Doc's Talk: PR does matter-it is vital strategy-our enemy"gets it"

Friday, July 10, 2009

PR does matter-it is vital strategy-our enemy"gets it"

IICC

Overview

1. The Palestinian Authority and Fatah have recently launched two new media outlets geared towards two distinct target audiences: 1.

The Israeli target audience: on June 15, Wafa, the official news agency of Abu Mazen's Palestinian Authority, launched a Hebrew version of its website, until then available in Arabic, English, and French. The independent Hebrew edition aims to focus on issues of interest to Israeli government officials, ordinary readers, and media. The contents produced by the website will be sent through the Internet to influential parties in Israel .
2.

The Palestinian and Arab target audience: on June 6, Fatah began test broadcasting a new satellite TV channel called Al-Filastiniyya. According to the channel's director, its broadcasts will reflect the policy of Fatah and the PLO.

2. The website and the TV channel join the Palestinian Authority's existing media, chief among which are the Al-Hayat al-Jadeeda, Al-Ayyam, and Al-Quds dailies, the Palestinian Authority's official TV channel, as well as its websites and news agencies (mainly Wafa and the unofficial Ma'an news agency, which also has a website in Hebrew). The launch of Wafa's Hebrew-language website will improve to some extent the Palestinian Authority's ability to compete for Israeli public opinion, while the new TV channel may help promote its media capabilities with the Palestinian and Arab target audiences (provided it can take its place among already existing Palestinian and Arab channels).

3. Hamas's Al-Aqsa and Al-Quds TV channels, which enjoy the support of the popular Qatari channel Al-Jazeera, easily outperform Palestinian Authority and Fatah media, giving Hamas an advantage in the battle for hearts and minds among Palestinian, Arab, and even (directly and indirectly) Western target audiences. Fatah and the Palestinian Authority do have the upper hand when it comes to the Israeli target audience, seeing as Hamas's websites are published in eight languages but not in Hebrew (since the Israeli target audience is not one of Hamas's priorities in the battle for hearts and minds).

Wafa News Agency's Hebrew-language website

4. On June 15, the Palestinian Authority's Wafa News Agency 1 launched a Hebrew version of its website, until then available in Arabic, English, and French. According to Riyadh al-Hassan , Wafa's Chairman of the Board, the agency's Hebrew website will not be a translation of its Arabic-language counterpart but rather an independent website. It will focus on issues of interest to Israeli readers and media, including news, articles, and journalistic stories pertaining to all areas of Palestinian life: politics, economy, society, and culture. The website will also address Israeli Arabs, because that sector of society “plays an ever-increasing role in shaping the future of the Middle East conflict”. Riyadh al-Hassan further noted that the information on the website would be accurate and reliable, and that it would reflect the views and positions of the Palestinian government.

The Wafa News Agency offices in Ramallah
The Wafa News Agency offices in Ramallah
(Wafa Agency Hebrew website, July 2)

5. The Hebrew website is run by a team of Palestinian journalists who speak fluent Hebrew (some of them may be Israeli Arabs). The website aims to provide reliable information on the goings-on in the Palestinian Authority-administered territories and on the peace negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel from the Palestinian Authority's perspective. The website will particularly emphasize interviews with Palestinian personalities regarding the peace process as well as personal stories. According to the website's directors, the Hebrew version will feature articles by Palestinian personalities, speaking directly to the Israeli public with no censorship or mediation.

6. The stated purpose of the website's creation is to directly influence Israeli public opinion through the objective coverage of various events. The website's founders intend to e-mail a daily news coverage to all Israeli Knesset members, government offices, and media. The directors of the website said that they would make efforts to keep the coverage professional and reliable, with no incitement or demagogy. They further added that they counted on the intelligence of Israeli readers and their willingness to read the Hebrew edition and get the information from a primary source. The website welcomes comments from Hebrew readers, asking them to be professional, relevant, and reliable where possible, and to avoid incitement. According to the directors of the website, they trust that their Hebrew-language readers are ready for “matter-of-fact interaction”.

7. The first article appearing on the editorial page was written by Riyadh al-Hassan, Wafa's Chairman of the Board, and it is titled “Why Wafa in Hebrew?” According to the article, the question should be why it took Wafa so long to launch a Hebrew version. The author says that Wafa should have seen a long time ago that it needed to address and interact with the Israeli reader, to examine his ability to understand and study his Palestinian opponent, and to get to know him “just as the Palestinian is determined to study his Israeli opponent”.

