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Wednesday, August 30, 2023

08/30 Links Pt1: Don't let Saudis have any role on the Temple Mount, put Israel in charge; Are the Saudi's offering the PA a restoration in funds as a sign of appeasement?

From Ian:

Mordechai Kedar: Don't let Saudis have any role on the Temple Mount, put Israel in charge
First, Jerusalem has been the capital city of Israel for more than 3,000 years, and the place of the Temple has been the heart of the Jewish people since the days of David and Solomon, 1,600 years before Islam came into the world.

Any renunciation of full Jewish sovereignty over the site of the Temple is interpreted in the Muslim world as a Jewish renunciation of the very existence of the Jewish religion, something that undercuts the reason for the existence of the State of Israel. Would it occur to Muslims to give up full Muslim sovereignty over the Kaaba complex in Mecca?

Second, Israel made many mistakes regarding the Temple Mount. The first mistake was when Moshe Dayan handed over the administration of the site to the Jerusalem Wakf Islamic religious trust in 1967, with an understanding that they would not object to his illegal archaeological activities.

The second mistake was giving the Jordanian kingdom its status on the Temple Mount in 1994, on the assumption that the Jordanian king would keep the PLO and Hamas away from the compound.

Over the years, it became clear that not only did he, and then his son, not keep the Palestinian Authority away from the Temple Mount, the king reached official agreements that gave the PLO an official status. Israel did nothing to stop this and today the Palestinian Authority is also involved in what is happening on the Temple Mount and in Jerusalem.

Third, the Temple Mount is a focus of subversive anti-Israeli activity by Turkey. A Saudi presence could cause conflicts between Turkey and Saudi Arabia, and negatively affect Israel’s relations with Turkey. Israel must remove any Turkish influence from the mountain.

Fourth, the Temple Mount is the focus of attention for extremist organizations such as Hizb al-Tahrir (the Islamic Liberation Party), Hamas, and the northern and southern factions of the Islamic movement, among others. What they all have in common is their burning hatred for the Saudi royal family. Any clash between Saudi Arabia and these organizations could ignite the flames of conflict, and the blame would fall on Israel.

Fifth, it is possible that today there are understandings between the Israeli government and the Saudi crown prince, but there is no assurance that these understandings will survive the test of time. In the future, there may be changes in relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia that will lead to tensions between the two countries. A Saudi presence on the Temple Mount will only worsen the situation.

Sixth, if Saudi Arabia receives an official status on the Temple Mount, it could be blackmailed by Iran to allow Shi’ite activity in Jerusalem under its protection. Even if there is a clause in the agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel that prohibits such a thing, Israel will not violate its peace agreement with Saudi Arabia even if the Saudis are forced to violate this clause under Iranian pressure.

Lastly, Wahhabi Saudi Arabia may try to lower the centrality of Jerusalem in the contemporary Islamic discourse, since according to Islamic sources the original al-Aqsa Mosque, the one mentioned in the Quran (17:1), is located in Saudi Arabia near the village of Juarana, around 30 km. northeast of Mecca.

Any such attempt by the Saudis may arouse the wrath of all the parties mentioned above, and the blame for bringing them into the sensitive equation will be placed squarely on Israel.
MEMRI: Emirati Analyst: Saudi-Israeli Normalization Will Proceed Slowly, To Preserve Saudi Arabia's Status In Arab And Islamic World
In an article titled "Saudi Arabia and Israel – Normalization or No Normalization?," published July 20, 2023 on the Saudi website Elpah, Emirati political analyst Salem Al-Ketbi reviewed Saudi Arabia's considerations in advancing towards normalization with Israel, as he perceives them. Saudi Arabia, he wrote, which sees itself as a regional superpower, is interested in relations with Israel, since it realizes that such relations can benefit it and serve its interests. However, it is proceeding very cautiously in order to avoid any harm to its special religious standing in the Islamic world, and in order to keep countries and organizations that exploit the Palestinian cause from using the issue of normalization as fuel for incitement against Saudi Arabia.

The following are translated excerpts from Al-Ketbi's article:[1]
"Discussing the issue of official diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel, namely normalization, requires a deep understanding of Saudi Arabia's position and its overall strategic considerations in this context, which is very sensitive as far as it is concerned. Saudi Arabia's approach to Israel is not the same as that of its fellow Arab and Muslim countries. Saudi Arabia has special religious standing and prestige, since [Mecca and Medina, which are] the spiritual and religious center for some two billion Muslims [worldwide], are in its territory. It is vital to consider all the implications and consequences [of this special standing], especially since there are some who will use any issue to harm Saudi Arabia, and one of the sensitive issues [that can be used this way] is that of the relations with Israel and everything they entail: all the sentiments, the historical sediments, and the political exploitation of the issue by various elements, both countries and organizations, that use it to realize their interests and goals.

