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2:04 PMElder of ZiyonNo commentsIn May the U.N. commemorated “Nakba Day,” the propaganda term the Palestinian Arabs have given to the date on which the State of Israel was founded. It invited the head of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas to address it.UN pares down list of firms doing business with Israeli settlements
He used that platform to repeat the P.A.’s murderous lie that Britain and the U.S. had decided “for their own colonialist purposes” to establish “another entity in our historical homeland” because they “wanted to get rid of the Jews and enjoy having them in Palestine—two birds with one stone.”
As for the WHO, Neuer observed that every year its annual assembly deviates from surveying global public health to hold a special debate singling out Israel. There is no such focus on Syria, where hospitals are repeatedly bombed by Syrian and Russian forces; nor on North Korea, which has one of the worst health systems in the world. On the contrary, the WHO recently elected North Korea to its executive board.
As ever, the deranged onslaught upon Israel stands proxy for the endangerment of the world itself.
A WHO mission to study the Covid pandemic’s origins in China announced in February that the possibility that the virus had escaped from a laboratory needed no further investigation. The mission had been put under pressure to reach that conclusion by Chinese scientists who made up half the team.
The United Nations has been impotent over China’s systemic abuses of its population and over Russia’s war against Ukraine. Who can be surprised? Both China and Russia have places on the U.N. Security Council with veto power. The United Nations places foxes in charge of its hen house.
In a similar vein, Iran, which is racing towards developing nuclear weapons to further its war on the U.S. and its intention to wipe Israel off the map, has been made vice president of the General Assembly.
Even more grotesquely, Iran has been made rapporteur of the General Assembly’s Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Committee. This is despite its persistent violations of the Security Council resolution banning its ballistic-missile program and its refusal to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The United Nations isn’t just anti-Israel. It is morally corrupt at its very core. As a result, it doesn’t just victimize Israel and empower its attackers. It doesn’t just betray its charter commitments by endangering the wider world.
By supposedly promoting global peace and justice but actually promoting those dedicated to war, terror and tyranny while demonizing their victims, the world body has also knocked the free world off its moral compass.
That world will only stand a chance of regaining its balance if it walks away from the United Nations and creates an alliance of democracies instead.
The United Nations rights office has updated a list of companies doing business with Israeli settlements, removing 15 companies from the database that were no longer involved, a spokesperson said on Friday.
The long-awaited update was limited in scope due to budget restrictions and was only able to review the original list of 112 companies, UN human rights spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told a press briefing.
There was no immediate comment from Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the previous version, as did Washington which has long protested the "disproportionate attention" given to Israel by the Geneva-based council.
The database was mandated by the UN Human Rights Council in 2016 but was not released until 2020. Most of the firms it named were domiciled in Israel but it also included international firms listed in the United States, Britain and France, among others.
Most of the firms named in the database when it was set up were domiciled in Israel but it also included international firms listed in the United States, Britain, and France, among others.
Packaged food maker General Mills was one of only two international firms removed from the list. Among those that remained were online travel sites Booking.com BKNG.O and Expedia EXPE.O and home-rental company Airbnb ABNB.O.
Iran International has learned that US special envoy for Iran Robert Malley is under investigation and his deputy has assumed his duties at the State Department.
After multiple inquiries, State Department Spokesperson Matt Miller said Thursday afternoon in a statement that "Rob Malley is on leave and Abram Paley is serving as acting Special Envoy for Iran and leading the Department’s work in this area."
Multiple sources told us that Malley is under investigation for yet unknown reasons and one source said that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is also involved.
According to our sources, Malley has been absent for a considerable period prompting speculation about potential conduct-related issues, which could affect his security clearance.
Speaking to Iran International on the condition of anonymity, a source familiar with the case confirmed Mr. Malley's absence, saying, "He has completely vanished. No calls, no meetings."
Considering Mr. Malley's essential role in formulating US policy towards Iran, his abrupt and prolonged absence raised considerable questions. Iran International sought clarification earlier on Friday from the State Department regarding the nature of his leave and security clearance status.
In response, the State Department replied by email, "The Department of State, the Special Envoy for Iran, and his team remain deeply engaged on the formulation and implementation of US Iran Policy."
The Department's spokesperson reiterated the same during his daily briefing on Friday before spokesperson Miller confirmed that Malley is on leave.
The initial email did not clarify who is holding the position of ‘Special Envoy for Iran’. In further correspondence, we asked: "Can you please confirm whether Abram Paley is currently Acting Interim Special Envoy for Iran?" The state department's answer was short: "Hello, we decline to comment."
Journalist Barak Ravid tweeted after Iran International's exclusive report first appeared that Malley told him: "I have been informed that my security clearance is under review. I have not been provided any further information, but I expect the investigation to be resolved favorably and soon. In the meantime, I am on leave."
Even Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, two of the most hardline, far-right members of Israel's government, discouraged attacks on Palestinians and called on Israeli residents in Judea and Samaria not to take the law into their own hands. A similar message was conveyed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.Seth Frantzman: What will it take for Israel, Saudi Arabia to normalize ties?
In contrast, whenever Palestinians commit acts of terrorism against Israelis, they are praised by Palestinian leaders and the general public. Whenever an innocent Israeli is killed by Palestinian terrorists, Palestinians pass out candy in the streets to celebrate. To the best of my knowledge, no one among Israelis was passing out candy to celebrate the death of Omar Qattin, a Palestinian who was killed during the attack on his village of Turmus Ayya by Israeli rioters. In fact, I know of no instance when the killing of Palestinian civilians was celebrated in the streets by Israelis.
Another major difference between Jewish terrorism and Palestinian terrorism is how often each occurs. Each year, there are an average of 300 attacks on Palestinians' property and 100 attacks on Palestinian individuals. By comparison, Palestinian terrorists commit an average of 5,000 attacks on Israelis each year. The number of fatalities as a result of Jewish terrorism also pales in comparison to the number of Israelis killed by Palestinian terrorists. The United Nations claims that at least 22 Palestinians were killed by Israeli acts of terrorism in the period between 2010 and 2019. But the number of Israelis killed by Palestinian terrorists during that same period was more than 300. And as regrettable and horrible as the death of Omar Qattin was, 28 Israelis have been killed by Palestinian terrorists so far this year, some of them children.
Moreover, no one pays Israelis to kill Palestinian civilians in cold blood, but Palestinians are paid very generous monthly salaries by the Palestinian Authority (PA), whenever they kill innocent Israelis – a policy known as pay-for-slay, which the PA has refused to end. In fact, the PA spent a total of $270 million on pay-for-slay in 2021 alone.
Palestinian children are also taught from a very young age to hate Jews and Israel. They are even encouraged to commit acts of terrorism against innocent Israelis, and follow the examples of Palestinian terrorists who have already done so. Palestinian schools are frequently named after terrorists. Palestinian textbooks are filled with examples of Jew-hatred and the encouragement and glorification of terrorism and martyrdom.
Although I'm no expert on the Israeli education system and the materials it uses, I'm willing to bet that no Israeli textbook encourages Israelis to kill innocent Palestinians in cold blood, and I challenge anyone to prove me wrong.
Terrorism is terrorism, no matter who is responsible for it. But there's no comparing Jewish terrorism to that committed by Palestinians, because whereas acts of terrorism committed by Jews against Palestinians are rare, and are not endorsed, encouraged, or subsidized by Israel, acts of terrorism against Jews by Palestinians are all-to-frequent, and are supported, promoted, and even paid for by Palestinian leaders.
Riyadh has consistently said its position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict hasn’t officially changed. It backed the Arab Peace Initiative in 2002, a plan that called for peace in return for a just and comprehensive peace with the Palestinians based on a two-state solution.
It is clear that there is a lot of focus on potential ties, which is helped by constant spotlight on the issue by US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who discussed normalization in May. In April, US Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) told reporters in Jerusalem an opportunity for normalization could end in 2024.
Sometimes, the hurdles of normalization work like a feedback loop of diminishing returns, such as placing a stumbling block where none existed before. It goes something like this: “Normalization could happen, however, the election of a right-wing government is a setback. Normalization could happen, but first there must be comprehensive peace, and the right-wing government makes that harder.”
Additionally, while normalization could happen, West Bank clashes make it more difficult. Also making it difficult are China’s inroads in the region and Iran’s moves. Furthermore, we would need an American commitment to “civilian nuclear power” to make it happen... and so on and so forth.
The last six months saw near-daily discussions about normalization, which gives the sense of a very close, known quantity of time. Yet at the same time, it seems like a Gordian knot, in large part because increased focus leads to increased controversies.
Actors that may seek to spoil normalization can also have more leverage, such as Iranian-backed terrorist groups, including Islamic Jihad’s operatives in Jenin. With one operation, they think they can derail a deal that could be worth billions of dollars in trade and help knit together a corridor of stability stretching from Greece to India.
This is unreasonable, and as such, it is worth keeping an eye on the larger picture. Integration of the region is growing, and momentum is building. Riyadh has its timetable for potential normalization.
??Jews have always lived in Judea and Samaria, but 13 days after the attack on Israel on 15 May 1948, the Jewish part of the Old City fell into the hands of Jordan.
— Ayelet Azoury (@azoury_ayelet) June 30, 2023
??On May 28, 1948, the Jordanian Legion Commander reported that: “for the first time in over a thousand years,… pic.twitter.com/08qvbesvbZ
Even Wikipedia got tired of this sketchy map https://t.co/o5Pq5wqsNE pic.twitter.com/67VMn7QtIb
— Adin - ???? (@AdinHaykin1) June 30, 2023
Israel officials should raise serious concerns about threats to the rule of law and judicial independence in the U.S., which threaten our common values. https://t.co/5PCtedbXeQ
— Eugene Kontorovich (@EVKontorovich) June 30, 2023
If the world treated France like Israel… https://t.co/c03x8S5R7T
— Mike (@Doranimated) June 29, 2023
A Holocaust memorial has been vandalised by protesters angered by the killing of a teenager by French police.
Jewish groups were left outraged after the Memorial to the Martyrs of the Deportation was defaced in the Nanterre suburb of Paris, France on Thursday.
The memorial commemorates 200,000 Jews who were deported from France to Nazi concentration camps during World War II.
Video footage circulating on Twitter shows protesters vandalising the monument and sitting atop the memorial as they protest against French police for the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old North African teen.
According to a video from Twitter account ‘Observatory of Decolonialism’, protesters said they were going to start another Holocaust. They wrote on the memorial: “We are going to make a Shoah”.
Stores and restaurants run by Jews were also set on fire in Sarcelles, Radio Shalom reported.
Ariel Goldmann, president of the United Jewish Social Fund, said of the vandalism: “It is an absolute outrage and a disgrace. Nothing is respected.”
The European Jewish Congress added: “It is truly horrifying to witness the Memorial to the Martyrs of the Deportation in Nanterre being vandalised.
Holocaust memorial in France being desecrated in riots
— Emily Schrader - ????? ?????? ????? ????? (@emilykschrader) June 30, 2023
?? pic.twitter.com/wHcISJa3CQ
Horrifying - during riots throughout France, antisemitic graffiti stating "we are going to make you a shoah [Holocaust]" was spotted in Nanterre, next to Paris. pic.twitter.com/VTrq0Sk0EE
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) June 29, 2023
What is the Biden administration going to find today to criticize our Israeli allies over?
