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Thursday, May 20, 2021

05/20 Links Pt1: The myth of the Al-Aqsa 'siege' continues to ignite Palestinian violence; Caroline Glick: "Media are Agents of Israel's Enemies in the War Against Israel"

From Ian:

The War Between Wars Heats Up
IN CONFLICTS PAST, senior American officials often stepped in and compelled both sides to see the wisdom of a cease-fire. Sometimes Israel wanted to keep fighting. Sometimes it was ready to quit. But it always acquiesced to Washington, in a nod to the special relationship that the two countries share.

This time, the Biden administration dispatched Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Hady Amr in an effort to “deconflict,” as the neologism has it. This decision was a curious one. Protocol dictates that Amr, a relatively low-ranking official, would not enjoy access to Israel’s top decision-makers.

It’s also unclear how much Israel wants to talk to U.S. officials about Iranian-backed terror these days. Tensions are running high owing to the Biden administration’s ill-advised decision to reenter the flawed 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. America’s side of the deal will almost certainly include billions of dollars in cash incentives to the regime in exchange for temporary nuclear concessions. In other words, America is set to fund Hamas indirectly, given the terror group’s patron-client relationship with Iran.

Finally, there is the question of what exactly America seeks to achieve in the region. The Biden administration has repeatedly stated that it seeks to pivot away from the Middle East. But at the same time, it is investing significant time and effort to revive the nuclear deal—which will empower Iran while weakening Israel and the Gulf Arab states. Hamas knows this. And that is likely one reason the Hamas leadership felt sufficiently emboldened to launch this latest conflict.

In other words, this latest round could be an early indicator of the Biden administration’s new Middle East. It’s not a good one.
Commentary Magazine Podcast: Gaza, Commissions, and Pipelines
Today’s podcast goes over the latest in the ideological war of the Left against Israel, the political hijinx over the January 6 commission, and what on earth is going on with the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
David Friedman: The myth of the Al-Aqsa 'siege' continues to ignite Palestinian violence
On Aug. 24, 1929, an Arab mob massacred 69 Jews and wounded many more in Hebron, Judaism’s second holiest city which hosts the Cave of the Patriarchs, the burial place of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca and Leah. The motivation for this unconscionable assault was a false rumor that Jews in Jerusalem were laying siege to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, located on the Temple Mount, the third holiest site in Islam and Judaism’s most holy location.

Those seeking to rid the Jews from British Mandatory Palestine, as the land was then referred to, and to override the League of Nations Mandate which established within that territory a national home for the Jewish people, took notice of the extreme emotional reaction they had provoked with the rumor of an Al-Aqsa siege. It became institutionalized within their antisemitic playbook and remains a potent weapon to this day.

It’s not as if anyone really believed that the Jews were interlopers in Jerusalem, where they had lived for thousands of years. Indeed, in “A Brief Guide to the Al-Haram Al-Sharif” published by the Supreme Muslim Council in 1935, the authors, referring to the Temple Mount (“Al-Haram Al-Sharif” in Arabic), acknowledged that “its identity with the site of Solomon’s Temple is beyond dispute. This, too, is the spot according to the universal belief, on which ‘David built there an altar unto the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.’” But in spite of, or perhaps because of, this undisputed biblical connection of the Jewish people to the Temple Mount, Arab extremists have played upon the fear and hatred of the Arab street to cause countless acts of violence against Jews throughout the past century.

I saw this first-hand when I was U.S. ambassador to Israel. On July 14, 2017, three Arab Israeli men exited Al-Aqsa and opened fire on two Israeli border police officers, killing them both. It was the first time that weapons apparently had been stored at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, necessitating a brief closure and search of the building. Once the Israeli police had swept the premises, the Mosque was reopened and metal detectors were installed to prevent further dangerous incidents.

