlled daily, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Sept. 12, 2007 (Left) and Sept. 11, 2002 (Right). They were provided by the "Palestinian Media Watch".
Ambassador Yoram Ettinger is a consultant on US-Israel relations as well as the Chairman of Special Projects at the Ariel Center for Policy Research. Formerly the Minister for Congressional Affairs to Israel's Embassy in Washington, DC, Ettinger also served as Consul General of Israel to the Southwestern US. He is a former editor of Contemporary Mideast Backgrounder, and is the author of the Jerusalem Cloakroom series of reports. Contact him at yoramtex@netvision.net.il This essay is Straight From The Jerusalem Cloakroom #207. |
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PLEASE SIGN PETITION FOR GOOGLE TO STOP HIGHLIGHTING A NOTORIOUS ANTISEMITIC SITE.
Posted by Milton Fried, October 7, 2007. |
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Jew Watch is a notorious Jew-hating website. It is very popular with pro-Arab and neo-nazi groups. PLEASE DO NOT GO THERE BECAUSE THAT JUST MAKES THEM MORE POPULAR. And Google lists sites by popularity. If that site comes up when you do a google search, DO NOT GO THERE. DO NOT CLICK THE ITEM. It is important for people of good will to help stop the dissemination of antisemitic lies. Please ask Google to stop forwarding people to this hate website when the word "Jew" is put into the Google search engine. Google is aiding and abetting the dissemination of hate. The nazi scum has the right to free speech, but Google does not have the right to help him disseminate his poison. To help stop this problem, please sign the petition, below. We have over 400,000 petition signers and need at least 500,000. Please sign the petition at: www.petitiononline.com/rjw23 and forward it to all your friends. Contact Milt Fried at docmiltfried@mindspring.com |
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FROM ISRAEL: DEMANDS AND MORE DEMANDS
Posted by Arlene Kushner, October 7, 2007. |
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Saman Abu Sitta, who was a member of the Palestine National Council and is a strong advocate for "right of return," written a letter to Abbas warning him not to fall into the trap of settling for a two-state solution, as this would be to surrender the "right." The two-state solution, he says is "extremely dangerous": "...what has drawn our attention more than anything else is Israel's attempt to redefine the idea of the two-state solution. Israel now wants mutual recognition -- Israel as the national homeland of the Jews and, on what's left of the land, Palestine as the national homeland of the Palestinians." The nerve of us, wanting mutual recognition! Sitta's concern is that this would mean accepting a Jewish historical claim to rights to the land. "This would constitute a historic burden; no Palestinian could bear its consequences in front of his people and history." Quite simply, there is no place for Israel in Abu Sitta's scenario. If Abbas, who is still demanding "justice" for the refugees, should abandon this position, he would have to face a Palestinian constituency that includes a very large number of refugees. He is not budging. On the other hand, even Olmert cannot and would not propose allowing these refugees into Israel. ~~~~~~~~~~ Meanwhile former PA prime minister Ahmed Qurei has now been appointed as head of the PA negotiating committee. His position? There is no deal without Jerusalem and Gaza. And if this isn't worked out before the conference the PA will boycott it. Well... as he is head of the negotiating committing this may dispense with notions that Abbas will settle for just a vague statement before the conference. But in any event it's worth looking at what Qurei is talking about: It should be noted that he doesn't refer to "eastern Jerusalem," but rather "Jerusalem." At a bare minimum he wants all of the Old City, including the Jewish Quarter and the Kotel, along with the Mount and all Jewish neighborhoods established past the Green Line, such as French Hill and Gilo. But there is not a snow flake's chance in hell that the current coalition would sign off on this. And Gaza? This has been a stumbling block because of Hamas control of the area, and so it must be asked what Qurei is suggesting. Is he implying that Hamas be included in negotiations, or, likely, that a Fatah-Hamas rapprochement is in the works? My own take on this is that the closer Fatah gets to reuniting with Hamas, the less eager it will be to participate in the conference, as this might even be a Hamas stipulation. This is Abbas really playing both ends against the middle. Here it should be noted that Olmert has pledged not to deal with Abbas if he is connecting again with Hamas and I suspect his coalition would hold him to it. ~~~~~~~~~~ Last week, Avi Dichter, Public Security Minister, gave a statement to Haaretz in which he said: "For seven years the PA did not lift a finger to stop the terrorism..." This is particularly important to keep in mind as Bush and Rice, and their lackey Olmert, praise Abbas for his peaceful behavior. ~~~~~~~~~~ A Grad-type (Russian made) Katyusha rocket was shot from the north of Gaza this morning and landed in adjacent to a residential area of Netivot. This rocket -- which has a 20 km range -- is a more serious weapon than the Kassam and provides virtually no warning time. The last time such a rocket was shot was May but there have been other efforts that failed; terrorists are working on improving their weaponry. Criticism was forthcoming from many quarters for Olmert's failure to respond decisively here and protect Israeli civilians. MK Effie Eitam (NU-NRP) said that Olmert's failure to respond adequately to the Kassams has let to this, and that "a government that divides Jerusalem will cause a Grad missile to hit the Knesset." While MK Yuval Steinitz (Likud) called on the people of Israel to arouse from their slumber and see what's going to happen if there are concessions to the PA, stating that "The prime minister must act decisively to eradicate the rockets from the South instead of offering Abbas further withdrawals to the center the country." ~~~~~~~~~~ The website for the armed branch of Hamas made note of the Katyusha attack, saying that the rocket was aimed at "the area of Naqab, which was occupied since 1948." Netivot is within the Green Line. Contact Arlene Kushner at akushner@netvision.net.il and visit her website: www.ArlenefromIsrael.info |
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UNITED JEWISH COMMUNITIES (UJC) LEADERS REFUSE TO HELP THE JEWS OF SDEROT
Posted by Buddy Macy, October 7, 2007. |
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To: UJC Leader, Howard Rieger, and UJC Leader, Malcolm Hoenlein
That you continue to knowingly refuse to help the Jews of Sderot goes beyond any rational understanding. How can you, the two leaders entrusted most with helping Jews who are in critical need, stand idly by while our fellow Jews are attacked daily and killed and maimed, and as Jewish children and adults suffer from extreme, long-lasting trauma! I call for your immediate resignations from your respective positions of President/CEO of United Jewish Communities and Executive Vice Chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. Most sincerely,
The article below appeared October 6, 2007 in Ynet News
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Hundreds of students answered the call and traveled to Sderot over the holiday of Sukkot. This is what they saw I came from the small state of Connecticut to Israel for many reasons. Traveling, learning, and volunteering were a few of them. Throughout my year of volunteering last year, I only heard about Sderot, a small city in the south of Israel, nestled less than a mile from the Gaza Strip, but I never came to visit. Like many Americans, I knew about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and about rockets being fired from the Gaza Strip. I never spent time thinking about where all these rockets landed. I never thought about what it might mean to have a rocket land in my city, my house, or my room. It wasn't really relevant to me. I've spent the past two days in the city of Sderot, where the rockets are landing. I went to the city to volunteer as a part of "Students Lead South", a three-day volunteering opportunity organized by students, and was given a tour around the city by Noam Bedein of the Sderot Media Center ( SderotMedia.com). I've spent the time getting to know the city: seeing where the rockets land, meeting the people who live under the constant threat and fear of rocket attacks, and trying to understand what it means to live in Sderot. I have realized the situation of the people in Sderot is relevant not only to me, but to all people around the world who care about saving innocent civilian lives. [bm: All highlighting and color in the main text of this article have been added by me for emphasis.] I can no longer pretend that I don't know. [Howard and Malcolm: You HAVE KNOWN about the rocket attacks for years, and about the dramatic increase of those attacks for many months. Yet, you continue to do nothing to ensure the residents' safety or to speak out against the Israeli Government's suicidal relative inaction!] Of all the residents of Sderot I've spoken with, one person's story had a particularly powerful impact on me. Chava turned what the news media shows as a shot of a pile of rubble into reality. I'm used to thinking about people's suffering from a distance, because when it gets too close, it becomes painful. But I feel obligated to share Chava's story with you, because the situation in Sderot is being hidden from the world and if we don't act soon more innocent people will be killed. Chava is a mother of three. Her story begins three years ago almost to this day, when her daughter called her, crying hysterically, because a Qassam rocket fired by Hamas had just passed over her head and landed in the streets. It took the doctors in the emergency room four hours to calm her daughter down, and that was just the beginning. Later that night there was another Qassam. A week later during the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah another Qassam was fired at Sderot. Chava used to be able to work, but with the never-ending Quassam attacks, and not being able to sleep at night or have a moment of relaxation, the stress overwhelmed her. She lost her job. She has to rely on prescribed drugs now to be able to sleep at night. The siren that goes off almost daily before an incoming rocket brings back terrible memories for her. Absurdly, her children now make jokes about rocket attacks because they've become such a "normal" part of everyday life. But a Sderot resident's personal trauma isn't confined just to them, but spreads to their entire family. Chava's son wanted to have his eighth birthday party in Sderot. She invited her family from central Israel. The family wanted to accept, but were afraid of the danger of the Qassams, and Chava had to work to convince them to come to her house. Chava told me about conversations she's had with her young son, who has asked her, "If I am killed by a Quassam, how long will you stay sad? " and "What will I do if you are killed?" I can't even imagine an eight-year-old asking a mother such a question. After spending just two days here, I know what the media cannot convey in a two second film clip. The psychological effect the Qassams have had on Chava is devastating, and she is just one of the thousands of residents of Sderot who suffer from the same pain and trauma. Do we need a certain amount of blood to be spilled to act? If the picture of what we are ignoring is not clear yet, I have to share one more thing Chava told me. When a Qassam is launched, people can't always make it in time to a shelter. After all, they have only fifteen seconds, and time passes quickly when you're overcome by panic and fear. There are entire blocks in the city with no shelters. Chava explained what she does when walking with her son in an unsheltered area: her son lies down on the ground, and she lies on top of him. A rocket full of explosives flies above her head and she prays to God that she won't be killed with her child lying under her. This shouldn't happen to anyone -- not to parents, not to children, anyone -- but it is happening in Sderot, because the State of Israel, [bm: World Jewry; especially, the North American Jewish leadership], the United States, and the rest of the world aren't helping. Ignorance is bliss. What I don't know, I don't have to act upon. I hope after reading this you won't hide behind ignorance anymore, so mothers in Sderot do not have to use their bodies as bomb shelters to protect their children. [Howard and Malcolm: What is even MORE disturbing, is that you DO KNOW about the situation in Sderot, and you deliberately refuse to help.] Contact Buddy Macy by email at vegibud@gmail.com |
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JORDAN REPLACES P.A. IN MK ELON'S PEACE PLAN
Posted by Hillel Fendel, October 7, 2007. |
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(IsraelNN.com) MK Benny Elon presents a peace plan that emphasizes the closing of refugee camps and Jordanian citizenship for the Arabs of Judea and Samaria. MK Elon, head of the National Union party and its Moledet Party faction, has twice served as Israel's Tourism Minister. He originally wrote the plan, known as the Right Road to Peace, in May 2003. He has now updated it with references to, and lessons learned from, the Second Lebanon War, the Disengagement from Gaza, and other recent events. The plan calls for Israel, the United States and the entire international community to recognize the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan as the sole legitimate representative of the Arabs of Judea and Samaria. Israel will assume full sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, while Jordan grants citizenship to the Arabs living there. Israel and Jordan will cooperate in coordinating the running of local affairs. The Palestinian Authority will cease to exist, under Elon's plan, and will be replaced by Jordan. All weapons, of course, will be seized from the various terrorist groups. "Jordan is a reliable partner interested in stability," Elon explains, "and will replace our Palestinian 'partner' who is unable to bring peace." "Palestine has already been divided once into two states, a Jewish one and an Arab one," Elon told the reporters. "The Arab state is now Jordan, which was originally established in 1922 when Britain gave most of the land to Amir Abdullah. Most of the population of present-day Jordan is originally Palestinian, having come from the West Bank of Jordan." Jordan's Return to the Picture In July 1988, Jordan announced its "disengagement" from the areas of Judea and Samaria, leaving its former citizens stateless. Today, MK Elon says, in light of the failure of the Israeli-Palestinian diplomatic process and the realization that a Palestinian state will not contribute to regional stability, Jordan and its King Abdullah have returned to the idea of Jordanian-Palestinian unity. "Reliable polls taken among the Arabs of Judea and Samaria indicate great support for the return of Jordan to the picture," Elon says. Elon, a former Dean of Yeshivat Beit Orot, will present the plan on Wednesday to the foreign press, with a special emphasis on the role he expects the US to play in his plan. The program, which can be viewed at www.hayozma.org, has been translated into English, Arabic, Russian, German, Spanish and French. Main points of the plan include:
Hillel Fendel is chief news editor at Arutz-Sheva (www.IsraelNationalNews.com).
This article is archived at
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STOP THE DESECRATION OF JEWISH MATZEIVOT (TOMBSTONES) IN POLAND!
