Last month I mentioned that Mahmoud Abbas had written a strategy as early as 1977 of meeting with Israeli outsiders in order to help split Israeli society. At first, he recommended meeting with Mizrahi Jews, thinking (quite wrongly) that their marginalization in Israeli society at the time would lead them to be more conciliatory with Palestinian Arabs.
Then, he changed the strategy to target the Israeli Left as a means to weaken Israeli society. The PLO mentions this explicitly in their current strategy documents.
The event was co-organized by the One Voice association and Labor MK Hilik Bar, who heads the Knesset Caucus for the Promotion of a Two-State Solution for the Israeli-Arab Conflict. Interestingly, more than one participant explained to me that they did not "trust" the Palestinians, but were motivated to push for vast territorial concessions because they saw no other option. None could explain how a lasting peace could be made with a partner you do not trust; and this strange desperation to believe was to underline much of the subsequent proceedings.
...Buoyed by the sympathetic, largely left-wing audience, Abbas exhibited a rhetorical deftness for which he is less well-known than his Israeli counterpart and nemesis, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu - but unjustifiably so. For artfully woven in between the diplomatic platitudes was some breathtaking double-talk, historic revisionism and sugar-coated incitement - executed with a charm that was almost endearing.
..When, during the Q&A session, one of the carefully-vetted questioners asked how Abbas could assure that an influx of "refugees" - in whatever context - would not tear the demographic fabric of the Jewish state, the veteran diplomat simply grinned and offered a revealing tongue-in-cheek response: "What, do you want to impose birth control on us?"
Hilik Bar shifted uncomfortably in his seat, cleared his throat, mumbled something about it not exactly answering the question... and urged proceedings along.
The Israeli Left is being played like a banjo - and they are either too stupid to notice, or too far gone to care.
If you are so interested in peace, why did you go out of your way to meet with child-murderer Samir Kuntar?
Why does the PA name institutions after terrorists who targeted innocent civilians?
Why is there still daily incitement on PA TV against Israel?
Do you believe, as Arafat did, that there was never a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem? Do you realize that this position is at odds with what Muslims said openly before 1967?
Do you agree with many of your people that there should be no "normalization" with Jews in Israel?
Why did you threaten your citizens who dared to shop in a Jewish-owned supermarket that has low prices?
Recently you said that you believe that the Holocaust occurred. You wrote a book that claimed that it was exaggerated. Were you lying then, or are you lying now?
Do you really believe that Jews are raising dogs and wild boars and training them to attack Arab farms, as you have stated in front of the UN?
Do you really believe that Hamas would accept Israel's existence if you reconcile with them? Do you actually read any of their material?
Why does the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terror group still exist, if you are the leader of Fatah? How do they get funded?
Do you agree with the Fatah platform that terrorism is legal under international law?
Why does some 6% of the PA budget go towards terrorist prisoners and released terrorists?
Do you consider the Mufti of Jerusalem who collaborated with Hitler to be a hero?
There are lots more, of course:
You used to support Lebanese Palestinians' rights to become citizens in Lebanon. Then you changed your mind and said you are against it. What do you really believe, and why?
More generally, if a Palestinian Arab wants to become a citizen of his Arab host country, should he be allowed?
Do you consider the West Bank to have been occupied by Jordan from 1949-1967? Why or why not?
Did the PLO really nullify the sections of the Palestinian National Covenant that denied Israel's right to exist? If so, can you point me to an official copy of the current charter? It doesn't seem to exist anywhere.
What exactly is the legal basis for your being president for over ten years?
Magicians and psychics carefully use misdirection and make their own rules to trick people. Abbas is the same - he creates situations where he can avoid or bypass answering hard questions without fear that anyone will be persistent and he can pre-emptively answer questions that aren't being asked but that people addicted to wishful thinking will pretend are substantial answers.
The questions I list are not meant for conservative Zionists. They are meant for Zionist liberals to ask. After all, if Abbas is a partner to be trusted, shouldn't be honestly answer these questions rather than brush off the easy ones?
