Doc's Talk: Bashing Israel on behalf of the Protestant Church

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Bashing Israel on behalf of the Protestant Church

Missing Peace

Meta Floor wrote on her website that Naim Khoury (a pro-Israel vicar from Bethlehem), collaborated with the Israeli army during the second intifada. Mr. Khoury asked her to take the article from her website because this would endanger his life, Meta Floor refused to do so.

Meet Meta Floor guest of the state of Israel
Meta Floor is employed by the Dutch protestant organization Kerk in Actie, an offshoot of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands. Currently she works as a K.i.A envoy at Sabeel in Jerusalem.

Sabeel is the Palestinian Christian organization responsible for the Kairos document. This NGO is also behind the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions campaign against Israel.

‘Kerk in Actie’ works together with ICCO a large protestant organization dealing with the third world (togetthere program). Kerk in Actie funds Floor’s activities in Israel with 70.000 Euro a year. A statement by Kerk in Actie on Floor’s website mentions noble goals like the promotion of a just peace between Jews and Palestinians, mutual recognition of each other’s history and equal rights.

In reality however, Floor only promotes Palestinian rights and demonizes Israel. She also denies Jewish rights in the land of Israel and especially in Jerusalem.
http://www.metafloor.nl/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=34&Itemid=80
http://www.kerkinactie.nl/projecten/Meta-Floor-dialoog-vorming-en-toerusting–p483-7796

Floor lives in Jerusalem and returned to Israel early November 2010 for another three year term.

She is actively promoting the BDS campaign against Israel and wrote on her website about her participation in demonstrations on the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

She also organizes “fact finding tours” for foreigners. According to a very reliable source who participated in one of these tours they are one big Israel bashing event.

Sabeel is also involved in the organization of the second Free Gaza flotilla. The Dutch offshoot of Sabeel finances the Dutch participation in the flotilla and announced it will send an envoy who will sail on the Dutch/Italian ship. http://www.vriendenvansabeelnederland.nl/vrijheidsvloot_gaza.htm

This envoy, Bert Middel expressed anti-Semitic views on the website of Sabeel Holland. http://www.vriendenvansabeelnederland.nl/pdf.2011/Kleine%20catechismus%20van%20het%20anti%20Semitisme.pdf

A Sabeel statement about the flotilla on Floor’s website calls for people all over the world to end the siege of Gaza, to remove the yoke of occupation and to work for the freedom and liberation of Palestine.
http://www.metafloor.nl/images/documenten/statement%20-%20gaza%20the%20conscience%20of%20the%20world.pdf

Recent activities
In June 2010 Missing Peace published an investigation into one of Floor’s reports about demolition orders issued by the Israeli civil authority to Daoud Nasser a Palestinian farmer living in the Gush Etzion area. Floor reported that Israel issued the demolition orders as a measure of oppression. However, Daoud Nasser himself told Missing Peace that he had built several structures without building permit and had refused an earlier order to take them down.

We found that almost all of the claims in Floor’s report were false.

Our report was also sent to her employer in the Netherlands. We did not receive any reaction.

Floor publishes newsletters about events in Israel that are full of distortions and hatred towards Israel.

In 2010 she published a piece about a Baptist vicar from Bethlehem, Naim Khoury. Naim Khoury is a Palestinian man who is pro-Israel and his narrative about the fate of the Christians in Bethlehem contradicts the Kairos narrative which Floor is promoting.

Against the wishes of Naim Khoury she published the confidential content of their conversation (labeled by Khoury as a cross examination) including the sensitive parts about his own experience with Muslim abuse in Bethlehem.

In her article she also suggested that he had collaborated with the Israeli army during the second intifada, thereby endangering his life. Khoury asked her to take the article from her website which she refused to do so.

Khoury has been a victim of Muslim attacks in Bethlehem for many years, his brother was murdered by Muslims and his church torched 14 times.
http://www.metafloor.nl:80/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=223&Itemid=68 (Khoury article on Floor’s site)

Here are some examples of writings in Meta Floor’s letters as published on her website:

-Reporting about the Gaza war, she used comparisons with the Holocaust which focused on the murder of children. Her articles are rife with comparison between the Holocaust and the plight of the Palestinian Arabs, but also with comparison between Apartheid and the situation on the West Bank and Gaza.

She criticizes fellow Christians who support Israel by using the same arguments.

For example she wrote that guilt about the Holocaust does not justify support for Israel’s policy towards the Palestinians who had no part in the Holocaust whatsoever. Needless to say she did not mention Hadj Amin Husseinni’s widely recorded collaboration with Hitler.

-She reported about the neighborhood Silwan in Jerusalem where “Israel was about to evict 1500 Palestinians from their homes in order to create a park”. This was an outright lie as the major of Jerusalem was planning to reach an agreement with some of the 1500 Palestinians living there. These negotiations were about voluntary movement to the other side of the neighborhood. The purpose of the plan was to reorganize the neighborhood where almost all the buildings are built illegally, and to restore an ancient park that was demolished as a result of the widespread illegal building.

-In April 2010 she reported that “Israel was set to deport some 70.000 Palestinians from the West Bank”. and “This proves that the PA does not have any authority over the West Bank”. This story also proved to be a libel against Israel, there were no plans for mass deportations.

Her information was based on a Ha’aretz Amira Hass article that was full of false claims, as was proven in a Missing Peace investigation.

-On April 30 2010 she reported that: “the occupation of the “Palestinian territories” is for many South Africans comparable with Apartheid”. A system that also was meant to remove “black spots” from “white South Africa”.

- In answer to a question from one of her readers who asked her why she did not check out facts with the Israeli authorities, she responded that “this would be the same as talking to the Germans during the occupation of the Netherlands during WW2″.

- In March 2010 she published an outright libel against Israel by Flemish theologian Jart Vortman in which he claimed that Israel was in the midst of an ethnic cleansing of the Arabs in Jerusalem. This article was also subject of an investigation. In this case all of Vortman’s claims were proven false.

Below is a cartoon Floor published on her website last Christmas. Joseph and a pregnant Mary are harassed by Israeli soldiers.

3 comments:

Gibson Block said...: Dear Don,

You can embed a hyperlink in keywords.

It's pretty easy tho tedious to do so.

Dumping a long web address in the body of the article as plain text is messy looking not as convenient for the reader as a link.; 2:42 AM
Gibson Block said...: 1. I don't think I'm very sympathetic to this woman's views.

2. However, I think you are wrong when you try to claim that the Palestinians participated in the Holocaust because of the actions of one man.

Germany did not occupy Palestine so there was no opportunity for the population to participate.

Hadj Amin Husseinni had to go to Germany to participate.; 2:51 AM
GS Don Morris, Ph.D./Chana Givon said...: Greetings,
Yes, I know as evidenced by hot link direct to the article-if one clicks on it you go directly to additional hyperlinks-thank you for reading docstalk and thank you for taking time to submit-all the best-d; 3:40 AM

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.

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