Uri Ariel: US Keeps Pollard in Jail and Demands We Free Killers

by Tzvi Ben-Gedalyahu

The US has kept Pollard in jail for 28 years. The same US is twisting Israel’s
arm to free more than 80 terrorists, and Minister Uri Ariel, understandably,
cannot understand the American mind.

The US is backing PA demands that Israel free more than 80 Arab terrorists
who have murdered dozens of Jews. The US refuses to free from jail Jonathan
Pollard, whose crime was releasing some classified documents.
The US is backing PA demands that Israel free more than 80 Arab terrorists
who have murdered dozens of Jews. The US refuses to free from jail Jonathan
Pollard, whose crime was releasing some classified documents.
“What is going on in the minds of Americans when they  insist on keeping
Jonathan Pollard in prison and demand  that Israel free terrorists” who have
murdered Jews, Housing Minister Uri Ariel asked on Voice of Israel Sunday.
“It really is amazing.”
Pollard has been in jail, despite ill health, for 28 years for the crime of
passing on classified information on behalf of Israel when he worked for the
Pentagon. He is the only person ever to be sentenced to life in prison for
the offense, which usually bears a prison term of 2-4 years.
Jewish Press editor Yori Yanover wrote on Friday, “Israel is giving in on
the release of Palestinian prisoners with Jewish blood on their hands.
‘There will be some release of prisoners,’ said Minister of Strategic
Affairs Yuval Steinitz. ‘I don’t want to give numbers but there will be
heavyweight prisoners who have been in jail for tens of years.’”
In case anyone as sleeping  with the bears in hibernation at the time,
Israel has freed thousands of terrorists and security prisoners for dead
bodies and most recently for the return of one live body – kidnapped soldier
Gilad Shalit.
Since the 1000-for-1 exchange  two years ago, dozens of the freed
Palestinian Authority Arabs have returned to terror.
Previous releases of terrorists have resulted in more than 120 murders of
Jews in Israel by the same Palestinian Authority “resistance fighters.
But their suicide bombings do not compare with the gravity of  Pollard’s
crime. If not, why would the American judicial system – which of course is
fairer, more modern and more sophisticated than the process in primitive
Israel – keep Pollard in jail for life?
Pollard’s crime is obviously so heinous that he was not even allowed to
attend the funeral of his father in 2011. Nor was he allowed to leave his
cell to attend the funeral of his mother 10 years earlier.
The American government really is not hard-hearted. Officials actually
allowed Pollard to call his father a week before his death. His father was
too weak to speak on the telephone but so what? That’s not the government’s
fault.
Leading American politicians who were in office at the time that Pollard was
sentenced have come forth in the past three years to admit that he did not
receive a fair trial and  that he was unfairly punished.
Israel, cited every year by the U.S. State Dept. for human rights
violations, is apparently ready to free more than 80 terrorists, who have
visiting privileges, who received “salaries” from the Palestinian Authority
for their previous success in killing Jews, and who are paid by Israel to
learn in university.
Israel  perhaps could learn something from the United States, but that will
have to wait because  U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry needs direct talks
between Israel and the Palestinian Authority to save his face.
 
 
Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu is a graduate in journalism and
economics from The George Washington University. He has worked as a cub
reporter in rural Virginia and as senior copy editor for major Canadian
metropolitan dailies. Tzvi wrote for Arutz Sheva for several years before
joining the Jewish Press.

Source: http://www.jewishpress.com/news/uri-ariel-us-keeps-pollard-in-jail-and-demands-we-free-killers/2013/07/21/

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

Netanyahu says Peace Deal, if Reached, will be Sent to National Referendum

by Shlomo Cesana, Yoni Hirsch, Daniel Siryoti, Yori Yalon and Israel Hayom Staff

After three years of stalemate, Kerry announces renewal of peace negotiations • Prime Minister Netanyahu: Resumption of talks is a vital strategic interest for Israel • 85 Palestinian prisoners, some with blood on their hands, to be released in stages.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Menachem Begin Heritage Center on Sunday. | Photo credit: PMO

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas during a previous round of talks

|

Photo credit: GPO

If peace talks with the Palestinians reach fruition, the results of such talks will be brought to a national referendum for ratification, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday.

Speaking at the weekly Cabinet session, which was held this Sunday at the Menachem Begin Heritage Center in Jerusalem to mark 100 years since Begin's birth, Netanyahu told the ministers that if an agreement is reached, he would put it to a national referendum vote. 

