יום שלישי, 26 ביולי 2011

Elder of Ziyon Daily Digest

Elder of Ziyon Daily Digest

Hezbollah blames Norway massacres on...well, take a guess

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 05:20 PM PDT

From the Daily Star (Lebanon):
Hezbollah condemned Monday the recent attack in Norway that left at least 76 dead as "proof" of the racism of Zionist culture."

"The terrorist act committed by a right-wing extremist, who supports Zionists in Norway, is additional proof that the culture stemming from the Zionist enemy, or ideas that support it, is deeply tied to the racism of its leadership," a statement released by the party said.

Hezbollah's statement said "Zionist terrorism" poses a danger to Palestinians and Arabs as well as to Europeans and warned against "attempts to overlook terrorism tied to Zionism."

"Concerning this assault, standards differ within the international community and positions are taken based on the identity of those accused of terrorism. If they were Muslims, then their culture and society would be condemned, whereas if they were close to Zionists, justifications and excuses would be sought," it added.

Hezbollah said attempts to overlook the incident's link to Zionist terrorism would encourage further attacks.
Hezbollah's Al Manar TV added:
The motive that urged the "Christian" fanatic to launch terror attacks in Norway was the source of terror in the world, Israel; and so, the first European country to declare the recognition of an independent Palestinian State and the right for Palestinians to have a good livelihood, was the first to witness a deadly terror attack since decades.

Beside the pro-Palestinian events, investigations revealed that Breivak was against "Muslim Domination in Europe", and a supporter of Zionism. Furthermore, he was an admirer of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, and Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman.

The extremist criminal was reportedly labeled as a "Shabbath Goy": Hebrew for a non-Jewish individual who assists the Jews in performing an act that is forbidden for Jewish individuals according to their biblical law.
That last bit comes from rabid anti-semite Gilad Atzmon in a bizarre rant he penned earlier today.

If Hezbollah and their buddy Atzmon would try to create a list of bad things that Jews aren't responsible for, they'd be done in time for brunch.

Iranian general: "We have no option but to destroy Israel"

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 03:09 PM PDT

From Pajamas Media:

In reaction to the recent assassination of Iranian scientist Dariush Rezaiinejad, chief commander of the Basij Brigadier General Mohammad-Reza Naghdi stated:
The main plot for this criminal act was conceived by the American government, and since it is scared of the reaction by the Muslim world due to the uprisings in the region, it had the Zionist regime commit the heinous act.
…
In order to protect the security of our country, we have no option but to have the Zionist regime wiped off the map.
Naghdi, who was born in Iraq, was a member of the Iranian Quds Force involved in international terrorism before he was appointed by Ayatollah Khamenei to the post of commander of the Basij in 2009. He has previously threatened to assassinate American generals in retaliation for the killings of the Iranian nuclear scientists.
I could be wrong, but I think it is a violation of international law to threaten to destroy an entire nation.

The magic pumpkins of the Qassams

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 01:11 PM PDT

From YNet:

Farmers from the community of Kfar Maimon in southern Israel presented huge pumpkins in a Beersheba market over the weekend, noting that the unusual vegetables were grown using old-time agricultural techniques and a special ingredient – Gaza rockets.

Three people had to join forces in order to lift one 140-pound round pumpkin and another 100-pound pumpkin and load them into a car Friday. The exceptionally large vegetables drew plenty of attention at the market, as well as skepticism, with some visitors wondering whether the pumpkins were real.

"My father is an old-time farmer, one who wakes up early every morning, arrives at the field and speaks to the pumpkins, Dotan Mines told Ynet. His father, Shimon, has been working in the field for more than 50 years. "He doesn't use new technologies to examine the soil, but rather, he feels the soil…this treatment enables the pumpkin to reach such dimensions."

Mines added that that the field in question was hit by two rockets in the past, attributing some of the pumpkin magic to the Qassam strikes.

"Some of the pumpkins were hit when the rocket landed. Maybe they became upset and that prompted them to grow like that," he said. "The really large one grew a few dozens of meters away from the landing site."
Palestine Press Agency reported on the "magic Gaza rockets" that produce large pumpkins. One of their more knowledgeable readers pointed out that the rockets use potassium nitrate for fuel - which is a fertilizer.

