10/03 Links: UNHRC Stops Video Quoting Antisemitic Posts by UNRWA Teachers; Sarah Silverman denounces 'the Squad' over Iron Dome position ~ EoZ

From Ian:

Israel must always voice 'its truth,' even at the UN

During a visit last week to George Mason University, Harris was asked by a student why the US supports Israel, which the student accused of perpetrating "ethnic genocide" of Palestinians and "displacing" them. Harris nodded her head in what was interpreted as agreement with the claims, and in her response praised the student for voicing "her truth."

A thousand firefighters won't be able to extinguish the flame ignited by Harris, nor will the thousand apologies now being made on her behalf, albeit not by Harris herself. To be sure, even if it wasn't intentional, rather out of fear, she legitimized a contemptible blood libel. She also lent credence to the absurd notion that there is more than one truth – in other words, not just the voice of the Americans killed in the September 11 attacks deserve to be heard, but also the truth of the terrorists who committed those atrocities.

Bennett forgot, and the "Harris incident" reminded him that the question of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not a question that pertains to the future of Gaza under the rule of Hamas or even the future of Judea and Samaria. The question is about the roots of the existence of the State of Israel, which was established through war between the Jewish community in this land and the Arab population. Any attempt ever made to distinguish between the distant past (pre-1948) and the present – the question of Judea and Samaria and Gaza (pre-1967) – has failed, and anyone who has ever thought to possess the solution to the current problems has been forced to contend with the Palestinian demand for a "right of return" to the State of Israel.

Israel doesn't need to shy away from discussing the conflict with the Palestinians or its historical roots, and it mustn't squander opportunities to present its positions and "its truth" – which has broad consensus in Israeli society. After all, if we don't capitalize on these opportunities, the Palestinians and their supporters will.

UNHRC Stops Video Quoting Antisemitic Posts by UNRWA Teachers

President of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Nazhat Shameem Khan on Friday cut off a video presentation by UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer quoting antisemitic social media posts by UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) teachers.

After stopping the video, Khan said that “insulting and inflammatory remarks” were made that amount to “personal attacks” against individuals. She then went on to say that the “statement is out of order” before giving the floor to the UK-based Palestinian Return Centre (PRC), which has been accused of having ties with Hamas.

UN Watch is an NGO based in Geneva that monitors the intergovernmental organization for anti-Israel bias.

Neuer was highlighting a recent UN Watch report that, according to the organization’s website, “exposed more than 100 teachers, school principals and other employees that praise Hitler, propagate hatred against Jews and support terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians on social media.”

In response to the allegations in the report, UNRWA announced that it was investigating 10 of its staffers to determine if any of them violated “social media policies that prohibit personnel from engaging in non-neutral behaviors online,” according to a press release from UNRWA.

The PRC has been accused by the Israeli and German governments of being associated with Hamas, a militant movement based in the Gaza Strip designated as a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States and European Union.

No joke: The U.N. Human Rights Council just cut me off for testifying about UNRWA teachers who glorify Hitler. Chair says I made "derogatory, insulting & inflammatory remarks"—by quoting their own Facebook posts. "This amounts to personal attacks. This statement is out of order." pic.twitter.com/qPXohSdOfW
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) October 3, 2021

2. That the highest human rights body of the United Nations has just sent a dangerous message to the world when, without any basis, you summarily and arbitrarily blocked me from presenting a report about systemic antisemitism incited daily by the teachers of UNRWA, a UN agency.
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) October 3, 2021

Today @UN_HRC is holding its Agenda Item 7 debate on Israel

It's the only item dedicated to a single country. It is an insult that the debate is on Shabbat so that many Jews cannot join

This is not human rights @mbachelet
It's #antisemitism
Pre-recorded video - @AnneHerzberg14 pic.twitter.com/edBmCOlXiZ
— NGO Monitor (@NGOmonitor) October 1, 2021

Jonathan S. Tobin: Is it ever okay to praise antisemitic blood libel?

Yet in order to understand the significance of an incident that loyal Democrats insist is a meaningless kerfuffle, ask yourself this question.

