Thursday, October 31, 2013

After Syria and Iran, Is Russia's Putin Finding Another Middle East Ally in Egypt?

The following by Raymond Stock is reposted here with permission of Middle East Forum:


Anne Bayefsky: Anti-Semitism is at the Root of the UN’s Double-Standards

For Immediate Release:
October 30, 2013
Contact: info@humanrightsvoices.org
Follow us on Twitter


Anti-Semitism is at the Root
of the UN’s Double-Standards


This article by Anne Bayefsky originally appeared on FOX News.


This week Israel caved in to European and American pressure to further subject itself to egregious discrimination at the United Nations. The move was in response to a twisted appeal to Israel to preserve the fiction of a U.N. human rights system committed to equality.

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Mideast Media Sampler 10/30/13: Obama's Pragmatic Retreat From Middle East Foreign Policy

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

When Wishful Thinking Guides Foreign Policy

Obama and advisors
Barack Obama Samantha Power Tom Donilon and Susan Rice.
Credit:Pete Souza / WikiCommons

Last week as we noted, the New York Times ran a devastating article about President Obama’s Syria policy. The Times reported, among other things, that the President was disinterested in planning discussions about Syria.

Two other articles reported that America’s Middle East allies generally and the Saudis specifically were upset by the administration’s Middle East policy.

I guess that the New York Times had enough serious reporting about the shortcomings of the Obama administration’s Middle East policy, because over the weekend, it published Rice Offers a More Modest Strategy for Mideast by its foremost White House cheerleader, Mark Landler. (Landler contributed to the Syria report, but was not one of the bylined reporters.)

Dr. Jacques Neriah: Sisi Fever: Will the General be the Next President of Egypt?

At the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, Dr. Jacques Neriah asks the question: Sisi Fever: Will the General be the Next President of Egypt?.

Here is a synopsis of Neriah's article:


  • General Abd el Fattah el-Sisi, the man who led the overthrow of President Morsi on July 3, 2013, holds the combined titles of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, first Deputy of the Prime Minister, and Minister of Defense and Military Production. Unlike his predecessors, Sisi is waging a merciless campaign against jihadi fighters in Sinai Peninsula in order to restore Egypt's sovereignty there while drastically reducing Hamas' power in Gaza.

David P. Goldman on China's Growing Influence In Iran and the Middle East

The following by David P. Goldman is resposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum:

A Pax Sinica in the Middle East?


by David P. Goldman
Asia Times
October 28, 2013

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Anne Bayefsky: Europe, US Pressuring Israel to Endure Discrimination at UN Human Rights Council


For Immediate Release:
October 27, 2013
Contact: info@humanrightsvoices.org
Follow us on Twitter



Europe, US Pressuring Israel to Endure Discrimination at UN Human Rights Council



This article by Anne Bayefsky originally appeared on The Jerusalem Post.


The United Nations is gearing up for yet another attack upon Israel – even more outrageous on this occasion because it has been arranged in the name of equality. The so-called “Universal Periodic Review” (UPR), will take place in Geneva on October 29, 2013, under the auspices of the UN Human Rights Council. The label is intended to evoke the equal treatment of all UN member states, notwithstanding the actual treatment of the UN’s favorite whipping boy.

The UPR was concocted after the credibility of the Council’s predecessor – the UN Human Rights Commission – finally took a fatal hit. On March 15, 2006, with the United States and Israel voting against, the General Assembly pushed the Commission out one door and dragged the Council in through another. The “reform” of the UN’s top human rights body was fundamentally flawed, however, since American efforts to condition membership on some degree of actually protecting human rights, were totally rejected.

The UPR has been called the Council’s most important innovation. Then President of the General Assembly, Swede Jan Eliasson, said of the UPR just before the vote: “Such a mechanism would ensure equal treatment with respect to all Member States and would prevent double standards and selectivity.” The European Union was also enthusiastic, claiming the Council was a glorious “opportunity to build new trust by addressing human rights in a spirit of honesty, equal treatment and the avoidance of double standards.”