8. A look at the website shows that it includes the following sections:

1.

Newsflashes— short newsflashes updated in real time. Most of the reports pertain to happenings in Judea and Samaria and to IDF's activities.
2.

Daily news —more detailed stories, updated in real time, about happenings in Judea and Samaria .
3.

Interview of the week— a section featuring a weekly interview with a senior Palestinian Authority figure. For now, there are no interviews in this section.
4.

Women— no stories appear in this section as of yet.
5.

Economy —articles about economy.
6.

Culture and arts —articles on culture and arts in Judea and Samaria .
7.

Sports— sports articles.
8.

Opinions— this section features opinions by various authors ( including Israelis ) on various subjects. The articles include commentary on the negotiations between Fatah and Hamas, Salam Fayyad's speech, opinions on social matters such as gunfire at weddings, and so forth.

President Mahmoud Abbas in an open letter to the Israeli readers of Wafa's Hebrew website: “We share the dream for peace and for a better future.” President Abbas expressed his hope that the two peoples would achieve the dream of living peaceful, secure, and prosperous lives (Wafa's Hebrew website, July 5).

Al-Filastiniyya, Fatah's satellite TV channel

TV channel Al-Filastiniyya
The logo of satellite TV channel Al-Filastiniyya

9. On February 18, Fatah's revolutionary committee decided to launch a satellite TV channel headed by Nabil Amr. 2Named Al-Filastiniyya , the new channel started its test broadcasts on June 6. The channel currently broadcasts three hours a day, from 7 PM to 10 PM. According to Nabil Amr, the channel's inspector general, the channel is now in its initial testing period. The full-scale test broadcasts, due to begin in several weeks, will last for three months, after which it will start broadcasting regular shows. According to Amr, the channel will be broadcasting “for unity and for the policy of Fatah and the PLO”, maintaining professionalism. He further added that the channel would recruit Palestinian college graduates and local Palestinian experts instead of relying on experts from abroad.

10. The channel broadcasts from Ramallah and has three offices in Cairo , Amman , and Beirut . It is registered in the Palestinian Authority and broadcasts through Nilesat, an Egyptian-owned communications satellite. According to channel supervisor Nabil Amr, it is funded by Fatah rather than by external funding sources.

11. Judging by the contents of the experimental channel, it appears that it broadcasts talk shows and current events shows dealing with such pertinent political issues as Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu's speech, the internal Palestinian dialogue, and the situation in Jerusalem . The channel also broadcasts a daily press review called “Local Press”. Even though the channel claims to be objective, the various contents seen on it make it clear that it represents the PLO factions, mostly Fatah. The channel provides positive coverage of Palestinian Authority leaders, primarily Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. The channel also broadcasts songs and video clips dedicated to Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque and to such mixed Jewish-Arab cities as Jaffa and Acre . At this point, there is no evidence of anything that falls in the category of incitement; however, there have been reports portraying Israel and the IDF in a negative light.

1 Founded in 1972, Wafa is the official news agency of the Palestinian Authority, which is subjected to the presidency. It has its offices in Ramallah.

2 Nabil Amr, former Minister of Information and Abu Mazen's advisor. Appointed the Palestinian Authority's Ambassador to Cairo , Egypt in March 2008.

Comment: This, in part,is where your money goes. They could use the billions of dollars to improve/create infra-structure but no. This infra-structure development would create much needed jobs, provide critical income to their people but Fatah would then loose a valuable recruitment tool-despair, poverty and victimology.

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The IDF’s Minorities in Numbers and Pictures

In honor of IDF Diversity Week, we present diversity through numbers and pictures. Each year, more and more Muslims, Christians, Druze, Bedouin and immigrants from around the world take on the responsibility of defending Israel.

MUSLIMS:

Muslim Arab Israelis are not required to draft in the IDF, but there are many who volunteer. In 2013, there were over 200 Muslims serving in the IDF and over 300 in the reserves.

Bedouins:

Bedouins are nomadic Muslims who were in Israel when modern borders were set in place and are now considered Israeli citizens. They are not required to draft but a growing number choose to enlist. In 2012, there were over 1,400 Bedouin Muslim soldiers doing regular IDF service and almost 1,500 in the reserves.

Read more:http://www.idfblog.com/2014/02/27/truth-idf-numbers-pictures/#more-34027

Are you aware that in 2013, Middle class taxes go up-significantly?

