Yesterday I wrote about certain things that PM Netanyahu said at the National Public Diplomacy Forum of the Foreign Ministry.  Today I want to look at some other things he said.

What I cited yesterday was what he himself emphasized, and what I felt was most important to share. But I would be remiss if I didn't also allude to this.

What he said was: "I want to solve the conflict with the Palestinians because I don't want a binational state."

http://news.yahoo.com/netanyahu-wants-deal-prevent-binational-state-181450882.html

What this implies is that, if the Palestinian Arabs in Judea and Samaria are not separated from our population via a state of their own, they will ultimately be absorbed into Israel, affecting the Jewish nature of the state.

It is an argument used by some who are promoting a Palestinian Arab state and it is thus disconcerting to hear it coming from our prime minister.

~~~~~~~~~~

What I wish to emphasize is that his position here is simplistic and not well founded.  Thinking on this issue remains frozen in that same either/or box and it's unfortunate that he did not offer more creative or dynamic thinking. 

There is, first of all, a body of opinion regarding the demographics of the region that indicates that even if Israel were a sovereign state across all of Judea and Samaria, its Jewish population would remain solidly in the majority. 

See Yoram Ettinger, on "Defying demographic projections":

http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=3913

To begin with, the PA has over-estimated its population by about a million (via double-counting of population and more). And then, projections for Arab growth are based on inflated expectations: the Arab birthrate is decreasing significantly, just as the Jewish birthrate is increasing.  Actually the two birthrates are beginning to converge. Add to this the fact that Israeli Jewish population is enhanced by aliyah, while Arabs are leaving the area.  Ettinger sees the possibility of an 80% Jewish majority by 2035.

~~~~~~~~~~

And there are, as well, other potential ways to deal with the issue, and it's time we began considering the alternatives seriously.  One proposal, of many: The Palestinian Arab population might be provided with autonomous enclaves, in which they would determine the parameters of their own civil society -- electing mayors, running schools, etc.  These enclaves would establish significant connections with Jordan -- which has a Palestinian Arab majority now and via which they would be fully enfranchised.

However it might be ultimately worked out -- and it's impossible for me to address all possibilities here -- the presence of Muslim Arabs in Judea and Samaria is not a valid reason to surrender this area, which represents Israel's heritage.

~~~~~~~~~~

Perhaps what struck me as most interesting about the prime minister's statement is that it deviates from his Bar Ilan speech of 2009.  Then he spoke about:

"...two free peoples living side by side in this small land, with good neighborly relations and mutual respect, each with its flag, anthem and government, with neither one threatening its neighbor's security and existence." (Only the violins are lacking here.)

This is the quintessential "two-state" vision, highly idealized and predicated on the notion that the Palestinian Arabs deserve their own flag, their own culture, freedom in their own state, etc. etc. It implies an obligation to the Arabs. 

Now Netanyahu talks about giving them a state in order to divest ourselves of them -- to do it for our sake only.  Is this because he knows how impossible is the vision he laid out a mere three years ago?  Is it because he's tired up to the top of his head with any notion that we owe these corrupt and terror-supporting people anything?

Whatever his rationale, what he has done is erase any suggestion of obligation to the Arabs.  If it can be shown that his argument has holes, there is nothing left for him to stand on.

~~~~~~~~~~

There are, without question, people very nervous about this statement by Netanyahu.  They see in this a slide to the left -- it's a leftist argument, embraced by Livni, for example -- and are afraid that this is meant as a prelude to going to the table.

What mitigates the concern, for me, is my expectation that Abbas is so totally allergic to any notion of negotiating with Israel that, one way or the other, he will sabotage the possibility.  This is not exactly the same as saying I fully trust my prime minister to do what's right for our nation. But I'll take what I can get.  Heaven works in many ways.

I refer to an article by The Tower.  It says that, while the PA assured Kerry that they would postpone any initiatives regarding taking Israel to the International Criminal Court or applying to UN agencies for full membership -- actions which Kerry feared would interfere with his initiative -- they have now reconsidered.   They are telling US officials that this applies only until June 3, and in the interim they demand (demand?) that the US pressure Israel into accepting the 1949 armistice line as the basis for negotiations and submitting a map verifying that understanding.

http://www.thetower.org/palestinians-issue-new-negotiation-ultimatum-despite-u-s-objections/

I have checked this with a highly reliable source who tells me it is true, and that the PA stance may yet change many more times. 

We can only ponder what Kerry must be thinking about all of this.

~~~~~~~~~~

Consider this, as well: The seven Arab nations present as the delegation representing the Arab League in Washington has just agreed to the possibility of minor land swaps in a "peace deal."  But there 21 nations in the Arab League and my information is that this tentative offer still must go back to an Arab League Summit for a final decision.  And if that decision is negative, as is likely the case, then nothing will have changed, no matter the hoopla. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Now, Syria.  What I offer is my own brief, tentative assessment, based on much reading, communication with Arabic-speaking persons in the know, and my own understanding of the situation.

It's a modest attempt to provide a bit of clarity in a situation that is a political morass.  A horror in which there are no good guys and it's quite a trick to figure out who is the least bad.

~~~~~~~~~~

I believe there are certain factors that stand out as givens, all the confusion notwithstanding:

The most obvious is that Obama is all talk and no action.  US forces are not going into Syria, his statements about the "red line" that would be crossed if Assad's troops used gas notwithstanding.  What he's now done is to up the definition of the "red line" -- with requirements of tangible evidence beyond intelligence -- so that it will never be crossed. 

From this, we can readily extrapolate with regard to what Obama means when he says he will never let Iran acquire nuclear weapons.  Consider the difference of opinion between Israel and the US with regard to how late in the process it would be possible to stop Iran.  Netanyahu says it must be during the enrichment process.  Obama says it can go longer, until the stage at which a weapon is about to be assembled.  Imagine him saying, well, we don't really know for sure yet that they are going to assemble a weapon.

~~~~~~~~~~

While we want to imagine -- we feel compelled to believe -- that moral considerations should play a role in how the international community makes decisions regarding Syria, and while there have been many calls for moral action here, the reality is something very different.  Over 70,000 Syrians, including women and children, have been killed in the last two years, and the international community chooses not to intervene.

~~~~~~~~~~

Israeli interests here are not the same as US interests.  This is a critical point.  Israel by itself, sitting at the border of Syria, cannot assume the position of moral arbiter in Syria -- intervening to stop the loss of life.  Whatever our own exceedingly high moral standards in warfare, we are unable to do this and will not do this.  This is properly a US and international responsibility.

Thus, the Israeli red line is not Assad's use of such weapons against his people but the transfer of non-conventional weapons to terrorist groups that might use them against us.  I cannot certify this with absolute certainty, but I do believe the Israeli military will act in this regard if it is perceived as necessary, even if it means going in -- and it is certainly being watched very closely.

~~~~~~~~~~ 

Obama's indecision regarding whether to intervene and, if so, how -- without actually going in -- means that he has missed an opportunity to affect the outcome of the civil war positively.  The rebel forces -- known as the Free Syria Army, actually a coalition of groups -- that are reasonably secular and might have secured a somewhat saner and more democratic regime -- are overwhelmed by radicals now. 

When strengthening the Free Syria Army might have made a decisive difference, Obama dithered, providing some intelligence via the CIA and some training outside of Syria, but withholding arms. Now, in the face of evidence of use of gas by Assad, Obama is thinking about -- but had not yet decided on -- providing arms to the rebels.

There is huge concern about this, particularly among the Israelis.  If such armaments -- being referred to as "lethal supplies" --  are provided to rebels without extreme caution, they will likely end up in the hands of the al-Qaeda associated radicals -- Jabhat al-Nusra, or the Nusra Front --  who are fighting intensely in Syria and are often mingled with the Free Syria group. It may be too late.

~~~~~~~~~~

My own absolute conviction is that the fierceness, deviousness and motivation of the radical group is such that it is likely to assume control of the anti-Assad forces, or to push its way into control of a new regime, should Assad be toppled.

This, my friends, is what concerns Israel the most.  Assad is evil to the core with regard to how he has conducted himself towards his own people.  But he has kept his border with Israel quiet --  actually, I'm being told, taking care that shooting across the border is kept to an absolute minimum.  I'm also being told that it is not his intention to use his non-conventional weapons against Israel.

The al-Qaeda affiliated jihadists would be thrilled to do just that, and would have no compunctions about moving across our border at the Golan to challenge us.

~~~~~~~~~~

This is also what I'm being told:  Assad is not losing the war -- such predictions were premature.

Actually, if Obama supplies weaponry now to the Free Syria rebels, what this may accomplish is a prolonging of the war, with more fatalities, when, in the end they are likely to lose anyway. 

What is more, Assad is now still in control of his cache of non-conventional weapons.  There have been rumors to the contrary, but I'm being told that Hezbollah does not have them.  Russia has a major presence in Syria, which is likely a significant factor in assuring Assad's strength.  I'm being told that they are watching to be certain that WMD are not transferred to the wrong hands.

~~~~~~~~~~

© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

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Sometimes it's impossible not to weep.

Yesterday morning, Evyatar Borovsky, 31, was knifed to death by a terrorist at the Tapuach Junction in Samaria.  Borovsky, who lived in near-by Yitzhar, was the father of five, the eldest of whom is seven. 

Credit: CIFWatch

Borovsky was praised at his funeral -- which was attended by thousands -- as an exemplary son, husband, and father, an actor, an intellectual, and a medical clown who loved to make people laugh. 

"My righteous son was killed just for being Jewish," said his father, "and now five children have no father."

In this picture, you see one of his sons mourning him.

Credit: Flash 90

~~~~~~~~~~

Borovsky's murderer, Salam Al-Zaghal, a Palestinian Arab resident of a village near Tulkarem, approached Borovsky from behind; after stabbing him, he grabbed his gun and attempted to escape. He was apprehended following a gun fight. 

According to reports, he had been released from prison just six months ago, after serving time for throwing rocks as well as Molotov cocktails.

~~~~~~~~~~

Speaking of throwing rocks...

Remember little Adelle Biton?  She, her mother and two sisters were all injured in March when her mother lost control of her car after rocks were thrown at its windshield, breaking it.  Adelle was the most seriously injured and remains unconscious.

At first doctors believed her head injury was a result of the car accident, but it has since been determined that a heavy rock hit her head directly.

Credit: photoblog

Just days ago, Adelle reached her third birthday, and the family held a party for her at her bedside, singing to her.  May she have a good life, her mother prayed, "and may she know that there are miracles."

Sometimes it's impossible not to weep.

Pray for her recovery, please: Adelle bat Adva.

~~~~~~~~~~

Times of Israel reports that the Fatah Facebook page has information about Borovsky's murderer, above.  The terrorist is referred to as, "the hero, the released prisoner."

Pictures of the attack were posted on the Facebook page, each one boasting of its "success" and accompanied by wishes for the terrorist's speedy release. Under a portrait of al-Zaghal, with an illustration of an AK-47 rifle beneath his head, was the caption, "Peace be with you the day of your birth, on the day of your imprisonment, and on the day of your freedom."

http://www.timesofisrael.com/fatah-tapuah-junction-stabber-a-hero/

"Israeli security officials estimated that Zaghal’s attack may have been carried out in order to establish his credentials as a loyal Palestinian after his brother was tried by a Palestinian Authority court Monday for allegedly collaborating with Israel." 

Please note this well: "A loyal Palestinian."