— Omri Ceren (@omriceren) June 29, 2023
*checks Twitter*
Oh it's uhhh it's using drones to kill terrorists. https://t.co/kiJiSEpwvX
Publicly stating that you need to be convinced that suicide bombs on school buses are bad actually isn’t exactly the check mate the Jews have been fearing. https://t.co/7ZVOZM1bnb
— Noam Blum ?? (@neontaster) June 29, 2023
Nothing to do with Israel, but @KenRoth has such an unhinged obsession, he can’t resist. https://t.co/VwkM6ZhKpG
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) June 29, 2023
Is this a joke? https://t.co/AdQBfWmL7r
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) June 29, 2023
Lee Smith, one of the most important journalists in the United States, is the author of two books about the Democratic establishment's attempt to politically eliminate Trump. Now that the Durham Report has been published confirming everything Lee has written, he's not happy. Why? Durham didn't need to compile a report, he should have conducted criminal investigations that would end in indictments. We also talked about how Israel doesn't understand democratic governance, and about the connection between different wings of the radical policies that we call "progressive" for short. (autotrans)
Fascinating analysis of what’s really going on among U.S. policymakers concerning Israel and Iran, by ?the indispensable @Doranimated? ?@HudsonInstitute? with ?@JonathanLSilver? ?@tikvahfund?. https://t.co/VzRJFHRoPZ
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) June 29, 2023
Caroline's guest this week was Prof. of Law Avi Bell. to discuss the recent news that the judges in Netanyahu's case told the prosecution that they don't have enough to convict.
Prof. Bell and Glick delve into
- the basis and implosion of the charges against Netanyahu
- the major effect that a conviction would have on the legal definition of bribery
- the most crucial parts of judicial reform that need to be implemented.
A letter containing threats against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was placed on the grave of his brother Yoni Netanyahu on Mount Herzl, Jerusalem. Israel Police confirmed the incident.The Israel Guys: BREAKING: The International SHOWDOWN on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
The police stated it will open a joint investigation with the Shin Bet internal security agency, saying it will find the author of the letter. Earlier this week, the prime minister and his brother Ido Netanyahu took part in a commemoration in memory of Yoni.
"What's going on Yoni - you hero? How's it going for you up above?" Ah, I forgot, you're probably standing in place and there's not much room to advance," was written in the opening of the letter.
"It's my request to tell your brother, Bibi [Benjamin] Netanyahu, that he has a few rights or a lot of rights, but they have ended. And now, Mount Herzl, this sanctified place, has the clock ticking down, until October 13, 2023, when your brother, the son of ..., thinks he will turn 74," the author threatened the prime minister's life using his Hebrew calendar birthday.
"Be clear, this is a threat of the first level," the letter ended with another smiley and in English, "red alert level."
This wasn't the first such threat on his life. In 2022, Netanyahu's chief of staff filed a complaint after a murder threat was posted on Twitter. "This man must be killed quickly before it's too late," the message read.
Joshua brings you shocking insights into the US State department's view on Israel and the 800,000 Israelis living in the so called West Bank! On one hand they swear full support for the one and only Jewish state but on the other hand bash it by unilateral support for Israel's enemies! In my personal opinion America is harming Israel much more than she’s helping!
Morel Moyiz Nikar, West Bank settlement Eli's security guard who killed one of the terrorists in the shooting attack near the settlement over a week ago that took the lives of four victims, is currently recovering at the home of his parents-in-law.
In an exclusive interview with Ynet, he recounted the dramatic moments at the gas station, and the fire exchange with the terrorist, and opened up about how he and his wife are coping after the murderous attack.
Morel was injured by two bullets fired at him by the terrorist, one in the leg and the other in the shoulder.
"I feel good, in general, all the support from the very beginning and all the people who came - it really warms the heart. It's a great feeling," he told Ynet. "It's a miracle that I'm alive. The two bullets that hit me didn't hit any vital organs or main arteries, they only hit muscle. I have a large hole in my leg, but it will heal with time. I believe that within a few months, I will return to function fully. I'm undergoing rehabilitation and physiotherapy and I can already see progress."
When asked if, after more than a week and after watching the footage of the incident, he understands what happened and what he did, he replied: "Yes. Maybe I could have done even more. I remember I was at the entrance gate to Eli, and then I heard gunfire very close. I went outside and saw that the traffic at the gas station was at a standstill, and immediately I understood it was a terrorist attack. I ran to my car, grabbed a long weapon, and tried to get to the intersection as quickly as possible. As I turned towards the gas station, I saw the terrorist running towards me, and then I saw someone entering the gas station who didn't know there was an attack. The terrorist reached his window and shot at him point-blank. I saw that and immediately jumped, I was exposed near the door and I fired at him while he was shooting at me for about five seconds. It felt like much longer to me.
My take: There is now direct testimony from an Iranian assassin that implicates the IRGC in an attempted terrorist act on European soil. This should provide all the evidence that European authorities need to finally designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization. https://t.co/mZU5Ntn44K
— Mark Dubowitz (@mdubowitz) June 29, 2023
Do. Not. Mess. With. Israeli. Women. ?? ?? ???? pic.twitter.com/mZasGQEl57
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) June 29, 2023
Israel detonates the mines in a major minefield in the Golan Heights. pic.twitter.com/HVjpji9FyP
— Mike (@Doranimated) June 30, 2023
Palestinian media is desperately trying to hide the civil war amongst Hamas, Fatah and Palestinian Jihad. They label these attacks 'clan fights'.
— RedBrasco - RedLehi (@redbrasco) June 30, 2023
The truth is that they are all defending criminal empires. Almost every day, people are killed, shot, or bombed.
Don`t expect the… pic.twitter.com/7lBhk1GYUk
2/ Gaza villa entrance.#TheGazaYouDontSeehttps://t.co/WcBvyW5KNn pic.twitter.com/WNdP26cPki
— Imshin (@imshin) June 29, 2023
4/ Gaza villa from upstairs balcony.#TheGazaYouDontSeehttps://t.co/6EXKKmh97u pic.twitter.com/pAdsHNfaNW
— Imshin (@imshin) June 29, 2023
The Lebanese economy requires an urgent overhaul, and the international community must press for deep reforms.
In March 2020, Lebanon opted for a “hard default” on $32 billion in sovereign debt, allowing the government to avoid negotiating with its Eurobond holders and investors. Beirut thereafter showed little interest in addressing the consequences of default, and the country’s economic meltdown worsened. As usual, the Lebanese people were the casualties, suffering amid what the World Bank has called a “deliberate depression.” This official negligence has cleared the way for a proliferating cash economy—which in turn has spawned a currency exchange scheme involving the central bank, foreign exchange agents, and Lebanese politicians. Hezbollah specifically has profited in areas ranging from real estate to solar energy, pharmaceuticals, and the illicit Captagon trade.
In this Policy Note, authors Samara Azzi and Hanin Ghaddar—a venture capitalist and a former Lebanese journalist—skillfully diagram the corrupt status quo and explain why entrenched actors want to avoid systemic change. But as the study makes clear, the future health of the Lebanese economy requires an overhaul, and the international community must now press for deep reforms and personal accountability.
#Lebanon, Banks’ Street in downtown Beirut, early 1970s. The Pearl of the Middle East. Then came Arafat and his militia and turned a beautiful country into a dumpster in free fall. #Israel ejected Arafat but the militia culture lingered, found itself a sugar daddy in Islamist… pic.twitter.com/gYFwg0eDsc
— Hussain Abdul-Hussain (@hahussain) June 30, 2023
Iraqi protesters breached Sweden’s embassy in Baghdad on Thursday, angered by a Quran burning outside a Stockholm mosque that sparked condemnation across the Muslim world.The Potemkin Life of Persian Jewry
A crowd of supporters of firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr stayed inside the compound for about 15 minutes, then left as security forces deployed, an AFP photographer said.
“Our constitution is the Quran,” read a message on leaflets carried by the protesters, and a message sprayed on the compound’s gate read “Yes, yes to the Quran.”
The protest came a day after an Iraqi citizen living in Sweden, Salwan Momika, 37, stomped on the Islamic holy book and set several pages alight in front of the capital’s largest mosque.
Swedish police had granted him a permit in line with free-speech protections, but authorities later said they had opened an investigation over “agitation.”
Despite the outcry, Momika told a Swedish newspaper late Thursday that he would repeat the demonstration soon.
“Within 10 days I will burn the Iraqi flag and the Quran in front of Iraq’s embassy in Stockholm,” Momika said.
The Quran burning, coinciding with the start of the Muslim Eid al-Adha and the end of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, sparked anger in the Middle East and beyond.
Iran is home to one of the oldest Jewish communities in the Diaspora, documented in the biblical books of Esther, Daniel, Ezra, and Nehemiah. Despite severe persecution since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, it is also the largest Jewish community in the Middle East. The regime claims that its Jews flourish, are loyal citizens, and share in official hostility to Israel. Reality, writes Tammy Reznik, is somewhat different:Israel's air superiority will send Iran back 'thousands of kilometers' - Gallant
In a stranger-than-fiction moment, earlier this month, a small group of Jews gathered in a synagogue in the heart of Tehran to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Iran’s first supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. . . . A similarly curious moment occurred in April when the Jewish community “chose” to cancel its traditional end-of-Passover celebrations (Mimouna) in favor of “celebrating” al-Quds Day, [during which the regime publicly fantasizes about the cleansing of Jerusalem of Jews]—which happened to fall on the same day this year. In fact, the single Jewish representative in the Iranian parliament, Homayoun Sameyah, very publicly joined in the annual al-Quds Day march demanding Israel’s destruction.
What these events illustrate is the precarious position that the 9,000 or so remaining Jews of Iran find themselves in on a daily basis.
Another consistent trend has been the promotion of Holocaust denial. Beni Sabti, [an Israeli Iran specialist who emigrated from the country as a teenager], says the promotion of Nazi ideology was endemic to the education he received in Iran. “They would hand out copies of Mein Kampf and The Protocols of the Elders of Zion for free in mosques, and translated copies in Farsi online.”
Sabti says that, with everything else, Iran’s remaining Jews are forced to use code words when discussing Israel. They often even find ways to visit by circumventing the borders and exiting Iran via a third country. The community is tight, and information on how to travel to Israel secretly is shared.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Thursday said that Israel and its air force power will force Iran to withdraw from its close fighting with Jerusalem back thousands of kilometers to its borders.Iran’s proxy war against Azerbaijan
Speaking from the Air Force Officers Graduation Ceremony, Gallant said, “We will not come to terms with attempts by Iran to go wild in our area. We will act against them and strike them and send them back to their land of origin thousands of kilometers east from the State of Israel.”
The defense minister repeated past statements that “all options are on the table” to prevent the Islamic Republic from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
Iran's 'capital of terror' meeting
Gallant also emphasized Tehran’s global role in terror, noting a recent meeting in Iran with top Hamas terror leaders and terror leaders from various other organizations.
