Category: Israel

Ahmadinejad lashes out at Israel

From the Los Angeles Times

RAMIN MOSTAGHIM REPORTING FROM TEHRAN

Establishment of an in­dependent Palestinian state would not stop efforts to wipe out Israel, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahma­dinejad said Friday.

Palestinians are ex­pected to present a petition to the United Nations Gen­eral Assembly next month I for full U.N. membership, which would confer interna­tional recognition of an inde­pendent state. The United States is seeking’to block any action on the bid.

Creation of a Palestinian state would not satisfy those intent on “annihilating” Israel, Ahmadinejad said, speaking at Iran’s annual Quds Day rally in support of the Palestinian cause.

“Do not think that your existence will be recognized with the recognition of the Palestinian state,” the Irani­an president said, address­ing Israel.

“You have no place in our region and among our na­tions, and you will not be able to continue your ignominious life on even a small part of the Palestinian terri­tories.”

Ahmadinejad also re­newed his previous charac­terizations of the Holocaust during World War II’ as a “lie.”

Tens of thousands of Ira­nians marched Friday in Tehran for Quds Day events; some observers said the crowds were smaller than those of last year.

Authorities provided free bus and subway rides for at­tendees.

Mostaghim is a special correspondent.

Norway says Terrorism Against Israel is Justified

With galling Chutzpah, Norway’s Ambassador to Israel has suggested that Hamas terrorism against Israel is more justified than the recent terrorist attack against Norway!

Alan Dershowitz responds…
 

Is Terrorism Against Israel Really More Justified Than Terrorism Against Norway?

July 28, 2011 at 4:30 pm

In a recent interview, Norway’s Ambassador to Israel has suggested that Hamas terrorism against Israel is more justified than the recent terrorist attack against Norway. His reasoning is that, “We Norwegians consider the occupation to be the cause of the terror against Israel.” In other words terrorism against Israeli citizens is the fault of Israel. The terrorism against Norway, on the other hand, was based on “an ideology that said that Norway, particularly the Labor Party, is foregoing Norwegian culture.” It is hard to imagine that he would make such a provocative statement without express approval from the Norwegian government.

I can’t remember many other examples of so much nonsense compressed in such short an interview. First of all, terrorism against Israel began well before there was any “occupation”. The first major terrorist attack against Jews who had long lived in Jerusalem and Hebron began in 1929, when the leader of the Palestinian people, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, ordered a religiously-motivated terrorist attack that killed hundreds of religious Jews-many old, some quite young. Terrorism against Jews continued through the 1930s. Once Israel was established as a state, but well before it captured the West Bank, terrorism became the primary means of attacking Israel across the Jordanian, Egyptian and Lebanese borders. If the occupation is the cause of the terror against Israel, what was the cause of all the terror that preceded any occupation?
 
I was not surprised to hear such ahistorical bigotry from a Norwegian Ambassador. Norway is the most anti-Semitic and anti-Israel country in Europe today. I know, because I experienced both personally during a recent visit and tour of universities. No university would invite me to lecture, unless I promised not to discuss Israel. Norway forbids Jewish ritual slaughter, but not Islamic ritual slaughter. Its political and academic leaders openly make statements that cross the line from anti-Zionism to anti-Semitism, such as when Norway’s former Prime Minister condemned Barak Obama for appointing a Jew as his Chief of Staff. No other European leader would make such a statement and get away with it. In Norway, this bigoted statement was praised, as were similar statements made by a leading academic.
 
The very camp that was attacked by the lone terrorist was engaged in an orgy of anti-Israel hatred the day before the shooting. Yet I would not ever claim that it was Norway’s anti-Semitism that “caused” the horrible act of terrorism against young Norwegians.
 
The causes of terrorism are multifaceted but at bottom they have a common cause: namely a belief that violence is the proper response to policies that the terrorists disagree with. The other common cause is that terrorism has often been rewarded. Norway, for example, has repeatedly rewarded Palestinian terrorism against Israel, while punishing Israel for its efforts to protect its civilians. While purporting to condemn all terrorist acts, the Norwegian government has sought to justify Palestinian terrorism as having a legitimate cause. This clearly is an invitation to continued terrorism.
 
It is important for the world never to reward terrorism by supporting the policies of those who employ it as an alternative to reason discourse, diplomatic resolution or political compromise.
 
