Netanyahu Meets Dunford, Jewish War Heroes on V-E Day: Hana Levi Julian, Jewish Press, May 9, 2017
IDF Chief of Staff Awards Medal to US Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff: Hana Levi Julian, Jewish Press, May 9, 2017
Podcast: Yossi Klein Halevi on Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s “The Iron Wall”: ISRAPUNDIT, May 1, 2017
Sarsour's Anti-Semitism Campaign Minimizes Anti-Semitism: Ariel Behar, IPT News, May 9, 2017
WEEKLY QUOTES
“My first foreign trip as president of the United States will be to Saudi Arabia, then Israel, and then to a place that my cardinals love very much, Rome.” — U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump’s first foreign trip will feature visits to Israel, Saudi Arabia and the Vatican, he said Thursday, noting that he will meet with leaders from across the Muslim world in Saudi Arabia. The Holy See confirmed that the Pope would host him in Rome. A White House statement said the visit to Israel was aimed at “further strengthen(ing) the United States-Israel partnership.” Indicating that Trump would meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin, the statement said “The leaders will discuss a range of regional issues, including the need to counter the threats posed by Iran and its proxies, and by ISIS and other terrorist groups. They will also discuss ways to advance a genuine and lasting peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.” (Times of Israel, May 4, 2017)
“Hunger strikes usually conjure up images of a united front of beleaguered campaigners for a just cause led by a heroic, larger than life leader. Rarely however, does the mastermind behind a 1,000-strong hunger strikers get caught stuffing his face.”— Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. Rabbi Cooper is referring to convicted Palestinian terrorist Marwan Barghouti, who was tried and convicted on numerous charges, including murder, and is currently serving five life sentences in Israeli prison. Barghouti recently declared a “hunger strike” for all Palestinian prisoners and anti-Israel activists in protest of his detention, until prison surveillance video emerged showing him snacking on cookies in his cell. “It is this Cookie Monster of Palestinian Murder Incorporated who, from behind bars, plots the destruction of democratic Israel while the Palestinian man and woman in the street, beggared by pervasive corruption of the Palestinian Authority, struggle to survive on the crumbs.” Rabbi Cooper was a keynote speaker of CIJR’s 29th Annual Gala in Montreal. (Huffington Post, May 9, 2017)
“Pizza Hut International apologizes for any offense caused by a recent post on Pizza Hut Israel’s Facebook page. It was completely inappropriate and does not reflect the values of our brand. The local franchisee in the country removed it immediately and the relationship with the agency that posted it was terminated, and we truly regret any hurt this may have caused.” The message was issued by the corporate office of Pizza Hut International, on the Pizza Hut Lebanon Facebook page. After Marwan Barghouti was caught snacking on cookies during the hunger strike that he himself had ordered, the Israeli franchise of Pizza Hut decided to have a little more fun with this comic concept and issued a photoshopped version of the security camera image, showing Barghouti on the toilet scarfing down Pizza Hut slices, with an open delivery box on his desk showing only one slice has remained. “Come on, Barghouti, if you’re already breaking the strike, won’t you rather have a pizza?” said the taunting slogan across the top of the image. (The Jewish Press, May 10, 2017)
“Israel is not the United Nations' punching bag anymore," — Israeli Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked. "We can see the change with Nikki Haley as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations … Israelis finally feel that we have someone leading the fight for justice and morality in a place without it. We feel like our voice will finally be heard in the halls of the General Assembly." Shaked directed much of her ire at U.N. Resolution 2334, a measure declaring Israeli settlement activity illegal. The Israeli minister disparaged the resolution as "nothing more than antisemitism and delegitimization of Israel." Shaked also praised President Donald Trump's decision not to immediately speak in favor of a two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians. "Today, we have a partner in the Trump administration in fighting it, and all unnecessary and illegal U.N. resolutions," Shaked added during her speech. The justice minister also expressed hope that Trump will move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights on the border with Syria. (The Washington Free Beacon, May 8, 2017)
“Although Arafat signed the Oslo Accords on behalf of the PLO, and the PLO was obligated to remove the clauses in the Palestinian National Covenant which call for the destruction of Israel, it never did. Although an ad hoc form of the PLO's Palestinian National Council (PNC) met in April 1996 and approved amending the Covenant in principle, it did not change the Covenant; it merely gave a PNC committee authority to do so or to draw up a completely new charter. Nor did they specify which particular articles would be changed or how that would be done. By leaving the Covenant intact, the PLO sends a clear message that it has not renounced violence nor accepted Israel's right to exist.” — Moshe Dann, a historian, writer and journalist. “Moreover, since the PA did not sign the Oslo Accords, it is not bound by them. It is accountable, if at all, only to the PLO, which Mahmoud Abbas heads as well.” (Ynet News, May 4, 2017)
