Doc's Talk: Arab Leaders, Civilians Blame Hamas for Gaza Violence

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Arab Leaders, Civilians Blame Hamas for Gaza Violence

As Israel carries out "Operation Cast Lead" to stop Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza from continuing to attack Israeli civilians with thousands of rockets, missiles and mortars, Arab leaders such as Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak have blamed Hamas for the violence in Gaza. . Abbas and Mubarak, among others, said maintaining the truce could have helped the Palestinians avoid the Israeli raids and that Hamas is fully responsible for the situation.
Palestinian Authority Leaders and Gaza Civilians

On Dec. 28, 2008, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said Iran-backed Hamas could have avoided the Israeli attacks on Gaza and blamed the group for Israel taking action to stop the attacks by Hamas in Gaza: “We talked to them and we told them ‘please, we ask you, do not end the truce. Let the truce continue and not stop’ so that we could have avoided what happened.” [2] Abbas further stated that the priority was to restore the truce. [3]

* A Palestinian girl in Gaza whose family members died in Gaza Dec. 28 in an Israeli air attack held Hamas responsible. "I say Hamas is the cause, in the first place, of all wars,” the girl told Palestinian TV. [4]

* A Palestinian journalist in Gaza said members of the Palestinian media are ‘directing’ civilians to cry and telling them what to say in interviews: "A mother of one of the martyrs stood by the door of the intensive care unit while crying... relatives and those around her were telling her what she should say to the television cameras: 'Say your son [before he died] prayed and went out.' Another tells her: 'Curse the Arab leaders'... The journalists [in the hospitals] are going overboard in their insensitivity and taking advantage of the [difficult] moments, with the explanation that they are showing this to the world. One cameraman told a mourning mother: 'Hit your face, cry, do some action.'" [5]

*

Abbas also blamed Hamas for disrupting national unity talks that could have paved the way for general and presidential elections. While visiting Cairo to discuss Egyptian and Arab League efforts to put an end to the violence in Gaza, Abbas said: “We have warned of this grave danger.” [6]
*

Nimr Hammad, an advisor to Abbas, said: “The one responsible for the massacre is Hamas […].” He called upon Hamas's leaders to stop carrying out “operations, which reflect recklessness, such as the firing of missiles.” [7]
*

Hafez Al-Barghouthi, editor of the PLO daily al-Hayat al-Jadida criticized Hamas for not prolonging the 'tahdiah' - Arabic for 'calm': “Prolonging the tahdiah was a supreme national interest. Why hasn’t [Hamas] prevented the aggression and the massacre? How many times have we written and Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas) has declared that these missiles [that Hamas is firing at Israel] as ineffective and contrary to the supreme national interest […].” [8]

Egypt and Jordan

* On Dec. 23, 2008, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met with Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas. Both leaders strongly criticized Hamas and held the movement responsible for the current violence in Gaza. The two leaders agreed that the rocket attacks on Israel were a “mistake” and said Hamas was responsible for the ongoing suffering of the Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip. [9]

* A PA official quoted Mubarak: “President Mubarak is very angry with Hamas. The Egyptians see Hamas as a threat to stability in the region.” [10]

* Egypt, which has taken on the role of mediator between Israel and the Palestinians as well as between Hamas and Abbas' Fatah faction, has been criticized for coordinating with Israel to close the border between Gaza and Egypt. [11] On Dec. 27, Egypt opened the Rafah crossing to receive wounded Palestinians but Hamas called on Egypt to open its border with Gaza forever and for all residents, not just the wounded. [12]

* Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abu al-Gheit said Egypt has warned Hamas that Israel would initiate operations against Hamas unless Hamas stops its Qassam rocket attacks. He added that those who did not heed the warning “should bear the responsibility." He further said Egypt had predicted Israel's response to the attacks “because Hamas did not stop firing rockets into Israel.” [13]

