Iraq Wants Jewish Archive to Prove Ownership of the Tower of Babel

Daniel Greenfield

YOU DIDN’T BUILD THAT

The Jewish Iraqi Archive, a collection of bibles and other religious books, as well as personal material like schoolbooks from the former Jews of Iraq, confiscated by the Iraqi security services and then transported to the United States after the fall of Saddam, has been in the news lately.

Some senators and congressmen would like the Jewish archive returned to the Jewish community. Iraq meanwhile firmly wants the archive.

Harold Rhode, who discovered the trove while working as a Defense Department policy analyst assigned to Iraq’s transitional government, said he is “horrified” to think the material would be returned when it had been “stolen by the government of Iraq from the Jewish community.”
“It would be comparable to the U.S. returning to the German government Jewish property that had been looted by the Nazis,” he told The Jewish Week.

Some people are wondering why Iraq wants the Jewish archive… and the answer may be very bizarre indeed. Here’s an explanation from Al Arabiya, the Saudi answer to Al Jazeera, last year.

Palestinian prisoner release Israel frees 26 Palestinians in second round of prisoner releases

By JPOST.COM

Thousands in Ramallah celebrate arrival of 21 released West Bank inmates; five free prisoners reach Gaza Strip after earlier release from Ofer Prison; PA official: No peace deal until all Palestinian prisoners freed.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas (C) welcomes Palestinian prisoners released in Ramallah. Photo: REUTERS/Ammar Awad 

 

Israel in the early hours of Wednesday completed the release of 26 long-serving Palestinian prisoners in the second part of a four stage deal with the Palestinian Authority brokered at the start of the current round of peace talks.

Twenty-one inmates convicted of killing Israelis before the 1993 Oslo accords were released from Ofer Prison and returned to Ramallah in the West Bank via the Beitunia checkpoint.

Five prisoners were freed to the Gaza Strip after they set out from the prison earlier in the day to await their release at the Erez border crossing.
Some two-thousand Palestinians gathered late Tuesday at Mukata, the PLO presidential compound, in Ramallah to celebrate the release of the 21 prisoners to the West Bank, Israel Radio reported.

COP: Rude Awakening: Californians 'Shocked' by Premium Increases, Dropped Coverage

Guy Benson

Barack Obama waltzed to victory in California last year, trampling Mitt Romney by 21 percentage points. For many middle class families in the Golden State, Obamacare's chicken are coming home to roost. A few weeks back, we highlighted some priceless quotes from Bay Area residents who are reassessing their views on the president's signature law. One man said he'd been "laughing" at Republicans...until his saw his new premiums. Another offered this pitch-perfect distillation of the tension between feel-good liberalism and economic reality: "Of course, I want people to have health care. I just didn't realize I would be the one who was going to pay for it personally." The law's price and access tremors continue to be felt up and down America's most populous state. The Los Angeles Times describes the "sticker shock" middle class Californians are grappling with:

Astounding inept analysis:Jay Carney Berates Insurance Companies For Complying With Obamacare

Katie Pavlich

Speaking to reporters Tuesday White House Press Secretary Jay Carney blamed loss of healthcare coverage for millions of Americans on insurance companies complying with the Affordable Care Act.

"Insurers pulled those plans away from them," Carney said. "The law [Obamacare] could not order insurers not to cancel that plan."

The Unbearable Lightness of Obama

The president didn't know the NSA was spying on world leaders, but he's found time for at least 146 rounds of golf.

 

By

Bret Stephens

 

Is there a method to President Obama's style of leadership, his methods of decision-making, his habits of attention, oversight and follow-through? In recent months I've been keeping a file of stories that might suggest an answer. See what you think.

***

"President Barack Obama went nearly five years without knowing his own spies were bugging the phones of world leaders. Officials said the NSA has so many eavesdropping operations under way that it wouldn't have been practical to brief him on all of them.
"They added that the president was briefed on and approved of broader intelligence-collection 'priorities,' but that those below him make decisions about specific targets." —The Wall Street Journal, Oct. 28, 2013

Egypt's Sinai Offensive Unaffected by US Hold on Aid, Officials Say

 

By PAUL McLEARY

Egyptian security forces on Oct. 7 inspect the site of a car bomb explosion that killed three policemen at the police headquarters in al-Tur, in the southern part of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. (Agence France-Presse)

WASHINGTON — Egyptian military operations against militant Islamist groups in the Sinai Peninsula have not been affected by the Obama administration’s decision to withhold shipments of attack helicopters, tanks and missiles to the Cairo government, administration officials told Congress on Tuesday.
In an occasionally volatile hearing on Capitol Hill, representatives from both parties slammed the White House’s response to the June 30 military overthrow of the democratically elected government of President Mohammed Morsi.
Hundreds of Egyptians were killed during protests after the military takeover, prompting the Obama administration to put a lock on further shipments of military equipment in early October.