“This was a meeting of terror in the capital of terror” to bring terror against Israel and the entire world.
At the same ceremony, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would prevent Iran from smuggling precision weapons close to its borders.
Likewise, Netanyahu said that the IDF would not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon and that it would defend Israel even if the West signed a new potential nuclear deal with Tehran.
Whereas Iran’s destabilizing activities in the Middle East are well known, “peripheral” Tehran activities are coming under the radar. One such direction of Iranian subversion is the Caucasus, Iran’s conflict with the Republic of Azerbaijan. Numerous Iranian media outlets have recently evoked the possibility of a military escalation between Baku and Tehran. The Iranian regime accuses Azerbaijan of all possible manipulations and evil doings, including dispatching ISIS and al-Qaeda Sunni terrorists to fight Iran. The main accusation, however, is of Baku’s collision with Israel (“the Zionist regime,” to quote Iranian officialdom). This article reviews the anti-Azeri actions taken by Iran.
Relations between Azerbaijan and Iran have always been tense. The main driver of conflict is the Azeri population of Iranian Azerbaijan. Though the Azeris make up nearly 40% of Iran’s population, they are deprived of their national rights, such as the right to use their language in the press and education. The Azeris in Iran aspire to more cultural autonomy and home rule, which the Tehran regime denies.
There are also other contentions, such as Iran’s struggle with Azerbaijan over controlling Caspian oil. Azerbaijan hinders Iran from achieving its ambitions in the Caucasus. Nevertheless, Iran cannot fight Azerbaijan directly and has relied on the Moscow-Yerevan-Tehran axis for that purpose since the 1990s. Russia and Armenia want to weaken Azerbaijan. Nevertheless, the primary reason for the tension between Iran and Azerbaijan resides in the discrimination of the Azeris in Iran and the secular pro-Western stance of independent Azerbaijan.
Since the Ukraine war outbreak, Iran has stepped up its cooperation with Russia. Iran has always supported Armenia against Azerbaijan. Russia’s position in the Caucasus has recently weakened, and it cannot help Armenia. Armenia, in turn, is becoming Iran’s pawn in the Iranian game against Azerbaijan. Iranian diversions cannot unfold without using Armenia as a transit hub. The actions undertaken by Armenia help Iranian efforts to weaken Azerbaijan. Iran has always preferred indirect actions.
The former IRGC Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani founded an Azeri pro-Iranian militia called “Hosseyniyun” in Iran. Iranian agents have always been active in Azerbaijan. Yet Iranian subversion is not confined to covert actions and rabble-rousing rhetoric alone.
Iranian state media started questioning Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, claiming the Nakhchivan region belongs to Iran. Iranian actions could never be so effective if Iran did not have regional allies. One of these Iranian bedfellows is Armenia. The Tehran regime is transforming the Caucasian country into its military bases and a stronghold to increase tensions with Azerbaijan and help Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. In other words, Armenia is becoming Iran’s client in the Caucasus.
The Russian army now uses ???? Iranian-made artillery ammunition - photos that have emerged show brand-new Iranian OF-462 122mm HE projectiles in the possession of Russian artillerymen. ?? pic.twitter.com/hgbzEsbgTB
— ???? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) June 29, 2023
California Islamic Scholar Dr. Ali Ataie: The Earth Is Flat, the Moon Landings Were Fake, 94% of Astronauts (And @neiltyson) Are Freemasons; You Believe in Gravity, I Believe in God pic.twitter.com/a5g0SZb01O
— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) June 30, 2023
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12:04 PMElder of ZiyonNo comments
Washington is urging the Lebanese government to pressure Hezbollah into removing an outpost erected in the occupied Shebaa Farms, Israeli media reported on 29 June.Walla news outlet cited anonymous Israeli and US officials as saying that the outpost represents a “miscalculation on Hezbollah’s part, which does not take into account the potential Israeli response. Therefore, this incident has the potential for serious escalation.”“Our goal is for the outpost not to be there. We prefer Hezbollah evacuate its people itself over us bombing them. We have made this clear to the US, and the Americans made it clear to the Lebanese,” the report cites an Israeli official as saying.According to Walla, Hezbollah began erecting the first tent in April. The Israeli army reportedly did not realize this until a second tent had been set up.Israel tried to handle the situation “under the radar in quiet talks” with UNIFIL for weeks.Other Israeli media outlets say Tel Aviv set a deadline to remove the tents, and that it would deal with the resistance group “on its own,” sparking fears of a wider confrontation.Beirut has acknowledged that the outpost is south of the UN-recognized Blue Line, separating Lebanese and Israeli territories.
Last week I wrote, "Israeli territory is being stolen by a terrorist group. It seems unbelievable that Israel would outsource the solution to the impotent UN."
It appears that Israel is treading carefully, not wanting to start a war over this but not willing to back down.
It first gave UNIFIL a chance to get involved and do its job to ensure that all of Southern Lebanon, let alone Israeli territory, is not occupied by an Iranian militia. Israel informed UNIFIL of the tents in April, but they have proven to be worthless:
According to Kan news, which originally reported on the Iranian proxy’s armed presence inside Israel proper, the IDF approached UNIFIL regarding the matter some time ago, but the watchdog only came to the site following diplomatic pressure from Israel at UN Headquarters.
Upon inspection, UNIFIL confirmed that tents set up and manned by Hezbollah have indeed been established on the Israeli side of the internationally recognized Blue Line in the contested Mount Dov region, an area claimed by Israel, Lebanon and Syria and also known as the Shebaa Farms.
In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the UN Security Council, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan wrote that Hezbollah’s actions constitute a violation of UN Resolution 1701, enacted following the end of the Second Lebanon War in 2006 and ratified by both countries. The resolution calls for armed groups besides the official Lebanese military and UNIFIL to remain north of the country’s Litani River.
The letter also contained photographs of the Lebanese position in Israel.
Furthermore, the former public security minister noted that Hezbollah has built 27 outposts along the Blue Line over the past year, and that he expects the UN to take action on the matter, as these positions also violate Resolution 1701.
“Our goal is for the outpost not to be there,” an Israeli official was quoted as saying. “We prefer Hezbollah evacuate its people itself over us bombing them. We have made this clear to the US and the Americans made it clear to the Lebanese.”
According to the Ynet news site, Israeli officials believe UN peacekeepers will not be able to act against the post and are looking to the US and France instead. The outlet claimed Israeli officials had set a deadline for the position to be removed, after which it will get rid of the tents itself, a move that could spark a wider conflagration.
Alma Research, which watches Hezbollah closely, believes that the terror group wants a war.
In our assessment, Hezbollah intends to reach an escalation that will lead to a broad military conflict with Israel, out of an internal interest in strengthening its power in Lebanon. Hezbollah is trying to escalate with a defiant presence on the border, the Megiddo attack, firing rockets, and now the placing of tents on Israeli territory. Israel for the time being is not dragged in. Last summer, Nasrallah gave ideological and religious approval for a military conflict and as far as Hezbollah is concerned, he has carried out significant power-building in recent years and is ready for a conflict. Continued provocations or a broad conflict is a win-win for Hezbollah.
The strategy is Iranian, not Lebanese
I believe that Israel's best card to play is the Lebanese people itself. While they hate Israel, they hate Hezbollah and Iran as well, and they do not want to be dragged into a new conflict that only benefits Iran.
The Lebanese media has been muted in this issue. I believe that unless Hezbollah dismantles the tents quickly, Israel should publicly say - but with the intent that the Lebanese hear - that the situation is intolerable and that Israel will bomb the tents on Israeli territory.
Israel should make a public deadline, announce the date that the tents would be bombed, emphasize that these are on Israeli territory, and then bomb them if they are not removed.
Israel must emphasize that it has no intention of attacking Lebanon - unless attacked first. If Hezbollah responds with rockets, the gloves will come off.
The UN agrees where the Blue Line is so Hezbollah's claim that the territory is Lebanese will not impress more residents.
If the Lebanese people publicly call for Hezbollah to withdraw, it would have a hard time pretending that it is defending Lebanese interests.
The entire Shebaa Farms issue is just an excuse by Hezbollah to maintain its massive arsenal for the pretense of "defending Lebanon." Everyone knows it is a joke. But Lebanese lives are in the balance, and it must be made clear to the world that Iran and its Hezbollah proxy are trying to start a war that would only hurt the Lebanese people.
It is clear that Israel cannot allow an enemy to wantonly grab its land. No state would. Israel's patience so far has been somewhere between heroic and foolhardy.
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9:04 AMElder of ZiyonNo comments.jpg)
A person who, in a disseminated statement or communication, threatens or expresses contempt for a national, ethnic or other such group of persons with allusion to race, colour, national or ethnic origin or religious belief shall, be sentenced for agitation against a national or ethnic group to imprisonment for at most two years or, if the crime is petty, to a fine. (Law 1988:835)The deliberate burning of a Quran is an expression of contempt for believing Muslims. As such, it should be illegal - and so should the deliberate burning of Jewish holy books.
10:05 AMElder of ZiyonNo comments
BEIRUT, Lebanon, Sept. 16— Haj Amin el Husseini, the exiled Mufti of Jerusalem, and his Arab Higher Committee have started. a move to create a solid belt of Palestine Arab settlements around Israel and prevent-the moving of refugees away from Israel borders.This change of front has come with the present evident collapse of the. former insistence by the Arab League, the Arab Higher Committee -and the Arab governments on the return of Palestine Arab refugees to their original homes under the terms of a 1948 United Nations resolution.,The Arab Higher Committee was the last to demand that the refugees must return to the territory now under Israeli control. This demand not only has been abandoned. for practical, as opposed to political, purposes but the Arab Higher Committee and certain Arab statesmen now are opposed to. any return of Palestine Arabs to Israel territory. This change has been brought about by the fact that Israel will accept only a few Arabs into their old home, and that it is better to avoid the impression that the Palestine case has been settled. by agreement for a few to return....Strongly nationalist elements apparently are rallying around the Mufti and the Arab Higher Committee’s program for a belt of thickly settled Palestinians surrounding Israel....‘The shift in. the Mufti’s policy was apparently connected with the enthusiasm which Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Syria displayed for the preservation of the independent Kingdom of Jordan, and their strong opposition to its unification with Iraq. The Palestinian element is becoming increasingly predominant in Jordan in which it constitutes not only some two-thirds of the. population but is an educated and trained element that is pushing the original Jordanians, largely of Bedouin stock, into the background.
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9:04 AMElder of ZiyonNo comments
About a week ago, the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron, witnessed an escalation of security chaos, which claimed the lives of two young men, due to a quarrel between the Khalil and Abu Ayyash families in the town.The townspeople complain about the lack of security, the destruction of public property, and the bullets flying between houses, which have been going on for days without interruption.Resident Rami Zaazik said in an interview with Safa agency hat he and his family avoid leaving the house for fear of flying bullets, and even inside the house, the danger remains.He explained that the town's economy and people's livelihoods were affected by the security situation in the town and the curfew, in addition to the security and social harm.Political activist Fayez Sweiti held the Palestinian Authority responsible for the security chaos in Beit Ummar, explaining that the authority has about 70,000 armed personnel who are unable to protect citizens and are unable to maintain civil peace.Sweiti said, "The corrupt judiciary and weak law contributed to fueling the crisis and reaching a stage of no return."