In January of next year, the federal income tax rate for middle-class taxpayers is scheduled to rise from 25 percent to 28 percent, and the payroll tax is scheduled to rise from 13.3 percent to 15.3 percent… This drives the marginal tax rate based on the aforementioned three taxes to 48.12 percent. Add in state and local property, corporate, excise, and other state and local taxes, and the percentage of each additional dollar that is taxed hovers around 50 percent… When half of each additional dollar earned is taxed away, taxpayers experience a disincentive to start businesses or expand existing ones. This leads to fewer jobs being created.

Why is HAMAS Inside Tampa Schools?

Clare Lopez

Kelly Miliziano, who teaches history classes at Steinbrenner High School in the Tampa, Florida area apparently thinks it’s perfectly OK to invite a senior official of a HAMAS-affiliated organization into her classroom to discuss Islam with her students. According to local media reports, not only has this been going on for years, but in spite of the civil and criminal proceedings that could result from such reckless negligence, the Hillsborough County school superintendent, Mary Ellen Elia, and the chairman of the school board, Candy Olson, also expressed approval for students under their responsibility to be exposed repeatedly to guest speaker, Hassan Shibly, who is the Executive Director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the Tampa area.
More...

Did You Know... Ignoring the Call to Islam will Bring Jihad

‘Conquest through Da’wa [proselytizing] that is what we hope for. We will conquer Europe, we will conquer America! Not through sword but through Da’wa.’
-- Yousef al-Qaradawi , Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader The Arabic word ‘Da’wa’ means the “call to Islam.” But do not think that Da’wa is the same thing as an invitation to an optional holiday event. The classical Islamic doctrine of jihad mandates that enemies must be given the opportunity to convert to Islam or pay the jizya tax before it is permissible to attack them.
Clare M. Lopez

Who is being discriminated-facts tell the truth

Religious bias

Hate crimes motivated by religious bias accounted for 1,409 offenses reported by law enforcement. A breakdown of the bias motivation of religious-bias offenses showed:

65.4 percent were anti-Jewish.
13.2 percent were anti-Islamic.
9.5 percent were anti-other religion, i.e., those not specified.
4.3 percent were anti-Catholic.
3.8 percent were anti-multiple religions, group.
3.3 percent were anti-Protestant.
0.5 percent were anti-Atheism/Agnosticism/etc.

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2010/narratives/hate-crime-2010-incidents-and-offenses.

On March 31, 1977, the Dutch newspaper Trouw published an interview

with PLO executive committee member Zahir Muhsein. Here's what he said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct "Palestinian people" to oppose Zionism.

For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

In March 1977, Zahir Muhsein, a PLO executive, said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct Palestinian people to oppose Zionism."

"For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

The Arab Apartheid

Ben-Dror Yemini
In 1948, the Arab countries refused to accept the UN partition proposal and they launched a war of annihilation against the State of Israel which had barely been established. All precedents in this matter showed that the party that starts the war - and with a declaration of annihilation, yet - pays a price for it. Between 550,000 and 710,000 Arabs fled because of the war and a larger number of 850,000 Jews were expelled or fled from Arab countries (the "Jewish nakba").
Population exchanges and expulsions were the norm at that time, occurring in dozens of other conflict points and affecting about 52 million people. In all the population exchange precedents that occurred during or at the end of an armed conflict, there was no return of refugees to the previous region, which had turned into a new national state.
Only the Arab states acted completely differently from the rest of the world. Instead of assimilating the refugees, they crushed them despite the fact that they were their coreligionists and members of the Arab nation - instituting a regime of apartheid. So the "nakba" was not caused by the actual dispossession, which had also been experienced by tens of millions of others. The "nakba" is the story of the apartheid, oppression, abuse and denial of rights suffered by the Arab refugees at the hands of the Arab countries. (Maariv)

International Law and Military Operations in Practice - Col. Richard Kemp

"Islamist fighting groups study the international laws of armed conflict carefully and they understand it well. They know that a British or Israeli commander and his men are bound by international law and the rules of engagement that flow from it. They then do their utmost to exploit what they view as one of their enemy's main weaknesses. Their very modus operandi is built on the correct assumption that Western armies will normally abide by the rules, while these insurgents employ a deliberate policy of operating consistently outside international law. "

Lost Historical Moments

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Rabin ruled out a fully sovereign Palestinian state :

“We view the permanent solution in the framework of State of Israel which will include most of the area of the Land of Israel as it was under the rule of the British Mandate, and alongside it a Palestinian entity which will be a home to most of the Palestinian residents living in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. We would like this to be an entity which is less than a state, and which will independently run the lives of the Palestinians under its authority.”

