יום חמישי, 28 בנובמבר 2013

Elder of Ziyon Daily News

Elder of Ziyon Daily News

Link to Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News

SFSU Palestinian student group sells a terrorist T-shirt (poster)

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 05:00 PM PST

From the San Francisco State University General Union of Palestinian Students Facebook page, on sale for $20:


War is peace, black is white, and a person hijacking and blowing up a a plane is not a terrorist.

Here is my quick response.


It is a little sad that such an obvious truth isn't so obvious for so many people.

(h/t Anarcho-Zionist)

11/27 Links Pt2: Israeli leftist enjoys being hit by Arab rocks, The Most Nonsensical Attack on Israel

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 03:00 PM PST

From Ian:
Israeli leftist enjoys being hit by Arab rocks
It's always amusing to read the articles on the leftist Jewish website, 972MAG. Amusing, oftentimes sad to see the submissiveness of Israeli Jews to the extent that it becomes "self-hate". Yesterday, I discovered an example of this that would, too, be amusing if it were not sad.
Daniel Seidemann, a leftist Israeli activist, was hit by a rock on Saturday and required stitches in his head. He wrote a 'sentitive response' on social media that was republished by 972MAG in a sympathetic way. Please read below and tell me if you find Daniel's reflection on being hit by a rock as courageous, or extraordinarily delusional.
Barry Rubin: Blumenthal: Slanderer of Israel, Son of Hillary Clinton's Former Aide
Max Blumenthal, whose father, Sidney Blumenthal, served in the White House under Hillary Clinton, has authored a book that can only be called anti-Semitic. It has been promoted by the Nation and other radicals in a campaign of false domination that is a fantasy.
If it hadn't been written by a "Jew," it would be judged "neo-Nazi." (h/t Norman F)
New America Foundation Under Fire for Hosting Event for Anti-Israel Book
The prominent liberal think tank is hosting a Dec. 4 book discussion for Goliath, written by anti-Zionist activist Max Blumenthal. The book accuses Israel of fascism and includes chapter titles comparing the Jewish state to the Nazi regime, including "The Concentration Camp" and "The Night of Broken Glass."
The controversial tome has drawn criticism from progressives. Nation columnist Eric Alterman, who wrote that it "could have been published by the Hamas Book-of-the-Month Club (if it existed)."
Pro-Israel Democrat Alan Dershowitz recently blasted the book, calling Blumenthal "an extremist bigot whose greatest appeal is to anti-Semites and others who apply a double standard to the Jewish state."
That "moment of clarity" at the UN over Israel
Instead of naming and shaming dictatorial and authoritarian leaders, the Human Rights Council gives them diplomatic cover for their crimes. The Saudi ambassador to the UN, for instance, bragged that the, "Kingdom's election to the Human Rights Council for the third time in a row is yet another confirmation of its pioneering role in the council and the service of human rights."
When the interpreter made her hot mic comments, the video shows the UN Committee's Secretary commenting rather sheepishly: "I understand there was a problem with interpretation."
Wrong. For once, the UN's core shortcomings were correctly translated into plain English.
The Most Nonsensical Attack on Israel (Yet)
It's more than just the Bibi Derangement Syndrome that makes even rational liberals lose their grip on reality when Benjamin Netanyahu is involved. It's a propensity on the part of some news organizations to erase the line between the news and editorial pages and go on the attack any time Israeli officials have the temerity to speak up for their country's interests.
And yet, today's Times piece is something of a landmark achievement. It gets everything wrong: the history of the peace process, the Iran deal, international law. There is not a word that redeems the paper's decision to publish this assault on reason.
CAMERA: Uranium enrichment and Israeli settlements
The newspaper deployed its Jerusalem bureau chief, Jodi Rudoren, to come up with a new offensive. Having already used up her cache of pejorative labels ("strident," "stubborn," "shrill" ) on the Israeli prime minister, Rudoren resorts to inanely equating the continued enrichment of uranium with the establishment of Israeli homes in the West Bank, suggesting that this somehow constitutes Israeli hypocrisy. The resulting column illuminates the Times' readiness to forgo logic in its eagerness to put forth any kind of condemnation of Israel, quickly and often.
CiF Watch prompts correction to extremely misleading Livni quote at 'Comment is Free'
Here's the incomplete quote used by Brull:
Livni knows perfectly well why Israel builds settlements. In another candid moment, she explained that "the Israel policy is to take more and more land day after day and that at the end of the day we'll say that it is impossible we already have the land and cannot create the state."
Now, here's the full quote which, as you'll see, indicates that Livni was certainly NOT admitting that "Israeli policy is to take more and more land" in order to prevent a new Palestinian state from being created, but was merely characterizing what she believed was the Palestinian view on settlements:
The Telegraph's 14 weaselly words about the power of 'the lobby'
Then, after citing statements by UK Foreign Minister William Hague and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry he interprets as dismissive of Israeli concerns, he writes the following:
If ones takes Israel's public position at face value, however, it is hard not to ask how it got itself into a position where its wishes could be ignored by its closest ally, the United States (an ally that according to popular opinion its Washington lobbies have in their pockets).
One answer might be the extraordinary, prickly, combative persona of Mr Netanyahu.
Of course, there is another answer to the question of why the American president didn't take Israel's concerns about the deal into consideration that Spencer didn't explore: the possibility that the narrative suggesting that 'pro-Israel lobbies have the U.S. government "in their pockets" has no foundation in reality, and represents the kind of crude, simplifying hypotheses fancied by weak minds, conspiracists and bigots who can't grapple with the complexities of the world.
EU, Israel Reach "Compromise" on Science vs. Settlements
