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Israel Tag

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 15, 2016 3 Comments
Recently, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated an obvious truth. The demand that Jews leave Judea and Samaria (the "West Bank") as part of a two-state solution is nothing less than a demand for ethnic cleansing that cannot be a basis for peace, Netanyahu: Ethnic Cleansing of Jews For Peace is Absurd: That video, and the truth underlying it, caused a fury because it took on a core (but false) international view that Jewish presence beyond the 1949 armistice line (pre-1967) is illegitimate at best, illegal at worst.

Posted by David Gerstman on September 15, 2016 0 Comments
The stroke suffered Tuesday by former Israeli president Shimon Peres offers an opportunity to look at his legacy to the State of Israel. Tuesday, was September 13, 23 years to the day that he stood on the White House lawn with Yitzchak Rabin and Yasser Arafat, overseen by President Bill Clinton, to sign the Oslo Accords, the peace treaty between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization. Anyone who is familiar Peres, Israel's ninth president (who retired from that post in 2014) and two-time prime minister, since then would think of him chiefly as the architect of peace with the Palestinians. Peres took his vision of peace and became an international celebrity in the process, even as the peace he pushed for never quite materialized. But to remember Peres simply for his never quite realized dream of peace with the Palestinians, is to overlook the essential role he  played in shaping Israel's military in the 1950's.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 09, 2016 8 Comments
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu released a new video Friday. In his latest YouTube chat, Netanyahu challenges the idea that ethnic cleansing of Jews in Judea and Samaria (the "West Bank") will lead to peace. According to Israel National News:
"The Palestinian Authority leadership’s demand that a Palestinian state be free of Jews is ethnic cleansing, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said on Friday, and the concept of ethnic cleansing for peace is absurd. Netanyahu’s comments came in a video he released in Hebrew and English and which was also released in a version with Arabic subtitles."

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on September 08, 2016 3 Comments
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was a KGB spy in the 1980s, recently surfaced Soviet documents reveal. Abbas, who was a long-time aide to Yasser Arafat -- the notoriuos Godfather of Arab terrorism -- was appropriately code-named the “mole” (krotov) by his Russian handlers. Abbas was most likely recruited by the Soviet spy agency back in the early 80s when he was a Ph.D. student at a Moscow university where he was polishing his credentials as an antisemitic conspiracy theorist, needed to rise through the ranks of Arafat’s Palestinian terrorist group PLO. Abbas, leader of PLO's main faction 'Fatah', took office in 2005 and appointed himself as the 'President for Life' of the Palestinian Authority -- refusing to call for any further elections -- very much in keeping with the democratic best-practices of fellow Arab despots.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 04, 2016 2 Comments
The list of Palestinian suicide bombings targeting civilians is long and bloody, and dates back at least to 1989. Documenting the pathology of Palestinian terror attacks, including suicide attacks, and telling the stories of the victims, has become a priority for me. I have previously covered, among others, the suicide bombings at Sbarro Pizzeria in Jerusalem, and Dolphinarium Disco and Mike's Place bar in Tel Aviv, and Bus 37 in Haifa. On September 4, 1997, three suicide bombers targeted the Ben Yehuda Street pedestrian mall in Jerusalem in a coordinated attack just five weeks after another marketplace suicide bombing. The NY Times reported at the time:
Three suicide bombers evidently acting in concert set off bombs on a popular shopping promenade in Jerusalem today, killing four passers-by and themselves and dealing a brutal new blow to the reeling Israeli-Palestinian peace. The three explosions followed in quick succession at about 3:10 P.M. on Ben Yehuda Street, a shady pedestrian thoroughfare in West Jerusalem lined with boutiques and outdoor cafes, and packed with Israelis and foreign tourists.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 28, 2016 9 Comments
We have written numerous times about the suicide bombing of the Sbarro Pizzeria in Jerusalem in 2001, which killed 15 people, including two Americans and several children. Most recently Miriam Elman documented the bombing and the mastermind, Ahlam Tamimi, Never forget: Sbarro Pizzeria Massacre, Jerusalem, Aug. 9, 2001. Ahlam not only masterminded the bombing, she announced it on Palestinian television as a student news show host. [caption id="attachment_182024" align="alignnone" width="600"][Ahlam Tamimi announcing Sbarro Pizzeria bombing 2001, via Hot House film] [Ahlam Tamimi announcing Sbarro Pizzeria bombing 2001, via Hot House film][/caption]Ahlam is from the Tamimi Clan of Nabi Saleh, whose best known member is Bassem Tamimi, controversial for his use of children for try to provoke confrontations with the Israeli police for the purpose of obtaining viral video and images. The Tamimi Clan is treated as heroes by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, and by anti-Zionist leftists (including some Jews).  Ahlam, who was released from prison as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange and now resides in Jordan, remains a "much-loved" figure in Nabi Saleh.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 27, 2016 19 Comments
Marc Lamont Hill is a professor at Morehouse College, frequent cable news commentator, and host of his own shows on BET and VH1. Lamont Hill has voiced support for "revolutionary struggle" against Israel, which he recorded on a video for a Dream Defenders trip to express solidarity with Palestinians against Israel: Lamont Hill also is a supporter of the anti-Israel Boycott Divestment and Sanctions movement, specifically the academic boycott of Israel. This spring Lamont Hill announced that he was voting in favor of a resolution at the American Anthropological Association to boycott Israeli academia under the expansive guidelines of the BDS movement. The boycott failed to pass by a very slim margin.