"The current Saudi leadership has a different strategic approach to the present and the future, and has an ambitious plan to catapult Saudi Arabia forward and give it the position it deserves on the world map in the 21st century. Therefore, [this leadership] does not readily limit the debate on any idea or proposal. This explains the significant shift that has occurred in the Saudi attitude towards Israel in the recent period. Suffice it to mention that Israeli planes have been given permission to fly through Saudi airspace… If we also consider the historic and famous statement made by Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman in 2022 – that Suadi Arabia does not regard Israel as an enemy[2] – we realize the magnitude of the change in Saudi Arabia's general strategic approach and position.

Saudi-Israeli normalization is a crucial factor in the considerations of the administration of [U.S.] President [Joe] Biden and in his bid to realign the elements in the Middle East. But Saudi Arabia has a different approach, based on its own interests as an active regional power. Accordingly, its outlook on normalization depends on [its ability] to ensure the realization of its geostrategic approach, which does not regard Saudi Arabia as part of any coalition or axis, and does not limit its options in forming partnerships with all the international powers active in the global arena – [an arena] that is in a process of [re]forming itself, based on the balance in the Ukraine war. Furthermore, Saudi Arabia's most pressing strategic need in the near future is to cement its security and stability and guarantee a regional environment conducive to promoting the goals of [its] Vision 2030 [plan]. The upshot of all this is that the ball is currently in the court of Washington, which apparently has not yet realized the magnitude of the change that has occurred in the rules of play vis-à-vis its Saudi ally… and that a new approach is needed in light of this change.
Gallant: Israel must widen Arab alliances, but maintain military superiority
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Wednesday met with top US diplomatic officials to encourage progress in widening the normalization wave with Sunni countries, like Saudi Arabia, but also emphasizing the need to maintain Israeli qualitative military superiority.

Gallant met with US National Security Council Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa Brett McGurk, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, and US ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield.

The defense minister thanked McGurk for his continuous efforts to advance normalization with Arab countries in the region, which is a form of code for the Saudis, Washington, and Jerusalem's current top normalization target.

Maintaining Israel's qualitative military advantage usually refers to having more advanced aircraft, defensive systems, and advantages with any unconventional weapons, such as nuclear weapons (which Israel reportedly has), and which the Saudis and others are seeking to receive from the US in normalization negotiations.

Currently, only Israel has F-35 aircraft, but Riyadh also wants advanced aircraft. Previously, the US was due to sell F-35 aircraft to the UAE, though for reasons unrelated to Israel, that transaction has been indefinitely frozen.

Most notably, the Saudis have demanded a nuclear reactor and the ability to enrich uranium locally for solely civilian purposes.

While Riyadh has promised not to move beyond such civilian purposes, there are mixed views within the Jewish state about the Saudis receiving such a capability, which could conceivably later be converted to a military nuclear program.

Generally, the idea is that though Israel is small in territory and in its standing army, it can use higher quality weapons systems to deter its enemies from many kinds of broad attacks.


JPost Editorial: Israel can only blame itself for diplomatic loss
The Libyan Foreign Ministry denied that any meeting had taken place, saying that a chance encounter between the two ministers at the Italian Foreign Ministry had been “informal and unplanned” and that Mangoush had reiterated her country’s support for the Palestinians and its “complete and absolute rejection of normalization with the Zionist entity.” Protests broke out in cities across Libya and the Israeli flag was set on fire in the capital, Tripoli.

The Americans, too, were reportedly furious, and they lodged complaints with their Israeli counterparts, accusing Israel of undermining efforts to promote normalization with additional Arab countries, and harming American interests in Libya.

Israel, for its part, defended its announcement by saying that the meeting had been several months in the making and that the two sides had agreed that it would be publicized at some point. The statement came in response to a leak about the meeting, the Foreign Ministry said (the Americans countered by saying that the ministry could simply have said “no comment” and left it at that).

Regardless of the exact circumstances of the meeting between the two ministers, it seems clear that it has backfired spectacularly, and Israel has only itself to blame.

It is no great secret that senior Israeli officials have held any number of meetings over the years with counterparts from countries with which Israel has no diplomatic relations. But the officials generally have the good sense to keep those sensitive meetings quiet in the hope that their discretion will yield dividends in the long term.

It is unclear which would be worse: if the Israelis had grossly misread the situation or if they had simply ignored understandings reached with the Libyans in the interest of scoring domestic PR points. Either way, the damage has been done, and Israel’s diplomatic efforts have been set back.