The mere placing of the security devices at the entry points — common now to almost all public places (including the Western Wall, where Jews come to pray) — created a huge opportunity for Mahmoud Abbas, the aging and unpopular head of the Palestinian Authority, to establish himself as the “defender” of Jerusalem. Abbas encouraged dangerous violence for nearly a week until the metal detectors were taken down for the Muslim worshippers (but not for those entering through the single gate earmarked for non-Muslims). He knew full well that the Al-Aqsa Mosque was not under attack, but he played up the false rumor to advance his own needs. Lives were lost on both sides by the violence he promoted.
Caroline Glick: "Media are Agents of Israel's Enemies in the War Against Israel"

Eli Lake: A Cease-Fire Is Not Enough When It Comes to Hamas
Today the Palestinians of Gaza are hostages to Hamas. Biden should devise a political strategy aimed at freeing them.

A first step should be in the negotiations for the cease-fire. Biden should avoid the mistake of former Secretary of State John Kerry, who in 2014 tried to negotiate a cease-fire with friendlier patrons of Hamas, such as Qatar and Turkey. Biden should deal primarily with Egypt, whose leader has no love for Islamists such as Hamas and is trusted by the Israelis.

Biden should also demand that any reconstruction aid for Gaza bypass Hamas entirely. This could be done by empowering elements of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, for example, or by working with Arab allies that have already reached diplomatic agreements with Israel, such as the United Arab Emirates. Gazans need aid desperately — but none of that aid should go to the coffers of Hamas.

Biden should also reconsider his decision to renew U.S. funding for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency. Since 2007, when Hamas took over Gaza, the agency has acted as an unofficial arm of the local government in Gaza. At the very least, U.S. aid should be conditioned on purging Hamas members from its payroll.

In the medium term, Biden should seek to revive Palestinian civil society and electoral politics. There have been no Palestinian elections since 2006. Last month, the octogenarian leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, canceled scheduled elections to hardly any protest from the U.S. and Europe. Abbas probably has only a few years left. Biden should begin planning now for elections once he leaves office.
The Joshua and Caleb Network: Israel & the War With Gaza (full update on the current situation)
2 Things to remember about the current situation in Israel. Israel is not responsible for this war with Gaza, and their response has not been disproportionate. Find out why on today’s episode.

Nearly 4,000 rockets have been fired into Israel from Gaza over the course of the last week. More than 400 of them landed back inside Gaza and on their heads of their own people.

The Associated Press is upset that Israel bombed the building that they shared with Hamas. They claim that they didn’t know Hamas was there. Are they just incompetent or is the Associated Press collaborating with terrorists?

On today’s episode, we cover all of the stories, details and facts on the ground from the situation here in Israel over the last week and a half. You don’t want to miss it.




Khaled Abu Toameh: Arabs: Hamas Does Not Care About Palestinian Suffering
These Arabs evidently understand what the anti-Israel activists around the world fail to see -- that Hamas has brought nothing but disaster and despair to the two million Palestinians living under its rule in the Gaza Strip.... [They] also seem to understand that Israel is not waging war on the Palestinians, but against an Islamist terrorist group.....

These Arabs can also see that if one cares about the Palestinians, why would one want them ruled by terrorists who place weapons caches near hospitals and schools, and use children as human shields?

Criticism of Hamas does not make you anti-Palestinian; on the contrary, holding Hamas responsible for the violence and bloodletting actually serves the interests of the Palestinians.

The Hamas terrorist group "Was well prepared for this war by building trenches in which its members can take shelter, while innocent Palestinians were being killed. Hamas likes to play the role of victim and kill Palestinians to win Arab, Islamic and international sympathy." — Abdulah Bin Binjad Al Otaibi, Saudi writer and researcher, Al-Ittihad, May 17, 2021.

"Hamas did not use the children of Ismail Haniyeh, Khaled Mashaal or Ali Khamenei as human shields. Hamas used the Palestinian people [as human shields]." — Ahdeya Ahmed Al Sayed, President of the Bahrain Journalists Association, Twitter, May 16, 2021.

The criticism shows that a growing number of Arabs are fed up with the continuous efforts of Iran to destabilize the Arab countries with the help of the mullahs' proxies in the Middle East, including Hamas.