Critics of the deal say it amounts to a de facto EU boycott of Israeli institutions.
Indeed, the deal means that Ariel University, which is based in the West Bank, will not be eligible for EU grant money. It remains unclear how the deal will affect Hebrew University in Jerusalem, a leading research university, which has dormitories in an east Jerusalem neighborhood.
Netanyahu has been under pressure from Israel's academic and research community to find a way to join Horizon 2020, which they say is essential to preserving Israel's status as a high-tech powerhouse.
Jerusalem and EU agree on formula that allows Israel to join Horizon 2020 project
Israel and the European Union found a way on Tuesday to agree to disagree while continuing to cooperate, reaching an understanding making Israel's participation in the EU's flagship R&D program Horizon 2020 possible.
Israeli officials said a compromise was found regarding the settlement guidelines issue, whereby both sides could keep their positions but continue to work together on the 80 billion euro science and innovation program.
According to the compromise, Israel would write explicitly in an appendix to the agreement that it does not accept the guidelines, while the EU will write that the guidelines reflect European policy.
South African MP refutes Israeli apartheid lie
Speaking with The CJN in advance of his lectures, Rev. Meshoe, who is on leave as a South African MP, said he planned to talk about the "seven acts of Parliament that formed the basis of apartheid. And I argue that without those acts of Parliament, there is no apartheid.
"It is improper and wrong and for anyone to make the suggestion that Israeli is an apartheid state when there is no such acts of Parliament in Israel, no segregation based on race."
The double-pronged threat to European Jewry
While the forces of cultural assimilation Wasserstein perceived continue to weaken European Jewish communities, a revival of hostility toward Jews on the continent – which he did not foresee – could very well deliver the coup de grace. It takes two forms: one, coming from the streets, is unapologetically anti-Semitic; the other, ostensibly high-minded, emanates from the elites.
French Jews too afraid to put kids in public school
Anti-Semitism "affects Jewish families very seriously and is the main reason there are so few Jewish children in public schools," Roger Cukierman, president of the CRIF umbrella group of French Jewish communities, said Tuesday during a symposium on anti-Semitism at the European Parliament. "Most of them go to Jewish or Christian private schools."
Zionist Leader's Skepticism on Truman Administration Vindicated by New Documents
Two previously unpublished documents, recently located by this author at the Central Zionist Archives in Jerusalem, appear to vindicate Silver's view, at least to some extent. The documents suggest that Major-General Harry Vaughan, a senior aide to President Truman, privately harbored extremely negative views of Jews and Zionism.
Vaughan was a longtime friend and important influence on Truman, although his role in Palestine policy is not widely known. He is not even mentioned in most books about American Zionism or America-Israel relations.
Israel ranks 3rd largest US partner in science collaborations
The survey is based on four key indicators — government relationships, human capital, industry cooperation, and research and development synergy.
Switzerland ranked highest with 131.05 points, followed by Canada with a score of 100.50 – just marginally stronger than Israel's year one base line 100 point ranking.
Israeli Study Introduces New Options For Brain Damage Treatment
Tel Aviv University (TAU) researchers and staff at the Assaf HaRofeh Medical Center in Tzrifin have found that high levels of oxygen in a pressurized atmosphere can significantly improve chronic brain damage.
After treatment, patients who sustained brain injuries from 20 years ago improved their cognitive and physical responses following the treatment, the study concludes.
Israel's agriculture seeds taking root in Vietnam
An Israeli-Vietnamese agriculture research and development fund — and a free-trade agreement between the two countries — may be established soon, following a series of high-level visits in celebration of 20 years of diplomatic relations between Israel and Vietnam.
Itzik Ben-David, deputy director-general for foreign trade and international relations for Israel's Ministry of Agriculture, tells ISRAEL21c that he and Shamir recently flew to the Southeast Asian country along with an Israeli agricultural business delegation led by Israel Export Institute CEO Ofer Sachs. It was the third time that an Israeli minister of agriculture has visited Vietnam since 2007.
Dutch Christian Zionists build mega-menorah
In a windswept parking lot near the North Sea shore, Klaas Zijlstra stands motionless as he admires his latest creation.
It's the first time he is testing the 36-foot menorah he has spent weeks designing and building in the shape of a Star of David in his metal workshop in the northern tip of the Netherlands. Despite strong winds, the menorah holds, thanks in no small part to its 6-ton base.
This isn't just any mega-menorah. For one thing, it may be the largest in all of Europe. For another, it's the handiwork of a Protestant metal contractor, paid for by Christian Zionists and meant to be a sign of solidarity with the Jewish people.
Israel mourns the death of beloved musician Arik Einstein
Arik Einstein, the iconic Israeli musician whose songs were acclaimed as the soundtrack of a nation, will be buried in Tel Aviv Wednesday afternoon, after his sudden death Tuesday night at the age of 74.
Einstein was rushed to Ichilov hospital at around 10 p.m. Tuesday and died soon after of an aortic aneurysm, doctors said.
That Dylan video: How Israeli tech built it
Bob Dylan doesn't do videos, at least not gimmicky MTV-type videos with dancers and little dramatic playlets. The closest Dylan has come in the past to music videos is footage from his concerts.
So it took a little effort to sell him on the idea of a music video for his classic "Like a Rolling Stone" — but even though the video produced by Israeli video tech company Interlude is as gimmicky as they come, "the Dylan team was extremely excited about the final video," said Yoni Bloch, CEO of Interlude.fm, which created the video.
In fact, Bloch added, they're even more excited "as the video has gone viral."