What would Democrats have said if former Vice President Mike Pence had responded with the same sort of blather about diversity and pluralism if he was confronted with a question by someone who expressed racist views disparaging African-Americans or Hispanics?

After all, Jewish liberals spent the four years of the Trump administration insisting that the coarse and imprecise language used by Pence's boss was somehow responsible for a rise in anti-Semitism, even if his policies were the most pro-Israel in history, and he had taken strong stands against Jew-hatred.

More than an example of liberal hypocrisy, what happened at George Mason was likely an expression of the dynamic that currently exists on the political left these days.

Harris went to the school to generate support for her party's positions from student activists. She had no interest in a Sister Souljah moment in which she would demonstrate either her moderate chops or her pro-Israel bona fides. Speaking up for the Jewish state, under those circumstances, would have undermined the whole point of the appearance and alienated the very leftist base that is the cutting edge of Democratic Party activism these days.

Her instincts were to stay silent because that is what she and many others in her party think are in their best political interests. It was only later when the incident blew up that she and her handlers came to a different conclusion, though it's likely they still gauge that criticism from pro-Israel groups is a smaller price to pay than the blowback they would have gotten from party activists had she rebuked the student as she should have.

Instead of being a meaningless kerfuffle, more evidence that Harris isn't up to the challenges of being veep or even the perils of living in a 24/7 news cycle in which no gaffe goes unnoticed, what happened at George Mason University gave us some insight into the lamentable state of discourse on the left about Israel.

Sarah Silverman denounces 'the Squad' over Iron Dome position

In addition to criticizing The Squad on voting against the bill, Silverman also noted how the four representatives do not discuss Hamas, and all their criticism appears to be directed only at Israel.

“It’s so bizarre,” she said. “Why do none of them even mention Hamas? A group that until just a few years ago had a mission statement that said ‘Kill all Jews.’ A group that just congratulated the Taliban for taking over Afghanistan. You are kidding yourself if you think that Hamas is good for Palestine.

“Please do not defund the Iron Dome. My family lives there. It just seems to prove the point that I didn’t think existed – people really only like Jews if they’re suffering. Dead Jews get a lot of honor. [The Squad’s] domestic policies completely align with mine, but they make it hard. Not having the Iron Dome is gonna kill people. I am for a Palestinian state, but I do also believe there should be an Israel too. There are Muslim states all over the place. We can’t have one Jewish state?”

In June, Silverman tweeted that she wishes that there were a “progressive Jewess” as a part of The Squad, to which Omar responded with a smile emoji “You could run and join us.”

Every Jew ultimately has their “pound of flesh” moment when they realize that however much they hand over to show they are the “good kind of Jew” - it is never enough.
(Shakespeare had it backwards of course - normally it is the Jews who are asked to hand over a pound of flesh). https://t.co/LCtqaxJCKK
— Dr. Einat Wilf (@EinatWilf) October 2, 2021

Former Vermont Governor calls Israel an Apartheid state

Former Governor of Vermont Howard Dean called Israel an Apartheid state in a tweet on Friday.

"I’ve been there [Israel] and I think our alliance with Israel is important [sic] both the US and Israel. And Israel is in fact, an apartheid state," said Dean in response to a tweet by Scottish journalist Eve Barlow.

When asked to explain what he thought Apartheid meant and how Israel met its parameters, Dean explained that "Palestinian Property is being confiscated in East Jerusalem, unarmed Palestinians are killed on the West Bank by both the IDF and settlers."

Dean's comments were in response to Scottish Journalist Eve Barlow writing on Twitter that "Israel is nowhere near an Apartheid state but I guess those who want desperately to believe that it is won’t ask anyone who’s actually been there."

Dean's remarks follow closely on the tail-end of two controversies in the Democrat Party over US relations with Israel — The Iron Dome funding vote and Vice President Kamala Harris's response to a student accusing Israel of genocide.

When Critics of Israel Lose, It’s ‘the Jews’ Fault’

Even while calling the role of “dark money” troubling, Zogby has to admit, as was the case in the Percy and Findley races, that Jewish contributions were not the reason she lost. Approximately 5% of the district’s constituents are Jews, and 53% are black. Like Turner, Brown is black and had support from that community as well as Jews.

