| US State Dept. dodging question of Jerusalem in briefing Posted: 28 Mar 2012 06:33 PM PDT Transcript: QUESTION: Yesterday there was a bit of a kerfuffle over an announcement that was made by the Department about the travel of your boss.
MS. NULAND: Yes.
QUESTION: Is it the State Department's position that Jerusalem is not part of Israel?
MS. NULAND: Well, you know that our position on Jerusalem has not changed. The first Media Note was issued in error without appropriate clearances. We reissued the note to make clear that Under Secretary – Acting Under Secretary for R, Kathy Stephens, will be traveling to Algiers, Doha, Amman, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem. With regard to our Jerusalem policy, it's a permanent status issue; it's got to be resolved through negotiations between the parties.
QUESTION: Is it the view of the United States that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, notwithstanding the question about the Embassy, the location of the U.S. Embassy?
MS. NULAND: We are not going to prejudge the outcome of those negotiations, including the final status of Jerusalem.
QUESTION: Does that mean that you do not regard Jerusalem as the capital of Israel?
MS. NULAND: Jerusalem is a permanent status issue; it's got to be resolved through negotiations.
QUESTION: That seems to suggest that you do not regard Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Is that correct or not?
MS. NULAND: I have just spoken to this issue --
QUESTION: No, no. But --
MS. NULAND: -- and I have nothing further to say on it.
QUESTION: You've spoken to the issue but didn't answer the question, and I think there's a lot of people out there who are interested in hearing a real answer and not saying – and not trying to duck and say that this has got to be resolved by negotiations between the two sides.
MS. NULAND: That is our --
QUESTION: What is the capital of Israel?
MS. NULAND: Our policy with regard to Jerusalem is it has to be solved through negotiations. That's all I have to say on this issue.
QUESTION: What is the capital of Israel?
MS. NULAND: Our Embassy, as you know, is located in Tel Aviv.
QUESTION: So does that mean that you regard Tel Aviv as the capital of Israel?
MS. NULAND: The issue on Jerusalem has to be settled through negotiations.
Lalit, thank you.
...
QUESTION: I just want to go back to – I want to clarify something.
MS. NULAND: Yeah.
QUESTION: Perhaps give you an out on your Jerusalem answer. Is it your position that all of Jerusalem is a final status issue or do you think – or is it just East Jerusalem?
MS. NULAND: Matt, I don't have anything further to what I said 17 times on that subject. Okay?
QUESTION: All right. So hold on – so – I just want to make sure, you're saying that all of Jerusalem, not just East Jerusalem, is a final status issue?
MS. NULAND: Matt, I don't have anything further on Jerusalem to what I've already said.
Please. This has been the US' long standing position across the decades and many administrations. It appears that the official US position is that Jerusalem was meant to be a corpus separatum, an international city, in the 1947 partition plan and as such its status - including the Israeli side of the Green Line - is still up in the air. This is in marked contradiction to the other US position that everything west of the Green Line is part of Israel. Nevertheless, the US refused to recognize Israel's declaration of Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, and that remains in effect. In response, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, made a statement: U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today called on the Administration to publically recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel. During today's Department of State press briefing, the Department's spokesperson refused to answer whether Jerusalem is located in Israel and whether it is the capital of Israel. The questions were related to a press release issued Monday by the Department that noted ongoing travel by a Department official to "Algeria, Qatar, Jordan, Jerusalem, and Israel," implying that Jerusalem and Israel are two distinct entities. State later issued a release noting the official's travel to "Algiers, Doha, Amman, Jerusalem, and Tel Aviv." Statement by Ros-Lehtinen:
"For more than three years, the Obama Administration has followed in the flawed footsteps of its predecessors by refusing to fully implement U.S. law and move our embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.
"Now, the Administration has gone even further. A mistake on a press release is understandable, but today the Administration doubled down on its determination to treat Jerusalem as separate from Israel. Where does the Administration think Jerusalem is? On Mars?
"Legitimizing the myth that Jerusalem isn't part of Israel undermines our ally Israel's sovereign right to designate its own capital, and lends credibility to efforts by Palestinian leaders and extremists who continue to deny the connection of the Jewish people to their historic capital, Jerusalem.
