Contents: | Weekly Quotes | Short Takes | On Topic Links
There Is a Precedent for Renegotiating Flawed Agreements: Amb. Dore Gold, JCPA, October 16, 2017
Trump's Critics on Iran Are Wrong: Gregg Roman, The Hill, Oct. 15, 2017
Fatah-Hamas Reconciliation: A Fusion of Evils: Isi Leibler, Israel Hayom, Oct. 17, 2017
In this Round of Reconciliation Talks, Hamas is the Great Victor: Caroline B. Glick, Jerusalem Post, Oct. 4, 2017
WEEKLY QUOTES
“By its own terms, the Iran Deal was supposed to contribute to “regional and international peace and security.” And yet, while the United States adheres to our commitment under the deal, the Iranian regime continues to fuel conflict, terror, and turmoil throughout the Middle East and beyond…So today, in recognition of the increasing menace posed by Iran, and after extensive consultations with our allies, I am announcing a new strategy to address the full range of Iran’s destructive actions. First, we will work with our allies to counter the regime’s destabilizing activity and support for terrorist proxies in the region. Second, we will place additional sanctions on the regime to block their financing of terror. Third, we will address the regime’s proliferation of missiles and weapons that threaten its neighbors, global trade, and freedom of navigation. And finally, we will deny the regime all paths to a nuclear weapon…I am announcing that we cannot and will not make this certification.”— U.S. President Donald Trump, in a highly anticipated address on America’s strategy for containing Tehran. Trump also announced new sanctions on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, while stopping short of declaring the group a terrorist organization. (White House, Oct. 13, 2017)
“If the Iran deal is left unchanged, one thing is absolutely certain — in a few years…the world’s foremost terrorist regime will have an arsenal of nuclear weapons.” — Prime Minister Netanyahu. Netanyahu welcomed Trump’s announcement that he would not recertify the nuclear accord with Iran, saying Trump had “boldly confronted Iran’s terrorist regime.” He said Trump’s actions create an opportunity to fix “this bad deal, to roll back Iran’s aggression and to confront its criminal support of terrorism.” Netanyahu recorded his response before the start of Shabbat on Friday — that is, before Trump had spoken — having been briefed about the speech’s content in a phone call from Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. (Times of Israel, Oct. 13, 2017)
“The nuclear deal was the culmination of 13 years of diplomacy and was a major step towards ensuring that Iran’s nuclear program is not diverted for military purposes.” — Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and President Emmanuel Macron of France, in a rare joint statement. Though they avoided direct criticism of Trump, the European leaders added that they “stand committed” to the 2015 nuclear deal and that preserving it was “in our shared national security interest.” (New York Times, Oct. 13, 2017)
"I strongly hope that the other six signatories will prove to the world what responsible behavior is, and adhere to this agreement — no matter what false accusations and contrived provocations are put forward by President Trump." — Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. Kerry, who played an integral role in the deal's 2015 negotiations, called on other nations to stick to the deal despite Trump's announcement. (The Hill, Oct. 14, 2017)
“The Iranian people will not bend down before a dictator. It has never surrendered and will never.” — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. He added, “No paragraph or article or note will be added” to the deal in order to please Trump. Rouhani's comments come after Trump announced that the 2015 deal, which was brokered in part by the Obama administration, was not in the national security interests of the U.S. and aided what he called Iran's support for terror organizations. (The Hill, Oct. 14, 2017)
“As we’ve announced in the past, if America’s new law for sanctions is passed, this country will have to move their regional bases outside the 2,000 kilometer (1,243-mile) range of Iran’s missiles.” — Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) commander Mohammad Ali Jafari. While Trump said in his speech on Iran policy that the U.S. is imposing new sanctions on its IRGC, it wasn’t clear how far-reaching the latest move will prove to be. The Treasury Department said that it was labeling the Revolutionary Guards, a hard-line military and political force in Iran, a supporter of terrorism for backing the Quds Force, which conducts operations outside Iran’s borders. The Quds Force already bears Treasury’s terrorist designation. But the Trump administration stopped short of adding the Revolutionary Guards to the State Department’s more far-reaching roster of foreign terrorist organizations. (Bloomberg, Oct. 13, 2017)