~~~~~~~~~~

While from Israel National News we have this:

"Samaria Regional Council head Gershon Mesika criticized the Israeli government following the fatal terrorist attack Tuesday at a junction in Samaria (Shomron).

"'This despicable murder was the direct result of inadequate action on rock-throwing terrorism, of opening the checkpoints, and of treating daily terrorist attacks as "disturbances,"'Mesika accused. [Note: checkpoints are taken down as "good will" gestures -- and I choke even as I write this.]

"One month ago Mesika urged the IDF to begin responding to rock attacks with live fire, and warned that the lack of a harsh response was creating 'anarchy.'

"Sources in the Bayit Yehudi (Jewish Home) Knesset faction joined Mesika in calling Tuesday for a tougher response to terrorism.

“...'When terrorists with blood on their hands are released after just a short time in prison, they understand that murdering a Jew is OK...

"'We call on the government of Israel to start taking the threat of terrorism seriously. Don’t play with terrorists. The murder of Israeli citizens is not a game.'"

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/167606

~~~~~~~~~~

There was a very tempered response by the Israeli government to the offer by the Arab League to "possibly" consider "minor" land swaps as part of its "Peace Plan." 

It is significant that Netanyahu released no personal statement; the statement came, instead, from his office:

While it said that Israel welcomed the support given by the Arab League delegation and the US Secretary of State to the diplomatic process, it clarified that Israel was prepared to start negotiations immediately without pre-conditions, and expected the PA to similarly refrain from placing pre-conditions on the process.

Netanyahu would not be overtly obstructionist -- would not say that the Arab League plan is not acceptable in any terms because it fails to recognize Israeli rights.  That would simply not be his style, as he prefers to appear to be a player.  But the statement from his office is anything but a wholehearted endorsement of the League position.

In fact, it represents no change in Israel's position: Yes to going to the table, but without pre-conditions. 

And keep reading for more.

~~~~~~~~~~

Today, speaking at a meeting of the National Public Diplomacy Forum at the Foreign Ministry, Netanyahu -- who is acting foreign minister -- said (emphasis added):

"Our top public diplomacy mission is to explain that the root of this conflict is not territorial.  It is over our very existence in any borders whatsoever.

""Day in, day out, and hour by hour, they have been preaching [that Israel has no right to exist]. So certainly the lie has taken root, and there is no way to fight a lie except with the truth."

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/167627

He made no explicit reference to the Arab League proposal in his statement here, but the implication is clear. 

Abbas refuses to recognize Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people.

What is more, the Arabs persist in their demand that so-called "refugees" -- now numbering over 4 million because of the bogus way that UNRWA tracks them -- "return" to Israel.  Understand this: If (Heaven forbid) there should be a Palestinian state, these "refugees" would not be counted among its citizens.  This has been made clear repeatedly on the record. The demand that they should return to Israel -- which, it is claimed, is their "rightful" place -- would be sustained. There is absolutely no reason for this other than a desire to overwhelm the Jewish population of Israel and destroy Israel from within.

In the face of these bitter realities, what the hell is an offer -- not even for Israel to retain land that is rightfully hers -- but for a square-meter-by-square-meter exchange of land?

~~~~~~~~~~

Netanyahu's statement on public diplomacy is thus very welcome.  Everyone who cares about Israel, not just Israeli diplomats, must take it to heart.  Day in and day out, hour by hour, the truth must be told.

The mainstream media in the US certainly doesn't talk about these matters.  But people must learn about the terrorists who murder innocents, and about Fatah (the predominant party of the PA!) that praises those terrorists. They should be told as well that "Palestinians poll highest among world's Muslims favoring suicide bombings." 

See: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=8987 ,

Peace? A peace process?

I speak for many Israelis, when I say that my heart is heavy with the injustices, and that I am not in a conciliatory mood.  We must pursue our rights and keep our people safe.  Period. Anyone who imagines we "owe" the Arabs anything is morally skewed.

~~~~~~~~~~

And there are good people working for the interests of Israel.  Housing and Construction Minister Uri Ariel (HaBayit Hayehudi) has told the prime minister that his party will not support the 2013 budget if funds are not included to cover construction in Judea and Samaria, particularly construction that was agreed upon after the PA's unilateral move at the UN General Assembly last year. 

This, he said, would be seen by his party as going back on promises "and we will oppose the approval of the budget until a solution to the promised funding is found."

Bravo for this! 

It's easy for Netanyahu to make a dramatic statement of intentions in the midst of a political challenge, and then to let it slide by when time for actualization comes.  Ariel is attempting to prevent this from happening.

Said Ariel, yesterday:

"I turned to the prime minister today and warned him that if the 2013 budget doesn’t include full funding for building projects in Judea and Samaria...Bayit Yehudi will consider its coalition agreement as having been violated, and it won’t support the budget unless a solution is found for the promised funds."

Most controversial is the issue of building in E1, which runs between Ma'aleh Adumim and Jerusalem, and which the PA claims (erroneously) is necessary for a contiguous Palestinian state.

Coalition chairman Yariv Levin (Likud) said that "Likud Beitenu is obligated to the settlement enterprise. We will insist that the new budget strengthens the settlements and ensures their development."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4374504,00.html

~~~~~~~~~~

And then there is the legislation that is being moved along that would require approval in a national referendum and a super-majority in the Knesset before any land could be relinquished in a "peace deal." 

The original legislation was promoted in 2010 by MK Ofir Akunis (Likud), and is now being shepherded by Coalition Chairman MK Yariv Levin (Likud), who has drafted a new amendment to the proposed bill.  Naftali Bennett (Habayit Hayehudi) and Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) are expected to be for this proposal, which was addressed in their coalition agreements.

And...Prime Minister Netanyahu supports this legislation as well: "A peace deal is not just any move, and a peace deal cannot be decided by a simple majority when it affects everyone. We will support it."  His support is a major factor in seeing this pass.

Avigdor Lieberman (Yisrael Beitenu) was opposed in coalition discussions, but I have since read he would go along.

http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=8965

Not surprisingly, Tzipi Livni is adamantly opposed.  This tells us, clearly, that she does not believe any deal she would be instrumental in striking with the PA would receive public and Knesset sanction.  She is a bit of a hypocrite on this score.  For in 2000, when she was still a Likud member of the Knesset, she supported a bill that would have required a public referendum on any agreement with the Palestinian Authority.

~~~~~~~~~~

The urgent matters I have written about here have again trumped the analysis (such as it will be) of the situation in Syria that I had hoped to offer, as well as other matters to be mentioned.

There is, please Heaven, always the next posting.

~~~~~~~~~~  

© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

http://arlenefromisrael.squarespace.com/current-postings/2013/5/1/may-1-2013-i-weep.html

\ 

It gets more and more awful.  More disgusting.  More distorted.
 
The Times of Israel has the following headline this morning (emphasis added):
 
"In sea change, Arab League backs land swaps in peace talks"
 
http://www.timesofisrael.com/in-sea-change-arab-league-backs-land-swaps-in-peace-talks/
 
A sea change is defined as a marked change or a transformation.  But what we're looking at here is nothing of the sort.
 
Members of the Arab League, representing seven Arab nations, met with top US officials yesterday in Washington.  The topic of discussion was the "peace process" and ways in which the Arab nations might advance it. 
 
After the League delegation huddled for consultations at Blair House, Qatari Prime Minister Sheik Hamad Bin Jassem Al Thani announced "the possibility of 'comparable,' mutually agreed and 'minor' land swaps between the Israelis and the Palestinians."  (Emphasis added)
 
Note that "land swaps" are not agreed to firmly in principle.  There is a "possibility" of support for this, which means at the end of the day they might say, "Sorry, we won't do this after all."  After all, only seven of 22 nations of the League were represented here.
 
And even if they were to agree, in any case it would be "minor" swaps only.  Piddling. Only piddling. 
 
Most importantly, this entire notion is predicated upon an erroneous and unacceptable concept.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
Secretary of State Kerry, who seems to have staked his entire professional (sic) reputation on succeeding with the "peace process," gushed:
 
“We’ve had a very positive, very constructive discussion over the course of the afternoon, with positive results...”
 
He praised the League for the "important role it is playing, and is determined to play, in bringing about a peace in the Middle East."
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
A bit of background is in order here:
 
The Arab League "Peace Plan" had originally been advanced by Saudi Arabia in 2002, then was adopted by the League, and subsequently "re-endorsed" by the League in 2007.  It was, and is, a horror:
 
If Israel will surrender all lands acquired in 1967, and provide for a "just" settlement of the Palestinian Arab refugee problem, based on UN General Assembly Resolution 194 -- which the Arab world interprets as giving the "refugees" "right of return," when in fact there is no such thing -- then the Arab world will "normalize" relations with Israel.  No specification of what normalization means re: diplomatic, security, economic interaction and ties.
 
Translation: If you will surrender the Temple Mount, and the Kotel, and the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hevron, and Shilo, and much more, including the Golan Heights.  And if you will return to the 1967 line [the Green Line], which, admittedly, was recognized by Security Council Resolution 242, passed after the Six Day War, as not providing a secure border.  And in addition, if you will take within your borders millions of so-called refugees, rendered radical and hostile by decades of UNRWA influence.  Then all 22 of the Arab states -- and not just "Palestine" -- will have some sort of ties with you.     
 
This was touted as a great opportunity for Israel, which would secure "normalization" with the whole Arab world in one fell blow.
 
There were to be no negotiations with this plan.  It was a take-it-or-leave-it deal.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
Israel rejected it out of hand.  Israel has legitimate rights to Judea and Samaria, based on a heritage that is more than 3,000 years old, as well as legally binding resolutions in the twentieth century, notably the Mandate for Palestine. Israel will never return to the '67 line -- which, in addition to everything else, provides insufficient strategic depth for adequate security.  Resolution 242 says the final border of Israel must be determined by negotiations.  Agreeing to pull back without negotiations is not the way to go.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
For years now, the Palestinian Authority and its supporters have promoted the idea that the '67 line is Israel's "real" border, and that everything on the other side "belongs" to the Palestinian Arabs.  It is a crock. A myth.  But unfortunately -- because successive Israeli governments have not been vigorous enough in countering this -- it has become accepted thinking in many places. 
 
It is this myth, this crock, upon which the Arab League fashioned its "peace proposal." 
 
And, more recently, it has been President Barack Obama who has advanced proposals based on the same myth.  Has he swallowed it whole, so that he really believes it?  There is no way to be certain, although there is ample reason to suspect so.  We only know what he says.
 
Obama's only deviation from the stipulation of return to the '67 line is the concept of "agreed-upon swaps" of land.  This means the principle of the '67 line as Israel's legitimate border is retained but if Israel wants to hold on to a community that, say, spreads over two square kilometers east of the line, then "Palestine" will be given two square kilometers of land west of the line, inside of Israel.  In the end, Israel will be defined by an area no greater than what rests within the '67 line.
 
No and no!!
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
For the record, and this is terribly important: the '67 line, or Green Line, was, with very minor adjustments, the 1949 armistice line.  It is the line that was drawn when Israel and Jordan stopped fighting, at the end of the War of Independence: Israel fought that war defensively, having been attacked by the Arab nations on the day she declared independence.  It is referred to as the "'67 line" because Israel was behind that line until June 1967, when the Six Day war was fought.
 
The armistice agreement signed between Jordan and Israel stipulated that the line was temporary and that the permanent line would be determined by negotiations.  Actually, this stipulation was put in at Jordan's insistence.  And, please, note that it WAS Jordan on the other side of the line -- the nation with which, it was presumed, Israel would ultimately negotiate. There was no talk of "Palestine" or a "Palestinian people" with whom Israel had to negotiate.  Whatever existed on the other side of the armistice line, it certainly wasn't a Palestinian state, or land defined as belonging to a Palestinian people. 
 
How Israel could be required to "return" Judea and Samaria to the Palestinian Arabs is a genuine mystery.  The historical situation has been distorted:  It has morphed from the reality into what people of a certain political bent wish it to be.
 
You will be doing Israel an enormous service if you circulate this information -- this historical clarification -- as broadly as possible.
 
If you see reference in news sources to "Israel's '67 border," send a correction: It was never a border, it was an armistice line, and it was temporary; both the armistice agreement with Jordan and the subsequent UN Security Council Resolution 242, called for negotiations to determine Israel's final eastern border.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
What I see is that Kerry went to these Arab League members and asked them for some flexibility so that he might move ahead with the infernal process. And, to his delight, they delivered.  Not only delivered, but stated themselves willing to go along with parameters outlined by the president. 
 
At a press conference, Kerry declared:
 
"The US and Arab League delegation here this afternoon agreed that peace between Israelis and Palestinians would advance security, prosperity, and stability in the Middle East. And that is a common interest for the region and the whole world..."
 
Well, then, it's the Arab world that sees eye-to-eye with President Obama, yes? And Israel?
 
We can anticipate that the secretary will now turn to Israel with a request/a veiled demand for more "flexibility," for the sake of stability in the Middle East.  But what has been tentatively proposed is no more acceptable to Israel than the previous formulation of the Arab League plan, or only very minutely so. (Now, presumably, there would be some negotiations to determine the "minor swaps.") 
 
The essential premises of the plan remain as unsatisfactory, and as faulty as a basis for peace, as ever.
 
(With this discussion we have left aside the fact that the entire notion of Israel striking a genuine peace agreement with the PA -- a weak, totally corrupt, terrorist-supporting entity -- is nonsense.  An issue to be re-visited on another day.)
 
I do not, for a moment, anticipate that Israel will agree to the terms tentatively outlined by the Arab League.  But I do anticipate a huge amount of pressure coming down the road.
 
It never hurts to communicate to Prime Minister Netanyahu very briefly to let him know you are with him and encourage him to stand strong.
 
E-mail: Memshala@pmo.gov.il and also pm_eng2@it.pmo.gov.il (underscore after pm) use both addresses
 