Chanukah video post #1: "Oils" and "All I Want for Thanksgiving Is Jews"

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 01:00 PM PST

As I have done in the past, I will try to post a new Chanukah video every night of the holiday.

I must say, I am very unhappy with the quality of the videos I've seen so far this year, compared to previous years. But I'll try to find decent ones, or mercilessly rip apart the ones I don't like....

The Thanksgivnukah/Thansgivukkah/Chanksgiving theme is of course paramount this year for the first two nights.

Here's a pretty good one, "Oils":



This silly video is  another song parody.




Then again, it is better than my last year's A Very Hamas Chanukah.

So this is what "historic Palestine" looked like

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 11:00 AM PST

I mentioned last night about the Chatham University photo archive that is online.

One of their photos, from between 1880 and 1900, is not a photo at all, but a map - a map of Palestine:



But Mahmoud Abbas and countless so-called supporters of Palestinians tell us that "historic Palestine" looked like this (graphic created by the PLO:)


Isn't that strange? Why do Palestinian Arabs choose a map with borders created by Western imperialists less than a hundred years ago to define the "historic homeland" that they claim they have lived in for thousands of years?

Are they saying that the people who lived across the Jordan river in 1890 were not Palestinian  -even though they lived in what was known then as eastern Palestine?

Just a wild thought, but perhaps this is related to the fact that the PLO's 1964 charter - before "occupation" explicitly excluded the West Bank and Gaza from the areas it claimed for a homeland.

For fun, just imagine if the Jews had been defeated in 1948 and the land was divided up between Jordan and Egypt. Would there be any Palestinian Arab nationalism today?

And if you answer "yes," then why don't they claim the areas of today's Jordan that were indeed part of historic Palestine?

11/27 Links Pt1: UN declares 2014 the year of demonizing Israel, Is the Iran deal really a deal at all?