Livni's political strategy

CAROLINE B. GLICK

Livni promised that she will never quit politics again. Let’s hope her word on that score is as solid as her national security credentials.

For Justice Minister Tzipi Livi, all politics are personal.

She can be trusted, because she is good. Her opponents must be rejected, because they are evil.

In her speech at The Jerusalem Post’s Diplomatic Conference in Herzliya last Thursday, Livni insisted that the only “legitimate” basis for opposing a Palestinian state is ideological. Livni stridently rejected the notion that one can oppose the establishment of a Palestinian state – in the two-state solution framework – for security reasons.

As she sees it, everyone cares equally about security. And since she cares about security just as much as her political opponents do, the question of whose policy will better protect the country is illegitimate.

Palestinian Terms Leave Little to Talk About

 Jonathan S. Tobin

The silence couldn’t last forever. The one thing that was conspicuously successful about the peace negotiations initiated by Secretary of State John Kerry was the way the Israelis and the Palestinians managed to keep their mouths shut about what’s been discussed since they agreed to start meeting again in July. While some reports have surfaced indicating that there has been no progress, today’s scoop by Israel’s Channel 2 gives us a lot more insight as to where the parties stand. And what we’ve learned makes it obvious that the meetings are every bit the fool’s errand that most observers thought they would be all along. According to the Israeli TV station, a “disgruntled Palestinian official” has leaked the Palestinian proposals offered for peace. As the Times of Israel reports:

According to the report, the Palestinians are also insisting that they gain control over water, and control at their sides of the Dead Sea and border crossings; that a Palestinian state be able to sign agreements with other states without Israeli intervention; that Israel release all Palestinian prisoners it holds; and that all Palestinian refugees and their descendants be granted the right to choose to live in Israel or the Palestinian territories as part of a final agreement.

Hamas' plan for next war: Frequent attacks on Tel Aviv area

Islamist group building its strength in preparation for next conflict, producing medium-range M-75 rockets at fast pace; Israel still prefers Hamas over extremist Salafist regime in Gaza 
 
Elior Levy


The Shalit prisoner exchange deal and last year's war against Israel led to a spike in the popularity of Hamas, which also enjoyed the support of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. But the overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi by the Egyptian army plunged Hamas into one of its most difficult periods in recent years, while the Palestinian Authority is credited with the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails. However, it is too soon to count Hamas out.

The Islamist group is building its strength in preparation for future conflicts with Israel. Its goal is to keep these wars as short as possible. Hamas' military build-up includes amassing M-75 rockets, which have a range of 70 kilometers (43 miles) and can reach the Tel Aviv Metropolitan area. It is safe to assume that as opposed to last year's conflict with Israel, during the next war the firing of medium-range rockets from Gaza will not be sporadic.

The new face of terror

The West thought it was winning the battle against jihadist terrorism. It should think again

Sep 28th 2013 From the print edition of the Economist

A FEW months ago Barack Obama declared that al-Qaeda was "on the path to defeat". Its surviving members, he said, were more concerned for their own safety than with plotting attacks on the West. Terrorist attacks of the future, he claimed, would resemble those of the 1990s-local rather than transnational and focused on "soft targets". His overall message was that it was time to start winding down George Bush's war against global terrorism.

Mr Obama might argue that the assault on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi by al-Qaeda's Somali affiliate, the Shabab, was just the kind of thing he was talking about: lethal, shocking, but a long way from the United States. Yet the inconvenient truth is that, in the past 18 months, despite the relentless pummelling it has received and the defeats it has suffered, al-Qaeda and its jihadist allies have staged an extraordinary comeback. The terrorist network now holds sway over more territory and is recruiting more fighters than at any time in its 25-year history (see article). Mr Obama must reconsider.