~~~~~~~~~~

The peace conference to be held in the US that Haaretz had issued a tentative report on recently -- which I carried -- is being denied by the US government. Maybe they thought better of it.  Maybe Haaretz was too eager. Whatever the case, that, at least is good news.

Next posting, hopefully on Syria.

~~~~~~~~~~
 
© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 
 
If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it is added must be noted.

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No one from the upper military echelon of Israel is whispering in my ear, but the signs seem fairly unmistakable.

Yesterday, Israeli Ambassador to the UN Ron Prosor told the Security Council:
"The Iranian nuclear program continues to advance at the speed of an express train," Prosor said. "The international community's efforts to stop them are moving at the pace of the local train, pausing at every stop for some nations to get off and on."

An apt analogy, I thought.

While Secretary of Defense Moshe Ya'alon told Canadian Chief of Staff Gen. Thomas J. Lawson.:

"The diplomatic channel is not bringing the Iranian nuclear program to a halt and the economic sanctions have yet to stop the centrifuges. A viable military option is required, even if it is the last resort."

I don't know how the signals they are putting out could be much clearer.

If something is going to happen, it will have to be this year -- if not in the next few months.  Iran is edging close to its nuclear goal.

~~~~~~~~~~

What I hasten to point out, again, is that -- minus those 30,000 pound bunker busters that the US will not even consider selling to us (along with means of delivery) -- Israel does not have the capacity to take out Iran's nuclear program in its entirety.  

We do, according to the best sources I have, possess the ability to set it back three to five years.  What is more, there are other ways to disable Iran seriously -- ways in which Israel does have the capacity to act. 

~~~~~~~~~~

As the time frame is of enormous importance, I continue to wonder if Israel will secure delivery of the new armaments that the US has just agreed to sell us in time for them to be of use in an attack on Iran.  Could be that we'll delay to the last moment, awaiting that delivery, or, conversely that we'll act without that equipment. We are purchasing new re-fueling planes, for example, but already possess re-fueling planes, perhaps not as advanced but perhaps sufficient to the day; just as we already possess the capacity to take down radar, even if we are now being sold a better system of anti-radar missiles.

~~~~~~~~~~

It is, further, the case that some of the equipment we will now purchase from the US is almost certainly intended for action against our neighbors and not far-off Iran.  I have in mind in particular the V-22 Osprey aircraft, which is designed as a troop carrier.  Ground war will be the order of the day, for example, in Lebanon, when we battle Hezbollah, but not in Iran.

~~~~~~~~~~

Syria.  I am watching a diplomatic dance that at one and the same time comes as no surprise to me and yet astounds me.

I wrote two days ago about the fact that the head of IDF Military Intelligence, Research Branch, Brig. Gen. ltay Baron, said that Assad's troops have used lethal chemical weapons.

But the US does not know... Says Secretary of Defense Hagel:

"Suspicions are one thing. Evidence is another.  I think we have to be very careful here before we make any conclusions, draw any conclusions, based on real intelligence.

He denied that he was questioning the validity of the intelligence of other countries. Other countries?  Israel.

What was important, insisted Hagel, is that "the United States relies on its own intelligence — and must."

President Obama has said that Assad's use of chemical weapons would be a game changer.  Now he has put out a statement saying that intelligence assessments (even by the US) are not enough. What he wants is "credible and corroborated facts."  This is the Obama -- who has repeatedly shown an extreme reluctance to act -- we've come to know over the last four years.  He'd like to delay "knowing" what's going on there as long as possible.  No need for the US to act hastily, is there?

~~~~~~~~~~

As if matters in Syria are not already bad enough, we have this additional news about Europeans going to fight there (emphasis added):

"Gilles de Kerchove [the EU's anti-terror chief] estimated the number in Syria at about 500.

"Intelligence agencies are concerned some could join groups linked to al-Qaeda and later return to Europe to launch terrorist attacks.

"The UK, Ireland and France are among the EU countries estimated to have the highest numbers of fighters in Syria.

"'Not all of them are radical when they leave, but most likely many of them will be radicalized there, will be trained,' Mr. de Kerchove told the BBC.

"And as we've seen this might lead to a serious threat when they get back."

"Across Europe, intelligence agencies have stepped up investigations, says the BBC's Europe correspondent Duncan Crawford.

"In Britain and Belgium they have increased efforts to track how people are recruited.

"In the Netherlands, officials have raised the terror threat level there to "substantial" - partly over concerns about radicalized citizens returning from Syria."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-22275456

Alarming in any event. But what I find interesting is that there is no mention in this BBC report of the background of the" Europeans" who are going to fight in Syria.

Any one want to take a guess?

~~~~~~~~~~

Oh joy. Oh goody.  There has been talk about this before and now here we have it again:

The US is thinking about convening a Mid-east summit in June in Washington, at which President Obama, PM Netanyahu, purported president Abbas and King Abdullah would participate. Reportedly, Egypt, Turkey and some Arab nations might also be invited to participate.

And -- horror of horrors -- "the Administration is said to be contemplating a letter of invitation or 'terms of reference' for the summit that will include the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative."  That initiative is a plan for Israel's destruction.

The keyword here is "contemplating" -- according to the "well-placed US sources" cited, the decision has not been made: "The Administration...has yet to decide whether it will convene the summit in any case, or only if Kerry achieves a breakthrough that will allow a resumption of peace talks." 

Kerry had better watch it or he's going to end up looking like a fool again.  But I suspect that's his default position.

Kerry is much more eager to get "peace talks" going than the president: "Kerry, the source added, is 'working night and day' to get the peace process moving." 

Kerry discussed this plan with Abbas and the Turkish and Egyptian foreign ministers when he was in Turkey recently. Obama will be talking to King Abdullah about it tomorrow, when he visits the White House, and Turkish PM Erdogan, when he visits in May.

Important to keep in mind that the source here is Haaretz, which is always delighted to promote a "peace process."

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/u-s-seeks-to-convene-4-way-mideast-summit-in-june.premium-1.517473

~~~~~~~~~~

What we can be certain of is that PA officials will be dragging their feet.  Writes Avi Issacharoff (emphasis added):

“'Forget about plan B, there is no plan B,' a Palestinian official told me during a Sunday visit to Ramallah. 'If you think they [Abbas and the Palestinian leadership] know what to do after Kerry’s attempt to renew the negotiations, you’re wrong.'"

Kerry has now met with Abbas in Istanbul,  Riyadh, Amman, and Ramallah  "None of these meetings yielded noteworthy results."

"Over one thing, one might find a rare consensus in Ramallah: 'The question is not if Kerry fails, but when,' a different Palestinian official told me, in his office. According to him, the secretary of state’s ruse to 'tempt' Abbas back to the negotiating table with economic gestures from Israel is completely misguided."

http://www.timesofisrael.com/theres-no-palestinian-plan-b-just-an-unrealistic-study-13/

What sort of self-deluded dunce is Kerry (a rhetorical question), that, after four -- four! -- unproductive meetings with Abbas he imagines he might move ahead with negotiations?

~~~~~~~~~~

Closing with very good news -- or as good as it can be given the context:

On Tuesday, Waal al-Arjeh, who had been found guilty of the murder of Asher Palmer and his infant son, Yonatan, was sentenced by the Ofer military court to two life sentences plus 58 years.  From a moving car, Al-Arjeh had hurled  heavy rocks at the windshield of the Palmer car with intent to kill.  Palmer lost control of the car after he was hit by the rocks; he and his baby son died when the car over-turned on an embankment.

This sentence -- a legal victory -- sets a precedent. It is hoped that it will also serve as a deterrent to others contemplating similar terrorism. But nothing brings back those who were killed.

Michael Palmer, father and grandfather of the victims, has had the courage to sit through the entire agonizing and lengthy trial.  After he heard the sentence pronounced, he said, "Today justice was done, This was the hardest year and a half of my life."

Credit: JOANNA PARASZCZUK

~~~~~~~~~~~ 

© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

http://arlenefromisrael.squarespace.com/current-postings/2013/4/25/april-25-2013-on-the-edge.html

I had expected to move today to issues other than the Boston terror attack.  Barry Rubin, however, has written an excellent piece on this subject -- "Who Will Keep More Muslim Teenagers from Becoming the Next Boston Terrorists?" I begin with this.