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 09:00 AM PST

From Ian:
UN to name 2014 as 'International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People'
The United Nations decided on Tuesday to declare 2014 as the "International "Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People".
The UN adopted the draft resolution - in a 110-7 vote, with 56 member states abstaining - among five others that were blasted by Israel for promoting within the body antagonistic biases against the country.
PLO official: PA will join ICC if peace talks fail
If Israel continues to "impede peace talks," the Palestinian Authority will join more UN organizations, including the International Criminal Court, PLO official Nabil Shaath told Palestinian news agency Ma'an on Tuesday.
"There are 35 conventions that do not need approval to join, on top of them is the Rome Statuette," Shaath said, referring to the 1998 treaty which established the ICC.
3 terror suspects killed by police, Shin Bet near Hebron
Three Palestinians suspected of planning to carry out terror attacks against Israeli civilians were killed Tuesday during a joint Shin Bet and Israel Police operation in the West Bank town of Yatta, south of Hebron, the army said. The operation marked a sharp departure from the disorganized, home-grown terror of recent weeks.
Two of the suspects, whom the army said were members of a "Salafist jihadi" group, were shot dead in their car after they refused to surrender themselves to security forces. They were carrying "explosive devices and 2 handguns," the army said in a statement. A third man was killed in a gun battle "following a hot pursuit," IDF spokesman Peter Lerner said.
Gazan captured inside Israel with grenade
A Palestinian man from Gaza was caught by security forces Tuesday morning inside Israeli territory with a fragmentation grenade in his possession, the IDF said.
The man crossed the border fence between Israel and Gaza, but was apprehended after a short manhunt near the Israeli kibbutz of Kfar Aza. He was taken for questioning. The infiltration marks the latest in a series of successful and attempted attacks from Gaza in recent months.
5 Israeli Arab teens charged with firebombing IDF base
Five teenagers from the Arab neighborhood of Issawiya in East Jerusalem were brought before the Jerusalem District Court on Wednesday and charged with throwing Molotov cocktails at an IDF base in the capital.
According to the indictment, the youths, all aged 14 or 15, were behind several attacks over the past few months on the Ofrit base and on vehicles leaving it to travel along a road that passes around the Hebrew University campus on Mount Scopus.
Arab IDF Soldier Gets Medal for Killing Terrorist
In October, an Arab terrorist drove a tractor into an IDF base near Ramallah trying to run over soldiers. Private G. and munitions officer Lt. Shachar Vaknin killed the terrorist.
Private G., a Christian Arab, prefers to not have his name mentioned, so he won't have problems in the Arab village in northern Israel where he lives.
Douglas Murray: William Hague's appeasement of Iran's mullahs is a historic and terrible mistake
The mullahs did not come to Geneva because they wished to give up their capability. And they did not come to the table because after 34 years of revolutionary Islamic governance they have seen the error of their ways. They came because international sanctions were beginning to hurt. Those sanctions – which took years to put in place – have now fallen apart thanks to a few days of incompetent negotiating on the part of the P5+1 plus some simple common sense from Tehran. People tend to say at this stage that the Iranians are 'master negotiators'. They aren't especially. They are simply fortunate to be playing against Catherine Ashton and a generation of other weak and short-sighted American and British politicians.
Britain to Israel: Don't undermine Iran nuclear deal
As Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly announces Israel is not bound to nuclear deal signed between world powers and Iran in Geneva, the West now cautions Netanyahu of carrying out an operation that would challenge the deal he dubbed "a historic mistake".
Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Monday that Israel should avoid taking any action that would undermine the interim nuclear agreement reached between Iran and world powers. (h/t MtTB)
Barry Rubin: How U.S Policy Is Betraying Not Only Israel, but also Sunni Arabs
But that's not all; consider what the U.S. has done to Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. It is probable that Iran is going to give Syria a victory in the civil war. The fact is that Iran, Hizballah, and the Syrian government are on one side, and Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey have been on the other side. But now, in essence, the U.S. has objectively sided with Iran, and that is one of the reasons that the Saudis are angry. Here is what the Saudi ambassador to England, Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz, said:
"Appeasement hasn't worked in the past, and I don't think it will work in the 21st century," he was quoted as saying. "That is why the frustration really is toward the main players within the United Nations Security Council, that's their responsibility. And they will share also the blame, whatever deal comes out, they are responsible for it."
Elliott Abrams: Is the Iran deal really a deal at all?
There are many arguments today about the substance of the agreement between Iran and the P5+1. But there is a prior question: Is there really an agreement at all?
Looking at the text of the "agreement," the most striking thing is the conditional or aspirational language.
The Obama administration should clarify whether that is or is not the case, because the entire "agreement" can be hung up over that negotiation over implementation. The "agreement" does not appear to be binding on any party, which is convenient for the Obama administration in one way: No one can argue that it is a form of treaty that must be approved by the Senate.
Iran: Construction will continue at Arak nuclear site
The uncompleted heavy-water research reactor emerged as one of several crucial issues in negotiations in Geneva last week, when Iran agreed with six world powers to curb Tehran's nuclear program for six months in return for limited sanctions relief.
Iran said it would not make "any further advances of its activities" on the Arak reactor, according to text of the agreement.