“It’s absurd to request that we stop paying the families of prisoners,” — PA President Mahmoud Abbas’s foreign affairs adviser Nabil Shaath on Thursday told Israel Radio. “That would be like asking Israel to stop paying its soldiers.” Shaath rejected the “insane” demand that it end its policy of providing social welfare payments to the families of Palestinian terrorists jailed for carrying out attacks against Israelis. Shaath told Israel Radio the demand was intentionally designed to sink any potential for renewed US-led Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. During the radio interview, Shaath also insisted Abbas’s first meeting with Trump last Wednesday was a positive one and a possible starting point for future talks with Israel. (The Times of Israel, May 4, 2017)
"If we do not do this [pay salaries to Palestinian prisoners], what will be their fate? They are liable to turn to ISIS or any other extremist party… Therefore, we reject the statements of those who request that we act differently, and say to the donor states that your donations help the PA bring peace to the Middle East, and if you shake off this role you must bear the consequences." — Senior Fatah leader Rawhi Fattouh. PA leaders have published many statements this month defending their practice of financially rewarding terror. In a strange twist of logic, Fatah is now arguing that donor countries should welcome the PA's paying salaries to terrorists with their money, since this practice promotes peace by keeping the Palestinian terrorists from joining ISIS or any other extremist party. In a recent statement, senior Fatah leader Rawhi Fattouh complained that the PA has lost significant income from donor countries because of international anger over the PA payments to terrorists. (Palestinian Media Watch, May 3, 2017)
“Mr. President, I affirm you that we are raising our youth, our children, our grandchildren, on a culture of peace.” — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas during his joint press briefing with U.S. President Donald Trump this past week. Abbas said during the briefing with media that his government “educates for peace,” and affirmed the Palestinian Authority is “raising our youth, our children, our grandchildren on a culture of peace.” The PA has named sports events, children’s summer camps, schools and public buildings, streets and squares after some of the most bloodthirsty terrorists in the world. The PA government also funds and sponsors television programming encouraging small children to hate Israel and Jews, and teaches them it is their sacred duty to murder. They are also taught by these programs that the entire Land of Israel is actually “Palestine”, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, and that someday it will all belong to the Arab nation “once more” – when they have eradicated the “Zionist enemy.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recommended in a tweet to the PA leader on Friday that he try “Googling [himself] sometime.” (The Jewish Press, May 6, 2017)
“There can be no lasting peace unless the Palestinian leaders speak in a unified voice against incitement to violence and hate, there’s such hatred, but hopefully there won’t be such hatred for very long,” — U.S President Donald Trump said during his joint press briefing with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. At the meeting, Trump said he was optimistic that he could pull off the deal for Israeli-Palestinian peace that has frustrated at least four of his predecessors, with the most recent collapse of talks in 2014 followed by a war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. “We will get it done, we will be working so hard to get it done,” the US leader said. After meeting with Abbas, Trump wrote on Twitter: “An honor to host President Mahmoud Abbas at the WH today. Hopefully something terrific could come out of it between the Palestinians & Israel.” President Donald Trump deleted that tweet 13 hours after it was originally posted, according to ProPublica, which tracks the president’s deleted tweets. (The Jerusalem Post, May 4, 2017)
"I have spent my life fighting against totalitarian ideologies," —Dr. Sebastian Gorka, the White House Special Adviser said in response to the accusation that he might have supported fascist groups. Dr. Gorka went on to say in front of the annual conference held last Sunday by The Jerusalem Post, that he was adamant an anti-communist splinter group which awarded a medal to his father was not anti-Semitic or extremist. "There are members of this order, like Vilmos Nagy, who was recognized in 1969 as a Righteous among the nations by Yad Vashem." In response to accusations that he is anti-Semitic, Gorka said: "Nobody, not one person, not at the Forward, not at Politico, not at any other place, has found one sentence that I have ever said over the last 46 years that is anti-Semitic or anti-Israel. You will find the opposite." The White House Special Adviser quoted Vice President Mike Pence, who said the previous week: "We will always, unapologetically, stand by Israel," and called the relationship between the US and Israel "our closest relationship." Gorka also called reports that he is being forced to leave the White House "very fake news." (Israel National News, May 5, 2017)