“We are in Damascus in order to coordinate the collaboration in dealing with our mutual enemies: the Zionists and the terrorists.” — Mohammad Bagheri, IRGC commander. Bagheri traveled to Syria in order to discuss and coordinate the possibility for the two countries to strengthen their military cooperation against the “Zionist enemy.” Bagheri also announced that he rejects “the threat that the Zionist enemy places before Syria any time it wishes.” Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei also threatened Israel and accused the US for being “an international agent of the Zionist regime.” Later, he claimed that his country is “angry” at US plans regarding Lebanon, Syria and Iraq and that the world must take steps in response to the “hostile American policy.” (Jerusalem Online, Oct. 18, 2017)
“We will not interfere in Syria’s internal affairs, but on the other hand we will not allow Iran and Hezbollah to turn Syria into a forward outpost against Israel, and we will not allow the transfer of sophisticated weapons from Iran through Syria to Lebanon.” — Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman. The Syrian Army has warned of “dangerous consequences” following an air strike by Israel on a regime SA-5 antiaircraft battery east of Damascus, after it fired a surface-to-air missile at Israeli jets. The SA-5 missile battery, which was stationed some 50 kilometers east of the Syrian capital, fired at the Israeli jets which were on a routine aerial reconnaissance flight in Lebanese airspace, according to the IDF. During an IAF operation in March to strike a Hezbollah arms convoy in Syria, regime air defense fired three surface-to-air missiles toward IAF jets. It was the most serious incident between the two countries since the war in Syria began six years ago. (Jerusalem Post, Oct. 16, 2017)
“The situation on the Korean peninsula where the attention of the whole world is focused has reached the touch-and-go point and a nuclear war may break out any moment.” — North Korea’s Deputy U.N. Amb. Kim In Ryong. An official with North Korea’s government, which has been developing intercontinental ballistic missiles and detonated a nuclear device, said the regime had no interest in diplomacy until it develops a rocket that can strike the “East coast of the US mainland.” (New York Post, Oct. 17, 2017)
“This has been a big step in the fight against antisemitism and we are very happy that after our lobbying effort almost all factions have supported the motion.” — Austrian Union of Jewish Students, in a statement. The Austrian National Union of Students condemned the BDS movement against Israel as antisemitic, and urged for it to not be given funds or event space. The resolution received near unanimous support, with no votes against it and one abstention. The union also adopted a version of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism, which includes “denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination.” (Algemeiner, Oct. 16, 2017)
“What can you do, and what can we do, to bring peace to the Middle East?…My response will probably be [a] deep disappointment for you. I am a friend of Israel, [a] deep friend of Israel, and that is why I think that the peace in the Middle East…is to be based primarily in [sic] the safety of Israel.” — Czech President Milos Zeman. “I think, unfortunately, that in some countries or movements- let us mention Hezbollah, Hamas and others-…survives the tendency to diminish Israel, to destroy Israel,” he continued. Regarding the way to achieve peace, Zeman said that the terrorist organizations in the Middle East need to be disarmed, explicitly mentioning Hamas and Hezbollah by name. Recently, The Czech parliament recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. In addition, Prague decided to condemn UNESCO following its anti-Israel resolutions. (Jerusalem Online, Oct. 17, 2017)