"The capacity at the Arak site is not going to increase. It means no new nuclear fuel will be produced and no new installations will be installed, but construction will continue there," Zarif told parliament in translated comments broadcast on Iran's Press TV.
Iran nuclear deal 'loophole' may allow off-site reactor work
Sunday's agreement to curb Iran's nuclear program contains an apparent gap that could allow Tehran to build components off-site to install later in a nuclear reactor where it has promised to halt work, experts said.
They said any impact of the omission is likely to be small if Iran follows other undertakings in the interim accord, which is designed to restrain Tehran's nuclear program for six months in return for limited sanctions relief.
Iran rejects US's 'one-sided' version of nuclear deal
Iran's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday firmly criticized the White House for publishing what it said was a false version of the interim nuclear agreement reached early Sunday between Iran and the six world powers.
"What has been released by the website of the White House as a fact sheet is a one-sided interpretation of the agreed text in Geneva and some of the explanations and words in the sheet contradict the text of the Joint Plan of Action, and this fact sheet has unfortunately been translated and released in the name of the Geneva agreement by certain media, which is not true," said a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman in Tehran, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.
MEMRI: The Geneva Agreement: The Path To Historic Changes In The Middle East, Led By The U.S. Administration
Moreover, Iran will use its nuclear hegemony status, the legitimacy of its regime, and the hand that President Obama has extended to it in order to advance its status on the strategic and international level – but will not do this in cooperation with the U.S. This is because ideologically, Iran strives to change the global world order that is led by the U.S., and is seeking a status equal to or greater than that of today's superpowers.
Furthermore, this historic move by Obama will lead to regional instability. It will not assuage the existing tensions and conflicts; it will only inflame them, and this exacerbation will take the form of violent actions both in the region and outside it.
After Iran Nuclear Deal, White House Tries to Assuage Jewish Groups
The White House officials, according to Hoenlein, in some cases "indicated that these are issues they will address in the coming months and the next stage, and this is only an interim agreement, and we only learned yesterday that in fact [the agreement] doesn't go into effect right now, it only goes into effect once the joint commission [to monitor the agreement's implementation] is established, once the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) is able to verify that Iran is living up to its commitment."
Hoenlein said that after the conference calls, Jewish leaders "understand [the deal] better, and that was the purpose." Yet there is "every reason to be skeptical when you're dealing with the Iranians," he said.
Charles Krauthammer: Worst since Munich
Charles Krauthammer says he believes President Barack Obama's deal with Iran is "the worst deal since Munich."
"This is a sham from beginning to end. It's the worst deal since Munich," Krauthammer said on Fox News "Special Report" on Monday. "It's really hard to watch the president and the secretary of state and not think how they cannot be embarrassed by this deal."
Rouhani says Geneva nuclear deal increased Israel's isolation
"Many were trying to isolate Iran, but who is isolated today? Our enemies are in fact isolated," the Iranian president said, according to Iran's PressTV.
While he did not mention Israel specifically, he used a language commonly used by Arab nations to describe it, speaking of "an illegitimate, occupier regime."
Senior Iranian MP: Israel's 'Unconcealed Rage' Over Nuclear Deal Shows Success of Geneva Agreement
Speaking to reporters, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, chairman of the parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, said Israeli officials "were unable to conceal their rage" over the deal.
FARS said "the anger of the Zionists (about the newly signed nuclear deal) shows the extent of the success of the Geneva agreement."
Saudis angry after Obama turns both cheeks
The Sunni world is going crazy and the Shiite world is pinching itself in disbelief. Washington has in fact begun a retreat from the Middle East, but it could still change the balance of power in the region during the withdrawal. Obama, as was predicted at the start of his first term, is truly a magician. In accordance with his outlook, Obama has succeeded in turning the bad in our region into good, and the good into bad. Since Israel was first on the good side, that means it is actually now on the bad side.
Riyadh Makes Cautious Statement on Iran Deal as Saudi Newspaper Cartoons Ridicule Talks
The Saudi Arabian government broke its silence on the six-month deal to lift sanctions on the Iran regime reached at the weekend, with a terse statement after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday in Riyadh. Meanwhile, the country's newspapers ridiculed the agreement in very critical political cartoons.
Egypt's Latest Fatwas from Salafis and Brotherhood
The study similarly revealed that some of these fatwas decreed that women who swim in the sea are committing "adultery" -- even if they wear a hijab: "The reason behind this particular fatwa, from their point of view, is that the sea is masculine [as with many other languages, Arabic nouns are gender specific, and "sea" is masculine], and when the water touches the woman's private parts she becomes an 'adulteress' and should be punished."
Moreover, "Some of these fatwas also forbade women from eating certain vegetables or even touching cucumbers or bananas," due to their phallic imagery, which may tempt women to deviate.
Pro-Morsi Egyptians to Picket Thanksgiving Day Parade in NYC
A group of Egyptians sympathetic to former President Mohmamed Morsi are gearing up to stage a demonstration along the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade route in New York City, according to organizers.
Several hundred activists are expected to show up to the march, which is being called "Rabaa on Thanksgiving in Manhattan."

