This is an update my Yom Kippur message of previous years.
I unconditionally forgive anyone who may have wronged me during this year, and I ask forgiveness for anyone I may have wronged as well.
Specifically (as enumerated in previous years, based on the list from The Muqata a few years back):
-If you sent me email and I didn't reply, or didn't get back to you in a timely fashion -- I apologize. -If you sent me a story and I decided not to publish it or worse, didn't give you a hat tip for the story -I'm sorry. I'm also sorry if I didn't acknowledge the tip. I sometimes get multiple tips for the same story and I usually credit the first one I saw, which is not always the earliest. And I cannot publish all the stories I am sent, although I try to place appropriate ones in the linkdumps, or tweet them. -If you requested help from me and I wasn't able to provide it -- I'm sorry. -I apologize if I posted without the proper attribution, with the wrong attribution, or without attribution at all. -I'm sorry that I usually don't give hat tips on things I tweet. -Subtweets are usually on purpose. Sorry. -If I didn't thank you for a donation, I'm very, very sorry. -I'm sorry if I didn't give the proper respect to my co-bloggers Ian, PoT, Vic, Varda, Daled Amos and the guest posters. Also to people who send me tons of tips and help like Tomer, Irene, and Ibn Boutros. -I'm sorry if any of my posts offended you personally. -If I forgot to send you the perks for donating at Patreon - I'm sorry. If you really care, bug me! - For all the initiatives I started and didn't complete - I'm sorry. It's been a busy year. - Please forgive me if I wrote disparaging things about you. - I'm sorry for not always scrubbing spam from the comments as quickly as I would like. - I'm sorry if things got published in the comments that violated my comments policy but that I missed. I have not been able to monitor most comments for various technical reasons.
May this be a year of life, peace, prosperity, happiness, security and especially health.
I wish all of my readers who observe Yom Kippur an easy and meaningful fast.
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The United Arab Emirates didn't need peace with Israel to counter Iran, a top UAE official said Friday, but he said Iran's aggressive policies over three decades alarmed many Arab countries and made them look at their relationship with Israel "with fresh eyes."
Anwar Gargash, the UAE's minister of state for foreign affairs, acknowledged at a virtual briefing on the sidelines of the equally virtual UN General Assembly's annual meeting of world leaders that this may not have been Iran's intention. But its actions had an impact in the region, he said, though he wouldn't speculate on whether other Arab countries would follow the UAE and Bahrain in establishing relations with Israel.
"The only thing I want to say is the more strategic the Israelis look at these relationships, the more doors will open to them," Gargash said. "If they look at it very `transactionally', I think that it is not going to send a very good omen for normalizing relations with many of the Arab countries."
Gargash said the UAE's message to Israel is to "look at these opportunities and build strategically, and think long term rather than short term" — and prove wrong the countries who say that because of the Israeli political system its decision-makers think only tactically.
A month after the US-brokered diplomatic agreement with Israel signed at the White House, Gargash said the two countries are negotiating "what I would call normal bilateral relations." He said the UAE has sent several agreements to the Israelis on protecting investments, double taxation, visa exemptions and air services.
"We're waiting for them to come back to us, because it is essential for a relationship to be built on these solid bases," Gargash said.
Things are not as they seem in the new Apple TV+ series "Tehran" − as it should be in a spy thriller.
The series opens with a commercial flight from Jordan to India that's suddenly diverted to Iran. A few of the passengers on board have secrets. Those secrets will soon have war jets scrambling and a covert manhunt launching.
As audacious as the premise, "Tehran" is equally bold: an Israeli production that offers viewers a sympathetic view of Iran − one of Israel's greatest foes − without anyone from the production setting foot in the Islamic Republic.
"The core of the show is dealing with the question of identity, nationality, immigration and family roots," Moshe Zonder, the show's co-creator and co-writer, said from Tel Aviv. "It asks how we connect to them and our obligation to them and can we get free from them? This is relevant to everyone on the globe."
The show's eight episodes aired in Israel in June and July, to largely rave reviews. The espionage thriller, with dialogue in Hebrew, English and Farsi, debuted on Apple TV+ on Friday.
"Tehran" centers on a computer hacker-agent undertaking her very first mission in Iran's capital, which is also the place of her birth. When the mission goes wrong, the agent has to survive by her wits.
With several of the same actors and featuring a woman spy dealing with Middle Eastern and Central Asian intrigue at its center, some viewers may see similarities with the recently completed run of "Homeland."
But while that Showtime series explored how notions of good and evil can become corrupt and twisted on the international stage, "Tehran" is about making connections across ideological borders.
"There is not one clear enemy. It's not about one side against the other. It's really about people," Niv Sultan, the actress who plays the "Tehran" spy heroine, said from Tel Aviv. "For the first time, we're showing a different point of view of this conflict."
On Friday, Oct, 12, 1973, at 2:30 pm, Prime Minister Golda Meir convened her so-called "Kitchen Cabinet" – the small forum that made the Israeli government's major military-political decisions. The Yom Kippur War had entered its seventh day, and the discussion centered on one fateful question: should the IDF cross the Suez Canal the next night.
After the IDF had successfully pushed the Syrian army back from the Golan Heights, breaking through the Syrian border, the war's center of gravity shifted to the south. These were the most crucial moments on the Egyptian front. The decisive meeting took place in Golda's room and included Zvi Zamir, the director of the Mossad; GOC Southern Command Maj. Gen. Haim Bar-Lev, and Air Force Commander Maj. Gen. Benny Peled.
The situation reports presented at the discussion were stark. Chief of the General Staff David (Dado) Elazar warned that with no decisive victory the forces would grow exhausted, and proposed requesting a ceasefire. Major General Benny Peled said that the Air Force had already lost a large number of planes and that it was nearing the threshold of 220 planes – which, if reached, would mean it could no longer assist the ground forces.
Israel's defense establishment had for many days been expecting Egypt's 2nd and 4th Armored Divisions, deployed west of the canal, to move eastwards; their failure to do so reduced the chances of a successful crossing. Nevertheless, Bar-Lev and Peled expressed their support for the operation. Then, before Deputy Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Israel Tal, had a chance to sum up the discussion, Zamir was called away to answer an urgent phone call from his bureau chief Freddy Eini and Yoel Salomon, head of the Mossad's technology division.
Upon his return to the room, Zamir said that he had received a "golden piece of information," according to which the Egyptian army was preparing a paratrooper assault on the Mitla and Gidi Passes within a day or two. The operational conclusion was that the armored divisions would follow.
"I understand that Zvika has ended our discussion," said Meir, and the decision was made: the crossing of the canal was suspended; the IDF was to organize for a defensive battle, lay in wait for the Egyptian forces, contain the attack – and then begin the crossing.
I have reported on the antisemitism of the spokesperson of Scottish Jews against Zionism – SJAZ. In response SJAZ published a post on their website supporting her. SJAZ actually came out in support of a Holocaust denier. They said she posted just a few 'antisemitic conspiracy theory posts'. They made rubbish excuses about how Jola AlJakhbeer was just 'angry at what was happening in Palestine'. They even promoted her Jewish identity.
