Love of the Land: Iran Speeds Up

Iran Speeds Up

John Podhoretz
Contentions/Commentary
29 November 09

Iran has announced its intention to build ten new nuclear-enrichment sites. What? How could this be? Surely the international community’s outrage at Iran’s deception, which then led last week to a really strong letter to the editor—excuse me, scolding from the International Atomic Weapons Agency—was going to teach the Persians a thing or two!

It would seem logical to assume the purpose of these multiple sites is to make a successful military strike to downgrade or destroy Iran’s nuclear bomb-making capacity difficult to the point of impossibility. It would be hard enough for Israel or the United States to stage a complex series of simultaneous surprise aerial bombings against four locations; from four to fourteen would certainly be beyond Israel’s capacity and would significantly strain our own.

Remember when everybody was saying, including in the Democratic primary for president, that it would be unacceptable for Iran to get the bomb? Remember when President Bush said those who allowed Iran to get the bomb would enjoy the same reputation in the annals of history as the Western leaders at Munich?

Love of the Land: Iran Speeds Up

Love of the Land: Questions people are afraid to ask Salam Fayyad

Questions people are afraid to ask Salam Fayyad

David Bedein/Arlene Kushner
JPost/Opinion
28 November 09

In his column of November 20, "Salam Fayyad builds Palestine," Jerusalem Post Editor-in-Chief David Horovitz describes "two staunch Jewish supporters of Israel" - Sen. Joe Lieberman, former vice presidential candidate, and Rep. Howard Berman, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee - "nodding their encouragement" at a recent Ramallah press conference, where Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad explained how he was preparing Palestinians for statehood. The piece goes on to outline a Palestinian state in formation, regarding security forces, the economy and civic institutions, with an optimistic sense of what the PA is achieving.

Regrettably, Lieberman and Berman did not use the press conference to raise some troublesome questions.

Since these American elected officials let that opportunity pass, perhaps it was Horovitz's journalistic responsibility to explore these matters, to offer a more balanced picture. Instead, he alluded to "staunch supporters of Israel nodding their agreement" - conveying the notion that, except for some technical problems, all is well.

Questions that Lieberman, Berman or Horovitz could have asked would have included:

• Renunciation of the PLO state of war with Israel.

The charter of Fatah - the predominant element in the PLO and the PA - to this day continues to call for the destruction of Israel. Written in 1964, before Israel controlled the West Bank and Gaza, it uses the term "Palestine" to refer exclusively to Israel within the Green Line. The charter declares that "Liberating Palestine is a national obligation," and that "Armed public revolution is the inevitable method" for doing so. This cannot be dismissed as an irrelevant anachronism. Last August, Fatah held its first General Congress in 20 years. Hope was held out for a charter revision, with violence officially renounced, but it never happened. Instead, Fatah continued to unambiguously embrace "armed resistance" to liberate Palestine. Why is this so?

• Cessation of incitement via changes in PA-produced textbooks.

(Continue reading...)

Love of the Land: Questions people are afraid to ask Salam Fayyad

Love of the Land: Birthday Wishes

Birthday Wishes

Noah Pollak
Contentions/Commentary
29 November 09

Shulamit Aloni, a former head of Israel’s Meretz Party, gave an interview to Yedioth on her 81st birthday. “It’s hard for me to say a kind word about the state today,” she said.

“No one should be speaking this nonsense about ‘blood on the hands.’ Since 2000, with the launching of the second intifada, we have murdered thousands. We too have blood on our hands,” she remarked.

“We need to release those demanded (by Hamas) immediately,” she went on. …

“We are a nefarious people. What we are doing in the West Bank is worse than all the pogroms done to the Jews.” But she qualified her statement by saying she was “not referring to the Nazis, but the Cossacks.”

Conventional leftist self-hatred, as these things go. But this comment on Israeli politics was interesting:

“The Right has two left hands, but the Left doesn’t even exist today,” she said.

Here’s some free political advice: That’s because most Israelis don’t loathe their country, and they know the Aloni-Meretz faction does.

Love of the Land: Birthday Wishes

Love of the Land: Global Peace Index: The Profection of Distorted Research

Global Peace Index: The Profection of Distorted Research

Farid Ghadry
Reform Party of Syria (RPS)
29 November 09

"We, Syrians, if not for the poverty and the oppression, would sleep far better than any Israeli could ever do, who is harassed and terrorized by violent Middle East dictators, UN dormant officials, and western policy makers with deeply rooted dislike for success."

Washington DC - November 29, 2009 (Farid Ghadry Blog) -- Vision for Humanity has just published its Global Peace Index for 2009 in which it highlights the various GPI rankings it follows for 144 countries.

On its own website, VFH states: "Peace is the prerequisite for the survival of society as we know it in the 21st century. It lies at the centre of being able to manage humanity’s many and varied challenges, simply because peace creates the optimum environment in which the other activities that contribute to human growth can take place." It also makes this interesting claim: "But the structure, causes and value of peace need to be better understood."

After reading their index, it is obvious that the structure, causes, and value of peace is misunderstood by VFH.

For example, GPI ranks Syria as the 92nd country out of 144 and Iraq as the 144th country. Iraq is at the bottom of the heap. In its first line item analysis, GPI claims that Syria has fought ONLY ONE conflict between 2002-2007 in which 25 people or more died.

We do not know whether they mean the number of deaths by the Syrian proxy called Hezbollah who sparked a war in 2006 or Hamas, another Syrian proxy, who sparked yet another war in 2008. Or maybe the Syrian regime itself, which started acts of terror against Iraq in 2003 -- killing hundreds of thousands of Iraqis -- and continue to this day unabated. Or maybe the mysterious hundreds of killings in Lebanon at the hands of the Syrian regime itself.

There are four conflicts we know of, yet GPI lists only ONE. Most of the other line items were similarly distortive.

Syria, under the Assad regime, is very much involved in Iraq's destruction and Iraq, under a democratically elected government, is at the receiving end of terrorists crossing from Syria and the terror masters in Iran. For an institution feeding off the respected Economist Intelligence, the ranking is upside down.