Turner was seen as someone, like members of “The Squad,” who would not vigorously support the president’s agenda. In fact, during the presidential campaign, she essentially called Biden “a bowl of sh**.” Consequently, it was Brown who was endorsed by Hillary Clinton, House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), and the Congressional Black Caucus and its chair, Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio). It was, in Zogby’s own words, a “classic ‘progressive versus moderate’ battle.”

Still, Zogby says campaign finance reform is needed to prevent Americans from supporting candidates who support Israel rather than “a more balanced US policy.” Not surprisingly, he seems to have no problem with J Street and others spending money to support the candidates he prefers.

Like other detractors of Israel, Zogby will never understand why Americans support candidates who recognize that there is one democracy in the Middle East, and that it is the only county that shares our values and interests. He can’t fathom why they don’t support the radical Islamic terrorists in Gaza and the authoritarian in Ramallah who is so corrupt that 80% of Palestinians want him to resign.

Zogby thinks that polls indicate Americans are turning away from Israel, so it must have been yet another crushing blow to his fantasy to hear the Democratic president reassert America’s ironclad support for Israel during his meeting with the Israeli prime minister and watch nearly every Democrat in the House vote to provide Israel additional aid at the same time his handful of allies were proposing cuts.

How campaigns are financed is a serious issue; however, Zogby’s singling out Jewish contributions as a problem is one more example of the normalization of antisemitism by the far-left of the Democratic Party. As long as supporters of Israel play by the rules, they have the right in our democracy to support the candidates they believe best represent their values and positions.

Travels Through a New Middle East REVIEW: 'Enemies and Allies' by Joel C. Rosenberg

The Arab world of 2021 looks quite different from that of even a decade ago. Technology, trade, and new coalitions of nations have forged a geopolitical scene both dynamic and complex. In Enemies and Allies, Joel Rosenberg offers a primer on this "new Middle East."

A political novelist-cum-journalist and faith leader in between, Rosenberg offers readers a glimpse into his unfettered access to the leaders who make the Arab world tick. The Israeli-American tours Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and elsewhere during the Trump years, providing a portrait of what the future of the Middle East might look like.

Rosenberg identifies two basic trends: modernization and connectivity. In both "enemy" and "allied" countries—terms perhaps too Manichean to describe the complicated relationships of the Gulf—the proliferation of high technologies and modern methods of communication have made the region shrink.

Countries are finding new ways to live with each other, navigating centuries of historic enmity once thought unthinkable to overcome. But "enemies" are also seeking new partnerships potentially damaging to the free world. Meanwhile, in countries such as Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, leaders have pushed for changes that have led to growing religious freedom and pluralism almost overnight.

The trends peak with the Trump administration's Abraham Accords. Rosenberg's trips with other evangelicals throughout the region hint at the promise of the agreement: Arab leaders across the Gulf increasingly worry about Iran's strength and therefore favor heightening cooperation with Israel. The author also details his relationships with peace architects such as Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, giving the reader deeper insights into the strategic thinking of the Trump administration on the region.

Ben-Dror YeminiAbbas' UN address proves peace has never been further away

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas addressed the United Nations General Assembly last week, and to be honest, we have heard over the years speeches by Palestinian leaders that were far, far worse.

However, if that's how a calculated speech looks like, we have got a problem. And it's not like we thought any peace agreement was coming, but after that speech, one thing is clear — peace has never seemed further away.

In his speech, Abbas claimed millions of Palestinians had documents, proving their ownership of properties in Israeli territory. Well, I have news for him. There are tens of millions of people across the world who fled or were forced out of their countries as a result of population exchange. There are also nearly a million Jews who have been deported or forced to leave their property in Arab countries.

It happened to both Jews and Palestinians, and it happened countless times to millions of others and the majority of them never received the right to return to their homeland or to get their property restituted.

In response to Israel's claims that currently there is no partner for peace, Abbas said he challenges Israelis to "try and prove it," adding that Palestinians have never refused a real peace offer.

And we are well aware that the Palestinians and their supporters in media and academia have completely distorted the history of this conflict. But in his statement, Abbas reached a whole new level by distorting even the events of recent decades.