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on August 26, 2016 1 Comment
A few days ago, we covered how in early August 2016 the Student Council at Leipzig University in Germany passed a resolution taking a strong stand against calls to boycott Israel, declaring them to be anti-Semitic, READ: German university student council resolution declaring BDS anti-Semitic:
The Student Council condemns anti-Semitic boycott campaigns such as the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions [BDS] and stands against the execution, participation in, and promotion of such campaigns and events at the University of Leipzig. Therefore, the Student Council will not support BDS Campaign or settings (events, exhibitions, demonstrations etc.) in which BDS Movement is involved. We consider international cooperation vital for the Academics. As a Student Council we stand against anti-Semitic measures such as disinviting of Israeli academicians from conferences in the context of the boycott campaign, and [council will] publicise whenever it happens — thereby contributing to the clarification of the matter and preventing such an occurrence.
The student council has produced a chronicle of its rejection of BDS (pdf.) which includes a citation to my translation of the resolution:

Posted by Miriam Elman on August 26, 2016 3 Comments
Early Tuesday morning, roughly 60 ultra-Orthodox Hasidic Jews tried to make an unauthorized visit to Joseph’s Tomb, located inside the Palestinian city of Nablus near the biblical city of Shechem. According to multiple media reports (see here and here), the group had to be extricated by Israeli troops after their convoy came under attack by Palestinian rioters in the vicinity. [caption id="attachment_170045" align="alignnone" width="600"]Joseph's Tomb | 2011 | credit: YouTube screenshot Joseph's Tomb | 2011 | credit: YouTube screenshot[/caption]

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 25, 2016 2 Comments
In January 2016, we addressed the rising tide of aggressive and sometimes violent conduct by anti-Israel protesters who disrupt appearances by Israeli and pro-Israel speakers, Anti-Israel protest at Kings College turns violent:
For several years we have been documenting the increasingly aggressive tactics of anti-Israel protesters on campus. Recently, an Israeli professor’s guest lecture was disrupted at the University of Minnesota Law School, and the Palestine Solidarity Committee at UT-Austin (led by law student Mohammed Nabulsi) disrupted an Israeli Studies event....