The assurances were untrue.

Obama Missteps Help Bring Israel and Gulf States Together

The following by Jonathan Spyer is reposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum:


Monday, October 28, 2013

Arlene Kushner: EU Attacks Israel For Enforcing Oslo Agreement With Palestinians

From Arlene Kushner:
October 27, 2013

Back to Normal


"Back to Normal" (whatever "normal" means)
Some days ago, I had shared with my readers the fact that there would be a hiatus in my writing both for personal reasons and because of a major project.  As to the personal reasons, I am functioning without major distraction now but advise you that, down the road, I may again be focused on other matters for a period of time during which I will not be posting. 
As to the major project: I look forward eagerly to sharing the details in a day or two, in a posting devoted primarily to this.
Today's posting will be, as I indicated, "normal."
~~~~~~~~~~
What strikes me is that in the duration of time during which I have not been posting, nothing of major significance has shifted.  It's essentially more of the same, with slight variations and permutations. The same nonsense. The same outrage. 
One on-going source of outrage is the manner in which an anti-Israel EU is conducting itself. And so I would like to begin by sharing a part of Caroline Glick's column from this past week, entitled, "Israel's European challenge."  Writes Glick (emphasis added):

Mideast Media Sampler 10/27/13: Have We Forgotten Iran Has Been At War With The West For 30 Years?

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

A Necessary Crisis with Iran

Beirut, 1983
1983 bombing of US Marine barracks in Beirut Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Recently, after the first round of nuclear talks with Iran had concluded one of the American negotiators said: “… I have never had such intense, detailed, straightforward, candid conversations with the Iranian delegation before.”

The word that bothered me most in that declaration was “candid.”

Sunday, October 27, 2013

Is Partition the Best Long-Term Solution to the Violence in Syria?

The following by Gary C. Gambill is reposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum:


Friday, October 25, 2013

Press Release: 1 Millionth Visitor Arrives Next Week on Israel Daily Picture

For Immediate Release


picture
The Western Wall, 1859
Jerusalem -- Israel Daily Picture (IDP), an online album of antique photographs of the Holy Land, will reach a historic milestone this week when its millionth visitor arrives on the site, Israeli Daily Picture

Cartoon: The Extent of BDS on College Campuses

Chava Light, a cartoonist and illustrator, has illustrated for The Algemeiner the extent of the abuse of BDS on campuses with her cartoon of A College Miseducation:

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Mideast Media Sampler 10/24/13: Obama On Syria -- Indecisive and Disinterested

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

When Legalisms Become an Excuse for Inaction


Obama talks with staff
Obama talks with, from left, Chief of Staff Denis McDonough, Gene Sperling,
 National Economic Council Director, and Miguel Rodriguez, Director of
Legislative Affairs, in the Oval Office on 8 May 2013. Credit: Wiki Commons

Yesterday’s New York Times featured an article Obama’s Uncertain Path Amid Syria Bloodshed that is probably one of the most devastating indictments of the President’s Syria policy published. I don’t think that the reporters set out to critique the President and the tone of the article was always respectful.

Still there are two description that really stuck out. The first was a general critique.

Raymond Ibrahim: Murdered Christian Children -- The Price of Obama's Pro-Brotherhood Jihad

The following by Raymond Ibrahim is reposted here with permission of Middle East Forum:


Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Islamophobia Isn't Racism -- It's The Stated Goal Of The Koran

...the Koran actually commands Muslims to instill fear of Islam (Islamophobia) into the hearts of non-Muslims, using any means necessary to force them to submit to Islam’s might. The Koran and Islamic teachings thus make Islamophobia mandatory.