Imprisoned Palestinian terrorist Husni Najjar explained to Israeli Police that he planned a second terror attack in order to be captured and imprisoned by Israel a second time, so that he would receive the salaries the Palestinian Authority pays to prisoners while in jail and following their release. In his signed statement given to the police following his second arrest, a copy of which is in the possession of Palestinian Media Watch, he explains that the money he received from the PA as salary during his first prison term amounted to only 45,000 shekels. However, the salary he would receive following his second prison term and subsequent release would leave him with "135,000 shekels." "And thus I would cover my debts," the terrorist explained his motive for planning the attack.
The testimony of this Palestinian terrorist confirms PMW's contention that the PA's policy of paying high salaries to terrorists during their imprisonment in Israel and after their release not only rewards terror, but also constitutes a motivation for terror.
In his statement, the terrorist showed precise knowledge of the payments the PA gives to those arrested for terror. He explained that PA law grants terrorists imprisoned for more than five years a salary of 4,000 shekels a month, which continues for three years following their release from prison. This is in addition to monthly salary payments while in prison. The terrorist explained that because his first imprisonment for planning a suicide terror attack (which was foiled) lasted less than five years, it was not enough to prompt the 4,000 shekels monthly salary upon release. He therefore planned another attack in order to reach a total of five years in prison, which would entitle him to the additional salary upon his second release, which would cover his debts, he explained:
Prisoner Najjar: "And after [my] release [from prison]... I had a bank account with 45,000 shekels from [my] salary from the Palestinian Ministry of Prisoners' Affairs... and there remained a deficit of 30,000 shekels for the wedding... I decided to arrange an imaginary plan for the Israeli Shabak [Israel's General Security Service] so that I would be arrested... After I would spend five years [in prison] I would receive a salary of about 4,000 shekels [upon release], and this amount would be for three years. That means there would be a total amount of 135,000 shekels (the correct amount would equal 144,000 shekels - Ed.) and then I would cover my debts." [Testimony of suspect, Israel Police interrogation transcript, Aug. 18, 2013]
Husni Najjar is currently in prison awaiting trial. It should be noted that the terrorist prisoner is already receiving a PA salary, since PA law stipulates that the salary "will be paid to the prisoner from the date of his arrest." [Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, April 15, 2011]
Now, if the Mahmoud Abbas is against ongoing terrorism as he constantly claims, wouldn't he suspend its "cash for prison" program?
Yet another question that Abbas will never be asked by clueless journalists.
The Al Quds Brigades, part of terror organization Islamic Jihad, has just published an illustrated book about the IDF to help its fighters understand the enemy.
Chapter 1 gives an overview of the IDF, ranks and levels in the organization. Chapter 2 concentrates on the infantry, Chapter 3 the navy and Chapter 4 the air force.
The book also analyzes the IDF's strategy for fighting to it can be ready for the next war.
As far as I can tell, there are no secrets in the book. But I would be surprised if it wasn't directed and bankrolled by Iran.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has told some 300 young Israelis visiting him on Sunday in the West Bank that he does not want to "drown Israel with millions of (Palestinian) refugees to change its nature."
"The propaganda purports that I want five million refugees to return. This is false and will not happen. We need to solve the refugee problem, but we do not want to drown Israel with refugees," Abbas said, adding that there needs to be a "moral solution" the refugee issue.
"There is no escape from a just solution that both sides can agree on. No one will force a solution on the other," he said. Abbas told his Israeli visitors he seeks a "creative solution" for refugees, suggesting he is not demanding a blanket "right of return."
Really?
In 2008, Abbas made very clear that he refused to accept the idea of Lebanese Palestinians going anywhere but Israel:
President Mahmoud Abbas denied today, the accuracy of the news reports about the possibility of settling Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.
He said in an interview with satellite channel Russia Today that the idea was an "unacceptable and irreversible abrogation of the right to return, and we are guests in Lebanon, in the interest of us in the internal problems in this brotherly country, and assure the Lebanese brothers that the resettlement of refugees in their country is rejected. We will not accept it."