Syria, with Assad ruling, should be at the bottom because it is destabilizing the whole Levant region and beyond. Any good researcher would be able to see the pattern followed by the ruling Alawite minority in Damascus as a tactic for surviving to govern brutally 22 million hapless Syrians.

(Continue reading...)

Love of the Land: Global Peace Index: The Profection of Distorted Research

Love of the Land: A minor correction

A minor correction

Leftist coalition operating anti-Israel boycott website gets it wrong

Hagai Segal
Ynet/Opinion
29 November 09

The leftist boycott industry against Israel is becoming increasingly sophisticated with the passage of time. For example, the Coalition of Women for Peace operates an English-language website that presents a comprehensive list of plants that are related to the settlements in one way or another.

All the plants on the web site are presented as ones that benefit at the expense of an occupied nation. The site is called "Who Profits?"

However, the Coalition of Women for Peace does not make do with just providing the names of plants, the kind of goods they produce, and their exact address. The website also provides the names of the owners, perhaps so that one of these days it would be possible to bring them to trial at the International Court of Justice at The Hague on charges of committing crimes by benefiting from the occupation.

Among other names, until this weekend at least the website noted that a woman called Noa Alon is one of the owners of a Jewish food-processing plant in the West Bank.

Well, for the benefit of the highly moral European followers of the website, I will note that Noa Alon has not been the owner of that plant for a long time now. A Palestinian terrorist murdered her as well as her young granddaughter, Gal Eisenman, in a suicide attack at Jerusalem's French Hill neighborhood about seven years ago.

Both grandmother and granddaughter have been laid to rest in the small cemetery in the West Bank community of Ofra, not too far from the industrial zone where the plant was located before it was relocated to the kosher side of the Green Line.

I wonder whether their very burial there also constitutes a type of benefit of the occupation.

Love of the Land: A minor correction

Love of the Land: The Militarization of Sex

The Militarization of Sex

The story of Hezbollah's halal hookups.

Hanin Ghadar
Foreign Policy
25 November 09

Hanin Ghadar is Managing Editor and Writer - NOW Lebanon

Mohammad, a 40-year old Lebanese Shiite who lives in Hezbollah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs, was holding forth on the virtues of resistance, loyalty, and sex. "You could create the most loyal army by providing political power, social services and fulfilling the desires of your men -- namely, sexual ones," he declared.

"And Hezbollah has been very successful in this regard," Mohammad continued. It is hard to disagree. Hezbollah liberated South Lebanon from Israeli occupation, expanded the Shiite community's political power within the country, and has provided social services, such as health care and education, to its constituency since the 1980s. Today, it is also working to fulfill the sexual needs of its supporters, though a practice known as mutaa marriage.

Mutaa is a form of "temporary marriage" only acceptable within Shiite communities, one that allows couples to have religiously sanctioned sex for a limited period of time, without any commitments, and without the obligatory involvement of religious figures. In conservative Muslim societies known for their strict sense of propriety, mutaa offers an escape clause. The contract is very simple. The woman says: "I marry myself to you for [a specific period of time] and for [a specified dowry]" and the man says: "I accept." The period can range between one hour and a year, and is subject to renewal. A Muslim woman can only marry a Muslim man, but a Muslim man can temporarily marry a Muslim, Christian, or Jewish woman, as long as she is a divorcée or a widow. However, those interviewed for this article confirmed that Hezbollah-the "Party of God"-has allowed the practice to spread to virgins or girls who have never married before, as long as the permission of her guardian (father or paternal grandfather) is obtained.

Temporary marriage has long been practiced by Shiites around the world. However, it has recently become more commonplace in Lebanon, notably within Hezbollah strongholds in Beirut's southern suburbs and in southern Lebanon after the 2006 war with Israel,

Hezbollah's recent encouragement of this phenomenon highlights the compromises it had been required to make in order to remain the preeminent force among its domestic Shiite constituency. As the party gained strength due to its effectiveness in fighting Israel, it was forced to cope with the reality that many Lebanese Shiites did not share the Iranian-inspired religious beliefs of Hezbollah's leaders. They came to dominate a community that was shaped by the secular leftist trends of the 1970s and 1980s, and the cosmopolitan culture embodied by Beirut. Today, Lebanese Shiites are exposed to pop icons such as sexpot singer Haifa Wehbe, countless Western advertisements and programs, and technological innovations such as online dating. Allowing these Shia to balance their sexual desires with their support for the "Resistance" against the "Zionist entity" is a vital ingredient to Hezbollah's staying power.

(Continue reading...)

Love of the Land: The Militarization of Sex

Love of the Land: How to end terrorist kidnappings

How to end terrorist kidnappings

FresnoZionism.org
28 November 09

News item:

Voice of Palestine radio quoted Egyptian sources on Saturday as saying that in an unusual move, security around the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt has been beefed up, speculating that the added security could signal the imminent transfer of captive Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit from Gaza into Egypt…

The sources also said that when Shalit is transferred from Gaza into Egypt he will be examined by Red Cross medical teams as well as Israeli and French teams, in addition to the German mediator. Israel will simultaneously free 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, the sources said…

Senior Hamas officials said Thursday that the talks had hit a snag over some of the Palestinian prisoners the Islamic group wants freed, including Marwan Barghouti and Ahmad Sa’adat…

Hamas is demanding, among other the prisoners, the release of Ibrahim Hamad, head of the group’s military wing in the Ramallah area, Abdallah Barghouti, a bomb engineer, and Abbas a-Sayad, the Hamas head in Tul Karm who planned the 2002 massacre during Passover in Netanya’s Park Hotel. These three prisoners are considered responsible for the murder of hundreds of Israelis.

Other names mentioned in the Arab media are Hassan Salame, who was involved in planning the suicide bus bombings in the mid ’90s, and Jamal Abu al-Hijla, head of Hamas in Jenin, who was convicted of taking part in planning and funding several suicide attacks during the second intifada.