So if "Palestine" becomes a state, they can go to the International Court of Justice to demand compensation for fertilizing Israeli fields so well.

+972 magazine pushes the "9/11 Dancing Israelis" lie

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 11:13 AM PDT

In yet another example of how 972 magazine has no journalistic integrity, an article by Yossi Gurvitz claims that Israelis were "gleeful" after the horrendous terror attack in Norway on Friday.In fact, Gurvitz says that Israelis actually support terrorism because they are usually so happy at any terror attacks, both against Israelis and against foreigners.

His proof of Israelis' "glee"? He notes a couple of talkbacks in a YNet Hebrew article. Yes, he generalizes all Israelis based on a few comments! (Of course, some comments compare the terrorists to settlers too - but Gurvitz is very selective in his outrage about anonymous comments in YNet.)

But he doesn't stop there in his zeal to tarnish all Israelis as loving terror attacks. He writes:
During the shock following the 9/11 attacks, a strong undercurrent of glee showed up. Four Israelis were actually arrested in New York for dancing in front of the burning towers. They spent quite some time in detention before being kicked out of the US.
Apparently, Gurvitz likes to spend time on 9-11 truther websites, because those who actually remember the story know that there were no dancing Israelis on 9/11. The woman who reported them to the police described them this way:

MARIA: Like a few minutes must have gone on, and all of a sudden down there I see this van park. And I see three guys on top of the van, and I'm trying, you know, to look at the building but what caught my attention, they seemed to be taking a movie.

MILLER: (VO) Maria says the three young men were kneeling on the roof of a white van. It was parked right here. They were taking pictures of each other with the World Trade Center burning in the background.

MARIA: And I could see that they were, like, happy, you know? They--they--they weren't--they didn't look shocked to me, you know? They didn't look shocked. I thought it was very strange.
If I would have had a camera with me that day, I would have been taking photos as well - and hundreds of people did. But there was no dancing and no celebration (although there does seem to have been excitement at witnessing such an event, and somewhat bad taste at taking tourist-type photos in front of the smoke.)

The Israelis denied dancing to the US authorities and went on Israeli television and denied it again. But "truther" websites started the rumor that there were "dancing israelis" - and 972 mag now pushes that lie as well. And, of course, they weren't arrested for "dancing," as pseudo-journalist Gurvitz asserts.

So what else does Gurvitz have to slander an entire country as being gleeful when scores are murdered? Nothing. He states it as fact, and then psychoanalyzes it as if he proved it. Few of 972's readers would doubt his accuracy for a second, because they already buy into the idea that Israelis are collectively morally corrupt (outside of the brave, moral writers for 972mag, of course.)

To be fair, I have no doubt that Israelis have mixed feelings at terror attacks abroad. They hope against hope that the victim country will now have an inkling of the fear that Israelis had to go through for years, before going on the offensive to stop daily terror attacks (using methods that no doubt offend the oh-so-moral sensitivities of 972mag columnists.) In other words, they naturally hope that Europeans will start to empathize with what Israelis have had to live with and notice that they have common enemies. This is human, but it is a not close to the happiness that Gurvitz is describing in this sickeningly vile piece of garbage.

The day after Palestinian Arab statehood

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 08:49 AM PDT

For all the talk about Palestinian Arab statehood, I find it interesting that none of the articles about the supposed benefits of statehood actually enumerate any benefits for real live Palestinian Arabs.

A recent example is this article in Al Jazeera by Noura Erakat (apparently Saeb's niece) where the benefits of statehood can be summed up as: it will hurt Israel politically.

But will even a successful statehood bid benefit real Palestinian Arabs? What would happen the day after it achieves its unilateral aims?

If the bid goes forward, the economic and security cooperation with Israel would disappear. The vast majority of Palestinian Arab exports are to Israel and if Palestine is a sovereign nation Israel will feel no obligation to continue that relationship. It would take years for a similar trade program to grow with the Arab world, and there is no evidence that there is a pent-up demand for Palestinian Arab goods in Jordan and Syria and the Gulf states.