May I take on your challenge and disprove your claims, Mr. Abbas? It would be one of the easiest challenges I have ever taken upon in my life.

Mahmoud Abbas' fantasy

Abbas does not tire of repeating himself. Speaking to the UN General Assembly from Ramallah earlier this month, he demanded that Israel withdraw from "the Palestinian territory it occupied in 1967, including East Jerusalem." If it did not, he warned, the PLO might even withdraw its recognition of Israel within its pre-1967 borders before biblical Judea and Samaria, until then comprising Jordan's "West Bank," were reclaimed as part of the Jewish state.

Furthermore, warned Abbas, if Israel did not move towards recognition of Palestinian statehood, the Palestinian Authority would appeal to the ICC to end Israel's "occupation of the land of the Palestinian state." But since the court only settles disputes between existing countries, it was an empty threat.

In perhaps his most noxious statement, Abbas defended welfare payments to the families of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel for their brutal terrorist attacks. "Why should we have to clarify and justify providing assistance to families of prisoners and martyrs, who are the victims of the occupation and its oppressive policies?" So terrorists become victims.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett recently made clear his opposition to a Palestinian state, stating: "I think it would be a terrible mistake." Showing every sign of resisting American pressure, he has reassured settler leaders that his new government would not slow construction. "We know what the Democrats are saying," Bennett told them. "The settlements are illegal and all that. They told me to build less. Guys, you know where I'm coming from. I'm committed to you." Despite pressure from the Biden administration, construction in Judea and Samaria and eastern Jerusalem would continue.

Addressing the United Nations, Bennett firmly declared: "We are an ancient nation, returned to our ancient homeland, revived our ancient language, restored our ancient sovereignty. Israel is a Jewish miracle of Jewish revival."

Mahmoud Abbas might do well to pay attention. His dark fantasies of Israel's disappearance have been irreparably shattered.

4. No Islamic holy sites are restricted by Israel AT ALL.
5. So called "settlers" are not there illegally. There is no law preventing Jews from going to holy sites. You claim we prevent access to Muslims, yet you just proved with your ignorance that access to Jews IS prevented.
— The Mossad: The Social Media Account (@TheMossadIL) October 3, 2021

6 Gilboa Prison escapees and 5 alleged accomplices indicted over jailbreak

Six prisoners who escaped Gilboa Prison last month along with five other inmates who allegedly assisted them were indicted on Sunday, the Justice Ministry said in a statement.

State prosecutors filed indictments at Nazareth Magistrate’s Court against Zakaria Zubeidi, Mahmoud al-Arida, Munadil Nafiyat, Muhammad al-Arida, Yaquob Qadiri, and Iham Kamamji on charges of escaping detention.

Apart from notorious Fatah commander Zubeidi, the other five are members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group. Nafiyat, unlike the others, had not been charged with a crime and was being held under Israel’s practice of administrative detention, which allows it to imprison suspects without filing charges for security purposes.

The other prisoners accused of helping with the jailbreak are Mohammad Abu Ashreen, Qusai Mar’i, Ali Abu Bakr and his cousin Mohammad Abu Bakr, and Iyad Jradat, all Palestinians from the Jenin area.

The five are accused of standing watch to make sure that any approaching guards did not discover the digging in the cell and to prevent other prisoners from entering. Some also helped with getting rid of soil dug out of the tunnel, prosecutors said.

None of the 11 prisoners will face charges on terror-related offenses.

First-Ever EgyptAir Flight From Cairo Lands in Tel Aviv

EgyptAir’s first direct commercial flight from Cairo to Tel Aviv touched down at Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday at approximately 11:08 am local time, signaling the start of regular operations between the two countries.

The Airbus A220-300 plane was greeted on the runway with celebratory water jets.

The state-owned flag carrier of Egypt is expected to fly the route four times a week.

Previously, the only flights between Ben Gurion Airport and Cairo International Airport were operated discreetly by Air Sinai, a subsidiary of EgyptAir. The Air Sinai flights were unmarked without the Egyptian flag.

Air Sinai was established in 1982 under the terms of the 1979 Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty which stipulated that there must be active civilian aviation routes between the two countries.