As evidenced below in my open letter to the group – they've been caught lying and supporting a far-right racist – and their excuses show us all that their primary purpose is to protect those that hate the Jews. Wait till they see what she says about black people, gays, 'Feminazis' and yes, Scottish people.
To Scottish Jews against Zionism – SJAZ – the handful of anti-Zionist Jews in Scotland,
I can think of few non-violent actions that are more antisemitic than your current behaviour. Not for the first time I exposed the antisemitism of Jola Hadzic / AlJakhbeer as a raging antisemite. Obviously, my message spread, because you felt the need to respond. You did so publicly, in one of the most disgraceful cover-ups of antisemitism I have seen. This letter exposes the true nature of your group. SJAZ and the Background
Prior to your groups founding in 2018, I published a report on the horrific levels of hard-core antisemitism present in the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign. The response of your co-founder Sarah Glynn, was to dismiss my report. What is astonishing here is that anti-Israel commentary had no part in my findings. I avoided all relevant criticism of Israel. But in her article Sarah Glynn suggested that 'the majority of the posts.. are conspiracy theories implicating the Israeli Secret Service'. It is probably worthwhile for Sarah Glynn to take a course in antisemitism. Thinking Israel is behind 9/11 or that Charlie Hebdo was a covert Mossad attack is not criticism of Israel. When instead of criticising Israeli activity in lets say Hebron, you turn Israel into the global Jew – that sinister – all controlling – powerful demon – you are clearly engaging in antisemitism. This is pretty basic stuff.
The thing is, Jolanta Hadzic and her Holocaust denial featured prominently in the report Sarah Glynn criticised, meaning SJAZ knew all this a long time ago. Yet you still deployed her as your key spokesperson when you were founded.
You base your defence on the fact that 'Israel's behaviour' made Jola AlJakhbeer do it – a blame the victim strategy. As I will show here your lies and hers are easily exposed. As soon as you scratch the surface you realise everything is a lie.
Liberal Jews and Israel-supporters expressed exasperation and anger over the weekend after far-left Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez announced she would not attend a memorial event marking the 25th anniversary of the murder of late Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin.
The event, to be hosted by Americans for Peace Now, will honor Rabin's forging of the Oslo Accords and mourn his assassination by a right-wing extremist in 1995.
Ocasio-Cortez, who has openly defended and supported antisemitic members of her "Squad" of far-left congresswomen, was set to attend the event, but after being questioned on Twitter by anti-Israel journalist, Alex Kane, she said, "This event and my involvement was presented to my team differently from how it's now being promoted. Thanks for pointing it out. Taking a look into this now."
She confirmed later on Friday that she would not attend.
In his tweet, Kane had highlighted Rabin's role as Israel's defense minister during the First Intifada in the late 1980s, claiming Palestinians remembered him "as someone who reportedly ordered the breaking of Palestinian bones."
Americans for Peace Now responded with measured criticism, saying, "We are sorry to hear that Rep. Ocasio-Cortez will no longer be speaking at our Oct. 20th Yitzhak Rabin memorial. Her participation would have added to the event. We are certain that the event will be a success and invite the public to register and attend."
Dan Shapiro, the former US ambassador to Israel under Barack Obama, called it a "very disappointing decision."
It was, he said, "A mistake to give in to pressure, a missed opportunity to speak constructively to both sides of this conflict, honoring a peacemaker while acknowledging complexity. Hope she will try again and do better."
A myth reigns that assassination of Rabin in 1995 killed peace. It sounds good. It is completely wrong. Palestinians rejected far better offers made AFTER (2000 Barak; 2008 Olmert). The @AOC debacle proves yet again that Israel can never do enough because "no Israel" is the goal. https://t.co/8gby9LXkwT
2. This is bad news for the likes of Peter Beinart et. al, who have made serving as Jewish fig leaves their business model. It should also be a clarifying moment for American Jews who think the problem is just @netanyahu. #AOC's boycott of the Rabin/Patinkin/Peace Now event./3
The Republican Jewish Coalition on Saturday demanded an apology from Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden after he likened US President Donald Trump to the Nazi's propaganda chief.
"He's sort of like [Joseph] Goebbels," Biden said of Trump. "You say the lie long enough, keep repeating it, repeating it, repeating it, it becomes common knowledge."
In a statement, RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks said: "The rule in debate is that if your only argument is to call your opponent a Nazi, you have no argument at all. Instead of engaging in a debate on policy, Joe Biden has descended to name-calling and Holocaust references.
"There is no place in political discourse for Holocaust imagery or comparing candidates to Nazis. It's offensive and it demeans the memory of the Holocaust, the suffering of the victims, and the lessons we must learn from that terribly dark chapter of history. Joe Biden has been in politics long enough to know this. To diminish the horrors of Goebbels and the Nazis by trying to attack the president with that comparison is, as we say, a shanda.
"We call on Joe Biden to retract and apologize for that egregious comment," said Brooks.
HonestReporting CEO Speaks At the Jerusalem Post Conference
HonestReporting CEO Daniel Pomerantz gave a presentation at the Jerusalem Post Annual Conference, widely considered one of the most important political and diplomatic gatherings of the year. WATCH NOW – Pomerantz shared his personal story of immigration to Israel, known in Hebrew as aliyah, and how it relates to fundamental changes in the political culture in America. He also detailed the work we do at HonestReporting and how it helps people abroad feel safe when standing by their values, without sacrificing their friendships, careers or overall belief systems.
Sudanese officials reportedly requested $3 billion to $4 billion in aid in exchange for normalizing relations with Israel during negotiations with US officials.
Sudan's Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, its de-facto leader, held talks this week in the United Arab Emirates with US and Emirati officials.
During the talks, Sudan turned down an offer of $800 million in aid and investments as part of an exchange for a deal with Israel, The New York Times reported on Sunday. Most of the sum would have been paid by the US and UAE, with Israel paying around $10 million.
Sudan has also asked to be removed from the US list of state sponsors of terror, which US officials said they are willing to do. The designation prevents Sudan from receiving foreign funding, contributing to its ongoing financial crisis.
Sudan is now seen by US officials as the most likely candidate to follow the lead of the UAE and Bahrain, which normalized ties with Jerusalem earlier this month, but the financial aid package has emerged as a stumbling block in the talks, the report said.
The Walla news site previously reported that Sudan was asking for oil and wheat shipments worth $1.2 billion to cope with recent devastating floods, a $2 billion grant to deal with Sudan's economic crisis and a commitment of economic support from the US and the UAE over the next three years.
Israeli officials have long expressed a wish for better relations with Khartoum, citing its importance in the region as well as its geographic location.
The clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan that began Sunday morning appear larger than usual. After similar clashes in July it is clear that the southern Caucuses are becoming increasingly important. After decades in which the Caucuses were largely ignored internationally, they are back in the spotlight. Conflict there has major ramifications for the Middle East because Turkey, Iran and Russia all have a potential role.
The Caucuses experienced conflict after the fall of the Soviet Union. A series of unresolved disputed were left to freeze, sometimes percolating to the surface in new rounds of war. The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia is one of those. Azerbaijan has an exclave near Turkey and it claims Nagorna-Karabakh, an area between it and Armenia. That area declared itself a separate Republic of Artsakh in the 1990s. With Russian backing, Armenia remained in control.