I know of no reasonable person who has tried to justify the terrorist attacks against Norway. Yet there are many Norwegians who not only justify terrorist attacks against Israel, but praise them, support them, help finance them, and legitimate them.
 
The world must unite in condemning and punishing all terrorist attacks against innocent civilians, regardless of the motive or purported cause of the terrorism. Norway, as a nation, has failed to do this. It wants us all to condemn the terrorist attack on its civilians, and we should all do that, but it refuses to live by a single standard.
 
Nothing good ever comes from terrorism, so don’t expect the Norwegians to learn any lessons from its own victimization. As the Ambassador made clear in his benighted interview, “those of us who believe [the occupation to be the cause of the terror against Israel] will not change their minds because of the attack in Oslo.” In other words, they will persist in their bigoted view that Israel is the cause of the terrorism directed at it, and that if only Israel were to end the occupation (as it offered to do in 2000-2001 and again in 2007), the terrorism will end. Even Hamas, which Norway supports in many ways, has made clear that it will not end its terrorism as long as Israel continues to exist. Hamas believes that Israel’s very existence is the cause of the terrorism against it. That sounds a lot like the ranting of the man who engaged in the act of terrorism against Norway.
 
The time is long overdue for Norwegians to do some deep soul searching about their sordid history of complicity with all forms of bigotry ranging from the anti-Semitic Nazis to the anti-Semitic Hamas. There seems to be a common thread.

SHITTY LITTLE COUNTRY

The  Middle East has been growing date palms for  centuries. The  average tree is about 18-20 feet tall and yields about 38 pounds of  dates a year.


Israeli date  trees are now yielding 400 pounds/year and are short enough to be  harvested from the ground or a short  ladder.

 

Israel the  100th smallest country, with less than 1/1000th of the world’s population,  can lay claim to the following:

The  cell phone was developed  in Israel by    people working  in the Israeli branch  of Motorola, which has its largest development center  in Israel.




Most  of the Windows NT and XP operating systems were developed  by Microsoft –  Israel.

The  Pentium MMX Chip technology was designed in  Israel  at  Intel.

Both  the Pentium – 4 microprocessor and the Centrino processor were entirely  designed, developed and produced in  Israel.

The  Pentium microprocessor in your computer was most likely made  in Israel.

Voice  mail technology was developed  in Israel.

Both  Microsoft and Cisco built their only R&D facilities outside the US  in Israel.

The  technology for the AOL Instant Messenger ICQ was developed in 1996 by four  young Israelis.


Israel has  the fourth largest air force in the world (after the U.S, Russia and  China). In addition to a large variety of other aircraft, Israel’s air  force has an aerial arsenal of over 250 F-16’s. This is the largest fleet  of F-16 aircraft outside of the U.  S.


Israels $100  billion economy is larger than all of its immediate neighbors  combined.


Israel has  the highest percentage in the world of home computers per capita.

According  to industry officials, Israel  designed the  airline industry’s most impenetrable flight security. US officials now  look (finally) to Israel  for advice on  how to handle airborne security  threats.

Israel has  the highest ratio of university degrees to the population in the  world.

Israel produces  more scientific papers per capita than any other nation by a large margin  – 109 per 10,000 people — as well as one of the highest per capita rates  of patents filed.

In  proportion to its  population, Israel has the  largest number of startup companies in the world.

In  absolute Israel has  the largest number of start-up companies than any other country in the  world, except the U.S. ! (3,500 companies mostly in  hi-tech).

With  more than 3,000 high-tech companies and startups,  Israel has the  highest concentration of hi-tech companies in the world — apart from the  Silicon Valley, U.S.

Israel is ranked #2 in the  world for venture capital  funds right behind the  U.S.

Outside  the United States and Canada, Israel has the largest number of NASDAQ  listed companies.

Israel has  the highest average living standards in the Middle  East.

The  per capita income inIsrael in 2000 was  over $17,500, exceeding that of the  UK.

On  a per capita basis, Israel has the  largest number of biotech startups.

Twenty-four  per cent of Israel’s workforce  holds university degrees, ranking third in the industrialized world, after  the United States and Holland and 12 per cent hold advanced  degrees.

Israel is  the only liberal democracy in the Middle  East.