Posted by Shaul Ceder, October 7, 2007. |
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Recently, my father, Mr. Joseph Ceder, visited Poland for the third time in as many years, and while there was much positive to mention, a very disturbing item was pointed out to him. In the village of Wielkie Oczy, it developed that matzeivot (tombstones) which had been stolen decades ago from the local Jewish cemetery had been used for profane purposes, including the physical support of barns. When news of this reached the public, those who had been using those tombstones were requested to return them to those who are involved in restoring the cemetery. However, one holdout, a 75-year-old woman named Janina Wolanczyk, has obstinately refused to have the matzeivot returned to the cemetery. In spite of the efforts of the restoration society to obtain them, which included a promise to replace the tombstones with concrete supports, Ms. Wolanczyk is demanding a price of 30,000 zloty (about $10,000) to return them. Since the tombstones are stolen property, this is absolutely not an option. The local court (as well as the local marshal and even the local priest) has ruled against Ms. Wolanczyk and ordered her to return the stones, but she has thus far shown contempt for all parties concerned. Apparently the matter must be taken to the highest levels of Polish government. If you are outraged by the blatant desecration of the deceased, I urge you to go to the website -- click here -- and sign the petition addressed to the President of the Polish Commonwealth, Mr. Lech Kaczynski, urging him to rectify the wrong done to the Jewish dead. Unlike so many outrages committed against the Jewish people in Poland, this one can still be set right. As this is such an important issue for the Jewish people, we encourage you to forward this message to anyone you know who could be interested in rectifying the matter. Thank you. Contact Shaul Ceder by email at ceder@netvision.net.il |
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STOP KUFFARPHOBIA DEMONSTRATION -- LONDON 26TH OCTOBER
Posted by Stop Islamisation of Europe (SIOE), October 7, 2007. |
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STOP KUFFARPHOBIA AND KALIFASCISM! To coincide with Islamo-fascism Awareness week in which events are being held across the USA highlighting the bullying by Islamists against non-Muslims throughout the world To protest against Kuffarphobia -- the irrational fear and loathing of non-Muslims by Islamists. To protest against the persecution of non-Muslims via Sharia law in Islamic countries. To protest against the under-reporting or even total lack of reporting about such persecution in Western media. To protest against the Islamisation of Europe by the changing of existing Western laws and practices to suit Islamic practices, in the name of "multicultural diversity". To protest against the entry of Turkey into the European Union especially now it has elected an openly Islamist Prime Minister and government who wish to replace secularism with Sharia law. To protest against the second-class status of women in Islamic countries, particularly regarding sexuality, jurisprudence and education. Millions of non-Muslims are systematically being persecuted because they live under Sharia law in Islamic countries. In Egypt people are being imprisoned for leaving Islam, an offence under Sharia law, indeed this is a capital offence in many Islamic countries such as Saudi Arabia. In Malaysia Islamic apostates are unable to have "Islam" removed from their official documents because it is now against Malaysia's laws to leave Islam. This denies a person's fundamental rights even to the funeral of their choice. In Indonesia Christians and other non-Muslims are persecuted to such an extent that tens of thousands have been displaced. Enforced emplantation of Muslims in Indonesian New Guinea is underway which is tantamount to ethnic cleansing. Similar ethno-religious cleansing is taking place in Kosovo where Christian Serbs are being ousted from that part of Serbia, seemingly aided and abetted by the United Nations and NATO. In the Middle East Copts and Assyrians are being persecuted by Islamists with the apparent approval of governments in that region. Armenians were systematically eliminated, simply for being non-Muslims, by one of the grossest acts of genocide. Although perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire this act of mass murder is denied by the Turkish authorities. Turkey wishes to join the European Union even though denial of genocide is illegal in several EU countries, notably Belgium. In Thailand and the Philippines terrorist murders are enacted on a daily basis by Islamists seeking to set up Islamic states. Elsewhere Hindus, Sikhs, Zoroastrians and Buddhists are oppressed and subjugated by Islamic authorities. The list seems endless. Disgracefully, most of this Islamic persecution is never reported in the Western Media. Rules for the demonstration Political parties are banned, but members of any political party may attend the demonstration as individuals provided they adhere to the rules of the demonstration. Permitted flags, banners, placards and regalia SIOE placards are permitted National flags and recognised regional flags are permitted. Flags identifying persecuted minorities in Islamic countries are permitted, subject to the approval of the Chief Steward. Banners and placards highlighting persecution of minority groups in Islamic countries are permitted, subject to the approval of the Chief Steward. Flags, banners and placards identifying women's groups are permitted. SIOE slogans:- Stop Kuffarphobia No Sharia Here! Democracy Not Theocracy! Enough is Enough! Banned items Anything identifying any political party Nazi, Fascist and Communist (Hammer and Sickle) symbols and logos Illegal items such as those inciting violence ASSEMBLY AND PROCESSION Assembly -- Whitehall Place 12.00 Procession 13.00 Route Northumberland Avenue
Speeches to be made in Temple Place before dispersal Contact details Stephen Gash
Anders Gravers (speaks English)
http://sioeengland.blogspot.com/
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SAUDI ARABIA COMPLAINS THAT MUSLIMS CAN'T PRACTICE THEIR FAITH FREELY IN EUROPE
Posted by Gabrielle Goldwater, October 7, 2007. |
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This article is actually a real treat. Read it all below! As one reader commented on the Spencer essay: "The kind of 'journalism' you'd write with a bag over your head, kneeling on the floor, before a shrouded ape wielding a dull blade [ready to decapitate You]. In other words, this is the kind of journalism you'd find in Saudi Arabia." Another commented I cannot decide if 'chutzpah' or plain 'outrageous hypocrisy' is the best way to describe the Saudi Human Rights Commission's remarks (a laughable notion in itself [I ask where are Human rights in Saudi Arabia?]) The Arrogance of the Saudis is just incredible indeed ... We ask: Will The Euro Dhimmis listen and form an official board to address "Islamophobia." The day Saudi Arabia allows passengers to bring in their religious symbols & practice their respective religion in Saudi Arabia, let ALL Religions build their own House of worship etc..., then they have the right to complain. Life is about give & take, not Take & Complain. The Answer is: Since Muslims are so badly abused in Europe, perhaps it would be a real kindness from our side, to return them all to whatever Islamic hellholes they came from. That would solve all their 'human rights' problems! Even diplomats have their baggage searched on entry into Saudi Arabia. Heavens, they might import a bible, or, worse, Playboy! There is no freedom of religion under Islam. There is no reason to grant freedom to Islam outside of Saudi Arabia, let them stew in their oil and camel dung. Another reader of the Spencer essay concludes: Recognize Israel as a sovereign state, educate your own people to free them from the fetters of Wahhabism, allow your women to share equal responsibilities with men also grant them freedom to vote and the right to be elected, and drive a car for crying out loud.... Travel on their own and have passports of their own. Allow Christians, Jews and people of ALL different faith to practice their own religion within your borders. The article below is from Jihad Watch |
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Beyond parody. "HRC to Address Muslim Rights Issues in Europe," by Raid Qusti for Arab News RIYADH, 4 October 2007 -- Saudi Arabia's Human Rights Commission (HRC) will urge its counterparts in the European Union to ask their governments not to link terrorism to Islam and also to issue regulations to protect Muslims from prejudice and discrimination because of their faith. Gabrielle Goldwater lives in Switzerland. Contact her at III44@aol.com |
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RICE'S RABBIT HOLE
Posted by Paul Lademain, October 7, 2007. |
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Again, bravo to brilliant Carolyn Glick from a NON-evangelical, secular Christians from Zion. We, being of the West, can criticize more freely: Condi is practicing her "peace posture" which commands her to fix her sights on her navel, especially now that she's thankfully nearing the end of her career as the towel carrier for the Sods in the State Dept. Condi so much hopes that if she can prattle and preach in a louder voice (her mouth twisted into what can only be described as that school-marmish leer) that somehow, this time, a miracle will occur and all lions will lie down with the lambs and the heavens will open and the sun will shine down on Condi-the-Savior's head and all the little sheep of Israel will queue up behind her as she marches them steadily over the cliff to the peace of death. Condi is not to blame. (Well, on second thought, yes, she is--but not entirely.) She has always been such a good soldier for the dumbest, flop-sloppiest US administration since Jimmy Carter. (Yeah, we remember Bert Lance and BCCI and how Carter's NGOs accepted millions from the Saudis.) And just like Carter, she would like to end up as filthy rich as Colon Bowel. So it ought to come as no surprise that if the Sods tell her to use her wiles to destroy Israel, she will foolishly attempt to so do, forgetting, with her self-serving shortsightedness, that destroying Israel will utterly destroy US influence throughout the middle East and Africa. (And if she succeeds, we had all best learn Farsi.) Condi is no less a foolhardy, self-aggrandizing peace-posturer than that meddling idiot, Carter. And both are equally hungry for flattery and money. (Sorta the same as your resident slap-happy, drooling comedian, Shimon Peres.) So again, viva to Israel and congrats to Carolyn Glick for once again hitting the nail square on its head. This below is Caroline Glick's article. It appeared October 4, 2007 in the Jerusalem Post. |
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US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is moving boldly down the rabbit hole. Next week, Rice is due back in the Middle East for meetings in Jerusalem and Ramallah. The purpose of her upcoming visit, like her previous ones, will be to pressure the Olmert government and the Fatah terror organization to reach "substantive agreements" that she'll be able to present to the world at her peace summit in Maryland next month. It is far from clear what American interests Rice is advancing with her unswerving effort to reach a peace accord between Israel and Fatah. Indeed, Rice's efforts are detrimental to US interests in the region. On Tuesday, 77 senators signed a letter to Rice regarding her plans for the summit. Among other things, the senators called on the Arab states, which Rice hopes will participate, to "recognize Israel's right to exist and not use such recognition as a bargaining chip for future Israeli concessions." The senators' warning was well placed. Far from cooperating with the US, the Arab world is undercutting its policies. Not only are the Arabs -- including Egypt and Jordan -- distancing themselves from Israel; in a direct slap at the US, the Arabs are subverting the US's goal of isolating Hamas. Rather than blackball the jihadist movement, the Arab states led by Egypt and Saudi Arabia are devoting themselves to bringing about a rapprochement between Fatah and Hamas. Unfortunately, due to Rice's missteps, the US today has little influence over the Arab states. Washington's primary diplomatic leverage over the Arabs stems from its ability to confer legitimacy on them. The US could have used this leverage if it had stated from the outset that it would only invite states to the Middle East conference that support the US's goals of isolating Hamas and accepting Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. But rather than condition their invitation, Rice and President George W. Bush made it clear from the outset that they want Arab states to participate in the summit. In so doing, the US turned the turned the tables on itself. Now it is the Arabs who by accepting or rejecting the US offer will confer legitimacy on Washington. Needless to say, in the interests of securing their participation, states like Saudi Arabia and Egypt will not be called to task for their sponsorship of Hamas or their hostility toward Israel. So the US has been weakened just by organizing the conference. Yet, if there were any chance that the conference next month in Annapolis could yield real progress toward peace, then at least the Arabs' humiliation of Washington could be said to have been worth it. Given that since the failed Camp David summit in 2000 the Palestinians have yet to make one substantive concession to Israel, it is clear that the only way the upcoming conference can succeed in advancing peace is if the Palestinians make some dramatic concession to Israel. But there is absolutely no chance that the Palestinians will be forthcoming. Fatah Chairman Mahmoud Abbas led Fatah to electoral defeat to Hamas in 2006 and to surrender in Gaza in June. The only reason that Abbas remains in power in Judea and Samaria is because the IDF is maintaining security there. The weak, ineffectual Abbas has no ability to agree to Israeli offers that Yasser Arafat rejected. In addition to Arafat's legacy, Abbas has Hamas to contend with. Any major concessions to Israel would imperil his rule -- and his life. Over the past week, Abbas announced his adherence to maximal Palestinian demands from Israel. These include the full transfer of sovereignty over the Temple Mount to the Palestinians; the complete surrender of Judea and Samaria to the Palestinians; and an Israeli acceptance of the so-called "right of return" that would force Israel to accept millions of foreign Arabs as immigrants within its truncated borders. Abbas's stances are a reflection of his inability to make any concessions for peace. The failure of Rice's summit will directly benefit Hamas, which will be able to say that as it had warned, diplomacy is pointless. Understanding this, Abbas himself has let it be known that he is negotiating with Hamas. Then too, ahead of his meeting this past Wednesday with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Abbas dispatched his representatives to threaten Israel with war. On Tuesday, Abbas confidante and representative in negotiations with Hamas Azzam al-Ahmed told reporters, "If we don't prepare well for the conference so that it will result in something positive, the repercussions will be more dangerous than what happened after the failure of Camp David." Hamas is not the only actor that will be strengthened by the failure of the summit. Anti-American, jihadist forces throughout the Arab world will similarly benefit. Like Hamas, they will be able to say, "We told you so." America's humiliation will also weaken liberal democratic voices in the Arab world. With America perceived as weak and incompetent, they will feel compelled to join the anti-American bandwagon.
RICE IS dragging Israel with her in her madcap descent down the diplomatic rabbit hole -- and not for the first time. Rice has a record of forcing Israel to sacrifice its security in the interest of her "peace" processes. In November 2005, Rice coerced then-prime minister Ariel Sharon into accepting her agreement on the passages joining Gaza to Egypt and Israel. That agreement denied Israel the ability to prevent terrorists and arms from being smuggled into Gaza. This week's Egyptian agreement to allow some 90 Hamas terrorists -- many of whom underwent military training in Iran and Syria -- to enter Gaza was easily implemented in spite of Israeli objections in large part as a consequence of Rice's heavy-handed treatment of Israel. So too, Rice forced Israel to agree to have US Lt.-Gen. Keith Dayton train and arm Fatah forces in Gaza. That disastrous plan led to the indirect US arming of Hamas when Fatah forces surrendered their weapons to Hamas without a fight in June. And of course, Rice was the architect of the cease-fire with Hizbullah last year that has enabled the Iranian terror group to rearm and to reassert its control over south Lebanon.