EgyptAir did not schedule any flights to Israel for political reasons, but ties between the two countries have been warming, especially with Israel’s new government taking an active role.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met last month in Sharm el-Sheikh with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. The visit marked the first time an Israeli prime minister has traveled to the country in more than ten years.

Hamas delegation headed by Haniyeh to discuss prisoner exchange in Egypt

A Hamas delegation headed by the movement’s leader, Ismail Haniyeh, visited Egypt on Sunday to discuss a number of issues, with the movement announcing the visit the night before.

Hamas’s leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, is reportedly part of the delegation as well. According to reports, the delegation will discuss ongoing efforts to reach a prisoner exchange with Israel, and continuing attempts concerning an agreement for calm between Gaza and Israel.

Hamas is holding Israeli citizens Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, and the bodies of IDF soldiers St.-Sgt. Oron Shaul and Lt. Hadar Goldin. Zaher Jabarin, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said last month that the movement had provided mediators with a “clear road map” for a prisoner exchange agreement with Israel, and that Hamas was also insisting on the release of all ex-prisoners who were rearrested after being freed in the Gilad Schalit prisoner exchange deal in 2011.

The Commission for Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Affairs warned on Sunday that the prisoner movement in Israeli prisons has decided to start “escalating steps” in light of what it called “unprecedented Israeli attacks” on Palestinian prisoners, calling the alleged attacks “war crimes.” The commission did not specify what steps would be taken.

MEMRI: PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh: If The Two-State Solution Falls Apart We Will Return To The Starting Point Of 1948 And ‘The Palestinian People, From The River To The Sea, Will Have A Single Leadership’; ‘Israel Is Bound To Die Demographically’

On September 30, 2021, the London-based Qatari Al-Quds Al-Arabi daily reported on a meeting that took place that day between Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh and Israeli Arab journalists, including a correspondent for Al-Quds Al-Arabi. According to the report, Shtayyeh asked that the meeting, which took place in his office, not be recorded. In the meeting, he said that Israel is not interested in a solution to the Palestinian issue – neither the two-state solution nor the one-state solution – and persists in its efforts to fragment the Palestinian people and ignore its cause. Given this reality, he said, there will be no choice but to go back to the starting point of the Palestinian issue in 1948, and in that situation the Palestinian people “from the river to the sea” will have a single united leadership. He also stated that Israel is bound to “die demographically since the Jewish human reservoir in the world has dwindled.” He added that, in a meeting one month ago in Ramallah between PA President Mahmoud ‘Abbas and Israeli Foreign Minister Benny Gantz, the former said that if the two-state solution was not implemented, the solution would be to return to the 1947 partition resolution. Ganz, said Shtayyeh, was astonished by the Palestinian president’s words.

According to the report, Shtayyeh also expressed disappointment in the current U.S. administration which, he said, has promised to reopen the U.S. consulate in East Jerusalem and the PLO offices in Washington, and to renew funding to organizations aiding the Palestinians, but in practice has done almost nothing to fulfill these promises.

It should be noted that, in his speech at the September 24, 2021 UN General Assembly, ‘Abbas gave Israel an ultimatum, saying it has one year to withdraw to the 1967 borders and reach a permanent solution with the Palestinians, otherwise the Palestinians will revoke their recognition of Israel. He stressed that, in such a situation, various options will be available, including “returning to a solution based on the partition plan of resolution 181 (II), adopted in 1947, which gives the State of Palestine 44% of the land,” and appealing to the International Court of Justice “on the issue of the legality of the occupation of the land of the Palestinian state.”[i]

Former Fatah top official Dahlan praises 2021 riot and rocket war as Palestinian “victory”

Former Fatah top official Muhammad Dahlan: “I can say with certainty, with pride, and with honor that the Palestinian people has restored the Palestinian cause to being on the international community’s agenda (i.e., via Arab riots and Hamas rockets.)... It is a victory of the unity of the Palestinian people – the residents of the Gaza Strip, Jerusalem, the West Bank, and our people in the 1948 [territories] (i.e., Israel)… The Palestinian people took the reins in its hands without its leadership and did not ask for permission from anyone. It rose up in Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip identified with it, and the West Bank was dragged after it. Afterwards, the crown of this act was that our people in the 1948 [territories] worked to defend the Al-Aqsa Mosque and identified with our people in Jerusalem. Therefore, this beautiful picture that the Palestinian people drew with its sacrifices, its Martyrs, its wounded, and with all these acts of heroism that we saw from the Gaza Strip, stated that Jerusalem is a red line and is upheld with Palestinian blood.”