Fjordman, Irrational Fear of Islam?


"Islamophobia" is a label used to tar outspoken critics of Islamists, describing the irrational fear and prejudice against Islam.

It is also apparently a specific goal of Islamists as stated in the Koran.

Abbas Edges Closer To Syria's Assad -- Does Not Bode Well For Kerry's Middle East Peace Talks

Khaled Abu Toameh writes that Abbas, Hamas, Flirting With Syria's Assad. However, while Hamas -- which has seen its once promising relationship with Egypt on the skids -- has been slow to get back into Assad's good graces, Abbas has been more successful.

The reasons for making up with Syria extend beyond mere political gain:

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

MEQ December 2000: Efraim Karsh: Why the Middle East Is So Volatile

The following by Efraim Karsh is reposted here with permission of Middle East Forum:

Why the Middle East Is So Volatile


by Efraim Karsh
Middle East Quarterly
December 2000, pp. 13-22

In the four centuries before World War I, the Middle East was a singularly unchanging place. Since that time, it has been perhaps the most hyperactive of regions. Why this dramatic change? When scholars debate the reasons for twentieth-century volatility, they usually point to outside powers. Efraim Karsh turns this equation on its head; then three leading analysts reply to his argument.

The Editors


Efraim Karsh
Efraim Karsh
Since its formation in the wake of World War I, the contemporary Middle Eastern system based on territorial states has been under sustained assault. In past years, the foremost challenge to this system came from the doctrine of pan-Arabism (or qawmiya ), which sought to "eliminate the traces of Western imperialism" and unify the "Arab nation," and the associated ideology of Greater Syria (or Suriya al-Kubra), which stresses the territorial and historical indivisibility of most of the Fertile Crescent. Today, the leading challenge comes from Islamist notions of a single Muslim community (the umma ). Intellectuals and politicians, denouncing the current system as an artificial creation of Western imperialism at variance with yearnings for regional unity, have repeatedly urged its destruction. National leaders—from Gamal Abdel Nasser to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to Saddam Husayn—have justified their interference in the affairs of other states by claiming to pursue that unity. Yet the system of territorial states has proven extremely resilient.

The Double Standards of the EU Against Israel -- Can Cyprus and the Western Sahara Take Advantage?

Examples of the ways in which anti-Semitism manifests itself with regard to the state of Israel taking into account the overall context could include...Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.
“Working Definition” of Anti-Semitism of the EU Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia, as quoted by the US State Department


In Of Hypocrisy and Double Standards, Jonathan Rosenblum writes about the hypocrisy of the EU -- specifically the hypocrisy surrounding the double standard the EU uses in misapplying guidelines solely on Israel. In this case, the EU misapplication of international law is addressed and debunked by two international lawyers:
Professors of international law, Prof. Avi Bell and Prof. Eugene Kontorovich, have now provided a particularly glaring example of the application of legal double standards to Israel by the European Union, in a study for the Kohelet Policy Forum entitled "EU's Israel Grants Guidelines: A Legal and Policy Analysis."

Monday, October 21, 2013

Why Is Saudi Arabia Suddenly So Shy When It Comes To The UN?

There are various reasons why Arabs feel the need to cloak their real concerns behind a façade of verbiage about the Palestinians. The truly puzzling question is why the West hasn’t yet learned to look behind this verbiage to the telltale actions...
Evelyn Gordon, What the Saudis Really Care About in Commentary


This month, it seems as if Saudi Arabia was getting bashful around the UN.

First it was reported in the beginning of this month that Saudi Arabia scrapped UN speech in protest over Syria, Israel:
Saudi Arabia's frustration at international inaction over Syria and the Palestinians led it to cancel its speech at the United Nations General Assembly for the first time ever this week, a diplomatic source said
While the Saudis claim to have equal concerns about Syria and the Palestinian question, Evelyn Gordon noted What the Saudis Really Care About

The Discussion of The Growing Influence of Islam in Europe Should Focus on Russia

The following by Daniel Pipes is reposted here with permission:


Despite Kerry's Glowing Praise of Assad, Full Removal of Syria's Chemical Weapons Is Unlikely

The following by Jonathan Spyer is reposted here with permission of Middle East Forum:


Sunday, October 20, 2013

Still Unanswered: Is Egypt's Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi Just Another Islamist?

The following by Raymond Stock is reposted here with permission of Middle East Forum:


by Raymond Stock
Foreign Policy Research Institute
October 2013

Friday, October 18, 2013

What Do You Think: Does Daniel Pipes ALWAYS Agree With Israel's Policies?

The following by Daniel Pipes is reposted here with permission:

Do I Not Criticize Israeli Policies?


by Daniel Pipes
September 29, 2013

David C. Speedie
David C. Speedie.
David C. Speedie, a senior fellow and director of U.S. Global Engagement Program at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, recently wrote how he follows me "quite closely" and that my work is of no value because I don't "in any way question any aspect of Israel's policy."
He implied here that I am a lapdog of the Israeli government with no mind of my own, but a p.r. agent or lobbyist for whoever's in charge in Jerusalem, so my views should have no weight. His portrayal undermines my role as an independent analyst and therefore calls for refutation.
In fact. I disagree often and volubly with Israeli policies, as the following partial list suggests:

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Mideast Media Sampler 10/17/2013: Is Iran Going To Manipulate The US The Way Obama Did The Republicans?

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

Secretary of State John Kerry said that “no deal is better than a bad deal.” Will he follow through?

The West (otherwise known as P5 + 1) has concluded its first round of talks with Iran about its nuclear program in Geneva.

The New York Times reports After Talks on Iran’s Nuclear Program, Officials Highlight the Positive:
“I’ve been doing this now for about two years, and I have never had such intense, detailed, straightforward, candid conversations with the Iranian delegation before,” said a senior Obama administration official.
What was accomplished?

Why Islamists Believe Jihad Is Not Terrorism

The following by Raymond Ibrahim is reposted here with permission of Middle East Forum:


Wednesday, October 16, 2013

MEQ Fall 2013: The Palestinian Refugee Problem Resolved

The following by Shaul Bartal is reposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum:

The Palestinian Refugee Problem Resolved



by Shaul Bartal
Middle East Quarterly
Fall 2013, pp. 29-40

No Jihadist, Rav Ovadiah Yosef zt"l Never Called For The Murder of Arabs

Following the passing of Rav Ovadiah Yosef zt"l, Yaacov Lozowick wrote about The Rav Ovadia as he meant to be -- a repost of A Rabbi Speaks Like A Rabbi, written 3 years ago.

Lozowick wrote back than in response to condemnations of Rav Ovadia Yosef in response to his calling for the death of Mahmoud Abbas and "these Palestinians". Among those condemning Rav Yosef back then were Palestinian Arab negotiator Saeb Erekat, who denounced him for preaching genocide -- followed by the State Department and media.

In response, Lozowick notes the context of Jewish history in which Rav Yosef spoke, and which his critiques ignore:

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Mideast Media Sampler 10/15/13: The New York Times' War Against Binyamin Netanyahu

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

The New York Times' War Against Binyamin Netanyahu

Last week in an article On Iran Talks, Congress Could Play ‘Bad Cop’, the New York Times quoted an “expert” named Cliff Kupchan:
It is a role that Congress shares with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, who warned the United Nations that Mr. Rouhani was a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” and urged the United States to ignore his conciliatory words and redouble the pressure on Iran.

“Netanyahu’s speech was widely ridiculed in this town,” Mr. Kupchan said, “but it largely reflects the views of many members of Congress.”
New York Times

I’m sure that in some Washington circles – those who believe words and meaningless agreements are more important than actions – Netanyahu’s speech was ridiculed. But I’m not convinced that it was widely ridiculed.

Mideast Media Sample 10/14/13: New York Times Thinks Palestinian Murderers of Civilians Qualify As "Freedom Fighters"?

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

The New York Times on Sunday featured an article, Behind Flurry of Killing, Potency of Hate, which focuses on how dehumanizing an enemy makes it easier to kill. The article focuses on a convicted, jailed and released IRA terrorist and how he could be conditioned to kill. Then the article continues:
Historical parallels are inevitably flawed. But a recent flurry of horrific bloodletting — the attack in Nairobi that left 60 dead, the execution by Syrian jihadis of bound and blindfolded prisoners, an Egyptian soldier peering through his rifle sight and firing on the teenage daughter of a Muslim Brotherhood leader — raises a question as old as Cain and Abel: Do we all have it in us?

Many experts think we do. For Mr. O’Callaghan, it was a matter of focus.

“What you’re seeing in that moment,” he said in an interview last week, “is not a human being.”
The article also mentions how Nazis could be brought to slaughter Jews (and describes the murderers in oddly sympathetic terms!). But it left out the most systematic delegitimization campaign going on now: the one by Palestinians that targets Israel.

Monday, October 14, 2013

New Website: The Truth About Palestinian Rock-Throwing -- And Their First Video

There is a new website on the web: The Truth About Palestinian Rock-Throwing.

Here is an excerpt from the site's press release:
October 14, 2013 press release announcing the debut of The Truth About Palestinian Rock-Throwing website, and two short documentaries

PRESS RELEASE

(OCT. 14, 2013) Two new short video documentaries expose how certain “news” entities and “human rights” groups help enable the Palestinian rock-throwing culture –– yet ignore or vilify the Jews who’ve been maimed and killed by it.

Arlene Kushner on Khaled Abu Toameh Interview on What Happened to the Moderate Palestinians?

From Arlene Kushner:
October 13 2013


Outrage Without End


Late on Thursday night, men who are being presumed likely terrorists broke into the home of Shariya Ofer and his wife, Monique.  Shariya -- a retired IDF colonel who had served as a commander of the elite Sayeret Shaked infantry reconnaissance unit -- was bludgeoned to death by Arabs wielding iron bars and axes. 

Credit: nosnondits
His wife, who ran to seek help, was moderately injured and is in the hospital.
The Ofer home is in the community of Brosh in the Jordan Valley.  The location is thought perhaps to not be a coincidence, as the Palestinian Authority is now claiming that all Israelis must leave this area in any settlement.

Sunday, October 13, 2013

Raymond Ibrahim: Nigeria: Where Jihad and Christian Persecution Run Rampant

The following by Raymond Ibrahim is reposted here with permission of Middle East Forum:

Friday, October 11, 2013

Towards A Jewish Majority in the State of Israel -- and the Land of Israel

The following by Yakov Faitelson is reposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum:

A Jewish Majority in the Land of Israel
The Resilient Jewish State

by Yakov Faitelson
Middle East Quarterly
Fall 2013, pp. 15-27 (view PDF)

Arlene Kushner on Palestinian Statements Proving They Won't Make Peace With Israel

From Arlene Kushner:
October 10, 2013

Pride


Before speaking about that pride, I simply wanted to alert my readers to a slowdown in my postings that will be taking place for the next 10-14 days.  I am well, but focused on both a personal family situation and on a major project -- about which you will hear in due course.  Please, unless it is important, refrain from writing to me during this time.