Since writing last, I've had correspondence with a couple of my readers regarding the concept of Islamists, jidhadists, radical Muslims vs. Muslims.  They both objected, each in his own way, to my making a differentiation between the radicals and moderate Muslims, whom they claim do not exist, as Islam is a violent religion.  Period. 

Two readers out of thousands is a very small percentage. But it occurs to me that there may be other readers who did not write but entertain similar thoughts.  And so I think it important to visit the issue here.

Not for a moment do I delude myself about the fact that radical Islam is predominant today. For the sake of the Western world, the danger it presents must be named, confronted and battled.  I'm not shy about this.  What is more, I know very well indeed that there are Muslims in the West who profess moderation but are fronts for the radical agenda.  (CAIR in the US is a prime example.)  I myself have argued with naive but well meaning people who were too eager to embrace such fronts, taking their declarations of moderation at face value.

What is more, I know about Islamic teachings regarding the infidel.  And believe me, I do not take them lightly. How many times in the course of my work have I encountered the hadith (teaching): "and the tree would say: Muslim, or the servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me; come and kill him."

~~~~~~~~~~

And yet, I also know Muslims who are moderate.  Muslims who can be trusted.  Muslims who do not internalize messages from their religion about killing non-believers and are not out to establish a world-wide caliphate.  I can identify only a small number, but they are there.  In many cases overwhelmed or threatened by the radicals, they maintain a low profile.

~~~~~~~~~~

I think it's important that the differentiation be made. First, because if we imagine we must do battle with the whole Islamic world, we are lost; to be effective we must focus on the true danger.  And then, because it does injustice to those moderates who would live quietly.

Barry Rubin makes the differentiation: He argues that it's important to "wage a real and serious battle within Islam."  He makes the case for countering the radical messages and talks in concrete terms about what needs to be done.

"...one could argue that there is no moderate—or at least no non-violent, non-revolutionary– Islam that can be developed. But that simply isn’t true. The works and the moderate individuals exist, but they are not given support, even in Western countries, nor do they have the resources to wage the battle. Everyone who ignorantly drones on about Islam being inevitably radical doesn’t know how hard Islamists have had to work for forty years or more to create what exists now, nor how many people who are Muslims oppose this movement in Iran, Arabic-speaking countries, Turkey, and other places..." (Emphasis added here and below)

"...in a bizarre manner Western societies favor the radicals, giving them good press and praise.
"...moderate Muslims are penalized and ignored.

"...the ability to critique precisely what is radical in Islam and what is wrong with Islamism is handicapped by the successful effort to brand any attempts at making such distinctions as 'Islamophobia' instead of a sensible fear of revolutionary Islamism.

"This, then, is the dilemma and why young people like the Tsarnaev brothers will be indoctrinated with extremist Islam with almost no alternative offered on the other side. If groups that are Muslim Brotherhood fronts are going to be treated by the American establishment as examples of normative, moderate Islam, what space is there for any real moderate Islam?

"If the enemy is not going to be defined as radical Islam or Islamism or some other phrase that identifies the issue, then how can anyone campaign against such doctrines?

"The West has paralyzed itself, and, ironically, the first people who are going to suffer are Muslims who are not Islamists and not radicals..." 

http://www.gloria-center.org/2013/04/whos-going-to-try-to-keep-more-teenage-muslims-from-becoming-the-next-boston-marathon-terrorists-nobody/

~~~~~~~~~~

Michael Mukasey, in his piece -- "Make No Mistake, It Was Jihad" --- in the Wall Street Journal makes a similar point:

"At the behest of such Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated groups as the Council on American Islamic Relations [that's CAIR] and the Islamic Society of North America, and other self-proclaimed spokesmen for American Muslims, the FBI has bowdlerized its training materials to exclude references to militant Islamism."

This mindset is what led the jihad attack by Nidal Hasan at Fort Hood to be identified as "workplace violence...recall that the Army chief of staff at the time said the most tragic result of Fort Hood would be if it interfered with the Army's diversity program."   

"...There are Muslim organizations in this country, such as the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, headed by Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, that speak out bravely against that totalitarian ideology [the anti-American Brotherhood ideology that Mukasey describes]. They receive no shout-out at presidential speeches; no outreach is extended to them. (Emphasis added)

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324874204578436592210910044.html

So there you have it.  A moderate Muslim group that indeed does exist but is sidelined while the "sensitivities" of radical groups are responded to in a fashion that makes the differentiation impossible. 

Mukasey makes yet other significant points.  We waited for President Obama to say the "t" word -- terrorism -- he points out. And indeed while he was reluctant at first, it wasn't long until he did.  However, there was then "his vague musing on Friday about some unspecified agenda of the perpetrators, when by then there was no mystery: the agenda was jihad." [There were, declared the president, "many unanswered questions" about what drove the suspects to violence.] 

And so, still, an unwillingness to tie radical Islam to the violence. "We have heard not a word from those sources [who wield executive power] suggesting any need to understand and confront a totalitarian ideology that has existed since at least the founding of the Muslim Brotherhood in the 1920s."

"Tamerlan Tsarnaev is the fifth person since 9/11 who has participated in terror attacks after questioning by the FBI." (Emphasis added)

~~~~~~~~~~

As a journalist, I exercise a self-restraint: In order to maintain a professional standard, I avoid inappropriate terminology.  But I must say that Secretary of State John Kerry is trying that self-restraint. This is with regard to his comment, while in Turkey, on the Mavi Marmara incident:

“I know it’s an emotional issue with some people. I particularly say to the families of people who were lost in the incident we understand these tragedies completely and we sympathize with them.”

“I mean, I have just been through the week of Boston and I have deep feelings for what happens when you have violence and something happens and you lose people that are near and dear to you. It affects a community, it affects a country. We’re very sensitive to that.”

http://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Kerry-compares-Boston-and-Mavi-Marmara-victims-310710

Mind-blowing, is it not?  The people killed on the Mavi Mamara by Israeli commandos had terrorist associations and had deliberately and viciously attacked the Israelis, who then responded in self-defense.  While those killed in Boston were innocents, whose lives were taken by terrorists.

And here Kerry is, empathizing with the families of terror-connected people.  What an insult to Israel! 

He was, it seems clear, attempting to play up to the Turks. 

Let's call him extremely obtuse where the nuances of a situation are concerned, and, in the end, just plain stupid.

Although some see it this way, I doubt that he was consciously trying to undercut Israel -- he hadn't thought that hard, or that deep.  Besides, it would make little sense to undercut Israel when Hagel was in Jerusalem doing the opposite (see below).

His statement was made at a time when an Israeli delegation had come to negotiate compensation to be paid to Turkey for the lives of those killed on the Mavi Marmara, with Turkey demanding one million dollars for each of the nine dead, while Israel was offering one-tenth of that.  Was he consciously attempting to "help" up the compensation terms -- trying to show the Turks that he was their good buddy? 

Reassuring, is it not, to know that US foreign affairs are being handled by such an astute individual?
 
~~~~~~~~~~

One of the reasons Kerry was attempting to play to the Turks is because he was hoping to influence a decision Turkish PM Erdogan had made, to visit Gaza next month.  This visit is considered potentially counterproductive to "jumpstarting the peace process," and is being opposed by the PA's Abbas.

The response to this request by Kerry? Said Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc, who also serves as the government's spokesman:

"Mr. Kerry's statement ... from a diplomatic perspective was objectionable, wrong and was incorrect.

"Only the Turkish government decides when and where the prime minister or any other Turkish official travels. An experienced foreign minister would not have done this. A foreign minister cannot and should not directly express to the media his personal opinions about our prime minister's visit."

"An experienced foreign minister would not have done this."  Kerry is over his head.  And the Turks pull no punches.

~~~~~~~~~~

Says commentator Ruthie Blum:

"Islamists view bowing down as a sign of weakness, and America keeps showing them that they are right to hold this view."

http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=4085

Blum further suggests that the Israeli response to all of this may be tempered by the need for Turkish airspace in the event of an attack on Iran.  In addition to which, attacking Kerry while Hagel was making nice here would likely not have been prudent. This entire situation is fraught with layer upon layer of complexity.

~~~~~~~~~~

Erdogan is eager to go to Gaza at the time originally scheduled -- late May, after visiting the White House --because it will be the third anniversary of the Mavi Marmara incident.  That ship, after all, had as its mission the breaking of the Israeli naval blockade of Gaza.

~~~~~~~~~~

As to the compensation negotiations, the Israeli delegation -- headed by Security Council Head Ya'akov Amidror -- left Turkey last night saying things had gone well.  A joint text has been prepared but not yet released; the amount of compensation, which will be arrived at by a mutually agreed-up mechanism, has not yet been determined.

Families of the nine who had been killed are telling a different story, however.  They say that their government didn't consult them when agreeing to these negotiations.  They don't want compensation, which would not do justice to the memories of their "martyrs."  They want the end of the blockade of Gaza, which is what their loved ones gave their lives for.  And they intend to continue to pursue legal proceedings against the Israeli military leaders who were involved.

~~~~~~~~~~

While Kerry had gone to Turkey, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel was here in Israel the last couple of days.  What we are seeing seems a startling change in Hagel from what he has reflected in the past.  I would say he's doing his job as he should -- taking orders from the commander-in-chief and representing a new US policy -- or what appears to be a new policy.

Previously, the US had put considerable pressure on Israel not to attack Iran, and had sent high level personnel here to dissuade us from considering military action.

Now, on coming to Israel, Hagel said: “Israel is a sovereign nation...Israel will make the decision that Israel must make to protect itself, to defend itself.” 

http://www.timesofisrael.com/hagel-pledges-to-uphold-israeli-military-edge/

What is more, he signed on the dotted line with Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon for a deal that will not only give Israel a qualitative military edge in the region, but will accord Israel the right to buy armaments that were not available outside of the US until now -- rendering an Israeli attack on Iran more feasible.

The two held a press conference yesterday (see picture), and from Ya'alon's body language we might guess that things went well. 

Credit: WordJewishCongress

~~~~~~~~~~

Hagel also met privately with PM Netanyahu this morning.  At their press conference, Netanyahu thanked the Secretary for US support, saying:

"Iran's attempt to arm itself with nuclear weapons...is a challenge that Israel cannot accept, and as you and President Obama have repeatedly said, Israel must be able to defend itself, by itself, against any threat."

In his response, Hagel said:

"Israel is a model for the world."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4371323,00.html

Whoa.  Absolutely true, but this from Hagel?  Is the world listening?  And more to the point, what is Hagel about here?

Credit: ktvu

~~~~~~~~~~

The new US policy?  What it seems to be is this:

Obama now recognizes that negotiations (diplomacy) alone will not move Iran and that Netanyahu is right about the need for a credible military threat.  But rather than making such a threat itself, the US is threatening Iran via Israel.  What is more, the US seems to be working to ensure that if the threat does not work and an attack on Iran is necessary, that attack -- by Israel, not the US -- will be successful.

Thus acknowledgement of Israel's "right" to attack in self-defense -- a right we've always had but which until now Obama sought to curtail.  And provision of cutting edge armaments -- previously unavailable -- that can make a difference. 