3:04 PMElder of ZiyonNo comments
Diplomacy with Iran, Princess Reema continued, provides “another way” to deescalate tensions in the region. “You do not want a nuclear Iran pointing itself at the rest of us,” she said. “You don’t want us poking and prodding. You don’t want Israel poking and prodding. You don’t want the Iranians aiming at Israel. You don’t want any of that.”The ambassador defended Saudi efforts to reintegrate Syria into the Arab world, explaining that the kingdom is using available avenues to bring humanitarian relief to the war-torn country. The war in Syria, she said, has gone on for “12 years, where it’s not just a war zone, the country is [in] shambles. We cannot have another failed state in the Middle East. It is unreasonable to let it happen. And so the question is, what do you do? And that’s what we’re trying to solve for today.”
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3:04 PMElder of ZiyonNo commentsThe White House's newest hire is a City University of New York (CUNY) professor who has accused Israel of "ethnic cleansing" and "systematic genocide," a move that is raising alarms among the many people who are already concerned about the Biden administration's failure to combat anti-Semitism on America's college campuses.Friedman: Biden administration is ‘embracing BDS movement’
Ramzi Kassem, a professor at CUNY's law school, was tapped to serve as a senior policy adviser for immigration in the White House's Domestic Policy Council. Kassem is a vocal Israel critic who spent a portion of his time as an undergrad at Columbia University writing scathing criticisms of the Jewish state, a Washington Free Beacon review found. Kassem, who helped defend terrorists held at Guantanamo Bay, charged the Jewish state with genocide and decried "unconditional" support for Israel.
Kassem's hiring comes as the Biden administration fights the perception it is feeding Israel's opponents. A closely watched White House plan on combating anti-Semitism, for instance, was recently watered down by anti-Israel activists. The State Department admitted on Monday that it is boycotting research partnerships with certain Israeli organizations.
CUNY announced that Kassem "will work to support the Biden-Harris agenda across a range of immigration issues" using his expertise as "a national leader on progressive immigration reform." Kassem enters the White House after working for more than a decade at CUNY, which has repeatedly found itself in hot water for promoting anti-Semitic hate speech and, in some cases, subjecting Jewish students to "severe and persistent anti-Semitic harassment." CUNY's law school, in particular, promotes anti-Semitic boycotts against Israel and recently featured a graduation speaker who accused Israel of sending "lynch mobs" after Palestinians.
Kassem's past writings strike a similar note. In an April 1998 article, the White House adviser claimed there is "sufficient evidence" implicating Israel in a "systematic genocide" against the Palestinians. The Jewish state's behavior, Kassem wrote in the Columbia Spectator, is "a clear-cut case of ethnic cleansing." In another April 1998 article, titled "Zionism Impedes Middle Eastern Peace," Kassem claimed European Jews came to the Middle East "with the intention of conquering the land." A two-state solution between the parties "is not viable, nor is it desirable," he insisted.
U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller confirmed on Monday that the United States would be freezing scientific and technological cooperation with Israeli entities in areas over the 1949 armistice line, i.e., in Judea, Samaria, the Golan Heights and parts of Jerusalem. U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller confirmed on Monday that the United States would be freezing scientific and technological cooperation with Israeli entities in areas over the 1949 armistice line, i.e. in Judea, Samaria, the Golan Heights and parts of Jerusalem.Longtime ADL leader Foxman slams Biden for ‘boycotting’ Netanyahu, meeting with tyrants - exclusive
Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman took to Twitter following the news of the freeze, saying: “Make no mistake. The United States, by this action, is embracing the BDS movement, violating a binding bilateral agreement with Israel, and creating a lose/lose dynamic whereby the people of the region—Israelis and Palestinians—will lose the most.”
In October 2020, Friedman, under the direction of former President Donald Trump, participated in a signing ceremony at Ariel University in Samaria with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, extending bilateral agreements between Israel and the United States to include Israeli institutions over the so-called Green Line, immediately expanding scientific and academic cooperation.
When asked by a reporter at Monday’s press briefing in Washington about the decision to reverse the Trump administration directive that had permitted such cooperation in all parts of the country, Miller stated:
“The United States strongly values scientific and technological cooperation with Israel, and robust scientific and technological cooperation with Israel continues. The State Department recently circulated foreign policy guidance to relevant agencies in the United States government, advising that engaging in bilateral scientific and technological cooperation with Israel in geographic areas which came under the administration of Israel after 1967 and which remain subject to final-status negotiations is inconsistent with U.S. foreign policy.”
“I believe that President [Joe] Biden isolating Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu is a misguided policy and borders on what I would even call hypocrisy,” Abe Foxman, the former Anti Defamation League (ADL) head and one of the most senior leaders of the American Jewish community told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday, while visiting Israel.In rollout of antisemitism strategy, White House steers clear of the Jewish state
Foxman explained that Biden not meeting with Netanyahu “also sends the wrong message [not only] to Israel’s enemies, but also to its friends and allies.” He stressed that “when friends disagree, they need to, and should meet, speak to each other. This lack of invitation has become a politicized issue.”
For this phenomenon, he gave examples from both the Left and Right: “Republicans in the US charge the president with animus Israel, that that’s why he’s not inviting the prime minister. On the other side, some of the progressives in the Democratic party would like to isolate the prime minister, even before he was elected; before the judicial reform.“Yet in terms of liberal Democrats, they have also made it a political issue, which I believe the White House sees as part of making them happy, while the president isn’t seeing the price.”
Foxman continued, saying that having spent a week in Israel “democracy may still be under assault, but I see a robust democracy and even though some are trying to undermine it. Many in this country are exercising dynamic democratic debate, hundreds-of-thousands on the streets, in the press and on social media.
“Democracy is under assault all over the world, including in America,” Foxman added. “We almost lost democracy in the last several years.” But this American Jewish leader, who holds plenty of criticism towards the current coalition, thinks that Biden needs to stop with the animosity and create dialogue with Netanyahu. “What about the special relationship between these two democratic countries?” He asked. “This sends a bad message for Israel and for America, because that special relationship is important, both for the countries but also for the region.
The White House language led to a wide-ranging constellation of praise that served as something of a Rorschach test rather than any clear statement of policy: Mainstream Jewish organizations viewed the language as an endorsement of IHRA, while groups on the left who oppose the IHRA definition applauded the Biden administration for not fully backing IHRA.
“They can say whatever they want,” Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt, the U.S. special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, said of those who celebrated that the Biden administration did not formally adopt IHRA. “But the strategy says the United States government embraces the IHRA definition,” she told JI earlier this month.
On Friday, the White House official declined to offer any further explanation of the White House position.
“It addresses this exactly the way that we want to do so,” said the administration official. “The report continues the approach of the United States government on the definition of antisemitism.”
Further, they added, “we are sticking with the approach that we’ve had on this matter, and we’re moving forward with all the agency actions to try to make a real difference in people’s lives.”
The White House’s hesitation to explain its approach to defining antisemitism stands in stark contrast to the way the matter has been discussed by the State Department’s Lipstadt. In several recent interviews, Lipstadt — a prominent historian of the Holocaust and a supporter of the IHRA definition — has continued to publicly embrace IHRA. But as a Senate-confirmed ambassador, Lipstadt has no involvement in matters of domestic policy, such as the recent CUNY commencement case.
The Palestinian Authority is debating the possibility of declaring bankruptcy because of the difficult financial situation it has found itself in, Reshet Bet Radio reported Wednesday morning. The meaning of such a decision could be the complete closure of government in Ramallah, resulting in the loss of stability in Judea and Samaria, or as the report put it, chaos.PA faces pressure from Israel, US to rein in West Bank terror groups
The idea behind the establishment of the Palestinian Authority with the Oslo agreements was that it would undertake the fight against terrorism instead of the IDF, absolving the Rabin government of having to deal with B’Tselem and the High Court of Justice. In reality, the results have been uneven, to put it kindly. There were times when the PA security service was a great asset in helping the IDF locate and arrest terrorists, but the PA was also responsible for starting the second intifada in 2000 and supporting, even initiating waves of terror.
Part of the reason for the PA’s financial difficulties, in addition to its rampant corruption and the drop in support from the West and rich Arab countries, is Ramallah’s policy of transferring monthly payments to security prisoners behind bars in Israel and to their families and the families of deceased terrorists.
Those payments are anchored in the PA’s constitution. A PA Arab who was arrested or injured as a result of terrorist activity is entitled to a salary payment and an allowance to his family. Likewise, a family whose son was killed as a result of his terrorist activity is entitled to monthly support. The guiding rule in salary payments is that the more severe the punishment, the higher the salary. In other words, the more heinous the crime, the higher the pay. The terrorists behind bars receive a much higher salary than the average wage for a working man in the Palestinian Authority.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday told the Knesset foreign affairs and security committee: “We need the Palestinian Authority. We can’t let ןא collapse. We don’t want it to collapse either. We are ready to help ןא financially. We have an interest in the authority continuing to work. Wherever it manages to operate, it does the job for us. And we have no interest in its falling.”
Oren Solomon noted this week in Makor Rishon that the PA is engaged in a six-pronged war against Israel, questioning Netanyahu’s desire to see it survive bankruptcy. On the security level, the PA permits the current wave of terror in Judea and Samaria and even operates against Israel through proxies, while flooding the PA media with despicable and antisemitic propaganda; on the political level, the PA is advocating against Israel at the UN and a plethora of international organizations; on the judicial level, the PA is engaged in lawsuits against Israel at the International Criminal Court at the Hague, in violation of the Oslo accords; on the infrastructure level, the PA is creating facts on the ground by establishing villages and even cities in Area C which is under Israeli jurisdiction according to Oslo; on the awareness level, the PA is collaborating with the BDS organizations to undermine Israel’s economy; and on the internal level, the PA has been investing in turning Israeli Arabs into collaborators with the enemies of their country through numerous publications, events, rallies, and even violent incidents pitting Israeli citizens against their government.
With all this in mind, is Netanyahu going to order his finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, whose entire agenda stands on eliminating the PA, to write support checks for Mahmoud Abbas et al?
The PA is facing increased pressure from Israel, the US, and other parties to take tough measures against armed groups and gunmen in the northern West Bank, a Palestinian official in Ramallah said on Tuesday.European Parliament committee calls for war crimes charges against Israel
The Palestinian Authority, on the other hand, is also facing pressure and threats from many Palestinians to end the security coordination between the Palestinian security forces and the Israeli authorities in the West Bank, the official told The Jerusalem Post.
The PA, in addition, has come under attack for failing to order its security forces to engage IDF soldiers and settlers.
PA believes Islamic Jihad behind shooting attacks targeting security officers
In the past few days, two senior Palestinian security officers, Muhanad Marzouk and Faleh Arar, were the targets of shooting attacks. No one was hurt.
The PA believes gunmen belonging to the Iranian-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) were behind the attempted assassinations.