~~~~~~~~~~

Two Israeli professors have won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, sharing it with an Austrian Jewish American, Prof. Martin Karplus, who fled to the US before the Holocaust.

Thursday, October 10, 2013

MEQ Winter 2008: The Fallacy of Grievance-based Terrorism

The following by Melvin E. Lee is reposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum:

The Fallacy of Grievance-based Terrorism


by Melvin E. Lee
Middle East Quarterly
Winter 2008, pp. 71-79

Wednesday, October 09, 2013

MEQ 2011: Jonathan Schanzer: What Palestinians Are Saying Online

The following by Jonathan Schanzer is reposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum:

What Palestinians Are Saying Online


by Jonathan Schanzer
Middle East Quarterly
Winter 2011, pp. 15-24 (view PDF)



Mideast Media Sampler 10/9/13: 4 Examples How Media More Concerned About Iranian Jeans Than Rouhani's Deceptions

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

How the MSM acts as Rouhani's PR Flacks

One of the problems with President Hassan Rouhani’s charm offensive is that he has a record.

It’s a record that shows that he excuses the death penalty for protesters, defends Iran for its sponsorship of terror and boasts that he duped the West ten years ago.

All of this is a matter of public record. And one doesn’t need to read Barry Rubin or Michael Ledeen or Reuel Marc Gerecht to get all this. If you read about him in the New York Times prior to May 2013, the image that emerged of Hassan Rouhani is one of the ultimate regime insider, not a reformer by any stretch.

Tuesday, October 08, 2013

Video: Ari Lesser's New Rap Video Reveals Hypocricy of BDS Movement

Ari Lesser's rap video addresses the hypocrisy of those who want to boycott only Israel -- ignoring other countries in the Middle East and around the world

Here is the video:

Mideast Media Sampler 10/8/13: Media Accepts Iran's Distortions, Attacks Netanyahu

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

Where’s the scrutiny of Iran’s blatant lie about its nuclear program?


After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations General Assembly last week, a number of op-eds in both the New York Times and Washington Post criticized him.

A reading of the speech shows that it was quite skilled. Netanyahu explained how Iran is ruled by a regime that is currently destabilizing the Middle East and exporting terror globally. He also explained how, in the past, Iran used the illusion of moderation and negotiations to advance its nuclear program. (This is something that then candidate Hassan Rouhani boasted about in a recently reported video.)

But Netanyahu wasn’t arguing to attack Iran. He was arguing to keep sanctions in place, and strengthen them if necessary, to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. (In fact the public statements of the Obama administration don’t sound that different from what Netanyahu said about sanctions.) The threat of military force was meant as a last resort.

Still it didn’t stop journalists from mocking Netanyahu.

Video: UNRWA Teaches Palestinian Arabs To Hate Jews -- and Christians

Do you know what the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is for? It's an agency used to provide aid in various ways to refugees, such as summer camps. The agency is largely funded by countries and unions, such as the United States, European Union and United Kingdom. But what exactly are they funding?

Monday, October 07, 2013

Arlene Kushner: Netanyahu's Bar-Ilan Speech Will Impact Peace Talks With Palestinians

From Arlene Kushner:
October 7, 2013


Good Going!


I am referring to the speech Prime Minister Netanyahu gave at Bar Ilan University last night.
Netanyahu
Credit: TimesofIsrael
There had been considerable anxiety prior to that talk.  Four years ago, when he delivered a similar talk at Bar Ilan, he first embraced the "two state solution."  In the run-up to his talk this time, the word was that he was going to announce a change in policy.  Rumor had it that it would involve a proposal for an "interim" state, since reaching a final accord would not be possible; but such a proposal would have been a disaster.
Thus were we most pleasantly surprised when no such proposal was advanced. Nor was any suggestion made that we have to give more, sacrifice, etc. etc. in order to make an accord possible.  What a relief!
~~~~~~~~~~
This talk by the prime minister indeed did represent a new policy.  What he has done - which is marvelous and long overdue - is to tell the truth about the situation and put the onus where it belongs: squarely on the Palestinian Arabs.
This was truth that was unvarnished and most definitely not politically correct.  He spoke for the Israeli position.
~~~~~~~~~~

Mideast Media Sampler 10/7/13: Media Chooses To Trust Rouhani More Than It Trusts Netanyahu

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection


The Columnists who Cried “Sheep”



There has been a steady campaign against Prime Minister Netanyahu in the media.

Last week the Washington Post featured a column by David Ignatius arguing that Israel should let the United States give negotiations a chance. Ignatius used 1973 Yom Kippur War as a lesson for Israel, but he probably would have done better to use the Oslo Accords of 1993 as a lesson.