~~~~~~~~~~

However, there is a "but..." here.

A difference of opinion between Israel and the US regarding the right time to attack still exists. Dore  Gold, president of the Jerusalem Center of Public Affairs, spelled it out thus:

"It's all about timetables. If you say [as Israel does -- this is Netanyahu's red line] the goal is to halt Iran in the enrichment phase, you don't have much time. If you are waiting for Iran to weaponize [the position the Obama administration has taken] maybe you can give it another year or more." 

And so we still must ask if those cutting edge armaments Israel will receive from the US will arrive in time for action to be taken in the enrichment phase?  Or is Israel's ability to act with greater effectiveness going to be curtailed until a later time?

What is more, as the NYTimes reported (emphasis added):

"...what the Israelis wanted most was a weapons system that is missing from the package: a giant bunker-busting bomb designed to penetrate earth and reinforced concrete to destroy deeply buried sites. According to both American and Israeli analysts, it is the only weapon that would have a chance of destroying the Iranian nuclear fuel enrichment center at Fordow, which is buried more than 200 feet under a mountain outside the holy city of Qum.

"The weapon, called a Massive Ordnance Penetrator, weighs about 30,000 pounds — so much that Israel does not have any aircraft capable of carrying it. To do so, they would need a B-2 bomber, the stealth aircraft that the United States flew nonstop recently from Missouri to the Korean Peninsula to underscore to North Korea that it could reach their nuclear sites.

"The Obama administration has been reluctant to even discuss selling such capability to the Israelis..."

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/22/17866116-no-bunker-buster-bomb-in-israels-us-arms-deal?lite

I've had my eye on those bunker busters for some time, and raised the issue of whether they would be provided to Israel when I wrote about this latest armaments deal.

Now I ask: What is Obama really all about?

~~~~~~~~~~

Head of IDF Military Intelligence, Research Branch, Brig. Gen. ltay Baron, says that Assad's troops have used lethal chemical weapons -- mostly sarin gas -- against armed rebels in the past weeks and is continuing to do so.  The US and other nations are still saying they need to confirm this.

Baron, in a briefing to the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, said that the lack of an "appropriate international response" to the Syrian regime's use of chemical weapons was "very worrying" and might give Assad the impression (dare I say the correct impression?) that there will be no consequences for what he's doing.

Obama had said that use of WMD by Assad would be crossing a red line.  Perhaps this position motivates the reluctance to acknowledge the evidence as firm. 

Baron further said that 1,000 people were being killed in Syria every week. "There are more than 1000 tons of chemical weapons in Syria, plus missiles with warheads. It is a massive arsenal. The regime has already made use of some of these weapons...."

http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=8793

Baron noted, as did IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz recently, that Russia is exceedingly heavily involved in shoring up Assad.  Gantz called this "strange."

To be watched very very closely indeed.  This is going on at our periphery and it's a question of when and how the IDF will be involved.

~~~~~~~~~~
 
© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

http://arlenefromisrael.squarespace.com/current-postings/2013/4/23/april-23-2013-muslims-not-all-the-same.html

There is, of course, a lot of nonsense floating about with regard to terrorists Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev -- such as the claim by his mother that they're "innocent" and were "framed" by the FBI.

And there is a great deal that is still unknown.  It is being broadly assumed, for example, that these guys, who were involved in a shoot-out that left at least one dead are also the terrorists who set off the bombs at the Marathon, and yet I do not believe that this is known with any certainty. 

But not only is there a great deal that is still to be exposed in this case, there are undoubtedly facts that will be kept from the public even if and when the authorities discover them.  We are not exactly dealing with a nation that is "up-front" about jihad and Islamic threats.  Not with the current obsession with political correctness and "Islamophobia" -- and a president who has banned allusions to Islam with regard to terror attacks.  To this day the Fort Hood massacre has never been identified as the Islamic terrorism that it was.

~~~~~~~~~~

What is known about these two brothers, Tamerlan, 26, dead and Dzhokhar, 19, in critical condition in the hospital,  is that their origins are Chechan -- Chechnya Republic being a mostly Sunni Muslim region in the southern part of Russia, in the Caucasus, that has battled for independence and has a history of terrorism and violence associated with its separatist movement.

The brothers received early schooling in neighboring Dagestan, which, as the JPost describes it, "was drawn into Chechnya's violence and has since become the focal point for a simmering Islamist insurgency."

It is, however, roughly ten years since the family moved from Dagestan to Cambridge MA.

There was some speculation at the beginning about the brothers having visited Chechnya a year ago and perhaps having gone to Afghanistan or Pakistan -- places where, reportedly, many Chechans go -- and receiving radical terrorist or military training in one of these places.  But I'm not seeing confirmation of this speculation, and it is now being said that the two likely acted on their own.

~~~~~~~~~~

So, what the hell was going on, that motivated these two brothers to act as they allegedly did?  Why, it is being asked, did they bring the Chechnya liberation battle to the US? 

The answer to this is the "ikar" -- the very heart of what must be understood now by America:  It has nothing to do with Chechnya.  There is a generation of home-grown radicals in the US that has been highly motivated to violence by the Internet.  Muslims themselves, they are heavily influenced by Muslim terrorist groups, including al-Qaeda, but do not act directly as agents of these groups.

See, first, this April 20 Agence France article carried by IMRA, which says the following (emphasis added):

"The two brothers suspected of the Boston bombings, Chechens who grew up in America, fit the profile of a new generation of jihadists who are radicalized online and strike in their home countries.

"Despite the many unknowns, analysts said the brothers' turn to extremism seemed to have been stoked, not by the years of unrest in their native North Caucasus region of Russia, but on the Internet.

"'The Chechnya issue is less relevant than the radicalization process,' said Seth Jones, associate director of the International Security and Defense Policy Center at the RAND Corporation, a Washington think tank.

"'It seems the issue here is less that they conducted training in camps or not and radicalized in Chechnya, and more that they were involved in a social media radicalization,' he said.

"...Bayram Balci, a Caucasus region specialist at the Carnegie Endowment think tank in Washington, said the uprooting of young people at an early age can make them more vulnerable to being radicalized in later years.

"...Fiona Hill, a Caucasus specialist at the Brookings Institution think tank, said the conflict in Chechnya is used as a recruiting tool for al-Qaida.

"'Videos from Chechnya are all over the Internet. They're constantly packaged as part of the al-Qaida network recruitment,' she said.

"Frank Cilluffo, director of the Homeland Security Policy Institute at George Washington University, said there were many examples of people wanting to fight for al-Qaida in their own country.

"...The bombs used in Boston, pressure cookers filled with explosives, reflect the methods advocated by Inspire, the English language magazine published by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the movement's Yemeni offshoot, which has also urged aspiring jihadists to launch attacks in their own countries.

"Brian Jenkins, author of a Rand study on the profile of jihadists in the United States, said 74 percent of those involved in such plots were American citizens...

"Many of the jihadists identified...began their journey toward radicalization on the Internet where they found resonance and reinforcement for their frustration and anger..."

http://imra.org.il/story.php3?id=60753

~~~~~~~~~~

For the record, in case any of you missed it, there has been a host of articles about the association of Tamerlan with radical websites and radical statements by him on social network sites.

Washington DC-based anti-terrorist Steve Emerson had a good deal of information on this up on his website by last Friday.

http://www.investigativeproject.org/3981/bombing-suspects-lauded-jihad

~~~~~~~~~~

In her piece, "All Terrorism is Connected," Shoshana Bryen, director of the Jewish Policy Center, further connects the dots.

"There is a temptation with each act of terror to see it as isolated, connected to the mental state of the actor, but not to larger forces. The FBI used to have theories about 'Sudden Jihad Syndrome' and 'Lone Wolves' that were not only wrong, but also pulled law enforcement off the track.
"'Sudden Jihad Syndrome' was invented by the FBI to explain why people who lived quietly in the United States for some period of time 'suddenly' went berserk and killed others."

Writes Bryen, "There is no unconnected terrorism.":

She cites specific factors that appear to move some people -- primarily young men -- to radical, violent activity.  Among these she mentions Salafist ideology that combines Islam with a determination to solve problems through violence, and "inspiration" provided by al-Qaeda. 

Bryen, of course, mentions the influence of the Internet, which she sees as "an enabler, providing an anonymous virtual meeting place. Sites other than mosques can provide the sense of community otherwise isolated people may be seeking." 

She also shares with us the fact that:

"For the unremarkable conclusion that professional jihadists use the Internet to find susceptible people with self-identity problems seeking causes, and that even those people often drop out of the process at several points, the NYPD was called 'racist' and 'Islamophobic.'" 

http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/4158/all-terrorism-is-connected

And thus, at one and the same time, Bryen identifies America's current very problematic proclivity towards avoiding hard truths, and what may well be the route taken by the Tsarnaev brothers. 

It comes together neatly: I cited Bayram Balci, above, as saying that people uprooted at an early age are more susceptible to radicalism later.  And here Bryen speaks about people with self-identity problems being courted by professional jihadists on the Internet.

It has been widely publicized that on a social media network said Tamerlan said he had no American friends: "I don't understand them."  This, after years in the country.

~~~~~~~~~

Dr. Michael Widlanski, in "Terror Never Left America's Shores," examines the fallacious thinking and dangerous policies of the Obama administration with regard to terrorism.  Americans ignore this at their own risk.  Widlanski says (emphasis added):

"Terror did not return to America at the Boston Marathon, because terror never left.

"There have  been more anti-US attacks and abortive attacks (not including Iraq and Afghanistan) in the last four years than in the previous seven years after 9-11.

"This is not a statistic that is widely cited at government briefings, in the  main news media nor on most college campuses, because [the US] government, media and educational elites would like to pretend that the terror problem ended with Osama Bin-Laden.

"'People shouldn’t jump to conclusions before we have all the facts,' asserted President Barack Obama, but he and his top aides have  spent the better part of the last two years on a mistaken conclusion.

"They have pretended that there really was no terror problem, but only an Al-Qaeda problem, and that that problem was solved  because, they said, Bin-Laden’s death was a death blow for terror.

"They were wrong then, and they are wrong now, dead wrong. Terrorists often send us reminders just when we think we have beaten them.

"...There is no substitute for the tough and painstaking collection of intelligence and grinding work on the ground.

"President Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder and other officials in the Obama Administration have done their best to inhibit the collection of such intelligence, while they have at the same time launched probes or proceedings aimed at counter-terror warriors in the CIA and the top units of the US military.

"America was kept safe by some of that same intelligence that was gathered earlier, including massive planned attacks on Los Angeles and London. Some of that same data gathered in interrogations also led to Osama Bin-Laden himself. Yet, those efforts have ended, and American intelligence has been coasting on previous efforts.

"Meanwhile, Obama and his crew pushed the idea that America should  worry more about hate crimes against Muslims and Arabs than terror  by Muslims and Arabs.

"Simply put, FBI crime statistics from the last eight years show that this idea is nonsense. America does not have a problem of hate crimes against Muslims.

"...The first step in fighting terror is to realize that there is a terror problem that requires a major national effort, but some of our top “experts” on terror—especially in the Obama Administration—treat terrorists like they were business rivals.

http://www.algemeiner.com/2013/04/18/terror-never-left-americas-shores/

~~~~~~~~~~

There is a great deal of information that has yet to be acquired concerning what happened in Boston.  But it's not too soon to ask some hard questions about what America's top policy-makers have learned -- are OPEN to learning -- with regard to terrorism.

