יום שבת, 29 בדצמבר 2012

Elder of Ziyon Daily News

Elder of Ziyon Daily News

Link to Elder of Ziyon

Friday linkdump

Posted: 28 Dec 2012 12:00 PM PST

From Ian:
LATMA: "Wonderful Country's" new season on Channel 2 and Nissim Mishal's alter ego speaks



Iran Fears May Be Compelling Saudi Arabia to Begin to Tell the Truth About Israel
"If there were a prize for the Arab country that has done most to promote Arab-Israeli peace recently, I'd seriously consider nominating Saudi Arabia. Admittedly, that's a counterintuitive choice: Riyadh doesn't even recognize Israel and shows no signs of doing so anytime soon; moreover, it finances the spread of extremist Islamic ideology. But Saudi-funded papers have been doing something that may be far more important than another handshake on the White House lawn: providing a platform for Arab journalists and public figures to challenge the dominant Middle Eastern narrative of Israel as the root of all evil."

Wiesenthal ranks top 10 anti-Semites, Israel-haters
Muslim Brotherhood's rise in Egypt catapults two religious figures into No. 1 spot on Simon Wiesenthal Center's year-end list.
Report: 2012 Top Ten Anti-Israel/Anti-Semitic Slurs: Mainstream Anti-Semitism Threatens World Peace

Why a two-state solution will never work
Original Thinking: What will happen when you have pressured Israel into allowing a Palestinian entity to take hold on the 1967 borders, an entity that is taken over by a radical Islamic force bent on Israel's destruction?

Senior Hamas Official: Reconciliation Efforts With PLO to be Based on Rejection of Israel's Right to Exist
"A Senior Hamas official said that his organization wants reconciliation efforts with the PLO to be based on the Palestinian Arab demand for a right of return, a demand that if implemented would effectively bring about the end of Israel as a Jewish state, as well the absence of recognition of Israel's right to exist."

The True Face of Hamas and the Five Myths That Obscure It
"Indeed, the world must move beyond the media-driven myths above and recognize Hamas for what it really is: an Islamist terrorist organization dangerously allied with Iran in its mission to destroy Israel. Hamas states this goal in its charter and Iranian leaders declare their genocidal intentions publicly. These forces must be stopped before the doomsday described in my novel leaves the realm of fiction."

Arab MK Sarsour Meets Terrorist who Killed 30 Israelis
Arab MK Ibrahim Sarsour (Ra'am) met with several jailed terrorists, including one who was involved in the Park Hotel massacre in 2002.
"In the past Sarsour has called to establish an Islamic Caliphate centered in Jerusalem and has met with senior Hamas terrorists.
He recently chose to condemn Israel for responding to Hamas rocket attacks from Gaza, while failing to condemn Gaza terrorists for firing the rockets."

IDF Personnel Pelted With Rocks, Molotov Cocktails in West Bank as Unrest Persists
"Protesters near Yitzhar descended upon IDF soldiers, throwing stones, and in some cases even Molotov cocktails, before they were dispersed as well. There were other reports of stones being thrown at buses and Israeli vehicles. A security officer's vehicle was stoned by dozens of Palestinian Arab rioters adjacent to the West Bank outpost of Horsha in the Binyamin Regional Council. Palestinian Arabs also hurled stones at IDF soldiers near the West bank outpost of Ein Kodesh, south of Nablus; there were no injuries"

Pollard's Catch-22 By Esther Pollard
"While this travesty of justice may not have originated on President Barack Obama's watch, it has been fully revealed under his tenure. It is precisely for cases like this, where the US justice system is unwilling or unable to correct itself that the American Constitution grants the president virtually unlimited powers of clemency. Justice requires that Obama use his powers of executive clemency to release Jonathan Pollard now."

Iran is in social and economic meltdown
With unemployment soaring and the advent of hyperinflation, the plight of ordinary workers just gets worse and worse
"Workers' strikes and protests are gathering pace in Iran. In 2012, there were more labor protests than for longer than many can remember. Vast numbers live below the poverty line. Non-payment of wages for months at a time is a fact of life for millions. Inflation is soaring. Beggars in veils line the streets.And this is not merely a product of sanctions, though they are certainly biting. Gross mismanagement by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government is doing terrible damage to the social fabric all on its own."

Ahmadinejad Sacks Cabinet's Sole Woman
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has sacked Health Minister Marizeh Vahid Dastjerdi, the sole woman in his cabinet, state television reported on Thursday.
"The minister had proposed price hikes for a number of medications due to the plunge of the Iranian rial against the US dollar and Western sanctions imposed on the country over its disputed nuclear program, AFP reported."