Islam vs. Islamism

HERBERT LONDON 

It has become fashionable among the cognoscenti to distinguish between Islam and Islamism. In fact, the Quilliam Foundation, focused on religious freedom, has promoted the distinction along with many quite reputable analysts of Islamic behavior. Presumably the latter believes in the imposition of faith over society by violence or law; while the former rejects violence conducting itself as any other religion might. This distinction has a hopeful ring to it since one may embrace the faith and abandon the ideology, thereby stabilizing presently unstable societies.
But suppose this is a distinction without a difference. After all, the Islamist is willing to die in order to spread the faith, his death a testament of his religious devotion. Most people would say this is fanatical, but from the Islamists' perspective this is a tactic that intimidates religious rivals driving them to appease or convert. Without having to utter a threat, Jews and Christians know that any criticism of Islam, even mild criticism, could lead to retributive violence. This is what gives Islamism its advantage.

CBS Finally Reports: Benghazi a Planned Attack

Joseph Klein 

The Obama White House said last July that it considers the controversy over the September 11, 2012 Benghazi attack to be one of the “phony scandals” that President Obama had accused his adversaries of exploiting to distract the American people from more important issues. But there is nothing phony or distracting about insisting on the unvarnished truth regarding the death of four American public servants at the hands of al Qaeda on the anniversary of 9/11.

“We’re here to kill Americans,” were the chilling words the al Qaeda jihadists used as they undertook their attack that claimed the lives of the four brave Americans, including the U.S. Ambassador to Libya, John Christopher Stevens. The victims’ families deserve to know the truth. The American people deserve the truth. More than a year later, however, the Obama administration has continued its stonewalling, preferring instead to cast stones at those who insist on accountability for what happened.

COP: White House admits Obamacare kills policies

WND

NBC-Whitehouse knew 3 years ago

Is it possible that things really still can get worse for supporters of Obamacare, the president’s signature accomplishment, the law that was voted through by only Democrats during a lame-duck session of Congress?
Decide for yourself.

On Monday, White House spokesman Jay Carney admitted the law is killing off health insurance policies that Americans currently hold, and NBC reported that the administration knew that was what would happen as long as three years ago.
At least two different investigations are being launched by Congress, a commentary showed that even the paper signup process for Obamacare doesn’t work, and Alaska simply gave up – canceling signups because virtually no one was participating.

Malaysia: The Word "Allah" Only For Muslims

Mohshin Habib

"It is our judgement that there is no infringement of any constitutional rights." — Chief Judge Mohammed Apandi Ali
"It is a retrograde step in the development of law in relation to the fundamental liberty of religious minorities." — Reverend Lawrence Andrews Editor, The Herald

In possibly the first time ever in the world's history of religion, members of a monotheist institution objected to another monotheist groups' using the same name for God that they use, as Malaysia's appellate court ruled on October 14^th that Malay-speaking non-Muslims, especially the Roman Catholic community of the country, may not use the word "Allah."

"The term 'Allah' must be exclusive to Islam or it could cause public disorder," the high court said.

Egypt's Challenge: Writing a New Constitution

Ashraf Ramelah

"Egypt is now a real civil state. It is not theocratic, it is not military. It is democratic, free, constitutional, lawful and modern." — Former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, after his election.
Democracy is unfathomable because it allows the doctrine of Islam, and its followers, to co-exist equally with other religions and doctrines -- a societal demotion. That outcome cannot possibly be the one desired by those now drafting Egypt's constitution.

As Egyptians wait for the constituent assembly to produce the country's new foundational document, the world can only speculate as to how well the new draft will distinguish Egypt's future from its past. Article 2 of Sadat's 1971 constitution is the controversial point today. If its wording is written into the draft of Egypt's new constitution, all hope is lost for a modern renaissance sought by the uprising of January 2011. Article 2 spells out two critical foundational points which clash with the formation of democracy. Even if these Islamic measures are accompanied by words promoting liberty, equality and human rights elsewhere in the same writing, the use of Article 2 will present a huge problem for the liberal, secular, pro-democracy freedom movement.

"Our civilisation is disappearing"

Cheradenine Zakalwe

I've written before about Camp of the Saints, the 1970s novel by Jean Raspail that eerily prefigured our current predicament. In it, hordes of third-world savages hop into boats, come to Europe as uninvited guests, and simply invade and occupy our continent.

The current issue of the French magazine Valeurs Actuelles has an interview with Jean Raspail.

What do you feel about the current situation?