In 1984 and  1991, Israel airlifted  a total of 22,000 Ethiopian Jews (Operation Solomon and Moses) at Risk in  Ethiopia, to safety in Israel.

When  Golda Meir was elected Prime Minister  of Israel  in 1969, she  became the world’s second elected female leader in modern  times.

When  the U. S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya was  bombed in 1998, Israeli rescue  teams were on the scene within a day —  and saved three victims from  the rubble.

Israel has the third highest  rate of entrepreneurship — and  the highest  rate among women and among people over 55 – in the world.

Relative  to its population, Israel is  the largest immigrant – absorbing nation on earth. Immigrants come in  search of  democracy,  religious freedom, and  economic opportunity.  (Hundreds of thousands from the former  Soviet  Union) 

Israel was  the first nation in the world to adopt the Kimberly process, an  international standard that certifies diamonds as “conflict free.”

Israel has the world’s  second highest per capita of new books.

Israel is  the only country in the world that entered the 21st century with a net  gain in its number of trees, made more remarkable because, this was  achieved in an area considered mainly  desert!

Israel has more museums per  capita than any other  country

Medicine;Israeli scientists  developed the first fully computerized, no-radiation, diagnostic  instrumentation for breast cancer. 

An Israeli company  developed a computerized system for ensuring proper administration of  medications, thus removing human error from medical treatment.

Every  year in U. S.  hospitals 7,000 patients die from treatment  mistakes.

Israel’s Given  Imaging developed the first ingestible video camera, so small it fits  inside a pill. Used to view the small intestine from the inside, cancer  and digestive  disorders.

Researchers  in Israel developed a  new device that directly helps the heart pump blood, an innovation with  the potential to save lives among those with heart failure. The new device  is synchronized with the camera helps doctors diagnose heart’s mechanical  operations through a sophisticated system of  sensors.

Israel leads  the world in the number of scientists and technicians in the workforce,  with 145 per 10,000, as opposed to 85 in the U. S., over 70 in Japan, and  less than 60 in Germany. With over 25% of its work force employed in  technical professions. Israel places first in this category as  well.

A  new acne treatment developed  in Israel, the  Clear Light device, produces a high-intensity, ultraviolet-light-free,  narrow-band blue light that causes acne bacteria to self-destruct — all  without damaging surrounding skin or  tissue.

An Israeli company  was the first to develop and install a large-scale solar-powered and fully  functional electricity generating plant, in southern California’s Mojave  desert.

All  the above while engaged in regular wars with an implacable enemy that  seeks its destruction, and an economy continuously under strain by having  to spend more per capita on its own protection than any other county on  earth.

AND  THE FRENCH AMBASSADOR  IN ENGLAND SAYS:

“ISRAEL  IS NOTHING BUT A SHITTY LITTLE  COUNTRY”

What do you think?

What If Jews Had Followed the Palestinian Path?

Postwar Jewish refugees left everything they had in Europe—no ‘right of return’ requested.

By WARREN KOZAK

It is doubtful that there has ever been a more miserable human refuse than Jewish survivors after World War II. Starving, emaciated, stateless—they were not welcomed back by countries where they had lived for generations as assimilated and educated citizens. Germany was no place to return to and in Kielce, Poland, 40 Jews who survived the Holocaust were killed in a pogrom one year after the war ended. The European Jew, circa 1945, quickly went from victim to international refugee disaster.

Yet within a very brief time, this epic calamity disappeared, so much so that few people today even remember the period. How did this happen in an era when Palestinian refugees have continued to be stateless for generations?

In 1945, there were hundreds of thousands of Jewish survivors living in DP Camps (displaced persons) across Europe. They were fed and clothed by Jewish and international relief organizations. Had the world’s Jewish population played this situation as the Arabs and Palestinians have, everything would look very different today.

To begin with, the Jews would all still be living in these DP camps, only now the camps would have become squalid ghettos throughout Europe. The refugees would continue to be fed and clothed by a committee similar to UNRWA—the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (paid for mostly by the United States since 1948). Blessed with one of the world’s highest birth rates, they would now number in the many millions. And 66 years later, new generations, fed on a mixture of hate and lies against the Europeans, would now seethe with anger.

via Warren Kozak: What If Jews Had Followed the Palestinian Path? – WSJ.com.