Unfortunately, Israel has close to zero leverage. Hamas has held Shalit for three years and can keep him for as long as it likes. The Netanyahu government is under tremendous pressure from the media and others to get Shalit out no matter how much it costs. Although I’m sure the families of the terrorists would like them released, Hamas can afford to be far less responsive to its public than Israel! And of course the conditions under which Palestinian prisoners are held in Israel are far better than those faced by Shalit.

(Continue reading...)

Love of the Land: How to end terrorist kidnappings

Love of the Land: UN Palestine Day (1978)

UN Palestine Day (1978)

Today's Golden Oldie is from November, 1978. Yup, I did this cartoon thirty years ago this month!!

One year earlier the General Assembly of the United Nations (in Resolutions 32/40B of December 2nd, 1977) had proclaimed an annual “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People” to be held the following November.

November was chosen because it was in November 1947 that the General Assembly of the United Nations passed the famous resolution 181, known as the Partition Plan, which recommended the partition of Palestine into “Arab” and “Jewish” states.

When I did this cartoon in 1978 it was thirty years after the first anniversary of the Arab rejection of a Jewish state in the Middle East.

As of November 2008 another thirty years have slipped by with continued regional rejection of the Jewish state as the only "glue" that holds our Arab neighbors together.

Your thoughts?

Love of the Land: UN Palestine Day (1978)

The Torah Revolution: Too late now

The Torah Revolution: Too late now

Hurray for the Boycott!

Hurray for the Boycott!

As the Dubai meltdown threatens to deal yet another blow to the world's economy, it looks like Israel will not be directly affected: since almost no-one in Dubai was willing to do business with the detested Israelis, the Israelis weren't offered the option of losing their money in Dubai. Heh.

Originally posted by Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations

Chester Chronicles - The West Begins to Fight Back

Chester Chronicles - The West Begins to Fight Back

RubinReports: The “Coup” in Iran and What it Means

The “Coup” in Iran and What it Means

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By Barry Rubin

For a couple of years it has been visible; for months the opposition has been talking about it. What’s happening is the gradual takeover of a huge amount of power by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The Iranian government has generally been radical since the revolution, 30 years ago. But now the most extremist faction of all has taken over, pushing out its rivals.

Of course, Spiritual Guide Ali Khamenei is the most powerful man in Iran. But obviously he has no problem with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad being president and the IRGC becoming the power behind the throne.

This is important because the IRGC is the most fanatical and risk-taking part of the regime. It is very much committed to expanding the revolution and maintains the regime’s links with foreign revolutionary and terrorist groups.

Oh, and it will also be the institution that will have actual possession of Iran’s long-range missiles and nuclear weapons.

Not only are these people nobody can make a deal with, but they are also the ones most likely to make a war some day.

The BBC reports that the IRGC now controls one-third of Iran’s economy, either openly or through front groups. This is probably too high. But more than one-third is controlled either by the IRGC or foundations under the control of regime hardliners so the basic idea isn’t far off. Moreover, Ahmadinejad has been appointing former IRGC commanders to a lot of top jobs, including cabinet ministries and provincial governorships.

Now the group has won a $2.5 billion contract to build a big railroad project. And the IRGC is taking control of intelligence, running key prisons, and taking custody of political prisoners.

This is one reason why foreign observers can underestimate the regime's stability. With the IRGC playing such a central role, so well-armed, united, and ready to fight, any serious threat of a revolution or internal collapse would be blocked, no matter how much bloodshed it takes. The opposition and those critical of the regime are also aware of that fact.

Another reason why this is important regards Iran's intentions after getting nuclear weapons. Whether or not it would fire off such armaments, Iran will certainly use them to become more powerful, threatening, and influential throughout the region. The loser here will be the United States, its interests, and policies.

Judging from his statements, President Obama seems to have the following picture of Iran: There are many factions; the supreme guide really runs the show; Ahmadinejad is just a noisy front-man without much power. Iran should be judged by its past record, which has often shown caution. In this conception, it is possible to engage Iran, appeal to its interest, and find some relative moderates or pragmatists who will make a deal.

One could argue this position two years, perhaps even a year ago. But it no longer applies. The Iranian regime has changed to become far more hardline and risk-taking.

My personal view is that Khamenei is preparing for his departure from the scene by putting the revolution into the hands of those who he trusts not to dilute it. While Iran is a country of endless factional bickerings, this analysis means that the power of Ahmadinejad and the IRGC will grow greater in the coming years. That provides still another reason why soft diplomacy won't work and that a world where Iran--meaning Ahmadinejad and the IRGC--have nuclear weapons and long-range missiles is far more dangerous.

That doesn't mean that Iran will immediately attack Israel with nuclear weapons. Even in the radical worldview that would be foolish. What is more likely is that Iran will systematically try to turn much of the region into Islamist satellite states, putting off any confrontation with Israel to the future. (This is parallel to the strategy of Arab nationalist regimes--despite their 1967 miscalculation and 1973 attempt at revenge--over the last half-century.)

Do you think the Arab states will choose to appease Iran or stand firm in the belief that President Barack Obama will go to war on their behalf?

RubinReports: The “Coup” in Iran and What it Means

Freeze Opponents Move to Convene Likud Central Committee - Politics & Gov't - Israel News - Israel National News

Freeze Opponents Move to Convene Likud Central Committee - Politics & Gov't - Israel News - Israel National News

Ketzaleh Takes State to Court over Abductions - Defense/Middle East - Israel News - Israel National News

Ketzaleh Takes State to Court over Abductions - Defense/Middle East - Israel News - Israel National News

Activist: We Can Bypass Construction Freeze - Inside Israel - Israel News - Israel National News

Activist: We Can Bypass Construction Freeze - Inside Israel - Israel News - Israel National News

IAF Maps Existing Construction, as Beit El Mayor Rips Up Order - Defense/Middle East - Israel News - Israel National News

IAF Maps Existing Construction, as Beit El Mayor Rips Up Order - Defense/Middle East - Israel News - Israel National News

Knesset Members to Get Bible Lessons - Good News - Israel News - Israel National News

Knesset Members to Get Bible Lessons - Good News - Israel News - Israel National News

How Hamas is Islamicizing Gaza - Defense/Middle East - Israel News - Israel National News

How Hamas is Islamicizing Gaza - Defense/Middle East - Israel News - Israel National News

Freeze will Cause Unemployment - Business & Economy - Israel News - Israel National News

Freeze will Cause Unemployment - Business & Economy - Israel News - Israel National News

Israel Matzav: Overnight music video

Overnight music video

Someone will have to fill in the name of the song - it's not in the video title. This is a beautiful song in English (with Hebrew subtitles) by Yaakov Shwekey. I think it's called My Father, but I'm not sure. And there's quite a video that goes with it.