“[Henri Philippe] Petain took the initiative very early on in World War II to collaborate with Nazi Germany, willingly enacting mass arrests and deportations of French Jews to deliver them to their deaths,” —Betty Ehrenberg, executive director of WJC North America. “Because of Petain’s active role [as head of the Vichy government] in carrying out the aims of the Holocaust, the plaque in Lower Manhattan bearing his name should be removed from the roster of true heroes.” The long and narrow plaque, just north of Morris Street, is part of a collection of similar ones placed along a stretch of some 13 blocks on Broadway known as the “Canyon of Heroes.” The granite strips carry the names of all figures who have been honored in New York City with ticker-tape parades, a tradition dating back to 1886, in which a person’s achievements are celebrated with large amounts of shredded paper used much like confetti. (The Jerusalem Post, May 5, 2017)
“This decision, in the heart of Western Europe and the center of the European Union, sends a terrible message to Jewish communities throughout our continent that Jews are unwanted,” — EJC President Dr. Moshe Kantor. The European Jewish Congress has strongly condemned a decision made in the Walloon region in southern Belgium to effectively ban Shechita, the Jewish form of humane slaughter for meat. “It attacks the very core of our culture and religious practice and our status as equal citizens with equal rights in a democratic society. It gives succor to anti-Semites and to those intolerant of other communities and faiths. We call on legislators to step back from the brink of the greatest assault on Jewish religious rights in Belgium since the Nazi occupation of the country in WWII,” Kantor urged. “The European Jewish Congress and its affiliates stand in total solidarity with the Jewish community of Belgium in its fight to maintain its most basic religious freedoms. We will not rest until this ban is overturned and Jews in Europe are able to practice their most basic religious rights.” (Jewish Press, May 6, 2017)
“The ‘accuracy revolution’ is a process we see in many countries’ rockets and missile forces,”— Tal Inbar, head of the Space & UAV center at the Fisher Institute for Air and Space Strategic Studies in Israel. “North Korea’s close ally, Iran, which bought the technical know-how on ballistic missiles from North Korea [has] introduced a new generation of ballistic missiles with a forward section containing a set of movable fins and guidance equipment.” Inbar noted that, reciprocally, the tests recently conducted by North Korea involved precision missiles developed with Iranian military technology. [Tal Inbar was the Keynote Speaker at CIJR’s 2016 "Israel in Space" Gala] (Algemeiner, May 5, 2017)
“The French people have chosen a new President of the Republic and they voted for continuity.” — Marine Le Pen, National Front leader, who lost the recent French Presidential Elections and conceded to her opponent, Emmanuel Macron. “I called Mr. Macron to congratulate him on being elected, and I believe in the main interests of the country and I wish great success to him on the challenges that face France and I want to thank the 11 million French people that gave me their vote.” Le Pen went on to say that her party would undergo a process to “renew itself” for what she described as the political and social challenges that lie ahead for France. Some of Le Pen’s reforms will likely include preparations for the upcoming French parliamentary elections, as well as distancing herself further from her father, Jean Marie Le Pen, the anti-Semitic founder of the National Front. (BBC News, May 7, 2017)
SHORT TAKES
NEW YORK TIMES ERRONEOUSLY CLAIMS ‘JEWISH TIME IS CIRCULAR’ (New York) — It’s wonderful that the Times is reviewing the book “Stranger in a Strange Land: Searching for Gershom Scholem and Jerusalem,” by George Prochnik. And it’s wonderful that they hired a non-hostile reviewer to write a review that ends on a particularly insightful note. But the claim by this unnamed rabbi that “Jewish time is circular” seems questionable… The review’s beginning would have been better if some editor at the Times had been knowledgeable and alert enough to catch the claim and fix it. For a corrective explanation, one can consult Rabbi Jonathan Sacks’ book “Future Tense,” which the Times did not review. Jewish time, in other words, is not “circular,” as the Times book review’s anonymous person claims. It’s linear and progressive, albeit bumpy and sometimes familiar-seeming. Leave it to the Times to somehow manage, even in a friendly review of a Jewish book by a Jewish reviewer, to convey to readers an erroneous understanding of [Judaism]. (Algemeiner, May 7, 2017)
