יום שלישי, 7 ביוני 2011

Elder of Ziyon Daily Digest

Elder of Ziyon Daily Digest

Report: 14 "Naksa" mourners in Syria killed - by Palestinian terrorists!

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 04:54 PM PDT

From Ma'an:

Fourteen Palestinian refugees were reported killed and another 43 injured on Monday, a report from the Palestinian government's WAFA news said.

The victims were part of a massive group in Al-Yarmok, an unofficial Palestinian refugee camp in the Syrian capital of Damascus, mourning the death of between 10-23 Palestinians by Israeli fire on the Golan Heights ceasefire line the day before.

Angered over the failure of camp leaders to organize demonstrations marking the Naksa, the anniversary of Israel's occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and Golan Heights, an estimated 100,000 mourners were said to have attacked the headquarters of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command.

Militants with the PRFL-GC reportedly opened fire on the group, who were taken to a local camp hospital for treatment. The report cited hospital staff saying 14 were pronounced dead.

During the clash, mourners reportedly set fire into the PFLP-GC headquarters, and condemned the group for its use of weapons against the crowd.
Palestine Press Agency adds that the PFLP-GC is a close partner with the Syrian leadership. Which would explain why a recognized terrorist group runs the Yarmouk camp.

Sources said that the demonstrators chanted against [PFLP-GC leader] Ahmad Jibril, Khaled Mashaal and other political leaders based in Damascus, accusing them of being agents of the Syrian regime.

This group was not "pro-Palestinian" enough to have some ceremonies to mark the 1967 war - like the Lebanese camps that had their solemn burning of tires at the entrances - so they attacked their terrorist leaders.

The terrorists did what one would expect them to do - shoot and kill their fellow Palestinian Arabs. (Note also that Syria has no problem allowing terror groups in these camps to be armed.)

The camp residents, naturally, then burn down the headquarters of their leaders.

And the upshot is - there are now 14 more martyrs of the "Naksa." And the Syrians have reason to be suspicious of their Palestinian Arab "guests," which could have some interesting repercussions, as the Palestinian Arabs in Syria have mostly been on the sidelines during the rioting against the regime.

Yes, I know you need a scorecard to keep all the factions straight. One thing is clear, though - everyone hates Israel, as this video of anti-government protesters in Homs stomping on Israeli - and Iranian! - flags shows:

Kuwaiti woman activist wants to legalize sex slavery

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 01:51 PM PDT

A brilliant application of Sharia!
A female political activist and former parliamentary candidate has recommended the introduction of legislation to legalize the provision of enslaved female concubines for Muslim men in Kuwait in a bid, she says, to protect those men from committing adultery or corruption.

The activist, Salwa Al-Mutairi, suggested apparently seriously in a video broadcast online that she had been informed by some clerics that affluent Muslim men who fear being seduced or tempted into immoral behavior by the beauty of their female servants, or even of those servants 'casting spells' on them, would be better to purchase women from an 'enslaved maid' agency for sexual purposes.

She suggested that special offices could be set up to provide concubines in the same way as domestic staff recruitment agencies currently provide housemaids.

We want our youth to be protected from adultery," said Al-Mutairi, suggesting that these maids could be brought as prisoners of war in war-stricken nations like Chechnya to be sold on later to devout merchants.

"This is not religiously forbidden," she added, indicating that Caliph Haroun Al-Rashid (766-809 AD) was married to one woman but possessed 200 concubines.
Unfortunately, there is a downside to this idea.

Egyptians might lose part of their summer temporary underage "marriage" trade to these rich Gulf men who already have concubine slaves. This might hurt the Egyptian economy.

Besides that, though, I don't know that there is any other downside - from the twisted perspective of the proponents of this law.

(h/t Eye on the World)

Another Saudi woman forced to apologize for driving

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 12:56 PM PDT

From Arab News:

Commenters noted how her hair in uncovered!
Wajnat Al-Rahbini, a Saudi actress who was arrested after driving her car Saturday along Jawazat Street in Jeddah, expressed regret for her actions and apologized to the Interior Ministry.

"I apologize for driving my car while I was aware that this action was against rules and regulations. I regret what I have done and hope that the officials will accept my apology," she said after she was released from detention at Al-Kandara police station, according to local daily Al-Madinah.