Let's go to the videotape.




Israel Matzav: Overnight music video

Israel Matzav: Shalit being moved to Egypt?

Shalit being moved to Egypt?

Voice of Palestine radio is reporting that kidnapped IDF corporal Gilad Shalit will be moved to Egypt in the next few days. Israel Radio and Army Radio both picked up the reports.

The report, which was picked up by Israel Radio and Army Radio, cited Egyptian sources who said that troops on the Rafah border crossing with Gaza have been reinforced and instructed to increase their alertness over the coming days.

"Passage of Hamas officials in and out of Egypt is commonplace, but this if the first time that there is such a security presence in the area," the sources told the radio. "This indicates that something out of the ordinary is taking place."

...

Fox News reported Friday that a deal would likely be concluded next week. Fox quoted sources close to officials involved in the negotiations.

According to the report, a disagreement over deportation of Palestinian prisoners from east Jerusalem had become a major sticking point.

Overall, it is expected that some 1,000 prisoners would be released in two stages in exchange for Schalit. Most reports say that in the first stage, Schalit would be transfered to Egypt and at the same time, 450 prisoners, including those responsible for killing Israelis, would be released.

In the second stage that would bring Schalit back to Israel, another 550 prisoners held on more minor infractions would be freed.

...

"What we are seeing now is the end game," an unnamed source was quoted as saying.

The London-based Al-Hayat paper reported that Israel and Hamas were still at odds over the release of 50 prisoners on the list.

Israel is also continuing to stand firm on its policy of not releasing prisoners who are either Israeli Arabs or Arab residents of east Jerusalem, according to the paper.

Hamas said in the Al-Hayat report that negotiations were ongoing, and that the German negotiator was continuing his efforts to iron out an agreement for Schalit's release.

Remember the 'good old days' when the terrorists who were released had to sign a pledge that they wouldn't return to terror activities? I don't think they even bother with that one anymore.

Israel Matzav: Shalit being moved to Egypt?

Israel Matzav: The Fall Guy

The Fall Guy

Meet the Fall Guy for President Obumbler's failed Middle East peace efforts.

Peacemaking takes strategic skill. But we see no sign that President Obama and Mr. Mitchell were thinking more than one move down the board. The president went public with his demand for a full freeze on settlements before securing Israel’s commitment. And he and his aides apparently had no plan for what they would do if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said no.

Most important, they allowed the controversy to obscure the real goal: nudging Israel and the Palestinians into peace talks. (We don’t know exactly what happened but we are told that Mr. Obama relied more on the judgment of his political advisers — specifically his chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel — than of his Mideast specialists.)

Yeah, that must be it. Obama decided that since Emanuel was an Israeli, he must know better how to pressure Israelis than those Middle East peace experts.

All this raises two questions: What has President Obama learned from the experience so he can improve his diplomatic performance generally? And does he plan to revive the peace talks?

Answers: Not much and who cares. Obama walked into a situation where the two parties had been involved in intense negotiations for more than a year, toward the end of which Abu Mazen had turned down the best offer he is likely to see in this lifetime because he was convinced Obama would get him a better deal. Obama should have put the 'Middle East peace process' on the back burner, let Abu Mazen stew in his own juices, and moved on to solvable issues. Instead, he decided to surprise Netanyahu by putting the squeeze on him.

No one in this country trusts Obama. And no one ever will.

Israel Matzav: The Fall Guy

Israel Matzav: Hunger strike in Bolivia against Ahmadinejad visit

Hunger strike in Bolivia against Ahmadinejad visit

A lone hunger striker is wandering around Bolivia in protest against the visit of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Carlos Aliaga Uria, dressed in a black poncho with the yellow Star of David on the front, holds a poster that translates: “Ahmadinejad Denier of History and the Holocaust Get Out of Bolivia.”

Aliaga began his hunger strike in La Paz to protest the November 24^th visit of the Iranian president. Aliaga said:

Recently Angela Merkel, the German president, admitted to the horrors committed by her country during the Nazi period, which claimed the lives of 6,000,000 Jews. Ahmadinejad denies this historical fact. Ahmadinejad can visit Venezuela, Brazil or even the moon, that doesn’t interest me; however, he should be prohibited from visiting Bolivia. He shouldn’t be allowed to come here, not just because this is my country, but because Bolivia was the only country on this continent that authorized visas throughout WWII to more than 7,000 Jews who escaped from the Nazi terror.

Aliaga proclaimed an “ambulatory” hunger strike because he is worried about being harassed or arrested for his protest. During the last six months, there have been many arbitrary arrests without due process. It is important that the Evo Morales government abides by the law. Instead, it is intentionally subverting the institutions in the judiciary branch. The Supreme Court, which should have 12 voting members, is now down to six and is without a quorum. This is just the latest attempt to paralyze the Bolivian judicial system.

Read the whole thing. It seems that the only country in Latin America that's still in the West's court is Argentina - ironic because Israel is full or Argentinean olim who fled their country in the 1970's during the Peron era.

Israel Matzav: Hunger strike in Bolivia against Ahmadinejad visit

Israel Matzav: Chavez: 'Israel plans to terminate the Palestinian people'

Chavez: 'Israel plans to terminate the Palestinian people'

President Obama's buddy Hugo Chavez said on Friday that Israel plans to 'terminate' the 'Palestinian people.' The occasion was a visit by 'moderate' 'Palestinian' President for life Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen.