"I believe that this is crucial; I don't believe that decisions such as these can be taken - if a deal is reached – with one coalition or another, but rather this thing needs to be brought to the nation to decide," Netanyahu said.

Israel is entering talks with honesty and integrity, Netanyahu said, adding that he hoped negotiations would be conducted responsibly and, at least at first, discretely. 

Netanyahu went on to warn that negotiations will not be easy, saying that the resumption of the peace process was an essential interest of the State of Israel. He said further that Israel would have to find the right balance between preventing a binational state and preventing the establishment of an Iran-backed terror state. 

Netanyahu's comments signal that after three years of stalemate, peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians are set to be renewed in the imminent future. The goal of the negotiations will be to reach a permanent agreement that brings an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. At this stage, the terms of reference for the talks remain opaque, as neither the Israelis nor Palestinians are ready to divulge what formula they have agreed to. 

On Friday night, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who has visited the region six times over the past four months, held a press conference in Amman before flying back to the U.S. At the press conference, Kerry announced the renewal of Israeli-Palestinian talks.

"I am pleased to announce that we have reached an agreement that establishes a basis for resuming direct final status negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis," Kerry said "This is a significant and welcome step forward."

Kerry praised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas for showing "courageous leadership."

Kerry said that "if everything goes as expected," Israeli-Palestinian negotiations would get underway in Washington "within the next week or so." Israel will be represented at the initial meeting by Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and Netanyahu's special envoy Yitzhak Molcho. Saeb Erekat, the chief negotiator for the Palestinian Authority, will represent the Palestinians.

According the official announcement, the duration of the negotiations will be between nine months to a year. The Palestinians will enter the negotiations without preconditions, such as an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 borders, a declaration of Jerusalem as the capital of two states or a settlement construction freeze.

However, two Abbas aides, speaking anonymously, painted a different picture. They told The Times of London that Abbas had received a written guarantee from Kerry that the basis for the negotiations would be the 1967 borders and that Israel wouldn't issue new tenders for settlement construction.

Israeli officials in Jerusalem denied making any such commitments.

The Palestinians pledged to not act against Israel in international institutions for the next nine months. The Prime Minister's Office said this was significant, as the Palestinians had previously planned to seek statehood recognition at the U.N. in September. 

The main Israeli concession was its consent to releasing 85 Palestinian prisoners, some with blood on their hands, who have been jailed since before the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993. The release will be conducted in stages as negotiations progress over the course of the year. None of the terrorists will be released before the start of talks. The first group, to include 40 prisoners, will be freed within six weeks of the start of negotiations. No Israeli Arab prisoners will be released.

After Shabbat ended on Saturday evening, Netanyahu released a statement on the renewal of negotiations. 

"I view the resumption of the diplomatic process at this time as a vital strategic interest for Israel,” Netanyahu said. “It is important in and of itself in order to try and bring about the conclusion of the conflict between us and the Palestinians, and it is important in light of the strategic challenges that are before us, mainly from Iran and Syria.”

"I have in mind a number of objectives -- preventing the creation of a binational state between the Jordan River and the sea, which will endanger the future of the Jewish state, and preventing the creation of another Iranian-backed terrorist state within Israel's borders, which could no less endanger us."

Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon welcomed the renewal of negotiations, saying Israel has a genuine desire to reach an agreement that ends the conflict with the Palestinians.

Shlomo Cesana, Yoni Hirsch, Daniel Siryoti, Yori Yalon and Israel Hayom Staff

Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=10833

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

The Face and the Words of an 11-year-old Yemenite Girl who Refuses to become a "Child Bride"

by SBS Staff

An 11 year-old Yemeni girl has drawn the world's attention to the issue of child brides after denouncing her arranged marriage in an impassioned video online.

In a remarkable video first posted to LiveLeak, 11-year-old Nada Al-Ahdal fiercely declared: "I am not an item for sale, I'm a human being and I would rather die than get married at this age."
She  tells the camera how she ran away to her uncle's house after her family married her off to an older man for money.

"What about the innocence of childhood? What have the children done wrong? Why do you marry them off like that?"
"They said that I couldn't leave and even threatened to kill me if I went back to my uncle."
She also said that while she had solved her problem, many other child brides had no options, and suicide was a commonly contemplated solution.
"I've decided that I have two choices: to leave or to die. So I chose the first. I would have had no life, no education. Don't they have any compassion?"
"Some children decided to throw themselves into the sea, they’re dead now. This is not normal for innocent children. They have killed our dreams, they have killed everything inside us."