* Al-Gheit said Hamas was not allowing wounded Palestinians to cross the border into Egypt for treatment: “We are waiting for the wounded Palestinians to cross. They are not being allowed to cross.” Asked who was to blame, he refered to Gaza by saying, “Ask the party in control on the ground in Gaza.” [14]

* Egypt and other Western-allied Sunni Arab states are opposed to the terrorist organizations Hamas and Hizballah, as they see both groups as extensions of Shiite Iran. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei condemned the silence of some Arab countries and said: “Worse than this catastrophe is the encouraging silence of some Arab countries who claim to be Muslim,” apparently in a reference to Egypt and Jordan. [15] Egypt and Jordan are the only Arab states recognizing Israel’s independence and which have diplomatic relations with it. [16]

Arab nations’ summit

* Arab foreign ministers are scheduled to meet in Cairo on Jan. 2, 2009 under the auspices of the Arab League to “formulate the Arab position to deal with Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip,” Arab League Chairman Amr Moussa said on Dec. 27, 2008. At the upcoming meeting, “some will call on Egypt and Jordan to cut diplomatic relations with Israel,” said Abdel Monem Said Ali of the Cairo-based Al-Ahram Center for Strategic and Political Studies. [17]

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Footnotes:

[1] JPost.com staff; Selig, Abe, "Widening range, rockets strike Beersheba kindergarten," The Jerusalem Post, Dec. 30, 2008, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1230456524549&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull; "International call for Gaza truce," BBC News

[2] Shahine, Alaa: "Palestinians could have avoided Gaza raids – Abbas,“ Reuters, Dec. 28, 2008, http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LS259958.htm

[3] "Abbas blames Hamas for failing to avert violence,“ Reuters, Dec. 28, 2008, http://www.france24.com/en/20081228-abbas-says-he-tried-continue-truce-avoid-violence-gaza-israel

[4] "A Palestinian girl whose family members were killed yesterday in Gaza," Palestinian Media Watch Bulletin, Dec. 2008, http://www.pmw.org.il/Bulletins_Dec2008.htm#b2912083

[5] Ibid.

[6] "Abbas blames Hamas for Gaza bloodshed,“ The Nation, Dec. 28, 2008, http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/International/29-Dec-2008/Abbas-blames-Hamas-for-Gaza-bloodshed
[7] "PLO and Fatah Officials: Hamas is Responsible for the Deaths of Its People,“ MEMRI, Dec. 29, 2008, http://www.memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=SD216408
[8] Ibid.

[9] Abu Toameh, Khaled; Katz, Yaakov, "Abbas: Egypt to push new Gaza truce,“ The Jerusalem Post, Dec. 24, 2008, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1229868830574&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[10] Ibid.

[11] "Across Mideast, thousands protest Israeli assault,“ The Associated Press, Dec. 28, 2008, http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081228/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_mideast_israel_palestinians

[12] "Egyptian border under pressure as Israeli raids on Gaza continues,“ Xinhua, Dec. 28, 2008, http://english.sina.com/world/2008/1228/207787.html

[13] "Egypt lays blame on Hamas,“ iReport, Dec. 28, 2008, http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-169684

[14] Shahine, Alaa, "Egypt: Hamas denying Gaza wounded treatment in Egypt,“ Reuters, Dec. 28, 2008, http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE4BR0QP20081228

[15] El-Khodary, Taghreed; Kershner, Isabel, "Israeli Troops Mass Along Border; Arab Anger Rises,“ The New York Times, Dec. 28, 2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/29/world/middleeast/29mideast.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

[16] Abilov, Shamkhal, "Israel Air Strike Against Gaza and Reaction of Arab World,“ The Journal of Turkish Weekly, Dec. 29, 2008, http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/62525/israel-air-strike-against-gaza-and-reaction-of-arab-world.html

[17] Gazzar, Brenda, "Egypt: Hizbullah declared war on us,“ The Jerusalem Post, Dec. 28, 2008, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1230456503819&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter

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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