Muhammad Dahlan - Palestinian politician, former Fatah official, and former head of the PA Preventive Security Force in the Gaza Strip (1993-2002). Dahlan now lives in the UAE after he fell out with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and had to leave the West Bank in 2011, later being convicted in absentia by the PA for fraud and sentenced to prison. Dahlan has been mentioned as one of the candidates to succeed Abbas.

Former Fatah top official Dahlan: Palestinians lose international support because of armed struggle

Former Fatah top official Muhammad Dahlan: “Israel has attempted and succeeded… in removing the legal cover from every Palestinian national action: … from armed struggle, from politics, from protests, from peaceful demonstrations – even if you throw a rose at an Israeli soldier it will be considered forbidden and illegal. Every kind of resistance is turned into a crime. We are a people under occupation, and we have the right to resist the occupation in a way that international law allows. But we prefer different and diverse ways, everything in its proper time and place. The first popular Intifada in 1987 was a popular intifada – children, women, leaders, adults, and youth participated in it – and therefore we achieved international sympathy. We lost in a number of battles in the second Intifada because it was armed.”

Muhammad Dahlan - Palestinian politician, former Fatah official, and former head of the PA Preventive Security Force in the Gaza Strip (1993-2002). Dahlan now lives in the UAE after he fell out with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and had to leave the West Bank in 2011, later being convicted in absentia by the PA for fraud and sentenced to prison. Dahlan has been mentioned as one of the candidates to succeed Abbas.

Iran Asked US to Unfreeze $10 Billion to Show Good Will, Iran Official Says

Iran’s foreign minister said on Saturday that US officials tried to discuss restarting nuclear talks last month, but he insisted Washington must first release $10 billion of Tehran’s frozen funds as a sign of good will.

Iran has rejected direct talks with the United States, and indirect talks on reviving a 2015 nuclear accord aimed at keeping Iran from being able to develop a nuclear weapon stopped in June.

The United States used intermediaries at the United Nations last month to attempt to make contact, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told state television.

Iran has been unable to obtain tens of billions of dollars of its assets in foreign banks, mainly from exports of oil and gas, due to US sanctions on its banking and energy sectors.

“The Americans tried to contact us through different channels (at the UN General Assembly) in New York, and I told the mediators if America’s intentions are serious then a serious indication was needed … by releasing at least $10 billion of blocked money,” the minister said.

“They are not willing to free $10 billion belonging to the Iranian nation so that we can say that the Americans once in the past several decades considered the interests of the Iranian nation,” Amirabdollahian said in the TV interview.

Iran demands $10 billion from the Biden admin. "to send a signal that they are serious" about returning to the JCPOA, before a deal is even reached. Perhaps Biden should demand the release of all arbitrarily-detained foreign citizens of JCPOA participant states as quid pro quo? https://t.co/nopezHRh5Y
— Kylie Moore-Gilbert (@KMooreGilbert) October 3, 2021

Iranian Political Analyst Emad Abshenas: Growing Iranian Support for Producing a Nuclear Bomb in Order to Do Away with the Option of War against Iran; North Korea Faces Lesser Sanctions Than Iran #JCPOA #Iran @iaeaorg pic.twitter.com/iIDbeFQkvl
— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) October 3, 2021

Iran warns in Hebrew of 'foreign influence' amid Azerbaijan tensions

Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council, warned Iran’s neighbors against “foreign influence” in a tweet published in Persian, Arabic, English and Hebrew on Saturday, amid heightened tensions with Azerbaijan.

“Powerful #Iran has always been benevolent to its neighbors & never posed a threat to them,” wrote Shamkhani on Twitter. “Problems will be resolved with the cooperation of all countries in region [sic]. Any foreign influence is fruitless so we call on neighbors to be vigilant in this regard & to stay away from them.”