Syria is the first casualty of the Iranian nuclear deal

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 07:03 AM PST

Michael Weiss of Now Lebanon has a very sobering analysis:
Much has been written about the technical points of the P5+1 interim agreement that authorized international sanctions relief in exchange for a slowdown (but not cessation or cancellation) of Iran's nuclear program. Much attention has also been paid to the anatomy of the deal, with an intense focus on secret Oman-based negotiations the Obama administration held with the Iranians as early as eight months ago. However, the details about breakout capacity, inspections regimes, and the dollar amount of actual sanctions relief have distracted from the invisible rider on this accord, which is Western acquiescence to Iran's gradual takeover of Syria.

As analysts Mike Doran and James Glassman have written, the six-month nuclear deal may now be used to retroactively explain President Obama's seeming incoherence in responding to nearly three years of a grave humanitarian catastrophe. ...."Rather than merely being feckless," Doran and Glassman write, "the administration may actually have a long-term plan, and this initial nuclear deal is only a tactic in a broader strategy. The overall aim is a strategic partnership with Iran because the administration sees that country as the only island of stability in a sea of chaos and violence."

This is the direst assessment that can be made of the White House's intentions at Geneva, and conclusions that derive therefrom are quite cynical. Yet there's some evidence to support Doran and Glassman's thesis.

For one thing, although the administration still clings to vaguely democratic talking points about supporting the Syrian opposition and demanding Assad's removal from power, it has not prevented Iran's inheritance of the regime's security detail, the breathtaking extent of which has never once been publicly articulated or condemned by Obama....