Posted by Miriam Elman on August 24, 2016 14 Comments
Last Thursday, Israel National News (Arutz Sheva) reported that Arab-Israeli MK Yosef Jabarin traveled to Hadarim Prison to visit with top Palestinian terror mastermind Marwan Barghouti. After the visit, Jabarin reportedly claimed to be “impressed” by the terrorist’s “serious intention” to run for chairman of the Palestinian Authority (PA), despite being holed up in an Israeli jail cell:
During their meeting, Jabarin and Barghouti discussed efforts to reconcile split Palestinian factions before the upcoming municipal elections, which are set for October. Barghouti emphasized that the success of the local government elections could pave the way for democratic elections in the Palestinian Legislative Council, and the office of the chairman of the Palestinian Authority after Abbas—which would give him a chance to supersede Abbas”.
Other than this brief mention in Arutz Sheva and an editorial in a website catering to religiously-observant Jews, I couldn’t find this news item covered by any other mainstream media outlet. That’s not surprising.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 23, 2016 7 Comments
Hebron is a hot spot in many ways. Hebron and its immediately surrounding Arab areas are the single largest source of terror attacks during the so-called Knife or Stabbing Intifada. It's also a place where anti-Zionist and left-wing "liberal Zionist" American Jews love to gather to protest the Jewish "settlers" who live in a tiny section of the city. That section is under Israeli military control by agreement with the Palestinian Authority, with good reason. Hebron has a long history of violence directed at Jews. Hebron also is the place of the Cave of the Patriarchs, which I visited in 2015. [caption id="attachment_129734" align="alignnone" width="600"][Cave of Patriarchs - Abraham] [Cave of Patriarchs - Abraham][/caption]Hebron had one of if not the oldest continuous Jewish communities in the world, dating back several hundred years at least. Until 1929. On August 23, 1929, the Arabs attacked the Jews of Hebron along with numerous other Jewish communities.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 23, 2016 4 Comments
In late May 2015, I wrote about my visit to Ziv Medical Center in Safed (Tsfat), northern Israel, which serves as a center for medical assistance given Syrians, Meet an Israeli Doctor Saving Syrian Lives and Limbs:
Ziv is only 30 kilometers, a 40 minute drive, from the Syrian border. Ziv has received some publicity the past two years for its treatment of Syrians. While some of the Syrians seeking help are not direct casualties of the fighting, such as expectant mothers, almost all have traumatic wounds as a result of the war.

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on August 21, 2016 3 Comments
Students at Germany’s leading academic institution, the University of Leipzig, have passed a resolution rejecting the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement and calling it anti-Semitic. According to a copy of the resolution obtained by the Legal Insurrection from the Facebook pages of student groups, Leipzig University’s Student Council declared the BDS movement as being blatantly anti-Semitic, saying “even the basic aim of the BDS movement, the complete boycott of the State of Israel, fits seamlessly with the anti-Semitic campaigns of past centuries, and explicitly with that of the National Socialism; Nazi slogan “Don’t Buy From the Jews” is once again being expressed here.” [lines 109-112] The resolution passed by the Leipzig University’s Student Council earlier this month declares [author's translation]:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 20, 2016 8 Comments
We previously wrote about the terrorist shooting attack that killed father of 10 Rabbi Miki Mark, and injured his wife and several of his children who were in the vehicle, Palestinian War of Terror – Israeli father of 10 murdered in front of his family. MichaelMark1 We followed up when the Hamas cell responsible for the attack was captured, and its leader killed when he engaged in a firefight, IDF brings the roof down on Hamas murderer of Rabbi Miki Mark – literally. When the shooting took place the vehicle turned over in the road, and the occupants were left bloody and wounded.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 17, 2016 17 Comments
One of the mysteries of the anti-Israel "non-governmental organization" (NGO) movement is the sources of funding. NGO Monitor has done a great job tracking some of the funding particularly for Israeli NGOs, and groups involved in the BDS movement, such as Jewish Voice for Peace. In 2013, NGO Monitor also explored (pdf.) the role of George Soros' foundations, including the Open Society Foundations, in funding a wide range of anti-Israel NGOs. A recent hack of the Open Society Foundations, sheds even more light with documentary evidence of a Soros-funded anti-Israel ecosystem feeding off each other to delegitimize Israel. The Jewish Press reported on the circular nature of the funding. Soros funds groups directly, and other groups that fund other groups. He created an anti-Israel ecosystem:
Jewish Hungarian-American business magnate George Soros, whose company files were hacked by the same outfit that in June hacked the DNC computers, was a major contributor to anti-Israel and anti-Zionist causes, as appears from an archive of leaked documents of the DC Leaks website... The list of groups hostile to Zionism and to the Jewish State that received funds from Soros is very long:
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