"The Administration needs to face reality, recognize publicly that Jerusalem is the undivided capital of Israel, and fully enforce U.S. law by moving our embassy to Jerusalem." Israel's Foreign Ministry also responded: "Jerusalem is Israel's capital by decision of the Knesset and nothing can change that," Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said. "Every country is entitled to choose its own capital and it is not for others to designate any one else's capital. It's our capital, no matter what anyone else is saying."
Keep in mind though that if the long-dead "international city" idea is part of the reason for the US' position, then that means that Bethlehem, which was meant to be part of it as well, is also up for negotiations. In fact, the area of Jerusalem envisioned in the 1947 partition plan is much larger than greater Jerusalem is today, in all directions: I have never yet heard any State Department spokesperson say that Bethlehem - most of which is in Area A, under full PA control - is up for final-status negotiations. But if you follow the logic, it must be. (Maybe Ramallah is also a final-status issue.) Perhaps that would be a good follow-up question for Ms. Nuland. Or is the State Department more worried about angering Arabs than angering Jews? (h/t Omri, CHA) 
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| Egyptian paper says Jews make pastries from gentile blood on Purim Posted: 28 Mar 2012 02:17 PM PDT From MEMRI: In a March 14, 2012 article in the Egyptian daily Al-Wafd, columnist Fikriya Ahmad wrote that the Jews, throughout their history, used to celebrate Purim by wreaking murderous vengeance on non-Jews and using their slaughtered victims' blood to make Purim sweets. She added that, today, they continue this custom by perpetrating attacks and assassinations against the Palestinians.
In ancient times, [around] 400 BCE or earlier, groups of Jews lived in Persia under the patronage of Ahasuerus, king of Persia and India. [These Jews] spread evil and destruction, as well as their dishonest and treacherous ways. Thus, they deservedly [incurred] the hatred of the state minister Haman, who incited the king of Persia against them and killed them. He picked a day by lottery on which to massacre the corrupt Jews and thus rid the country of their evil. The Jews, as is their wont, resorted to the cheapest trick [possible] and took revenge on him by ways of spying and seduction. Knowing that Ahasuerus couldn't resist beautiful women, they sent him one of their daughters, Esther, in order to trap and seduce him, and eventually the two of them got married. [Esther, now] controlling the king, caused him to quarrel with Haman, and persecuted Haman until he was [eventually] hanged and his 10 children were killed. That is how Esther saved her people, the Jews. Esther even persuaded the king to arm the Jews, so they could take revenge on their Babylonian enemies. The king did so, and [the Jews] exterminated the Babylonians, to the last one. The Jews defeated their enemies through cunning plots and by sparking internecine wars and quarrels.
[Later, the Jews] turned the anniversary of the lottery day, on which they escaped massacre, into a major religious festival... They dedicate this [festival] to murderous [acts of] vengeance against anyone who isn't Jewish. On this day, the Jews read one of their scrolls, the Scroll of Esther, and the flame of their hatred towards all non-Jews grows even hotter. Their children put on scary costumes, to fan their hostility and hate. The sweets they eat on this day are made from the body parts of Haman. There are sweets [shaped like] Haman's ear, hand or head, in order to take revenge upon him, [and celebrate] his execution and the delivery of their people.
Anyone who follows the murderous actions of the Israeli army, its intensive assassination [policy], and its physical extermination of the Palestinian owners of the land, as well as the cruel attacks by the Jewish settlers, will find that most [of the attacks take place] on the Jewish festival of Purim... They usually choose March 13 or 14 to perform their strange rituals.
Jewish history documents murderous actions [perpetrated as part] of Purim celebrations. On this festival, the extremists among them used to hunt down or abduct a non-Jew, slaughter him, and then hang him up like a sacrifice to drain his blood. Alternatively, they would subject him to barbaric torture by stabbing him deeply and letting him bleed into a container, while they took pleasure in his screams and his pain. The blood would be dried into a powder, which they would mix with flour to make into pastries..." This is what peace looks like. Here's the original article. (h/t tall midget) 
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| Palestinian Arabs in Iraq complain of discrimination Posted: 28 Mar 2012 01:00 PM PDT Apartheid, anyone? Palestinian refugees in Iraq say they face widespread discrimination and have appealed to President Mahmoud Abbas to intervene.
The Iraqi Palestinian Brothers Association said Tuesday that it sent a letter to Abbas, who is in Baghdad to attend the Arab League summit, detailing their plight.