Since September of this year, there's also been another not-so-hidden administration motive for ceding greater control of Syria to Iran: the US-Russia chemical weapons disarmament plan, which resulted in the first UN Security Council resolution passed on the Syria carnage while also re-legitimizing Assad as a necessary Western partner in overseeing the destruction of the regime's stockpiles of nerve agents. The deadline set for full disarmament is well into next year, at which point Assad will almost certainly still be in power. To remove the stockpiles, either the regime or a third party will need to provide them with safe conduct out of the war-ravaged country on roads that are either in rebel hands or are constantly being interdicted by rebels. The chances of American forces being deployed to Damascus and Aleppo for this undertaking are slim to none. Nor is anyone stupid enough to believe that Jabhat al-Nusra or the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham will refrain from attacking dangerous convoys of toxins because of a piece of paper inked in New York. So built right into the chemical accord was a necessary, if unwritten, guarantee that the regime retain or regain control of major highway systems throughout the country. This clearly is not a job for the inept and depleted Syrian Army to carry out on its own. But, as the CIA and the White House surely know, it doesn't do anything on its own anymore.

....Indeed, both Assad and Hezbollah's Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah welcomed the P5+1 nuclear deal, which they would not have done if they thought that it spelled a reduction of Iran's footprint in Syria rather than an enlargement. On November 24, The New York Times also cited White House aides who said that Obama was amenable to the possibility of turning the deal into the "opening act in a more ambitious engagement with Iran that might give it a role in Syria, Afghanistan, and other trouble spots," though the aides stipulated that this would "depend on factors that are out of America's control, like moderates gaining on the ground in Iran."

There are no moderates in the IRGC or Hezbollah, which already have an expansive role in Syria. Nor will "hardliners" in Iran, such as IRGC-Quds Force commander Qassem Suleimani, ever consent to abandoning Assad or the nation they consider just another province of Iran. The aides' stipulation reads like a tacked-on rationalization for a fait accompli.

The much-delayed Geneva II conference on Syria, now scheduled for January 22, thus promises to be quite an interesting affair. So far, there are no firm commitments of attendance by any parties to the conflict, and the actual rebels on the ground – as opposed to their irrelevant spokespersons abroad – have said that whatever happens, they will not abide by a ceasefire during the talks. Meanwhile, Iran's participation, we are now informed by the very administration that once ruled it out, will be contingent upon its acceptance of the 2012 Geneva Protocol, which would create a "transitional government" for Syria and which Washington putatively thinks will be headed by someone other than Bashar al-Assad. Iran has said no to the Protocol. I wonder what else it thinks it can get away with between now and January 22.

The mullahs' nuclear program, we often forget, was always intended as a safeguard for their most valued foreign policy objective: the expansion of Khomeinism across the Middle East through the use of paramilitary proxies, terrorism, advanced weaponry, and sophisticated intelligence and counterintelligence operations. The idea behind this objective was to systematically weaken and undermine what had been, since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, a Pax Americana stitched together by a tenuous but surprisingly stable consortium of US allies, namely Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the other Gulf Arab Sunni-majority states. Without possessing so much as a single warhead, Iran has managed to achieve much of what it set out to do, as well as to negotiate itself a license to do even more in exchange for putting a few more weeks "on the clock" for its ability to build a warhead. This is nothing short of extraordinary. It's also a great tragedy for Syria.
Read the whole thing.

I don't know if the Obama administration set out from the beginning with a plan to help strengthen Iran's role in the Middle East - after all, they did increase sanctions - but it is plausible that around the time of the secret negotiations earlier this year, such a thought began to gel.

Whether it was planned or not, Syria is even further screwed by this Iranian nuclear agreement, and Iran's geopolitical position  - which could have been fatally injured by a defeat of Assad in Syria - has now been strengthened immeasurably.

"Jewish rabbis leading the jihad in Syria"

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 05:00 AM PST

The accusations and counter-accusations Arabs hurl, accusing their opponents of being helped by Israel, gets old after a while. So sometimes they have to raise the stakes.