Inexplicably, these Arab voices are generally ignored by the international community and the mainstream media in the West. Those who are demonstrating against Israel and Jews in the US, Canada and Europe might want to tune in to what Arabs themselves are saying about Hamas, Iran, Hezbollah and other terrorist groups. If they bothered to listen, they would understand that as far as many Arabs are concerned, the real threat to the future of Arab and Muslim children is coming from Iran and Islamic terrorist groups, and not from Israel.
Europe: Anti-Israel Protests Descend into Anti-Semitism
The current crisis of anti-Semitism is a testament to the failure of European multiculturalism, which is making Jewish life in Europe increasingly unviable.

"Open, disgusting hatred of Jews and Israel, but not only: It was also hatred of our free, tolerant democracy." — Peter Wilke, correspondent, Bild.

"It is astonishing that, only 76 years after the Shoah, many people fail to understand that the Jewish state cannot accept a threat to its existence without being able to defend itself. The anti-Semitic attacks of the past few days have once again made it clear how fragile Jewish life is in Germany." — Andrei Kovacs, managing director, "321-2021: 1700 Years of Jewish Life in Germany."

"Angela Merkel's refugee policy, which no longer bothers to identify true war refugees, has imported hundreds of thousands of times an ideology that focuses on the Jew as an eternal enemy... Too many streets were in the hands of people at the weekend who want a different Germany, a country without Jews." — Julian Reichelt, editor-in-chief, Bild.

"A large part of this mob consists of people who came here as refugees and brought their hatred of Jews with them and continued to expand it here." — Michal Kornblum, German commentator.

"German politicians have not understood that immigration from Iraq and Syria, from the Arab countries, also brings more anti-Semitism to Germany. Anyone who says that is immediately branded as right wing and there is no fair discussion or debate about it." — German-Egyptian political scientist and author Hamed Abdel-Samad, Die Welt.

"In the end, not even schools can talk about anti-Semitism or the Middle East conflict. Or about Erdogan or about Islamism. Even at universities, Muslim students refuse to speak about such topics. Universities should be a safe haven for opinions. But for many Muslim students, universities are now safe spaces from opinions and criticism, even though that is where we have to start." — German-Egyptian political scientist and author Hamed Abdel-Samad, Die Welt.

"This isn't about Gaza. We've never seen such hate after any Western action in Syria or Afghanistan. No British crowds marching through malls to protest airstrikes in Iraq. This is bigotry in its most ugly, rawest form. Gaza is an excuse to find a socially acceptable way to publicly express Jew-hatred while pretending that your hate is righteous.... Arab persecution of Palestinians is ignored by the anti-Israel crowd as well." — Elder of Zion blog.
German FM Maas: We stand with Israel’s right to defend itself
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, Czech Foreign Minister Jakub Kulhanek and Slovakian Foreign Minister Ivan Korčok expressed their support for Israel during a visit to the region, as Operation Guardian of the Walls continued on Thursday.

“Germany stands with Israel and its right to defend itself,” Maas said ahead of a meeting with Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi. “I came to Israel to show solidarity and support Israel after the rocket fire from Gaza. Israel has the right to defend itself.”

“Israel’s security and that of the Jewish residents here are not negotiable,” he stated.

Maas added that he has been following the humanitarian situation in Gaza with great concern, but that he is aware of Israeli efforts to bring humanitarian aid to the coastal enclave.

In recent days, Hamas twice shelled humanitarian aid convoys from Israel into Gaza, killing two civilians and injuring 10, according to the Foreign Ministry.

Maas also said that Germany supports efforts to bring about a ceasefire, and that he has been in contact with the US, Egypt and others towards that aim.
Israel shot down armed Iranian drone near border with Jordan - Netanyahu
The drone Israel shot down near the border with Jordan on Tuesday was Iranian, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday.

“While we were engaged in these hostilities a few days ago, Iran sent an armed drone from Iraq or from Syria,” Netanyahu told German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who was in Jerusalem. “Iranian forces launched an armed drone, which our forces intercepted on the border between Israel and Jordan.