Al-Rahbini said she was traveling to the passport department and the labor office to complete some paperwork concerning her late husband who died about a month ago. "I have no one to complete these procedures for me. My driver has traveled abroad and will not be back before three days. I did not like to sit in the same car with a non-mahram. For these reasons I drove my own car and I am sorry for what I did," she said.

Al-Rahbini said someone reported her to the police but when the police arrived she was standing beside the car and was not behind the wheel. "I parked my car near the building of the passport department and the labor office in Al-Kandara district. When I got out of the car, the police were surrounding me. They wrote in their report that when they caught me, I was not actually driving," she said.

Al-Rahbini said she was asked to sign a pledge never to do this again and was released without bail. She, however, recalled that this was not the first time she drove her car in Jeddah. "My late husband was suffering from blood clots and many times he would faint. Each time I drove him to the hospital. This happened about seven times," she said.

The actress admitted that she had committed a blunder by driving her car but said she was obliged to. "I committed a grave mistake by breaking the rules. I am sorry. I want the police and the officials to pardon me. I swear that the security were very nice to me and treated me very politely," she added.

However, some local reports said Al-Rahbini was caught while driving on King Abdullah road near the Oasis Mall. Though she was released, the car was impounded.

"Moderate" Fatah vows to attack Jews in Israel

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 11:51 AM PDT

More peaceful statements from the Palestinian "moderates."

From Now Lebanon:
The residents of the Ain al-Hiweh Palestinian camp in Lebanon went on strike Monday as they closed the camp's entrances to protest Sunday's killings of protestors on the Golan Heights border by Israeli gunfire.

NOW Lebanon's correspondent reported that the protestors in Ain al-Hilweh blocked the camps entrances with flaming tires, and rallied in the area.

Fatah commander in Lebanon Mounir Maqdah, based in the camp, vowed to "retaliate from inside Israel," after several protestors on the Golan borders were killed by Israeli gunfire on the anniversary of the 1967 Six-Day War.

I never could figure out how Palestinian Arabs in Lebanon think they are helping their cause by setting fires at the entrances to their own communities, or by going on strike where the only people they would hurt are themselves.

No doubt they are very proud at their ability to act in a self-defeating manner.

So where was UNDOF on Sunday?

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 10:11 AM PDT

UNDOF is the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force in Syria. This is its mandate:
  • Maintain the ceasefire between Israel and Syria;
  • Supervise the disengagement of Israeli and Syrian forces; and
  • Supervise the areas of separation and limitation, as provided in the May 1974 Agreement on Disengagement.
Here is a map showing its area of operations. I have highlighted Majdal Shams, where the riots were yesterday and on May 15th.

The map shows that the Arab rioters passed through miles of UNDOF areas patrolled by the Austrian contingent of UNDOF.

The entire UNDOF forces consist of around 1200 lightly armed peacekeepers.

So what did they do on Sunday to defuse tensions on the border?

A fascinating post in Tom Lehner's blog written after the Nakba Day protests describes how UNDOF, especially the Austrian unit, normally works during demonstrations:

EGG or "Ein-Greif-Gruppe" (Interference Unit) is a small unit on permanent 24/7 alert status.

In case of protests (Nakbah, Family shouting, Quneitra Protests, and others) this unit is called out. They drive in Trucks to the place of protest, armed with light arms (Ausbatt: Glock side arms for officers, and STG 77 assault rifles for enlisted) and barbwire rolls.

After unrolling the wire, that is supposed to keep protesters in line, soldiers take position and wait for the Syrian "Liaison Officer", usually a young Lieutenant that speaks English and you can be sure he belongs to the Military intelligence (Never officially confirmed, but everybody knows it).

Peace without force through simple presence.

Since 1967 the Austrian Armed Forces have done a marvelous job with this. The men and women are highly professional when it comes to following the orders. They have even earned (early 90's) the Nobel Peace Prize for their outstanding job.
So why didn't UNDOF do what it normally does to keep the protesters away from the border? Why did they disappear?

Lehner believes that the UN purposefully stayed away, hoping for casualties to pressure Israel to make more concessions.