A nutty (and antisemitic) Iraqi pro-Shiite news site "Voice of Iraq"  has a new diatribe against  Sunni leaders. Excerpts:

Jewish rabbis are leading the jihad in Syria at the time of Arab decadence and cowardice, as Arabs have abandoned all titles of honor and dignity of the Arab and Islamic nation...they are handing their keys over free of charge to international Zionism. ... Events in Syria prove the Gulf Arab rush to compete for the satisfaction of their masters in the Israeli Knesset.

We hear from Netanyahu a call for a unification of the Arabs against Syria, Hezbollah and Iran to ignite a war that will burn the region and the world. Israel wants to sow discord and havoc in the region to fragment and weaken the Arabs. This is happening in Syria now with killing of sabotage and attacks.

There have been shuttle visits conducted by many of the political and military leaderships of the Gulf to Tel Aviv, especially after the heroic victories of the Syrian army against the armies of witches and sorcerers of mercenaries and after the breakthrough in the crisis with Syrian and Iranian détente with the United States.

Not only this, there is information that says a lot of the leaders of the so-called Syrian opposition and even Islamic ones go to Israel go kiss her to get all kinds of material and logistical support. Of course, all this support is conditional and under the control of the Mossad, who was recruited rabbis of the Israeli Knesset to issue fatwas to the chieftains of war and terrorism in the region and the world.

It is not strange to see and watch leaders of the Syrian rebels racing to gain a certificate of good conduct from Israel, but what is new is catching chieftains who claim to be advocates of the Islamic religion, but they are shown to be fornicators, not advocates. There are a lot of questions raised about the rush of these rebels and sheikhs towards Israel especially in recent times that made ​​them a laughing stock among nations time.

Did not Saudi Arabia undertake with Al-Qaradawi and sheikhs not to allow what they call the Mujahideen in Syria to attack Israel? Did they not and cheer their mercenaries during the Israeli shelling of some military sites in Syria? Did not terrorist groups send their wounded to Israel and declare from inside the Israeli hospital that they do not hold any hostility to Israel? Didn't the ousted Egyptian President Mursi and the Brotherhood describe Peres as their great friend?
I shouldn't reveal that the Shiites are also under control of the rabbis, and we make them write stuff like this to keep them fighting each other. Oops.

Anti-Israel activists implicitly blame Israel for Gaza power problems

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 02:34 AM PST

Here is a press release from the latest anti-Israel publicity stunt:

Join Gaza's Ark on November 30th as hundreds of Palestinian children sail mini-Arks from the port of Gaza out to sea. The event begins at 12:30PM Gaza Time, on Saturday November 30th, in the Port of Gaza, near Gaza's Ark. Representatives of different Palestinian civil society organizations will address the effects of the blockade on children in Gaza.

"You can help brighten a dark path. Lead the way and sail with the children of Gaza towards freedom." says Heba Hayek of Gaza, a member of Gaza's Ark committee.

This project is bringing attention to the devastating conditions for children living inside the Gaza Strip, as fuel to run their society and other essentials have been denied to them. The shortage has caused sewage pumps to stop working, spilling raw sewage onto the streets. Kids have to wade through contaminated muck on their way to school, and an outbreak of disease is just waiting to happen. Children can't study at night, because there is no electricity, and many of them are reading by candlelight.

Renowned linguist and political commentator Noam Chomsky adds:
'It was incredibly moving, and inspiring, to learn about the Mini Arks that are to sail from Gaza on November 30. The courage and heroism of the people of Gaza, enduring shocking crimes and torture, is one of the wonders of the age. I hope that the arks that the children are sending forth will at least reach the conscience of the world, and help bring these horrors to an end."

These Palestinian children are filled with hope and a desire to let the world know they have the right to freedom of movement. And we at Gaza's Ark are determined to help them.
This is really a fundraiser for the main event: "Gaza Ark," a real boat that will try to leave Gaza in March and fight "against the Israeli blockade."

Yet their press release tries to pull the heartstrings because of Gaza's power problems, which have nothing to do with Israel and everything to do with Egypt and internal Hamas-Fatah politics.

Sometimes, they are smart enough not lie explicitly. They know that decades of anti-Israel propaganda plus their own downplaying of any Arab responsibility for Palestinian Arab suffering will inevitably cause the ignorant people who read their literature to blame Israel anyway.

Which is, of course, their goal.
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