The official denied claims that the PA has lost control of the northern West Bank, specifically Nablus and Jenin, where several armed groups have popped up over the past 18 months.
“Our security forces are in control of the situation,” the official argued. “If anyone has lost control of the situation it’s Israel. We’ve seen how the Israeli army and police are incapable of reining in the extremist settlers in the West Bank.”
According to the official, contrary to what is being reported in the Israeli media, the PA security forces have been putting heavy pressure on some of the armed groups and gunmen to lay down their weapons.
“We worked very hard to convince scores of gunmen to hand themselves over to the Palestinian security forces,” he said. “In Nablus, more than 36 gunmen have turned themselves into the security forces. Others agreed to hand over their rifles.”
The European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee called for the EU to help the International Criminal Court to prosecute Israel for war crimes, in a resolution on EU-Palestinian relations on Tuesday.UN's bias against Israel is also incompetent - opinion
The resolution said that the committee “regret[s] the limited progress on the ICC infestations in war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the occupied Palestinian territories and commit to help the ICC and its prosecutor move forward with the investigation and the prosecution.”
MEP Evin Incir of the Swedish Social Democrats, the rapporteur for recommendations on the EU’s relations with the Palestinian Authority, spearheaded the measure, which passed with 41 in favor, 24 opposed and nine abstentions. It is scheduled to go to a plenary vote in July.
The members of the European Parliament also expressed concern against what it claimed were Israeli “punitive measures,” such as withholding funds from the Palestinian Authority and limiting construction in Area C, in response to the PA petitioning international legal forums. The funds were, in fact, frozen in response to the PA’s policy of paying terrorists, and the limitations on Area C construction were in response to Palestinians' construction without the required permits, some of which were funded by the EU.
The committee also called to “consider targeted EU measures specifically addressing settlement expansion in the West Bank.”
The legislators repeatedly wrote that the EU should ensure the enforcement of Brussels’ policies of excluding Israeli products from Judea and Samaria from the EU-Israel Free Trade Agreement and of labeling settlement products as not from Israel.
More broadly, they said that “the principle of legal differentiation between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied since 1967 is applied consistently to the full scope of EU bilateral relations with Israel.”
They called for the release of “all political prisoners,” which would include members of EU-designated terrorist organizations, such as Hamas, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
The UN Human Rights Council’s Commission of Inquiry into Israel and the Palestinian Territory has demonstrated its incapacity to function as an independent tribunal based on the rule of law. Its incompetence was made clear during the recent presentation of the Commission’s third report.Israel’s envoy to UN: Building in Judea and Samaria will continue
At that presentation, one of the members of the Commission – Miloon Kothari – claimed that Ukraine and “Palestine” should be “dealt with” in the same way, namely, “international law uphold[s] correctly the rights of Ukrainians to resist and we would like to see the same standards being applied to the case in Israel and Palestine.”
This absurd claim is not only false, it is grossly misleading, by suggesting that Israel has somehow illegally attacked territory belonging to a State of Palestine.
According to Prof. Geoffrey Corn, a leading international expert on international humanitarian law (the law of war), “equating Ukraine’s international legal status in response to Russian aggression with that of the Palestinian Territory is a fundamental distortion of international law.”
Corn explains: “Since the adoption of the Charter of the United Nations, there have been few examples of a member State’s right – pursuant to Article 51 of the Charter – to act in self-defense, and the right of other member states to come to that victim state’s aid, than the situation Ukraine. Russia’s initial and most recent invasion of Ukrainian territory was a blatant violation of Article 2(4) of the Charter prohibiting the use of force against another member State.”
Gilad Erdan, Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., countered that Israeli building permits in Judea and Samaria “are not an impediment to peace, and the building will not stop. Constructing homes in existing communities across Judea and Samaria is not an inflammatory step.”
Erdan added that “Judea and Samaria is the heartland of the Jewish people. We are called ‘Jews’ because we are from Judea.”
He also sought to counter the narrative of a cycle of violence in the region, noting that terrorists murdering Israelis are “as a result of poisonous Palestinian incitement and Israel is taking action to defend itself. There is no ‘cycle!’”
Erdan sought to counter council criticism that the makeup of the current Israeli government is fueling tensions.
“Palestinian terror attacks have been relentless, regardless of Israel’s various governments. Right-wing, left-wing, centrist—it makes no difference to the Palestinians,” said Erdan. “No matter who the prime minister is or who sits in the Cabinet, Palestinian incitement persists and as a result, Palestinian terror persists.”
Robert Wood, the U.S. representative at Tuesday’s session, said he understood the reasons for pessimism surrounding the possibilities for peace after witnessing the events of the last two weeks.
“The violence of the past week must serve as a call for action for all of us in this council to redouble our efforts toward peace,” said Wood. “The United States will continue to work with Israel and the Palestinian Authority to promote steps aimed at lowering tensions and restoring trust, which can create the conditions to bring the parties back to the table.”
At the same time, the U.S. State Department announced on Monday that the Biden administration had increased its support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) by $16 million over 2022 levels, bringing total assistance for the year to a record $223 million.
“Regional actors and the broader international community must urgently consider providing UNRWA with greater financial support,” said Wood.
Amb. @giladerdan1 speaking at the UN Security Council, highlighting that whereas Israel condemns violence committed by our citizens, there is only abject silence by Palestinian Auth, when it comes to Palestinian terrorists who murder Israelis. https://t.co/kkL9uh9vt9
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) June 28, 2023
In June 2023, Syrian opposition websites reported that a delegation from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) recently held meetings with military officials from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and from Hizbullah to discuss the promotion of development and reconstruction projects in Deir Al-Zour and Al-Mayadin in eastern Syria, areas that are known to be strongholds of the Iranian and Iran-backed militias. According to the reports, the meetings took place in neighborhoods where the militias are strongly present. Although representatives of the Syrian regime, chief of them the Deir Al-Zour governor, also reportedly attended the meetings, it seems that their presence was mostly a formality, since the objective of the UN in holding the meetings was apparently to secure the cooperation of the Iranian side in order to begin implementing the projects. If these reports are correct, the meetings reflect de facto recognition by the UN of Iran's control of these areas, in contravention of UN Security Council Resolution 76/228 on the situation of human rights in Syria, which strongly condemned "the intervention in the Syrian Arab Republic of all foreign terrorist fighters and those foreign organizations and foreign forces fighting on behalf of the Syrian regime" and demanded their immediate withdrawal from Syria.[1]
This document reviews the reports on Syrian opposition websites about the meetings between the UN delegation and the IRGC and Hizbullah officials.
Report: UN Delegation Sought Cooperation Of Senior Iranian Officials For Development Projects In The Region
The France-based Arabic news portal Jesr Press, which opposes the Assad regime, reported that on June 7, 2023 a UN delegation visited the city of Deir Al-Zour and met with “several officials of the Iranian militias and the Assad regime.” According to the report, the meeting took place at the Havana café in the city center and went on for a few hours. Among those reportedly present were "Al-Hajj Rasoul," head of the Iranian Cultural Center in eastern Syria, "Al-Hajj Sajjad, a senior IRGC military official,” and Al-Hajj Soumar, a Lebanese military commander “who recently arrived in Deir Al-Zour.” The Syrian regime was represented by Deir Al-Zour Governor Fadel Al-Najjar; district council head As'ad Al-Toukan; Deir Al-Zour Mayor Jarir Kakakhan, and the Ministry of Agriculture representative in the region, Fuad 'Abdoun. Also present were representatives of the Suleiman Al-Mustafa Company for Technical Works, the contractor that carries out maintenance and repair work for the Deir Al-Zour city council.
According to the sources cited in the report, the UN delegation “asked the Iranians to appoint representatives from the Iranian Cultural Center to help launch several projects,” and the purpose of the meeting with the Iranians was to secure their cooperation in order to start implementing the projects. The website noted that the projects include the paving of roads and the installation of solar panels and streetlights. It added that, in early June 2023, UNDP had reported the commencement of several projects in Deir Al-Zour, including "Shabab 2023," an educational program for young people aged 18 to 35; a project to rebuild the marketplace in the city center, and a project for the the installation of a solar power system.
“Sources in the Deir Al-Zour city council” told the portal that the contacts between the UN and the Iranian officials angered representatives of the regime in the region, who believe that the UN should be in direct contact with them, since they are “the officials making decisions about the implementation of projects in the area.”[2]
On June 18, 2023 the opposition website Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that, on the previous day, a UN delegation had visited the city of Deir Al-Zour and met with Al-Hajj Rasoul, Al-Hajj Sadeq and Al-Hajj Soumar at the Karamish restaurant in the Friends Park in the Hawija Saqr area. Also present at the meeting was the Deir Al-Zour governor, the Ministry of Agriculture representative and the head of the city council. Several projects were discussed, including putting up streetlights and solar power systems, restoring parks and installing lights along the promenade.[3]
On June 19, another opposition website reported that a UN delegation had visited the Al-Watani Hospital in the city of Al-Mayadin, “which was rebuilt by the Iranian militias,” and the Iranian Cultural Center in Deir Al-Zour.[4]
Roth is so obsessed with bashing Israel that, he refuses to report the facts accurately.
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) June 28, 2023
Comparing Russia & Israel is misleading. Israel prioritizes civilian safety on both sides (Russia doesn't).
Falsely equating the two undermines meaningful discussions on the conflict. https://t.co/OZt0Off7et
Palestinian government suddenly concerned about "children's rights" but they themselves allow Hamas and Islamic Jihad summer camps, UNRWA textbooks teaching violence, children's shows celebrating terror, and the plays glorifying antisemitism and murder.
— Emily Schrader - ????? ?????? ????? ????? (@emilykschrader) June 28, 2023
The hypocrisy is endless pic.twitter.com/uxRuxe2RCN
Important recognition, first time ever by @UN in this ‘Children in Armed Conflict’ report, thanks to efforts of @giladerdan1, calling on Palestinian terror groups to stop firing rockets at Israel and instrumentalizing & recruiting #Palestinian children for political purposes. pic.twitter.com/y9sNyzjxXF
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) June 28, 2023
A telling illustration of the prevailing ideology within the United Nations is its open acceptance of correspondence from armed groups that actively groom children to serve as combatants. Just recently, Islamic Jihad ended its summer program aimed at instructing youngsters on the… https://t.co/iQMg63w5RX
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) June 27, 2023
The head of the World Zionist Organization called for Israeli annexation of the Jordan Valley on Wednesday, as right-wing lawmakers launched a new Knesset group with that goal.Netanyahu hosts Iowa governor in Jerusalem
“Fifty-six years since we liberated Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria and the Jordan Valley, and there’s still no sovereignty,” Yaakov Hagoel said, using the biblical terms for the West Bank. “We’re patient, but we’re running out of patience, and need action.”
“We need to implement sovereignty. Both the right and the left want sovereignty in the Jordan Valley, and the sooner the better,” Hagoel said. The WZO is a non-governmental umbrella group based in Jerusalem and focused on promoting Zionism.
The Jordan Valley is a swath of land on Israel’s eastern border between the West Bank and Jordan that Israel sees as a vital security asset. It is home to Israeli settlements and Palestinian communities.