The statement comes after Azerbaijan began targeting Iranian trucks with fines and arrests, and Iran moved military forces to the border and warned against Israeli influence near its borders.

Iranian trucks were fined, and at least two were detained as they traveled on a road between the Armenian towns of Kapan and Goris, which partially crosses through territory handed over to Azerbaijan after the Nagorno-Karabakh war last year, according to RFE/RL. The highway, patrolled by Russian peacekeepers, is Armenia’s only link to Iran.

Former Iranian Diplomat Amir Mousavi: Azerbaijan Should Not Play with Fire – Iran Is Running Out of Patience; Zionists and ISIS Use Azerbaijan Territory against Iran #Azerbaijan #Iran pic.twitter.com/fMXvz0Wkch
— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) October 3, 2021

Iran denies FM spokesperson spoke with Israeli 'Maariv' newspaper

The Iranian Embassy in France denied that Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh spoke with the Israeli newspaper Maariv on Friday, after the Israeli paper published an interview with the spokesman.

"The news published by The Jerusalem Post about the interview of the spokesman of the Foreign Ministry with the Zionist media Maariv is a pure lie and is fundamentally false," said the press adviser of the Iranian Embassy in France, according to the Iranian Fars News Agency.

The press adviser added that Khatibzadeh had only spoken with French media during his stay in France for the Normandy for Peace World Forum. "The media belonging to or attributed to the Zionist regime already has a history of publishing fake news, and therefore the media do not give the slightest credence to such false claims."

Speaking with Israeli press is illegal in Iran, as all non-incidental contact and communication between Iranian nationals and Israeli nationals is prohibited by law.

Maariv had reported on Friday that Khatibzadeh had told the paper in an interview that "the war with Israel has already started."

"Israel has carried out attacks that were intended to destroy our nuclear program for peaceful purposes. It murdered nuclear scientists and harmed the Iranian people. Iran is accused of terrorism, but there is no good or bad terrorist. The whole crisis in the region is Israel's fault."

Lol all 5 of them. Boy Iran’s state TV must be proud of this impressive anti-Israel showing ?? https://t.co/fXG3NNjNet
— Emily Schrader - ????? ?????? (@emilykschrader) October 2, 2021

Evening Standard erases antisemitism of sacked Bristol professor

Finally, it’s important in contextualising Bristol University’s decision to understand that Miller was a conspiracy theorist on other issues as well, demonstrating a cognitive orientation seemingly at odds with the intellectual requirements of academic life.

During one lecture, he claimed Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi was “effectively an asset of the British state”. According to the CST’s Dave Rich, he’s also one of the leading academic advocates of the theory that some chemical weapons attacks on Syrian civilians by the Assad regime were hoaxes or “false flag” operations, and has written that it is “unlikely” the Russian state would have tried to poison Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury in 2018.

If the Evening Standard wanted to pen an editorial making a principled argument that, despite his record of antisemitism, the sacking of Miller was unjust on academic freedom grounds, they could have of course done so. But, to obfuscate Miller’s explicitly conspiratorial racist tropes about Jews and Jewish power that was at the heart of the row, whilst suggesting it was merely about ‘Israel criticism’, the outlet grossly misled readers.

Hollywood Reporter Casts Convicted Terrorists As ‘Political Prisoners’

In an article about the Emmy Award-winning documentary “Advocate,” The Hollywood Reporter whitewashes Palestinians convicted of violent acts of terror, including attempted murder, as “political prisoners.” Trilby Beresford’s Sept. 29 article, “Israeli Film ‘Advocate’ Wins Best Documentary Emmy,” reports that the documentary “Advocate” “follows the work of human rights lawyer Lea Tsemel as she represents political prisoners.”

In fact, the two cases covered in the controversial documentary involve teen Ahmad Manasrah, who was convicted of two counts of attempted murder and Israa Jabris, who detonated explosives in her car as police approached her. A gas canister in the vehicle failed to explode.

Western nations do not regard convicted, incarcerated terrorists as political prisoners, as the European Council definition makes clear. Palestinians who carry out terror attacks against Israeli citizens are not protesting their own (Palestinian) government with non-violent activity.