Further north, clashes between Georgia and Russia erupted in 2008 that humiliated Georgia as it was defeated after an ill-fated attempt to retake the South Ossetia, a self-declared republic that had emerged in 1991. With backing from Russia ,Georgia had been kept out of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. A Russia that was being reformed under Vladimir Putin was quick to show Georgia who was stronger in the 2008 clashes. Similarly. Putin had been able to put an end to the Chechnya wars that plagued Russia in the 1990s. Russia also put down Islamist insurgencies in the northern Caucuses.
The end of fighting in 2008 brought a period of relative calm to the Caucuses. But all these conflicts were unresolved. They were also linked to tension in Ukraine that exploded in 2014 with war there between Russian-backed separatists and the government. Russia annexed Crimea and supported two new republics in the Donbass. The guns never fell completely silent in Ukraine.
Today, Russia hold frequent military drills to show off its power, both in southern Russia, the Caucuses, the Baltic and near Belarus. The overall picture is an emerging powerhouse of Russian power. Slavic Brotherhood drills were underway with Serbia and Belarus last week, for instance. Caucuses drills were also held in early September with China, Armenia, Iran and Myanmar. In July Putin ordered massive drills involving 150,000 soldiers to secure southern Russia. The message from Moscow is clear. Russia is sharpening its knife to be ready for any eventuality, whether problems in Belarus, or the Caucuses.
An investigation broadcast Friday into Israel's failure to contain the coronavirus pandemic blamed the lack of an effective contact tracing program to cut infection chains.
Israel swiftly responded to the novel coronavirus when it first emerged in the spring, and limited its spread through lockdown measures and restrictions on international travel, but likely reopened too quickly, leading to a severe second wave outbreak. Israel now has one of the highest per capita infection rates in the world.
Most experts believe that effective contact tracing, combined with isolation of infected and exposed people, is key to stopping the spread of the coronavirus.
The Channel 12 report, broadcast on Friday, highlighted the tracing system's failures, including that people who needed to enter quarantine were not informed, and the Shin Bet's surveillance system repeatedly made mistakes.
It wasn't until the second wave outbreak in Israel was in full swing, in mid-August, that the military, with its manpower and know-how, was tasked with devising and operating a system to cut infection chains.
The decision likely came too late, as the virus outbreak was already out of control, the report said. The military-run program will only be fully operational by November, Israel's virus czar Ronnie Gamzu has said,
The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday canceled all leave for combat troops and soldiers in training for at least the next month amid a spike in coronavirus infections in the military.
As of Saturday night, over 1,190 soldiers, officers, non-commissioned officers and civilian employees of the military had tested positive for the disease — all of them with light symptoms — and another 13,038 servicemembers were in quarantine. This was nearly double the amount of confirmed cases as there were two weeks ago, 622.
The military said the decision to halt furlough was made by IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi following an "ongoing situational assessment in the IDF and following a General Staff situational assessment."
The move would not affect soldiers serving on so-called "open bases," who go home most nights, but would only be applied to those on "closed bases," who live in their units for extended periods. This would also apply only to conscript soldiers on these bases, not to officers, non-commissioned officers and other personnel.
"Exemptions would only be approved by a commander with the rank of major general," the IDF said.
Troops on open bases would continue to operate on a system of "capsules" — shifts of soldiers with no contact between them — to ensure that if any servicemembers became infected, it would not spread widely.
"All combat troops, people serving on training bases or closed bases should arrive to their bases on Tuesday ready to remain there for an extended period, for a period of 30 days," the IDF said in a statement.
A new, somewhat surprising contender has joined the race to become Israel's next president next year.
Yehudah Glick, a former Knesset member and longtime advocate for Jewish rights on Jerusalem's Temple Mount, has told right-wing lawmakers that he will run for the job when Reuven Rivlin's tenure ends in the summer of 2021, Zman Yisrael, The Times of Israel's Hebrew-language sister site, has learned.
The president, a largely symbolic figure, is elected by Knesset members once every seven years.
Glick, asking the lawmakers to support him, said he was the only candidate who fits the role.
"Over Rosh Hashanah I sat with myself for two whole days and decided I will run for the job," Glick told the Knesset members. "I see what is happening today in the nation. I am pained by the divisions and the rifts.
"I miss the days when we were a model society, a society of solidarity, when we strove to be a light unto the nations rather than fighting and hating one another," he said. "We can go back to that."
Contacted by Zman Yisrael, Glick refused to comment. (h/t Zvi)
2/ Hezbollah's strategy is to hide their weapons inside civilian neighborhoods. Why? So that if things were to escalate with Israel, Israel would have no choice but to target civilian areas.
Hamas denied on Saturday that it has reached agreement with its rivals in Fatah to hold new elections for the Palestinian Authority presidency and parliament, the Palestine Legislative Council.
The denial came one day after PA President Mahmoud Abbas promised the United Nations General Assembly that those elections would be held.
"Here we are, despite all the obstacles that you know too well, preparing ourselves to hold parliamentary elections, followed by presidential elections, with the participation of all factions and political parties," Abbas said during his virtual address to the 75th UNGA opening session.
His words echoed those of Jibril Rajoub, Secretary-General of the Fatah Central Committee, who on Friday announced that his faction and Hamas reached agreement on holding the long overdue elections based on the system of proportional representation.
The last presidential election was held in January 2005. The last parliamentary election, held one year later, resulted in a Hamas victory.
A month and a half after a massive explosion in Beirut caused a crisis in Lebanon that saw the government fall, France's decision to try to push for reforms may have been defeated.
Regional media from the UAE to Turkey are focused on what might come next in Lebanon. Lebanon's Prime Minister designate Mustapha Adib resigned, according to Turkey's Anadolu news agency. French President Emmanuel Macron will hold a news conference on Sunday to discuss the situation.
Lebanese analysts quoted at Al-Ain said that Lebanon could be heading to "chaos" as Hezbollah and the Amal movement are preventing the creation of a new government. France has sought to mediate in Lebanon, with Macron playing a key role. This even included meetings with Hezbollah's members of the Lebanese parliament. The political parties and entrenched sectarian elites in Lebanon now appear to have sought to frustrate France's attempts at reform.
It appears that Hezbollah and Amal had sought to obtain the finance ministry as part of the reform. This would put Iran at the helm of Lebanon's key ministry. Lebanon already needs $93 billion to bail it out of a financial crisis. Iran has used Lebanon for money laundering and other fraudulent transactions in the past.
France had wanted to reduce the sectarian nature of the government, but in Lebanon many ministries are divided as spoils for various groups. Hezbollah has increased its clout in recent years, even though it has only a handful of members of parliament. It has sought to grab the health ministry and other posts.
Two members of the Lebanese Security Forces were killed in an exchange of gunfire with militants in the north of the country late on Saturday, the army said.
They were killed when militants opened fire on an army checkpoint in the northwest area of Araman, the army said on Sunday. One militant was killed, while several fled.