Hagoel made the push for annexation as coalition lawmakers launched the new Knesset group, called Sovereignty over the Jordan Valley First.
The group, launched “with the aim of bringing a major achievement in applying sovereignty in the Jordan Valley,” is led by Likud MK Dan Illouz and Shas MK Yosef Taieb, WZO said in a statement.
“We’re at a historic moment. If there isn’t significant progress on this issue, there will be tears shed for generations,” Illouz said.
“The historical roots of the people of Israel are in the areas of Judea and Samaria, and the way to secure our place is to stand firm for our historical right to the Land of Israel,” Illouz said. “The road begins with applying sovereignty in the Jordan Valley.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Jerusalem on Wednesday with Republican Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, who signed a proclamation of support for the Jewish state on the occasion of 75 years of independence.How Cairo’s Embassy in Tel Aviv Can Contribute to a Warmer Peace with Israel
Netanyahu thanked Reynolds for her “unreserved support” of Israel. They discussed economic cooperation, particularly with respect to agricultural technology.
On Tuesday, Netanyahu met in the Israeli capital with a bipartisan congressional delegation led by Reps. Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.) and Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.).
The meeting focused on the Iranian nuclear threat and artificial intelligence technology.
Earlier this year, every U.S. Republican governor—26 of them—signed a statement marking Jewish American Heritage Month.
“As public servants and governors, we support and recognize May as Jewish American Heritage Month—and call for observance to celebrate the historical, economic and cultural impact of the Jewish-American people who have strengthened our communities and emboldened our nation throughout history,” they wrote.
They added that they are proud the United States was the first to recognize Israel and noted the “unbreakable bond” between the two nations, “based upon shared values, ultimately leading to prosperous economic, educational and cultural partnerships.”
While el-Sisi’s gestures are better than nothing, they do not represent any kind of sustained investment in making the Egyptian public understand that Israel and the Jews are no longer enemies. Rather, these overtures give Egypt’s president something to brag about when he meets with influential Jewish-American groups and other worldwide pro-Israel organizations. El-Sisi can risk making positive gestures toward Israel because his control of local media is so tight — local news simply did not cover his positive gestures toward Israel over the past year, ensuring there would be no backlash.Lost Between Recognition and Rejection: Tunisia’s Relations with Israel
The most pragmatic way for el-Sisi to start changing the conversation about Israel inside Egypt may be to begin in Tel Aviv, where Cairo maintains a lethargic Embassy whose staff is not curious about Israel and does little to promote a warmer peace. For example, the Embassy does not facilitate visits for Egyptian businessmen and academics interested in cooperating with their neighbor to the north. Egyptian diplomats barely participate in public events organized by the Israeli foreign ministry, academic institutions, or commercial entities. Many of them do not speak either English or Hebrew and they live in Arab Israeli towns. The few who have command of English and Hebrew spend most of their time between Ramallah and Bethlehem. Unlike every other Egyptian Embassy, the mission in Tel Aviv has no official Twitter account or Facebook page.
To encourage a change, American and Israeli officials must communicate to their Egyptian counterparts behind closed doors that keeping their relationship with Israel secret is the wrong approach. Especially after last week’s terror attacks, Egyptian military leaders should capitalize on el-Sisi’s brief mention of cooperation with Israel in Sinai to challenge flawed views of the Jewish state within Egyptian ranks. Terror incidents like the one last week draw on a well of antipathy toward Israel. The positive reaction on social media and in the streets toward Salah’s actions illustrate the need for change.
U.S. congressional delegations visiting Israel should make a special point of knocking on the door of the Egyptian embassy. Cairo’s envoy, Ambassador Khaled Azami, did not even attend the funeral services of the soldiers killed last week, nor did he visit the wounded. Those who visit Azami should point out how he can revive his diminished status in town by becoming more of a public figure, since Abraham Accords ambassadors are celebrated everywhere in Israel.
It will not be easy to address the deep anti-Israel and anti-Jewish prejudice in Egyptian society. Yet by starting in Tel Aviv, the government may be able to begin laying the foundation for real normalization.
In the parliamentary elections of 2014, Ennahda came in second and joined a unity government led by the secular Nidaa Tounes party. As Tunisian society liberalized, the nation also saw a rise in terrorism. The Bardo Museum in Tunis and a beach resort in Sousse suffered attacks in 2015 by gunmen affiliated with the Islamic State (IS). The Tunisian Jewish community was the target of several attacks, with the el-Ghriba synagogue in Djerba targeted several times. In 2002, an Al-Qaeda operative drove a natural gas truck fitted with explosives into the synagogue, killing 19, including 16 German and French tourists. It was al-Qaeda’s first successful international attack after the September 11, 2001, attacks. The most recent attack was earlier this year when a national guard member opened fire at the synagogue, killing three of his fellow guards and two civilians.Hamas in Sweden
Algerian opposition
The normalizing of relations between Maghreb states and Israel is perceived by Algiers as a threat to Algerian national security. Algeria was aligned with the Soviet Union in the Cold War while Morocco was and remains friendly with Washington. This rivalry has manifested itself in the question of the sovereignty of Western Sahara. Since 1973, Algeria has backed the Moscow-supported Polisario Front, a Western Sahara independence movement, while Rabat has claimed the territory as part of Morocco. In November of last year, Washington recognized Morocco’s claim over Western Sahara as part of a quid pro quo for Rabat’s normalization of relations with Jerusalem. If Tunisia were to normalize relations with Israel as well, Algeria would be encircled by antagonistic states that have gained access to some of the world’s best military training and hardware, an outcome greatly alarming to Algiers. As a result of these events, Algeria severed diplomatic ties with Morocco in 2021.
Algeria’s significant aid to Tunisia is often seen as an attempt to keep Tunis away from the influence of Morocco and the American-led partnership. Although Russia sympathizes with Algeria’s position and sells it weapons, it is unlikely to jeopardize its good relationship with Morocco for Algeria’s sake. Similarly, despite its recent drone sale to Algeria, China’s burgeoning partnership with Morocco may limit its support for Algerian interests. Tunisia’s joining with Morocco on normalization would only exacerbate Algiers’ isolation.
Despite Algeria’s concerns, economic desperation might force Tunisia to consider joining the Abraham Accords. Plagued as it is by severe economic problems, Tunisia needs foreign aid, and joining the Accords might attract loans from the US, the Gulf States, or others. However, such a move could have serious internal and regional implications. For now, the potential political costs and risks seem to outweigh the perceived benefits of normalization, leading Tunisian officials to deny claims that Tunisia is on the verge of joining the Abraham Accords.
President Kais Saied
Kais Saied, a political outsider, was elected president of Tunisia in a landslide in 2019. He proceeded to suspend parliament and dismiss the prime minister on the claim that he was saving the country from a corrupt and incompetent political elite. However, his detractors have denounced his actions as a coup that violated the democratically adopted constitution. Since then, Saied has consolidated his one-man rule. In early 2022, he dissolved the Supreme Judicial Council, ending judicial independence, and imposed a new constitution that gave him absolute authority. Saied has succeeded in strangling the Arab world’s only democracy.
As president, Saied has regularly made inflammatory statements about Jews and Israel, such as blaming them for the country’s economic and social problems, calling for a boycott of Israeli products, and praising Palestinian resistance. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported that in response to a question about the deadly Djerba synagogue attack, Saied replied that Palestinians “are killed every day” and “no one talks about it.”
Conclusions
Upon initial review, Tunisia appears to have the prerequisites for quick normalization with Israel. It is a Sunni moderate Western-allied state with a long and storied Jewish community, and it could benefit from the trade and tourism normalization would provide. However, deeper scrutiny reveals that an adverse public, a dependence on the Algerian relationship, and a president hostile to Israel makes any near-term normalization doubtful.
The European Palestinians Conference, held in Malmö, Sweden on May 27, had clear and strong connections with Hamas....Protesters burn Quran at Stockholm mosque on Eid al-Adha
When the Swedish media wrote about the connection between the European Palestinians Conference and Hamas, however, MPs, one by one, began withdrawing from the conference -- although, notably, without distancing themselves from Hamas.
As Hamas is classified as a terrorist organization within the European Union and therefore also within Sweden, it would of course be embarrassing for these gentlemen to admit that they were prepared to participate in a conference with connections to Hamas, and that they only refrained because of negative media attention.
The MP who did not withdraw... was Social Democratic Party MP Jamal El-Haj, who represents Malmö in parliament. El-Haj, who has Palestinian roots, has sat in parliament since 2016, and has a history of repulsive statements and activism concerning the Israel-Palestine issue.
El-Haj, who has Palestinian roots, has sat in Sweden's parliament since 2016, and has a history of repulsive statements and activism concerning the Israel-Palestine issue. In 2018, El-Haj said in an interview, totally incorrectly, that Israel is an apartheid state that engages in ethnic cleansing. Despite this statement, the Social Democrats placed him on the parliament's foreign affairs committee....
El-Haj has not made the situation easier for his party after this scandal. He actually defended his participation. In a social media post, he wrote: "This conference is about my mother's right to return to her home in Palestine. There is nothing in the world that can make me give up such a dream".
What was left out, of course, is that the Arabs who stayed in Israel in 1948, and now number nearly two million, are still in their homes, with Israeli citizenship and equal rights. What took place was that five Arab armies attacked Israel on the day of its birth — and lost. The Arabs who fled during the conflict were perceived by the people in Israel who had not fled as disloyal fifth columnists, who had declined to stay and protect the country alongside them. Therefore, after the war, those Arabs were not allowed back. These are now known as Palestinians.
A man tore up and burned a Quran outside Stockholm's central mosque on Wednesday, an event that risks angering Turkey as Sweden bids to join NATO, after Swedish police granted permission for the protest to take place.Russia summons Israeli envoy for rebuke over comments by ambassador to Ukraine
A series of demonstrations in Sweden against Islam and for Kurdish rights have offended Ankara, whose backing Sweden needs to gain entry to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
Sweden sought NATO membership in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year. But alliance member Turkey has held up the process, accusing Sweden of harboring people it considers terrorists and demanding their extradition.
Some 200 onlookers witnessed one of the two organizers tearing up pages of a copy of the Quran and wiping his shoes with it before putting bacon in it and setting the book on fire, whilst the other protestor spoke into a megaphone.
Protest against the burning
Some of those present shouted 'God is great' in Arabic to protest against the burning, and one man was detained by police after he attempted to throw a rock.
A supporter of the demonstration shouted "let it burn" as the holy book caught on fire.
Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan condemned the act in a tweet on Wednesday.
Russia’s foreign ministry summoned Israel’s top envoy to Moscow for a meeting on Tuesday as part of an ongoing spat over comments by Israel’s envoy in Ukraine.Ex-police chief says expected Netanyahu to resign after indictment
In a statement, the Russian foreign ministry said that it summoned Israeli chargé d’Affaires Ronen Kraus to issue a complaint about remarks made last week by Ambassador to Ukraine Michael Brodsky, who said that he could understand why many Ukrainians revere former Nazi accomplices as heroes for fighting against the Soviet Union.