ALTHOUGH THE content of the talks is officially secret, various leaks make the depth of Israeli concessions clear. Israel is agreeing to transfer sovereignty over Arab neighborhoods in Jerusalem to the Palestinians and to renounce its sovereignty over the Temple Mount; Olmert and his colleagues have agreed to surrender more than 90 percent of Judea and Samaria to the Palestinians while destroying most of the Israeli communities there; and Israel is agreeing to certain "symbolic" concessions regarding the so-called "right of return." In short, Olmert is regurgitating former prime minister and current Defense Minister Ehud Barak's offers to Arafat at Camp David and Taba from seven years ago. Many on the Left argue that since Israel offered these concessions in the past, the fact that the government is returning them to the bargaining table today is nothing to get excited about. This is untrue. There is a huge difference between the situation in 2000 and today. Seven years ago, Barak's offer of territory was based on the expectation that in exchange for territory the Palestinians would eschew terror and live at peace with Israel. Today, after seven years of war that was largely directed by Fatah, after Hamas's takeover of Gaza and Iran's takeover of Hamas, this expectation is no longer realistic. By offering Barak's concessions for a second time, Olmert isn't simply offering land. He is sending the message that Israel neither expects nor demands that the Palestinian state live at peace with Israel. Perhaps Israel's greatest diplomatic failure since 2000 has been its failure to disavow Barak's offers and remove them from the negotiating table. Once Arafat refused Barak's far-reaching concessions and chose instead to launch a war against the Jewish state, Israel had numerous opportunities to make clear these concession were no longer on offer. Disavowing them is crucial not simply because they are diplomatically unwise. They are strategically suicidal. As Israel's experience in south Lebanon and Gaza show clearly, areas that Israel vacates become terrorist enclaves. Given Abbas's embrace of terrorism and his political weakness, it is absolutely clear that an Israeli withdrawal from Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem will render these areas terror bases as well. Yet here the consequences will be far worse that those of previous withdrawals. An Israeli surrender of Judea, Samaria and parts of Jerusalem will divest Israel of the ability to defend itself. Although theoretically attractive, it is impossible to partition Jerusalem between Arab and Jewish neighborhoods because there is no geographical distinction between Arab and Jewish neighborhoods. Beyond that, if Jerusalem is partitioned, the Arabs with Israeli ID cards will move to the Jewish neighborhoods and Arabs from Judea will flood the Arab neighborhoods. Far from strengthening the Jewish character of the Jewish half of the city, a partition will destroy Jewish Jerusalem. The Jews will flee, and the eternal capital of the Jewish people will be transformed into an Arab city. As for Judea and Samaria, not only would their handover transform 250,000 Israelis into internal refugees, it would leave 80% of the citizens of the truncated Jewish state within mortar and rocket range of the Palestinian state. Moreover, an Israeli relinquishment of the areas will clear the way for Arab armies to enter the Jordan Valley unopposed. The path from there to the Mediterranean is a short and easy one. Given all of this, it is manifestly clear that by succumbing to Rice's obsession with summitry, the Olmert government is playing with fire. It is committing Israel to negotiating positions that deny the country the ability to demand that the Palestinians come to terms with the Jewish state and live at peace with it. And it is rendering strategically suicidal seven-year old offers the starting point of all negotiations for years to come. On Wednesday, the State Department announced that Rice's conference is being postponed until the end of November to give the parties sufficient time to "prepare the groundwork" to somehow ensure the summit's success. Also Wednesday, Olmert and Abbas reportedly agreed that the conference would be nothing more than the starting point for future negotiations. It can only be hoped that these approaches will be combined. All negotiations should be postponed until after the summit, and the summit should be delayed for weeks, then months, then years. Otherwise, in the name of "promoting peace," Rice and her Israeli underlings will foment a new war. Contact the author at lademain@verizon.net |
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WHY THE HYPE? THERE'S NO RUSH FOR A PALESTINIAN STATE
Posted by Gabrielle Goldwater, October 7, 2007. |
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This was written by Dr. Aaron Lerner, Director of Independent Media Review and Analsis (IMRA). Its website address is http://www.imra.org.il Or write: imra@netvision.net.il |
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Reality check: For seven years the PA did not lift a finger to stop the terrorism against Israel or against itself. The Egyptians are not taking action to stop the smuggling of arms into the Gaza Strip. Public Security Minister Avi Dichter -- quoted in Haaretz 2 October 2007 They (Israelis) are also satisfied with the (West Bank) status quo that relies on the Shin Bet security service and the Israel Defense Forces. Haaretz editorial 3 October 2007 What's the logical conclusion? (1) Is it that the generally effective West Bank security approach should be extended to the Gaza Strip or (2) the security hiatus/chaos of the Gaza Strip should be ultimately ushered into the West Bank via a rush to a come-what-may-photo-op-Palestinian-state? Here's the irony: make a list of the truly burning issues of the day in the region and a Palestinian state probably isn't in the top ten. It isn't just Lebanon and Iran.
And the list goes one. And none of the problems are going to be solved by creating a Palestinian state. Some argue that "solving" the Arab-Israeli conflict via the formation of a Palestinian state would prevent desperate Arab politicians from launching campaigns against the Jewish state to divert public attention from domestic problems. But if they are indeed desperate, the Arab leaders will find the basis to justify their rallying cry against Israel regardless of what is or isn't on the ground Gabrielle Goldwater lives in Switzerland. Contact her at III44@aol.com |
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BURMA AND THE STATE OF ISRAEL
Posted by Rachel Kapen, October 7, 2007. |
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I don't agree with everything President Bush says or does but just like him in his recent address in the United Nation I refuse the use the name Myanmar and stick to the well known name Burma with which Israel had friendly relations in the early late 1950s and early 1960s before the military revolution. It was the summer of 1959 which I spent in Ulpan Borochov, a residential ulpan (where new immigrants learn Hebrew) for professionals in Givataim north of Tel Aviv. Israel, despite its rather young age, it only 11 years old then, already had a great deal to give to developing countries, first and foremost to the African countries which gained their new independence and had a great deal to learn in state building whereas Israel was only too happy to lend a hand. All Israel wanted in return was their friendship, something it didn't have in abundance. Anyway, during the summer of 1959 a Burmese delegation of young men came to Israel to learn modern method in agriculture and before being sent to their final destination where the course will be given, they were sent to Ulpan Borochov to learn basic Hebrew and acquire some knowledge of their host country. They were quite conspicuous in their traditional costumes comprised of long skirts and white shirts. One of them took fancy to me and wasn't shy to approach me whenever he saw me whether in the communal dining room or walking between my own courses. Yes, I was there to learn too, to become an ulpan teacher to new olim.(immigrants) who came from all over the globe. My Burmese friend was curious about my country and told me about his own and before their time in Ulpan Borochov came to an end, he gave me a small picture of himself where on the back he wrote in English, the language in which we communicated: remember me forever and he signed: Johnny. I doubt that this was his name in Burma but this was the name with which he wanted to be known to me. He wanted my picture too, and I gave him. I keep the picture in one of our family albums and whenever I look at it I wonder whatever happened to him, is he still alive after so many years? I thought about him a lot lately with the sad happenings in the country of which my Burmese friend 'Johnny' spoke so lovingly. I hope and pray that he is alive and well despite it all. Contact the author at skapen285466MI@comcast.net |
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FROM ISRAEL: FALLING APART
Posted by Arlene Kushner, October 7, 2007. |
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Motzei Simchat Torah (after the holiday)
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The prospects for a "peace" between Israel and the PA, that is, to be negotiated before the proposed conference in November. Well, that's not quite an accurate statement. For as far as I have been concerned there have been NO prospects for a negotiated peace no matter how much the notion has been promoted, and that's what I've been saying. But now, returning from a splendid Sukkot week, which ended today here in Israel, I am able to more clearly report the signs of the deterioration of that so-called process. In a nutshell, what we are seeing is this: Abbas, as predicted, wants it all. And I mean ALL. He said a few days ago that the 92% of Judea and Samaria that Barak offered to Arafat in 2000 was unacceptable. He is demanding that Israel return to the pre-June 1967 lines. That means leaving all of the Old City, including the Kotel and the Jewish Quarter, and relinquishing Jewish neighborhoods such as French Hill and Gilo. It means pulling every single Jew out of every settlement including the whole Etzion bloc. He won't, he says, settle for a land swap, either. But Olmert cannot possible give all of this, whether he might like to or not. His coalition -- which includes Lieberman's Yisrael Beitenu, Shas, and members of Kadima such as Mofaz who came from Likud (all those who should really be pulling out of the coalition and causing it to collapse) -- will not tolerate it. There is no way. And there's more: Abbas wants a full agreement before the conference, meaning settlement of the return of the "refugees" and issues of water rights. ~~~~~~~~~~ As of two days ago, Khaled Abu Toameh was reporting that the members of Fatah are now hinting that a failure of the conference will lead to violence, just as the failure of Camp David in 2000 led to the second Intifada. Except this time it will be even worse, they say. What is suggested is that raised expectations, when met with frustrations, will cause an explosion among the people. Well, there is something to that. The Palestinians are violence-prone. But let me here make one thing crystal clear here: The Intifada in 2000 was not a spontaneous response from the people because of frustration. It was planned by Arafat and overtly choreographed by the likes of Marwan Barghouti; I have solid documentation on this and will gladly share it with anyone who contacts me. For associates of Abbas to be alluding to this now is nothing but a veiled threat. THIS is the "bargaining" style of the Palestinian leadership: give us what we want or else. And this, my friends, is precisely why Abbas doesn't take out terrorist infrastructure. It is there waiting to serve his purpose when the time suits him. This was Arafat's style exactly, and Abbas was Arafat's deputy and part and parcel of all that went on. I read this, and I think, here we go again. I made aliyah during that Intifada, and lived with my own moments of fear here in Jerusalem. But, even if G-d forbid it should come, a thousand times better than giving them everything past the Green Line. My greatest anger is reserved not for the Palestinians -- about whom I have no illusions whatsoever -- but rather Bush and Rice and Olmert and Livni and all those who imagine we can deal with these terrorists, and who invite this deteriorating situation. ~~~~~~~~~~ So where are we now? Abbas met with Olmert at his Jerusalem residence yesterday and they've got teams working on the wording of a joint agreement. Rice is coming to town soon and will shuttle between Ramallah and Jerusalem strong-arming everyone into coming up with something. Olmert is standing on his head to be agreeable, but privately some of his people are expressing pessimism about the possibilities of coming to terms. There is only one way in which there might be a joint agreement, and that is if Abbas backs down on his demand that everything be settled before the conference, and consents to a general statement. There are reports that this is what will happen, with negotiations slated to follow the conference and Abbas claiming all can be resolved within six months. But other reports are saying the Palestinians deny this. There are even still hints from the Palestinians that they might not attend the conference at all if it won't be substantive. According to a London-based paper, Asharq Alawsat, Abbas is "disappointed" with Olmert. Israel Army Radio says that Olmert is demanding that every document drawn up before the conference include the letter Sharon received from Bush before the "disengagement," which refused to recognize the right of return and suggested that major settlement blocs should be retained by Israel. ~~~~~~~~~~ And there is one other factor of significance with regard to this whole matter: Reports have surfaced that Egypt's mediation between Fatah and Hamas has been successful and that the two parties have agreed to hold talks in Cairo. This came from yet another London based Arab paper, al-Sharq al-Awsat, and was quite specific in providing details: Egyptian Intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, has been in charge of the mediation, meeting with Mashaal in Damascus and Abbas and others in Ramallah; Azzam al-Ahmad is scheduled to head the Fatah delegation in the talks. Just a week ago in a Newsweek interview, Abbas said he would have nothing more to do with Hamas. So what else is new? There was anger among some members of the Knesset this week that Olmert would meet with Abbas when these reports had already been made public. What is of key importance here for me is the way in which a Hamas-Fatah rapprochement will affect the negotiations Abbas seeks with Israel. This might be the ultimate source of the breakdown. Olmert has stated unequivocally (although there is little that is truly unequivocal for him he would be held to it by others) that he wouldn't deal with Abbas if he was again associated with Hamas. I also believe that Abbas's various positions in seeking negotiations with Israel are affected by his relationship with Hamas. This, and much more, bears close watching. Contact Arlene Kushner at akushner@netvision.net.il and visit her website: www.ArlenefromIsrael.info |
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IFTAR MUBARAK -- HAS THE USA ALREADY SUBMITTED TO ISLAM?
Posted by Michael Travis, October 7, 2007. | |
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Below are some relevent article. | |
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" The Descent into Dhimmitude"
I can understand why it's important tolerate Muslims. As long as they are peaceful and don't inject their religion into our politics, Muslims who live legally amongst us should be left alone. Until the rule of law in the West breaks down entirely, there's no other way. But, given that hundreds of thousands of non-Muslims have been brutalized and slaughtered in the name of Islam in recent years, I don't see why it's incumbent upon us to celebrate the Religion of Peace. But that's exactly what our leaders want us to do: Bush White House Event Celebrates Islam And it's not only the president who's busy salaaming to the imams; Congress can't wait to join the groveling bandwagon: This week, the House voted unanimously, 376-0, to recognize Islam's holy month of Ramadan. The resolution commended Muslims and hailed the Islamic faith as "one of the great religions of the world." No one dared to vote against the resolution, but forty-two congressman mustered the nads to vote "present" on it, including, I'm happy to say, our own congressman, the Hon. Virgil Goode of Virginia's Fifth District: Forty-one Republicans, more than 20 percent of the caucus, and one Democrat voted "present" on a resolution recognizing the commencement of Ramadan on Tuesday. A miserable forty-two congressmen stand between the American public and total dhimmitude, and they are too scared, either of the throat-cutters or The New York Times, to actually vote "no" on this monstrosity. A principled stand against such resolutions is in order. After a decade or more has passed since the last time a mujahid cut an infidel throat or killed his daughter for the sake of honor -- then we can talk. But not until then. I repeat: A principled stand is in order. But don't hold your breath.
This is the 7th year in a row that President George W. Bush will host the Iftar Dinner with Ambassadors and Muslim leaders in the State Dining Room of the White House. An iftar is a meal served at the day's end during Ramadan, which began Sept. 13 this year and continues through Oct. 12. As usual, Bush spoke highly of Islam as the religion of peace, and
disconnected it from Islamic terrorism: "Terrorists don't represent
Islam". Most readers' comments to the assertion that Islam is peaceful
Clearly, the president doesn't read much current global news -- except maybe
what's happening in Iraq and Washington, D.C. This comes from
the Scarlett Crusader website and is entitled
"Ramadan Violence 2007"
Ramadan 2007:
1,327 dead bodies in 282 terror attacks in 20 countries.