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was quoted Wednesday as rejecting the naturalization of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. "We would never accept any settlement that leads to naturalizing Palestinians in Lebanon," Abbas told pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat.
"We would not accept any settlements that would lead to a demographic change in Lebanon. This is totally unacceptable ... We won't accept a settlement that obliges Lebanon to naturalize even one Palestinian. We will find a settlement that satisfies Palestinians in Lebanon and satisfies Lebanon ... I'm sure of this and time will prove it," Abbas added.
Palestinian refugees in Lebanon will not be offered Palestinian Authority passports, President Mahmoud Abbas said on Monday following his meeting with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman at the Republican Palace.
Abbas' remark quashed recent rumors concerning the issuing of PA passports to Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, adding that the refugees' presence in the country is temporary, particularly as Lebanon's membership in the UN Security Council next year will help the Palestinian cause.
According to Beirut-based Now Lebanon news agency, Abbas told the An-Nahar newspaper of "permanent" cooperation with the Lebanese government to maintain security in Palestinian refugee camps.
The president also voiced hope that the lives of Palestinians in Lebanon would be "easier", adding that they did not "want to be naturalized."
Abbas (at least since 2005) has been adamant that the only solution for Palestinian Arabs in Lebanon is to have them flood into Israel. he didn't even want them to come to the West Bank. And now he suddenly is claiming to an Israeli audience otherwise?
Either he is lying now or he was lying then. And if he changed his mind between 2012 and now, it means that he is willing to use his own people as pawns.
Why exactly should Israel sign an agreement with a liar who doesn't even care about his own people, let alone his enemies?
Any why can't a single reporter ask Abbas about his many lies directly?
Code Pink's new website, promoting its Woman's delegation to Gaza was created using Wix. Its a great choice with cloud-based web development, easy templates, and no coding required. It might be the first smart act we've seen from Code Pink in a long time. They overlooked one crucial thing. Code Pink is one of the leaders of the BDS movement, and Wix is an Israeli company. Ooops. BDS fail. If you do anything web-based, Israeli tech is hard to avoid. To avoid being a BDS hypocrite, you're going to need to to live like this guy.
The New Hampshire native has fashioned a serviceable crossbow that he uses to hunt rabbit, deer, and other game, and lives in an abandoned stone hut overlooking a man-made lake. "I used to go fishing there, but then I found out there's a Zionist summer camp on the other side, I couldn't in good conscience benefit from their maintenance of the lake," he explained, referring to Camp Moshava, which is run by the Tel-Aviv-headquartered religious Zionist youth movement Bnei Akiva. Despite the hardships, Thorpe eschews all medical care except for basic first aid, since Israeli pharmaceutical companies produce vast amounts of the generic drugs employed by hospitals and health clinics all over the world. "Simply making an appointment to go see a doctor would mean endorsing their use of Israeli technology in the clinic management software, or the hardware in the terminals themselves," said Thorpe. "And forget about all the imaging technology to detect abnormalities or growths." Thorpe hopes his principled stand will inspire others to be more consistent in their activism. "There's nothing I'd like to see more than all my fellow BDS advocates dying of some treatable disease," said Thorpe. (h/t Mightier than the Pen)
What's going on? Why can't people just all get along? Oh, hey, here's some bigger questions: Why aren't the Irish vilified throughout the world for wanting their own country? Why are the Finlandists not vilified for wanting to be separate from Sweden and Norway? You never hear North Dakota being called an apartheid state. Why not? Don't you know that at the North Dakota state capitol that they refuse to fly the South Dakota flag? What kind of sadistic neighbors are those North Dakotians? Then there are those who try to claim that being against the existence of a Jewish nation has nothing to do with being anti-Semitic.
Imagine the outrage if somebody were foolish enough to line up for a photo with mass-murderer evil ABB [Breivik]. But for the Labour youth, nothing is impossible, also not to line up for a photo op with a convicted mass murderer as a backdrop. Lest you thought the Reds have keeled over and have admitted defeat, you should think again. The Unions have already pledged millions to help fund the Labour Party's way back to power (trampling of course, on the rights of union members who do not support the Labour Party) with all the cronyism and pandering to terrorists outfits that comes with this.