The News in Obama’s Middle East Speech

From the WorldJewishDaily.com, this column by Charles Krauthammer, Published: May 19. 2011 reflects my opinion fairly well.  The question is, why did President Obama have to make this public statement that everyone seems to have known but would rather not say out loud?  1967 boundaries for Israel is a negotiating point for the Israelis.

“It will be the policy of the United States to promote reform across the region, and to support transitions to democracy.”

With this Barack Obama openly, unreservedly and without a trace of irony or self-reflection adopts the Bush Doctrine, which made the spread of democracy the key U.S. objective in the Middle East.

“Too many leaders in the region tried to direct their people’s grievances elsewhere. The West was blamed as the source of all ills.”

Note how even Obama’s rationale matches Bush’s. Bush argued that because the roots of 9/11 were to be found in the deflected anger of repressed Middle Eastern peoples, our response would require a democratic transformation of the region.

“We have a stake not just in the stability of nations, but in the self-determination of individuals.”

A fine critique of exactly the kind of “realism” the Obama administration prided itself for having practiced in its first two years.

How far did this concession to Bush go? Note Obama’s example of the democratization we’re aiming for. He actually said:

“In Iraq, we see the promise of a multiethnic, multisectarian democracy. There, the Iraqi people have rejected the perils of political violence for a democratic process . . . Iraq is poised to play a key role in the region.”

Hail the Bush-Obama doctrine.

“President Assad now has a choice: he can lead that transition [to democracy], or get out of the way.”

The only jarring note in an otherwise interesting, if convoluted, attempt to unite all current “Arab Spring” policies under one philosophical rubric. Convoluted because the Bahrain part was unconvincing and the omission of Saudi Arabia was unmistakable.

Syria’s Assad leading a transition to democracy? This is bizarre and appalling. Assad has made all-out war on his people — shooting, arresting, executing, even using artillery against cities. Yet Obama is still holding out the olive branch when, if anything, he should be declaring Assad as illegitimate as Gaddafi. Clearly, some habits
of engagement/appeasement die hard.

“A lasting peace will involve . . . Israel as a Jewish state and the homeland for the Jewish people, and the state of Palestine as the homeland for the Palestinian people.”

Meant to reassure Israelis that the administration rejects the so-called right of return of Palestinian refugees. They would return to Palestine, not Israel — Palestine being their homeland, and Israel (which would cease to be Jewish if flooded with refugees) being a Jewish state. But why use code for an issue on which depends Israel’s existence?

“The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps.”

A new formulation favorable to maximal Arab demands. True, that idea has been the working premise for negotiations since 2000. But no president had ever before publicly and explicitly endorsed the 1967 lines.

Even more alarming to Israel is Obama’s omission of previous American assurances to recognize “realities on the ground” in adjusting the 1967 border, meaning U.S. agreement that Israel would incorporate the thickly populated, close-in settlements in any land swap. By omitting this, Obama leaves the impression of indifference to the fate of these settlements. This would be a significant change in U.S. policy and a heavy blow to the Israeli national consensus.

“The Palestinian people must have the right to govern themselves . . . in a sovereign and contiguous state.”

Normal U.S. boilerplate except for one thing: Obama refers to Palestinian borders with Egypt, Jordan and Israel. But the only Palestinian territory bordering Egypt is Gaza. How do you get contiguity with Gaza? Does Obama’s map force Israel to give up a corridor of territory connecting the West Bank and Gaza? This is an old Palestinian demand that would cut Israel in two. Is this simply an oversight? Or a new slicing up of Israel?

Finally, in calling for both parties to “come back to the table,” the Palestinians have to explain “the recent announcement of an agreement between Fatah and Hamas. . . . How can one negotiate with a party that has shown itself unwilling to recognize your right to exist?”

Not a strong statement about Washington rejecting any talks involving Hamas. A mere placeholder.

On the other hand, Obama made no mention here of Israeli settlements. A mere oversight? Or has Obama finally realized that his making a settlement freeze a precondition for negotiations — something never demanded before he took office — was a disastrous unforced error? One can only hope.

Hamas poisons peace process

Hamas poisons peace process

By: Rep. Eric Cantor and Rep. Peter Roskam

May 18, 2011 04:32 AM EDT

As the news of Osama bin Laden’s death spread, the free world breathed a deep sigh of relief and praised the United States for its accomplishment.