10/11/2007 Thailand Narathiwat: 1 killed, 1 injured. A Buddhist man and his wife on their way back from a monastery are shot by Muslim radicals. See the Scarlet Crusader for the full list of Islamic
terror attacks during Ramadan this year.
"I am astonished by President Bush when he claims there is nothing
in the Koran that justifies jihad violence in the name of Islam"
It's an old quote, but worth revisiting. All right, which one of you "Islamophobes" said it? Come on, fess up. You, in the back there -- was it you, Trifkovic? No? How about you, Bostom? Not you either? Greg Davis, it must have been you. No? Hmm. All right, Fitzgerald. Stop ducking your head down -- this isn't an air raid drill. Very well. If none of you mugs are going to fess up, who did say this? What's that? It was Abu Qatada, a Muslim cleric linked to Al-Qaeda? How astonishing! Who would have thought that Al-Qaeda had been infiltrated by Islamophobes! But of course, that's the charge: that people like me and the others I named above, and still others also, "endorse" the "Al-Qaeda version of Islam" when we point out that there is little or nothing that is unorthodox about that "version" from the standpoint of traditional Islam. The whole world takes for granted the idea that the Islamic world rejects contemporary jihadism on Islamic grounds, and various non-Muslim analysts have come up with various explanations of how exactly it deviates from traditional Islam -- genuine jihad can only be called by state authority, etc. (That one ignores the fact that the jihadists today present their activities as entirely defensive, and according to traditional Islamic law defensive jihad doesn't need anyone to call it to make it obligatory on all Muslims.) Meanwhile, however, the jihadists continue to recruit peaceful Muslims by presenting their "version" of Islam as the genuine article, the pure thing, and the soothing explanations that comfort so many in the West don't seem to have any power to blunt the force of this recruitment. What the learned analysts don't realize is that many Muslims believe Abu Qatada when he says things like this. Peaceful moderates have yet to come up with a refutation of claims like this that is convincing to Muslims on Islamic grounds. It is not endorsing their perspective to point this out. It is just stating a fact. And when CAIR and MPAC and the rest focus their ire on me and others like me instead of on Abu Qatada, they are doing nothing -- nothing -- to impede his efforts. This is from "Guess Who Came to Iftar for Dinner?," by Diana West:
I wasn't going to write about Ramadan in official Washington this fall season -- not again. But I just can't resist. First, there are all the holiday trappings of this by-now annual column -- such seasonal staples as my all-time favorite "war on terror" quotation from Abu Qatada, the Al Qaeda-linked cleric. I just love to trot it out around Ramadan after President Bush has said something utterly ignorant about Islam meaning peace, or, addressing the Muslim pooh bahs he always has at the White House for a fast-breaking Iftar dinner, how the jihadists have "twisted" Islam. Of course he hasn't. Back to West: Ah, me. Good stuff. |
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THE NOVEMBER SUMMIT ON ISRAEL IS OF UTMOST URGENCY
Posted by UCI, October 3, 2007. | |
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UCI is anxious to lend a strong voice in opposition to an apparent new initiative by President Bush, Secretary of State Condolezza Rice, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Mahmoud Abbas to hold a Middle East Summit that will result in the division of Jerusalem and will give 95% of Judea and Samaria toward establishment of a Palestinian State. The Summit is scheduled for mid-November and will be held in the U.S. We understand there are other concessions by Israel that are involved, such as releasing more terrorists. We consider this to be a potential threat to Israel's very existence. And yet, monumental as it is, it is being largely ignored by the media and the pro-Israel community. The end result will be the irretrievable dismemberment of Israel -- with the current government of both Israel and the US complicit in this debacle. The final outcome would be devastating to the future of Israel and Western civilization. If you support the following position paper that we faxed September 28th to all U.S. Senators, please email us at: voices@israelunitycoalition.org
If you support the above position paper that we faxed September 28th to all U.S. Senators, please email us at: voices@israelunitycoalition.org
UCI -- The Unity Coalition for Israel
(http://www.israelunitycoalition.org) -- is "the largest worldwide
coalition of Jewish and Christian organizations, with more than 200
groups representing millions of people dedicated to Israel. Though we
have many different backgrounds, we have one common goal: A Safe and
Secure Israel." "Israel is not just a Jewish issue. Millions of
Christians resolutely endorse the principle of peace with security for
the state of Israel. Because we work closely together and speak with a
united voice, our message is being heard!"
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STATE DEPARTMENT ATTACKS ISRAEL THROUGH CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Posted by Emanuel A. Winston, October 3, 2007. |
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When the Arabist U.S. State Department goes into full attack mode against Israel and thus American Jews, one must look a little deeper for motive. Generally, when Israel is being set up to be manipulated within the next month or two, the propaganda machine in the bowels of the State Department starts calling in its IOUs from certain flagship journals to do a black bag job on Israel. Newspapers are the main venue and such papers as the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, LA Times, among others are the selected leakers. Tuesday, October 2nd, the Chicago Tribune went way out of the way to bash Israel on an event that occurred 40 years ago on June 8, 1967 when Israel was fighting for her life against Egypt, Syria, Jordan and other attacking Muslim Arab armies who swore to annihilate the Jewish State. This incident was called the "Liberty Affair". I was puzzled for a few minutes as to why the Chicago Tribune had devoted a front page with picture, headline, above-the-fold story, plus a full two page spread inside to an event that occurred 40 years ago. The title of the article was "New Revelation in Attack on American Spy Ship". As I read it, there were no new "revelations" but another dredging up of all the emotional interchanges of the time as if it happened yesterday. The story was replete with carefully selected, provocative photos that the Trib is famous for which are selected to indict and convince the readers that what follows in loaded words must be true. But, Why Now? Why was the Trib selected as first point media source to anger the American public and Congress against Israel? THE MOTIVE: LYNCHING-OF-ISRAEL CONFERENCE "MIDDLE EAST SUMMIT" SET FOR NOVEMBER 15TH To begin with I concluded that the timing was selected to build up a head of steam before the Lynching-of-Israel Conference "Middle East Summit" set for November 15th at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Its location was carefully selected so those who would protest would easily be kept out-of-sight and out-of-sound to the delegates. Israel is set to be pilloried and forced to abandon more than half of Jerusalem to Arafat's terrorists who are now in the hands of Arafat's 40 year operations and bag man, companion and financier, Mahmoud Abbas (aka Abu Mazen). During this "Lynching" Israel is also supposed to surrender a large stretch of her ancestral heartland, 100% of Judea and Samaria. This Land, given by G-d to the Jewish people in perpetuity, will shortly be converted into an excellent missile firing position as has been happening in Gaza since 16,000 Jewish men, women and children were evicted from their homes, farms, schools, synagogues and cemeteries two years ago. The targets will be the rest of Israel's population, 80% of which resides in the crowded coastal areas -- plus the Ben Gurion International Airport. Then President Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and James Baker III (former Sec. State) also want to reward Syria's Bashar Al Assad by forcing Israel to abandon the Golan Heights where Israel carefully observes Syria's army now -- with sophisticated electronics. This is the same Syria which presently is acting as the doorway for Muslim Terrorists (euphemistically called "insurgents") to enter Iraq to kill American soldiers and Iraqi civilians and soldiers. They want Israel to give up Israel's current natural invasion barrier called the Jordan Valley. Japan has offered to assist by creating an agricultural, industrial Park (using Israel's water) for the Muslim Arab Palestinians to grow desirable fruits and vegetables which will be shipped to Jordan who will then transship to the Arab States and Europe. Everyone benefits. The Arab Palestinians will have lucrative work; the Jordanians will benefit financially; the Arab States and Europe will get bumper early crops of garden foods and Israel will lose more of her scarce water resources, land for living and growing food and -- the long natural invasion barrier that now protects her longest Eastern border. This planned slicing up of the Jewish State may give you a partial idea of why the Trib may have been tasked by the State Department and White House to bash Israel at this particular time. Clearly, the Tribune attack was in synchronization with the planned "Lynching" group assembled by Condi Rice. This November 15th Lynching Kangaroo Court consists of Israel's most dedicated enemies. To complete the full picture, you must know who will act as the inquisitors in this Kangaroo Court, denials notwithstanding. First, are the creators of the so-called "Quartet" who supposedly created George W. Bush's "Road Map". In the Quartet is the "Captain", that is the pro-Arab U.S. State Department fronted by Rice with James Baker prompting from the background, with the highly likely Jewish advisors of Baker's former team, telling him of the weak spots in the Jewish leadership. The U.S. State Department has always been known for trying to abort the birth of the State of Israel in 1947-8 and ever since, to manipulate its speedy demise. Then there is the U.N. (United Nations) well known for continually voting condemnations of Israel but, never condemning the Terrorist Nations and those who support those hostile to the Western countries freedoms and democracy. The E.U. (European Union) will be there and many of them have been known as those nations who collaborated with Adolph Hitler by turning their Jews over to the Nazi Gestapo for liquidation. Of course, Russia plays its role -- but, its history cannot be hidden. Russia continually persecuted its Jews with pogroms, forcing the Jews to live in abject poverty with high taxes and in the "Pale of Settlement" on poor land. Now Russia is said to be arming Iran with nuclear technology and Syria with weapons. Then you have the "Quartet" which while it contains the U.S. State Department, the U.N., the E.U. and Russia, it operates with its own agenda. In addition, this amalgam includes all the Arab Muslim nations whose oil riches control many of those other countries who might have been neutral and more fair without that manipulation. Here we must include U.S. and European vested interests plus the U.N. leaders who embezzled billions in the oil-for-food scam. Tony Blair has been appointed by the Quartet to act a high manipulator, and IF you are aware of past British attitudes toward the Jews of Israel, you will understand his appointment. The Arab League, Egypt, Syria and Saudi Arabia will be invited and will attend IF Rice can squeeze out "Pre-Concessions" from the weak, corrupt, craven Quisling Ehud Olmert, they too will come. Naturally, Abu Mazen, head of Fatah (including the Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades, Tanzim and other Terror organizations left over from Arafat's days) will come. All of the above band of cut throats are being assembled by Bush and Rice to hack Israel into smaller bits, denials notwithstanding. THE LIBERTY AFFAIR: WHY NOW? WHAT DID THE TRIB LEAVE OUT? As for the USS Liberty, the Trib and its author John Crewdson leave out a few major details. In June 1967 there was a violent life-and-death battle taking place all across the Sinai Desert, the Golan Heights and in Jerusalem after King Hussein (unwisely) attacked. Egypt's Gamal Abdul Nasser and Syria's Hafez al Assad had repeatedly threatened Israel with annihilation. Many in the U.S. Arabist Section of the State Department didn't want Egypt to lose the battle or, at least, they wanted to minimize Egypt's defeat. All during this time an electronic spy ship was monitoring Israeli and Egyptian communication between tank forces and aircraft. That ship should not have been in a hot battle area because there was a significant risk to itself and crew. Sending unmarked surveillance teams into war zones is a risk nations take for whatever their own reasons and motives. They generally do not shout out their identity -- mostly because all know an enemy can change flags and markings -- depending on who they are trying to trick. There was concern discussed at the time that this spy ship (the Trib does use that term right out front in its banner headline) was picking up battle information and positions in order to transfer them to Egypt. The claim then was that the Liberty looked like an Egyptian spy ship which was denied in follow-on arguments. Many of Israel's "Friends and Enemies" knew that the plan was to defeat and occupy Israel with an accompanying slaughter. It was not anticipated that Israel could possible defeat Egypt, Syria and Jordan in a three-front war. However, precautions were taken to insure that Israel's adversaries would have the benefit of additional intelligence so they could maneuver and outflank Israel's armored forces in the Sinai and Golan Heights. Betraying a friend and ally needed deep cover lest it became public knowledge, affecting politics back in the countries who decided that it would be better for all concerned if Israel were defeated by Muslim Arab countries and the Jewish State simply disappeared. Naturally, there was to be a highly publicized follow-on mission of rescue of those left alive in Israel. That's called a "Win-Win" in Intelligence parlance. Israel was not supposed to win that war and, no doubt, disappointed her detractors at the State Department. IF the spy ship was picking up Israeli battle plans and transferring them to Egypt, then they had clearly taken sides and would be viewed as a hostile force -- regardless of who they were. The NSA (National Security Agency) was never asked to release its Intel tapes, if indeed they were receiving and transferring battle info to Egypt. Each side denied responsibility and its doubtful the real story will ever be told -- except for a self-serving manipulation like the Tribune screed. The hit on the Liberty was finally judged a mistake in identification and the matter was officially closed. However, there were those who dedicated their lives to keeping the matter alive -- as seen in this Tribune blast which used statements from sailors on that ship who themselves were not ever in the intelligence loop of "need-to-know" information of the actual mission. No doubt, the argument of fault will continue but, the timing of the Chicago Tribune assault and the placement and date of the coming Mid East Summit is more than a little suspicious. THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE ASSAULT The Tribune assault has several roles to play. First, it is intended to frighten American Jews into silence before the November Lynch Party. The location of the Summit is the U.S. Naval Academy at Anapolis. Do you think that is a coincidence? I don't. Second, it must also silence AIPAC so that the American lobby for Israel will not lobby Congress to interfere with the disassembling of Israel. The process of shutting down AIPAC began a few years ago when a sting operation was approved by Bush and Rice regarding "transfer of information". The "sting" involved a so-called illegal leak to AIPAC about Iran's transfer of arms to Syria -- something that the State Department apparently didn't want Israel to know. Third, the timing: Simultaneous with the Jewish community's biggest meeting of the year, the UJC (United Jewish Communities) General Assembly had already been scheduled for at least a year to be held on November 13-15th in Nashville, Tennessee. Simultaneity is not coincidental. American, Israeli and World Jewry will have to choose which event to attend. Presumably, the Bush Administration will be speaking at this forum to convince the Jewish attendees that giving up Jerusalem, et al will somehow guarantee that the Muslim Arab Palestinian Terrorists, the Arab nations and the radical Islamists will cease terror. It is expected that, while Israel is being dissected in Maryland, the Jews attending their G.A. in Tennessee will be applauding the Bush speeches in Annapolis which will be promising "Peace in Our Time". I have little doubt that we'll see a sequence of other flag-ship journals and lesser lights picking up the story as it if were today's hot news. I expect to see a lot of S..t. thrown against the wall to see what sticks before the November 15th lynching by Bush, Rice and Baker against Israel. As for the European Media, they never need a reason to bash Israel but, Condi's Lynch Party will be attractive to up the condemnations. The State Department seems to have pulled out all the stops to insure the victim (Israel) will, indeed, be lynched and left twisting in the wind at the November Surprise. That has been the State Department's goal since 1947 and has not stopped or faltered a day since. While Rice is the "talking head" for Bush, look for James Baker as the "masked" arranger slightly off in the shadows advising Rice how to best get at the Jews -- as he did in the failed "Road Map" plan. I speculated as to whether this Tribune attack was the "Kick-off Campaign of Propaganda" but, then remembered CNNs Christiane Amanpour's spectacular earlier series "The Warriors of God".which was aired twice in August 2007. Christiane, herself an Iranian, opened the series by positioning Israel as the baseless attacker of those poor innocent Palestinians. Perhaps the Amanpour series was the real "Kick-off" of State's preparation to Lynch Israel. CNN is sort of like the New York Times of TV and well connected to State. Recall how CNN was allowed to stay in Iraq by Saddam Hussein in 1991 while all the other TV outlets were kicked out during the first Gulf War when Hussein attacked Kuwait. They really pulled open the manhole cover to this sewer and the stink of managed news is smelling up to the ceiling. ### 1. "New Revelations in Attack On American Spy Ship: The Strike on the USS Liberty" by John Crewdson Chicago Tribune Tues. October 2, 2007 Emanuel Winston is a commentator and Middle East analyst. His articles appear often on Think-Israel and Gamla. He is a member of the Board of Directors and a research associate of the Freeman Center For Strategic Studies (http://www.freeman.org/online.htm). Contact him at gwinston@gwinston.interaccess.com |
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RUSSIA'S NEW REFUSENIKS
Posted by Michael Freund, October 3, 2007. |
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Believe it or not, but there are thousands of Russian Jews being denied the right to make aliyah. Only this time, it isn't Soviet communists standing in their way, but rather Israeli bureaucrats who are blocking their path! In the article below from the Jerusalem Post
Comments can be sent to letters@jpost.com or to me directly. |
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Here is a story that is so maddening, so infuriating, and so patently absurd, that it should make your blood boil. For the past four years, thousands of Russian Jews have been prevented from making aliya and reuniting with their loved ones in the Jewish state. Parents and children have been forced to separate because of bureaucratic callousness, and siblings have been divided from one another as a result of government folly. These innocent men, women and children now languish in a state of limbo, fearing the rise of virulent anti-Semitism around them, yet unable to leave for the country of their dreams. Unlike the 1970s, however, it is not Soviet officials who are blocking their path to aliya, but the Israeli government itself that stands in their way, inexplicably slamming the door shut on some 20,000 Subbotnik Jews longing and pleading to return to Zion. The Subbotnik Jews are the new refuseniks of our era, and it is time for Israeli officials to stop placing obstacles in their path, and to bring them home as quickly as possible.
