Palestine’s Democratic Deficit

DAVID KEYES

Published: February 12, 2013

LAST week, a 26-year-old Palestinian activist, Anas Awwad, was sentenced in absentia by a court in Nablus, the West Bank, to one year in prison for “extending his tongue” against the Palestinian Authority’s president, Mahmoud Abbas, on Facebook. Thousands have joined a Facebook group to show their solidarity with Mr. Awwad, but the damage has been done. Free speech has been set back, and a chill sent throughout Palestinian society.

Nuclear holocaust denial

Ruthie Blum

One campaign slogan that U.S. President Barack Obama has upheld to the letter was the promise to restore hope. Indeed, America’s enemies have never been as blessed with this coveted commodity as they are now. Their rooting for Obama’s re-election, then, was completely understandable. But his behavior since then — including his choices of Chuck Hagel for defense secretary and John Brennen as CIA director — has exceeded their expectations, if not fulfilled their wildest dreams. Even if these appointments are not ultimately confirmed, the radical-Muslim world perceives them as an indication of presidential intent.

US government funding radical Israeli NGOs' information operations

Caroline Glick

Earlier this month NGO Monitor released its report on foreign government funding of radical political Israeli NGOs which work to undermine Israel's international standing and subvert Israeli society. Along with the usual European suspects who give millions of shekels (or Euros or pounds) to Israeli groups like this, it works out that the US government is also funding extremely radical organizations, courtesy of American taxpayers. Notably, the three groups that reported receiving funding from the US are all in the business of waging political warfare campaigns directed at the Israeli public.

According to the report, in accordance with the NGO Transparency Law which requires NGOs to report on donations received from foreign governments, three Israeli NGOs received funding from the US. 

"Downs and Ups"

Update on my update: Little Zakkai has had a tough time since last I wrote -- as, unquestionably, have his parents. 

 

On Monday he successfully came through surgery to remove growing tumor nodules on his spine.  Following the surgery, he was given what was supposed to be a routine MRI to be sure all was well.  But it was discovered that in spite of the diligence of the two surgeons who worked on him with great care, a nodule on the spine was missed.  The doctors recommended re-opening the incision, which had not yet healed. And so, yesterday, this 2-1/2 year old went under the knife for the second time in 48 hours.

Hating Valentine’s

Jamie Glazov

[Editor's note: This article is reprinted from our Valentine's issue of Feb. 14, 2012. It has been slightly updated and edited to fit this year's day of love.]
Today, Thursday, February 14, is Valentine’s Day, the sacred day that intimate companions mark to celebrate their love and affection for one another. If you’re thinking about making a study of how couples celebrate this day, the Muslim world and the milieus of the radical Left are not the places you should be spending most, if any, of your time. Indeed, it’s pretty hard to outdo jihadists and “progressives” when it comes to the hatred of Valentine’s Day. And this hatred is precisely the territory on which the contemporary romance between the radical Left and Islamic fanaticism is formed.

Did You Know? Last week, 42,898 Tons of Goods Entered Gaza

The IDF coordinates the delivery of a variety of humanitarian aid and development assistance to the population of the Gaza Strip.
During the last week alone, 42,898 tons of goods and gas entered Gaza from Israel in 1,445 truckloads.
Think Gaza is under siege? Think again.
If you found this post interesting, check out more about what’s happening in Gaza, or visit our official site. For real-time updates, follow us on Twitter.

Obama abstract on the Middle East, admits Jihadi expansion, ignores Taliban after 2014

DR. WALID PHARES February 13, 2013

In his State of the Union speech of 2013, President Barack Obama addressed several crises in the Middle East and on the front of fighting terror. On Afghanistan President Obama assessed the outcome of his policies as a weakening of the Taliban and committed to a sustained withdrawal from the country while helping the Afghan Government to take the lead in military missions. The role of the US after withdrawal in 2014, according to Obama will be to assist the fight against al Qaeda. There was no mention of a fight against the Taliban after 2014. Does that mean that there will be a political engagement or even a partnership with the Taliban while pursuing combat with al Qaeda? How will that be to short of having the Taliban and al Qaeda splitting off?