But in the Palestinian territories, such sentiments were not shared.

In the eyes of Ismail Haniyeh and the infamous Hamas terrorist organization he leads, the operation “marks the continuation of the American policy based on oppression and the shedding of Muslim and Arab blood.” Really?

If killing the man responsible for the worst terrorist attack in U.S. history — not to mention the aggressor who did more to subjugate and kill fellow Muslims who disagree with his worldview than perhaps any other individual on earth — makes us oppressors, then how would Hamas describe bin Laden?

Haniyeh didn’t hold back. “We condemn the assassination of a Muslim and Arab warrior,” he proclaimed, “and we pray to God that his soul rests in peace.”

Fitting, coming from a terrorist organization whose founding charter instructs, “The time will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews; until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: O Muslim! There is a Jew hiding behind me, come on and kill him.”

As President Barack Obama draws national attention to the Middle East with a major speech on Thursday, we ask our fellow lawmakers — and all Americans — the following questions: Does this seem like a group with whom Israel can make peace? Would you trust this organization to have free rein in your own backyard? Is this a group deserving of $550 million in annual foreign aid from cash-strapped U.S. taxpayers?

via Hamas poisons peace process – POLITICO.com Print View.

Bin Laden’s Big Mistake

One thing made Osama bin Laden public enemy #1.

One thing made him a target for America’s hit squad.

One thing – and only one thing – made his assassination justified and praised by world leaders. He didn’t just kill Jews. Had he limited his terrorism to Jews only, he would not have been targeted. 

The same world leaders, who today take great pride in his death, would have celebrated his life. He would not have been killed by President Obama; he would have dined with him. He would have been invited to the United Nations. He would have been a featured speaker on the world speaking tour. He would have won the Noble peace prize. 

Think I’m crazy? Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is the President of Iran. His resume includes a lot more than just politics. It has been proven that he personally ordered the attacks against the Jewish community of Argentina where hundreds of Jews were killed. He has stated – time and again – that he wants to destroy Israel. He wants to kill the 6,000,000 Jews (interesting number) who live and he is feverishly working to build a bomb that will do just that. 

Has he been targeted? Is this animal on any one’s “hit list”? Actually, just the opposite is true. He recently spoke in the UN. He was a guest speaker at Columbia University. Why? Because he is only interested in killing Jews. 

Khaled Mashaal is the leader of Hamas. Hamas is the sworn enemy of Israel. It has killed over 1,500 Jews in the last 10 years. It has fired over 5,000 missiles into Israel, aiming for Jewish homes and hoping to kill Jewish children. Has he been targeted? Is this beast on any one’s “hit list”? Actually, just the opposite is true. Russian President Vladimir Putin recently invited Mashaal to Moscow. Former USA President Jimmy Carter has embraced Mashaal and considers him a partner for peace. Why? Because he is only interested in killing Jews. 

Yassir Arafat was the founder and leader of the PLO. He has more innocent blood on his hands than Osama bin Laden. Yet, this murderer was invited numerous times to dine with President Bill and First Lady Hillary Clinton in the White House. He spoke in the UN. He was accepted around the world as a leader and spoke in over 30 countries. He won the Noble Peace Prize. Why? Because he was only interested in killing Jews. 

Although I can go on, I will give just one final example: Adolph Hitler.  The world knew about concentration camps as early as 1933. 

The world knew about Kristellnacht back in November of 1938. Yet, the entire world called this monster; Herr Hitler.  They gave his respect. They recognized him as a leader. All that changed when Hitler invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. From that point on he became an enemy. Why? Because until that day he was interested in killing Jews only.  Osama bin Laden violated the golden rule: In addition to killing just Jews, he also killed non-Jews. That is why he was targeted and for no other reason! 

The message to Jews – and the State of Israel – is very clear. Learn to defend yourself. Learn to take revenge yourself. The world will not help you with Iran or Hamas. Ahmadinejad and Mashaal will not make the same mistake as Bin Laden and will continue to be accepted and embraced by the world. Understand this, accept this and deal with this. “We have no one on which to rely, other than our Father in Heaven”. May today’s Jewish leaders – and the brave warriors of the IDF – engrave this on their hearts. And may they – very soon – do to these terrorists exactly what was done to Bin Laden.