The association said Palestinians have been refused medical care in Iraqi government hospitals and must use fake ID cards to receive treatment. The Palestinian Red Crescent lacks support from the PLO and cannot provide adequate medical care, it added.
Meanwhile, some 90 percent of Palestinians in Iraq are unemployed, Palestinians are refused government jobs and young male Palestinians face particular discrimination in finding work, the association said.
The group said Palestinians were arbitrarily detained because of their nationality or because they are Sunni Muslims. Palestinian students are treated as terrorists and some have left school over fears they will be kidnapped, it said.
They said pressuring the government would not be enough to resolve the problems, and that Abbas should ask the Iraqi government to issue passports to Palestinian refugees, most of whom were born in Iraq, so they can travel internationally.
They also urged Abbas to coordinate with the UN and the president of the Kurdistan Regional Government to transfer Palestinians to Kurdistan, which it said had agreed to receive them. By any objective measure, Palestinian Arabs in Iraq are treated worse than those in the territories (with the possible exception of Fatah members in Gaza.) So where are the "pro-Palestinian" rallies outside Iraqi embassies? Where are the anguished articles by Arabs worried that Iraq is turning into an apartheid state? Where are the dozens of books begging Iraq to save its soul by treating its minorities equally? When is the Global March to Baghdad? I could have sworn that the world was filled with people who are so very dedicated to the Palestinian Arab cause who would move heaven and earth for them. I guess they are all spending all their free time to ensure that grocery stores don't stock hummus made by a company with partial Israeli ownership. Well, that's important too, I guess. 
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| Don't call the Global March to Jerusalem anti-semitic! Posted: 28 Mar 2012 11:45 AM PDT Here is a picture on the Facebook page of the Global March to Jerusalem - Australian National Committee: But don't call them anti-semitic! They really hate that! This is actually a slightly edited version of a cartoon by known anti-semitic cartoonist Emad Hajjaj, a Palestinian Jordanian. The Global March to Jerusalem is planned for this Friday. Thousands of supposedly "peaceful" people from all over the world will approach Israel's borders, and their mob mentality will ensure that dozens will attempt to enter Israel. They'll be shot as any hostile person approaching any country illegally would be shot. Some might be killed by land-mines on the Arab sides of the borders. Headlines will scream about how Israel kills innocent, unarmed civilians. It's street theater with people willing to get themselves killed. Which is exactly what they are hoping for. Sacrificing a few hotheads is a small price to pay for some juicy headlines. And if no one gets killed, no one would care. By the way, it seems most interesting that on a week when Israel is going to be effectively attacked from all directions, the Guardian decides that they want to write an article about how the fences Israel builds on its borders are somehow sucking the soul of the nation, or something. (h/t Emet, Norman) 
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| NYT on Israel, 1966 Posted: 28 Mar 2012 10:30 AM PDT I found this nice paragraph in a lengthy New York Times Magazine article about Israel and the Arab world, written by Anthony Carthew (foreign correspondent for The Daily Mail,) December 18, 1966. 
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| Pro-Palestinian NGO barred from Ramallah conference - for being Israeli Posted: 28 Mar 2012 09:15 AM PDT From The Times of Israel: Zochrot, a radical Israeli NGO that advocates the "right of return" of Palestinian refugees to the State of Israel, has been forced to cancel a workshop in Ramallah due to Palestinian anti-normalization pressure placed on the organizers.
Eitan Bronstein, Zochrot's spokesman, told The Times of Israel on Wednesday that his organization was invited by a Quaker-run social club in Ramallah to present a counter-mapping project, dealing with the practical aspects of Palestinian return to abandoned villages within Israel.
The event, advertised on Facebook, garnered more than 100 RSVPs within hours, Bronstein says. But some Palestinians protested that an invitation had been extended to an Israeli organization, however sympathetic to Palestinian goals, considering it an unacceptable instance of "normalization" with Israel.
"Most Palestinian reactions continued to support the event," Bronstein said. "Dialogue with an organization that supports the right of return and Israeli recognition of the Nakba is not only not 'normalization,' but it is moreover vital to create a common Israeli-Palestinian discourse among those who object to the current regime of separation."