Mads Gilbert's now stepped into the Israel-demonising limelight yet again in order to lend his ten kroner worth to the BDSers' current campaign to cajole US-based "Crazy Horse" singer Neil Young to cancel his scheduled appearance in Israel in July.
A front page story published in The New York Times on Feb. 11 describes an Israeli industrial zone in northern Jerusalem as being, in fact and rightfully, "Palestinian territory" that is occupied by Israel. "Israel opened its first industrial zone in occupied Palestinian territory shortly after the 1967 war, in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Atarot," reporter Jodi Rudoren informs readers. But Atarot is in sovereign Israeli territory as part of the country's unified capital. Since the early 1900s, even before the first World War, the neighborhood was owned by Jews, who purchased, settled and worked the land. And although it was occupied by Jordan for 19 years, between 1948 when the Jewish owners were forced out under fire and their homes were razed by the Arab invaders and 1967 when Israel recaptured the territory from the Jordanians, this Jordanian occupation does not make Atarot "Palestinian territory." Nor do Palestinian claims that the area should be theirs make it factually so.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama are expected to agree on a one-year extension of the current Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations at their White House meeting in early March, Deputy Minister Ofir Akunis (Likud) said at a cultural event in Ramat Gan on Saturday. Speaking of the peace process, Akunis said: "There is no confrontation with the U.S., but there are certainly some fundamental differences of opinion. An Israeli withdrawal to the June 4, 1967, borders would be like a suicidal person jumping off the roof of the Azrieli Towers [a trio of Tel Aviv skyscrapers]. This was never Likud policy -- and will never be."
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed on Sunday the question of Jews staying in a Palestinian state, saying that settlers cannot be compared to Palestinians who have lived here for thousands of years and that the question cannot even be on the table. Speaking at a meeting with some 250 left-wing Jewish Israeli students in Ramallah, Abbas claimed that Hamas supports his efforts to achieve peace along his parameters. He stated that 80 percent of the population in Gaza supports the peace process and there would be transparent democratic elections to prove it.
On Friday night four terrorists were caught trying to infiltrate into the town of Itamar, in the Shomron. An IDF lookout saw four suspicious figures approaching the town and sent out a unit to search for the suspects.
A new report prepared and submitted by watchdog Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) to Britain's Parliament reveals that the Palestinian Authority dolled out over $100 million to convicted terrorists in 2013, Israeli daily Ma'ariv reported. The beneficiaries include current and former criminal detainees held in Israeli prisons. The report includes rare testimony from a convicted terrorist named 'Hosni' who describes in detail the financial windfall that comes with spending time in an Israeli prison.
Fuel stations in Palestinian Authority-controlled areas of Judea and Samaria are refusing to serve PA officials due to a row over unpaid bills. According to the Bethlehem-based Maan news, the West Bank Union of Gas Station Owners said the PA has not paid its fuel bills for half a year, ratcheting up a debt of $15.7 million.
The independent agency Ma'an cited an unnamed Egyptian security official to the effect that his country's military had destroyed 10 tunnels and seven homes in Rafah, along the border, on Saturday. The official said that the houses were used to conceal the tunnels and that they were blown up after the tunnels were destroyed. Saturday's activities were part of a larger move to establish a 300- to 500-meter-wide buffer zone in Rafah, he was quoted as saying.
An explosion ripped through a tourist bus on the Egyptian side of the Taba border crossing with Israel Sunday afternoon, killing five and injuring some 30 passengers. Four Korean tourists and the Egyptian driver of the bus were killed in the blast, according to Egyptian security officials, while eight others sustained serious wounds. (h/t Yenta Press)
The sophisticated weaponry includes "Chinese man-portable air defense systems, or Manpads, and antitank guided missiles from Russia," the newspaper reported, citing an Arab diplomat and opposition leaders. If true, most of the weapons would flow to the south of Syria, where the opposition fighters are more organized. The weapons were already waiting in warehouses in Jordan and Turkey, the report added.