Tens of thousands of Palestinian Arabs who are now employed in Israel and in Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria would lose their jobs, putting more economic pressure on the PA. And, of course, the PA already is heavily dependent on foreign aid, aid that may be put in jeopardy after the supposed goal of independence is achieved. NGOs will likewise start looking elsewhere for recipients of their cash, and Israeli NGOs that have been working hard for cooperation with Palestinian Arabs would no longer be able to continue. Israeli Arabs will have a much harder time visiting their relatives across the border.

A third intifada seems likely, with the inevitable Israeli response. Even if it is a low-level war with "only" firebombs and stones and handguns against Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria, Israel would no longer feel obligated to respect the autonomy of Area A. Checkpoints that have been removed because of security cooperation would return, with the concomitant loss of mobility among the newly liberated people.

Hamas would take advantage of the nascent chaos and recruit the newly unemployed for their terrorist brigades with ready Iranian cash. They would also use that cash to build a separate social infrastructure, using that as a means to recruit new members and fans. In Gaza, of course, they will continue to consolidate their iron grip on the people there while paying lip service to "unity." Targeted killings of terror leaders will resume, and the current sense of relative safety that West Bank Arabs have will disappear. Freedom of the press and assembly would likely be even more severely curtailed than it is now.

Israel's coordination in sending thousands of tons of goods to Gaza would dry up, as the line between Israel and Gaza becomes an international border. The problem will go into Egypt's lap - and Egypt is not rushing to expand the Rafah crossing to handle hundreds of trucks daily.

Millions of "diaspora" Palestinian Arabs may demand to move into "Palestine," causing huge problems. It is not inconceivable that Syria or Libya would "encourage" their Palestinian "guests" to move out. that Imagine 200,000 Lebanese Palestinians saying that it is time for them to move to their new homeland. Would the PA build new camps for their people, trading one form of misery with another? They haven't even taken down the camps in their own autonomous areas!

Right now, as Abbas famously said a couple of years ago, "in the West Bank we have a good reality . . . the people are living a normal life." Statehood would change that "good reality" in an instant, and Mahmoud Abbas (who is now 76 years old) will not be able to fix it. Does he have any successor with any charisma or a following? How popular will Fatah be after the economy goes down the drain?

So why isn't the media looking at these issues? The only supposed benefits of statehood involve political issues like how "Palestine" would be able to go to the International Court of Justice to press bids against Israel or become a full member of various international bodies. Nobody is spelling out a scenario where Palestinian Arabs, in the territories or in Arab countries, will personally benefit.

Which indicates that, just as they have been throughout their short history, Palestinian Arabs are again being used as pawns by their leaders. As always, no one cares a bit about them.

Hamas tries to tie Norway terrorist to Zionism

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 07:41 AM PDT

Hamas came out with a press release on Saturday condemning the terror spree in Norway:
The Hamas movement is saddened by the terrible attacks that occurred in Norway, which have left dozens of innocent civilians as victims, which... caused widespread destruction.

We in the Hamas movement denounce these heinous crimes and express our full solidarity with the people of Norway and the families of the victims at this difficult time, wishing a speedy recovery to the wounded.

These attacks show the dangers of extremist tendencies which promote and incite hatred against Islam, this time aimed at youth camps that were expressing their solidarity with the Palestinian people under occupation and the lifting of the siege.

This confirms that the crime of the incitement campaigns of the unjust ongoing Zionist and American siege against the Palestinian people...The free world must stop providing cover for Zionist extremism.
Isn't that sweet, that one of the leading terror organizations in the world is condemning attacks against civilians - when they have been responsible for purposefully targeting and killing thousands of civilians themselves!

The Ma'an News Agency published the Hamas condemnation but for some strange reason, no doubt related to its newsworthiness, it didn't mention the part where Hamas blamed Zionism for the Norway attacks and praised the victims as supporters of Palestinian Arabs. In other words, it treated what was purely a political statement as if it was a real expression of sympathy for the victims.