The beginning comes with naming the enemy.  Islam -- or jihadist radical Islam -- is at the center of the terrorist problem. To say so is not prejudicial -- it is a simple statement of fact.

Then it is necessary to take a hard look at how potential terror threats are monitored and responded to.  As Widlanski makes clear, the best of intelligence must be gathered.  And those who are fighting the good fight must be supported in their efforts, not undercut in the name of political correctness. 

There are a host of hard questions to be asked regarding the fact that the FBI had information on these guys and yet missed the boat somehow with regard to comprehending their potential danger.

Already law makers are asking some hard questions in this regard.

"'If he was on their radar and they let him go…why wasn't a flag put on him?' Rep. Michael McCaul (R., Texas), the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee said on CNN..."

"...'The ball was dropped,' said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) also on CNN. 'The FBI missed a lot of things…There was a lot to be learned from this guy.  We're at war with radical Islamists and we need to up our game.'"

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323735604578436763830879402.html

~~~~~~~~~~

I close here with a link to an extremely serious analysis by Clare Lopez of the "History of the Muslim Brotherhood Penetration of the U.S. Government":

"Given the long history of Muslim Brotherhood activity in this country, its declared objective to 'destroy the Western civilization from within,' and the extensive evidence of successful influence operations at the highest levels of the U.S. government, it is urgent that we recognize this clear and present danger that threatens not only our Republic but the values of Western civilization.

"...This report describes how the Muslim Brotherhood infiltrated and suborned the U.S. government to actively assist, whether knowingly or not, the mission of its grand jihad. Its hard-won position at the forefront of the 21st century Islamic Awakening is possible only because of decades of patient infiltration and political indoctrination (Da'wa) in the West, and especially the United States of America, even as the grassroots work of building an organizational structure advanced steadily in the land of its origin as well. It is important to recognize the sophistication of the Brotherhood's international strategy and how the takedown of U.S. national security defenses from within was critical to the current Middle East-North Africa (MENA) campaign to re-establish the Caliphate and enforce Islamic Law (shariah)."

Lopez names names of those with close Muslim Brotherhood affiliation who have penetrated the US government: 

Rashad Hussain..."the Obama administration's envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)."

Muhammed Magid..."an A-list invitee to White House iftar dinners, and a member of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) 'Countering Violent Extremism' Advisory Council. In that capacity, Magid participated in a July 2012 CIA training session..."

Huma Abedin...who was "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's Deputy Chief of Staff, has served her in various capacities since first coming to the White House as an intern in 1996...For decades, she and members of her immediate family — mother, father, brother, and sister — have been closely associated with individuals among the top ranks of the Muslim Brotherhood, al-Qa'eda financial support organizations, and the Saudi royal family."

She then concludes:

"As we can see, as early as the George W. Bush administration period, the Muslim Brotherhood already had achieved an information dominance that, in coming years, would only intensify. Not only did figures associated and identified with the Muslim Brotherhood achieve broad penetration at senior levels of U.S. policymaking, but voices that warned of their true agenda (such as Stephen Coughlin's) were actively excluded. That information dominance has contributed to startling consequences, most evident in the U.S. policy towards the al-Qa'eda and Muslim Brotherhood-dominated revolutions that many call the "Arab Spring," but which in fact are more accurately termed an "Islamic Awakening." Under the Muslim Brotherhood-influenced Obama administration, U.S. policy has undergone such a drastic shift in the direction of outright support for these jihadist movements — from al-Qa'eda militias in Libya, to the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, and both al-Qa'eda and Muslim Brotherhood-linked rebels in Syria — that it is scarcely recognizable as American any more.

"...Given the long history of Muslim Brotherhood activity in this country, its declared objective to 'destroy the Western civilization from within,' and the extensive evidence of successful influence operations at the highest levels of the U.S. government, it is urgent that we recognize this clear and present danger that threatens not only our Republic but the values of Western civilization."

http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/3672/muslim-brotherhood-us-government

~~~~~~~~~~

© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

http://arlenefromisrael.squarespace.com/current-postings/2013/4/21/april-21-2013-the-boston-terror-lessons.html

I will not here have comment about the terrorist attack in Boston and subsequent events at MIT -- even as I am watching it all closely (actually having relatives in and near Boston myself). The story is unfolding as I write, and comments now would be premature.

~~~~~~~~~~

I recently wrote about Salam Fayyad's resignation as prime minister of the PA, citing several analysts who indicated quite clearly what a negative omen this was for Oslo, for "the peace process," and all the rest.  I wondered, as I wrote, how the Obama administration would respond to this. 

Would there be sufficient comprehension of the implications of the situation so that attempts to push "peace" would be put on a back burner?

Well, I have my answer now.  How foolish I was to even ponder such a question.

On Wednesday, Secretary of State Kerry spoke before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and told them that peace must be reached between Israel and the PA within the next two years -- that's the window of opportunity he sees before it's too late.  While he was in this region, he explained, he sensed a "seriousness of purpose" on the part of both Israeli and PA leaders with regard to negotiations.

As a friend of mine sometimes says:  "What planet is he from?"

~~~~~~~~~~

And then we've got the Obama approach to Syria. 

The unease about jihadist rebels -- most notably al-Qaeda -- taking over is now being reflected in American policy.  According to latest reports, the Obama administration is no longer eager for a rebel victory -- something it had been working towards.

Citing a Wall Street Journal report, Algemeiner says (emphasis added):

"...[US] officials fear that the increasing Islamist influence means a victory would undercut hopes for finding a diplomatic solution. It would also shatter national institutions along with what remains of civil order, increasing the danger that Syrian chemical weapons will be used or transferred to terrorists.

"The White House has drawn up elaborate plans for a post-Assad Syria that includes an orderly political transition that keeps the country together and preserves Western interests..."

http://www.algemeiner.com/2013/04/17/report-obama-administration-not-keen-on-syrian-rebel-victory-right-now/

It's the bit about "elaborate plans" drawn up at the White House that caused me to do a double take.  Precisely why do Obama's people imagine that they have the sort of influence that would allow (the "right") rebels, having defeated Assad, to proceed precisely according to an American vision of the situation??  It's this sort of expectation that has gotten Obama into so much trouble on the international scene -- he seems to have very little capacity to understand that other people don't necessarily see it his way.

Unreal, indeed.

~~~~~~~~~~

And there's more from that great American diplomat, Kerry.  On Thursday he spoke to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.  He admitted that there was frustration over the failure of recent talks with Iran.  However he believes a diplomatic solution is still the best option, and counseled patience: "We don't need to spin this up at this point in time."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4369672,00.html

~~~~~~~~~~

Then we have the paper -- "Strategic options for Iran: Balancing pressure with diplomacy" -- put out by a group of Americans who call themselves the Iran Project.  Says the paper (emphasis added):

[US policies] "may have narrowed the options for dealing with Iran by hardening the regime's resistance to pressure… it seems doubtful that pressure alone will change the decision of Iran's leaders… A strengthened diplomatic track that includes the promise of sanctions relief in exchange for verifiable cooperation could help to end the standoff and produce a nuclear deal."

By admitting that pressure alone will not change Iran's leaders, they actually make the case for military action or at least a credible military threat, but then back off in the opposite direction: We haven't been nice enough to Iran.

A group of former senior administration officials -- including several recently resigned from the Obama government, who might reflect the administration view but don't speak for Obama -- have written a letter supporting this paper.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4369669,00.html

~~~~~~~~~~

At this point I would be tempted to bang my head against the wall, except for the fact that I'm writing as an Israeli, and my own head of state has a very different view of matters.

Prime Minister Netanyahu gave an interview to BBC yesterday.  Iran, he said, is 80 kg. short of the 250 kg. of 20% enriched uranium needed for making a nuclear bomb.

"Without a direct military threat, Iran will not stop. (emphasis added)

"Israel's right to defend its existence is not subject to a traffic light.   We don't need anyone to give us the right to prevent a new Holocaust."

http://www.jpost.com/Iranian-Threat/News/PM-Israels-right-to-self-defense-not-open-for-debate-310275

~~~~~~~~~~

In addition, there is other significant news:

According to a NYTimes report, the US Department of Defense is close to finalizing a $10 billion arms deal with Israel, that would permit Israel to purchase from American contractors the KC-135 refueling tanker planes, "antiradiation" missiles that target air-defense radars, new advanced radars for jets and the cutting-edge V-22 Osprey aircraft.  Israel's would be the first foreign military to purchase this aircraft.

Pictured here, it is a multi-mission, military, tiltrotor troop transport aircraft: it takes off and lands like a helicopter, but once airborne, its engine can be rotated to convert it to a turboprop airplane capable of high-speed, high-altitude flight. Its bellygun rotates 360 degrees and can fire 3,000 rounds/minute.

Credit: Military-today

~~~~~~~~~~

The report speaks of providing Israel with armaments to bolster defense against Iranian threats.  What it sure looks like is that the US administration officials are playing a two-pronged game.  One the one hand letting Iran know that they intend only benign interaction with Iran (translation: See, we're not threatening you), while simultaneously increasing Israel's capability to respond to Iran more realistically and effectively. 

This seems an unofficial nod to what our prime minister is saying with regard to our right to defend ourselves as necessary.  Letting us take care of matters. 

The armaments described would be very useful in an attack on Iran -- refueling planes, ability to target radar effectively, etc. What I do not see, however, is any mention of the sale or provision to Israel of those 30,000 pound bunker-busters that can really do the job on nuclear facilities hidden deep in the ground -- unless this will be done quietly.  I regret that this does not seem to be part of the package.

Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel is due here next week and is expected to finalize arrangements.  Whatever the vast unease about him prior to his assuming his post, this is good news.  I am not suggesting that he is in any way the promoter of this deal -- this, undoubtedly, comes from the Pentagon, which is solidly pro-Israel.  But he doesn't seem to be blocking it.

~~~~~~~~~~

There is yet more to the story, however:

United Arab Emirates are going to be permitted to purchase 26 F-16 warplanes, along with precision missiles to be launched from these planes. And Saudi Arabia would purchase the same precision missiles.

Whenever Arab states acquire advanced armaments there is room for unease.  Reportedly, the US has "assured" Israel that the use of these missiles will be "monitored."  I consider this worthless, as assurance.  But the dynamic has changed.  UAE and Saudi Arabia are genuinely frightened, and actually eager for Israel action against Iran. Over time there have even been several reports about very quiet assistance the Saudis might provide to Israel during an attack on Iran.  Attacking Israel simply is not the focus of Saudi or UAE concerns.