THE SUBBOTNIKS' ancestors were Russian peasants who heroically converted to Judaism despite Czarist persecution more than two centuries ago. They referred to themselves as "the Gerim," using the Hebrew word for converts, but historians labeled them "Subbotniks" because of their observance of the Subbot, or Jewish Sabbath. The Subbotnik Jews observed Shabbat and kept kosher, prayed three times daily and donned tefillin (phylacteries). They celebrated all the Jewish holidays, from Yom Kippur to Lag Ba'omer, baked their own matza for Pessah, and even managed in some cases to send their children off to study at the great Lithuanian yeshivot in the 19th century. Subbotnik Jews mingled and married with Russian Ashkenazi Jews in nearby cities such as Voronezh, as well as with Bukharan and other Jews in the Caucasus region. Over the years, the Subbotnik Jews clung to their faith with a stubbornness and tenacity that overcame Czarist oppression, Soviet subjugation and Nazi cruelty, defying their tormentors to remain true to the laws of Moses and Israel. Even after many were exiled to the far reaches of Siberia, they continued to practice Judaism as best they could.
BUT FOR the past four years, a cadre of clueless clerks in Israel's bureaucracy has begun casting doubt on their Jewishness, even though Subbotnik Jews have been coming freely on aliya for well over a century. It doesn't seem to matter to them that men such as former IDF Chief of Staff Rafael Eitan, former Police Commander Alec Ron, the legendary Josef Trumpeldor and possibly even Ariel Sharon himself were of Subbotnik Jewish descent. Or that when the Iron Curtain fell, thousands of Subbotnik Jews made aliya and settled throughout this country. Nor does it seem to concern our public servants one bit that three months ago, Sephardic Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar called for efforts to be made to bring the Subbotnik Jews home to Israel. In their arrogance, Israel's bureaucrats think they know better than all the great Jewish historians, prominent rabbis and academic ethnographers put together, with the result being that thousands of our fellow Jews are stuck.
TAKE, FOR example, Lubov Gonchareva, a 47-year old mother of three from the village of Vysoki in southern Russia. A few years ago, Lubov's parents made aliya and received automatic Israeli citizenship under the Law of Return. Both were registered as Jews in the Interior Ministry's Population Registry, and the Jerusalem Rabbinical Court even issued a formal ruling confirming Lubov's mother's Jewishness. Nonetheless, when Lubov submitted a request to make aliya three years ago, she was denied permission to do so by the Israeli government on the grounds that her husband is a non-Jew. Lubov, like many of her generation, was the target of Soviet-era assimilationist policies aimed at stripping her of her Subbotnik Jewish identity. Nonetheless, despite her marriage to a non-Jew, Lubov continues to practice Judaism, and raised all of her children to be Jewish. Earlier this year, while visiting relatives in Israel on a tourist visa, Lubov tried again, submitting yet another aliya application to the Interior Ministry. Six months ago, she received a curt letter of rejection in which the ministry acknowledged that while Subbotniks are allowed to make aliya under the Law of Return, they may do so only as long as they married within their "community framework." "Since you married a spouse who is not connected to the Subbotnik community," the ministry admonished Lubov, "and you did not preserve the community framework, your request to make aliya is denied and you have lost your right to make aliya."
SPEAKING through a translator, Lubov wept uncontrollably as she showed me the letter and expressed disbelief that the Jewish state would treat her and her family in such a manner. "I was born a Jew, and I live as a Jew, and so does my daughter," she said. "The state recognized my parents as Jews, yet it will not let me and my daughter make aliya, even though we are Jewish. How can they do this?" she asked. Well, Lubov, I'm afraid that the bureaucrats can. And they do, with wanton disregard for the fate of you or your Jewish children. Then there is the case of Ludmilla Ignatenko, whose mother Dina Mevochernikov made aliya several years ago and was also registered as a Jew by the Interior Ministry. In March 2005, Ludmilla and her daughter, both of whom are Jews, went to the Israeli consulate in Moscow and applied for permission to make aliya. Their request was turned down because, Ludmilla was told, "your ex-husband was a non-Jew." Yes, you read that correctly. Her "ex-husband," as in the guy she used to be married to but is no longer, was a gentile. And because of that, Israel's Interior Ministry is preventing Ludmilla and her daughter from making aliya. Repeated attempts to bring about a change in policy have led to naught, so in June of this year, Shavei Israel, the organization I chair, filed a petition with the Supreme Court on behalf of Lubov, Ludmilla and the thousands of other Subbotnik Jews being blocked from making aliya. The Court agreed to hear the case, and I have no doubt that eventually we will win, if only because justice is on our side. The policies of the Interior Ministry and the Liaison Bureau, an arm of the Prime Minister's Office also known as Nativ that oversees aliya in the former Soviet Union, are simply unthinkable and untenable. At a time when Israel is desperate for new immigrants, what sense does it make to keep out some 20,000 Subbotniks who live as Jews and who want to raise their children as Jews? The government's policy concerning the Subbotniks is illegal, immoral and un-Zionist, and it must change. We must bring pressure to bear on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to let the Subbotnik Jews come home. Three decades ago, Jews worldwide took to the streets on behalf of Russian Jewry, demanding "Let My People Go." Now, we must once again speak out on behalf of our Russian Jewish brethren. Only this time, let us turn our cry to the Israeli government, and insist, "Let My People In."
The writer serves as chairman of Shavei Israel, a Jerusalem-based
group that assists 'lost Jews' seeking to return to the Jewish people.
www.shavei.org
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LEFTISTS CAUGHT STAGING "SETTLER HARASSMENT OF ARABS"
Posted by by Maayana Miskin and Ezra HaLevi, October 3, 2007. |
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Residents of the Shomron town of Elon Moreh have accused extreme-left activists of deliberately damaging Arab property in order to create conflict. They also say Yediot Acharonot and its associated website Ynet have refused to correct their libel. Benny Katzover, a senior founder of Elon Moreh, spoke with Arutz-7 and recounted the events leading up to what he says were attempts by left-wing activists to sully Jewish residents' good names and create conflict with the neighboring Arab village. The village in question, Dir el-Hattab, was hooked up to the Israeli water utility thanks to Katzover's own initiative as mayor of Elon Moreh. Recently, Jewish youth who refurbished a park area within Elon Moreh's municipal boundaries set up a small pool, connected to the water line leading to the village. The pool did not disrupt the flow of water to the village until somebody began cutting the pipe flowing toward the village. A resident of the town recently photographed leftists as they damaged a water pipe leading to a nearby Arab village. Elon Moreh residents argue that the leftists were hoping to lead the Arabs to think that their Jewish neighbors were destroying their water supply.
After destroying the pipe, residents said, the leftists reported the incident to the Yediot Acharonot newspaper, which published an article accusing the Jews of Elon Moreh of harassing local Arabs and stealing their water. "They were more than happy to publish a half-page story on how we abuse our neighbors, without an ounce of research," Katzover said. He added that the leftists were led by Kibbutz Movement Chairman Yoel Marshak, infamous for his involvement in claims that Arab olive trees were destroyed by Jews, when in fact they had been pruned by their owners and left-wing activists. An Arab man quoted in the article was not even from the village of Dir el-Hattab to which the water in the pipe flows, one resident of Elon Moreh explained, but rather from the hostile village Kfar Salam. Yediot Acharonot ignored complaints from Elon Moreh, he
said, and did not change the article even after receiving photographs
of the leftists damaging the pipe.
This appeared today in Arutz-Sheva (www.IsraelNN.com).
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INDIA AND HER JEWS
Posted by Kaustav Chakrabarti, October 3, 2007. |
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I would like to avail your esteemed columns to voice my protest over the recent bedspread-related incident in India that has hurt the feelings of our Jewish citizens. [Editor's Note: This is from Fox News, September 30, 2007. MUMBAI, India -- Leaders of India's Jewish community expressed outrage Sunday over a new line of bedspreads called "The Nazi Collection" from a Mumbai-based home furnishing company that used swastikas in its promotional material. |
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For ages India has provided refuge to persecuted people across the world. This is evident form the arrival of the Zoroastrian refugees in India during the ninth century from Persia [ancient Iran], the descendants of whom are the enterprising Parsees. Similarly, India has also provided succour to Jews who had fled their homeland following the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple by the Romans. During the inter-War period and the Second World War, a few thousand Jews found temporary shelter in India. Though numerically small in number, India boasts of three Jewish Communities, namely the Bene Israel, the Cochinis and the Baghdadi Jews. Each one of these communities is unique by virtue of its tradition and rich legacy. Jews, notwithstanding their miniscule number, have contributed significantly to India's development in various spheres of life be it in commerce, industry, culture, journalism, defence or any other field. The Sassoons contributed to Bombay's industrial, commercial and cultural life. This is evident in the Sassoon mills, the Sassoon docks, the Sassoon library and the Synagogues. Similarly, in independent India we have public figures from the community in the form of Hirsch Cynowicz(Mayor of Bombay Municipality), Major-General Samson of the Indian Army, Admiral Samson of the Indian Navy, cartoonist Abu Abraham, the film artist David Abraham, the fabulous dancer Helen, actress Zinataman, Shabdai Koder (who nationalized the shipping industry in India), the poet and Professor of English literature Nissim Ezekiel,and last, but not the least, Lt.General J.F.R. Jacob of the Indian Army whose brilliant strategy led to India's victory during the 1971 Indo-Pakistan conflict. India is probably the only country in the world where Jews as a people had never been persecuted. Anti-Semitism is virtually unknown in India. This fact is also attested by the Indian-Jewish immigrants to Israel and elsewhere. Unfortunately things do, and have of late, taken an unhappy turn. The NAZI bedspread issue is a pointer in this case.The bedspread affair is really condemnable. I, as an Indian, feel ashamed about this whole business. This is not only detrimental to the secular and tolerant spirit of India, but also harms its image across the world. We hope that this type of incident would not occur in future. Clearly, this shows the insensitivity to which some people would resort to for their personal gains. We would like to assure the Indian Jews, our fellow citizens, of our continued support for their peaceful co-existence in the Indian society.The Jews of India are as Indians as we are and are part and parcel of our rich heritage. It is the duty of the people and the Government of India to extend all possible support and cooperation to alleviate any kind of fear in the minds of our Jewish brethren. We shall never tolerate anti-Semitism in any form in the Indian context. The Israel Government and Jewish organizations(e.g. AJJDC) should also take some initiative in sensitizing the Indian public about Anti-Semitism and the Holocaust regarding which 90% of the Indians have no idea. Film shows, art exhibitions and workshops would greatly facilitate the process. Contact Kaustav Chakrabarti at kaustav12000@yahoo.co.in |
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THE LAST ZIONISTS?