I'm not sure I'd go that far, but the absence of UNDOF in the area during the protests is very important.

Given that UNDOF is there every other May 15th, it is more than noteworthy that they did not do the same this year, especially when the protests were planned in advance. And this goes double for the "Naksa Day" protests.

The UN's only statement that refers to UNDOF was "The UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) is seeking to confirm facts and help calm a continuing volatile situation in the area." Shouldn't they be preventing the escalation of tension, rather than confirming facts afterwards?

The UN needs to answer these simple questions: where was UNDOF during the riots, and why did they not act to save human lives?

(h/t Vandoren)

EoZ interviewed at Pundit Press

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 09:26 AM PDT

Yesterday I was interviewed by Pundit Press. Check it out.

Hamas stopped "Naksa Day" protests in Gaza

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 08:42 AM PDT

Yesterday, things in Gaza remained quiet, even though it was "Naksa Day."

Now we know why.

Palestine Press Agency reported that Hamas banned a planned demonstration of people who planned to approach the security fence near Khan Younis. Hamas' reason was that it would hurt "national unity." One commenter said that Hamas prevented Islamic Jihad from reaching the fence at Beit Hanoun.

Just more proof that in Gaza there's pretty much no such thing as a "spontaneous protest."

Lebanese writer: "Would we want to be treated like we treat the Palestinians?"

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 07:45 AM PDT

From Ghassan Karam in Ya Libnan:
It is that time of the year when the Arab world rediscovers the Palestinian people and their just cause. Alas the discovery does not last for more than a few hours during which politicians make their speeches and compete with each other in an effort to establish their political concern and awareness. We have been going through this ritual for over 60 years and there isn't anything that anyone can show for these efforts. One cannot help but feel sorry for the Palestinian people since with such friends who needs any enemies.

The Lebanese, in general,have been possibly the worst opportunists and exploiters on these occasions. I have no doubt that there are some very sincere Lebanese who truly believe that the Palestinian people have been unjustly treated and must be supported in their struggle for an honorable settlement. But I am so very disgusted when I hear the disingenuous sentiments expressed in support of the Palestinian struggle by those who have consistently exploited them and abused them. The crocodile tears shed on this occasion are a convenient cover to argue against the Palestinians through a shrewdly constructed rationale that argues that the Palestinians should be abused and discriminated against; they should be deprived of many of their human rights and educational opportunities in order to preserve their right of return. We discriminate against them because of our love, concern and support for them. ...

Does our duplicity know any bounds? Would we want to be treated like we treat the Palestinians? After all isn't that the best guide for action: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"? Let us play a mind game if you will: Let us imagine that a group of people invaded Lebanon and that half the population decided to flee the war for a variety of reasons. They sought refuge in a number of neighbouring countries till the hostilities end. To their surprise when the war was over they were not permitted to go back. Would we then want these refugees to spend the next 63 years living in the hastily erected temporary refugee camps that were set upon their arrival or would we expect their host countries to treat them like they treat any other immigrant? Wouldn't we expect and even insist that the hosts make every effort to alleviate their suffering and to integrate them into their respective societies and economies? Shouldn't they be allowed to own property like all other inhabitants and enjoy the same privileges and protections of the law of the land? And wouldn't we insist that if they choose then they should become citizens of their adopted countries of residence so that they will be able to exercise their right to vote and thus participate fully in shaping the society in which they are an integral member?

I am confident that our answers to each and every one of the above hypothetical question is in the affirmative. Not only that but we would expect all people anywhere in the world to be treated that way whether they are Iraqi refugees, Vietnamese refugees, Somali refugees or Armenian refugees, just to name a few groups. We will never sanction that we be treated differently than the population where we sought refuge and most importantly we will not accept the argument that we need to be discriminated against for our own good, as if love of country and adherence to moral values and principals are best promoted through mistreatments and opprobrium.

And finally let us repeat one more time what many studies have made abundantly clear: The right of return will not be diminished or watered down in any way form or fashion if the mistreatment and abuse of the Palestinians comes to an end either through acquiring the citizenship rights of where they live or the right to be permanent legal residents with all the rights enjoyed by all other residents.