"We .. are on the side of the Palestinian people's memorable struggle ... against the genocidal state of Israel that knocks down, kills and aims to terminate the Palestinian people," Chavez told visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

"We reiterate ... our greatest commitment and our greatest solidarity ... for the creation of an independent Palestinian state with the holy city of Jerusalem as its capital," he added during Abbas' first state visit to the country.

Earlier this week, Chavez praised imprisoned terrorist Carlos the Jackal. I wonder if President Obama will raise that with him the next time he sees him.

Israel Matzav: Chavez: 'Israel plans to terminate the Palestinian people'

Israel Matzav: Did Obama just sign on to the Bush letter?

Did Obama just sign on to the Bush letter?

Remember the Bush letter from 2004 that acknowledged 'new realities on the ground' and promised that Israel could keep the 'settlement blocs'? Remember how the Obama administration caused so much bad blood with Israel by loudly rejecting the Bush letter? If Barry Rubin is reading Secretary of State Clinton's statement on the 'settlement freeze' correctly, the Obama administration just might have accepted the Bush letter in return for the freeze.

Here's what Hillary said:

Today’s announcement by the Government of Israel helps move forward toward resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We believe that through good-faith negotiations the parties can mutually agree on an outcome which ends the conflict and reconciles the Palestinian goal of an independent and viable state based on the 1967 lines, with agreed swaps, and the Israeli goal of a Jewish state with secure and recognized borders that reflect subsequent developments and meet Israeli security requirements. Let me say to all the people of the region and world: our commitment to achieving a solution with two states living side by side in peace and security is unwavering.

Barry Rubin notes:

--“That reflect subsequent developments”: This is a fascinating and new phrase. What can it mean other than this: Since so many Jews have moved into settlements, this new factor must be taken into account in shifting the borders. This is the Obama Administration’s version of its predecessor’s idea that Israel could keep “settlement blocs,” large towns built up along its border like the Etzion bloc and Maale Adumim. It could also be applied to Jerusalem, though that sensitive word is not mentioned in the statement.

...

How will this statement be received in Israel? This raises a fascinating question: Was it coordinated with the Netanyahu government as part of the freeze deal? If so, the Netanyahu government has certainly proved itself to be flexible and peace-oriented. Certainly, there isn’t everything Israel wants in this statement yet it does encompass some important points taken out of the cabinet’s position on peace arrangements.

My guess is that there was a quid pro quo, but I look for the Obama administration to try to claim down the road that it made no commitment if that proves to be expedient. In any event, as Barry points out, this is going nowhere, because the 'Palestinians' won't agree to any border adjustments or any compromises at all. If your goal is to destroy the Jewish state, why would you agree to take steps that avoid making another 500,000 Jews homeless?

Read the whole thing.

More about the Bush letter here.

Israel Matzav: Did Obama just sign on to the Bush letter?

Israel Matzav: Should Israel release 1,000 terrorists for Gilad Shalit

Should Israel release 1,000 terrorists for Gilad Shalit

If anyone still believes that Israel should release 1,000 terrorists in exchange for Gilad Shalit, maybe this video about the potential consequences will change your mind. As Amos Harel writes in Haaretz,

despite everything, a deal now appears to be closer than ever. On the Israeli side, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to end the problem once and for all; on the Palestinian side, 11 months after the drubbing it took in Operation Cast Lead, Hamas in Gaza needs a success that will go some way toward offsetting its failure then. If Netanyahu goes for the deal - which the Palestinians must approve - he will have the support of Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi. Ashkenazi is playing up his commitment to bringing home Shalit, a combat soldier. In conversations with soldiers and officers in field units, they express support for a deal. But senior officers do not all agree: Two officers, from two different units, expressed anger regarding what they see as Israeli society's obsession with Shalit and concerned that the exchange will be a shot in the arm to the terror organizations.

A few days ago a simple but effective clip objecting to the proposed deal began making the rounds on the Internet. It cuts between the recent video of Shalit issued by his captors with images of sites of terror attacks, and ends with smiling photos of their victims, many of them young. The photos are a painful reminder, not least because the Shin Bet security service is known to impute the murder of dozens of Israelis to terrorists who were released in the Tennenbaum deal.

You're about to see that video. Unfortunately, it's only in Hebrew. If anyone has it in English, please send me the URL or embed code and I will replace the Hebrew with an English subtitled version (this is the only video the person with the YouTube account has ever posted). But even if you don't understand Hebrew, it's quite powerful.

Let's go to the videotape.





Israel Matzav: Should Israel release 1,000 terrorists for Gilad Shalit

Israel Matzav: Another Israeli technology deal

Another Israeli technology deal

And another Israeli technology 'exit.' IBM is paying $225 million for the Israeli startup Guardium.

The deal will mark one of the best exits in recent years for venture capital funds, as only $21 million has been invested in Guardium since it was founded in 2002, under the name Defendo. Investors are expected to make over 10 times their investments. The major investors - and those reaping most of the profits - in Guardium include venture capital funds Ascent, Cedar Fund, StageOne Ventures and Veritas Venture Partners. Networking giant Cisco has also invested in Guardium.

The entrepreneurs behind the firm, founder Amnon Keinan and Lior Tal, who has since left the company, will also be getting a share of the proceeds. Two others who will benefit from the sale are Gil Migdan and Joseph Segev of Log-On Software.

Guardium develops solutions that allow secure access to enterprise data, including databases from IBM, Oracle, Microsoft and others. It also monitors the software for possible breakins and unauthorized access.

This is the 9th company IBM has purchased in Israel. I'm not aware of any purchases by IBM (or investments by Cisco) in companies based in Muslim countries.

Anyone think that's discrimination? Heh.

Israel Matzav: Another Israeli technology deal

Israel Matzav: Iranian pilgrims stage hajj protest

Iranian pilgrims stage hajj protest

Shavua tov, a good week to everyone.

Iranian pilgrims staged a 'peaceful' protest at the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca this week.