The statement emphasized that “whitewashing” of such figures is unacceptable and that Russia and Israel have worked together in the past to “rebuff attempts to rewrite history,” slamming those who praise Nazi collaborators in an attempt to “encourage Russophobic sentiments.”
Last week, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova accused Brodsky of “glorifying Nazism.”
“If in Brodsky’s opinion Kyiv has the right to heroes like that, then it is a problem for the Israeli Foreign Ministry,” Zakharova added.
Asked for a comment on Tuesday’s meeting, Israel’s Foreign Ministry pointed to its statement from last week following Zakharova’s comments: “There is no change in Israel’s policy, which is absolutely opposed to and rejects the glorification of criminals who collaborated with the Nazis in murdering Jews,” ministry spokesman Lior Haiat said at the time. “No party should lecture the State of Israel, Israel’s Foreign Ministry, or its diplomats about the importance of preserving the memory of the Holocaust or about the war on historical distortion.”
The meeting comes as Israel faces sharp criticism from both Moscow and Kyiv as it attempts to maintain ties with both allies while they remain engaged in a bitter conflict.
Former Israel Police chief Roni Alsheikh said on Wednesday that he expected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resign after being indicted on corruption charges in 2019.Jenin must not become Gaza: Rocket launches will force Israel to make a choice
“No one could have guessed that the prime minister would not resign and instead choose to fight from within the system,” Alsheikh, who oversaw the criminal investigations into Netanyahu during his tenure as police commissioner, told Army Radio.
“I am directing this at the party that fought and did not understand that it should say that for the good of the country, ‘We put another person at our head,'” he continued, in reference to Netanyahu’s Likud Party.
Likud released a statement slamming the remarks and calling for an investigation into the former police chief.
“The only thing that thwarted his plan for a government coup was the firm stand of Prime Minister Netanyahu and his insistence on fighting for the revelation of the truth,” Likud said.
Alsheikh’s comments also drew strong criticism from members of Netanyahu’s ruling coalition, with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir saying that the former police chief “admitted today in his own words that he tried to carry out a coup through investigations and indictments.”
The rockets fired from the Jenin area toward northern Israel (which failed to reach any meaningful distance) may be what it takes to convince the skeptics that a large operation is needed against terrorists in northern Samaria. Israel cannot allow Judea and Samaria to become another Gaza.12 arrested in connection with riots in Arab villages
The key dilemma facing the Israeli leadership is what kind of operation should be launched and how should the PA be treated. Should it be considered part of the problem or as a part of the solution? Or perhaps both, as Israel has unofficially done for quite some time. Making a decision on this matter is crucial if we want to define the mission for such an operation and the scope for the IDF and the Shin Bet security agency.
As for the security agencies, the main challenge they face is how to implement the so-called Maximum-Minimum policy: inflicting the maximal damage but minimizing the threat to our forces without having to confront other actors and theaters. Apart from arrests, such an operation would also include confiscating arms, destroying explosive labs, and taking out of the various support networks that prop up the terrorists.
If Israel chooses to launch an operation it would have to take into consideration that it could spill over to another theater. There could also be revenge attacks, and the terrorists in Gaza might choose to enter the fray. Israeli Arabs may also decide to join the fighting.
Apart from that, we should assume that Israel will have its hands full explaining the operation on the world stage and engage the Arab world, including the Abraham Accords signatories.
The security apparatuses have had many achievements in the ongoing terrorist wave. But they have yet to create the desired strategic impact: The motivation for attacks has not subsided; the number of the attacks and attempted attacks have not dropped, and neither has their lethality. Against this backdrop, there are those who believe that the surgical approach has become obsolete, and this is all the more evident in the recent rocket attacks from Jenin.
The rise of the rocket threat in Gaza has been seared into the collective memory of the security establishment and the decision-makers. Initially, the rocket development efforts were mocked at, only to soon become sophisticated to the point that they gave Gazan terrorists the ability to put large swaths of the population under threat. The Palestinian Authority's contribution to this reality, in its inaction and action, is beyond doubt. And we should keep that in mind as we go forward.
But Israel cannot enter such a dangerous adventure without having a clear diplomatic goal that complements the security objectives.
Twelve Israelis have been arrested in connection with riots in Arab villages in Samaria last week, according to the Israel Police.The Israel Guys: Why Are They Lying?
Several dozen Jewish Israelis set fire to homes and cars in the villages of Turmus Ayya on June 21 and Umm Safa on June 24. In Turmus Ayya, one Arab, Omar Abu Katan, 27, was reported to have been killed, but Palestinian sources claim he was shot by IDF soldiers.
On Wednesday, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant signed administrative detention orders for four of the detainees on the recommendation of the Israel Security Agency, or Shin Bet.
Administrative detention allows Israeli authorities to hold individuals without charge and without the ability to meet lawyers, a practice generally reserved for Palestinian terrorism suspects.
“The four detainees have been involved in violent events, overt and covert, for years. In the past they were arrested and restraining orders were issued against them, and despite this they continued their actions,” an anonymous security official told Ynet.
In the Knesset plenum on Wednesday, Gallant expressed concern over the phenomenon of Jewish lawbreakers, “many of whom do not come from Judea and Samaria, or even from the region. This group is growing and I am worried about it, as are the prime minister and the IDF chief of staff.”
There’s a famous saying that goes something like this: a lie can make it all the way around the world while the truth is still putting its shoes on. This is certainly true when it comes to lies that are told about Israel and the Jewish people, possibly…..even more so. Don’t believe us? Watch this crazy video.
17-year-old Israeli, Rina Shnerb from Lod, was hiking near Dolev in 2019 when an IED exploded, killing her and injuring her father and brother.https://t.co/j9lBUEI4Dj pic.twitter.com/otYe6fIuYH
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) June 28, 2023
The Israeli Police arrested 15 Palestinians on the Temple Mount Wednesday who waved Hamas flags and hung a banner featuring images of terrorists.
The sign and flags were unfurled at the end of morning prayers marking the holiday of Eid al-Adha.
The prayers proceeded without incident. As the crowd of tens of thousands was dispersing, a number of masked men began waving the green flags of Hamas and unfurled the banner in the Temple Mount plaza.
Police arrested 15 people and removed the banner. Authorities seized the flags, Hamas flyers and a bullet.
“The police officers of the Jerusalem District are obliged to allow every person of any religion to celebrate their holidays according to the law, including during the days of Eid al-Adha that began today. This morning there were again those who took advantage of the holiday and the holy places for a demonstration of incitement and support for terrorism,” said Jerusalem Police commander Doron Turgeman.
“Whoever thinks that committing such illegal acts under the cover of the holiday will give him immunity or protection from the law is very wrong. So far we have arrested 15 suspects who were involved in waving flags, chanting in favor of terrorism and hanging the banner of a terrorist organization. Acts of incitement, encouragement and support for terrorism will be dealt with decisively by us everywhere in Jerusalem, including on the Temple Mount,” Turgeman added.
Today, a Hamas banner was raised at Al Aqsa Mosque with pictures of the terrorists who recently killed 4 Israeli civilians at a gas station & restaurant: https://t.co/7IAQTaWYpy
— Mark Dubowitz (@mdubowitz) June 28, 2023
The despicable use of a holy space to promote terrorism. pic.twitter.com/CqXEUpy0eU
#OnThisDay in 1976, Air France Flight 139 from Tel Aviv to Paris was hijacked by PFLP terrorists. They diverted the plane carrying ~250 passengers to Entebbe, where they held the Jewish and Israeli passengers hostage. On July 4, the IDF rescued them in Operation Thunderbolt. pic.twitter.com/TxLStRpoV4
— Israel War Room (@IsraelWarRoom) June 27, 2023
#OnThisDay 1976, Air France Flight 139 was hijacked by Palestinian terrorists in Greece.
— RedBrasco - RedLehi (@redbrasco) June 27, 2023
On July 4, the IDF carried out the greatest hostage rescue in modern history-Operation Thunderbolt with 102 hostages rescued.
Sadly, four hostages died as well as Yonatan Netanyahu. pic.twitter.com/vi8BpYBAVB
We want to wish all Muslim and Druze IDF soldiers, as well as all those celebrating around the world, an #EidMubarak on occasion of #EidAlAdha.
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 28, 2023
We wish you a blessed holiday from the IDF ???? pic.twitter.com/ACXCTt8B0v
President Isaac Herzog called Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to convey his greetings for Eid al-Adha. Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant also spoke with Minister of Civil Affairs in the Palestinian Authority, Hussein Al-Sheik. Gallant also wished Al-Sheik a happy Eid al-Adha, and “conveyed his wishes that the holiday will serve as an opportunity to strengthen security and stability in the region,” Gallant’s office said.What Does the Palestinians' Pivot to China Mean for the U.S. and Israel?
The two calls represent important attempts by Israel to reach out to Israel prior to the Muslim holiday. It comes as millions of Muslims are in Saudi Arabia or heading to the country for the Hajj. Israel has found itself facing increasing threats from the northern West Bank, particularly Jenin, and clashes between Israel and local gunmen have become frequent. In addition there have been increasing terror attacks.
Both the calls by Israel’s officials stressed the need to defeat terrorism. Herzog spoke about “a forceful, persistent war against terror, incitement and hatred and he underscored the horrendous price and pain which terror inflicts upon bereaved families and Israeli society as a whole,” according to a statement. He spoke about the importance of living side-by-side in peace in the Middle East. “The President further underlined his unequivocal denouncement of the recent assault on innocent Palestinians by extremists,” the statement said.
Gallant also stressed that Israel’s security forces will operate against terrorism wherever this may be required, and conveyed a message to the Palestinian Authority regarding the need for immediate and decisive action against terrorism, his office noted. He also noted the recent attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank.
The statements are symbolic and the question is whether these high level calls will percolate down to the local level. There is a larger regional picture as well. While there has been increasing violence in the West Bank, as well as increasing gun violence among criminal groups in many parts of Israel; the trend in the rest of the region has been toward more peace and diplomacy.
This is an interesting development because the rest of the region was generally threatened by instability, civil war and chaos during the era after the 2011 Arab Spring. The larger arc of history is clear; the region suffered a huge flood of wars and extremism since the 1980s. Israel, by contrast had appeared to defeat the worst waves of terrorism after the Second Intifada, 2 decades ago; and it had defeated conventional enemies as well.
The cold reception of U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in China this month contrasted sharply with the warm embrace received by Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Mahmoud Abbas only a few days earlier. Indeed, both Abbas, whose government is gradually losing control over swaths of the West Bank to terrorist groups, and Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is looking to bolster China's global standing and influence, had good reason to emphasize the deepening cooperation between China and the PA.MEMRI: Amid Escalating Terror In West Bank Coming Out Of Jenin Refugee Camp, Qatar Grants The Camp $1 Million; Jenin Governor: The Grant Will Help Us To Steadfastly Face The Occupation
Yet while the growing closeness between China and the Palestinians may serve Xi and Abbas' interests, it creates new challenges for both Israel and the Biden administration, which in June became once again the largest funder of the Palestinian cause, via UNRWA.