SBS Staff

Source: http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1791524/Yemeni-child-brides-protest-gains-global-attention

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

Do not Release Killers

by Dani Dayan

The relevant question now is how these new negotiations will conclude. We all know what the outcome will be -- it will be identical to the outcomes of all the previous rounds of talks. The Palestinians' extreme obstinacy won't let them strike an agreement. What is more -- at least I hope as much -- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not make any reckless, irresponsible offers like his predecessor Ehud Olmert did. Therefore, I ask, what price did Israel have to pay to bring Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to the negotiating table?

I will say this right off the bat: Whatever the price, it is unacceptable to begin with. The idea that the State of Israel needs to pay a fee for the so-called privilege of negotiating with the other side is ridiculous and detrimental. But it is hard to shake the feeling that this time, a fee was indeed paid, and it was high. 

One price that Israel is willing to pay is already evident. Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz explicitly admitted it: Israel is planning to release Palestinian prisoners, some of them "heavyweights," as Steinitz described them. The release of terrorists is morally, and diplomatically, wrong. The very fact that the Palestinians are demanding the release of these wholesale killers raises moral questions about their attitude toward the murder of Jews. But even worse is the fact that the Israeli government is agreeing to this demand; it suggests a lenient and forgiving attitude on behalf of the government toward these murderers' actions. 

Israel has apparently agreed to pay additional heavy costs to encourage Abbas to do us all a favor and sit across from Israel's negotiators. But these other concessions are still being kept from the public. 

Instead of keeping their eyes closed, the members of the government must demand that the prime minister fully disclose all the information about these concessions. The only thing worse tha[n] being a part of a coalition with which you do not agree is not knowing where that coalition is headed. 

Dani Dayan is the former chairman of the Yesha settler council.

Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=5057

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

Wars within Wars in Northern Syria

by Jonathan Spyer


Jerusalem Post, 19/7:

A senior figure in the Free Syrian Army this week said that al Qaeda in Syria were preparing to declare an ‘Islamic state’ in rebel-held northern Syria. This announcement came in the course of a frenetic period of activity for the jihadi rebels of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant Syria (ISIS) and Jabhat al-Nusra organizations.

Jihadi activity is leading to the emergence of new and complicated lines of conflict in northern Syria, both within rebel controlled areas and beyond them.

In the last weeks, jihadi rebels in Syria have assassinated a number of commanders of the Free Syrian Army. These included a member of the western-backed Supreme Military Council, Kamal Hammami, and FSA battalion commander Fadi el-Qash, together with one of his brothers. The FSA holds ISIS commander Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi responsible for the killings and is demanding his arrest.

The jihadis also clashed this week with Kurdish fighters in the area of Ras al-ain/Sere Kaniyeh on the border with Syria. These clashes began after Jabhat al-Nusra fighters attacked a convoy guarded by female fighters of the Kurdish YPG militia. The YPG’s response has led to the near expulsion of the jihadis from the Kurdish majority town.

Tensions between the jihadis and other armed elements in northern Syria are now at an unprecedented peak. There are also indications of wider discontent with jihadi activities among the civilian population in the rebel controlled north. The jihadis have a reputation for non-corruption and a murderous commitment to the fight against government forces. Despite these aspects, it appears that the rigidity and oppressiveness of their version of Islamic rule is provoking a backlash.

In Raqqa, the largest town under rebel control, demonstrations and protests have taken place against the attempts by Jabhat al-Nusra and the more locally oriented Salafis of Ahrar al-Sham to impose their version of Islamic rule. Youthful inhabitants of Raqqa, including many who were activists against the Assad regime and who welcomed the expulsion of the regime from Raqqa are now engaged in the protests against the new jihadi rulers of the town.

Amid the deteriorating relations between the FSA and the jihadis, there are those who claim that at least some elements of the jihadis are in contact with the regime, and that their Syrian fighters include those who in the past fought with pro-Assad militias.

Accusations of this type should not simply be dismissed as the usual Middle Eastern ‘conspiracy theories.’ Certainly, it is the case that in the pre-2011 period, the Assad regime was expert in manipulating and directing the energies of Sunni jihadis for its own ends.