Their leaders have been more than a little angry at the US for not taking a stronger position against Iran.  Here it seems that they're been appeased. Says a US official:  [The armaments are being provided are] "also to boost the capabilities of our Persian Gulf partners so they, too, would be able to address the Iranian threat."

http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Report-Israel-UAE-Saudis-in-huge-US-arms-deal-310366

~~~~~~~~~~

© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

http://arlenefromisrael.squarespace.com/current-postings/2013/4/19/april-19-2013-unreal.html

Yom Ha'Atzmaut is over, and we return to "normal," whatever that means today.  But first I want to extend the theme of Yom Ha'Atzmaut for just a moment.

Credit: Dartmouth Hillel
 
With all of the writing I did two days ago, I have not yet, this year, done justice to what Israel means for me, and for the Jewish people (even for those Jewish people who have opted not to care).
 
With all of my being, I am grateful to be an Israeli, and to be part of the stream of Jewish history that leads us here. The hand of the Almighty is clear in our ingathering: Today -- with over six million Jews -- we have the largest Jewish population in the world.  It is anticipated that within 20 years the majority of the world's Jews will live here. More Jewish study goes on now here than at any time or place in our history.  Our people are happy -- every poll indicates this -- and proud to be Israeli. And we choose life -- having the highest birth rate of Jews anywhere.  This is our Jewish future.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
The story of Pam Geller -- and her talks this past Sunday on Sharia law -- is hardly over.  It has many layers, many ramifications, and information continues to come to me.
 
I've been told by persons in the know that the rabbi of Great Neck Synagogue -- Rabbi Polakoff -- is a mensch and was not responsible for the decision to cancel Geller's talk.  That decision was made by the Executive Board of the synagogue.  Background -- provided to me on a not-for-publication basis -- on the arm twisting they were subject to is vastly complex and considerably obscene.  Which is not to say they should have caved. 
 
Of the two rabbis who then invited Geller to speak, I had focused on Rabbi Yosef Geisinsky of Chabad of Great Neck because of the miracle of his return to health after being pronounced dead. 
 
But, having now received additional information about him (with thanks to Gene S.), I want to return to talk about Rabbi Bernhard Rosenberg of Congregation Beth-El in Edison, NJ.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 

 
The good rabbi, age 65, who received his ordination as well as a doctorate in education from Yeshiva University, lost most of his family in the Shoa.  He has dedicated his life to "Never Again," and he means it.  He speaks out when he needs to and is unafraid, even in the face of threats.  He says we are in 1938 all over again.
 
Once he invited Pam Geller to speak at his shul, the threats -- obscene verbal communication and even threats of firebombing -- started coming in; swastikas were painted on his house.  The threats are on file with authorities and are being investigated; he had police protection.  But, he told me, it's just not about inviting Pam Geller: he takes the same positions she does, and he is frequently threatened.  On at least one occasion, he and his wife were physically attacked.  But he is not frightened into stopping. 
 
We need a thousand Rabbi Rosenbergs. Ten thousand.
 
I should add, he is the one who started Rabbis for Romney, in the face of the Rabbis for Obama movement.
 
Rabbi Rosenberg is looking for paid speaking engagements anywhere in the US, and would welcome donations to his shul to help sustain it.
 
If you think you can help -- spreading word about him, offering a speaking engagement, or providing other assistance -- please, be in touch with him directly: chaimdov@aol.com . 
 
I salute him, as should we all.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
And then, I add this: There are two rabbis -- Reform rabbis -- in the region of Great Neck who have taken a strong stand against Geller.  She writes about this here:
 
http://www.thejewishweek.com/editorial-opinion/opinion/truth-must-have-place-synagogue
 
The rabbis are Michael White, senior rabbi of Temple Sinai of Roslyn (Heights) and Jerome Davidson rabbi emeritus of Temple Beth El of Great Neck.  Because Geller speaks the truth, they label what she says "hate speech," and would deny her freedom of speech.  Shutting her up is more important to them than dealing with the virulently anti-Jewish positions of some of those they are so eager to defend, whom they refer to as "fellow Americans of a different Abrahamic religion."  They declare: "we cherish our relationships and friendships within the local Muslim community," but they are mum about Islamic verbal attacks on Israel.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
I invite you to see this seven-minute video (which I thank Dan F. for bringing to my attention) that neatly exposes the fallacy of criticism of Geller.  The person speaking here is not identified, but his position is so clear, so on-mark that I don't hesitate to share it:
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXQwlPMWW6M&feature=youtu.be
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
My friends, I grow more and more afraid for America.  Not just because of the horrendous Boston attack, but because of this: the fear among Jews, their reluctance to take a stand for Israel, and their eagerness to defend the very Muslims who would do Israel in if they could.  Their stance is nothing but mindless political correctness (a disease that inundates the US today). 
 
It behooves each of us to be well informed and to continue to speak out forcefully.  Only then is there hope.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
As to other news, it's difficult to know where to begin:
 
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced that he is going to Gaza next month.  This, after a delay in making the announcement, pending a visit to the White House.  This is a "counterproductive" move. declares the State Department.
 
On Saturday, Erdogan announced that Turkey would not be sending an envoy back to Israel until Israel completely removed the blockade on Gaza.  Return of the envoy was supposed to be part of the "normalization of diplomatic ties" that followed Netanyahu's apology.
 
This is in addition to the fact that Turkey has voiced objections to Israeli participation in an upcoming Mediterranean Dialogue group (a NATO event); this would have been the first time that Israel participated since 2008.
 
An Israeli negotiating team is scheduled to be in Turkey soon to discuss compensation for the Turkish dead on the Mavi Marmara.  But according to the Turkish daily Hurriyet, Turkish officials are warning that:
 
"Israel should perfectly know that this is not a process of bargaining. Compensation talks should not be turned into horse trading or dirty bargaining." 
 
http://www.jpost.com/International/Turkey-warns-Israel-against-dirty-bargaining-309860
 
In other words, Israel should immediately and without discussion provide the very substantial sums (reported to possibly be as much as million dollars per person) that Turkey demands.
 
Reconciliation with Turkey is going smashingly well, isn't it? 
 
Reminder: Gestures that can be read as weakness do not work with Muslims.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has submitted his resignation to PA putative president Mahmoud Abbas, and Abbas has accepted it.  (Putative? His term ran out in January 2009 but he's still called president.) This is in spite of efforts by the US (specifically Secretary of State Kerry) and European nations to convince Abbas not to accept it.
 
Fayyad, who is not a member of Fatah, had been tolerated by Abbas because he is the darling of the Western world, the one considered most moderate and most trustworthy.  But in fact, there has been bad blood between the two for some time and many members of Fatah have, over time, urged Abbas to get rid of Fayyad.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
Barak Ravid -- who asks if Fayyad's resignation is "The beginning of the end of the PA?" -- explains:
"The resignation of Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on Saturday is a dramatic development. Its ramifications won't just reverberate in the part of the West Bank under Palestinian control, but also affect Israel and the Obama administration's efforts to renew the peace process, as well as the European Union's policy towards the Palestinians.

"...the U.S., and the EU, which both regularly provide economic aid to the Palestinian Authority, Fayyad was the go-to man. The former International Monetary Fund economist was educated in the U.S. and was a symbol of good governance and the war on corruption. ...

"But it was this success that itself bore within it the seeds of his demise. Fayyad, who served as prime minister since 2007, resigned after his relations with PA President Mahmoud Abbas deteriorated, reaching an unprecedented low. The crisis of confidence between the two leaders was sharp and irreparable. Abbas and the Fatah party's old guard that surround him saw Fayyad as a political rival who needed to be eliminated."

http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/fayyad-s-resignation-the-beginning-of-the-end-of-the-pa-1.515292
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
Commentary editor Jonathan Tobin, who sees in Fayyad's leaving the bankruptcy of Oslo, has written (emphasis added):

"Fayyad’s tragedy was not just that both Fatah and Hamas wanted to be rid of him but that he was a man with virtually no support among ordinary Palestinians. So long as shedding Jewish blood is the main factor that gives a Palestinian political party credibility, men like Fayyad will have no chance no matter how much they are applauded by Americans or Israelis. The collapse of his effort to change Palestinian politics is therefore a key moment that should signal to the world that it must dispense with the theories of both Peres and Rabin and cease ignoring reality in favor of illusions.

"That is something that groups and governments determined to keep funneling cash into the coffers of the PA and to push Israel to make concessions to it must understand. Until they do, the discussion about the peace process will continue to be a tragic waste of time and effort."

http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2013/04/14/salam-fayyad-exit-signals-oslo-bankruptcy-palestinian-authority/

~~~~~~~~~~
 
Khaled Abu Toameh, a courageous Muslim Arab Israeli journalist who knows his stuff, gave a slightly different slant here (emphasis added):
 
"The Fatah leaders are yearning for the days of Yasser Arafat, when they were able to steal international aid earmarked for helping Palestinians. The Palestinians' problem with Fayyad is that he did not sit even one day in an Israeli prison. For them, graduating from an Israeli prison is even more important that going to any university."

http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/3670/fayyad-vs-fatah
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
Hopefully, you're duly noting the nature of our "peace partners."  And this can be added to your store of information:
 
Amalia L., a reader from the US who was visiting in Efrat [in Gush Etzion] this week, wrote the following to me:
 
"And as the siren went on to honor the fallen [Israeli soldiers on Yom Hazikaron] in [the Arab village] al Khadr on the hill in back of us, fireworks were set off to celebrate their demise."
 
What was it that Tobin wrote, above, about shedding Jewish blood?
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
The latest word from Syria is that Assad should not yet be counted out.  Col. (ret.) Dr. Jacques Neriah has written a briefing on this for the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.  He says:
 
"On the second anniversary of the Syrian civil war, those who hurriedly announced the demise of the Assad regime realize that the existing power structures are strong enough to endure a war of attrition with the rebels...
 
"...the pillars of the regime remain in place. Assad has proved that he has the resolve to conduct effective campaigns against the rebels in a very hostile international environment, while continuing to rule and provide for the daily life of the population under his control...
 