When you saw that headline, I'm sure you thought it was a protest against the illegitimate Ahmadinejad regime. But of course, it wasn't.

Iranian hajj pilgrims carried out a peaceful protest without incident on Thursday as millions of Muslims amassed for the peak of the world's largest annual pilgrimage.

Ignoring Saudi warnings against political activity, the Iranians chanted for Muslim unity and against the "enemies" of the faith in their camp at Arafat outside of Mecca.

"Death to America, death to Israel," thousands of Iranians chanted inside a huge tent on the Arafat plain.

No Saudi security forces were evident as Ayatollah Muhammed Rishari, the representative of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, led the Iranian delegation.

"We need to be purified from our wrongdoings in this hajj," he said in a statement.

"We need all Muslims, Sunni and Shiite, to be unified and focus on important issues: Al-Aqsa (mosque in Jerusalem), the occupation of Palestine, the problems in Iraq, the Afghan occupation, and the fighting between brothers in Yemen. We need be purified from all infidels."

'Religion of peace' my you-know-what.

Israel Matzav: Iranian pilgrims stage hajj protest

Israel Matzav: President for Life?

President for Life?

How much longer will 'moderate' 'Palestinian' President Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen hold office? Al-Jazeera reports:

The Palestinian president has said that he plans to stay in office until the next election and will be ready to hold the vote as soon as consensus is reached with rival faction Hamas.

In other words, Abu Mazen has just declared himself President for Life.

"At any time we have the election I will go away and will not run," he said on Wednesday when asked if he would stay on until a vote is held.

"If there will be any consensus between us and Hamas after one month or two months, we are ready ... to conduct the elections immediately," Abbas told reporters in the Chilean capital, Santiago, part of a Latin America tour to muster support against Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land.

Abbas confirmed last week that elections scheduled for January 24 would be postponed....

What could go wrong?

Heh.

Israel Matzav: President for Life?

Israel Matzav: If they give, they will get and if they don't give, they will get anyway

If they give, they will get and if they don't give, they will get anyway

During his first term in office, Prime Minister Netanyahu was famous for saying constantly about the 'Palestinians,' "if they give they will get and if they don't give they won't get." But now, writes YNet's Shimon Shiffer, in his second term, Netanyahu just gives and gives and gives.

The decision to halt residential construction in the settlements and the deal being formulated with Hamas have one thing in common: In both cases the Israeli side gives something and doesn’t get anything in return, or alternately, gets much less.

...

Despite Netanyahu’s announcement that construction will be renewed following the 10-month freeze, anyone who has been monitoring the relationship between Bibi and Obama is convinced that even at the end of this period, no Israeli bulldozer will be making its way to a West Bank hill. The freeze will go on.

Those who were unable to withstand the American and international pressure thus far will not be able to withstand future pressure.

Netanyahu can seek comfort in one thing only. The pledges he made are “pretend pledges.” First, because for a long time now, no new construction plans have been approved in the settlements. On top of it, Netanyahu does not intend to put an end to the construction of thousands of residential units that are already in process, the construction of public buildings in the West Bank, or any kind of construction in Jerusalem. So is it any wonder that Benny Begin is an enthusiastic supporter of this “freeze”?

...

And what about the deal with Hamas? According to all indications, Hamas rejects the generous offer submitted by Israel via the German mediator. Officials that are privy to the details of the negotiations say that “Hamas smells weakness and a great desire on Israel’s part to cut a deal at any price.”

What could go wrong?

Israel Matzav: If they give, they will get and if they don't give, they will get anyway

Israel Matzav: IAEA rebukes Iran, Iran asks IAEA not to spoil the party

IAEA rebukes Iran, Iran asks IAEA not to spoil the party

At the IAEA meeting in Vienna, Iranian ambassador Ali Asghar Soltanieh asked the IAEA board not to destroy the 'positive atmosphere' in discussions between the sides. In other words, let the games continue.

Iran's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, called on the UN nuclear watchdog's Board of Governors "not to destroy the positive atmosphere in the discussions between the sides."

Referring to a resolution presented by Germany during the meeting, Soltanieh said that "decisions, sanctions and threats have a negative affect. You cannot talk to the Iranian people, who have thousands of years of civilization, with the language of power, but only with the language of logic."

For once, the IAEA decided to stop playing games. The Board voted 25-3 with 6 abstentions to censure Iran for building the secret Qom nuclear plant, and demanded that the project be frozen immediately. Even though Russia and China voted in favor, good luck with that. The IAEA still doesn't understand that the only way to stop Iran now is with military action. For that matter, President Obumbler doesn't understand it either.

What could go wrong?

Israel Matzav: IAEA rebukes Iran, Iran asks IAEA not to spoil the party

Israel Matzav: Does Netanyahu want to be the next Sharon?

Does Netanyahu want to be the next Sharon?

Haaretz's Yossi Verter suggests that what Prime Minister Netanyahu may really want is to become the next Ariel Sharon, with Ehud Barak playing the role of Shimon Peres.

Some even speculate that Netanyahu, like Sharon, is planning a far-reaching political move that will enable him, buoyed by wide public support, to break Likud up once again on the eve on the next elections and establish the new Likud with his partner Ehud Barak. The latter, at least, would be glad to leave his ailing party with its huge debts behind and join Bibi for another political upheaval - as Sharon and Peres did in forming Kadima.

At the beginning of the week, the prime minister promised the Likud faction to that he would get the Shalit deal approved by both the cabinet and Knesset.

The next day, on a tour of the police headquarters in Jerusalem, he announced that he would bring the deal "to the cabinet and to a public debate." This was a small, imperceptible retreat. If the Knesset approves the deal with a small majority, he would rather drop it. Netanyahu wants an impressive majority of at least 70 MKs against 10-15 objectors at the most.

Such a majority would alleviate his agonizing. Thus, covertly, the prime minister's men began asking the various Knesset factions about their stance regarding the deal, should there be a Knesset debate.