Russia was originally contracted to supply Iran with the S-300 batteries, but the deal was cancelled, reportedly after Israel and other Western nations pressured Moscow. Iran hopes to complete its version of the S-300, the Bavar 373, by the end of 2015, according to the commander of the Khatam ol-Anbia Air Defense Base, Brig-Gen Farzad Esmayeeli.
Exports of Iranian crude oil jumped to 1.32 million barrels, up from December's high of 1.06 million barrels, according to data from the International Energy Agency. The spike in exports—mainly to Japan, China, and India—has helped Iran's once-ailing economy stabilize and decrease inflation.
Tension in Parliament boiled over again Feb. 15 as the government succeeded in passing a controversial judicial reform package amid fisticuffs and injuries, even as the opposition vowed to take the package directly to the Constitutional Court without waiting for a presidential evaluation. Dozens of MPs fought during the tense 20-hour debate on a law to reshape the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), and insults flew back and forth between the parties, while one opposition lawmaker was hospitalized following an attack by a Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy.
Pakistan today said it is looking to sell JF-17 Thunder combat jets and trainer aircraft to Saudi Arabia, but rejected reports it was in talks with the oil-rich nation for nuclear cooperation. Saudi Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud is scheduled to visit Pakistan during February 15-17. The visit is expected to focus on deeper security and defence cooperation between the two sides. Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam told a weekly news briefing that defence cooperation would figure in the Crown Prince's interactions and that Pakistan was eyeing Saudi Arabia as a market for military gear. "Certainly, defence cooperation would figure in the talks. The army chief would be calling him separately," she said.
Portugal is preparing legislation that would grant citizenship to descendants of Jews expelled from the country in the 15th century, Lisbon's tourism minister said, in an echo of a similar move recently announced by Spain. Portuguese Minister of Tourism Adolfo Musquite Nunes, who visited Israel this month to promote his country as a vacation destination, told a Portuguese news station Saturday night that the final version of the legislation, which has already passed one reading in the Portuguese parliament, would be ready in the summer.
SlickLogin, an early-stage start-up, has been working on a system to utilize sound to make logins easier. The company launched at TechCrunch Disrupt last year, and uses a low-frequency sound generated by an app to log into web sites. Users hold up their phones to a computer or laptop's microphone and play the sound, and are able to log in to secure sites. The company's founders – Or Zelig (CEO), Eran Galili (CTO), and Ori Kabeli (VP R&D) told TechCrunch that the system was secure, and that recording the sound from a phone wouldn't do a hacker any good, because the sounds change depending on location, time of day, etc. The system could be easily implemented on a web site using just a few lines of code, they added.
North of San Diego, Israel's IDE Technologies Ltd. is helping to build what it says will be the largest seawater desalination plant in the Western Hemisphere. The facility, when finished in 2016, will be able to provide 50 million gallons of potable water a day. Three smaller plants already operate in California, and 15 more have been proposed. "This is the one supply that San Diego County is investing in that is truly drought-proof," said Peter MacLaggan, senior vice president of privately held Poseidon Resources Corp., which is developing the $922 million plant with IDE. "It does cost more, but it has some reliability benefits that are very important to the regional economy."
A whole crop of successful new entrepreneurs is coming out of Israel. The latest wave started last summer, with the news that Google paid $1.1 billion for the cutesy mapping-and-traffic app Waze. There's the Israeli-Canadian team that just won the Global Startup Challenge. There's the rise of Israeli venture firms, from Tel Aviv to Palo Alto. There's an incubator just for Israeli entrepreneurs in the Silicon Valley. And there's the 52 percent spike in demand for web developers that Israel — and its $243 billion economy — saw in 2013. Move aside, MIT, Stanford and Y Combinator — even IT and Tsinghua. It looks like the best entrepreneurial incubator in the world might actually be created via conscription … the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).