This was a surprising misstep by Cohen, who has defied expectations and expanded Israel’s ties around the world, visiting capitals that had long been neglected by Israeli leaders, and gathering commitments from multiple countries to open embassies in Jerusalem.

It is not, however, unusual for Israeli elected officials, who often lose sight of the forest for the trees when pandering to domestic audiences, sacrificing Israel’s long-term strategic interests along the way.

Israelis engage in a great deal of hand-wringing over their country’s image and international standing – much of it justified. With a government full of ministers who seem to delight in thumbing their noses at Israel’s friends around the world and the values they hold dear, Israel can use any diplomatic wins it can get. It can hardly afford unnecessary diplomatic losses – particularly own goals like this one. It would behoove the country’s leaders to bear that in mind.
Saudis said offering to renew aid to PA to gain its support for Israel normalization
Saudi Arabia has reportedly proposed renewing its aid to the Palestinian Authority in a possible sign that Riyadh is looking to coax Ramallah into backing its effort to normalize relations with Israel.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman first made the offer to renew aid — frozen completely in 2016 amid graft allegations — when PA President Mahmoud Abbas visited the Gulf kingdom in April, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing unnamed Saudi officials.

A deal with Jerusalem would likely be unpopular for many Saudis given the strong pro-Palestinian sentiment in the Gulf country. Therefore, a stamp of approval from Ramallah on a normalization deal with Israel could help mitigate public blowback in Saudi Arabia and in the Muslim world more broadly.

At the same time, the PA’s legitimacy among Palestinians is at one of its lowest points in years due to allegations of corruption and Abbas’s refusal to hold presidential elections since 2005. Accordingly, Riyadh might need more than Ramallah’s acquiescence in order to sell the deal at home and abroad.

The crown prince, colloquially known as MBS, said the funding would be renewed if Abbas managed to rein in terror groups in the West Bank and restore control over PA territories beyond the Green Line. The Saudi leader also promised Abbas that any deal with Israel would not harm efforts to establish a Palestinian state, current Saudi officials and former Palestinian officials briefed on the talks told the WSJ.

Observers have noted that the PA has little control over parts of the West Bank, particularly the northern city of Jenin. Multiple attacks on Israelis in recent years have been carried out by Palestinians from the area.

Saudi sources clarified that the aid offer was not directly linked to a potential Israel normalization deal, though Riyadh hopes it will provide Ramallah with more of an incentive to back the kingdom’s effort.
Are the Saudi's offering the PA a restoration in funds as a sign of appeasement?
Amid Saudi-Israel normalization talks, it has been announced that the Saudi's will renew funds to the Palestinian Authority. Palestinian activist from the Fatah movement Samer Sinijlawi speaks more on what this means to i24NEWS Correspondent Guy Azriel.


Netanyahu to address UNGA in September, but no date for Biden
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to address the high-level opening session of the United Nations 78th General Assembly on Thursday, September 21, the country’s ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan told Army Radio on Wednesday, as he expressed hope that a meeting would soon be in the offing with US President Joe Biden.

“I have good reason to believe that such a meeting will occur in the coming weeks,” Erdan said, adding that he had “good reasons to presume that a meeting would take place.”

But no date has been set for a meeting between Netanyahu and Biden who is slated to speak to the UNGA on Tuesday, September 19.

Why has Netanyahu not yet met with Biden?
Biden, who has known Netanyahu for at least four decades and considers him a friend, has not invited him to the White House since he took office at the end of December 2022.

US presidents typically invited newly or reelected prime ministers to the White House in the immediate aftermath of the election to discuss joint issues and policies.

Tensions between Washington and Jerusalem on issues relating to Netanyahu’s judicial reform plan, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and extremist statements by some of his ministers have prevented such an invitation.

Biden was blunt about that, explaining in March that Netanyahu would not be invited in the near term.


A Guide to Vivek Ramaswamy’s Shifting Stances on Aid to Israel
Vivek Ramaswamy has taken several different positions on military aid to Israel during the Republican presidential primary race. At a debate last week, his call for cutting off aid by 2028 drew criticism from fellow candidate, former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley. The United States provides over $3 billion in military support annually to Israel, its main national security partner in the Middle East. Israel spends most of that money on products from the U.S. defense industry.