In a separate incident on Saturday, Lebanese security forces killed at least six militants during a heavy exchange of fire with an armed group in northeast Lebanon, close to the Syrian border, security sources said.
Three members of the Lebanese security forces were wounded in the clash, which began after Lebanese forces raided a house in the Wadi Khaled area, where the group that was suspected of planning attacks was holed up, the sources said.
Security incidents across the country have increased in recent weeks, as the country has been pushed to breaking point by a financial meltdown and a political vacuum following the resignation of the caretaker government over an Aug. 4 port blast, which left nearly 200 people dead.
Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab strongly condemned the attacks in a statement on Sunday, and called for the feuding political blocs to rapidly form a new government capable of addressing Lebanon's myriad problems.
France's interior minister promised Sunday to protect France's Jewish community from extremists after a double stabbing in Paris blamed on Islamic terrorism.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin visited a synagogue Sunday ahead of the evening start of Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, and said more than 7,000 police and soldiers were protecting Jewish services. France has Europe's largest Jewish community.
"I came to assure … members of France's Jewish community of the protection of the state," Darmanin told reporters. "Because we know that Jews are particularly targeted by Islamist attacks and we should obviously protect them."
Darmanin defended authorities' handling of a double stabbing Friday outside the former offices of the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, saying intelligence services have prevented 32 potential terrorist attacks over the past three years.
Coordinated Islamic terror attacks on Charlie Hebdo's Paris newsroom and a kosher supermarket in January 2015 killed 17 people, and Friday's stabbing came as the trial into those attacks is under way.
The police in the German city of Frankfurt launched a criminal investigation against the young Israeli musician Ana Agre for her display of an Israeli flag at an anti-Jewish state demonstration organized by a pro-BDS group that supports convicted Palestinian terrorists.
The prominent Israeli author Chaim Noll on Friday first reported on the popular German website "The Axis of Good" about the threatened criminal case against Agre, an Israeli musician who works in Germany.
According to Noll, "On July 1st, 2020, she ran into an anti-Israel-demonstration close to her home, arranged by the pro-Palestinian organization Samidoun. She went upstairs into her flat to fetch an Israeli flag and took position on the square where the protesters were marching along, together with their German supporters."
The flag, wrote Noll, was "about the size of a kitchen towel." Samidoun is an organization that seeks to secure the release of convicted Palestinian terrorists from prison and supports the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel.
Noll reported that a Frankfurt "police officer addressed her in English, recorded her identity and advised her to leave the location for reasons of her appearance being provocative to the young Muslims." (h/t Zvi)
This is AWESOME! A film clip of Jerusalem from 1897, digitally enhanced. The closest thing to a time machine you'll ever see. pic.twitter.com/ChTnGoEXhC
President Reuven Rivlin called on all Israelis and Jews across the globe on Sunday to light an additional memorial candle on Yom Kippur in memory of those who died due to the coronavirus.
"The coronavirus pandemic and its victims have caused me to think about those who have lost their lives, about the invisible angel of death which does its terrible work of taking lives in isolated emergency rooms, without families there to part from them with a last touch, holding hands," stroking faces, Rivlin said in a statement.
"To those dear ones, over a thousand victims, I decided to dedicate a prayer and to light a candle in their memory."
The president then said a modified version of the Yizkor prayer, which is said to remember those who have died and is recited several times a year, including on Yom Kippur.
"May God remember, and may the People of Israel remember the souls of those Israelis who have lost their lives this year because of the coronavirus. May we remember those pioneers and founders, Holocaust survivors, veteran immigrants, fighters and creators, students of Torah and worshipers of the Lord, Jews and Arabs, old and young," he said.
"They were all loved, all, known, all had names and faces," the president said. "Fathers and sons, grandmothers and grandfathers, friends and acquaintances, neighbors and colleagues. An inseparable part of the fabric of our lives. May we be forgiven for the sin of weakness and inability, for not doing enough, for not managing to save them. Because of that, lives were lost.
Unprecedented scenes from Jerusalem: Israeli TV channels broadcast live the chief rabbi's midnight pre-#YomKippur prayers for forgiveness (Selichot). Western Wall empty of Jewish worshippers, only a few attend in capsules. #COVID19#coronaviruspic.twitter.com/OlZwMUVlyI
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While Mahmoud Abbas' speech to the UN on Friday generated very few headlines, it is worth analyzing.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Palestinian people have been present in their homeland, Palestine, the land of their ancestors, for over 6000 years, and they will continue living on this land, steadfast in the face of occupation, aggression and the disappointments and betrayals, until the fulfilment of their rights.
It is insane that this lie continues to go unchallenged in mainstream media. No respectable historian claims that today's Palestinian Arabs have anything to do with ancient Canaanites. Yet the head of a purported state has no problem telling the world this absurd lie. (Although it is not as ludicrous as Saeb Erakat's 9000 years.)
We have always sought a just, comprehensive and lasting peace, and we have agreed to all the initiatives presented to us. I have personally dedicated my life to achieving this desired peace, notably since 1988, followed by the Madrid Conference and the Oslo Accords in 1993, and to this very day.
Well, except for rejecting all of them that involved any compromise.
Finally, it announces normalization agreements with both the UAE and Bahrain, in violation of the Arab Peace Initiative, and the terms of reference of a comprehensive, lasting and just solution in accordance with international law.
It is notable that he didn't attack Bahrain and the UAE for violating the Arab Peace Initiative - but Israel, which never agreed to it. Perhaps Abbas realized that his attacks on Gulf Arab states did not have the desired effect.
The Palestine Liberation Organization has not given a mandate to anyone to speak or negotiate on behalf of the Palestinian people ...
Actually, they have. They outsourced all negotiations to the EU, the UN, the Obama administration, while they sat back and waited for pressure to collapse Israel.
In this regard, I call on the Secretary-General of the United Nations to undertake, in cooperation with the Quartet and the Security Council, preparations to convene an international conference with full authority and with the participation of all concerned parties, early next year, to engage in a genuine peace process, based on international law, UN resolutions and the relevant terms of reference, leading to an end the occupation and the achievement by the Palestinian people of their freedom and independence within their State, with East Jerusalem as its capital, on the 1967 borders, and resolving all final status issues, notably the question of the refugees, based on resolution 194.
This is a meaningless appeal to try to look like Abbas has something new to say, while trying to get back to getting the world to pressure Israel.
Now comes the part he can't resist:
Let everyone know there will be no peace, no security, no stability and no coexistence in our region while this occupation continues and a just, comprehensive solution to the question of Palestine, the core of the conflict, remains denied.
As he has done so many times before, he is threatening terror if Palestinians don't get what they want.
Finally, some comedy:
In Palestine, ladies and gentlemen, there is a living nation, creative, civilized, peace-loving, aspiring passionately to freedom. A nation that has been able – despite the occupation that besieges our lives – to build an active and modern society, that believes in democracy and the rule of law and has been able to preserve its national existence and identity despite all the political and philosophical differences between its diverse components. Here we are, despite all the obstacles that you know too well, preparing ourselves to hold parliamentary elections, followed by presidential elections, with the participation of all factions and political parties.