“I think says everything on the true patron of terror in the Middle East and in the world: Iran,” Netanyahu added, showing Maas a piece of the drone.

The IDF shot down a drone that was approaching the Israeli-Jordanian border, traveling toward the Emek HaMa'ayanot Regional Council in northern Israel, on Tuesday.

IDF units collected the fragments of the destroyed aircraft for further examination.

At the time, residents of Beit She'an - which sits within the regional council - were instructed to lock themselves in their homes for nearly an hour, before the IDF announced that the area had been secured, and that it was again safe for people to leave their homes.

Netanyahu said he described to Maas how Israel is fighting on multiple fronts, and that Iran is behind all of them.
Electric Company Union Workers Won’t Repair Gaza’s Severed Lines before Hamas Returns Bodies of Israeli Soldiers
IEC union workers announced Thursday morning that, in solidarity with the struggle to return the bodies of two fallen Israeli soldiers who were killed in the 2014 Gaza war, Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, and the living Israelis Abra Mengistu and Hisham a-Sayed, they refuse to repair the power lines to Gaza that were hit by Hamas rockets aimed at Israel.

A senior defense official told reporters last Thursday that “Hamas hit power lines with their rocket fire, in the southern area of Rafah, lines that cross from Israel to them.” He added that “the power plant in Gaza had four active turbines, it now has one turbine due to lack of fuel. This affects the power supply to the Strip. Today in Gaza the population receives 5 hours of electricity a day. If the war continues, it will drop to 4 hours a day. Earlier, Gaza residents had 8 hours a day. This also affects the water infrastructure in the Strip. When electricity is reduced, there’s also less water because there’s no electricity for the turbines. Today they get water once every four days, before that once every two days.”

In response to its workers’ union’s announcement, the IEC management issued a statement saying: “The IEC is a government-owned company which is subject to the provisions of the law, and believes that electricity is an essential product that should be kept outside the conflict. The IEC yearns for the return of our boys home.”

Israeli attempts to transfer aid trucks from Jordan to Gaza’s citizens have failed after Hamas fired at the trucks at the Erez crossing and wounded a 19-year-old soldier. On Wednesday it was decided that in light of the repeated attacks on the trucks, the aid would not be transferred to the Strip.


PMW: PA daily: Gaza is “shaking the foundations of Tel Aviv, Herzliya, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Rishon LeZion, Be’er Sheva, the Negev, the Gaza Envelope”
Hamas' launching rockets against Israel the last 10 days was the terror organization’s attempt to establish itself as the protector of Jerusalem and “Palestine,” as opposed to the Palestinian Authority and Fatah. However, that didn’t keep the official PA daily from praising the rockets, cheering the fact that they sent Israelis “running to [bomb] shelters.”

The op-ed starts out describing a completely reverse “reality,” accusing Israelis – who are referred to as the “Jewish Zionist enemies” - of committing “a holocaust” by “bombing” Gaza with “thousands of rockets.” It then moves to praising the Gazans for sending “the Zionists” racing for shelter from rockets. Note, that the article in the official daily of the PA does not mention Hamas, with which it is in a continuous political competition; rather it praises the “Gaza Strip” for launching rockets:
“O Jerusalem, O pearl of existence, remain the symbol of rejection and resolve against your Jewish Zionist enemies.
Your children will stand with exposed chests to defend the Al-Aqsa Mosque… the Gaza Strip that is standing firm… is setting out on an operation, responding to the call, and firing rockets that are shaking the foundations of Tel Aviv, Herzliya, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Rishon LeZion, Be’er Sheva, the Negev, the Gaza Envelope, and the like (i.e., Israeli cities and areas).

The Zionists are running to [bomb] shelters and are afraid of the flood; all the [Palestinian] people are coming out in an operation from the north to the south in the occupied Interior.”