“The way the Israel is portrayed by the foreign press is not only broken, there are times when a talented but inexperienced reporter who has been assigned to cover Israel will get in front of a TV camera and literally bluff his/her way through a story with a straight face.” — Matti Friedman, a former reporter for the Associated Press (AP). Friedman added, “Anyone who lives here knows that there’s no on-going Palestinian-Israel conflict. That’s fiction. There is a much broader regional conflict in the region which includes Iran, Hizbollah, Hamas, Syria, Lebanon of which Israel’s role in all this is one small part of a bigger dynamic.” Friedman pointed out that the skewed coverage of the so-called on-going “violence in Israel” is borne out by eye-opening statistics. “Last year, the total number of violent deaths across Israel including terror attacks, domestic disputes etc. was only 18. In Jacksonville, Florida a small American city perceived to be quiet and safe, 119 people were killed in a violent manner. Journalists covering Israel have decided to create a reality that doesn’t always match what is really happening around them.” (Jewish Press, Oct. 17, 2017)
SHORT TAKES
SOMALIA TRUCK BOMBING DEATH TOLL SURPASSES 300 (Mogadishu) — More than 300 people were killed in a truck bombing in Somalia's capital and scores remained missing, as the fragile nation reeled from one of the world's worst attacks in years. Nearly 400 people were injured after Saturday's bombing targeted a crowded street in Mogadishu. Somalia's government blamed the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab, though the group has not claimed responsibility for the attack. Still, analysts said there was little doubt the Islamic extremists carried out the bombing. Al-Shabaab has waged war in Somalia for more than a decade, often targeting high-profile areas of the capital. (CBC, Oct. 15, 2017)
TALIBAN LAUNCH WAVE OF ATTACKS IN AFGHANISTAN, KILL 74 (Kabul) — The Taliban unleashed a wave of attacks across Afghanistan on Tuesday, targeting police compounds and government facilities with suicide bombers in the country's south, east and west, and killing at least 74 people, officials said. Among those killed in one of the attacks was a provincial police chief. Scores were also wounded, both policemen and civilians. Afghanistan's deputy interior minister, Murad Ali Murad, called the onslaught the "biggest terrorist attack this year."
IRAQI FORCES SEIZE CONTROL OF KIRKUK FROM KURDISH FIGHTERS (Baghdad) —Iraqi forces seized control of the disputed city of Kirkuk on Monday as Kurdish forces appeared to melt away, escalating a crisis triggered by last month’s independence referendum in the autonomous Kurdistan region. Iraqi counter-terrorism forces moved into the provincial government headquarters in the centre of the oil-rich city, which has been run by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) since 2014. The crisis pits US allies against each other as Washington has spent millions of dollars arming and training the Iraqi and Kurdish forces to help in the battle against I.S. (Financial Times, Oct. 16, 2017)
U.S.-BACKED FORCE CLAIMS CAPTURE OF RAQQA (Damascus) — U.S.-backed forces in Syria claimed full control of the Islamic State’s onetime capital of Raqqa on Tuesday. A spokesman for the Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, said that military operations have halted and that members of the joint Kurdish-Arab force are clearing the city of explosive devices and hunting for sleeping cells. It was still unclear whether some I.S. pockets remained, but the SDF portrayed the battle for Raqqa as effectively over. The fall of the Iraqi city of Mosul in July and the loss of large areas of territory in eastern Syria to Syrian government forces leave the extremists in control of just a few pockets of territory spanning the Iraqi-Syrian border. (Washington Post, Oct. 17, 2017)
ISRAEL WILL NOT NEGOTIATE WITH PALESTINIAN GOVERNMENT SUPPORTED BY HAMAS (Paris) — Israel's security cabinet decided that Israel will not engage in political negotiations with a Palestinian unity government, if such a government is indeed established following the reconciliation agreement between Hamas and Fatah. A senior Israeli official said the cabinet has not yet decided on punitive measures against the PA but authorized Prime Minister Netanyahu to impose future sanctions on the organization, such as deducting debts from taxes Israel collects for the Palestinians. The cabinet did not decide to sever ties with the PA, and cooperation will continue. (Ha’aretz, Oct. 17, 2017)