Will this be the time they have elections when the last dozen times they promised elections didn't pan out? Well, since they believe in democracy, no doubt.
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On September 13, 2020, Al-Jazeera Network (Qatar) aired a documentary about the Hamas missile manufacturing industry. The reporter explained how Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades have been reclaiming unexploded Israeli munitions from 2014's Operation Protective Edge, metal water pipes left behind by Israel when it withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005, and cannon shells from the wrecks of British warships that sank near Gaza during World War I. The documentary featured interviews with the commanders of the Al-Qassam Brigades' Military Production Units, Engineering Corps, Artillery Corps, and Frogmen Unit, who described the process of reclaiming these munitions and turning them into functional missiles.
The report also showed exclusive footage of this process, including footage of divers retrieving underwater shells, of metals being processed, of explosives being prepared, and of missiles being tested. Furthermore, the reporter and the interviewees explained that Iran has been shipping Kornet anti-tank missiles and Fajr missiles to Gaza by land and by sea. Abu Ibrahim, the Commander of the Military Productions Unit, said that Hamas has hundreds of warheads, dozens of tons of explosives and propellants, and enough metal water pipes to produce thousands of rockets.
"Various Types Of Weapons Have Arrived To Gaza From Iran... Other Countries, like Syria And Sudan, Have Also Played A Role In Arming The Resistance"
Narrator: "In this footage, which is being shown for the first time, members of the Al-Qassam Brigades can be seen reassembling the parts of a Fajr missile that arrived in a new shipment of long range Iranian missiles. The resistance in Gaza [received] them despite the tightening of the siege. In these exclusive images, Kornet anti-tank missiles can be seen."
Abu Ibrahim, Commander from the Military Production Unit of the Al-Qassam Brigades: "The weapons came to us, by land and by sea, from hundreds and thousands of kilometers away.
"Various types of weapons have arrived to Gaza from Iran. The resistance fighters in Gaza were in dire need of these weapons, such as the Kornet and Fajr missiles, and many other types of modern weapons, which are still very much in use on the battlefield.
"Other countries, like Syria and Sudan, have also played a role in arming the resistance."
"Under This Rubble, There Are Unexploded Israeli Missiles And Shells[;] They Have Become A New Source For The Weapons Of The Resistance"
Narrator: "Under this rubble, there are unexploded Israeli missiles and shells. They have become a new source for the weapons of the resistance. The Al-Qassam Brigades are revealing a multi-phase project to transform the remnants of the Israeli war into modern missiles."
Abu Ibrahim: "At the beginning, we decided to collect those munitions from the ruined houses and fields, because they constituted a direct threat to the lives of the inhabitants and the farmers. During the process of removing [these duds], large and diverse quantities of munitions were accumulated by our brothers in the Engineering Corps."
Abu Salman, Commander of the Engineering Corps of the Al-Qassam Brigades: "After the 2014 war, the Engineering Corps dealt with many munitions throughout the Gaza Strip: bombs, mines, explosive devices and 155mm Howitzer shells. There were also hundreds of MK 84 bombs, each of which contains 470 kilograms of tritonal, a highly explosive material that is more powerful than TNT.
"We started by surveying all the unexploded munitions. We established a committee of specialized engineers. Our strategy was to recycle these munitions and make optimal use of all their parts. Our idea was to turn this crisis into an opportunity."
"We Dug Into The Ground And Pulled Out The Pipes, So That They Could Be Used In Our Military Industries"
Shoddy rockets you say? I'd be more than happy to provide information about the extensive amount of arms and know-how Iran has given Palestinian factions for decades. https://t.co/P6hhCdO8Olpic.twitter.com/36aBfanSIB
Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Friday withdrew her participation from an event commemorating former prime minster Yitzhak Rabin on the 25th anniversary of his assassination.
The decision, which came after backlash from pro-Palestinian activists, was confirmed to The Times of Israel by a spokeswoman for the congresswoman, a rising star in the progressive wing of the Democratic party.
The about-face came a day after Americans for Peace Now announced that Ocasio-Cortez would be joining the October 20 virtual event emceed by Mandy Patankin, the star of the Showtime series Homeland, and a vocal critic of the current Israeli government's policies in the West Bank.
The initial announcement on Thursday indicated Ocasio-Cortez's willingness to engage with some of the more left-leaning elements of the pro-Israel world in Washington, which had not been the case since she was elected to represent New York's 14th Congressional District last year.
But the Americans For Peace Now post was quickly ridiculed by pro-Palestinian activists, who called the congresswoman's decision "disgusting" and showed "total contempt for Palestinian lives" by honoring Rabin.
A reporter pointed out on Twitter earlier Friday that, while Rabin is lionized as a peacemaker in the US for his participation in the Oslo Accords with Palestinian Liberation Organization chairman Yasser Arafat in the mid-1990s, "Palestinians remember him for his brutal rule suppressing Palestinian protest during the First Intifada, as someone who reportedly ordered the breaking of Palestinian bones."
Ocasio-Cortez said in response to the post, "This event and my involvement was presented to my team differently from how it's now being promoted. Thanks for pointing it out. Taking a look into this now."
On Friday evening, following talks with organizers from Americans for Peace Now, the congresswoman's office confirmed her withdrawal from the event altogether.
The spokeswoman for Ocasio-Cortez's office declined to elaborate on the decision.
A source with knowledge of the talks said the Congresswoman's office did not realize the event would be framed around commemorating Rabin, as opposed to an opportunity to offer Ocasio-Cortez's polices for the region.
Americans for Peace Now declined to comment on the record.
New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has backed out of an event honoring former Palestinian Liberation Organization chairman Yasser Arafat after one of the representative's Twitter followers pointed out that Arafat had visited and negotiated with Israel.
Ocasio-Cortez was set to attend Jewish Voice for Peace's Yom Kippur brunch, which will be held on Monday to honor Arafat and his contribution to the peace process. But Twitter user @MelGibsonfan69 blasted her for celebrating Arafat despite his efforts to normalize relations with Israel.
"Yasser Arafat shook hands with Jews and talked about making peace with Israel," he tweeted. "Why are you honoring someone who couldn't even boycott Israel, AOC? What are you, some kind of Zionist?!?"
The congresswoman quickly responded that the event was "presented to my team differently from how it is now being promoted," and that she would reconsider her commitment to attend.
"I thought that, like, [former Prime Minister Yitzhak] Rabin was good, but then people were like, no, he's bad. And then people said, like, Arafat is good, and now they are like, no, he's like, also bad?" Ocasio-Cortez explained. "This Middle East conflict really is complicated!"
Both Arab countries and Israel will benefit immensely.
Palestinian leaders are suddenly discovering that, as the Arab saying goes, "The dogs bark but the caravan moves on" – possibly without them.
"We [realists] understand that only defeat will convince Palestinians like Mrs. Ashrawi, and through them Iranian, Turkish, Islamist, leftist, fascist, and other anti-Zionists, that the century-plus conflict is over, that Israel has prevailed, and that the time has come to give up on futile, painful, and genocidal ambitions." — Daniel Pipes, Middle East Scholar.