Posted by Sergio Tessa (HaDaR), October 2, 2007. |
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About 60,000 people accompanied today, in their traditional festive, colourful and decent march through the streets of Jerusalem, some 6.000 Protestants in their yearly pilgrimage on Sukkot in support of Israel ["Invited by the Bible" as they say, see: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3451099,00.html ], a march and show of solidarity (NO ONE ELSE DARED BEING IN ISRAEL IN 2001-2004, during the Oslo War!) which some -- among whom the Chief Rabbis of the State of Israel, the same pair who found nothing strange standing in front of the sitting High Priest of Catholicism wearing his full idol worshipping symbols and cloth and inside a Vatican building filled with idols! -- have criticised in a very unwise manner, to the point of even forbidding the participation of Jews to the event: obviously without much success. For those who, like the two Chief Rabbis, are by now just political appointees and do not represent much more than a part of the israeli Jews -- the ultra-orthodox -- a part which "stays out" of the social life of the country, does not participate in its defence or in its scientific, technological and social development if not marginally, and lives as if we had no problems with the enemies that surround us as long as no one threatens THEIR HOMES; for such people it is tragically easy to renounce even to those who are probably our only external sincere friends, mixing the good with the bad, and accusing them of being missionaries, which, in the great majority of cases, is not the case at all. Once again, just like it happened with Oslo, the ultra-orthodox and penguin-like part of Israel finds itself in agreement with the anti-religious and anti-national extreme left, which also cannot stand people who favour Jewish presence in ALL PARTS OF ERETS ISRAEL, and who are certainly more "zionists" than they are, especially after the left embraced post-zionism and internalised all the theories and ideologies of our enemies about Jewish presence and sovereignty in Erets Israel. This is called "The last Zionists: Israelis should embrace Christian
supporters instead of shunning them" and was written by Elyakim
Haetzni, who is an activist and lawyer. It was publised today in
Ynet News
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This year 7,000 Zionist Christians from all over the world will once again march in Jerusalem to fulfill that which is written in the Book of Zechariah, whereby all nations will make pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the messianic era to celebrate Sukkot. Their parade is the highlight of an ongoing effort to stand by our side for better or for worse, unconditionally and without receiving anything in return. On the contrary, they are grateful that we accept their outstretched hands. In the US, their ranks comprise tens of millions who are well organized and who have substantial political clout. Their belief in the Bible is the key to this rare phenomenon of Christian love towards Israel, which is not anything new. Christian Zionism emerged in England 32 years prior to the "harbinger of Zionism" Moses Hess (author of Rome and Jerusalem.) The Earl of Shaftsbury (1853) saw "a land without a people," which God allocated to the "people without a land." His contemporary, British Prime Minister Palmerston pressed the Turkish Sultan to encourage European Jewry to return to the Land of Israel. Author George Eliot called for the revival of the organic center of Jewish existence in the Land of Israel (in her novel Daniel Deronda) 20 years prior to the publication of the "Jewish Homeland." Herzl's loyal follower, Reverend William Henry Hechler, partook in the Zionist congresses. Even Lord Balfour and his Prime Minister Lloyd George had religious motives. The latter said: I was taught a lot more about Jewish history than the history of my own people. Wingate (the "friend") didn't go anywhere without the Bible. Yet despite this, the evangelist Christians are rejected by liberal Jews in the United States and by leftists in Israel who label them "rightists" and proponents of the notion of Greater Israel. Their Zionism is rejected with the hollow argument that it is premised on their faith that Jesus will only return after the Jewish people return to the Land of Israel. This year, the Zionist Christians have also encountered opposition from the Chief Rabbinate, which banned Jews from participating in the convention and in their parade. The reasons: They lend the Jewish holiday of Sukkot a Christian character, and among the participants there are those suspected of engaging in missionary work. Non-Jews wearing Star of David Let's think about this for a moment before we turn a supporter into an enemy, something we tend to excel at: The International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem that organizes the Sukkot events was founded in response to the international diplomatic boycott of Jerusalem and as a gesture of solidarity, not because of missionary work. Even the Rabbinate doesn't maintain that the evangelist support is missionary in essence. And if there are those among them who exploit it, does that mean an entire movement should be rejected? Indeed, they instill their own content into the Sukkot holiday. What is it that we are after? Shouldn't Christians be Christians? Jews are not invited to their ceremonies, but only to the parade and the events at the Jerusalem International Convention Center where they are careful not to include any Christian ritual. What more could we ask for? The contact with Christian Zionists is creating a reverse phenomenon: Churches in the American Midwest are waving the Israeli flag, non-Jews are wearing the Star of David, they are opening up to Jewish music and other Jewish symbols. The Bible is what creates the encounter between us, and according to Reverend John C. Hagee, they support Israel because it is a fundamental value of Christianity, see the Book of Genesis: "And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed." After 60 years of independence in our land, it's time for a little more self confidence and fewer ghetto-like complexes. In an alienated world, with anti-Semitism rearing its head, how can we reject those who honestly seek our company, the sons of a movement that heralded our revival? Welcome to our Sukkot, dear friends, may there be many more like you. Sergio Tessa can be reached at Hadar-Israel@verizon.net. |
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IN DRAFT DECLARATION, OLMERT APPEARS READY TO CEDE JERUSALEM'S OLD CITY
Posted by Warren A. Manison, October 2, 2007. |
| This was written by Israel Insider staff and appeared September 15, 2007. |
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The independent Palestinian news agency Maan published a Hebrew document late last week that purports to represent the "principles" apparently agreed on in negotiations between Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. While the offices of both men denied any connection to it, comments by Israeli President Shimon Peres confirm some of the main points. On one of the most controversial points, that Israel has agreed to surrender sovereignty the Old City of Jerusalem, Peres pointedly refused to comment. Despite the denials, then, there is reason to believe that the draft does represent or approximate, the emerging joint declaration between Olmert -- who has kept negotiations from almost all of this minister -- and Abbas, who has doubtful authority to negotiate a deal since his supporters were expelled from Gaza and his headquarters there conquered by Hamas. That apparently hasn't stop the Israeli Prime Minister, evidently with the blessing of eminence grise Peres, who long has pushed for a deal that would redivide Jerusalem. In its first point, the document states -- adopting Arab language for the disputed territories of Judea and Samaria -- that Israel has agreed to "end the occupation of the West Bank within an agreed-upon time period." adding that "the retreat and the evacuation of the settlements will occur gradually and in several stages. Each area that is evacuated will be transferred to the Palestinian Authority, which will establish law and order there." Sidestepping the fact that the legally elected government of the Palestinian Authority supported Hamas, while Abbas and his Fatah apparatus fled to the West Bank, the document goes on to note that "the existence of a regime in Gaza that is willing to be part of the peace process will enable Israel to view Gaza and the West Bank as one political entity. Contact Warren Manison by email at wmani@juno.com |
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PALI LEADER:"MUSLIMS ARE MASTERS OF THE WORLD, ITS LEADERS AND TEACHERS"
Posted by Michael Travis, October 2, 2007. |
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Can someone forward this post about Bush's partner in "peace" to the President and State department Arabist (or as Hamas like to call her "the Black Snake) Condarasha. Billions in aid and munitions to those that are determined to conquer us. WTF? Abbas appointee: "Muslims are masters of the world, its leaders and teachers, even if the West rejects this." -- Palestinian Media Watch They are masters alright. Masters of blood lust, murder, subjugation and the murder of the human heart. This next is by Itamar Marcus and Barbara Crook of PMW -- Palestine Media Watch. |
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One of the defining principles of Hamas and the Islamic Brotherhood is their insistence that the only truth is Islam and that the world is destined to be enlightened only when ruled by Islam. A similar Islamic supremacist ideology was expressed recently in an article by a Palestinian Authority religious leader who was appointed last year by Mahmoud Abbas as member of the Supreme Fatwa Council: "Muslims are masters of the world, its leaders and teachers, even if the West rejects this." "The Muslims and their societies are more advanced and more sublime than the West and its societies... are more perfect in value system and humanity. The fact that there are those who believe that these are Western values -- it is a delusion and false, since the Muslims are masters of the world, its leaders and teachers, even if the West rejects this." Read the disgusting diatribe http://pmw.org.il/bulletins_oct2007.htm#b021007. Someone Wake the President More from these are "peace-loving" murderers
Contact Michael Travis at michaelmgr@gmail.com
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ACTION ALERT: OPPOSE SENATE RESOLUTION 321
Posted by AFSI, October 2, 2007. |
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Resolution 321 pushes a "two state solution" that divides the Land of Israel and threatens its people. Senate Resolution 321 (S.RES. 321)
The title of the resolution is:
The main elements of the resolution are as follows: (1) reaffirms its commitment to a true and lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, based on the establishment of 2 states, the State of Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security, and with recognized borders; The resolution was submitted by: Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself, Mr. LUGAR, Mr. DODD, Mr. HAGEL, Mr. AKAKA, Mr. BAUCUS, Mr. BINGAMAN, Mr. BROWN, Mr. BYRD, Mr. BURR, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. CASEY, Mr. CRAIG, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. FEINGOLD, Mr. HARKIN, Mrs. HUTCHISON, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. KERRY, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. KOHL, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. LOTT, Mr. NELSON of Florida, Mr. REED, Ms. SNOWE, Mr. SUNUNU, Mr. VOINOVICH, Mr. WEBB, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. SMITH, Mr. SPECTER, Mrs. MURRAY, and Ms. STABENOW) The co-sponsors are: Sen Akaka, Daniel K. [HI] -- 9/19/2007 Sen Baucus, Max [MT] -- 9/19/2007
TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION NOW Senate Contact information can be found at this link: href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm"> Americans For a Safe Israel/AFSI is a pro-active pro-Israel advocacy group. AFSI may be contacted by mail at 1623 Third Ave., Suite 205, New York, N.Y. 10128 (Tel: 212-828-2424; Fax: 212-828-1717); by email at afsi@rcn.com; or by accessing its website: www.afsi.org. Barry Freedman is Executive Director. |
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OUR WORLD: PEACE LOVING MURDERERS
Posted by Michael Travis, October 2, 2007. |
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This was written by Carolne Glick and it appeared yesterday in the Jerusalem Post |
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Palestinian affairs correspondent Khaled Abu Toameh reported Monday, over the weekend he and the newspaper fell victim to a Fatah hoax. Saturday, Abu Toameh was "summoned" to Fatah's General Intelligence headquarters in Ramallah where he was given a "scoop" -- a graphic videotape of the murder of a 16-year-old girl in July perpetrated as a so-called "honor killing." The Fatah officer in Ramallah supplied Abu Toameh with the phone numbers of two "eye-witnesses" to the episode who would corroborate the story. It later worked out that the "eye-witnesses" were Fatah militiamen in Gaza. The story was a fabrication. The video was taken in Iraq in April. The purpose of the elaborately crafted tale was clear. Fatah wished to use the Post to project itself as a credible, moderate actor battling the forces of evil and darkness in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. Abu Toameh had written up the story and it appeared on The Jerusalem Post's Web site on Saturday night. It was removed when the Post was alerted to the hoax and did not appear in the Sunday paper. Abu Toameh's forthright admission of his error and his report in Monday's paper of the anatomy of the Fatah ruse is a testament to his own journalistic integrity. But he is not the issue here. The issue here is Fatah and what the hoax tells us about the organization on which the Olmert government and the Bush administration are basing all their plans for a future peace between the Palestinians and the State of Israel. As Abu Toameh noted, the false videotape was Fatah's second propaganda story last week. Wednesday, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas's terrorist organization's propaganda services announced that its forces in Bethlehem had intercepted two rockets "ready for launch" against Israel in the Bethlehem suburb of Beit Jala. They further announced that they had turned the rockets over to the IDF. This story, which came as Abbas was meeting with US President George W. Bush and other world leaders at the UN in New York, of course projected the image of Fatah as a terror-fighting, Israel-protecting, peace-seeking, credible, moderate actor. SPEAKING to The Washington Post on Thursday, Abbas used the story to explain why Israel should feel comfortable giving Fatah all of Judea and Samaria and half of Jerusalem. Responding to a question regarding his view of Israel's concern that areas transferred to Palestinian control will be used as operational bases for carrying out attacks against its cities Abbas said, "Last night, [our security forces] seized two rockets. We handed [them] over to the Israelis. We are very worried about these deeds and I think we can put an end to all this. Our security apparatus is ready to stop all kinds of violence." The Washington Post published the interview without noting that the story was a total fabrication. The "rockets" that Fatah transferred to the IDF were just a pile of metal pipes which had apparently been used as toys by local children. The IDF had already noted that the rockets weren't real when The Washington Post conducted its interview with Abbas. Unlike Abu Toameh and The Jerusalem Post, The Washington Post and its veteran reporter Lally Weymouth saw no reason to mention that Abbas's anti-terror credentials were based on nothing but lies manufactured by his own propaganda arms. AND THAT'S the thing. Since Fatah's creation in 1959 its primary weapon has been disinformation and its primary asset has been the Western media's willingness to be duped and stay duped. What is notable about the honor killing video story is not that it was false, but that The Jerusalem Post acknowledged that it had been lied to. But today, even the media's complicity with Fatah's lies cannot hold a candle to Fatah's newfound, greatest asset -- the Israeli government. In reacting to the rocket hoax, which caused a minor panic among Jerusalem residents, the IDF went out if its way to cover for Fatah. Although they noted that the rockets were fake, the IDF spokespeople applauded Fatah for giving its metal pipes to Israel. Yet, the IDF's embrace of Fatah's hoax is nothing compared to the treatment the terror organization receives from the Olmert government. Monday the government enthusiastically