[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, May 17, 2021]

As is PA ideology, the op-ed then glorifies the Palestinians who have died as “Martyrs-” The writer used language that recalls the PA’s cult-like relationship to martyrdom-death, establishing the superiority of the “scent” of blood spilled over that of “the perfumes of the entire world”:
“Palestine is history, civilization, and holy sites; it is the mother of self-sacrifice that only gives birth to heroes. The scent of the Martyrs’ blood on the land is purer than the perfumes of the entire world; it is a flower among thorns that is sacrificing its most precious sons for the sake of the approaching tomorrow.”

[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, May 17, 2021]


Rally for Israel to be held on Sunday amid sharp rise in antisemitism
A public rally will be held in London this Sunday in support of Israel, amid continued violence in the Middle East and a sharp rise in antisemitism.

Organised by the Zionist Federation of UK and Ireland (ZF UK), the event is welcome to all supporters of the Jewish state, but for security reasons the time and location has not yet been revealed, and attendees are advised not to travel in visible Israel-related clothing.

This comes after 600 percent rise in antisemitism linked to the conflict according to the Community Security Trust, including numerous violent assaults.

Arranged in conjunction with the Metropolitan Police and Community Security Trust, as well as being endorsed by numerous pro-Israel groups, the ZF outline that anyone found to be supporting extremist views would not be tolerated.

Paul Charney, Chairman of the Zionist Federation, said: “Perhaps now more than ever, it is crucial that British Zionists vote with their feet and come out in force. We are also seeing an unprecedented rise in antisemitism, and by attending this rally we are all reiterating that we will not be cowed by it.

We hope that our friends in Israel see this act of solidarity and know that they are not alone with many supporters in London.”


Voters Are More Likely to Sympathize With Israel Than Palestine, Though Many Feel for Both Sides
There is no unified position among U.S. voters on the escalating fighting between the Israeli military and Hamas militants, according to a new Morning Consult/Politico survey.

The survey, conducted May 14-17 as the conflict was entering its second week, found 28 percent of voters said they were more sympathetic toward the Israelis, compared with 11 percent who aligned themselves with the Palestinians. Another 29 percent of voters said they sympathized with both sides equally, while a third said they did not know or had no opinion on the issue.

Support for Israel is driven largely by Republicans and older voters, while Democrats and younger voters are more likely to back the Palestinian cause in the decades-long Middle Eastern conflict.

As Hamas shot rockets at Israel and Israel dropped bombs over the Gaza Strip, President Joe Biden pushed to de-escalate the deadly situation: After a Monday call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the White House issued a carefully worded statement calling for a cease-fire to end the fighting while also defending the government in Jerusalem’s “right to defend itself against indiscriminate rocket attacks.”

Biden has received middling marks for his approach to foreign policy: A Morning Consult/Politico survey conducted May 7-9 found that 44 percent of voters approved and 39 percent disapproved. The latest conflict in the Middle East provides another test to that image, especially since it is a more divisive topic for Democrats than it is for Republicans.


House Republicans Warn Biden Against Aid Cuts to Israel
The Biden administration must resist calls from the Democratic Party's left-flank to cut and condition U.S. security assistance to Israel, more than 100 congressional Republicans told the White House in a letter that signals increasing concerns the administration will cave to radical voices demanding a wholesale reassessment of the U.S.-Israel alliance.

"We continue to oppose any reductions in funding or added conditions on security assistance, which would be detrimental to Israel's ability to defend itself against all threats, including the current assault," the lawmakers wrote in a letter Wednesday led by Rep. Michael McCaul (R., Texas), lead Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, according to a copy exclusively obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

The lawmakers also pressed the administration to guarantee that it will help Israel resupply its stock of Iron Dome missiles, which have been used repeatedly during the ongoing conflict to destroy Hamas rockets in mid-air before they land on Israeli cities.