If President Trump is able to continue following the bold, unconventional path he has traced, he will most likely succeed where all his predecessors have failed. What he has accomplished already -- in less than four years, with so many forces determined to undermine him... is extraordinary.
"Trump has done more for peace in the Middle East in four years than any other American President in seventy-two years." — Meyer Habib, member of the French National Assembly, i24 News, September 14, 2020.
For the past two decades I have crisscrossed the Middle East, helping companies and organizations tap into the region's incredible dynamism and economic growth potential. This has included support for the development of 21st century cities in Saudi Arabia, positioning the United Arab Emirates as a center for renewable energy and guiding the world's largest tech companies in their investments in Israel.
My travels have also shown me the deeply entrenched challenges to accelerating regional socioeconomic development. The ground-breaking Abraham Accord, which seeks to normalize diplomatic and economic relations between Israel and the UAE and Bahrain, marks a major first step on a new path to a raft of new business possibilities.
After founding APCO Worldwide in 1984, where I remain executive chairman, we first launched our operations in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region in 2006 through our Dubai office. Over the next 14 years, we've grown at an impressive rate, opening branches across the Gulf in Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, while in parallel, being the only international public affairs agency to maintain a fully owned presence in Israel.
As APCO's presence in the Middle East has continued to grow in size and influence, I've consistently encouraged all of my colleagues to collaborate across borders whenever the right opportunity has arisen, despite the long-standing challenges and market volatility presented by the region.
We were early adopters of the technologies that teams need to connect from anywhere at any time of the day, and our management teams in the region meet regularly to shape a mutual cross-border understanding among our colleagues who otherwise wouldn't have ways to connect and work together.
A growing sense in the Middle East that Israel ties can be a gamechanger for states that are in need of more clout in Washington, or that they can be traded for various agreements and deals, is central to the current Trump doctrine. This "transactional" aspect of the current US administration is unique in US history. Probably not since US President Calvin Coolidge has there been such an open focus on "business" as a nature of US policy. The most recent focus on Sudan's possible normalization of relations with Israel is part of this trade-off between advancing US interests an getting a win for the Trump administration, with a byproduct that also aids Israel relations with the wider region.
In one sense this transactional diplomacy is not entirely foreign to the nature of US foreign policy over the last two hundred years. The Gulf War was largely seen as a conflict over US interests in oil, while US involvement in the First World War related to issues such as free trade. America's "Dollar diplomacy" prior to the First World War and the Atlantic Charter of 1941 enshrined the same concepts. After decades of high minded talk about a "new world order" and humanitarian intervention, the Trump administration's focus on a more utilitarian foreign policy has left states in the Middle East trying to figure out which transactional incentives will make Washington happy.
Sudan, which has a relatively new government and has gone through a political transition in the last year, wants a victory it can show its own people. One desire of Khartoum is to be removed from the US list of states that support terrorism. However, despite rumors over the last month, the country has rejected tying this to Israel relations. That doesn't mean the two issues could happen at the same time. However it appears a bit questionable for a government of a country like Sudan to argue it traded these two issues. The issue of removing Sudan from a list of state sponsors of terrorism appears to be a right for Khartoum, since it no longer supports terrorism. Relations with Israel are a controversial issue in a country that has in the past been hostile to Israel.
There are many factors at work here. Not the least of which is an anti-Israel agenda being pushed by Turkey which opposes countries normalizing relations with Israel. Turkey has relations with Israel but its current regime is one of the most hostile to Israel in the world. Turkey until recently was hoping that it could be the country deciding Sudan's future, with massive investments and even leasing an island in the country an sending military advisors. That is part of Turkey's overall support for Muslim Brotherhood-linked groups in the region. Qatar may be involved in trying to subvert Sudan-Israel ties as well. The Brookings Institution ran a piece over the weekend asserting that "normalizing Sudan-Israel relations now is a dangerous game."
Sudan does not want to link its removal from a US terrorism list that is hindering access to foreign funding for the country's economy with a normalization of relations with Israel, Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said on Saturday.
However, Sudan's leaders have not ruled out establishing ties with Israel as part of a US offer of $300m. in economic aid, as well as $3 b. in debt relief and investments.
Chairman of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council Abdel Fatah al-Burhan, who is in the position during a transition period after ruler Omar al-Bashir was toppled last year, favors ties with Israel in exchange for the US aid package, and his No. 2, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, supports him as well.
Both view normalization as a step worth taking to promote Sudan's broader interests.
Hamdok and Burhan met with UAE and US officials in Abu Dhabi this week to discuss their removal from the state sponsors of terror list and US aid, and returned to Khartoum empty-handed.
Sudan's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism dates back to 1993, under Bashir's rule, and makes it difficult for its new transitional government to access urgently needed debt relief and foreign financing.
Hamdok said Sudan told US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during a visit last month it was necessary to separate the removal from the US list from the normalization of relations with Israel.
In the weeks since US, Emirati, and Israeli leaders announced a historic normalization agreement on August 13, Qatari media have leveled major criticism of the deal. Yet the motivations for this criticism seem to reflect direct competition between Qatar and the United Arab Emirates as much as genuine critique.
The direct competition between the UAE and Qatar, combined with the broader boycott of Qatar by the Arab Quartet – the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Bahrain – helps contextualize vocal, conflicting media responses to the deal, as Qatari, Saudi and Emirati media have some of the broadest reach and largest influence regionally.
In Qatar, both semi-official and government-backed media have come out strongly against the deal, emphasizing Palestinian outrage and criticizing the UAE directly for the diplomatic move. The pro-Qatari government Al Sharq newspaper mischaracterized the accord with a headline quoting Turkish President Recep Erdogan, writing, "History won't forgive the UAE for signing a deal with Israel."
The same newspaper also ran the headline, "[Saudi Crown Prince] MbS is ready to establish open relations.... The mediator is the Jew Haim Saban."
State-owned Qatar TV claimed that Israel had deceived the UAE and is not planning to stop annexation. It has featured images of Israeli police stopping Palestinian protesters from burning the Emirati flag, and images of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed (MbZ) inside al-Aqsa Mosque to claim that Israelis are protecting Emiratis from Palestinian outrage.
The prominent MP Ian Paisley sparked a discussion in the British parliament on Monday about the interplay between the terrorist organizations Hezbollah and the Real Irish Republican Army, as well as demanding that the UK proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist entity.
Paisley, who is from Northern Ireland, directed his questions to the British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace on Monday: "Operation Arbacia has exposed international terror links…from Iran to Ireland to Hezbollah to the Real IRA, when will the government be in a position to proscribe the framework operation of that organization…?"
Paisley also asked on Monday when the British government plans to outlaw the Muslim Brotherhood.
Wallace responded that "The malign of activity of Iran has not stopped. And for those people that think it does not get back to us on our streets should look at that latest operation which showed the New IRA reaching out in Lebanon , or working with Hezbollah and other members potentially aligned to Iran, to potentially inflict murder and death on the streets, either here or in Northern Ireland. We shouldn't forgot that. Old habits die hard."
Paisley asked the foreign office in a written query on September 17: "what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood."