UK NIXES PRINCE CHARLES' RUMORED ISRAEL VISIT (London) — The United Kingdom has reportedly cancelled a planned visit to Israel by Britain's Prince Charles due to alleged concerns about upsetting Arab nations, according to The Jewish Chronicle Monday. Although never officially announced, reports that the monarch was preparing to make his first-ever state visit to the Holy Land came following an invitation by President Reuven Rivlin after a meeting in March with UK Foreign Minister Boris Johnson. The purported visit would have coincided with the anniversary of the Balfour Declaration signed in 1917, according to The Jewish Chronicle. Prince Charles reportedly would have also attended a ceremony commemorating Commonwealth soldiers who died during the Palestine Campaign in 1917. Former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, Colonel Richard Kemp, railed against the decision, accusing the UK Foreign Office of orchestrating the move and "pandering" to Arab dictators. He added that the move was an "insult to British war dead," according to The Sun daily newspaper. (The Jerusalem Post, May 7, 2017)
NETANYAHU SLASHES $1 MILLION FROM UN CONTRIBUTION OVER UNESCO RESOLUTION (Jerusalem) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday morning told his weekly cabinet meeting that Israel has retaliated for the unjust and hostile UNESCO vote on denying any Jewish historical or religious connection to Jerusalem by cutting $1 million from its annual contribution to the UN. “Yesterday, UNESCO again passed a delusional resolution regarding Israel’s status in Jerusalem, the capital of the Jewish People for 3,000 years,” Netanyahu said, adding, “I very much appreciate the across-the-board unity of almost all political parties in rejecting this absurd decision. I would also like to say that this systematic harassment has a price” the PM announced. (Jewish Press, May 3, 2017)
CIVIL RIGHTS GROUP INSTRUCTED ARABS ON ENTRAPPING SECURITY FORCES (Jerusalem) — The Ben Gurion University Student Association in April issued an invitation in Arabic for BGU students to participate in a special workshop titled, “Influence is not a bad word.” The workshop, which was later advertised in Hebrew as well, was conducted on April 19 and was supported by funds from the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, several other leftwing NGOs and the European Union. The ad on the website of Shatil, an NGO funded by the New Israel explained how participating students would learn effective ways of covering demonstrations and protests: “Come and learn how to shoot video and what’s the main concerns in shooting stills. Receive all the pointers for unusual photography, such as of arrests – in order to take your struggle forward.” (Jewish Press, May 3, 2017)
THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON’S JEWISH PROBLEM (Madison) — In late March, representatives of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s student government proposed a resolution: “Social Responsibility and University Divestment from Corporate Human Rights Abuses.” The measure claimed to target human rights abuses committed by corporations in which UW may be invested. In reality, the measure clearly singled out the State of Israel. Not only were Jewish students hurt by the content of this hateful resolution, but they were also extremely disappointed by the undemocratic and unethical manner in which it was proposed. The Associated Students of Madison (ASM) representatives who proposed the measure neglected to engage with the Jewish and pro-Israel communities. (Algemeiner, May 3, 2017)
‘MOCK CHECKPOINT’ STUNT ON ISRAEL’S MEMORIAL DAY CONDEMNED BY COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY ZIONIST STUDENT GROUPS (New York) — Columbia University’s Zionist student groups have condemned a “mock checkpoint” stunt organized by a campus anti-Israel group on May 1st, the Jewish state’s Memorial Day. Rudy Rochman — the outgoing president of the school’s chapter of Students Supporting Israel (SSI) — told The Algemeiner on Wednesday that Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) purposefully timed the display in which “IDF soldiers” — students dressed in fatigues and holding fake guns — harassed “Palestinians,” with a single goal in mind: “to demonize us [pro-Israel and Jewish students] on campus.” (Algemeiner, May 3, 2017)
GERMAN PRESIDENT STRESSES SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH ISRAEL, DESPITE DIFFERENCES (Jerusalem) — Before attending a luncheon hosted by President Reuven Rivlin on Sunday, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier emphasized the importance of maintaining the special relationship between Germany and Israel despite occasional disputes between the two countries. The luncheon at the President’s Residence came after Steinmeier placed wreaths at the graves of former president Shimon Peres and former prime minister Yitzhak Rabin on Mount Herzl and toured Yad Vashem. This was not his first visit to the Holocaust memorial and museum, as he had been there several times when he served as Foreign Minister, first from 2005 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2017. Steinmeier said it was essential for him to visit Yad Vashem, implying that Germans would always have to be reminded of the inhumanity of their forebears, so that they would not sink to the same levels.