Here is a look at Ramaswamy's evolution on aid to Israel since June:
Position 1: Cut aid to the entire Middle East, including Israel
June 24, 2023: Ramaswamy said he was open to cutting military aid to Israel as "part of a broader comprehensive vision for disengagement"

A voter in Lancaster, New Hampshire, asked Ramaswamy if he supports cutting aid to Israel. The candidate responded, "I think it would have to be part of a broader disengagement with the Middle East. So I wouldn't do it as an isolated policy. I would do it as part of also making sure that we're not leaving other people we've also propped up, from Saudi Arabia to even Iran, in other ways over the years. So it has to be part of a comprehensive strategy. That's why I'm not giving you, like, ‘this one policy, yes,’ because it has to be part of a broader comprehensive vision for disengagement. That I do support. Thank you."

June 30, 2023: Ramaswamy said he is not open to cutting Israel aid, slammed "false reporting"

During an interview on the Breakfast Club radio show, host Charlamagne questioned Ramaswamy about his Israel policies.

Charlamagne: You told a voter that you were open to ending foreign aid to Israel. Then it was reported that it was a misunderstanding.

Ramaswamy: Yeah that was a false reporting, actually.

Charlamagne: Oh you never said that?

Ramaswamy: No, I did not. I said I was open to a broad strategy of disengagement from the Middle East.
Ramaswamy tells Israel Hayom he might increase US aid to Jerusalem if elected
Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy told Israel Hayom in a special interview Monday that if elected president, he would not act to unilaterally change the annual military aid to Israel and may even consider enlarging it, clarifying his controversial statements from the campaign trail on this matter.

In the interview at his campaign headquarters in Columbus, Ohio, he discussed how he had visited Israel many times and learned a lot about it, and revealed that the breakthrough that made him a billionaire was a result of collaboration with two Israeli entrepreneurs.

"So, the reality is that the three billion in aid that we give to Israel is a tiny drop in the bucket for the US military budget. But part of the benefit is – it runs through the US industrial base; a lot of that work is done here in the United States of America. It's actually accretive to the US and our interests. And so, in a certain way, it would be silly for us to want to skimp or cut that when in fact, it's not just in Israel's interest, but that's in our own interest, even nationally, in building our industrial base. And if it's accretive that means the more we actually run through, the more we're actually bolstering the US industrial base itself. And so that's good for the US. That's good for Israel. At some point in time, if Israel comes to us as a true friend, as Bibi has done in the past [referring to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech in the US Congress in 1996], and says we don't need this, then great, then that's a point at which we can reevaluate. But we're not going to cut the aid until Israel tells us that, and even then, it's actually been a good thing for the US because we've built our own capabilities, investing internally in the meantime."

Q: So, if Israel asks you to continue with the aid and even asks for more, what are you going to say?

"I think that's a very reasonable...as long as it's running through the US, in that existing framework running through the US, if that advances American interests – and I believe it does – to build the US industrial base. I think it's a very reasonable conversation."


The Israel Guys: Libyan Foreign Minister FLEES Her Country After BEING FIRED for Talking to Israeli Official
When the Foreign Minister of Libya met with Israel, I don’t think she anticipated having to flee her own country after being fired by her government and put under investigation, all just for talking to her Israeli counterpart. Hamas is threatening to defeat Israel in an all out war in the region, residents of Judea & Samaria are being equipped with driving training to defend against attacks on the roads, and the country of Papua New Guinea is opening an embassy in Jerusalem this week.


The Israel Guys: Why ISRAEL Is NOT in Violation of International Law
I have an article that I am going to review for you today, one that is so anti-semitic, it passes all boundaries of human dignity, and stoops to new lows, even for Israel haters. Not only does it fail to condemn the Jihadist terrorist who murdered Batsheva Nigri last week, but it goes even further, and claims that Batsheva herself was the one guilty of the definition of terrorist - simply for the act of daring to live and settle in the Heartland of Israel - imagine that - a Jew living in Judea is now being defined as a terrorist.

Since today’s story deals with the topic of international law, we’re going to also take a brief look at why some of the world considers Israel to be in violation of international law, and whether or not those accusations are true.


IDF soldier wounded in car ramming near Hebron
An Israel Defense Forces soldier was lightly injured on Wednesday when a Palestinian terrorist rammed his car into a military post near Beit Hagai, located close to Hebron in Judea.

According to the military, the assailant accelerated toward the IDF post as he approached Junction 200, prompting troops to respond.

Israeli media reported that the Palestinian was shot and “neutralized.”

The injured soldier was evacuated to the hospital in good condition.

In separate incidents on Wednesday evening, two Israeli bus drivers were lightly wounded when Palestinian terrorists threw rocks at vehicles on a highway in northern Samaria.

The men, aged 30 and 48, came under attack while driving on the Route 55 highway near the Arab village of Nabi Ilyas, located close to the Israeli community of Alfei Menashe, reports said.