Rabin ruled out a total withdrawal from Judea and Samaria and thus a return to the pre-June 1967 borders :

“The borders of the State of Israel, during the permanent solution, will be beyond the lines which existed before the Six Day War. We will not return to the 4 June 1967 lines.”

Rabin ruled out withdrawing form the Jordan Valley:

“The security border of the State of Israel will be located in the Jordan Valley, in the broadest meaning of that term.”

Rabin ruled out uprooting settlement blocs, like the Gush Katif bloc in Gaza (which was subsequently uprooted by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon):

“The establishment of blocs of settlements in Judea and Samaria, like the one in Gush Katif.

AND

Rabin ruled out removing any settlement before coming to a full peace agreement with the Palestinians:

“I want to remind you: we committed ourselves, that is, we came to an agreement, and committed ourselves before the Knesset, not to uproot a single settlement in the framework of the interim agreement, and not to hinder building for natural growth.”

Rabin insisted on Israel retaining full security control of the borders with Egypt and Jordan, contrary to Israel’s relinquishment of the Philadelphia Corridor on the border with Egypt:

“The responsibility for external security along the borders with Egypt and Jordan, as well as control over the airspace above all of the territories and Gaza Strip maritime zone, remains in our hands.”

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

3) Kuttab laments that the post-1993 Oslo process resulted in a Palestinian Authority "whose ministers and legislators are not guaranteed passage between Gaza and the West Bank ...."

Before free passage or other perquisites, PA leaders were obligated, among other things, to eliminate the terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, end anti-Israeli, antisemitic incitement in schools, mosques, and communications media, and resolve all outstanding issues through peaceful negotiations. They met none of these commitments, sometimes bolstering terrorism and greatly increasing incitement.

4) Kuttab complains that under Oslo the PA got "lightly armed police ---- but no real sovereignty over the land or contiguity between our communities in Gaza and the West Bank."

Oslo agreements repeatedly were revised, regardless of Palestinian non-compliance, until the authorized number of police grew from 8,000 to 40,000. Though they were to be the only armed forces in the territories, Israeli estimates early in the second intifada put the number of gunmen - police, "security services," terrorists, and armed gangs - at 85,000. Their armament reportedly included not only heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, but also anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles.

Sovereignty was to be negotiated in the envisioned 1998 "final status" talks - after a five-year period of confidence-building. Palestinian leadership chronically undermined the process. Palestinian terrorism made the 1993 - 1998 Oslo period more deadly for Israelis than the 15 years preceding it.

The United States doesn't have contiguity between the lower 48 states and Alaska and Hawaii; territorial contiguity between the West Bank and Gaza Strip - that is, through the 20 miles of Israeli territory between them - was never promised and would destroy Israeli contiguity.

5) "Palestinians have been made to endure hundreds of checkpoints in the West Bank, an eight-foot wall deep in our territories, and tight Israeli control over borders."

The security barrier is not "deep in Palestinian territories," but rather encompasses less than 8 percent of Judea and Samaria, and is mostly a fence, rarely a wall; the land in question is not "our [Palestinian] territories" but disputed territory to which, according to the authors of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, Jews as well as Arabs have claims; and there are no international borders, only the 1949 armistice lines with Jordan. Under 242, borders remain to be negotiated. As for checkpoints - like the security barrier and "tight Israeli control" - Palestinian Arabs precipitated these measures themselves. No terrorism and there would be no fence or tight Israeli control and few checkpoints - like before the first intifada.

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

1) In Oslo "Israeli, Palestinian and other world leaders promised that ... Palestinian sovereignty would be solidified."

No, they didn't. The 1993 Declaration of Principles and subsequent Oslo agreements outlined a process by which final status negotiations about the West Bank and Gaza Strip would be reached. The process required an end to anti-Israel terrorism and incitement and a commitment to peaceful negotiations. The PA, Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and other terrorist groups, sabotaged the process from the start.

2) "The reality is that, in defiance of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which states that it is inadmissible to occupy land by force, Palestinian territories are still under foreign military occupation."
Wrong again. Resolution 242 (1967) does note "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war." It also affirms the right of every state in the area "to live in peace with secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force." There were no "Palestinian territories." Jordan occupied the West Bank, Egypt controlled Gaza. Israel did not have "secure and recognized boundaries," so retention of some of those territories was possible under 242. Israel is not a "foreign" military occupier in the West Bank but, pending final negotiations, the lawful military administrator as a result of a successful war of self-defense.

Doc's Talk