The letter comes amid a fierce debate in the Democratic Party over its support for Israel. Left-wing lawmakers such as Reps. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (D., Mich.), and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) have repeatedly accused Israel of targeting civilians and using excessive force. They have battled with pro-Israel members of their party, as well as the Biden administration, which they view as being overly supportive of the Jewish state. Progressive lawmakers also have called for sanctions on Israel and for U.S. aid to the country to either be suspended or conditioned. Ocasio-Cortez and several allies moved late Wednesday to forward a congressional measure that would block U.S. arms sales to Israel.

Republicans, and even some Democrats, are increasingly concerned that far-left anti-Israel voices will force the party's leaders to consider walking back support for Israel. In one example, House Democrats overwhelmingly voted on Tuesday evening against legislation that would apply sanctions on Hamas, the Iranian-backed terror group that is primarily responsible for the ongoing terror attacks on Israel.


Boris Johnson meets communal leaders amid huge spike in antisemitism
Boris Johnson has met with Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and leaders of the main Jewish communal organisations at Downing Street on Thursday to provide reassurance and support over developments in the UK around the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

During the meeting, the prime minister pledged to continue to support the community in the face of rising antisemitism attacks, such as the car convoy incident in St John’s Wood last weekend.

He also used the opportunity to thank the community for their efforts during the coronavirus pandemic.

Alongside the Chief Rabbi, who attended at Number 10 physically, representatives from the Jewish Leadership Council, the Community Security Trust, Union of Hebrew Congregations, Board of Deputies, Campaign Against Antisemitism and the Government’s independent adviser on antisemitism also attended virtually.

During the meeting the prime minister said: “Whatever the situation is in the Middle East, there is no excuse for the importing of prejudice to the streets of our country. In any form. The recent signs of antisemitism- such as the assault of Rabbi Goodwin, the disgusting parade of vehicles chanting hate speech through the streets of London, is intolerable and I take deep, deep exception.


Google Employees Demand Company Cut Ties With Israel
A group of "Jewish and allied" Google employees on Wednesday called on the tech giant to terminate its contracts with the Israel Defense Forces and formally condemn Israel.

In a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, 250 members of the Jewish Diaspora in Tech group called on the company to "heed the requests framed by Palestinian Googlers and center their voices going forward." The letter also asks Google to fund Palestinian relief organizations, "recognize the pain" of Palestinians in a formal statement, and "reject any definition of antisemitism that holds that criticism of Israel or Zionism is antisemitic."

The letter comes as Israel weathers ongoing attacks from Hamas, which has bombarded Israel with thousands of rockets. Google came under fire earlier this week after its subsidiary YouTube twice banned a video defending Israeli airstrikes in Gaza. The Washington Free Beacon reported that YouTube blamed the censorship on the shoddy technology the company has adopted during the coronavirus pandemic.

The signatories, whose identities were not included in the copy of the letter that the group made publicly available, allege that other groups of Google employees have demanded Google take a "one-sided pro-Israel perspective" and "support the sovereign state." Other media outlets have repeated the allegation.

Jewish Diaspora in Tech formed as a breakaway from "Jewglers," an affinity group at Google for Jewish employees. According to the Verge, the Diaspora group consists of members upset at the generally pro-Israel beliefs of Jewglers.
Obama Bros Urge Donation to Terror-Linked Charity
Crooked Media, the content mill founded by former Obama administration officials, tweeted and then deleted a message urging its supporters to send money to an anti-Semitic charity that has been tied to terrorism.

The company in a Tuesday tweet asked its followers to support several charities, including Islamic Relief, a global charity that several countries have banned for allegedly funneling money to Hamas, the Iranian-backed terror group that is firing thousands of rockets at Israeli civilians.

"Here's who's doing great on the ground work to aid the people of Gaza," Crooked Media wrote in a since-deleted tweet. "Support them if you can."


As violence rages in Israel, Crooked Media, which was founded by Obama White House staffers Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, and Tommy Vietor, has focused on the humanitarian situation in the Gaza strip, where the Hamas government bases its terror operations and uses human shields to increase civilian casualties. The company's promotion of the Islamic Relief charity comes just months after the State Department cut its longstanding ties to the organization's umbrella organization, Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW), citing its promoting of anti-Semitism. Islamic Relief Worldwide and its leaders, the State Department said just before former president Trump left office, consistently make anti-Semitic statements and express support for terror groups like Hamas.