Joe Rasmussen, 22, a lone soldier who immigrated to Israel from Australia, will soon conclude his basic training with the Nahal infantry brigade. This would not be interesting where it not for the fact that Rasmussen has already completed basic training -- in the Australian army, where he served for over a year. "When I was 17, I enlisted in the Australian army and served as a combat soldier in an infantry unit," said Rasmussen, whose family lives in Queensland, in northeast Australia. "After 13 months of service I debated what to do and decided to request my release and sign up for a Birthright trip to Israel." This trip changed the course of his life, prompting Rasmussen to decide to move to Israel, which he did over a year ago. He now lives on Kibbutz Kfar Hamaccabi in northern Israel.
I found this today in Establishment of a National Home in Palestine: Hearings before the Committee on foreign affairs, House of representatives, Sixty-seventh Congress, second session, on H. Con. Res. 52, expressing satisfaction at the re-creation of Palestine as the national home of the Jewish race. April 18, 19, 20, and 21, 1922
SERBIA
SERBIAN WAR MISSION TO THE UNITED STATES.
DEAR CAPTAIN ALBALA : I wish to express to your Jewish brothers the sympathy of our Government and of our people for the just endeavor of resuscitating their beloved country in Palestine, which will enable them to take their place in the future society of nations, according to their numerous capacities and to their unquestioned right. We are sure that this will not only be to their 1 own interest, but at the same time to that of the whole of humanity. You know, dear Captain Albala, that there is no' other nation in the world sympathizing with this plan mope than Serbia. Do we not shed bitter tears on the rivers of Babylon, in sight of our beloved land, lost only a short time ago? How should we not participate in your clamors and sorrows, lasting ages and generations, especially when our countrymen of your origin and religion have fought for their Serbian fatherland as well as the best of our soldiers. It will be a sad thing for us to see any of our Jewish fellow citizens leaving us to return to their promised land ; but we shall console ourselves in the hope that they stand as brothers and leave with us a good part of their hearts, and that they will be the strongest tie between free Israel and Serbia.
Believe me, dear Captain Albala,
Very sincerely yours, VESNITCH.
FRANCE.
The French Government made the following official declaration in favor of a Jewish State in Palestine in accord with the declaration to the same effect made by the British cabinet on November 2, 1917. The Provisional Executive Committee for general Zionist affairs has been authorized, by M. Tardieu, the French high commissioner to the United States, to make public the following communication bearing on this subject:
The Provisional Executive Committee for general Zionist affairs has beep authorized, by M. Tardieu, the French high commissioner to the United States, to make public the following communication bearing on this subject: .
[Message from Foreign Minister Piehon to M. Tardieu.]
FEBRUARY 12, 1918. Having seen M. Sokolow (representative of the Zionist organizations), I authorized him to state that, as regards the question. our views were essen-tially the same as the views entertained by the British Government.
[Naval radio from the press bureau of the ministry of foreign affairs.]
M. Sokolow was received to-day by Mr. Stephen Pichon. M. Pichon was happy to reaffirm that the understanding is complete between the French and the British Governments Concerning the question of the Jewish establishment in Palestine.
ITALY. • Through its ambassador at the Court of St. James, the Italian Government, on February 25, 1918, officially signified its approval of the English and French declarations in favor of the Zionist movement and of a Jewish national home-land in Palestine. Mr. Nahum Sokolow, representative in London of the Zionist International Political Committee, received from Ambassador Imperiali the following formal statement of Italy's attitude of these questions:
"On the instructions of His Excellency Baron Sonnino, His Majesty's minister for foreign affairs, I have the honor to inform you that His Majesty's Government is pleased to confirm the declarations already made through their representatives in Washington, The Hague, and Salonica, to the effect that they will use their best endeavors to facilitate the establishment in Palestine of a Jewish national center, it being understood that this shall not prejudice the legal or political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country."