released 87 mainly Fatah-affiliated terrorists from prison. Speaking to a delegation of policemen and women on Sunday, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promised that these of prisoners -- many of whom police officers like the ones who met with Olmert risked their lives arresting -- were only the first batch of many still to be set free. My government, Olmert stated happily, wants to drastically reduce the number of terrorists in our prisons. Actually, he didn't call them terrorists. He called them "security prisoners." Among those sent home on Monday were men who conducted shooting attacks at Israeli motorists and laid bombs to murder Israelis. Some of the men had held contacts with state sponsors of terrorism. Racad Sallam, for instance oversaw terror financing ties with Saddam Hussein's regime. In short the men released on Monday are enemies of the State of Israel who have dedicated themselves to the murder of Israelis. They were convicted and imprisoned for their actions by duly authorized Israeli courts. But none of this is mentioned by the government. Olmert and his colleagues extol Monday's move as a confidence building gesture towards Abbas. Its aim is to shore up his support among the Palestinians to give them confidence in Abbas's ability to secure their interests. No mention is made of the fact that there is something terribly wrong with Palestinian society which views these attempted murderers as heroes and champions of their cause. The fact that Abbas says there is a direct link between his political strength and the freeing of these terrorists is not viewed as significant. The basic immorality of a society that praises the murderers of innocent people is similarly given no attention whatsoever by the government in its mad rush to "strengthen Abbas." And of course no one says a peep about the simple fact that by releasing these men and pledging to release still more terrorists from jail, Olmert and his colleagues signal to the Palestinians that from their perspective, the Palestinian desire to kill Jews is basically legitimate. SINCE HAMAS'S takeover of Gaza in June, the Olmert government has only had positive things to say about Abbas. Olmert and his colleagues make no mention of the fact that until the Hamas takeover, Fatah - with Abbas at its helm -- was a junior partner in Hamas's "unity government." Abbas isn't the only beneficiary of the Olmert government's embrace of the Fatah hoax. In the interests of "strengthening" Abbas and Fatah, last week Infrastructures Minister and former defense minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer recommended releasing Fatah terror chief and convicted mass murderer Marwan Barghouti from prison. Ben Eliezer and Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai defend their position by extolling Barghouti as "the new Yasser Arafat." It was during Ben Eliezer's tenure as defense minister that the IDF arrested Barghouti in April 2002. Four months later, the State Prosecution submitted his indictment. Israel indicted Barghouti of 26 counts of premeditated murder, accessory to murder, solicitation of murder, attempted murder, criminal conspiracy, membership in a terrorist organization and terrorist activity. The indictment explained how from 2000 until his arrest, Barghouti, among other things, set up Fatah's terror arms in Tanzim and the Aksa Martyr's Brigades; coordinated and often ordered Fatah's terrorist operations; mobilized and recruited terrorists by inciting murder and financing it; oversaw operational collaboration between Fatah and Hamas; and told the terror cells when to attack and when to hold their fire. IN ITS 2004 verdict, the Tel Aviv District Court found Barghouti guilty of five counts of murder. Regarding the other murders, the court felt he had "moral responsibility" but that he had no "legal responsibility," for the carnage he directed, incited and financed. While leading the Palestinian jihad against Israel, Barghouti also served as a propagandist for Fatah and Arafat toward the Israeli Left, (that is, the Israeli media) and the international media. At the same time he was ordering the murder of Israeli civilians, he was meeting with Israeli and international "peace activists," and speaking of the need for a "two-state solution." The Israeli Left went nuts after his arrest and its leaders -- first and foremost Meretz chief Yossi Beilin -- have been calling for his release ever since. And now the man who signed his arrest warrant agrees. In an interview with Army Radio last week, Ben Eliezer explained that freeing Barghouti is necessary to "strengthen Fatah" against Hamas. Rather than castigating Barghouti for his close ties to Hamas, Ben Eliezer presented them as an attribute. In his words, the arch-terrorist is "well-respected by Hamas." He then said, "For us he might be a murderer, but I'd like to remind you that Arafat was no less of a murderer, and we approached him as well." Ben-Eliezer failed to note the irony of his statement. Yes, Israel "approached" Arafat and lo and behold, Arafat remained a murderer committed to Israel's destruction. As a result of Israel's decision to "approach" Arafat, some 1,500 Israelis are dead today and Palestinian society is the most jihadist society in the world. Indeed, Barghouti's close relations with Hamas perhaps make him attractive to a terror-obsessed Palestinian public, but still that public -- in Barghouti's own hometown of Ramallah -- voted overwhelmingly for Hamas in the January 2006 elections where the imprisoned Barghouti headed Fatah's candidates slate. Fatah has only benefited from its devotion to the big lie of peace loving murderers. The question is why has the Olmert government decided to embrace it? Contact Michael Travis at michaelmgr@gmail.com |
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PA DEMANDS SWEEPING DEAL WITH ISRAEL BEFORE SUMMIT
Posted by Avodah, October 2, 2007. |
Dr. Aaron Lerner of IMRA writes:
So here we are with Israeli policy being driven by an ideologue (Ramon) who thinks that withdrawal would herald utopian peace, a politician (Olmert) trying to avoid an indictment and a planning horizon even shorter than Sharon's and an FM (Livni) who enjoys pontificating about Israel's requirements for the diplomatic process which in practice she ignores, along with an American Secretary of State convinced she can give out marching orders to Jerusalem and an American president who seems to think that if you say someone is a great "moderate Palestinian leader" who can deliver the goods enough times that the endorsement will somehow transform reality. This was written by Khaled Abu Toameh And Mark Weiss. It is called
"PA demands sweeping deal with Israel before summit" and was published
today in The Jerusalem Post |
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The Palestinians will only participate in the US-sponsored peace conference expected to be held next month if general agreement is first reached with Israel on all the fundamental issues, Palestinian Authority officials here said Monday. They said that in addition to Jerusalem, the borders of the future Palestinian state and the problem of the refugees, the PA was also seeking agreement on water, security and settlements. Meanwhile Monday evening, 16 Gazans were wounded in Khan Yunis in fighting between Hamas and Fatah gunmen. The clashes began when Hamas's Executive Force tried to arrest a Fatah man. The officials also denied that the PA had agreed to discuss an exchange of land with Israel and limiting the number of refugees who would return to Israel proper. They said the PA's official position remained that Israel must withdraw from all the territories captured in 1967, including east Jerusalem, and that there would be no concessions on the "right of return." PA negotiator Saeb Erekat said he was unaware of any land swap agreement. He called on the media to refrain from publishing any unofficial documents or unauthorized statements. One official told The Jerusalem Post the Palestinians were convinced that a joint declaration of principles could be achieved before the conference. "We're not asking for a detailed agreement, but at least let's agree on the principles of the final settlement," the official said. "We have four to six weeks to strike a deal. Let's not waste time." According to another PA official, the Palestinians want the declaration of principles to include an Israeli commitment to withdraw to the pre-1967 borders. "As President Mahmoud Abbas stated last week, we have no intention to compromise on any of our rights," he said. Asked why the PA, which in recent weeks had expressed reservations about the conference, was now sounding more positive, the official said: "When [US Secretary of State] Condoleezza Rice was here lately, she told us that the US administration was determined to turn the conference into a successful event. She also promised to exert pressure on Israel to soften its position." The negotiating teams will meet Wednesday, when Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is scheduled to host Abbas in his succa at the Prime Minister's Residence. Contacts have already taken place, including discussions between the two leaders and between their foreign ministers, on what kind of joint document should be presented to the conference, set to take place in Annapolis, Maryland, in mid-November. There has been no agreement on how specific the joint document should be. The Palestinians want a detailed framework agreement, while Israel wants a shorter, more general statement. "We're negotiating with Israel, and after that there will be an agreement, which we will carry to the international conference to be blessed, adopted and endorsed, and then detailed negotiations shall begin," Abbas told reporters following closed-door talks with Jordan's King Abdullah II in Amman. He said at least 12 Arab countries had agreed to send representatives to the conference. "There will be a very strong Arab presence at the conference," Abbas said after holding talks with Jordan's King Abdullah. "In addition, there will be some Islamic countries like Malaysia, Turkey and Indonesia." In the meeting with Abbas, Jordan's king urged Israel to take "confidence-building steps," which he said should include assisting Abbas and laying out a "specific agenda for the final status negotiations," according to a royal palace statement. Abdullah expressed hope that the international conference would have a "practical and tangible outcome that would lead to a just settlement and set forth a new era of joint Palestinian-Israeli coexistence." AP contributed to this report. Contact Avodah by email at avodah15@aol.com |
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UNLEASHING MUSLIM ARAB KILLERS ON THE ISRAELI PEOPLE
Posted by Emanuel A. Winston, October 1, 2007. |
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Once again Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert unleashed a gang of 90 terrorists who had been safely restricted to prison for attacks and planned attacks on Jews in Israel. There is no longer any doubt that, upon release, most terrorists go right back to their terrorist organizations to kill and plan for more killing. Usually, they have utilized (or been used) by the terrorists already in prison to learn new techniques for killing and/or indoctrination. Olmert promised solemnly that none of this new batch of pardoned Muslim Arab Palestinians had "blood on his hands" but many were responsible for hundreds of Israeli deaths at the peak of Arafat's wars of terror. Israeli security forces were astonished that U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her team okayed the release of terrorists -- including the financier of Arafat's terror operation, Rakad Mahoud Salameh, (aka "Abu Mahmoud") a key aide of Saddam Hussein who was ousted by the American military. (1) Olmert has been aware of this for years and yet he chose to release these killers as his personal gamble with the lives of Israeli men, women and children. Olmert has made his choice of who his friends are and who are his enemies -- who are his people and who is his newly adopted tribe. Clearly, he has chosen the Muslim Arab Palestinians and their current leader, Mahmoud Abbas (aka Abu Mazen). He has determined to make War on his own people but then again, perhaps they were never his people. Would righteous and smart politicians release killers if they thought they might also have to pay the price of what the released killers would do? Olmert is said to make this "gesture" for the Muslims' holiday of Ramadan. The "coincidence" of these days also being the High Jewish holidays from Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Simchat Torah means nothing to him. This gratuitous release of attempted murderers and planners of murderous terror attacks was supposed to elevate Abu Mazen in the eyes of his Muslim Arab Palestinians. The problem is that Olmert sold the lives of his own people for this brief, dangerous and meaningless "gesture" to please and appease President Bush and Secretary Condoleezza Rice before the November surprise lynching of Israel by Washington. (The site of the proposed lynching may be Annapolis, Maryland -- to be confirmed.) Olmert betrayed his people, his position as Prime Minister and his nation -- even to becoming a co-conspirator to what he knew would lead to murder by releasing the irredentist killers. It a shame that politicians who deliberately sacrifice their own people are not judged and, if found guilty, jailed like any common murderer. Olmert was never much of a man, let alone an honest man. Too bad there are many "Olmerts" floating around the politics of Israel. They are attracted like flies to garbage. The garbage of politics is power, money status. Once in office, these low lifes are accorded a respect they do not deserve. Once in office they can cut under-the-table deals which should put them in jail but, they are smart enough to appoint protectors in offices like the Attorney-General, high level officers in the Police -- all to impede any investigations in case they are caught with their hand in various cookie jars. Why do you think Olmert appointed Winograd to investigate Olmert's failure to effectively conduct the Lebanon/Hebz'Allah War of July-August 2006? Why do you think Winograd has refused to issue his final report and conclusions of his investigation which was completed months ago? Why do you think the Police and Attorney-General Meni Mazuz have waited so long to investigate and indict PM Olmert for his role in the Bank Leumi swindle -- or Olmert's fraudulent purchases of his apartment, land for investment and other schemes as yet hidden? Why aren't many others in Olmert's Kadima Party in prison right now but, are free because they have friends in high places to protect them? Why is Shimon Peres Israel's latest President when he is "suspected" of many nefarious and dangerous schemes against Israel -- particularly those planned with other nations -- like Olso? Releasing killers -- or those who planned killings -- or those who paid the killers or their families, makes Israel's current politicians co-conspirators in terror who should be thoroughly investigated, indicted, tried and, if found guilty, punished appropriately. The obstacles preventing such justice is the very Leftist Supreme Court in Israel who long ago lost their moral compass and right to judge anyone. Like other appointees in office to protect the twisted and crooked politicians, the High Court is impotent and owe their allegiance to the radical political Left in Israel. Like Olmert, they are also at war with the Jewish people and wish to de-Judaize their own selves and the Land which G-d gave to the Jewish people in perpetuity. If not, why are they punishing the pioneering settlers, their young children and elderly grandparents for building up the Land, making it green and protesting the destruction of Jewish homes, farms, schools, businesses, synagogues, their cemeteries and even the Jewish Temple Mount? As in all warped societies, there are good politicians but, today they are in the minority. Even Israel's vaunted Military has been misused to make war against their own people. If Jewish soldiers protest evicting Jewish settlers, they are punished mercilessly. Clearly, it is time to light a candle and ask HaShem to carry out His Judgment against these corrupt, crooked and non-Jewish Jews now in power in Israel who have manipulated our sworn Muslim Arab enemies to kill, maim and destroy us. ### 1. "Israeli Security Authorities Angered by Olmert's Reprieve of Bearer of Saddam Hussein's largesse for Palestinian Terrorists" DEBKAfile September 30, 2007 Emanuel Winston is a commentator and Middle East analyst. His articles appear often on Think-Israel and Gamla. He is a member of the Board of Directors and a research associate of the Freeman Center For Strategic Studies (http://www.freeman.org/online.htm). Contact him at gwinston@gwinston.interaccess.com |
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PA OFFICIAL ADMITS 'NATIVITY SIEGE' STAGED