Information on events in Syria has come from mostly biased sources.  The Syrian NGO known as the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights has become a privileged source of information on Syria.  Yet, in fact, it is an arm of the Muslim Brotherhood..."
 
http://jcpa.org/article/stalemate-in-the-syrian-civil-war/

~~~~~~~~~~ 

At the very same time that it is becoming apparent that Assad is not going so quickly, there are now second thoughts about whether it would be beneficial for Israel, and the Middle East more broadly, to see him go down after all.  We are engaged in one of those scenarios in which the choices are either awful or more awful.

What is happening in Syria is that it is growing obvious that those who would take over from Assad would likely be radical Islamists -- jihadists.  While Assad has kept the border with Israel quiet, the jihadists would turn towards infiltration into Israel and attacks upon Israel. 

Just days ago, the Jewish Policy Center addressed this growing concern (emphasis added):

"Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) declared a merger with Mohammad al-Julani's Jabhat al-Nusra (JN) or the al-Nusra Front, a Syrian Salafi rebel group. Both groups, with the urging of al-Qaeda central leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, seek to make an Islamic state across the region.

"JN..[since January 2012] has continued to be one of the most prominent groups leading the fight against President Bashar al-Assad. Their status is the result of AQI's help and the sponsorship of wealthy sheikhs from Gulf states who have been providing money and weapons. Washington designated the group as a terrorist organization last December for carrying out nearly 600 attacks, primarily against regime targets that also resulted in the deaths of many civilians. JN members are often suspected of, or claim responsibility for, large car bombings and suicide attacks, especially in cities.

"More moderate forces, such as many in the Free Syrian Army, distanced themselves from JN. 'We don't support the ideology of Al-Nusra, said an FSA spokesman..."

"But what is becoming clear is that unless Washington can find the right rebels to support and has a proverbial dog in this fight, Syria's future will be determined either by al-Qaeda franchises or Bashar al-Assad..."  

http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/04/al-qaeda-in-iraq-allies-with-syrian-jabhat-al-nusra

 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
And then there is Iran.  Over Yom Ha'Atzmaut, we heard from two military leaders here on this subject:
 
Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz gave an extensive interview on Israel Radio that was aired yesterday (emphasis added).
 
Asked if Israel had the capacity to attack Iran by itself, he responded:
 
"Unequivocally, yes.
 
"The Iranian challenge is a meaningful one. We must look at it strategically long-term. We will do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done."
 
Denying that top military and political leaders argue about hitting Iran, the general said:
 
"There are long, continuous discussions, and I presume we'll have more of those in the future."
 
http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Gantz-IDF-can-attack-Iranian-nuclear-sites-on-its-own-309936
 

Credit: Michael Fattal/Haaretz
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
For his part, speaking at a Yom Ha'Atzmaut reception at the Defense Ministry yesterday, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon said (emphasis added):
 
"We may yet have to independently neutralize the Iranian nuclear threat.
 
"The world must lead the battle against Iran, but Israel must take into account the possibility that it may be forced to defend itself, by itself."
 
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/266434
 

Credit: TimesofIsrael
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
While from the US Senate -- bless them -- we are getting support.  Yesterday the Senate Foreign Relations Committee adopted "Senate Resolution 65," which stipulates that the US will assist Israel diplomatically, economically and militarily if the Jewish state is compelled to take military action against Iran “in its defense of its territory, people, and existence.”  

Sponsored by the Committee Chairman Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), the Resolution has secured the bipartisan support of 79 co-sponsors.  It must now be adopted by the full Senate, a technicality.

~~~~~~~~~~ 

Two rockets from the Sinai exploded in Eilat at about 9 AM this morning; no injuries were caused.
 
~~~~~~~~~~
 
© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 
 
If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

http://arlenefromisrael.squarespace.com/current-postings/2013/4/17/april-17-2013-gratitude-beyond-measure.html

Credit: Tomer Neuberg/Flash 90

Yom HaZikaron -- Memorial Day, a day of national mourning -- began last night with a siren at 8 PM.

You can see here a small video segment of ceremonies that took place at the Kotel last night:

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/167110

Yom HaZikaron will end tonight, when the nation will turn in a flash to Yom Ha'Atzmaut -- Independence Day, a day of national celebration.

I have commented several times on the startlingly abrupt shift in mood, which, while it is somehow emblematic of the Jewish people with the ups and downs of our national life, also seemed -- what? -- strange.

This year it has somehow come together for me with startling clarity:

Our nation survives because of these young people -- soldiers on active duty and reserve soldiers -- who come forward, knowing the risks to their own lives, so that the nation might live.  Each mother who sees her child go off to serve understands this painful reality.  It is the price to be paid for Israel.  And what's incredible is that most soldiers go willingly and proudly, even knowing.

Our nation's debt to them is beyond measuring.

~~~~~~~~~~

This past week in its Magazine section, the JPost ran an article on "Defenders of the land."  One of these is Ran Bar- Yoshafat, who is now in the reserves.

Credit: Jewish Agency

"He carries on him at all times a list of comrades who have died in battle, including when and how they died.

"'At first I thought, well, I'd just remember them all, but now then there were too many,' he says.  The list is up to 20 now.

"For Bar-Yoshafat, who considers the IDF 'an absolute necessity' and something that 'teaches more than anything else about life,' Yom HaZikaron is the holiest day of the year.

"'I serve because I understand I save the lives of my friends, my family, and my countrymen.'" (Emphasis added)

And there it is. 

~~~~~~~~~~

And so our people go by the millions to the military graves of those who have fallen -- to honor them, to remember them, and to mourn them.

Credit: IDFblog

Credit: Haaretz

And then the Israeli people turn to celebration of our nation, which, I suspect, is precisely what those who have given their lives for it would want us to do.  Surely their souls rejoice with us, because they made it possible.

~~~~~~~~~~

This is what Amotz Asa-El wrote, with regard to "Comfort my people": (Emphasis added)

"One need not be Israeli to tremble as this heart-wrenching day's siren ululates from Mount Hermon to the Red Sea...

"So palpable and pervasive is grief on this day that visitors who spend it with us take its memory with them for the rest of their lives.

"...Yet while we lament the loss of thousands of promising lives, we have all the right, indeed the duty, to see beyond grief and take stock of what they helped create...

"Back when the state was established, foreigners who cared for it wondered how the minuscule state would survive while under-populated, surrounded by enemies and lacking natural resources.  Asking such a question today is an anachronism.  Israel's economy has matured, its currency is solid, its growth rate has been for the better part of a decade among the developed world's highest, its unemployment and debt-to-GDP rates are among the world's lowest, and its inventiveness has become the subject of legend.

"In the past decade...Israel has become home to the world's largest Jewish community for the first time since the Second Temple era, and is now well on its way to becoming home to a majority of the Jewish people -- for the first time ...since the days of Jeremiah.

"Culturally, the Jewish state is a fountainhead of creation and exploration...None of this would have happened but for the sacrifice of the fallen. 

"In 1967, then-chief of Staff Yitzhak Rabin arrived at the Western Wall moments after its liberation.  Surrounded by the exhausted troops, he said as the entire nation listened: 'Our comrades' sacrifices were not in vain; generations of Jews who were killed, slaughtered and fell sanctifying God's name are now telling you, Comfort, comfort my people.'  (Isaiah 40:1)"

http://www.jpost.com/NationalNews/Article.aspx?id=309845

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We count now 23,085 who have fallen in defense of Israel.  That's not just IDF forces, but police and other security forces, including those operating before the formal establishment of modern Israel -- counting since 1860.  I believe those who have died as victims of terror attacks are added to this number.

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Sharing some meaningful videos. 

First, a deeply moving -- a remarkable -- statement by Miriam Peretz, a mother who lost two soldier-sons:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WWdqhg_t_I

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A beautiful prayer for IDF soldiers (a few years old, but so what):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24bOclbE_eg

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A video here of a soldier, Asael Lubotzky, who didn't die, but came close.  His remarkable spirit tells us a great deal about what Israelis are like. 

http://www.aish.com/h/iid/This-is-Israel-Resilience.html

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A moving video of Israel's history, with much old footage, starting with David Ben Gurion's announcement of the independence of the State, and tracking the need for a strong defense to bring us to where we are today.  You don't need to understand the Hebrew to get it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3M-KpcMmit8

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And lastly, Aish's "Wave Your Flag":

http://www.aish.com/h/iid/Israel_Wave_Your_Flag.html

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© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

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When Jews cave in the face of threats by radical Muslims or their supporters, it leads to increased Jewish weakness and more threats.  And yet sometimes, Jews do cave.   (In some places in the world Jews have become timid because they are thoroughly beleaguered -- a small vulnerable minority in a growing sea of Islamists.)  Increasingly, however, does it seem to be the case in the US, where this must not be permitted to happen. 

What I will describe here is an incident that many of you may already be aware of.  But I cannot let this day pass without writing about it, and sharing further details of which you may not be aware.

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Pamela Geller is proprietor of the blog "Atlas Shrugs," and President of both the American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI) and Stop Islamization of America (SIOA).   Author of several books, she works against radical Islam -- which is decidedly anti-Israel and anti-Jewish, as well as being antithetical to the spirit of democratic freedoms -- and what she refers to as "creeping Sharia'a."

Credit: Breitbart
 
Geller had been invited to speak today, Sunday, April 14, at a Men's Club breakfast at the Great Neck Synagogue in New York. Once words of her talk was out, the intimidation began.

It came, in particular, from one Habeeb Ahmed, who threatened a march on the synagogue.  What is particularly shocking here is that Habeeb Ahmed is a member of the Nassau County Commission on Human Rights and used his position in pressuring the synagogue.

Please see more about this here.  It provides a very alarming window on how far matters have already gone in the US:

http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atlas_shrugs/2013/04/free-speech-demo-at-habeeb-ahmeds-human-rights-office-on-sunday-stand-against-islamic-supremcist-int.html

There will be a free speech demonstration, protesting Ahmed's behavior, in front of the human rights office at 240 Old Country Road, Mineola, at 1 PM today.

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Protest against Geller's talk also came from Jewish Voices for Peace (JVP) which ADL once identified as "one of the ten most anti-Israel organizations in America."  JVP put out a message to its members asking that they contact the synagogue and ask that the event be cancelled. 

See: http://yidwithlid.blogspot.co.il/2013/04/the-real-truth-about-pamela-geller.html

This is perhaps most distressing of all.  Far left Jews are both deluded and dangerous for the rest of us.

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At any rate, and sadly, the two-pronged campaign worked.  The Executive Board of the Great Neck Synagogue, citing "...notoriety and media exposure...legal liability and potential security exposure..." cancelled.

The notoriety and media exposure is less than no excuse.  A courageous board would have turned it around and used the media exposure to make important points about American freedom of speech and the genuine problems that Geller was about to confront.

As to legal liability and "potential" security exposure, it was the responsibility of the synagogue to properly confront these problems.  Hire security guards for the day, if that seems appropriate, consult lawyers within the congregation, etc.  But no, they caved.

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I will make a personal comment here:  I made aliyah in 2001 in the midst of the intifada that incorporated suicide bombings here in Jerusalem where I live.  Twice I was within hearing distance of/ mere blocks away from explosions that indicated major suicide bombing attacks.  And I said, they want me to be so afraid that I leave, but I will not leave.  And, I assure you, my attitude was not unique.

I have little patience for the attitude of the Great Neck Synagogue Executive Board.

Geller, on her site, referred to the decision of this synagogue as "unconscionable self-imposed dhimmitude":   "particularly craven and cowardly, as it sends the message that if leftists and Muslims defame those they hate loudly enough and for a long enough time, they will succeed in getting them silenced." 

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All was not lost however, as two rabbis came forward and invited Geller to speak:

At 10 AM today, following a rally:
Chabad of Great Neck
400 East Shore Rd,
Great Neck, NY 11024
Rabbi Yoseph Geisinsky

At 7 PM today:
Congregation Beth-El Edison
91 Jefferson Boulevard
Edison, N.J. 08817
Rabbi Dr. Bernhard Rosenberg
 
Bravo to both rabbis.  I particularly note the situation of Rabbi Geisinsky, however: Not long ago, he had a massive heart attack and was pronounced dead when he had no pulse.  It was anticipated that if he were revived he would have severe damage. The community prayed fervently for their rabbi without stop, and he recovered fully -- physically and mentally.  Now, unafraid, he is prepared to take a strong stand.

Credit: moshiach.ru

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Tonight begins Yom HaZikaron here in Israel: Memorial Day for all of those who have died in defense of Israel.  A time most somber. 

Credit: erinamsili.blogspot

I am eager to post this now, and I will follow with more shortly.

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© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution. 

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

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