"Update"

I begin with a report on little Zakkai, who indeed was operated on yesterday.  It's been an incredibly tough haul for his parents, first because Zakkai had developed a cold and cough and there were consultations until the last moment regarding the advisability of doing the surgery. It was decided that going ahead was prudent.  And then, they had to get to Boston, where the hospital is located, and where there were huge amounts of snow.

 

Zakkai, thank God, came through the surgery well and the surgeons were satisfied. He is in an ICU unit but having considerable pain, for which he is being treated. Terribly hard not just for the child, but for the parents to witness.  ("Unnerving and deflating," is how it was put in an update.) Please God, he will get past these first few days and rally quickly.  He is quite a fighter. 

 

Please, continue to pray for him -- for his speedy and complete recovery. And I'll provide further updates.

 

Rephael Zakkai Avraham ben Yakira Avigael

John Brennan: "Jihad Is a Holy Struggle"

Middle East Quarterly
Summer 2010, pp. 70-74

http://www.meforum.org/2949/john-brennan-jihad-holy-struggle

On May 26, 2010, John Brennan, deputy national security advisor for homeland security, delivered a speech[1] at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank.
The speech reads as something of a paean to Barack Obama from whom all inspiration for current security policies is deemed to flow (and, as such, echoes a speech Brennan delivered to the same center on August 6, 2009[2]). It draws on themes that Obama enunciated in Cairo in June 2009[3] when he tried to mollify Arab and Muslim opinion. He distinguished between "violent extremists" and "true Muslims"; he vaunted "centuries of coexistence" without mention of jihad or crusades, and he blamed recent tensions solely on "colonialism." He spoke of Islamic tolerance without any hint of rampant and extreme religious intolerance in Muslim countries. Islam, Obama argued, "is not part of the problem in combating violent extremism—it is an important part of promoting peace."

How not to Defend Israel

Mike Konrad

Experience has taught me that some of the worst anti-Israel polemics come from those who think they are defending Israel. In an age where large sections of the planet have access to the internet, the old methods for defending Israel will not work. Tired shibboleths will fail and prove to be counterproductive. Zionists are using old strategies to fight a new war; and Israel is losing the propaganda battle.
A classic case of this is Newt Gingrich's recent statement that Palestinians are an "invented people." Well, we all knew what he meant, and surely his motives were right; but the statement was abysmal.
We Americans invented ourselves in 1776. Prior to that, the colonials were fighting for the rights of Englishmen, not independence. The Argentines, Mexicans, Chileans, much of Latin America invented themselves in 1810 when revolution ripped through two continents. It didn't matter whether Newt Gingrich was right or not; what mattered was that his point was meaningless. Nations and peoples invent and reinvent themselves all the time. Instead of helping Israel, that statement backfired and Gingrich ended up looking foolish, except to stalwarts.

To Think or Not to Think: A Muslim's ‘Outrageous Fortune'

EDWARD CLINE February 11, 2013

In his penetrating essay on the futility of Islam's efforts to "reform" itself through revolution, "régime change," or purification, "Springtime for Islam" (February 5th), Daniel Greenfield noted:

There is a peculiar tragedy to a religion which cannot escape its own destructive nature, each time it reaches for some form of redemption, its hands come up dripping with blood and it all ends in more bodies and petty tyrannies.

"Reform," of course, means to change oneself or some institution for the better, from bad and corrupt to good and pure, or at least to the unobtrusive benign. But, as Greenfield points out and stresses, the Arab Spring is in reality a continuation of an ongoing "Arab Winter." The "Arab Spring" was fueled by Islam, and Islam is, by its foundational nature, destructive and self-destructive.

Egypt is also pushing "forced consumerism" on Gaza!

Elder of Ziyon

Right as Al Monitor published a truly absurd anti-Israel screed blaming Israel for providing Gazan merchants with high-quality Israeli goods that some Gazans cannot afford, Palestine Times published a photo essay of a new "mall" in Rafah.

I wouldn't call it a mall; it seems more like a well-=stocked warehouse store where smuggled Egyptian goods are sold to Gazans. I couldn't find a single Hebrew word on any of the many, many goods pictured.

The goods being sold seem to be the same types of things sold at other Gaza stores that are sourced in Israel - candy and cosmetics and packaged food.