Compassion and cynicism are not the same, and by reporting it as the first and not the second, Ma'an has once again obfuscated rather than illuminated.

(h/t Challah Hu Akbar)

UPDATE: Ma'an updated the article somewhat, after I tweeted their editor.

Bethlehem bakers go on strike because PA lowered price of bread

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 06:42 AM PDT

Palestine Today says that bakers in Bethlehem are calling s strike today, in protest of the PA lowering the price of a kilo of bread.

The price has been lowered from four shekels to three and a half shekels.

The bakers are complaining that they cannot make any profit at such a price level.

I had no idea that the PA set prices on basic food items. Economists have never been thrilled with such heavy-handed methods.

Economist and Nobel prize winner Milton Friedman once said, "We economists don't know much, but we do know how to create a shortage. If you want to create a shortage of tomatoes, for example, just pass a law that retailers can't sell tomatoes for more than two cents per pound. Instantly you'll have a tomato shortage."

UPDATE: I am told that Israel does the same on various staples. (h/t Akiva)

Israel nabs weapons smugglers from Jordan

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 05:54 AM PDT

From YNet:
Police and IDF forces foiled a weapons smuggling attempt from Jordan in the Dead Sea area on Monday.

Forces stopped a small motor boat laden with weapons and ammunition in the Dead Sea at dawn. The act was the result of a special operation spanning months.

The smugglers were canvassing the area in preparation for the smuggling. Police arrested two Palestinians in their 40s residing in the Jordan Valley. They were found in possession of 10 Kalashnikov machine guns and 10 magazines.
The Flotillistas might get some new ideas.

How the PLO's September stunt abrogates Oslo

Posted: 25 Jul 2011 03:45 AM PDT

Ha'aretz reports that Israel is considering revoking the Oslo Accords as one of several possible responses to the PLO's stated intent to have the UN declare all of Judea and Samaria to be part of a Palestinian state.

The PLO's chief negotiator and serial liar Saeb Erekat responded angrily, saying Israel is the party not implementing the Oslo Accords. He said "Israel's practices on the ground have practically canceled the Oslo agreement years ago." he added.

Of course, he did not name any of these supposed violations of Oslo. He implies that the "settlements " are Israel's violation of Oslo by referring to "practices on the ground."

PA president Mahmoud Abbas went a little further, saying that Israel had forced Palestinians to take their statehood campaign to the UN by refusing to end its occupation and settlement building.

The Oslo process, and the documents signed between Israel and the PLO, did not exclude Israeli building of or expansion of Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. That was always left to be part of final status negotiations. From Oslo II:

Permanent status negotiations will commence as soon as possible, but not later than May 4, 1996, between the Parties. It is understood that these negotiations shall cover remaining issues, including: Jerusalem, refugees, settlements, security arrangements, borders, relations and cooperation with other neighbors, and other issues of common interest.
And while Israel after that date continued to transfer areas to PA control up until the even of the intifada, the PLO never implemented a number of its agreements including stopping incitement in the media and changing the Palestinian National Charter to eliminate references to destroying Israel. (No amended Charter was ever published.)

The September UN stunt is an explicit abrogation of the Oslo agreements, however. They specifically violate what I believe is the last agreement signed between Israel and the PLO, the Sharm el Sheikh agreements of September 4, 1999, restating what had been signed in previous agreements:
[N]either side shall initiate or take any step that will change the status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in accordance with the Interim Agreement.
The UN stunt is an attempt to do exactly that - change the status of areas that were supposed to be determined by negotiations. By demanding that the UN recognize the areas between the 1949 armistice lines and Jordan/Egypt as being part of a brand new state, the PLO is directly violating the agreements that they signed with Israel.

Since the Oslo process is what allowed the PA to exist to begin with, and under its provisions Israel transferred land to be administered by this same entity, if the PLO abrogates it then Israel could simply re-extend military and administrative control over Areas A and B, thus destroying the autonomy the Palestinian Arabs now enjoy.

At the very least, Israel would be free to annex any areas of the Jordan Valley or major settlement blocs if the PLO abrogates Oslo by going to the UN.

Now is the time for Israel to make that consequence crystal-clear.
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