Doc's Talk: "Give Us a Break"

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

"Give Us a Break"

Arlene Kushner

That's rhetorical, of course. No one gives us a break. But the position of the EU at present is over-the-top:

According to a report from The Independent (London), an internal EU document was sent to European Consuls General located in Jerusalem with regard to the Shepherd's hotel demolition. According to this report, the Consuls then suggested that it would be wise if they were present during housing demolitions in eastern Jerusalem, and that they attend demolition and eviction related court proceedings and "ensure EU intervention when Palestinians are arrested or intimidated by Israeli authorities for peaceful cultural, social or political activities in east Jerusalem."

If this doesn't enrage you, don't know what will. AAdditionally, The Independent wrote:

"If current trends are not stopped as a matter of urgency, the prospect of east Jerusalem as the future capital of a Palestinian state becomes increasingly unlikely and unworkable.

"Over the past few years the changes to the city have run counter to the peace process. Attempts to exclusively emphasize the Jewish identity of the city threaten its religious diversity and radicalize the conflict, with potential regional and global repercussions."

Global repercussions, no less.

But when the man responsible for the horrendous, obscene murder of four innocent Israelis is arrested by the PA simply to keep him safe from Israel (with no intent of prosecuting) -- and when he is released to make Hamas happy, the PA is angry at Israel for grabbing him so quickly -- this apparently doesn't run counter to the peace process. At least, we have no word from the EU indicating that it is.

So, we know whom we are dealing with, and what we are up against. And it's not a pretty picture.

~~~~~~~~~~

With regard to the Europeans on this issue, there are two or three essential problems:

[] There is insufficient recognition of the historical nature of eastern Jerusalem.

Where there is talk (British talk in this instance) of Israel "emphasizing the Jewish nature of the city," it is a marker of people who are clearly clueless (or pretending to be clueless?) about the fact that Jerusalem IS a Jewish city. Since the late 1800s, Jerusalem has had a Jewish majority. It was only the illegal usurpation of eastern Jerusalem by Jordan in 1949 that rendered this area "Arab;" this came about because Jordan drove every last Jew from that part of the city. In recent years Jews are simply moving back to the areas that were originally Jewish.

There was no international outcry when Jordan acted as it did. No distress that the Jewish nature of part of the city was willfully destroyed, as synagogues were taken down and cemeteries vandalized. No distress that Jews, who had been promised access to the Kotel -- the Western Wall -- were totally denied access for 19 years.

~~~~~~~~~~

[] There is an assumption being made: the automatic expectation that eastern Jerusalem should be the capital of a Palestinian state.

Says who? Because the PLO demands it? Let it be very, very clear: Palestinian Arabs (as a recently self-defined entity) NEVER had any part of the city. It is not theirs to claim, although they have done their damnedest in recent years to erase evidence of the Jewish presence.

The flip side of this is that Jewish rights are being totally ignored or sublimated to Arab claims. That is the single most important issue to be confronted.

But there is more: There is total failure to recognize that Jerusalem is so thoroughly composed of interlocking Jewish and Arab neighborhoods that dividing the city is truly a logistical impossibility. And there is refusal to acknowledge the security risk to Israel -- the nightmare -- that would follow from an autonomous Arab presence in some sectors of Jerusalem. Where I live in an old neighborhood of western Jerusalem, I am within easy kassam range of areas that would be part of a Palestinian state, were the Europeans to have their way.

~~~~~~~~~~

[] There is serious disrespect for, and disregard of, Israeli law and legal processes.

The furor over the demolition of an old hotel building that was acquired legally by Jews 25 years ago is evidence of this. So is the suggestion by the Consuls General that they should monitor court proceedings. How insulting and inappropriate does it get? They want not only monitoring of court procedures, but the ability to intervene.

~~~~~~~~~~

While distancing his government from the hotel demolition, Prime Minister Netanyahu did support the legal right of Jews to acquire property in Jerusalem. Today his office released the following:

"Actions undertaken yesterday (Sunday), 9.1.11, at the Shepherd Hotel were conducted by private individuals in accordance with Israeli law. The Israeli government was not involved.

"There should be no expectation that the State of Israel will impose a ban on Jews purchasing private property in Jerusalem. No democratic government would impose such a ban on Jews and Israel will certainly not do so."
Additionally, a Jerusalem District Court -- in response to a petition by the Husseini family -- has declined to issue a temporary restraining order against building on the Shepherd hotel plot.

~~~~~~~~~~

Amidst much praise, Meir Dagan has just stepped down from his post as director of the Mossad, after a record-breaking term of eight years. A number of brilliant operations are being attributed to him (although it is obviously impossible to credit him on the record definitively) -- these include the assassination of Hezbollah strongman Imad Mughniyeh, the bombing of the Syrian nuclear reactor, and certain sabotages that have occurred in Iran.

Tzachi Hanegbi, who was very much aware of Dagan's operations because of various government positions he held, had this to say:

"Even without relating to these specific operations [as above], anyone familiar with Dagan's years in the Mossad up close can attest to the fact that reality has surpassed all imagination."

And so we owe a debt to Meir Dagan, not only for the successful operations that he achieved, but for the very critical deterrence power that accrues to them.

Dagan has been succeeded by Tamir Pardo. May he have a term of stunning success.

~~~~~~~~~~

Very recently, word was that -- when terrorists from small militant groups in Gaza (such as Islamic Jihad) had gotten restive and were seeking a chance to use the new weapons they had acquired -- Hamas had given the go-ahead, with the proviso that attacks stay in the vicinity of the border. (This was to prevent an Israeli response of major proportions.) What we saw then, starting near the end of 2010, was an escalation in attacks.

But just yesterday, perhaps unsettled by the Israeli response, Hamas declared it wants to avoid a Cast Lead II, and announced that it has expended efforts to get those other groups in Gaza to stop firing rockets at Israel -- to "control the situation on the ground."

Either Hamas is not trying very hard, or these groups are not listening. The rockets are still coming on a daily basis, and frequent clashes take place near the border between Israel and Gaza. In the first week of 2011 alone, ten rockets were fired at Israeli communities near the Gaza border. There is routinely an Israeli response to an attack, with strikes against terrorist sites.

Last Wednesday, two Palestinian Arabs attempting to scale the fence into Israel were shot and killed.

On Friday, an Israeli soldier was killed and three others wounded by friendly fire. This happened after IDF soldiers saw terrorists placing devices on the border fence, and called in mortar fire against them from another location.

Today, three rockets landed in the outskirts of Ashkelon, in one of the longer range attacks of recent weeks.

~~~~~~~~~~

© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution

see my website www.ArlenefromIsrael.info

No comments:

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