Video: Diplomatic Malpractice: Ignoring Palestinian Unwillingness To Make Peace With Israel

One could argue that there is a certain degree of diplomatic malpractice of the worst order not to recognize the Palestinian unwillingness to make peace with Israel.

Here is the video:

Sunday, October 06, 2013

Arlene Kushner: Obama Sets Stage To Delay Action on Iran

From: Arlene Kushner
October 5, 2013

Unreal!


Motzei Shabbat (After Shabbat)
A peaceful Shabbat and I was not expecting to post again until after Prime Minister Netanyahu speaks tomorrow night.  But I logged on to my computer tonight and took a look at the news -- which is what motivated me to do this posting, which I hope will be brief.
"Unreal!" is a term used metaphorically to ask "How can this be??" That's what I'm asking. But the rub is that what I'm reading is not fiction, it's real -- no matter how incredible it may seem.
Decide for yourselves if you can reconcile these various news items, or if they seem "unreal!" to you, as well, even as they are happening:
~~~~~~~~~~

Friday, October 04, 2013

3 Recent Mistakes The Media Made About Israeli Geography (Plus A Joe Biden Bonus)

Don't get stuck on stupid, reporters. We are moving forward. And don't confuse the people please. You are part of the public message. So help us get the message straight. And if you don't understand, maybe you'll confuse it to the people.
Lieutenant General Honore addressing reporters about New Orleans evacuation plan for Hurricane Rita

It should come as no surprise that just as it will describe terrorists as activists or militants, the Media will be equally inaccurate in other issues concerning Israel.

This week I came across 3 articles and posts that demonstrate the degree to which the media really does not seem to have a grasp of the basics when it comes to Israel.

Or just doesn't care.

Thursday, October 03, 2013

Arlene Kushner on Positive Reception in Israel To Netanyahu's UN Speech

From Arlene Kushner:
October 3, 2013

Maximum Effort


Prime Minister Netanyahu approached the podium at the UN this week with courage and determination.  He spoke with impeccable logic and eloquence. 
If you would like to see a video of his talk: 



Following his talk, he remained in the US an additional day in order to give numerous media interviews on the subject of the dangers of Iran and the necessity of fully dismantling its nuclear capability.
In other words, he is putting out that maximum effort to alert the world to a critical danger.
~~~~~~~~~~
In many quarters here in Israel his words were received with high praise (all emphasis below added).

Remembering the 1973 Yom Kippur War: Lessons Learned

The following by Efraim Inbar is reposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum


Video: The Lady in Number 6 -- The New Movie on the Life of Alice Herz-Sommer, World's Oldest Holocaust Survivor

Three years ago, I wrote about Holocaust Survivor Alice Herz Sommer, Age 106, And Her Music.

Now, 3 years later, there is a movie about Alice Herz-Sommer's life:
The Lady in Number 6 is one of the most inspirational and uplifting stories of the year. As the world’s oldest pianist and holocaust survivor, 109 year-old Alice Herz Sommer shares her views on how to live a long and happy life. She discusses music, laughter and how to remain optimistic come what may. The film features beautiful photographs and rare film footage that truly brings Alice’s extraordinary story to life.

What's The Best Way To Deal With Iran? Just Ask Rouhani!

If Obama is going to negotiate with Iran, he read the article from The Times of Israel that reports on When Rouhani unwittingly told an Israeli agent how to deal with Iran:
In August 1986, in the midst of what would become the Iran-Contra Affair, an Israeli adviser to the prime minister, working undercover as a US envoy, met with Hasan Rouhani, the current president of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Rouhani, in discussing ways to facilitate the release of seven US hostages then being held in Lebanon, gave the Israeli the following advice: “First and foremost, you have to be firm with [Iranian leader Ayatollah] Khomeini. Stand strongly before him… If you don’t bare sharp teeth before Khomeini, you’re going to have troubles all over the world. [But] if you threaten him with military force, he’ll kiss your hand and run.”