Preacher in Iran re-arrested on Christmas
"Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani was first arrested on October 19, 2009 for protesting against Iran's decision to force all children including his two sons to read the Quran in schools.
He was at that time charged with apostasy and evangelism to Muslims. He spent three years or 1,062 days in prison.
Nadarkhani was released in September of 2012 after Christians around the world prayed for his release."

Christian Politician Quits Egypt Upper House as Tensions Persist
"A Christian member of Egypt's upper house of parliament quit on Thursday, reflecting persistent political tensions just a day after the Islamist-dominated chamber took over legislative authority under a contentious new constitution."

CAIR Protests Saudi Radical's Exclusion From U.S.
"He belittled Muslims who failed to take action, including "harming the Jews." He invoked Israel's targeted killings of Hamas leaders Ahmed Yassin and Abdel-Aziz Rantisi, saying he prayed that Allah "will destroy the Jews and their helpers from among the Christians and the Communists, and that He will turn them into the Muslims' spoils. I praise the Jihad, the sacrifice, and the resistance against the occupiers in Iraq."

Hitler statue placed outside Warsaw Ghetto stokes outrage
Italian artist's depiction of the Nazi dictator, previously shown in New York, draws condemnation after being moved close to site of mass murder

Israel grants scholarships to 66 outstanding Indian scholars
"Sixty-six post-doctoral scholars from India will travel to Israel in the coming months to pursue research at top universities. The researchers will be sponsored by the government of Israel which has announced three-year scholarships grants for Indian scholars.
According to officials from Embassy of Israel, this is the first programme of its kind, bringing advanced Indian researchers to Israel in a wide range of topics."

Who Was the 19th Century American Preacher Mendenhall John Dennis?
Actually, He Was a Jerusalem Watchmaker Named Mendel Deniss, Jerusalem's First Photographer

Jewish War Heroes comic book #3

Posted: 28 Dec 2012 11:00 AM PST

This completes the series of vintage 1944 comic books from the Canadian Jewish Congress  I have been posting for the past three weeks.

Jewish War Heroes 3

Two more Syrian generals defect

Posted: 28 Dec 2012 09:30 AM PST

From Naharnet:
Two Syrian air force generals have defected from the regime of President Bashar Assad and joined opposition forces in Turkey, a diplomat said on Friday.

The generals, commanders of the Regional Air Force, have crossed the border and arrived in the town of Reylanli in southern Turkey, the Turkish diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The generals and dozens of lower-ranking officers and their families were taken to a separate camp where army defectors take refuge.

Turkish officials refuse to give an exact number of Syrian generals currently on Turkish soil as some are returning to Syria to join the active fighters inside the conflict-wracked country.

The latest defections come as Syrian rebel forces besiege Menagh air base northwest of Aleppo after months of clashes with loyalist troops.

Saudi authorities break up nefarious Christmas celebration plot

Posted: 28 Dec 2012 07:45 AM PST

From Al Akhbar:
Saudi religious police stormed a house in the Saudi Arabian province of al-Jouf, detaining more than 41 guests for "plotting to celebrate Christmas," a statement from the police branch released Wednesday night said.

The raid is the latest in a string of religious crackdowns against residents perceived to threaten the country's strict religious code.

The host of the alleged Christmas gathering is reported to be an Asian diplomat whose guests included 41 Christians, as well as two Saudi Arabian and Egyptian Muslims. The host and the two Muslims were said to be "severely intoxicated."

The guests were said to have been referred to the "respective authorities." It is unclear whether or not they have been released since.

The kingdom, which only recognizes Islamic faith and practice, has in the past banned public Christmas celebrations, but is ambiguous about festivities staged in private quarters.

Saudi religious police are known to detain residents of the kingdom at whim, citing loose interpretations of Sharia and public statements by hardline religious leaders to justify crackdowns.

Saudi Arabia's head mufti Sheikh Abdel Aziz bin Abdullah had previously condemned "invitations to Christmas or wedding celebrations."

A member of the Higher Council of Islamic scholars in Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Mohammed al-Othaimin recently prohibited sending holiday wishes to "heretics" on Christmas or other religious Christian holidays.
The story goes on to show that in Saudi Arabia, there is no big stretch from amusing "Oddly Enough"-type stories to real abuse of human rights:
On Thursday, the Beirut-based Gulf Center for Human Rights reported that Saudi human rights defender Raef Badawi is at risk of execution on apostasy charges.