Posted by Maria Sliwa, October 1, 2007. |
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This was written by Aaron Klein and was published today in World
Net Daily
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Occupation of Jesus' birthplace pre-orchestrated by Arafat's government, Fatah official says A Fatah official who served as chief of a terrorist organization that holed up for over a month inside Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity in 2002 while fleeing a massive Israeli anti-terror operation admitted in a recently released book the infamous church siege was orchestrated by Yasser Arafat's Palestinian Authority. Israel was widely criticized during the ordeal for laying siege to the Nativity Church -- where Christians believe Jesus was born -- after dozens of Bethlehem-area gunmen, including wanted senior Hamas, Tanzim and the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terrorists, stormed the structure and refused to come out. Tanzim and the Brigades are part of Fatah. Trapped inside the church with the gunmen were 49 church clergy and about 45 unarmed Palestinians who ran in with the terrorists. "The conspiracy was to make a siege and put all the fighters inside the church so Israel would make the siege. People from the Palestinian Authority collaborated with this conspiracy," said Eiman Abu Eita, Fatah's representative in the Bethlehem satellite town of Beit Sahour who at the time of the siege was Beit Sahour's al-Aqsa Brigades chief. Eita was speaking in the newly released book, "Schmoozing with Terrorists: From Hollywood to the Holy Land, Jihadists Reveal their Global Plans -- to a Jew!" by author and Mideast reporter Aaron Klein. Eita is quoted in "Schmoozing" stating unlike most of the other "fighters" in and near Bethlehem, he didn't run into the church because he "understood the conspiracy." "During the siege I communicated with those inside and told them not to give the Israelis a list of the fighters inside because then Israel would start looking for the fighters who were outside and I was one of them," Eita said in comments that were recorded by Klein. 'PA collaborating with Israel' The church siege occurred during the Jewish state's 2002 Operation Defensive Sheild. The Israel Defense Forces surrounded and then raided Bethlehem October 2 on a mission to arrest hundreds of terrorists. Bethlehem and Beit Sahour gunmen that year had committed and planned hundreds of terror attacks, including deadly shootings and a string of suicide bombings, according to the IDF. When the Israeli military entered Bethlehem heavy fighting immediately broke out on Manger Square, a major pedestrian district near the Nativity church. Overwhelmed by the large numbers of Israeli forces, the terrorists fled the square for the church compound. Israel surrounded the church area but refused to storm the structure in which some of the most wanted Palestinian terrorists were holed up. The siege ended after 39 days when mediators agreed 13 senior terrorists would be deported to European countries, 26 would be transported to the Gaza Strip and the remaining gunmen would be freed. During the ordeal PA officials and some Western analysts, commentators and news media widely blamed Israel for placing siege to one of Christianity's holiest structures. But Eita admitted in "Schmoozing" that prior to Israel's raid, the PA instructed Bethlehem-area militants to use the church as sanctuary. He claimed the PA was "collaborating" with Israel in a conspiracy to draw wanted militants into one place so the IDF can attack them. After the siege ended, there were widespread media reports, including video footage, the Nativity church was left in shambles. Clergy trapped inside later told reporters top Palestinian gunmen slept on comfortable beds in an elegant apartment inside the church, using high-quality woollen blankets, while the civilians slept on cold tile floors in the main church downstairs. Four Greek monks told the Washington Times the Palestinian gunmen holed up with them seized church stockpiles of food and "ate like greedy monsters" until the food ran out, while the trapped civilians went hungry. The terrorists also were accused of guzzling beer, wine and Johnny Walker scotch that they found in the priests' quarters. A Roman Catholic priest told the Times some Bibles were torn up and used as toilet paper, and many valuable sacramental objects were removed. In "Schmoozing," Klein caught up with Jihad Jaara, chief of the Al Aqsa Brigades in Bethlehem during the Nativity saga and one of the main leaders of the church siege. He fiercely denied the account of the Bible being used as toilet paper. "I am not ready to hear your dirty accusations," Jaara said in "Schmoozing." "It is completely untrue that we used the Bible as toilet paper," Jaara said. Confronted about the video footage showing the church in poor condition, Jaara replied: "As for the conditions in which we left the church, it is true there was a lot of dirt but it is normal to the conditions in which we were living. Thirty-nine days without any water and any possibility to move because of the snipers who were placed all around the church." Contact Maria Sliwa at msliwa@msliwa.com |
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OFFICIAL ISLAMOPHOBIA INSPECTION
Posted by Boris Celser, October 1, 2007. |
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I regret to inform you that this weblog and some of its comments have been identified as potentially Islamophobic. Under EU Directive DCLXVI it is compulsory for all contributors to take the following Islamophobia test immediately: YOU MAY BE AN ISLAMOPHOBE IF... (1) You refer to the midwinter holiday as 'Christmas'. (2) You save loose change in a p***y-bank. (3) You allow your children to read unexpurgated versions of Winnie the Poo. (4) You doubt whether it's politically correct to stone rape victims. (5) You believe that the earth is round. (6) You think there's something weird about a 50 year old man marrying a six year old girl. (7) Your children play with Barbie dolls, teddy bears or LEGO. (8) You object to being a third class citizen in your own country. (9) You fail to celebrate cultural diversity when your daughter is gang-raped for not wearing a headscarf. (10) You think government policy should be determined by your elected representatives rather than a raging mob. (11) You object to your taxes being used to support people who are plotting to kill you. (12) You aren't convinced that 'Jihad' means 'Inner Spiritual Struggle'. (13) You don't understand why the Jews must be exterminated. (14) You aren't married to at least one of your cousins. (15) You don't have sex with your daughter-in-law. (16) You sometimes have doubts about BBC reporting. (17) You occasionally wonder what's inside those walking tents. (18) You realise that taqiyya is not a Mexican drink. (19) You believe moderate Muslims ride unicorns. (20) You don't appreciate the multicultural need for Methodist grandmothers to be body-cavity searched before boarding aircraft. (21) You claim to understand the words "Slay the unbelievers wherever you find them", even though you don't speak Arabic. (22) You fail to see the difference between criticising Christianity, Buddhism or Hinduism, which is free-speech, and criticising Islam, which is racism. (23) You have reservations about 'faith schools' where the kids will be taught that Jews and Christians are pigs and monkeys, at public expense. (24) You don't understand why flying your country's flag has become a hate-crime. (25) You don't believe that God is a brothel-keeper. EVALUATING YOUR SCORE How many of the questions did you answer 'YES'? On a scale of 0 to 25... 0 you are a Dhimmi and will be nominated for the Neville Chamberlain Peace Prize.
Fatwas are automatically awarded for all scores above 5. Fatwas will be posted in plain brown paper envelopes in a choice of laminated or embossed styles, generously sprinkled with ricin, anthrax, sarin and polonium. Boris Celser lives in Canada. Contact him at celser@telusplanet.net |
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WHATEVER LEAVES THE MOUTH OF A MUSLIM, HE BELIEVES
Posted by Emanuel A. Winston, October 1, 2007. |
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I will not bore you at length with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's various proclamations but, he did prove a long standing observation, namely that Muslims believe whatever they say, once it leaves their mouth. Let's start with a bit of instructive humor: An Arab is sitting, leaning up against a tree, trying to take a nap. Children are playing noisily nearby, keeping him awake. What to do? He calls the kids over and says: "There's a man outside the village giving away sweet dates." The kids run off and the Arab leans back to start his nap. Suddenly, it dawns on him and he says to himself: "Why am I sitting here when I can get free dates outside the village?" When Ahmadinejad said: "There was no Holocaust", he believed it -- simply because the words left his mouth and were there -- hanging in mid air. Naturally, all other Arab Muslims who heard this bit of absurdity simply accepted the words, merely because they were said. Recall when Yassir Arafat, godfather of modern Arab Muslim Terrorism, said: "There never was a Temple Mount built by the Jews." No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the Arab Muslim world discarded all known history and nodded to each other in the Shuk over coffee, "Of course, there was no two Jewish Temples, no King David, no King Solomon and thousands of years of history literally carved into the stones of the Temple Mount." Some may recall the myth circulated by an unnamed follower of Mohammed wherein in the time a jar of water was tipped and before it spilled its first drop, Mohammed flew to Al Aksa (the Furthest Place) on a giant white horse, named Barak or El Buraq. It had great wings, the face and breasts of a woman and the tail of a peacock. In that brief second, he flew to the ancient Rock in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah where Abraham was prepared to sacrifice Isaac and the Foundation Stone upon which G-d created the world. The white horse Barak left a gigantic hoof print there. Mohammed remounted and flew to the 7th Heaven where he met all the earlier Prophets, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joseph and even Jesus. They supposedly blessed him as the last prophet of god, at which point, at that moment while the drop of water was still falling, Mohammed returned to sleep and his dream. This then is the myth upon which radical Islamists claim Jerusalem and the Jewish Temple Mount of Solomon. No additional comment is necessary. (1) Muslims make claims and not only believe them, no matter how absurd but, expect everyone else to believe it. Their proclamations of superiority are that of the foolish "Luftmentchen" (air head) with their heads in the clouds and their feet off the ground. So when Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claims there was no Holocaust; there are no homosexuals in Iran and he has nuclear weapons to wipe Israel off the map, he believes what he says and so do most Muslims. Facts and history are irrelevant and only what you make them as needed. What is really troubling is watching supposedly intelligent men who, in the real world, only demand proven fact, accept psycho-babble and claims of superiority within Islam as some form of historical fact. Perhaps it is only because they fear the killing lunacy of Islam and their radical practitioners. (Yes, Boss. Anything you say but please put away that bomb.) The history of the Jewish Temple goes thousands of years into the past and is, indeed, embedded in the huge stones found at the base of the Temple Mount's retaining wall. A carefully kept record of the Temple's rituals by the people of the Book is the most undeniable fact of real history -- not myth of flying horses. Comes a shabby little creature and says it's all a lie and I will tell you a different truth which, if you don't follow, I will kill you and all your family. ### 1. "Jerusalem: I Hate the Ground You Walk On" by Emanuel A. Winston The Jewish Press October 18, 1996 Emanuel Winston is a commentator and Middle East analyst. His articles appear often on Think-Israel and Gamla. He is a member of the Board of Directors and a research associate of the Freeman Center For Strategic Studies (http://www.freeman.org/online.htm). Contact him at gwinston@gwinston.interaccess.com |
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THE BELL TOLLS FOR A CAPITULATING NOT-SO-GREAT BRITAIN
Posted by Lawrence Uniglich, October 1, 2007. |
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The United Kingdom removes The Holocaust from its school curriculums because it offends part of the Muslim population that claims it never occurred. Hmmm! Implicitly, the Jewish population and all those acquainted with the facts concerning this unprecedented technologically efficient sadistic human tragedy 'can go to hell'! Those anti-Semitic Brits, presumably in charge of academic policies, have indeed committed an act so vile, deleting historical fact for the sake of an ignorant also anti-Semitic potentially explosive segment of not-so-Great Britain's population; they have in fact defiled the very essence of their profession, indeed placing their nation on a retrogressive pathway leading to a neo Dark Age. Shameful is too mild a term to describe such pusillanimous imbeciles that consider themselves academics. They are no better, indeed far worse, than the Muslims who demanded this act of in effect historical revision, for they are enablers of Jew bashing, they are in fact symptomatic of the very disease that eats away at the fabric of British life, that could eventually morph their nation into a fundamentalist misogynist Islamic state that would demand all females obey sharia imperatives, fully cover their bodies in black burkas, perhaps cede all their civil liberties, just so Muslims afflicted with Medieval temperaments are not offended. Might the new Prime Minister of this endangered sovereignty Gordon Brown intercede forthwith, removing those responsible for such an immoral indeed treasonous act from their positions of authority, restore all facts pertaining to The Holocaust to British curriculums, or is he too cowardly a leader to do the right thing, unable or unwilling to muster up the strength of character that no doubt would be displayed by his predecessor the great Winston Churchill, who surely would be spinning in his grave if able to observe the current dysfunction so evident in his once respectable land. Perhaps it is not surprising to witness the anti-Semitic beast so blatantly rear its ugly head yet again within this morally adrift island nation, spewing eviscerating venom through the bowels of British academia. The largest British teacher's Union, willingly seduced by pro-Palestinian rhetoric, has recently called for a boycott of Israeli professors. Furthermore, Kenneth Livingston, an apologist for homicide/suicide bombing as well as an incorrigible Jew/Israel hater, despite the fact that his fair city's transportation system was bombed not so long ago by murderous Muslim creeps, remains mayor of that metropolis. The BBC continues to spew a most insidious anti-Israeli pro Arab propaganda through its privileged media waves, perhaps attempting to further lead its non-Muslim British audience along a well traveled road paved with the broad brush of a 'respectably' subtle anti-Semitic perspective as well as competing for the warped ears of Al Jazeera's not so subtle anti-Semitic Muslim audience. Still, where is the worldwide outcry, where is the outrage, when this so-called Westernized first world country stoops ever lower and refuses to acknowledge The Holocaust in textbooks meant to educate young people? Might British Jews and their supporters take to the streets and vigorously protest this heinous act of capitulation, perpetrated mostly to appease fundamentalist Islamic fanatics, lest they again assert their wrath by blowing up more pieces of an erstwhile feisty British empire morphed to docile lamb? Indeed, must an Arab flag replace the Union Jack in Trafalgar Square; must the Palace of Westminster be converted to an enormous Wahhabi Mosque before British citizens realize they cannot appease jihad junkies intent on annihilating the infidel? The bell affixed to The Tower of London tolls ominously for the captive mindset of a nation, imprisoned by fear itself, willing to wipe away the memory of six million Jews, willing to disrespect their descendants. What could be more contemptible? What could be more pitiful? Lawrence Uniglicht is a career civil servant. He advocates for the State of Israel with an American perspective. He writes, "Advocating for the disrespected underdog has been my passion, no doubt Israel falls into that category." Contact him by email at larose@snip.net |
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