GREECE
On March 14, 1918. M. Politis, the Greek minister for foreign affairs, stated in the Chamber of Deputies: "I have already had occasion in Salonica to express the very sincere sym-pathy of the Liberal Party and of all Hellenes for the Jewish nation, for 20 centuries the victim of misunderstandings and persecution I am glad to renew to-day the promise which I then gave that at the right moment the Liberal Government will put forth every effort to assist the national task of the Jews in full accord with the great allies of Greece. Apart from the motives of sympathy which we have had for the Jewish race, a new bond is now added. Among other points in common, the Jewish race and the Greek race have that of both belonging with those races which have ceased to be subjected to perse-cution. At this moment when Hellenism has been literally led to exhaustion by the barbarians of the East, I address with emotion to the Jewish race all my wishes for their establishment as a nation."
HOLLAND.
Mr. Jacobus Kann, president of the Dutch Zionist Federation, was authorized by the Dutch Government to declare that it is sympathetic toward Zionist as-pirations.
SIAM.
The Zionist organization of America received the text of a statement issued by the Siamese Government expressing its approval of the plan to establish in Palestine a national homeland for the Jewish people. The statement was issued to Mr. E. S. Kadoorie, one of the leading bankers of China and president of the Shanghai Zionist Association, by H. R. H. Prince Devawongse Varopakar, Siamese minister for foreign affairs. It reads as follows:
FOREIGN OFFICE, Bangkok, August 22, 1918.
Dear Sir: I have the honor to state that the Royal Siamese Government expresses its accord with the sympathetic position taken by its allies with reference to the establishment of Palestine as a national home for the Jewish people and, in cooperation with the allied powers, will use its best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object, it. being clearly understood that nothing will be done that may prejudice the civil or religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine. I am, very truly yours,
DEVAWONGSE.
CHINA. The Zionist organization of America received a cablegram from Mr. E. S. Kadoorie, president, and N. E. B. Ezra, secretary of the .Shanghai Zionist Association, informing it that on December 14, 1918, the Chinese Government had officially indorsed the project for establishing a Jewish homeland in Palestine. The text of the Chinese indorsement is as follows:
"The Chinese Government expresses its complete accord with Great Britain's proposals for the restoration of Palestine as the national home of the Jewish people, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country, and will cooperate with her allies at the Peace Conference in the attaining of that object."
JAPAN.
The Government of Japan authorized its ambassador to Great Britain to announce its approval of the project to establish in Palestine a Jewish national homeland, in accordance with the principles enunciated in the Balfour declare-ton of November 2, 1917.
The end of the book includes a very strong support from Congress for a Jewish national homeland in Palestine. It says, in part:
We of America should be glad to give our moral support to a project which is based upon justice and humanity. To give this recognition to so laudable an endeavor of a people seeking to create a haven of refuge for the oppressed and homeless of their race is to act in consonance with the loftiest, American ideals. The Jews have suffered greatly during the war. There are now countless thousands of innocent members of the Jewish race in Poland, Galicia, Russia, Hungary, Ukraine, and Rumania who have been utterly ruined and for whom there is no place in the lands where they had formerly lived. The World War has overwhelmed them. They are seeking a home where, with the generous help of their brethren of other lands who are in more comfortable circumstances, they may re-create their own forms of life and realize their ideals.
The hope of a return of the Jewish people to Zion has had the good wishes of our foremost American statesmen. President Woodrow Wilson, in a letter dated August 31, 1918, wrote as follows:
I welcome an opportunity to express the satisfaction I have felt in the progress of the Zionese movement in the United States and in the allied countries since the declaration of Mr. Balfour. on behalf of the British Government, of Great Britain's approval of the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people and his promise that the British Government would use its best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of that object. with the understanding that nothing would be done to prejudice the civil and religious rights of non-Jewish people in Palestine or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in other countries.
I read translations of Arabic media all day. I see and post about the endemic antisemitism in the Arab world. But sometimes even I am surprised at how virulent it is.
There is no comparison between reading an antisemitic article in a newspaper and seeing it as a play broadcast on TV.
A play titled "The Spy," recently aired on the Egyptian Al-Hayat TV channel, displays antisemitic stereotypes and portrays Mossad officials preparing "for a huge operation of espionage and sowing disunity" which targets the entire Arab world.