While there is something to this, there are also a lot of differences that make it unlikely. First, Sharon grew up on the Left and was at least as comfortable being there as he was on the Right. Sharon was a bit like a certain blogger many of us know, who switched from Left to Right after 9/11 and has now gone back to the Left since Obama acceded to power. Sharon grew up on the Left, switched to the Right in the late '70's and switched back to the Left in 2003 or 2004. Netanyahu grew up on the Right. He's not comfortable on the Left (he's comfortable with Barak because Barak seems to have some red lines, unlike most of the Left).

Second, for Netanyahu to make this kind of switch, he's going to have to come up with some way to find someone on the other side with whom he can talk. Because Netanyahu won't give up on Jerusalem and won't withdraw from territory unilaterally, if he wants to advance the 'peace process,' he needs a negotiating partner. He doesn't have one and he knows it. I believe that what Netanyahu really wants is to say to the Left, "see, I tried, now why do you all still hate me so much?"

Third, Israeli Jews are well to the Right of where Netanyahu is right now. When Sharon wanted to expel all the Jews from Gaza, if he had taken a referendum of the entire country, he would have won a narrow majority. His problem was that because a referendum of the country was so complicated to set up, he only took a referendum of the Likud, which did not support him, and which eventually necessitated his break with the Likud. Netanyahu cannot get support for any deal that the 'Palestinians' will buy except from the Far Left and the 'Israeli Arabs.' And he knows it.

Fourth, Netanyahu has become a follower who is trying to maintain Israel's relations with a hostile administration in Washington (yes, Limor Livnat was right about that). Sharon was initiating things like the Gaza expulsion. Netanyahu is not convinced that further concessions to the 'Palestinians' are the right thing to do, so he won't initiate them, although he may not resist them as vigorously as he ought to resist them.

Fifth, Judea and Samaria are not Gaza. A majority of Jewish Israelis wanted to get us out of Gaza for most of the period from 1987 (the start of the 'first intifada') until 2005. Gaza was always regarded as an ungovernable terror hotbed. No, I don't believe that perception of Gaza was correct (I believe that if we had gone all-out we could have kept it), and I believe that expelling its Jews and abandoning it was a mistake. But it had far less strategic military (and for that matter, religious) value than Judea and Samaria, which are far closer to 'our backyard.' It was far easier to walk away from Gaza than it would be to walk away from Judea and Samaria. And a lot of people believe that by walking away from Gaza, Sharon was trying to set the 'Palestinians' up for failure so that no one (he thought) would pressure us to walk away from Judea and Samaria.

Sixth, as I have discussed many times, Sharon had a series of criminal cases hanging over his head, and felt that by walking away from Gaza, he could get the Leftist prosecutors off his case. Netanyahu hasn't been under any investigation since shortly after he was ousted as Prime Minister the first time (there was a small to-do over the costs of a trip to London during the Second Lebanon War, but it turns out that Netanyahu bore all the personal expenses himself and the furor died down). He has no incentive to mollify the Left by endangering the country in order to save himself or his family members from jail.

So while Verter's comparison has some validity, I believe that it is far-fetched.

Israel Matzav: Does Netanyahu want to be the next Sharon?

Israel Matzav: Anniversary of Mumbai massacre

Anniversary of Mumbai massacre

Over at Correspondence Committee (where, as many of you know, I am running the Friends of Israel room), Pi Guy posts a five-part video about the Mumbai terror attacks, which reached their conclusion one year ago on Thursday, November 26.

As I noted in a post earlier this month, Chabad House was a primary target of those attacks.

Watch the (graphic) videos if you can.

The picture at the top is Moshe Holzberg and his nanny, two of the survivors of Chabad House. They now live with Moshe's grandparents in Israel.

Israel Matzav: Anniversary of Mumbai massacre

Israel Matzav: The UN partition resolution would not pass today

The UN partition resolution would not pass today

Sunday will be the 62nd anniversary of Resolution 181, the resolution by which the United Nations General Assembly called for the partition of the part of the British Mandate that was not given to Jordan into two states: Israel and 'Palestine.' On Thursday night, former Israeli ambassador to the US and current Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon and former Israeli ambassador to the UN Dore Gold told a new organization of American olim called Hadar that resolution would not pass the United Nations today.

Ayalon estimated that 60-65 percent of today's UN member nations are "dictatorial" countries that would vote against Israel were the establishment of the Jewish state put to the UN now.

"That's an automatic majority against us…We have to understand this and devise how to counter it," said the deputy foreign minister.

"We need two arms, one for special diplomatic operations and another for intensifying cooperation with the IDF Spokesman in documenting and delivering news as quickly as possible" he added.

...

Speaking to the Post on Thursday, Gold noted that, in 1945, "to become a member state of the UN, you had to declare war on one of the axis parties, Nazi Germany or Imperial Japan. As a result, most of the founding members of the United Nations were allies, most of which were democratic. And they mostly shared a common ethos. Even those countries that were authoritarian or totalitarian like Saudi Arabia or the Soviet Union acquiesced to the values of the democratic majority, for example, in abstaining and not voting against the declaration of human rights. That was the environment in which Resolution 181 of the General Assembly was adopted on November 29, 1947."

Today, Gold went on, "the United Nations has a completely different membership, the majority of which are authoritarian states and therefore have completely different values to those of the state of Israel."

He noted that "they are under the domineering influence of the Islamic states and the non-aligned movement which consistently support anti-Israel resolutions no matter how much they undermine the Arab-Israeli peace process." Therefore, Gold concluded, "the UN today seeks to undermine the very legitimacy of the state of Israel - even though it was the UN in 1947 that recognized the right of the Jewish people to a Jewish state."

Hadar, by the way, is a "self-proclaimed council for civic action. It is aiming to develop leadership and volunteer opportunities for English-speakers in Israel, and provide related training, information, and assistance in order to increase Anglo participation in Israeli public affairs." Last night was the organizational meeting. No one invited me (I saw an article about it in JPost yesterday) and honestly, I attend a shiur (Torah class) on Thurdsay nights that I rarely pass up when I am in Israel. If anyone else attended, please feel free to provide details. I think it's a great idea.