Social media posts from the Islamic Relief's senior leaders have praised Hamas leaders and referred to Jewish people as the "grandchildren of monkeys and pigs."

Israel designates the charity as a supporter of terrorism. Congress in 2017 sought to ban the American government from providing funding to the charity, which at the time was receiving taxpayer aid from the Obama administration.
Attack on Jewish diners by members of pro-Palestinian caravan in Beverly Grove investigated as possible hate crime
An attack on Jewish diners outside a Beverly Grove restaurant by members of a pro-Palestinian caravan Tuesday night is being investigated by police as a possible hate crime.

The incident, which Los Angeles Fire Department spokesperson Nicolas Prange said was originally reported as a large group fight, occurred shortly before 10 p.m. outside the Sushi Fumi restaurant in the 300 block of North La Cienega Boulevard.

The incident was captured on video and shared with KTLA by a viewer who wished to remain anonymous.

A witness to the incident said she was sitting with a group of friends when people in a caravan of vehicles displaying Palestinian flags drove by and began shouting at diners.

The witness said that at one point a group of men jumped out of their vehicles and asked some men if any of them were “Jews.” The fighting broke out when two men replied that they were, according to the witness.

Video shows punches and items being thrown between a large group of men on a sidewalk as customers looked on.

The restaurant staff then rushed patrons inside, locked the doors and called police.

The ordeal lasted about 15 minutes, according to the witness.
'Disgusting' use of swastika on Israel flag at a pro-Palestine protest sparks outrage and more calls for symbol to be outlawed
Jewish community members have expressed outrage at the use of a swastika imposed on an Israel flag during a pro-Palestine protest.

It was displayed during a march in Sydney on Sunday as participants protested Israel's actions during the current conflict with Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip.

The flag put the swastika in place of the Star of David on an Israel flag to draw parallels between the Jewish state and the Nazi regime that led Germany during World War Two.

The use of a swastika was a particularly infuriating for Jews, who were targeted by the Nazi regime and placed in concentration camps and death camps where they died in their millions.

While provocative, such displays of the swastika are not illegal in Australia.
Inner-city Melbourne council passes resolution to stand in 'solidarity' with Palestinians
Sky News Reporter Caroline Marcus has revealed the Yarra City Council in Melbourne's inner-city has passed a resolution this week to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, criticising Israel for its "occupation" in the conflict.

In the resolution, the council said it was "not a conflict between equals but an extension of an occupation" and stood with solidarity with Yarra-based Palestinians.

"It turns out the Yarra City Council, an inner-city Melbourne council run by a Greens mayor, have decided they have the answers to the Middle-East conflict that have baffled people around the world for so long," she said.

"This was brought forward as an emergency motion, so there wasn't even much time to let the community know this was being debated.

"Still it was voted 5-2 in favour of this resolution."

Former Labor MP Michael Danby told Sky News host Chris Kenny said local councils should stay out of these sorts of issues.


Bennett slams John Oliver, Trevor Noah, Bella Hadid on Israel criticism
Yamina leader Naftali Bennett addressed criticism against Israel from iconic pop culture figures Bella Hadid, Trevor Noah and John Oliver in a YouTube video Thursday.

Oliver, Noah and Hadid had been among many celebrities in recent days to heavily criticize Israel for its conduct in Gaza during Operation Guardian of the Walls. Many of these criticisms stemmed from the idea that there is a significant disparity in casualties, with Hamas suffering far more casualties than Israel, due in part to the Iron Dome defense system.

But Bennett sought to set the record straight for who he sarcastically called "The 'great philosophers' of our age."

In the video, Bennett, former defense minister, gave numerous examples of important Gazan facilities such as Shifa hospital and the Ayyobiya Boys School, both of which are also Hamas facilities that are used to help plan attacks on Israel or store weapons.