He said the event was nevertheless canceled due to the organizers' sense that "the atmosphere that was created was not conducive to such an important discussion." Yes, an Israeli NGO that wants to welcome unlimited Palestinian Arabs to Israel is barred from joining a conference in Ramallah because it is Israeli. And you can be sure that Zochrot will not stand up for itself in front of its Palestinian Arab masters. It will not insist that "Palestine" should welcome friendly Jews the way the Jewish state must embrace hostile Arabs. Because, you see, it has a thorough understanding of how the other side thinks, and is very, very respectful of the other's sensibilities, to the point of abandoning its own. 
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| Kuwaiti arrested for blasphemous tweet; plus another Saudi accused Posted: 28 Mar 2012 08:00 AM PDT From Kuwait Times:  | | Protesters demanding tweeter's arrest. Yes, really. | Police authorities yesterday arrested tweeter Hamad Al-Naqi and charged him with insulting the Prophet (PBUH), his wife Ayesha and his companions. But Naqi categorically denied the charges, alleging that his account has been hacked for some time and "there is no way for me to insult the prophet and his companions". Dozens of citizens gathered in front of State Security department to protest the insults against the Prophet (PBUH) and demanded maximum punishment against the culprit.
Qallaf said "insulting the prophet (PBUH), Ayesha and companions is totally unacceptable," adding "I learned that the account of tweeter Hamad Al-Naqi is hacked and I hope to check on that to avoid further problems". Fellow Shiite MP Adnan Abdulsamad asked the interior minister to quickly take legal action against the real criminal who insulted the Prophet (PBUH). He said it is necessary to make sure the true culprit stands trial as he wanted to spread strife in the society, bur warned "those who accuse the innocent without evidence should be held to account". The official Kuwait News agency says: The Kuwaiti Ministry of Interior ... regretted the abusing of the social networks by some individuals to offend the basic Islamic and spiritual values, vowing to show zero tolerance in combating such serious offences. Gulf Times adds: Initial reports said that Hamad Al Naqi denied he had posted disparaging remarks on his account and said that it had been hacked for some time.
However, reports early this morning said that Al Naqi admitted that he had posted the disparaging tweets and that his account had not been hacked.
According to news site Sabr, the tweeter's family issued a statement in which they distanced themselves from his action. Supporting your relatives can get you killed. But that was not the only blasphemous tweet story of the week. Another man in Saudi Arabiaesides the tweeter arrested last month, has been accused of blasphemy: An Arab man in Saudi Arabia is accused of offending Islam and its Prophet Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him) in remarks on his Twitter page, the second man to be charged with apostasy in the Gulf Kingdom.
Hundreds of Twitter users joined hands in demanding the arrest of Mohammed Salama on apostasy charges as was the case of Hamza Kashgari who is in jail for offending the Prophet (PBUH) in comments on his Twitter page.
"Mohammed Salama has followed the same path followed by Hamza Kashgari," the Saudi Arabic language daily Sabq said without specifying his nationality.
It said Salama had just cancelled his page from Twitter for fear of arrest but added he had been sacked from work at a dairy company in Saudi Arabia.
The paper, which carried part of Salama's remarks, said he claimed the Prophet (pbuh) had once tried to commit a suicide because he doubted the Koran.
It also quoted Salama as saying on Twitter : "If God gives chances but does not forget, then why He forgot Israel and did not give chances to Gaddafi."
The paper also said Salama believed that God "will let us enjoy liquor, usury and sorcery in Paradise after we were deprived of them in life."
It added: "Hundreds of Twitter users are demanding the arrest and trial of Salama for insulting Islam, the Prophet (PBUH) and God as was the case with Kashgari."
Kashgari was reported last week to have repented at court but there was no official word whether this would lead to his release.
Sheikh Saleh bin Fowzan Al Fowzan, a member of the 7-man supreme committee of scholars in Saudi Arabia, said it has been established in Islam that anyone who insults God or the Prophet should be killed.
"Repenting will not work…any man who insults God or our Prophet (PBUH) should be killed," he said. "But we should first verify that this man (Kashgari) did insult Prophet Mohammed in his article on Twitter. If verified, then he must be killed. Many scholars and people are now demanding his execution." 