One driver was wounded by shrapnel in his eyes, while the other suffered a shoulder wound, Rescuers Without Borders (Hatzalah Judea and Samaria) announced. Both were evacuated to Meir Medical Center in Kfar Saba for treatment.

The attacks come nine days after Batsheva Nigri, a mother of three from Beit Hagai, was killed and another man was seriously wounded in a terrorist shooting in the same area.


Ben-Gvir bans Israel Police, firefighters from Harvard Wexner fellowship
Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir is barring government employees under his supervision — including police officers, firefighters, and prison officials — from participating in a longstanding and prestigious fellowship program for Israeli civil servants at Harvard University.

Ben-Gvir issued the ban due to what he calls the left-wing political bent of the program’s funder, the Ohio-based Wexner Foundation.

A far-right member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, Ben-Gvir tweeted Monday that he made the decision to sever ties between the police and the foundation because of the foundation’s “involvement and cooperation with distinctly left-wing groups like Breaking the Silence.”

Why does Ben-Gvir not like the Wexner Foundation?

Both the Wexner Foundation and Breaking the Silence, an advocacy group that publishes testimonies by Israeli combat soldiers of alleged human rights abuses in the West Bank, have long been targets of the Israeli Right.

The foundation has rejected Ben-Gvir’s allegation of ideological bias. “We are not now nor have we ever been associated with any political party or ‘movement,’” a foundation spokesperson told the news outlet eJewishPhilanthropy.

Israel’s right-leaning Channel 14 news station reported Tuesday that the ban also applies to firefighters and prison officials. Five police officers who were slated to attend the fellowship program at Harvard next year will no longer be able to do so, according to eJewishPhilanthropy.

The foundation’s money comes from American Jewish philanthropist Les Wexner, a billionaire who made his fortune off retail brands including Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works. The foundation has lately faced backlash over Wexner’s personal and financial ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, even as it continues its many activities focused on the development of Jewish leaders in a wide range of fields.
Violent terror supporter to speak at Tel Aviv high school
An Arab convicted of attacking his Jewish neighbor is set to address students at Tel Aviv’s prestigious Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium high school on Sunday, according to Jewish advocacy group Btsalmo.

Saleh Diab, an Arab resident of eastern Jerusalem’s Shimon HaTzadik/Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, was invited to the Sept. 3 event by the radical left-wing Youth Against Dictatorship group, which has been rallying teenagers to refuse to serve in the Israel Defense Forces.

The event is being held to protest against the government’s judicial reform effort.

“Starting in the afternoon [of Sept. 3], Youth Against Dictatorship activists will take over the Herzliya Gymnasium in Tel Aviv,” the organization announced earlier this week. “Open classes will be held on the subject of activism and social struggles, led by representatives of Breaking the Silence and residents of Sheikh Jarrah.”

Seventeen-year-old Tal Mitnick from Tel Aviv, one of the organizers, was quoted by local media as saying, “We must stop the judicial revolution and we must stop taking part in a military that serves settlements and the occupation.”

A member of Shimon HaTzadik’s “neighborhood committee,” Diab has been arrested numerous times for assaulting Jews, most recently in June on suspicion of attacking Shabbat worshippers with an iron rod. In 2014, he served eight months in prison for aggravated assault on a Jewish neighbor.

Last year, Diab was caught chanting slogans lauding violence, with one video showing him praising Palestinian Udai Tamimi, the Hamas terrorist who shot and killed Military Police Sgt. Noa Lazar, 18.
Palestinian terrorists open fire on Arab school using Israeli syllabus
Terrorists affiliated with the Palestinian Authority opened fire at a new Arab school in the Kafr Aqab neighborhood of northeastern Jerusalem on Wednesday because it will be teaching the curriculum of Israeli Arab schools.

In a letter that was reportedly left at the site, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed “militia” of P.A. leader Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah faction, claimed responsibility for the shooting.

“We will cripple with an iron first anyone who helps establish the school,” wrote the U.S.-designated terrorist group, claiming that the Israeli curriculum “falsifies and targets the ancient and contemporary history of Palestine.”

Moreover, the attackers left graffiti reading, “The school year cannot be opened,” Kan News said. The Israel Police is investigating the attack in cooperation with the IDF and the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), the report noted.

The targeted school is one of four new educational institutions in Kafr Aqab, funded by the Jerusalem Municipality, that will prepare students for an Israeli bargut (high school matriculation) diploma. The school was supposed to open later this week.

Of roughly 110,000 Arab students in eastern Jerusalem, 85% follow the Palestinian Authority curriculum, Lach Yerushalayim, an NGO that focuses on Jerusalem-related issues, told JNS earlier this year.