John Oliver's pro-Palestinian rant gets dismantled by Israeli businessman
Comedian John Oliver's recent monologue on Israel's alleged war crimes during Operation Guardian of the Walls has infuriated many pro-Israel supporters, calling him out for misrepresentations and inaccuracies.

One of them is Daniel Leon, a serial entrepreneur who has recently relocated back to Israel after spending 20 years in the US. He is the co-founder and COO of Celsius, a financial service company.

In his now-viral rebuttal to Oliver's rant, Leon uses harsh language to dismantle the accusations leveled against Israel, one by one. Leon attacked Oliver and addressed him directly in his video message online, both on YouTube and on Facebook: "John ... you're violating whatever the 4th Geneva Convention of Comedy is. Time and time again yesterday you said that Palestinians are suffering more than the Israelis. 'Some things are pretty simple," you said. 'One side is suffering much more.' Wow. Some powerful analysis there, John."

Leon went on to suggest Oliver's point made no sense if you devoid it of its proper context and focus only on numbers.

"What does the amount of suffering have to do with the justice of a cause? The answer is: precisely nothing," Leon said, before explaining: "Some 5.3. million Nazi soldiers died in World War II, while a mere 384,000 British soldiers died. Now one side suffered much much more. Spoiler alert: the side that suffered more, a.k.a the Nazis, was also the side which was wrong."

He continued, lambasting Oliver for blaming Israel for having the upper edge militarily, as if that was somehow wrong, and claimed this was also irrelevant, as various terrorists have demonstrated in the past by fighting with asymmetrical warfare and caused many casualties with such means.


Tom Aharon (Israel’s own John Oliver) decided to retaliate



Networks Censor Palestinian Extremists HUNTING Jews on U.S. Streets
Over the course of the week, there were numerous stories about “pro-Palestinian” (essentially pro-Hamas) mobs gathering around the country to “protest” the ongoing conflict in Israel devolving into wild hunts for Jewish Americans. And despite the fact these heinous acts were incited by the Hamas sympathizers in “The Squad,” none of the attacks were given airtime on ABC, CBS, and NBC’s morning and evening newscasts.

Instead, they were all ticked off that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was defying President Biden’s calls for a cease-fire against genocidal terrorists.

“Despite President Biden's call to deescalate today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed the operation will continue, tweeting, ‘Until its goal is achieved, to restore peace and security to you, the citizens of Israel,’” whined foreign correspondent Imtiaz Tyab on CBS Evening News.

But what the networks didn’t want their viewers to know about, was how roving mobs of Palestinian extremists were on the prowl for Jews to attack.

On Wednesday, videos surfaced on Twitter of a convoy of people driving through the Los Angeles neighborhood of Beverly Grove (an apparently prominent Jewish area) the previous night. The group was harassing people on the sidewalk and allegedly shouting “F*** the Jews.”







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compliments

Algemeiner: "Fiercely intelligent and erudite"

Omri: "Elder is one of the best established and most respected members of the jblogosphere..."
Atheist Jew:"Elder of Ziyon probably had the greatest impression on me..."
Soccer Dad: "He undertakes the important task of making sure that his readers learn from history."
AbbaGav: "A truly exceptional blog..."
Judeopundit: "[A] venerable blog-pioneer and beloved patriarchal figure...his blog is indispensable."
Oleh Musings: "The most comprehensive Zionist blog I have seen."
Carl in Jerusalem: "...probably the most under-recognized blog in the JBlogsphere as far as I am concerned."
Aussie Dave: "King of the auto-translation."
The Israel Situation:The Elder manages to write so many great, investigative posts that I am often looking to him for important news on the PalArab (his term for Palestinian Arab) side of things."
Tikun Olam: "Either you are carelessly ignorant or a willful liar and distorter of the truth. Either way, it makes you one mean SOB."
Mondoweiss commenter: "For virulent pro-Zionism (and plain straightforward lies of course) there is nothing much to beat it."
Didi Remez: "Leading wingnut"
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