Does The Hollywood Reporter consider those who carried out attempted murder and ignite explosives “political prisoners”?

Belarus pro-regime activist's TV rant carries thinly veiled antisemitic message

Authorities released a video purporting to show the raid taking place, but many critics cast doubt on the authenticity of the heavily edited footage.

The KGB officer who lost his life during the raid was hailed as a hero and Zeltser was declared a "terrorist."

After the incident, Azaronak lambasted Zeltser, among other things, for living in Belarus, but working for an American software engineering firm.

"They [KGB officers] went to this bastard's apartment! Zeltser! The IT guy from EPAM, who according to some reports, is an American citizen," he said. "A cosmopolite to whom the [Belarusian] state has granted benefits and he only lined his pockets living in two countries, collecting money here and spending it there."

Azaryonok went on to compare Zeltser to other opposition leaders, including Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who many consider to be the real winner of the latest elections.

Azaronak describing Zeltser as a "cosmopolite" is no coincidence, for the term is a known pejorative Soviet epithet. Back then, Jews were called "rootless cosmopolites."

In addition, Azaronak's description of Zeltser as "living in two countries, collecting money here and spending it there" is an allusion to the common accusation that Jews are disloyal to the state.

Israel Hayom reached out to the Israeli Foreign Ministry for comment, but they were not immediately available.

Cyprus, Israel reportedly in talks over Iron Dome sale

Cyprus is in advanced negotiations with Israel to purchase Iron Dome batteries, Greek news agency SIGMA reported this week. Cypriot officials are currently engaged in deliberations on how the system would help the divided island nation meet its security needs.

SIGMA also reported that Cyprus would purchase four warships from France, which together with the Iron Dome will be "a comprehensive response to the Turkish threat."

Turkish Cypriots in the northern part of the island claim to be a separate republic. Despite having virtually no international recognition, they have been able to hold on to the land for decades with the help of Ankara. Greek Cypriots, who are aligned with Greece, consider this to be a form of occupation.

The Iron Dome deal, if it materializes, could further undermine relations between Jerusalem and Ankara, which have been at loggerheads for many years stemming from geopolitical issues and Turkey's efforts, although the two countries have been aiming to repair ties.

This startup will make sure drones don’t land on kids

“The word ‘autonomous’ is thrown about with intolerable ease,” laments Idan Shimon.

“If you buy a simple drone, it will be autonomous in the sense that it will fly where you want it to and even land there,” he explains. “You’ll definitely be able to tell the drone to go somewhere, but if you tell it to land and there’s a child in its way, it will land on the kid.”

This is the sort of incident that Shimon, the CEO and cofounder of Israeli startup Wonder Robotics, wants to prevent.

“We’re developing a system that supplies drones with situational awareness – an understanding of their surroundings, a sense of the world around them and underneath them, an ability to analyze the world, as well as the ability to fly while understanding their surroundings without crashing into anything,” he says.

Shimon has decades of experience and passion for all things aviation. He flew model aircraft as a child and served as a drone operator in the army before starting work at Aeronautics, a military-use UAV company, and later on as a consultant in the field.

The idea for Wonder Robotics, he says, came up following an inquiry from a client in the defense establishment.

FDA okays rapid test to tell bacterial from viral infections

A groundbreaking point-of-care machine that determines whether an infection is viral or bacterial has received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for both children and adults.

Last year, MeMed received CE clearance for sales of its testing platform in Europe.

The MeMed BV test is an immune-based protein signature test that distinguishes, within 15 minutes, between a bacterial or viral infection from a blood sample.

This critical information enables physicians to know immediately if an antibiotic is called for, and to avoid antibiotic overuse.

“For those of us who care for acutely ill children, we have been waiting decades for accurate, rapid diagnostics to confidently guide the care of moderately ill children without a clear focus of infection or recognizable viral illness,” said Harvard Medical School Prof. Dr. Rich Bachur, chief of emergency medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital.

“This novel test offers promise to help differentiate those children with self-limited viral illness from those with possible bacterial infection, thereby supporting the judicious use of antibiotics,” Bachur said.