Lebanon and the Lebanese must right what has been wrong for 63 years. The shameful treatment of the Palestinian refugees is a blot on our national character and history, a blot that we have the moral duty and the obligation to ameliorate by admitting our past errors and by offering the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon full equality under the law in each and every sphere. We also need to offer citizenship to those that want it. Nothing else will do.
The comments include lots of anti-Palestinian Arab hate.

Italy refusing to secure Israel exhibit in face of Arab threats

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 06:44 AM PDT

From YNet:
Italian police have refused to handle security for an Israeli exhibit at a central Milan square next week due to threats of violence by Palestinian activists, Yedioth Ahronoth reported Monday.

The exhibit, set to take place at Piazza Duomo, has been planned in honor of 'Israel Week' in the city. It includes 15 towers showcasing Israeli culture, technology, agriculture, economics, and art "to present the unfamiliar Israel".

But pro-Palestinian organizations are threatening to target the exhibit. Over the past few days the groups have been urging internet users to sign a petition to cancel the exhibit.

Web posters issued by the groups threaten to "ignite the city" and say, "No to Israeli occupation of Milano".

The exhibit has received all necessary permits from Milan's municipality, but political turmoil surrounding the election process in the city have apparently short-circuited communications between the municipality and police, who say officers stationed at the open-air plaza will have difficulty securing the area in the event violence breaks out.

On Monday the municipality was preparing to hold a conference that could end with orders to move the exhibit to a closed space.
The definition of terrorism is "the use of violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims." This is a textbook example, and here is proof that it works.

It must be great for Arab terrorists to know that they only need to make a poster or two threatening to "ignite the city" to force municipal officials to bend to their will.

The subtext is that behind the threat is a real chance for violence. Which is why any similar threat by a Zionist or Jewish group would not result in the city of Milan bending over backwards to accommodate the people behind the threat - it would simply not be credible.

Decades of Arab and Islamic terror has conditioned the world to accept it as a given, and therefore to submit to it.

Terrorism works, because we allow it to.

Zahar: Fatah is stalling on "unity government" until September

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 05:47 AM PDT

From Palestine News Network:

Mahmoud Al Zahar the top Hamas leader in the Gaza strip admitted that there is internal dispute between him and the head of the polit-bureau in Damascus, Khalid Machan.

Al-Zahar hinted during his interview with the BBC of the possibility of pressure being implemented to delay forming the new Palestinian government.

Al-zahar added that Fatah officials have asked to postpone the formation of the new government, until after September to avoid obstacles in front of the negotiations and the French initiative.
Which is exactly what I have been saying since this "unity" deal was announced. This so called "agreement" was always a sham meant to put out a face of a united front for the PA's September diplomatic push, with no intent of following through and actually creating a true unity government - which is nearly impossible given the differing positions of Fatah and Hamas, and Hamas' desire to stay in power in Gaza.

(I couldn't find the interview on the BBC site.)

Report: Shalit family goes to Paris court for Shalit

Posted: 06 Jun 2011 03:43 AM PDT

The Hebrew press is reporting that Noam and Aviva Shalit are going to a Paris court to ask for an investigation as to who is responsible for their son Gilad Shalit's kidnapping, and for an international arrest warrant against them.

Gilad Shalit is a French citizen, and French law allows anyone be prosecuted anywhere in the world if they perform a serious felony against a French citizen.

Shalit's father said, "We appeal to the French legal system as a neutral and independent entity. We cannot do this in Israel. We asked the court to investigate crimes and to investigate the people who kidnapped my son, holding him hostage for five years in solitary confinement, without any basic human rights. "

"We had to go to court because my son's kidnappers ignored for years any international calls to release him on humanitarian grounds," said Shalit, "including the European Parliament's calls for a majority vote, Congress in Washington in two houses, the German Bundestag, the French president Nicolas Sarkozy, President of the United States Obama, and German Chancellor Merkel. " Shalit added that the kidnappers refuse to accept compromise proposals offered by the generous German mediator, the German government envoy, and that they refuse to allow any access to Gilad by the International Red Cross, or any other humanitarian body.

Hamas admits that they hold Shalit, so I'm not sure why it is important for the legal action to identify who is responsible for the kidnapping and why the Shalits cannot call for an arrest warrant against all Hamas leaders.
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