Yes, that's the partition map on the top. It never went into effect.

Israel Matzav: The UN partition resolution would not pass today

Israel Matzav: Petition to close Temple Mount to Muslims until Shalit released

Petition to close Temple Mount to Muslims until Shalit released

There's a petition on the Internet to close the Temple Mount to Muslims until Gilad Shalit is released by Hamas.

It's a nice idea, but of course, it will never happen. Perhaps that's why the organizers have set a modest goal of 10,000 signatures.

I'm amused at the thought of what the Security Council debate about such a closure might sound like. There would be a lot of whining about 'collective punishment.'

In any event, the petition story is here.

Israel Matzav: Petition to close Temple Mount to Muslims until Shalit released

Israel Matzav: The parts of the freeze that Haaretz doesn't understand

The parts of the freeze that Haaretz doesn't understand

Haaretz takes a backhanded swipe at Defense Minister Ehud Barak for issuing 28 building permits in Judea and Samaria on the same day that he issued an order to freeze construction in those areas.

Of course, one has nothing to do with the other. The building permits are for public buildings and public buildings are not and were not ever intended to be part of the freeze. But in Haaretz's zeal to dry out the Jewish communities of Judea and Samaria (after all, it was Haaretz's editor in chief who once asked the US Secretary of State to 'rape' Israel by imposing a 'solution' on it), it places the permits alongside the freeze as if there is a connection between them.

I would be very pleased to see Haaretz fall upon the same financial straits as their idols at the New York Times.

Israel Matzav: The parts of the freeze that Haaretz doesn't understand

Israel Matzav: Knesset coalition chair to live in caravan because of freeze

Knesset coalition chair to live in caravan because of freeze

Ze'ev Elkin, the Knesset coalition's chairman and a resident of Gush Etzion, will be stuck living in a caravan for another ten months because of the government's decision to freeze 'settlement construction' in Judea and Samaria. A caravan is what the Americans would call a trailer.

But here's the really disgraceful part:

Elkin said that he would attempt to lessen the impact of the freeze. “As chairman of the Judea and Samaria Subcommittee of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, I will try to minimize the damage,” he explained. Elkin noted that certain educational buildings and synagogues have been approved for construction, yet Minister of Defense Ehud Barak refuses to sign the permits. Elkin said he would “exert maximum pressure” on Barak to sign the permits “so that there is a second side to the equation and not just one,” in his words.

In other words, the 'freeze' isn't going to have much impact on Israel because nothing has gotten through the Defense Ministry for the last eight months either. I suspect this was a consideration in Netanyahu agreeing to the 'freeze.' But it's real total time will be a year and a half.

And then?

Israel Matzav: Knesset coalition chair to live in caravan because of freeze

Israel Matzav: New Lebanese government to endorse Hezbullah attacks on Israel

New Lebanese government to endorse Hezbullah attacks on Israel

Repeat after me: "Lebanon is Hezbullah. Hezbullah is Lebanon." Want proof? Here it is:

Hariri's national unity cabinet, including two members of Hizbullah, has been attempting to hammer out government guidelines ever since its formation earlier this month. A central sticking point has been Hizbullah's insistence that its independent arsenal of weapons be officially endorsed by the state. According to the Iranian-backed organization, its arms are non-negotiable. Cabinet members of the Phalangist Party and the Lebanese Forces insist that Hizbullah weapons undermine government authority and are in direct violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions. The two parties initially said they would refuse to sign off on any government guidelines that left Hizbullah free to use its arsenal freely.

After nine attempts, according to Lebanese Information Minister Tarik Mitri, a draft agreement was reached on Wednesday that grants the Hizbullah demand. According to Mitri, the government guidelines will recognize the right "of Lebanon, its government, its people, its army and its resistance" to liberate Lebanese territory. The "resistance", in this case, refers directly to Hizbullah.

The language of the controversial clause is identical to the official position of the previous administration of Fouad Siniora. The only difference in Hariri's government is that the representatives of the Phalangists and Lebanese Forces will officially note their reservations on the article in question.

So when Israel hits back against Lebanese infrastructure because of Hezbullah, will Hariri cry as his predecessor did?

By the way, Mrs. Clinton, which wing of Hezbullah is maintaining the weapons now that they are going to be approved by the Lebanese government? Is it the military wing or the political wing? And which wing is sitting in the Lebanese government? Is it the military wing or the political wing?

What could go wrong?

Israel Matzav: New Lebanese government to endorse Hezbullah attacks on Israel

Israel Matzav: Another nail in the demographic crisis coffin?

Another nail in the demographic crisis coffin?

On Thursday, Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) released what may be another nail in the coffin of the claim that Israel is facing a demographic crisis. The CBS reports that the birth rate for 'Israeli Muslims' has fallen drastically since 2000.

According to a press statement by the CBS released Thursday, at the end of 2008 the Muslim population in Israel stood at 1.240 million, an increase of 34,000 compared with the previous year.

The growth rate, 2.8 percent, is a whole percentage point lower than the 3.8% measured in 2000. Nevertheless, the Muslim population's growth rate is still higher than that of any other religious group in Israel (Druse at 1.8%, Christian Arabs at 1.3%, Jews and others at 1.6%).

...

The Muslim population in Israel is relatively young, with 510,000 - 41.2% of the overall Muslim population - aged up to 14. Only 3% (around 37,000) were found to be older than 65.

The relatively young age stems from Muslim women's high fertility rate; however, the overall fertility rate (the number of children a woman is expected to give birth to during her lifetime) has dropped from 4.7 per woman in 2000 to 3.8 per woman in 2008.

Israeli Muslim women are more fertile than other groups (Jews average 2.9 children per woman, Druse 2.5, Christians 2.1) and also more fertile than women in neighboring countries (Jordan and Syria 3.1, Egypt 2.9, Morocco and Algiers 2.4, Lebanon 2.2 and Tunisia 1.9).

But the Jewish birth rate has been rising. Heh.

Israel Matzav: Another nail in the demographic crisis coffin?