You know, I've no wish to join the big group of intellectuals who spend their time debating immigration… I have the impression that these talks serve no purpose. The people already know it all, intuitively: that France, as our ancestors fashioned it centuries ago, is disappearing. And that we keep the gallery amused by talking ceaselessly of immigration without ever saying the final truth. A truth that is moreover unsayable, as my friend Jean Cau noted, because whoever says it is immediately hounded, condemned then rejected. Richard Millet came close to it, look what happened to him! [See here for more on this].

Is the seriousness of the problem being kept from the French people?

Yes. Starting with the politicians in charge first of all! Publicly "everything's going well, Madame Marquessa". But behind closed doors, they acknowledge that "yes, you're right: there is a real problem". I have several edifying letters on this subject from prominent leftist politicians, from those on the right too, to whom I sent the Camp of the Saints. "But you understand: we can't say it ..." These people have a double language, a double conscience. I don't know how they do it! I think the distress comes from there: the people know that things are being hidden from them. Today, tens of millions of people don't buy into the official discourse on immigration. Not one of them believes that it is an opportunity for France "une chance pour la France". Because reality imposes itself on them, every day. All of these ideas boil in their heads and don't come out.

Turkey’s Erdogan - an Autocratic Islamist Bigot

Isi Leibler 
http://wordfromjerusalem.com/?p=4868

After over 50 years of Israeli-Turkish intelligence co-operation and sharing, the Turkish disclosure to Iran of the identities of Mossad operatives – apparently subsequently executed, illustrates the depths to which Israel-Turkey relations have descended under Islamist autocrat, Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan.

Erdogan seeks to conceal his true intentions and convey the illusion that he is himself a role model for an enlightened Islam which blends with democracy.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Erdogan is a fanatical Islamist and a vile bigot who lavishes praise on the Moslem Brotherhood, Hamas and Hezbollah and whose behavior is more reminiscent of an Ottoman Sultan than a democratically elected leader.

Saudis Way Ahead of Israel

Ariel Ben Solomon

Saudi Arabia is testing its 70 year US dependence.

Saudi Arabia has reacted with unusual bluntness to US moves at rapprochement with the kingdom's enemies in Tehran and Damascus, forcing President Barack Obama to either alter his stance or risk a breakdown in relations.

The Saudis are testing Obama, as they have seen how he tends to waver under pressure while trying to keep both sides happy.

And quietly, America's traditional allies in the region - such as Egypt , Israel, Jordan and the Gulf states - are rooting for the Saudis.

The Saudis observed how Obama was willing to compromise and settle for a deal with Syria after he had called for President Bashar Assad's removal from power two years ago. On Iran, Obama is warming to the country despite its involvement in terrorism, the fighting in Syria and its history of deception as it strives towards nuclear weapons.

The Saudis are starting to push back hard...

Let's discuss the justification of using "it's our culture thus we ..." for harming human beings

Londoners Sign Muslim Petition to Mutilate Girls Because “It’s Their Culture”

Front Page Magazine

Political correctness has won. Civilization has lost.

A Londoner who suffered female genital mutilation has warned that political correctness is hampering the fight to stamp it out after asking people to sign a fake petition in its favour.

Leyla Hussein, 32, said many were scared to speak out against FGM because they were worried about criticising another culture.

She decided to conduct an experiment to see “how crazy political correctness has become” but was left in tears by the end.

Approaching shoppers with the petition supporting FGM, she told them she wanted to protect her  “culture, traditions and rights”.

Well some of us indicated...

Pro-ObamaCare Congressional Staffer Shocked as It Triples her Premium

Daniel Greenfield

Welcome to ObamaCare. If you like your plan, you’ll probably lose it. If you hate your plan, you’ll probably learn to miss it because what you end up with will be much worse.

Sue Klinkhamer has a problem. It’s called Obamacare.
And the irony of her situation is not lost on her. In a recent email addressed to her former boss, Illinois Congressman Bill Foster, and other Democratic colleagues, she wrote:

“I spent two years defending Obamacare. I had constituents scream at me, spit at me and call me names that I can’t put in print. The congressman was not re-elected in 2010 mainly because of the anti-Obamacare anger. When the congressman was not re-elected, I also (along with the rest of our staff) lost my job. I was upset that because of the health care issue, I didn’t have a job anymore but still defended Obamacare because it would make health care available to everyone at, what I assumed, would be an affordable price. I have now learned that I was wrong. Very wrong.”