The high cost of defending Israel

Alan M. Dershowitz

Whenever I speak in support of Israel or in criticism of its enemies, the dogs of defamation are unleashed against me. The attacks, all from the hard left, seemed coordinated, focusing on common ad hominem themes. They accuse me of being a plagiarist, a supporter of torture, a right wing Zio-fascist, a hypocrite, an opponent of the two-state solution and a supporter of Israel's settlement policies. All these allegations are demonstrably false but this does not seem to matter to those whose job it is to try to discredit me.
Let me begin with the charge of plagiarism—a charge originally made by the discredited academic, Norman Finkelstein, who has falsely charged virtually every pro-Israel writer with the same academic crime. In my case, the charge centered around a one-paragraph quotation from Mark Twain in my book The Case for Israel. I cited the paragraph to Mark Twain, but Finkelstein said that I should have cited it to a woman named Joan Peters, because he believes I found the quote in her book. But the truth is that I found the quote ten years prior to the publication of Peters' book and used it repeatedly in debates and speeches. When Finkelstein leveled his absurd charge, I immediately reported it to the Harvard University President and to the Dean of the Law School and ask that it be thoroughly investigated.

Beautiful Story

The brand new Rabbi and his wife were newly assigned to their first congregation to reopen a Shul in suburban Brooklyn. They arrived in early February excited about their opportunities. When they saw their Shul, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Erev Puirm. They worked hard, repairing aged pews, plastering walls, painting, etc, and on 8th of the Adar (February 17th) they were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On February 19 a terrible snowstorm hit the area and lasted for two days. On the 21st, the Rabbi went over to the Shul. His heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high. The Rabbi cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Erev Purim service, headed home.

GREAT: A LETTER FROM A HOUSEWIFE

Thought you might like to read this letter to the editor of a British national newspaper. Ever notice how some people just seem to know how to write a letter?.
Here is a woman who should run for Prime Minister!
Written by a housewife, to her daily newspaper. This is one ticked off lady.

'Are we fighting a war on terror or aren't we? Was it or was it not started by Islamic people who brought it to our shores i July 2002, and in New York Sep 11 2001 and have continually threatened to do so since?

Were people from all over the world, not brutally murdered that day in London , and in downtownManhattan , and in a field in Pennsylvania ?

Did nearly three thousand men, women and children die a horrible, burning or crushing death that day, or didn't they?

And I'm supposed to care that a few Taliban were claiming to be tortured by justice system of the nation they come from and are fightin against in a brutal insurgency.

19 Christian Children Rescued from Trafficker Before Sold to Islamic Centers

February 10, 2013 by creeping
From the Frontlines with Steve Hill » Nineteen Christian Children Rescued from a Trafficker. via Persecution News.

International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that 19 children, who were to be sold to fundamentalist Islamic boarding schools (madrassas), have been rescued. Traffickers lied to the children’s parents, saying they would take the children to Christian boarding schools in Dhaka, when in fact, they were intending to sell the children to various madrassas. Students from Dhaka University discovered the children and rescued them. This is not the first instance of Christian children being trafficked to madrassas, as upwards of 150 children have been rescued from similar situations since July 2012.

According to ICC sources, on Feb. 3, 19 children, ages 5 to 12, were rescued from a trafficker named Binoy Tripura. Binoy confessed that he “collected the kids from their parents with lies and convinced them that [he] will admit all the kids to a Missionary [Christian] school in Dhaka.” He then collected 15,000 Taka (Roughly $183 USD) from each of their parents and intended to receive payment from the madrassa upon delivery of the children.

Hamas blames Abbas after unity talks falter

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH

 

Representatives of various Palestinian factions who met in Cairo over the weekend in a renewed bid to end the dispute between Hamas and Fatah concluded their discussions without reaching agreement on the formation of a Palestinian unity government and holding new elections, Palestinian officials said Saturday.

Musa Abu Marzouk, a senior Hamas official, held Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas responsible for the failure of the Egyptian-sponsored "reconciliation talks.

Abu Marzouk said that Abbas tried once again to raise issues which the two sides had already been agreed upon.

"If Abbas wants the reconciliation to proceed, he should refrain from raising issues that we had already reached agreement about," the Hamas official said. "Instead, Abbas should be implementing what has already been agreed upon between Hamas and Fatah."