ISRAEL, US TO QUIT UNESCO (Paris) — Hours after the US’s dramatic decision to withdraw from UNESCO, citing anti-Israel bias, Israel stated that it also planned to leave the education, scientific and cultural body. UNESCO in 2016 passed two resolutions ignoring Jewish ties to the Temple Mount and one in 2017 that disavowed Israel’s sovereignty in Jerusalem. Over the summer, UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee declared the Cave of the Patriarchs and Hebron’s Old City as endangered Palestinian sites. In 2011, UNESCO became the first UN body to recognize Palestine as a member state. To protest the vote, both Israel and the US stopped their funding to the organization. (Jerusalem Post, Oct. 12, 2017)
JEWISH CANDIDATE WINS UNESCO LEADERSHIP (Paris) — France’s former culture minister Audrey Azoulay was elected to head UNESCO on Friday. By a margin of 30-28 votes, Azoulay, the first Jewish UNESCO head, narrowly defeated Qatari candidate Hamad bin Abdulaziz Al-Kawari, who had been the frontrunner throughout the week’s voting. The election to head the UN’s culture and education agency took place a day after the US quit the body. Azoulay is the daughter of André Azoulay, adviser to King Mohammed VI of Morocco. She grew up in Morocco and France. (Times of Israel, Oct. 13, 2017)
IDF RAIDS EIGHT WEST BANK MEDIA OUTLETS SUSPECTED OF INCITEMENT (Jerusalem) — Security forces raided eight Palestinian media and production organizations in the West Bank, suspected of distributing and broadcasting content that incites and encourages terror. Ramasat and TransMedia were closed in the operation. Equipment and documents were confiscated from other media companies that provide services to, among others, the Al-Aqsa and Al-Quds channels, both of which are run by Hamas and were previously declared illegal by the IDF Central Command. This is not the first time that the IDF has raided TransMedia. In March 2016 they were investigated during an operation at the time against the Palestine Today television station that sat in the same building. (Times of Israel, Oct. 18, 2017)
CONSERVATIVE SEBASTIAN KURZ ON TRACK TO BE NEXT AUSTRIAN LEADER (Vienna) — Austria's 31-year-old foreign minister declared victory for his party Sunday in a national election that set him up to become Europe's youngest leader and puts the country on course for a rightward turn. Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz claimed the win as final results showed his People's Party had a comfortable lead with almost all the ballots counted. Both Kurz's party and the right-wing Freedom Party – Kurz's most likely government coalition partner – campaigned on the need for tougher immigration controls, quickly deporting asylum-seekers whose requests are denied and cracking down on radical Islam. (Globe & Mail, Oct. 15, 2017)
BELGIUM AND NORWAY ACT AGAINST PALESTINIAN INCITEMENT (Oslo) — Belgium, which has been giving the Palestinians more than $20 million annually, announced this week that it “will put on hold any projects related to the construction or equipment of Palestinian schools.” This followed a report that a Belgian-funded Palestinian school has changed its name to the Dalal Mughrabi Elementary School. Norway does not want to be associated with Mughrabi, either. Earlier this year, the PA decided to name a women’s center in the town of Burqa after Mughrabi. The Norwegian government, which had contributed $10,000 to the center, demanded — and received — a full refund. Mughrabi was a Palestinian terrorist who was a member of the Fatah faction of the PLO and participated in the 1978 Coastal Road massacre in Israel. The attack resulted in the death of 38 Israeli civilians. (Algemeiner, Oct. 16, 2017)
U.K. INTELLIGENCE CHIEF SAYS TERROR THREAT IS WORST OF CAREER (London) — Britain's domestic intelligence chief warned during a rare public speech that the terrorist threat the country faces has accelerated and is worse now than at any time in his 34-year career. MI5 Director General Andrew Parker said his agency is constantly expanding and upgrading its capability, but cannot realistically prevent all attacks targeting civilians. He noted a "dramatic upshift" in the threat this year, with attacks in London and Manchester that killed 36 people combined. He said continental Europe has faced a similar surge, particularly in France, Belgium, Germany and Spain. "The scale at which we are operating is greater than ever before," he said. The risk is further heightened by the possible return to Britain of citizens who joined the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq, Parker said. (CTV, Oct. 17, 2017)