“The Palestinian Authority, which is frankly the enemy of Israel, pushes the Palestinian narrative. Israel tries to fight this through a type of censorship, but it’s not succeeding within the schools,” Lach Yerushalayim Chairman Maor Tzemach said at the time.
Israel is “transient,” “your foolishness will bring about your end” - Egyptian cleric
Official PA TV program Topic of the Day, hosting Sheikh Yasser Mustafa Younes from Al-Azhar – a prominent Muslim academic institution in Cairo

Al-Azhar Cleric Sheikh Yasser Mustafa Younes: “Read the history, as your state [of Israel] is transient, the entire occupation is transient, Allah willing. What did these states that occupied [other] states do? They gave and did a lot, but the right was restored to its owners, as this is an Islamic waqf, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque is an Islamic waqf.”
[Official PA TV, Topic of the Day, Aug. 6, 2023]

A waqf is an inalienable religious endowment in Islamic law. Palestinians define all of Israel as waqf, and thereby Israel exists on Islamic holy land. Palestinian leaders have explained that under Islamic law Muslims are commanded to free the waqf from non-Muslims.




PMW: Did Fatah really take credit for killing Yevgeny Prigozhin?
Fatah’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades bragged it killed Israeli kindergarten teacher Batsheva Nagari in a drive by murder. In fact, the murderer was a Hamas member

Two days later, Hamas mocked Fatah by releasing a false claim in Fatah’s name that Fatah was responsible for shooting down the Russian plane, which killed the head of the Wagner Mercenary soldiers, Yevgeny Prigozhin

Because the PA’s indoctrination has been so successful, the Palestinian population overwhelmingly supports the killing of Israelis and therefore all Palestinian movements compete for popularity by trying to murder Israelis and boasting about their terror murders
One Killed in Rare Clash Between Palestinian Security Forces and Gunmen
A man was killed on Wednesday in a clash in a town in the West Bank that broke out after Palestinian security forces tried to remove barricades set up by gunmen.

The rare internal violence followed months of intensifying Israeli military raids on West Bank areas where Palestinian gunmen have been been increasingly assertive, in a challenge to the internationally-backed Palestinian Authority (PA).

Witnesses said PA security personnel men came to Tulkarm to free up roads to its refugee camp, which gunmen had blocked as a precaution against Israeli incursions. The PA said residents had complained that the obstacles endangered passersby and a school.

In the ensuing gunfight, a Palestinian man, described by locals as unaffiliated to the PA or armed groups, was shot dead. Further details on the circumstances were not immediately clear.

Several gunmen posted a video accusing the PA of his killing.

“We will not keep silent at this act, which aids the occupation forces in arresting and chasing the youths and those [on Israel‘s] wanted list,” one of the gunmen said.

The PA, contacted by Reuters, had no immediate response to the militants’ accusations.

Talal Dweikat, spokesperson for PA security services, said gunmen had opened fire at the Tulkarm governorate, “prompting security forces to intervene, taking necessary measures to restore order.”


Fatah brags of murders of Israeli father and son, murderer is “hero”

Dead terrorist’s “last will”: Don’t cry at my funeral. “Hand out dates and make sounds of joy”
Dead terrorist’s “last will”: Don’t cry at my funeral. “Hand out dates and make sounds of joy at the wedding of Martyrdom”

Terrorist Luay Abu Na’asa: “I have realized my wish and received Martyrdom for Allah. With the determination of the Jihad fighters I set out from this world, and I am going to a pure world, to Paradise... My family: Know that I did not leave you out of distress or a grudge against you, but rather Martyrdom called to me after I desired it for a long time. Dear mother: Please forgive me, as Allah’s satisfaction depends on you being satisfied with me, and my wish [to be a Martyr for Allah] will not be realized without this condition… Do not cry over me, rather make sounds of joy, as this is the wedding of your Martyr son… My last will is that no one cry at my funeral procession that leads to Paradise, rather hand out dates and make sounds of joy at the wedding of Martyrdom.”
[Fatah Movement – Bethlehem Branch, Telegram channel, Aug. 7, 2023]

A Martyr's funeral is considered his wedding to the 72 Virgins in Paradise in Islam


Dead teen terrorist “desired” Martyrdom, says uncle
Official PA TV News, interview with Mahmoud Abu Asab, the uncle of terrorist Muhammad Daoud Abu Asab who participated in violent confrontations with Israeli forces

Mahmoud Abu Asab, uncle of terrorist Muhammad Daoud Abu Asab: “Every person in Palestine was proud on behalf of Muhammad [Daoud Abu Asab] (i.e., terrorist). Praise Allah Master of the Universe, Our Lord agreed to receive him as a Martyr, because he desired this. Every day he would go to the grave of his cousin, who died as a Martyr a year and a half ago, and say: ‘I am coming to you, my friend, and Allah willing we will meet soon.’”
[Official PA TV News, Aug. 19, 2023]

Muhammad Daoud Abu Asab – 19-year-old Palestinian terrorist and Fatah member who participated in violent riots, in which terrorists shot at Israeli forces who were guarding Jews visiting Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus on Aug. 16, 2023. The forces returned fire, wounding Abu Asab who died of his wounds on Aug. 19, 2023. Pictures circulated after his death showed Abu Asab posing with assault rifles.