Badawi is co-founder and editor of the Liberal Saudi Network. When he first appeared before the district court in Jeddah, he was charged with "insulting Islam through electronic channels" and "going beyond the realm of obedience." The Judge then referred the case to the higher Public Court on an apostasy charge, which carries the penalty of death.

The General Court in Jeddah proceeded with apostasy charges on December 22.

Badawi was arrested this June after the Liberal Saudi Network called for "a day of liberalism" in Saudi Arabia, which included a conference that was later canceled after a warning from authorities.

Earlier this week, controversial Saudi novelist and political analyst Turki al-Hamad was arrested for criticizing Islam and the royal family in a series of tweets.

Al-Hamad is an outspoken liberal who writes about sexuality issues, underground political movements and religious freedom. The offending tweets suggested that Islam be rectified in the same way that the Prophet Muhammad is said to have revised earlier Abrahamic religions.

(h/t Ian)

A "Saddam Hussein" party wants to run in Jordanian elections

Posted: 28 Dec 2012 06:10 AM PST

From Ammon News:
The Board of Commissioners in the The Independent Elections Commission (IEC) rejected the name of a national list which chose former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's name, although it accepted the applications of the candidates provided that they change the name of the list.

The IEC in its meeting Wednesday decided not to accept the naming of the lists that contain personal names, or any name could spark sectarian, racial or political strife or contrary to public order or that could affect national unity and security of the nation.

The surprise did not stop at the name of the list, but the second surprise was that one of the candidates at the head of the list was named Saddam Hamdan Hussein.

He added that he will fight in the upcoming parliamentary elections, saying that "Saddam Hussein's name was chosen because people in Jordan loved him."

Muslim Brotherhood leader says Jews have the "right to return" to Egypt

Posted: 28 Dec 2012 04:30 AM PST

Essam el-Erian, vice president of the Freedom and Justice party of the Muslim Brotherhood, called on Egyptian Jews to return to their "homeland" in Egypt - in order to give their Israeli homes to Palestinians.

On a Cairo TV show on Thursday, Erian said "that the right of return, especially if that leaves a place for a Palestinian [to move in], can not be denied and can not be waived at all," saying he calls for "Jewish Arabs and Egyptians, who Abdel Nasser expelled, to return once again to their country."

It sounds like Egypt really needs cash, and the jizya tax on dhimmis is the best way for them to raise it.

In response, Hafez Abu Saada, head of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights, called Erian's remarks "catastrophic" because it would allow Egyptian Jews to sue for the properties that were stolen from them when they were forced out of Egypt.

How is this position consistent with "human rights?"

Simple. Jews are obviously not human, so they have no rights.

Deja vu: Abbas keeps lying and threatening

Posted: 28 Dec 2012 02:20 AM PST

From Ha'aretz:

If diplomatic stagnation continues after the Israeli election and construction in the settlements doesn't stop, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will dismantle the PA and return responsibility for the West Bank to the Israeli government, he told Haaretz in an interview on Thursday.

"If there is no progress even after the election I will take the phone and call [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu," Abbas said. "I'll tell him, 'my dear friend, Mr. Netanyahu, I am inviting you to the Muqata [the PA presidential headquarters in Ramallah]. Sit in the chair here instead of me, take the keys, and you will be responsible for the Palestinian Authority."

"Once the new government in Israel is in place, Netanyahu will have to decide -- yes or no," Abbas said.
Now look at this other report:
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to dissolve the Palestinian Authority (PA) if Israel does not stop building settlements on occupied Palestinian land.

"If Israel does not stop settlement building ... I will strive to end Palestinian self-rule in the occupied territories," he said.

"I cannot be the president of a non-existent authority as long as Israeli occupation of the West Bank continues," he said.
That quote is also from December - December, 2010.

Does this sound like a leader of a state? Abbas' idea of "leadership" is to keep threatening - threaten resignation, threaten to dismantle the PA, threaten to go to the ICC.
He said he would be willing to renew talks with Netanyahu immediately after the election, but would demand that Israel freeze construction in the territories for the duration of the talks, renew the transfer of tax proceeds that Israel collects on the PA's behalf, and release some 120 Palestinian prisoners who are imprisoned in Israel since before the 1993 Oslo Accords.

"These are not preconditions, these are commitments Israel already took upon itself in the past," said Abbas, and hinted that he needed some kind of gesture from Israel. "If Netanyahu will do these things, it would help [restart talks]. I only ask of him not to build [in the settlements] during the negotiations."
Abbas, as usual, is lying. Israel may have made gestures to restart talks in the past - but now Abbas is claiming that they are "commitments."

Once again, one has to ask: how can Israel negotiate in good faith with a person who lies as easily as he breathes?
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