QUEBEC PASSES LAW OBLIGING CITIZENS TO UNCOVER THEIR FACES (Montreal) — Quebec has adopted a law that would effectively force Muslim women who wear a niqab or burka to uncover their faces to use public services. The legislation bans public workers — including doctors, teachers and daycare employees — as well as those receiving a service from the government, from covering their faces. It was extended to municipal services, including public transit, in an amendment made in August. (CBC, Oct. 18, 2017)
CANADIAN RABBI TAKES BLAME FOR HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL’S OMISSION OF JEWS (Ottawa) — A Canadian rabbi who participated in the planning of a Holocaust memorial monument whose plaque omitted any reference to Jews apologized for what he said was inattentiveness. Rabbi Daniel Friedman of Edmonton made the apology this week about a gaffe that ended with the removal of the plaque of the Canada National Holocaust Monument in Ottawa ahead of its replacement with a plaque that does mention Jews. (Times of Israel, Oct. 13, 2017)
ANNE FRANK COSTUME PULLED AFTER BACKLASH (New York) — An Anne Frank children’s Halloween costume has been yanked off an online retail site after getting blasted on social media. The costume featured a beret, navy shirtwaist-style dress with buttons, a felt bag and “felt destination tag sewn to the dress collar.” “Now, your child can play the role of a World War II hero with this girls World War II costume,” the description said. “It comes with a blue button up dress, reminiscent of the kind of clothing that might be worn by a young girl during WWII.” The site also described Frank — the German-born girl who penned a diary of her harrowing experience during the Holocaust — as an “inspiration to us all,” adding that “we can always learn from the struggles of history.” a spokesman said that the costume had been removed and apologized for the blunder. (New York Post, Oct. 17, 2017)
'JERUSALEM’S LOST THEATER’ & ANCIENT STONE COURSES DISCOVERED (Jerusalem) — A rare 200-seat theater from the Roman period and eight large ancient stone courses have been unearthed under the Western Wall’s Wilson’s Arch. Wilson’s Arch, built of enormous stones, is the last of a series of such arches that once constituted a bridge leading to the Temple Mount from the west. The Western Wall Heritage Foundation director deemed the discovery one of the most important unearthed during his 30-year tenure. “There is no doubt as to the immeasurably rich scientific value of the discoveries in this area,” he said. “The findings symbolize the guests from past empires that were here over the years, as opposed to the Jewish people, who held fast to this place some 3,000 years ago and have been here ever since and always.” (Jerusalem Post, Oct. 16, 2017)
There Is a Precedent for Renegotiating Flawed Agreements: Amb. Dore Gold, JCPA, October 16, 2017—On October 13th, President Donald Trump gave a very important speech on the future of the Iran deal that was cut back in 2015. In that address he spoke about the need to deal with the flaws in the Iran agreement – remove them, change them.
Trump's Critics on Iran Are Wrong: Gregg Roman, The Hill, Oct. 15, 2017 —On Friday, President Trump announced he will not certify Iran's compliance with the nuclear deal signed by his predecessor. I'm sure most of us spent the weekend inundated with thought pieces declaring this a major misstep or some kind of politically motivated gambit that plays fast and loose with global security. But they're all wrong. With this bold action, we're finally on the path toward a safer Middle East.
Fatah-Hamas Reconciliation: A Fusion of Evils: Isi Leibler, Israel Hayom, Oct. 17, 2017—World leaders – including some of our American friends – are apparently still unwilling to face reality and continue to delude themselves that Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority can be induced to making a peace settlement if Israel continues to appease them and excuse their crimes.
In this Round of Reconciliation Talks, Hamas is the Great Victor: Caroline B. Glick, Jerusalem Post, Oct. 4, 2017—On Tuesday, a delegation of 400 Fatah officials from Ramallah, led by Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah, arrived in Gaza to officially surrender to Hamas. No, the ceremony isn’t being portrayed as a Fatah surrender to Hamas. But it is. It’s also an Egyptian surrender to Hamas.