The cousin “Martyr” referred to isNader Rayyan – 17-year-old Palestinian terrorist who shot with a handgun at Israeli security forces conducting arrests of terror suspects in the Balata refugee camp on March 15, 2022. Rayyan was killed when the forces returned fire in self-defense.


Hamas to restart weekly Gaza border riots
Hamas has decided to restart the “Great March of Return” at the Gaza Strip’s border with Israel.

The decision was made on Wednesday by the “Supreme National Authority for the Great March of Return and Breaking the Siege” to begin to rehabilitate the “return camps” near the security fence in the eastern Gaza Strip, Assabeel, an Islamist weekly newspaper based in Amman, reported.

The activities are set to start next week “in light of the occupation’s tightening of its siege on the Gaza Strip, and the inability of the mediators to bind it to previous agreements,” sources told the Iraq-based Sada News Agency.

It was also reported that the decision was made due to the escalation in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and the Israeli threat to “assassinate leaders of the resistance.”

The “Great March of Return” campaign was initially organized in March 2018, on the 42nd anniversary of Land Day. The violent protests, which Gazans staged nearly every week along the border, lasted from March 30, 2018, until Dec. 27, 2019.

During the last period of activity, thousands of rioters prompted by the Hamas terrorist group that rules the Strip committed acts of violence at the border on a near-weekly basis, including throwing rocks, Molotov cocktails and other explosive objects at the security fence and IDF soldiers as well as burning tires, yelling anti-Israel slogans and waving Palestinian flags.


Hezbollah Opposes Renewal of UNIFIL Mandate in Lebanon
The head of Iran’s proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah, warned the United Nations Monday night against renewing the mandate of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

The UN Security Council is set to meet Wednesday to consider extension of the peacekeeping force’s mandate, which expires this Thursday.

“A foreign armed force that moves on Lebanese territory without authorization of the government and Lebanese army, without coordination with the Lebanese army, where is the sovereignty in all that?” Nasrallah said.

“The people of the south will not allow a decision to be applied against the will of the Lebanese government,” he said.

Nasrallah said the UN Security Council is “not seeing the Israeli violations in Lebanon and the new occupation in Ghajar … The Americans want the south to be devoid of any defense capabilities. They want UNIFIL to be spies for Israel,” he claimed.

“Why is UNIFIL only present in Lebanon? Why is there no UNIFIL in northern Israel?” Nasrallah asked, and said the Lebanese government is “trying to correct last year’s mistake” regarding the UNIFIL mandate resolution, which enables UNIFIL to move freely in south Lebanon without coordinating with the Lebanese Army.

While the Security Council is debating the extension of the UNIFIL mandate, senior officials from Iran and the United States plan to arrive in the Lebanese capital.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and US energy envoy Amos Hochstein are both scheduled to arrive in Beirut.
Israel, US to hold drill simulating strike on Iran nuke sites
Israel and the United States are set to hold a series of joint military exercises in the coming months.

One of the exercises will simulate a coordinated Israeli-U.S. attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, while another is intended to practice the response to a multi-front missile attack, Israel’s Channel 12 cited an unnamed source as saying.

The U.S. military will bring a large number of Patriot surface-to-air missile batteries and other missile interceptor systems to Israel for the exercise, according to the report.

The Israel Defense Forces has not commented on the matter.

Cooperation between the two militaries was on display last month during the bilateral “Juniper Oak” air forces training exercise.
The White House Must Close Its Hostage Bazaar With Iran And Russia
The setting was dramatic and the stakes were high. In the summer of 1987, millions of Americans tuned into the Iran-Contra hearings to witness Secretary of State George Shultz deliver a master class on why America should never exchange prisoners or other rewards for U.S. hostages. “Lord deliver us from such bright ideas as that,” he said with grave derision. Such deals would create a hostage bazaar that would never run short on supply. “The minute you pay for a hostage, you give an incentive to people to take more hostages,” Shultz explained.