Damascus airport, famously, became a hub for jihadis seeking to reach Iraq to take part in the fighting against US forces. The Assad regime also created a puppet Islamist group in Lebanon, the Fatah al-Islam group, to further its aim of destabilizing that country after Syrian troops were expelled in 2005. So it is quite possible that the regime is in contact with and possibly directing some elements among the jihadis engaged in Syria. The jihadis serve the regime’s narrative that it is engaged in fighting against mainly foreign terrorists, and thus help to discredit Assad’s opponents.

But at the same time, it would be equally mistaken to assume that this is the whole story. ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra are not puppet organizations. They remain, demonstrably, among the most fierce of the regime’s opponents.

The veracity of the statements by the un-named FSA commander concerning the imminent declaration of statehood by then jihadis also remains unconfirmed.

Aymenn Jawad al-Tamimi, a UK based researcher who monitors jihadi statements and activity in Syria for the Jihadology website, said that he had found ‘nothing on ISIS pages to corroborate the idea of a planned declaration for a northern state in Syria after Ramadan,” as asserted by the FSA official.

Tamimi, however, did not rule out the possibility that ISIS could be planning such a move, given its ‘expansion’ in northern Syria and its rule in certain areas.

It is possible that the release of these claims forms part of a prelude to retaliatory action by FSA elements in Syria against the jihadis. Certainly, sources close to the rebels confirm that they view such a clash to be an eventual inevitability.

It should also be noted that ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra are themselves involved in a lengthy feud of their own over who is the authentic representative of al-Qaeda in Syria.

So in northern Syria, in addition to the war between the Assad regime and the rebellion, there are at least three additional, discernible conflicts taking place.

The al-Qaeda supporting jihadis are fighting the Kurdish defense organization.

The jihadis are also engaging in the killing of other rebel leaders. And anti-jihadi oppositionists are organizing against them in areas which they control.

And lastly, the jihadis are also in dispute with one another, though not (yet) violently.
It is also possible, given the Assad regime’s track record and its interests, that some among the jihadi ranks are linked to the regime.

So in addition to metastasizing beyond its borders, the Syrian civil war is also giving birth to a variety of new conflicts within Syria itself. It is wars within wars – and no end in sight. The main victims of all this, of course, are the people of Syria.


Jonathan Spyer

Source: http://www.gloria-center.org/2013/07/wars-within-wars-in-northern-syria/

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

Returning Gifts

by Andrés Cala

SIROCCO blog: The Mediterranean wind whipped up in the Sahara and blown across the Maghreb region. In North Africa, it is known by its Arabic name, qibli. ‘Sirocco’ provides a blow-by-blow account of events occurring in the Arabic-speaking countries west of Egypt.

An image grab taken from a handout video released on June 22, 2013 by the Spanish Interior Ministry shows members of the Spanish security forces detaining one of the eight unidentified suspected terrorists arrested in Ceuta on June 21. Spanish security forces on June 21 broke up an Al-Qaeda-linked network in north Africa suspected of sending fighters to Syria, arresting eight people in early morning raids. Police launched operations against the network in Ceuta, a Spanish territory in north Africa. (AFP PHOTO/SPANISH INTERIOR MINISTRY)

European governments are gearing up for heightened terrorist threats as Al-Qaeda cells increase their recruitment of European-born Maghreb descendants and immigrants to fight in Syria. The numbers of such jihadists are rising steadily into the hundreds.

Authorities from several European countries are publicly warning about the increasing danger that some of them will inevitably return as battle-hardened and radicalized terrorists and target their home countries. The growing concern explains Western foot-dragging in arming forces fighting Syria’s regime as they scramble to find ways to help rebels without empowering more radical Al-Qaeda affiliates like Jabhat Al-Nursa and the Islamic State of Iraq.

The two groups appear to be taking the leadership and initiative from moderate rebels fighting to topple Syria’s regime. They also consider Western countries and Arab regimes their enemies, even if they share a common enemy in Bashar Al-Assad. Indeed, Europe’s worst fears of terrorism are materializing. For years, anti-terrorism efforts have concentrated on the massive population of North African and Pakistani immigrants and descendants, some of whom are being lured to radical jihadist struggles across the globe.

Most terrorism plots in Europe, successful or not, have not been directed by foreign terrorist networks, but by home-grown dormant cells, many of which fought in far-away wars like Chechnya, Somalia, Pakistan and Afghanistan. But the Syrian and Malian wars, on top of the growing Al-Qaeda presence in Libya, Algeria, Lebanon and, presumably, Egypt has empowered jihadist groups on its borders. Maghreb descendents and immigrants are increasingly being lured to these struggles, significantly complicating anti-terrorism efforts.