Following are excerpts from the play, broadcast on January 31, 2014:
Mossad headquarters, Mossad officials listen to an Israeli child singing Umm Kulthum's Enta Omri. All male Mossad officials are named Binyamin and listed here according to their seating from left to right.
All Mossad officials: How great...
Binyamin I: What's wrong with you, Binyamin?
Binyamin V: Binyamin, why do you cry whenever you hear this song?
Binyamin III: To tell the truth, I don't understand a word of the song.
Binyamin I: Ummu Kulthum's song, Enta Omri, is very beautiful.
Binyamin II: Just beautiful?! That boy Elisha sings it better than Umm Kulthum herself.
Female Mossad official: Binyamin, do you think that the Egyptians stole this tune from us, or vice versa?
Binyamin III: They stole it from us, of course – just like they stole the pyramids and the Sphinx.
[...]
Our perspective is a simple and humble one. All we want is to control the whole world. Long live Israel!
Mossad officials: Long live Israel!
Binyamin III: Long live Israel!
Mossad officials: Long live Israel!
[...]
Binyamin III: Long live Israel!
Mossad officials: Long live Israel!
Binyamin III: Long live Israel!
Mossad officials: Long live Israel!
All Mossad officials break out in dance to the tune of Hava Nagila
[...]
Binyamin III: Lady, take your son and go away. We are preparing for a huge operation of espionage and sowing disunity, and we don't want anyone to know anything about it – not its target nor its location.
Mother of Ezra (a would-be Mossad operative): Where will it take place?
Binyamin III: In Egypt, God willing.
Ezra: And what is the target?
Binyamin III: The entire Arab world.
[...]
Binyamin IV: I don't understand, Binyamin #5, how come you are accepting this boy back into the Mossad so easily.
Binyamin III: If we don't, he will stand opposite the Mossad headquarters, and throw stones on us. He is mentally retarded.
Binyamin V: You're right, but let's focus on what's important – today begins the most important of the Arab Spring revolutions.
Binyamin I: I've heard that it is still a demonstration. It hasn't transformed into a revolution yet.
Binyamin III: That's why we need to keep an eye on that demonstration.
Binyamin V: Eyes are a thing of the past. Today, we know what is going on from Facebook and Twitter.
Binyamin II: We know everything but the color of their underwear...
They all burst into laughter
Binyamin I: Would you believe that they still have signs on buildings: "Keep Away" and "No Photography"?
They all burst into laughter
Binyamin III: Google Earth gives us all the information we need.
[...]
Binyamin IV: The most important thing that we need to know is whether the demonstrations are taking place only in Tahrir Square, or in other places as well.
Binyamin II: Right now, they are only in Tahrir Square, but soon enough, they'll spread all over. After all, the Egyptian people is demanding change...
[...]
Will the mainstream media, so anxious to find individual bigots in Israel, ever bother reporting on a play broadcast on TV with a crowd laughing at anti-Jewish stereotypes?
Seventy Iranian lawmakers have signed a letter to question Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif over his positions vis-a-vis the Holocaust and the Israeli regime.
"The signatures for this question have reached 70," senior Iranian lawmaker Mohammad Javad Karimi Qoddousi, told Fars News Agency in a Saturday interview.
"The question has been sent to the Foreign Ministry and it will be reviewed in the first session of the National Security [and Foreign Policy] Committee of Majlis," said Karimi who sits on the committee.
In the letter to the Foreign Ministry, Iranian legislators pointed to Zarif's interview with a German TV channel in early February in which he slammed the Holocaust as a "a horrifying tragedy" that "should never occur again."
The lawmakers also called Zarif's remarks about Palestinians' right to recognize Israel, as 'passive'.
"What is the reason for the passivity in your views about the issue of the illegitimate Israeli regime and the Holocaust," the letter asked.
There are 290 members of Iran's Majils, so nearly 25% of them have signed this letter so far.
From PressTV:
אין תגובות:
הוסף רשומת תגובה