Wednesday, October 02, 2013

JCPA: After the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Is Hamas in Gaza Next in Line?

Col. (ret.) Dr. Jacques Neriah addresses the question After the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Is Hamas in Gaza Next in Line?

Here is the executive summary of his article:
  • Egypt has finally decided to tackle the security threat from the Sinai Peninsula, a region that was nearly under the control of jihadist organizations with links to al-Qaeda and Hamas.

  • The Egyptian army’s ultimate goal is clear: to recover Egypt’s sovereignty in Sinai. In order to succeed in its mission, the Egyptian supreme command understands that it must neutralize Hamas, which it sees as partly responsible for the security situation in Sinai during the last few years.

Dawn Perlmutter on Jihadist Ritual Murder in the Kenya Mall Attack

The following by Dawn Perlmutter is reposted here with permission of the Middle East Forum:



Arlene Kushner on Netanyahu's Speech to the UN -- Not the Usual Conciliatory Tone

From Arlene Kushner:
October 1, 2013

The Shock and the Pride


What had me close to speechless earlier today was a quote by the venerable (sic) US secretary of state, John Kerry.  (With thanks to IMRA for putting it up.)
The source here is Al-Arabiya, but there are other sources as well (e.g., AFP), because the quotes are taken from a "60 Minutes" broadcast.  Said Mr. Kerry (emphasis added):
"...a deal with Iran could be reached within months if Tehran proves that its nuclear program was not being used to build atomic weapons...

Tuesday, October 01, 2013

Video/Transcript: Netanyahu's Speech at the United Nations General Assembly October 1, 2013

Here is the video of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's speech today at the United Nations General Assambly, followed by the transcript -- from the Prime Minister's Office website.





Mideast Media Sampler 10/1/13: Pundits and Allies Reject Obama’s Foreign Policies

by David Gerstman, contributing blogger at Legal Insurrection

In a remarkable op-ed last week, Jackson Diehl of the Washington Post excoriated Obama’s Myopic Worldview.

After noting that the President claimed in his U.N. speech, “The world is more stable than it was five years ago,” Diehl responded:
So: Why, according to Obama, is the world better off than in 2008? Well, the global economic crisis has abated. But that’s not all: “We’ve also worked to end a decade of war,” the president said, by withdrawing U.S. and NATO troops from Iraq and Afghanistan and “shifting away from a perpetual war footing.” Here’s where you could almost hear the head-scratching in the Iraqi and Afghan delegations: Violence in both of those countries is considerably worse than it was five years ago, in part because of the U.S. withdrawals.

New York Times, Like Iran's Rouhani, Dilutes Jewish History for Its Readers

...however much mullahs or media may seek to distort inconvenient historical facts, people devoted to truth will continue to know better.
Rabbi Avi Shafran


Rabbi Avi Shafran writes that The New York Times, like Iran's Rouhani, tries its hand at Defining History Down.

At a time that Rouhani sidestepped on the Holocaust, the New York Times for its part also watered down the history of the Jews. Last week, Jodi Rudoren of The New York Times wrote Jews Challenge Rules to Claim Heart of Jerusalem.

Shafran takes issue with matters of emphasis in the article. The real issue, however, is the video that accompanies the article:

Arlene Kushner: Pressure on Netanyahu as He Speaks to Obama and the UN About Iran

From Arlene Kushner:
September 30, 2013

Troubling, Unsettling

But of course!  How could the situation be anything but?
This morning's lead story in the JPost included this (emphasis added):
"Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will go into his meeting with US President Barack Obama on Monday aiming not only to reveal the 'true face' of the Iranian regime, but also wanting to hear areaffirmation from Obama of Israel's right to defend itself.

"One of Israel's main concerns presently is that Iranian President Hasan Rouhani's 'charm offensive' has chipped away at Israel's legitimacy for military action if Tehran crosses the red line Netanyahu established at the General Assembly last year."