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| "Jewish Voice for Peace" suddenly cares about free speech Posted: 28 Mar 2012 06:45 AM PDT A hilariously ironic press release from the so-called "Jewish Voice for Peace:" The national organization Jewish Voice for Peace is profoundly disappointed by the sudden cancellation of the upcoming Berkeley talk on "the Crisis of Zionism" by Daily Beast political writer Peter Beinart. Beinart withdrew yesterday following the Friday announcement by the East Bay Jewish Community Center (see statement below) that they were withdrawing sponsorship, they said, after realizing that Dr. Penny Rosenwasser, the agreed-upon moderator of the talk, was a founding board member of Jewish Voice for Peace.
...[W]ithdrawing sponsorship at this late date is likely one more result of an increasingly McCarthyite atmosphere in the Jewish institutional world. In the Bay Area especially, more and more, Jewish institutions are required to police speakers and events based on the narrow requirements of a handful of influential funders.
...This dynamic of policing by funders, especially acute during times of economic difficulty, has already had a destructive impact on Jewish institutions that would otherwise be committed to open dialogue.
...It is disheartening to see an increasing number of Jewish institutions, including those serving Jewish young people, like Hillel, and the Jewish Federations of North America, implement polices that explicitly cut off honest conversation and critical thinking. Wow, a pro-boycott group is whining about being boycotted? A group that promotes economic sanctions against Israel is upset when Jewish donors choose not to fund their hate? A group that happily tramples on the free speech rights of Zionists, not allowing them to talk publicly, is complaining about the lack of "honest conversation"? You can't make this up. (h/t Lenny and AB) 
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| Fatah/Hamas reconciliation efforts at a standstill. What will happen next? Posted: 28 Mar 2012 05:00 AM PDT Asharq al Awsat interviewed people involved in the negotiations between Hamas and Fatah after their much heralded "Doha Declaration" - and see that nothing has changed, nor is it likely to in the foreseeable future. According to statements made by senior officials of Fatah and Hamas, efforts are being made to resume the dialogue between the two groups on ways to implement the provisions of "the Doha Declaration". In fact, reconciliation and the efforts being made to achieve them entered are in a "deep sleep that were not quite comatose," a Palestinian official told Asharq al Awsat.
From Saudi Arabia to Egypt, all state actors are ignoring calls for an independent party to intervene to put an end to the war of words between the two movements and prepare the conditions and atmosphere for the resumption of meetings between them, in order to discuss forming a government of national reconciliation and implementation of other items agreed upon in the Doha Declaration. Palestinian sources say that the General Intelligence Service of Egypt, which is the main channel of communication between representatives of Hamas and Fatah and the patron of the meetings between the parties, does not show enthusiasm to mediate between the parties again, in the wake of the tension and verbal bickering between them and Hamas, against the backdrop of explicit accusations last week that Egyptian intelligence is responsible for causing the crisis in electricity and fuel shortages in the Gaza Strip.
Some of the officials of the government in Gaza called for the dismissal of the Egyptian official in the Gaza Strip because of Egypt's insistence for the need of Egyptian fuel to pass through the Kerem Shalom crossing, which is controlled by the Israeli army, an idea that was rejected by Hamas.
The sources pointed out that the recent efforts of Turkey and Qatar to bring the two parties together was exaggerated. They explained that the Turks, who were met with Chairman of the Political Bureau of Hamas Khaled Mashaal in Ankara recently to discuss with him about the future of reconciliation, did not show a great interest to follow up on the matter. Meanwhile, Hamas arrested another bunch of Fatah members, in the spirit of true reconciliation. They also are reportedly banning one from leaving Gaza for needed surgery. There has still been no movement on setting up the much ballyhooed elections, so that idea is becoming more and more remote as well. Each little dictatorship is quite happy with the power they have and don't want to gamble it away. No doubt, in a few weeks or months when the people catch on, there will be some demonstrations and then Hamas and Fatah will go on the next round of "meetings" and "agreements" - cosmetic steps to give the illusion of unity. They'll keep it up as long as they can. When Abbas dies or has a stroke, then Hamas will have their chance to take over the West Bank since there is no other Fatah leader with any following who is not in jail serving time for multiple murders. After that, Western analysts will fall over themselves to explain how moderate Hamas is and how inflexible Israel is, and some pseudo-Zionists will keep insisting that Israel must give up defensible borders because of vague fears about Israel losing its democratic character, somehow outweighing very concrete fears of an Iranian satellite state within spitting distance of Israel's major population centers. 
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| "One of America's closest allies" (video) Posted: 28 Mar 2012 02:44 AM PDT Just watch it: (h/t SwissYankee) 
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