European nationals

Ongoing court cases, authorities and independent security think tanks suggest hundreds of European residents have gone to fight in Syria, including some who died as suicide bombers and many more who joined the ranks of Al-Qaeda affiliates, as opposed to moderate rebel forces. The most recent was on June 21, when eight men, all Spaniards of Moroccan origin, were arrested for their alleged involvement in an Al-Qaeda-linked cell based in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, on the North African shore. The cell also operated in Belgium and the Netherlands.

The cell sent at least fifty men to Syria, including minors, out of which twelve were Spanish citizens mostly of Moroccan origin. There were also at least another thirty-eight from Morocco. One of them, a Spanish citizen, killed 130 Assad troops in a suicide attack in 2012.

On June 27, a Spanish court ordered the arrest of the cell leader, also of Moroccan descent, born in Ceuta and a resident of Belgium. It also ordered the arrest of another man, who allegedly said in a wiretapped phone conversation that he would target Ceuta if he was not allowed to go to Syria, according to court documents. Spanish authorities said returning jihadists are “a real and serious threat to our security.” And they are right to be concerned.

On July 1, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb criticized the arrests in a statement, and accused Morocco’s monarch of treason for working with Spanish authorities instead of fighting to reclaim the Spanish enclaves on Morocco’s coast. Spanish interior minister Jorge Fernández Díaz said authorities “are certain” that Al-Qaeda’s goal is to get many of its militants “to return to their home countries to carry out jihad” as lone wolves or by integrating existing dormant cells.

He did not say how many Spaniards fighting in Syria had returned, but added that “we have the information. We are not talking about combatants, soldiers in Syria’s conflict, but of recruiting jihadists to carry out [suicide] attacks.” Belgium, where the Ceuta-born alleged leader of the Spanish cell resides, is also looking into recruitment on its turf, as is the Netherlands. According to the Belgian press, at least two hundred Belgians have joined the war in Syria; the majority are of North African origin.

The European Union said in April that at least five hundred European citizens had joined Syria’s war, but the exact number remains uncertain. How many will try to target their home countries is ultimately Europe’s biggest concern.


Andrés Cala

Source: http://www.aawsat.net/2013/07/article55310393

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

Netanyahu's Surrender?

by Jerold S. Auerbach

Last week a white flag seemed to be waving over Jerusalem. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, known for his proclivity for yielding to American pressure was reported to have accepted the surrender terms dictated by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and imposed by Secretary of State John Kerry. 

To meet Palestinian conditions for the resumption of peace talks, Netanyahu seemed willing to cross his own (repeatedly asserted) red line -- no Palestinian preconditions for negotiations. But after Kerry's relentless arm-twisting, he was reportedly prepared to accept Abbas' preconditions. First, there would be yet another freeze on Jewish settlement construction in Judea and Samaria (formerly Jordan's West Bank), where 350,000 Jews now live in the ancient homeland of the Jewish people. Second, Israel would negotiate based on its vulnerable pre-1967 temporary armistice lines (memorably identified by Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban as "Auschwitz borders"). Third, Israel would release 250 Palestinian prisoners, many with Jewish blood on their hands, as a goodwill gesture.

Anyone familiar with Netanyahu's record as prime minister would not have been surprised. In 1997 he signed the Hebron Protocol, partitioning the ancient Jewish city where Abraham buried Sarah in the tomb known ever since as Me'arat HaMachpela. Jews were -- and remain -- confined to a tiny and vulnerable ghetto. In 2009, early in his current round as prime minister, Netanyahu capitulated to Palestinian demands for a ten-month settlement freeze as a condition for negotiations. Palestinians never came to the table.

Based on his past record, it seemed reasonable to conclude that Netanyahu would capitulate to American pressure once again. Israeli President Shimon Peres, whose contributions to the disastrous Oslo Accords twenty years ago propelled the Palestinian Authority to legitimacy, while consigning many hundreds of Israeli civilians to death in terrorist attacks and suicide bombings, sounded euphoric at the prospect of another Israeli surrender. "I believe that [Kerry's] significant effort will bear fruit on both the Israeli and the Palestinian side," he said, with both parties "making an effort to overcome the final obstacles."