Before that special relationship was established, Rivlin had been opposed to any relationship with Germany and had demonstrated against its first ambassador to Israel. But he welcomed Steinmeier with great warmth and enthusiasm, saying how happy he was to host and congratulate him on becoming President of the Federal Republic of Germany. Rivlin, who has known Steinmeier for years and met with him in several of his various capacities, said he was not surprised that the German president attained his present position. He called Steinmeier “a true friend of Israel,” and said the proof was in his choice of Israel as his first destination outside Europe since being elected president in March. (The Jerusalem Post, May 7, 2017)
“ISRAEL IS A JEWISH STATE” BILL PASSES GOVERNMENT LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE (Jerusalem) — The Ministerial Committee on Legislation on Sunday approved the National Law bill, aimed at clearing stating and protecting Israel’s status as the nation-state of the Jewish people. Minister Yariv Levin (Likud) who substituted for committee chair Ayelet Shaked (Habayit Hayehudi) said it is about time to end the foot-dragging on this issue, and offered his commitment to promoting the bill in the Knesset’s summer session. (Jewish Press, May 7, 2017)
349,000 TOURISTS VISITED ISRAEL IN APRIL – HIGHEST FIGURE SINCE 1948 (Jerusalem) — In April 2017, 349,000 tourist entries were recorded, constituting a 38% increase over April 2016. In the four months January-April 2017, 1.09 million tourist entries were recorded, a 28% increase over the same period last year. There was a 38% increase in tourist entries in April 2017, compared with April 2016, and a 21% increase over April 2015. 309,000 of the April, 2017 tourist entries were by air, an increase of 36% over April 2016, and a 21% over April 2015. 40,000 tourist entries were recorded via Israel’s land crossings, of which 34,000 came through Jordan and about 6,000 through Egypt. This represents an increase of 56% over April 2016 and 22% over April 2015. (Jewish Press, May 9, 2017)
Netanyahu Meets Dunford, Jewish War Heroes on V-E Day: Hana Levi Julian, Jewish Press, May 9, 2017— Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with USMC General Joseph Dunford, U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and World War II military heroes on Monday, the 70th anniversary of VE Day – the Allied victory over Nazi Germany in 1945. The lessons learned and the high price paid by those who fought, Netanyahu said, were engraved upon the minds of those who defend the State of Israel today.
IDF Chief of Staff Awards Medal to US Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff: Hana Levi Julian, Jewish Press, May 9, 2017—IDF Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gadi Eizenkot awarded USMC General Joseph Dunford, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, with a Medal of Appreciation on Tuesday. The award was presented to General Dunford by the IDF chief of staff in recognition of the American military chief’s leadership, accomplishments and friendship, Eizenkot said.
Podcast: Yossi Klein Halevi on Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s “The Iron Wall”: ISRAPUNDIT, May 1, 2017— Orator, statesman, writer, and political leader, Vladimir Ze’ev Jabotinsky is one of the principal figures in the Zionist founding. In this podcast, journalist and author Yossi Klein Halevi joins Tikvah’s Jonathan Silver to discuss a pair of Jabotinsky essays from the 1920s. “The Iron Wall,” and “Ethics of the Iron Wall” develop a security doctrine for the future Jewish State that is grounded in a realistic assessment of the human condition, and a sober analysis of national aspirations.
Sarsour's Anti-Semitism Campaign Minimizes Anti-Semitism: Ariel Behar, IPT News, May 9, 2017— Natan Sharansky, the former Soviet political prisoner and Jewish Agency chairman, put forth a "3D test" to distinguish between criticism of Israel and anti-Semitism. Criticism crosses into anti-Semitism when it delegitimizes or demonizes Israel, or subjects it to double standards. Thus, when Israel is cast as evil, when only Israel is held accountable in a conflict, and when Israel's fundamental right to exist as a Jewish homeland is questioned, criticism crosses into anti-Semitic territory. Through her actions and statements about Israel and Jews, celebrity Islamist activist Linda Sarsour fails the "3D test."