James Brokenshire, the minister of state in the foreign office, wrote back that "the work in relation to the Muslim Brotherhood is a matter for the Home Office, so we are responding on behalf of the Ministry of Defence."
"There has not been formal inter-Ministerial engagement on the Muslim Brotherhood," he said. "The Government keeps under review the activities of those associated with the Muslim Brotherhood in the UK in accordance with the five commitments included in the former Prime Minister's statement to Parliament."
US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said he expects "personal attacks and lies" from Donald Trump in their first televised debate on Tuesday, comparing the Republican president to Nazi propaganda chief Joseph Goebbels.
"It is going to be difficult," the former vice president acknowledged in an interview broadcast Saturday on MSNBC.
"My guess is, it's going to be just straight attack. They're going to be mostly personal. That's the only thing he knows how to do," he said of Trump.
The debate Tuesday in Cleveland, Ohio will be the first time the 77-year-old veteran politician has faced the president he has promised to unseat. The men will meet again for two more debates before the November 3 election.
But some of his supporters fear that Biden, who is prone to blunders and slip-ups, may waver in these televised duels under the rhetorical blows of the Republican billionaire — who is also prone to blunders and slip-ups, but who is far more aggressive.
"He doesn't know how to debate the facts. He's not that smart," Biden also claimed. "He doesn't know much about foreign policy, he doesn't know much about domestic policy. He doesn't know much about the detail."
As a result, Biden predicted, "it'll be mostly personal attacks and lies; but I think the American people are on to him."
Predictable speech by @SwedishPM at #UNGA#UN75, singling out #Israel's 'occupation', but saying nothing of #Palestinian terror or Israel's historic peace agmts with UAE & Bahrain. He also reiterated claim "annexation is illegal." Memo, annexation has been halted indefinitely. pic.twitter.com/6Y24NuDEMe
A man suspected of wounding two people with a meat cleaver near the former Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo magazine has admitted to the attack, linking it to the republication of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed by the satirical weekly, sources said Saturday.
The man, who said he was born in Pakistan and is 18, "takes responsibility for his action," which came three weeks into the trial of suspected accomplices in the 2015 massacre of the newspaper's staff, a source close to the investigation said.
The man said during questioning he places his actions "in the context of the republication of cartoons" of the Prophet Mohammed in Charlie Hebdo, the source said.
A man armed with a meat cleaver critically wounded two people on Friday near Charlie Hebdo's former offices in the French capital's 11th district.
He was arrested not far from the scene later Friday.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said Friday the attack was "clearly an act of Islamist terrorism."
The bodies of two Palestinian fishermen killed by Egyptian naval forces in Mediterranean waters were returned Saturday to the Gaza Strip, the territory's Hamas-controlled Interior Ministry said.
Hamas, the Palestinian terror group ruling Gaza, has called on Egypt to investigate the incident, condemning it as violence targeting "those hunting for a living for their children."
The shooting occurred Friday as three fishermen were fishing near the Gaza-Egypt maritime frontier, said the Palestinian fishermen union, noting the three were brothers. The third brother was receiving treatment in Egypt.
There was no immediate comment from Egyptian officials, but the union said fishermen usually work near the border and the Egyptian navy is aware of their presence.
"Even if they happen to exceed the limit, shooting and killing them is unjustifiable," said Nezar Ayyash, head of the fishermen union. "They could have stopped them, because their boat's engine is weak and can't run faster than the naval boat."
Egypt sent the bodies via the Rafah crossing point, Gaza's main gate to the outside world, on its 13-kilometer-long border with the Gaza Strip Saturday evening.
An arms depot belonging to Hezbollah exploded in southern Lebanon on Tuesday, injuring several people and causing considerable damage in the area as shown by a rare video circulating on social media. According to Reuters the explosion rocked the village of Ain Qana in south Lebanon, a region that is a political stronghold of the heavily armed and politically powerful Hezbollah which has fought wars with neighboring Israel.
The Lebanese army and Hezbollah imposed a security cordon around the site of the explosion, and ambulances and civil defense vehicles rushed to the town. Media were banned from entering the zone of the explosion.
Contradictory reports at first appeared in the local media as to the cause of the explosion. Reports at first said the explosion was caused by a fire erupted in the village gas station. The director of the Media Center, Salem Zahran, close to Hezbollah tweeted at first that the explosion took place at a weapon depot belonging to Hezbollah and that there were no casualties. Minutes later he erased his tweet and said: "The Ain Qana fire was caused by the explosion of a center for the collection of remnants of war." Sources close to Hezbollah denied to local Lebanese Media that Israel had targeted Ali Al Roz, one of its high-profile commanders. The Secretary-General of the Red Cross, George Ketteneh, said the initial information indicates that there were no injuries. Hezbollah admitted later the site belongs to "Peace Generations Organization for Demining"which it said used the site to store old mines and unexploded ordnance, pending proper disposal.
This is not the first mysterious explosion that takes place in the south of Lebanon in one of Hezbollah's weapons depot. From 2009 and onward a series of explosions shook the South and the Bekaa regions like in Kherbit Selem or in Tair Felsi. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) were always denied access to the site of the explosions.
UNIFIL forces according to the resolution 1701 requires them to assist the Lebanese government and its armed forces "to disarm all armed groups in Lebanon." Also, it would accompany the LAF in the country's south to ensure this area was "free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and of UNIFIL." While Ain Qana explosion is not in the UNIFIL area of operation, the mandate of these forces does not allow them to conduct a thorough investigation in accordance with the 1701 resolution.
Special envoy for Iran and Venezuela Elliott Abrams testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Thursday, telling senators Iran's economy lays in shambles due to American sanctions.
"Our efforts to disrupt the regime's ability to carry out its malicious agenda have met with real success," Abrams said in his testimony. "By any measure, the Iranian regime is weaker today than when President Trump took office. The regime faces unprecedented and worsening economic and political crises that are exacerbated by the poor choices the regime makes in an effort to advance its radical ideology."
Abrams outlined statistics from the International Monetary Fund that reflect Iran's economic crisis. Iran has suffered consecutive years of GDP loss, with the economy shrinking by 5.5 percent in 2018 and 7.6 percent in 2019. Predictions for 2020 suggest that the trend will hold: Iran is likely to lose another 6 percent of its economy.
Other economic metrics signal Tehran's dire straits. Iran's budget deficit is a whopping 26 percent of its already shrinking GDP, with little prospect for recovery. As a result of robust oil export sanctions on Iran, the Islamic republic has lost 90 percent of its oil export revenue, totaling roughly $70 billion.
The economic recession has had impacts well beyond GDP and employment. Iran is the largest state sponsor of terror in the world, and the sanctions-induced downturn has forced major cutbacks to its ability to keep afloat terror groups that have long plagued regional stability.
Hezbollah and Hamas are now implementing austerity plans, Abrams said, which limit their capacity to commit violence and retain legitimacy with local governments that they have overtaken.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday accused the US of committing an "atrocity" for sanctions that have inflicted damages of $150 billion, and urged the Iranian people to blame the White House for recent financial woes, in a televised address on Iranian state TV.