But for Israel to agree to return to its temporary armistice lines of 1949, even if only for the purpose of negotiation, would be a concession that invites disaster. At its narrowest, barely 10 miles wide, it would once again have an indefensible eastern border. The nearby Samarian hills would be open to Hamas and Hezb'allah infiltration, if not Palestinian invitation, and rocket and terrorist attacks on nearby Israeli cities (Tel Aviv, to cite a random example) would surely follow.

Following the Six-Day War, Defense Minister Moshe Dayan explained the meaning of Israel's stunning victory. In a ceremony on the Mount of Olives, near the ancient Jewish cemetery, which (like the Old City and Western Wall) Jews had been prohibited from visiting during the years of Jordanian occupation, Dayan declared: "We have returned to all that is holy in our land. . . . We have returned to the cradle of our people, to the inheritance of the Patriarchs. . . . We will not be parted from the holy places."

Not so fast. Given what Netanyahu seemed prepared relinquish even before talks began, it is easy to imagine how he would respond to future American pressure to satisfy Palestinian demands for a final solution. The Palestinian Authority has already indicated that no Jews would be permitted to live in the State of Palestine. That means that 200,000 Jews living in East Jerusalem and 350,000 Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria would face expulsion from their homes. "What will become of Israel?" asked Abbas Zaki, member of the Fatah Central Committee: "It will come to an end."

There is more than ample justification for Jews to remain where they are, continuing to develop their prospering homeland in the face of persistent worldwide efforts to deny its legitimacy. It includes the divine promise of the Land of Israel to the Jewish people; centuries of ancient Jewish sovereignty there; the defining Zionist principle of settlement; international law, which ever since 1922 -- when Great Britain relinquished two-thirds of Palestine to King Abdullah -- has assured Jews the right of "close settlement" west of the Jordan River; and the fruits of military victory in its defensive war for survival in 1967.

Although Netanyahu's track record suggested the likelihood of substantial Israeli concessions even before negotiations began, Palestinians predictably seized the opportunity to miss their opportunity. At the last minute, the governing Revolutionary Council of President Abbas's Fatah movement rejected Kerry's plan. Netanyahu was off the hook -- for now.

But you never know. The story is told of the scorpion that reached a river bank, hoping to get to the other side. Unable to swim, he pleaded with a frog to transport him. "Why should I?," asked the frog. "You will sting me and I will die." The scorpion pointed out the folly of that: then they would both perish. The frog was persuaded and the scorpion climbed on his back. Half way across, the scorpion stung the frog. "Why did you do that," asked the sinking frog. The drowning scorpion replied: "That's the Middle East."


Jerold S. Auerbach is the author, most recently, of Against the Grain: A Historian's Journey (Quid Pro Books, 2012).

Source: http://www.americanthinker.com/2013/07/netanyahus_surrender.html

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

Lebanese FM: EU should reconsider Hezbollah blacklisting

by Layal Abu Rahal

A boy wearing an army suit is held by people as they watch Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah as he appears on a screen during a live broadcast to speak to his supporters at an event marking Resistance and Liberation Day, in Bekaa valley May 25, 2013. (REUTERS/Sharif Karim)

Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour said on Saturday that the European Union should “think carefully” before placing Hezbollah on its list of terrorist organizations.

The EU is due to discuss the issue on Monday.

Speaking during a radio interview, Mansour said: “this decision cannot be dealt with lightly or recklessly,” adding that “the decision will have negative consequences and will not serve Lebanese-European relations. It will hinder bilateral relations we hope to keep at their best.”

Lebanese President Michel Suleiman appointed Mansour last Thursday, after consultation with the head of caretaker government Najib Mikati, to “represent Lebanon and request from the EU’s commission not to include Hezbollah—an essential component of the Lebanese society—on the list of terrorist, especially if the decision is to be taken hastily without reference to objective and compelling evidence.”

EU foreign ministers are due to meet in Brussels tomorrow to make a joint decision on including the military wing of Hezbollah on the blacklist of terrorist organizations, on the basis of its alleged involvement in bombings in Bulgaria and preparation for an attack in Cyprus.

Future Movement MP Ammar Houry told Asharq Al-Awsat: “Despite our absolute rejection of placing Hezbollah on Europe’s list of terrorist, we believe they brought this onto themselves,” noting the “many efforts by former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri, years before his assassination, to prevent Hezbollah from being placed on this list.”