On the eve of Abbas' arrival, the Chinese Foreign Ministry highlighted the fact that Abbas was the first Arab leader invited to Beijing this year. On arrival, he was welcomed with full military honors. Xi and Abbas then announced a new China-PA "Strategic Partnership." Abbas declared his desire to play an active role in China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and receive investment insurance and soft loans from China. A twinning agreement was signed between Wuhan and Ramallah, as was an agreement on teaching Chinese in Palestinian schools. The Palestinian Investment Fund announced plans for Chinese investments in infrastructure, manufacturing, and energy projects.
Abbas went further, expressing his full support for China's stance on Taiwan, and parroted Chinese propaganda on the mass detention of Muslims in Xinjiang, declaring, according to reports, that the detentions, "have nothing to do with human rights, and are aimed at excising extremism and opposing terrorism and separatism."
China's embrace of the Palestinians is related primarily to the Chinese Communist Party's desire to "further increase China's international standing and influence [and] enable China to play a greater role in global governance." Few arenas attract as much attention on the world stage as Middle East peace-making. Fresh off of China's success in brokering a Saudi-Iran détente in March, China now desires to show itself a central player in the holy grail of international deal-making—the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In addition, as China deepens its strategic and economic ties across the Arab world, it sees expanding support for the Palestinians as beneficial from a public opinion standpoint.
Abbas is presiding over an Authority that is gradually losing control over significant parts of its territory to terrorist groups. This has resulted in an increase in terror attacks launched from these areas, leading to a downward spiral in the PA from both a security and economic perspective. The small Palestinian elite that has benefited financially from its connections to the PA is concerned for its economic future. At the same time, the Palestinian leadership has expressed frustration over what it sees as insufficient pressure being placed by the Biden administration on Israel.
On June 24, 2023 WAFA, the news agency of the Palestinian Authority (PA), reported that Qatar had granted 1 million dollars to "institutions and organizations in Jenin and its refugee camp." According to the report, PLO secretary-general Hussein Al-Sheikh met in his office in Ramallah with Jenin district governor Akram Al-Rajoub and with the chair of the Popular Services Committee in the Jenin refugee camp, Muhammad Al-Sabbar, to deliver the grant. Al-Sheikh thanked the Qatari Emir, Tamim bin Hamad Aal Thani, and Qatari Prime Minister Muhammad bin 'Abd Al-Rahman Aal Thani on behalf of Palestinian President Mahmoud 'Abbas and wished Qatar prosperity and success.[1]“My weapon is in my hand, awake day and night“ - PA TV song
Hussein Al-Sheikh tweeted about the grant and the meeting on his personal account.[2]
Jenin District Governor: The Grant Will Strengthen Us In Steadfastly Facing The Occupation
Jenin district governor Akram Al-Rajoub, who received the grant from Al-Sheikh, stressed that it would "help strengthen the steadfastness" of the Palestinian people "amid the occupation's ongoing aggression against the city of Jenin, its refugee camp and all the towns and villages of the district," and thanked the Qatari Emir and Prime Minister for the donation.[3]
It should be noted that the grant was given against the backdrop of the escalating terror against Israelis in the West Bank, and only one week after an IED attack on Israeli forces that entered the Jenin area to arrest terror operatives. The PA's weakening control of Jenin, and especially of its refugee camp, which has recently become a hotspot of terror in the West Bank,[4] raises serious questions regarding the use that will be made of the money.
Years-Long Qatari Support Of Hamas, Incitement To Terror Against Israel
It should be mentioned that Qatar has for years been sheltering Hamas leaders on its soil, extending economic aid to Hamas and backing its armed struggle against Israel. Moreover, during the 2021 round of fighting between Hamas and Israel in Gaza, while Qatar was involved, along with the U.S., Egypt and other countries, in attempts to mediate a ceasefire between the sides, a mass rally in support of Hamas was held in Doha with the participation of Hamas officials.[5] In addition, Qatar also supports, sponsors and funds the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS), founded in 2004 by the extremist Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qaradawi, in which Hamas Political Bureau head Isma'il Haniya is a member. The union provides Hamas with religious legitimacy and consistently promotes an extremist discourse of hate, incitement, antisemitism, calls for jihad and encouragement of armed struggle against Israel.[6]
It should be noted that, over the years, MEMRI has published many reports demonstrating that the Qatari press regularly features articles praising jihad and armed struggle against Israel. A recent article in the Qatari daily Al-Watan, for example, called on the Palestinians of all factions to carry out terror attacks throughout Israel, from the north to the south, in order to inflict blows on the Israelis and terrify them.[7] Despite this, the U.S. and Israel grant Qatar the status of mediator, and this country has also provided financial aid to Gaza for some five years with the blessing of the Israeli government.
Lyrics: “Keep the weapon awake, awake, awake
Even if the entire world slumbers
I wake up with my weapon
My weapon is in my hand, awake day and night,
And it calls out: Revolutionaries, our enemy is treacherous”
[Official PA TV, Moons of Palestine, June 6, 2023]
Hamada reviews breakfast at C House Milano beach resort, north of the Chalets Roundabout on Gaza City sea front, in an obvious promotional post.#TheGazaYouDontSeehttps://t.co/tFyyj5ZzNt pic.twitter.com/AumxGpMLwA
— Imshin (@imshin) June 28, 2023
If you believe everything you are told about Gaza by the Media, this glass building being constructed on #17 Roundabout on al-Rashid St, Gaza City, makes no sense.
— Imshin (@imshin) June 28, 2023
But it makes perfect sense if what you are being told is all lies.
Apparently, this is going to be a car… pic.twitter.com/xVLCgpFN8A
When asked about the Biden administration's reported new "arrangement" with Iran regarding its nuclear program, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded, "More than 90% of our security issues stem from Iran and its [proxies]. … Our position is clear: Israel will not be bound by any deal with Iran and will continue to defend itself."How Congress Should Respond to an Interim Iran Deal
Clearly, the White House will do nothing to stop Iran's march to a nuclear weapon. To the contrary, Biden's new "arrangement" – just like his predecessor Barack Obama's 2015 nuclear deal – would give Iran a legal path to a nuclear weapon and a ballistic missile system to deliver it.
At the same time, it would hand the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism billions of dollars in sanctions relief to fund its military and global terrorist network.
Now all eyes turn to Jerusalem. Will Israel unilaterally attack Iran? Clearly, the US has decided to acquiesce to Iran's nuclear ambitions rather than sanction its nuclear program out of existence. The Biden administration, like the Obama administration before it, has reoriented its Middle East policy from an Israel-centered to an Iran-centered one.
This means that the US has left Israel with no choice but to attack Iran's nuclear facilities alone.
Israel faces a Hobbesian choice. If it attacks, the attack will almost certainly trigger a regional war – unless the US jumps in to prevent it from escalating – that will see tens of thousands of rockets launched by Iran's terrorist proxies Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza at the heart of Israeli cities.
Policy Recommendations for Congress
Congress should consider a range of steps that would signal its disapproval of the new deal and blunt its deleterious effects. Lawmakers should make clear that the new agreement would undermine U.S. interests, harm America’s national security, and ultimately help advance the very outcome — a nuclear-armed Iran — that it seeks to prevent.
1. Whether or not Biden submits the deal to Congress, the House and Senate should consider passing resolutions of disapproval for any such arrangement between the United States and Iran.
2. The release of funds to Iran in violation of INARA would constitute a harm for which Congress could seek injunctive relief. Congress should use every legal tool available to stop the release of funds to Iran, potentially including a request for a temporary restraining order against the Treasury Department.
3. Congress should immediately launch an investigation into the Biden administration’s possible violation of the International Financial Institutions Act and demand immediate testimony from Treasury Department officials to determine what steps they have taken to facilitate an IMF bailout for Iran.
4. Congress should hold a hearing to provide the American public with details of the negotiations and to clarify (a) if the administration paid any ransom; (b) the relationship between the unfrozen assets in Iraq or South Korea and the repatriation of American hostages; and (c) the impact that the hostage arrangement could have on other American adversaries, like Russia, which are currently also holding U.S. citizens as hostages.
5. Using floor speeches, hearing opportunities, press releases, tweets, and other media opportunities, Congress should highlight the upcoming expiration of the UN missile embargo under UNSCR 2231 and dissuade the Biden administration, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany from allowing it to happen. Congress should also press the UK and European Union (EU) not to delist Iranian missile, military, and nuclear entities found in Annex II – Attachment 2 of the JCPOA. The UK and the EU are slated to delist these entities in October, per Annex V of the accord.37
6. Congress should consider legislation prohibiting the administration from using any waivers or licenses to allow the release of funds from accounts tied to entities designated for terrorism. Congress should also consider devising a mechanism to use frozen regime assets to compensate American victims of Iran-backed terrorism who have outstanding judgments against the Islamic Republic.
7. Congress should consider legislation tying any sanctions relief for Iran to certifications by both the U.S. intelligence community and the International Atomic Energy Agency that Iran’s nuclear program is purely peaceful and does not have any military dimensions.
8. Congress should pass a resolution supporting the restoration of an international standard of zero enrichment for Iran.
9. Congress should pass a resolution demanding the immediate snapback of UN sanctions on Iran.
10. Congress should pass legislation to tighten sanctions on those supporting the procurement, production, or proliferation of Iranian missiles.
11. Congress should seek clarity from the Biden administration regarding its intentions toward future sanctions relief mandated by the JCPOA. Specifically, under Annex V of the JCPOA, the United States is slated to remove from its sanctions lists a series of nuclear-related persons and entities found in Annex II – Attachment 4 of the deal.38 Lawmakers should ask the administration whether it still intends to lift these sanctions.
12. Congress should pass a resolution declaring that providing access to any funds for the Islamic Republic would constitute an abandonment of Iranian protestors, including but not limited to women, minorities, and dissidents. Lawmakers should also swiftly pass a law requiring the administration to apply human rights sanctions on Iran’s supreme leader and president.
13. Congress should review U.S. force posture in the Middle East and expedite military sales and transfers to Israel in order to deter further Iranian escalation and ensure a credible military threat of force exists should such deterrence fail.
14. Congress should pass a resolution supporting a new U.S. policy direction for Iran that combines maximum support to the Iranian people, strict enforcement of economic and financial sanctions, isolation within international fora, accountability at the International Atomic Energy Agency, the immediate snapback of UN sanctions, a credible military threat against Iran, and other policies that address the growing China-Russia-Iran axis.
Khamenei organized a ceremony for Iranians on Hajj in Saudi where attendees held up images of Soleimani and were encouraged to chant "Death to America” and “Death to Israel"#IRGCterrorists? pic.twitter.com/vIY1YOKe4w
— Emily Schrader - ????? ?????? ????? ????? (@emilykschrader) June 28, 2023
The idea Twitter is not aware of the antisemitic and violent tweets of Khamenei and the insinuation that such content just "needs to be reported" is insulting at best. This is also the response I got this week in a meeting with Twitter#BanKhamenei https://t.co/gWuemrxDOp
— Emily Schrader - ????? ?????? ????? ????? (@emilykschrader) June 28, 2023
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