The Biden administration has refused to learn this lesson, this month agreeing to release $6 billion of frozen oil revenue in exchange for Tehran’s release of five hostages. The message for Vladimir Putin, whose American hostages include Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, is that this is a seller’s market, and opening bids should be in the billions.

There are two centuries of evidence to support the notion that paying for hostages creates a market for them. In the early 1800s, the young United States was paying Barbary pirates gigantic sums worth $10-20 billion per year in today’s money for annual returns of American hostages. Over time, this policy shifted. Washington would no longer negotiate with pirates and terrorists, but it would still cut deals with hostile governments. Shultz had to testify in 1987 because the president he served made the mistake of trading arms for hostages with Iran, which promptly resulted in the taking of more hostages.

Joe Biden was already a Senate veteran in 1987 but seems not to recall Shultz’s advice. For Biden, paying off Iran is the sequel to paying off Russia. Late last year, the White House released to Russia the infamous “Merchant of Death” Viktor Bout, a detestable arms dealer, in exchange for American pro basketball player Brittney Griner. “How is it acceptable for someone like Brittney Griner to be put…in a Russian penal colony, in horrific circumstances that she did not deserve?” said one U.S. official, explaining the “moral obligation” the White House felt to secure Griner’s release.
Iran says alleged US oil seizure violates prisoner swap
Iran on Monday accused the United States of seizing its oil from a tanker and warned the alleged move violates a prisoner swap deal between the two foes.

The Islamic republic said on August 10 that it had transferred five Americans from jail to house arrest in the first step of the prisoner exchange agreement.

But it linked the deal to what it alleged was the United States’ seizure of an oil tanker that had been sailing off the US coast in April under the Marshall Islands flag.

“We have witnessed the imposition of new sanctions and the seizure and offloading of the oil cargo,” foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani told reporters in Tehran.

“This non-constructive approach is not compatible with the US messages sent showing readiness for direct dialogue and contradicts the agreement on the exchange of prisoners,” he added.

In response, he said, the foreign ministry had summoned the charge d’affaires of the Swiss embassy in Tehran, which represents US interests in Iran, to protest the alleged seizure.

The prisoner swap agreement is expected to lead to the unfreezing of $6 billion in Iranian oil revenue that has been held in South Korea under US sanctions.

All the detained Americans involved are of Iranian descent, but Tehran does not recognize dual nationality and has had adversarial relations with Washington since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.


US Strategic Command Hosts Former Iranian Official Who Bragged About Efforts To Assassinate US Leaders
U.S. military leaders earlier this month hosted a former top Iranian official who came under fire last year for bragging about the hardline regime’s efforts to assassinate American leaders.

U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM) tapped Hussein Mousavian, a former member of Iran’s nuclear negotiating team who works as a Middle East security and nuclear policy specialist at Princeton University, to headline its 2023 Deterrence Symposium, a high-level powwow that brought the former Iranian official shoulder-to-shoulder with America’s top military brass.

Mousavian’s appearance at the mid-August gathering, which came to light on Monday after STRATCOM posted a video of the event, drew criticism from former U.S. officials and veteran Iran analysts who questioned why America’s premier military outfit would host someone who maintains close ties to the Islamic Republic.

In his remarks, Mousavian thanked Gen. Anthony Cotton for inviting him to the event and said he would present an "Iranian perspective" on the current threat landscape within the Middle East.

"I’m afraid you may not like it, but I think it’s important to know the other side," Mousavian said, adding that the United States must "rewrite their policy in the Middle East."

The Princeton professor went on to list what he described as unjustified American acts of aggression towards Iran dating back nearly a century and ending with former President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal.


Iranian weightlifter banned for life after shaking hands with Israeli
Iranian weightlifter Mostafa Rajaei has been handed a lifetime ban by the regime in Tehran for shaking the hand of an Israeli competitor at an event in Poland, the Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

Rajaei shook hands with Israeli weightlifter Maksim Svirsky as they stood at the medal podium at a World Masters championship in Wieliczka, in the Krakow metropolitan area, on Saturday.

According to the IRNA report, the silver-medal-winning Iranian athlete stood on the medal platform “next to the representative of the regime that burned Jerusalem and placed the Iranian flag next to the Israeli flag without paying attention to the red lines and the values ​​of the system.”

The Islamic Republic of Iran Weightlifting Federation said in a statement cited by the state-run news agency that it “bans athlete Mostafa Rajaei for life from entering all sports facilities in the country and dismisses the head of the delegation for the competition, Hamid Salehinia.”

The Islamic Republic is a sworn enemy of the Jewish state, with its leaders routinely threatening Israel’s destruction.




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