Houry also said: “It is in the interest of Lebanon not to include Hezbollah on the list of terrorism because of the natural implications it would lead to.”

He added: “we have already warned Hezbollah not to get involved in terrorist matters, particularly in Syria—namely Qusayr, Homs, Aleppo and Damascus—and particularly in Western and Eastern countries such as Bulgaria, Cyprus and Azerbaijan.”

If the organization is added to the blacklist, it will not affect the political dialogue between the European Union and the Lebanese government and Lebanese civil society, given that the decision to enlist focuses on Hezbollah’s military wing. However, Lebanon’s foreign minister said: “including the military wing on the list of terrorist might as well include the political wing. Lebanon cannot act like this is a consolation.”

Mansour added: “If the decision is taken, it will require Lebanon to do what it is unable to do. There are several countries working to place Hezbollah on the list of terrorists, including Britain, and Jewish lobbyists are pushing for this.”

He said, however, that he suspected complications regarding this decision due to differences between countries.

Though some countries are still reluctant to include about this decision such as Malta and Ireland, it is being supported by other countries including Britain, France and Germany. Both Britain and the Netherlands have already included Hezbollah in their national list of terrorist organizations.


Layal Abu Rahal

Source: http://www.aawsat.net/2013/07/article55310657

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

Committee Begins Revision of 2012 Egypt Constitution

by Gamal Essam El-Din

Inaugural meeting was 'procedural', establishing one-week window for political groups to submit amendments

File photo: Members of the constitutional assembly attend a session at the Shura Council building in Cairo (Photo: AP)

Amid political tension and street protests organised by the Muslim Brotherhood, a 10-member committee including 6 senior judges and 4 high-profile constitutional law professors met on Sunday to begin amending Egypt's 2012 Islamist-backed constitution. 

The meeting of the so-called "committee of experts" was held in the oval office of the Shura Council, Egypt's upper house of parliament. According to Ali Awad, committee chairman and Interim President Adly Mansour's constitutional and legal affairs consultant, the two-and-a-half-hour closed-door meeting on Sunday was just "procedural," aiming to settle a timetable for upcoming meetings and agendas.

In a press conference with parliamentary correspondents, Awad explained that during the inaugural meeting, the committee decided to offer a one-week window for all political forces to submit proposed amendments to the 2012 constitution.  After 28 July, proposed amendments will be revised by a "technical committee of experts," Awad said.

Proposed amendments can be sent by fax or e-mail, according to Awad.

Awad strongly denied that the committee has devised ready-made amendments to the 2012 constitution. "We do not have tailored amendments to the 2012 constitution," said Awad, stressing that "the committee is not under pressure or orders to draft the amendments in a certain way."

According to Awad, "it is too early to decide" which articles must be amended.  In any event, Awad added, the committee has agreed that the 2012 constitution be revised article by article so that all remarks raised by political forces can be carefully reviewed.

"Our revision, coupled with the amendments proposed by political forces, will help us finalise a new draft of the 2012 constitution," Awad said.

Awad revealed that revisions will begin on Tuesday, 23 July, with meetings held daily except for Mondays and Thursdays. "We will hold morning and evening meetings until we reach the 21 August deadline," indicated Awad.  This is in accordance with the deadline set by Article 28 of Interim President Mansour's constitutional declaration.

The experts committee's six judicial members include Mohamed Eid Mahgoub, secretary-general of the Higher Council for Judges; Hassan Basiouny, a Cairo appeals judge; Mohamed El-Shennawy and Mohamed Khairy Taha, High Constitutional Court (HCC) deputy chairmen; and  Essam El-Din Abdel-Aziz and Magdi El-Agati; State Council deputy chairmen.

The four university professors include Fathi Fekri of Cairo University, Hamdi Ali Omar, dean of Zagazig's Faculty of Law, Salah Eddin Fawzi of Mansoura University, and Ali Abdel-Al of Ain Shams University.

Awad stressed that according to Article 29 of Mansour's constitutional declaration, all amendments proposed by the committee will be submitted to a larger committee for review.  This larger committee will be composed of 50 members representing all sectors of society, including political parties, intellectuals, workers, farmers, professional syndicates, unionists, Al-Azhar, Egyptian churches, the armed forces and the police.  The 50-member committee must also include 10 youth and women.

"The committee of experts will only be in charge of proposing an initial draft of the constitution, while the 50-member committee will be the one entrusted with devising the final draft of the new constitution."