The United States imposed fresh sanctions this week on Iran's defense ministry and enforced an arms embargo under a United Nations authority that is widely contested.
"The people should curse the White House for the shortages… the main source of all the crimes and pressures against the Iranian nation is the White House," Rouhani said.
Rouhani went on to blame the ails of Iranian society on "Zionism, reactionary approaches, and US extremists."
In his closing remarks, Rouhani said that he had "no doubt the US administration will bow down before the Iranian nation."
Tensions between the US and Iran have escalated since US President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 deal aimed at capping Iran's nuclear activities in return for sanction relief, and unilaterally reimposed sanctions on Iran in 2018.
The American Jewish Committee announced a campaign on Thursday to ban Iran from the 2021 Olympic Games over its "abysmal" abuse of its own athletes.
"Iran's record of abuse in sports is just one area of an elaborate tapestry of wholesale violations of basic human rights carried out by the Islamic Republic against its own citizens," stated the public letter to International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach.
"To allow Iran to participate in the Tokyo Games would be to signal approval of the country's gross and systematic violations of human rights," the AJC said. "Barring Iran would send a powerful message: that athletes are to be protected, that sport is to be practiced freely, and that discrimination and abuse by any country that is part of the Olympic family will not be tolerated. Only thus will the Olympic spirit, a spirit of peace, freedom, and coexistence, truly be upheld."
The letter listed a number of well-known incidents including the hanging earlier this month of an Iranian wrestler, an execution that triggered international outrage.
Navid Afkari, 27, who had won national competitions, was hanged September 12 after being convicted of murder during demonstrations two years ago in the southern city of Shiraz. The execution was preceded by worldwide appeals for clemency, including from US President Donald Trump.
The Committee for Accuracy and Middle East Reporting and Analysis sent the following open letter to InterVarsity Press in the United States and Inter-Varsity Press in the United Kingdom.
These publishing houses have published and promoted a number of texts over the past two decades that portray Jewish self-defense as a greater problem than attempts to deprive Jews of their lives and rights. CAMERA has produced a number of articles about these texts.
This open letter is an attempt to put the issue onto the agenda of editorial staffers (and other leaders) at the two publishing houses, which produce and distribute texts in tandem in both the United States and the United Kingdom.
The open letter, written by CAMERA staffer Dexter Van Zile, was sent via email on September 25, 2020.
An Open letter to Ed Gilbreath and Caleb Woodbridge – September 25, 2020
Inter-Varsity Press, UK
Dear Ed Gilbreath and Caleb Woodbridge:
I write to you from the offices of the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA) in Massachusetts. We are a media-monitoring organization supported by 65,000 members in the United States. A member of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, CAMERA promotes fair and accurate coverage of the Middle East. CAMERA has done this work since its founding in 1982 because we believe that a well-informed public is a pre-requisite for enlightened public policy.
Our work has taken on a troubling urgency over the past few years. Recent events have demonstrated that dishonest and biased media coverage about Israel puts Jews in harm's way. When media outlets and civil society institutions falsely portray the Jewish state as a murderous, marauding, and genocidal nation singularly responsible for the suffering in the Middle East, they implicitly portray Jews throughout the world as enemies of human rights and democracy. This occurs whether the misinformation is broadcast in the Middle East or outside of the region. Misinformation about Israel incites violence toward Israel's Jewish citizens and diaspora Jews throughout the world.
In the course of my work at CAMERA, I have discovered a strange and troubling contradiction on the part of many people who write and opine about the Arab-Israeli conflict (and about Jews in general).
A police investigation into the rapper Wiley's antisemitic rants on social media has been dropped after it emerged he was not in the UK at the time the alleged offences took place.
The JC understands that the grime artist - whose real name is Richard Kylea Cowie – was in Rotterdam, Holland, when he posted a stream of comments on Twitter and Facebook in July, including tropes about Jewish power and one message in which he said that the community deserved to "hold some corn."
"Hold some corn" is used as street slang for the firing of bullets.
Following Wiley's actions in July, the Metropolitan Police confirmed they were reviewing the messages following the allegations of antisemitism.
"The Met takes all reports of antisemitism extremely seriously," they said. "The relevant material is being assessed."
But after gaining intelligence on Wiley's location when the messages were posted and confirming he was in Holland the police have now dropped the investigation.
A spokesperson for The Community Security Trust, confirmed: "It is one of the loopholes of the internet that a British person can post so many antisemitic tweets and posts, clearly intended for a British audience and doing so much damage to community relations in this country, but because he was not in the UK at the time he can't be prosecuted here.
The Google results are shocking: Do an image search for "Jewish baby strollers" and you'll see row upon row of portable ovens — an offensive allusion to the Holocaust.
Google says it's looking into the search results and wants to improve them, but according to researchers, the results may not be an accident. It's possible that they're the result of a coordinated extremist campaign on a fringe website to produce those specific images.
The Network Contagion Research Institute, which studies the way hate speech spreads online, located a series of posts on the 4chan message board, dating back to 2017, that purposefully pair images of ovens on wheels with the term "Jewish baby stroller." There were at least a dozen such images turned up in one search, dating from August and September 2017. That means these results may have been in place for years, even though they drew attention Friday.
Posting that specific term next to the image may have manipulated Google's search algorithm, such that it promoted those images when users search the term, says Joel Finkelstein, the institute's director.
"What happens is they trick Google into putting that stuff up top," Finkelstein said. "They paste the image with the words so that when you search those words, the image comes to the top."
Since the start of the coronavirus, museums have struggled to find ways to virtually capture their audience.
One museum, Musrara, the Naggar School of Art and Society in Jerusalem, recently took the plunge with its latest exhibit — a virtual photographic and video look at the Native American world with the help of 3D developer Tal Haring, who created VMUMU, a new virtual space at Musrara for exhibits.
"There's been a lot of video done with curators, and it's a solution, but it's not the most engaging," said Haring, who teaches three-dimensional and interactive video at Tel Aviv University and other institutions. "It basically ends up being like a Google Street View of the museum."
In Haring's VMUMU, users use their computer mouse (or keyboard arrows) to explore three galleries of Musrara's historical structure, where the museum students and artists portrayed their video and portrait works. The digitized entrance to Jerusalem's Musrara museum, now using 3D imaging to show a new exhibit to visitors (Courtesy Musrara)
The exhibit itself almost becomes an aside in this experimental method of museum visit (which involves a good amount of trial and error on the part of the user).
Maneuvering around takes some getting used to, but once one is accustomed to using the computer mouse or arrows on the keyboard to move around the screen, it's easier to focus on what's on display — in this case, the portraits, sounds and symbols of the Native American society.
Israel Defense Forces: MEXICO: From Tragedy To Hope
On September 19, 2017, Rosh Hashana eve, a 7.1 Magnitude earthquake shook Mexico. The following day, on September 20, 2017, Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, an IDF delegation of approximately 70 men and women departed for Mexico to aid in earthquake relief efforts.
Today, Major Karin, who served in the IDF Search and Rescue Brigade, looks back on her mission in Mexico:
We have lots of ideas, but we need more resources to be even more effective. Please donate today to help get the message out and to help defend Israel.