According to Article 30 of the constitutional declaration, after the final draft is submitted to the president, it must be put to a national referendum within 30 days.  If the referendum is approved, the president must set a date for parliamentary elections within 15 days.  Within one week of the House of Representatives' first session, a date for presidential elections must be set.

The 2012 constitution was originally drafted by an Islamist-dominated assembly on 30 November, 2012.  It was attacked by non-Islamist members, who said Morsi was turning into another "Pharoah" with despotic powers limiting freedom of speech and imposing a strict Islamic code.

The constitution was approved in a two-round national referendum on 15 and 22 December, 2012, receiving 64 percent vote in favor.

Pro-Morsi protesters attempting to stage a demonstration outside the American embassy on Sunday were blocked by police from nearing the Shura Council.

Muslim Brotherhood members strongly denounced the committee's meeting, framing it as "a coup against legitimacy."


Gamal Essam El-Din

Source: http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/77015/Egypt/Politics-/Committee-begins-revision-of--Egypt-constitution.aspx

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

Choosing Evil - Obama's Systematic Surrender to Jihad

by James Lewis


Clare M. Lopez is that vanishing rarity in Washington, a professional intelligence analyst who tells the truth. This week she writes about Obama's systematic surrender in the Jihad War, the aggressive war on America that our political class has denied since September 11, 2001. 


Lopez confirms in detail what many of us suspected: under Obama the US has flipped to the side of Islamic aggression.

She writes,

"... the United States of America has apparently abandoned the core principles of its Founding Fathers and capitulated to the forces of jihad and shariah.... "

Amazingly, the administration seems to follow the Muslim Brotherhood's ideological imam, Yousef al-Qaradawi.        It sure looks like we are now Qaradawi's string puppet:

"When al-Qaradawi said that Mubarak had to go, the U.S. waited a whole three days before throwing America's key ally in the Middle East for over three decades under the bus. When al-Qaradawi called for Libyan rebels to kill Muammar Qaddafi ... the U.S. led the Western military campaign that brought al-Qa'eda, the MB, and chaos to Libya. And when al-Qaradawi issued a call for jihad in Syria ...  It took the U.S. less than one week ... to announce authorization of stepped-up military aid to the al-Qa'eda-and-Brotherhood-dominated Syrian rebels."

The Muslim Bros only have to pull a fatwah out of the hat and the United States of American jumps to do its bidding.


Rub your eyes and pinch yourself --- this is not a horrifying dream. It's all too real.

But surely Hillary can't be infected by the same disease?

Oh yeah?

"Since 2011, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had been working closely with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation [OIC] to implement UN Human Rights Council Resolution 16/18, one of the key vehicles aimed at legislating restrictions on Americans' .... right to free speech

Anything that causes offense to Muslims will be forbidden. Remember the "Islamophobia" scare campaign? We are already on the way there, or have you tried to say a critical word about Muslims to a liberal lately.


The world knows about Ms. Huma Abedan as Hillary's personal Muslim Brotherhood assistant. Huma no doubt helped to advise our Secretary of State about that war they keep making on us.


Huma's husband is of course Anthony Weiner, the infamous crotch photo sexter, who has now jumped to the head of the pack for the Mayor of New York City.


That would be the American city that saw 3,000 civilian war dead on September 11, 2001. 

The word "Islam" means surrender. Not peace. The peace only comes after you surrender.
It could be that Obama is our Manchurian president, who learned as a child to surrender to Islam in that Indonesian madrassah. Could be.

Or it could be that this administration is merely perverse, turning upside-down and backwards every single moral position the United States has taken since George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. 

Whatever the smelly details may be, it looks like we are now on the side of savage oppression of women, Jews, Christians, secularists, and every other heretic throughout the Muslim world. 

Of course, it could all be just a coincidence. 

But notice one more fact. 

Thursday, Janet "Big Sis" Napolitano officially moved from Secretary of Homeland Security to the President of the University of California system.



In the same 24 hour period the UC Board of Regents named "student Muslim activist Sadia Saifuddin," age 21, to be its next student member.



Don't shut your eyes, don't turn away from the obvious.


In the Middle East people are already dying in the tens of thousands, after our turn to the dark side.


Funny thing is, that happens whenever the radical left comes to power in the world.

Ever notice that?

James Lewis

Source: http://www.americanthinker.com/2013/07/choosing_evil.html

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.