New Views of Moderation, Resistance and the Holocaust in the Middle East - Najat Al-Saied

 

by Najat Al-Saied

Nothing, it seems, infuriates extremist groups or the Axis of Resistance more than bringing them face-to-face with such historical facts, and being able to cast aside all doubt about everything that is going on in Israel and that has been so maliciously and falsely reported

• The real danger lies not only in denying that the Holocaust took place, but, worse, in rewriting history, especially by those who oppose peace and stability. Their main motive seems to be to perpetuate hatred and hostility so that the conflict -- their raison d'être and possibly also their careers -- remains continuous and immortal.

• The real dispute in the Middle East is actually between two axes: an Axis of Moderation and an Axis of Resistance (to moderation, non-violence, normalization and peace).

• Nothing, it seems, infuriates extremist groups or the Axis of Resistance more than bringing them face-to-face with such historical facts, and being able to cast aside all doubt about everything that is going on in Israel and that has been so maliciously and falsely reported

• If matters were more peaceful and normal, everyone could go there and see the reality for themselves. This suppression of the truth seems, in fact, the main reason that so many are against normalization and fostering relationships between people across cultural and political divides: they want their own people to see only their version of reality.

• Mohammad Dajani, a former Palestinian professor at Al-Quds University, had a different experience: he still lives in the midst of the conflict. His life is at risk because of the pragmatic position he chose: to solve the conflict rather than to perpetuate it.

• [The Abraham Accords] made the voice of the Axis of Moderation louder and bolder. Supporters of the Axis of Resistance can no longer embarrass supporters of the Axis of Moderation, as they have done in the past, simply by accusing them of treason, or for doing nothing for the Palestinians or the Palestinian cause.

• Peace cannot be built as long as extremism and ideological terrorism exist, and there can be no independent Palestinian state if generations are raised on violence and hatred in the absence of reason and logic.

• Through the new Abraham Accords, which differ from previous models in that they actively promote peace and prosperity for the civil society, there is finally a glorious opportunity for people to see for themselves the reality of the Holocaust, for example, and better understand the dangers of radicalism, intolerance and racism to their own societies.

This year, His Excellency Ahmed Obaid AlMansoori, the Emirati founder of the Crossroads of Civilizations Museum in Dubai, led this history-making delegation from the UAE to Poland along with Eitan Nichloss, the newly-appointed ambassador of the International March of the Living in the Gulf States. Such delegations that expose people to historical evidence and facts that counter the radicals' manipulation of history, could go a long way to having a refreshingly positive influence in helping to solve the conflict still underway in the Middle East. Pictured: The Crossroads of Civilizations Museum in Dubai. (Image source: أمين علوان/Wikimedia Commons)

For the first time in history, a delegation of journalists, academics and influencers from across the Arab and Muslim world -- including citizens from states that have not yet signed peace agreements with Israel, such as Saudi Arabia, Syria and Lebanon – came to see first-hand the horrors of the Holocaust and to promote education and awareness of them in their societies.

The delegation was organized by Sharaka, a grassroots organization based in Israel, the UAE, Bahrain, and Morocco, and made up of young social activists from Israel, the Arab Gulf States and others in the region who are dedicated to promoting warm ties and citizen-diplomacy. The group learned about the pre-WWII Jewish community, about the Holocaust, including touring the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp in Poland, and then took part in the International March of the Living, also there, an annual event in which thousands march in memory of the victims of the Holocaust.

"It's an historic achievement to bring together this courageous group of leaders from around the Middle East to learn about and witness the history of the Holocaust and spread awareness of it to their countries and societies. It is through such engagements that we can truly build warm peace and understanding," noted the co-founder and CEO of Sharaka, Amit Deri. He said that the idea to participate in the March of the Living, which takes place annually on Israel's Yom Hashoah, or Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Day, came after the Abraham Accords were signed, on a trip to Israel in December 2020 for young Arab leaders.

Paradoxically, until recently, before the Abraham Accords were signed, talking about the Holocaust was effectively taboo in the Arab world. Holocaust denial is still common and the organization of visits to concentration and extermination camps is routinely condemned. The real danger lies not only in denying that the Holocaust took place, but, worse, in rewriting history, especially by those who oppose peace and stability. Their main motive seems to be to perpetuate hatred and hostility so that the conflict -- their raison d'être and possibly also their careers -- remains continuous and immortal. The real dispute in the Middle East is actually between two axes: an Axis of Moderation and an Axis of Resistance (to moderation, non-violence, normalization and peace).

The Axis of Resistance is ideological and does not concern states or their boundaries. It is led by the Iranian regime, its affiliates from Arab countries and extremist groups and militias such as Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and the Muslim Brotherhood. This axis is opposed to all solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict except for the elimination of Israel, and is outspokenly eager to fan the flames of hatred and disinformation, seemingly in the hope of bringing about Israel's destruction, the sooner the better. The Axis of Moderation, conversely, is pragmatic, political, pro-statehood and is represented in particular by the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco and Jordan. This axis has endeavoured to find solutions to conflicts; it will come as no surprise then that most of these countries have signed peace agreements with Israel or seem disposed to.

As a senior Saudi journalist, Abdulaziz Al-Khamis, one of the participants in the delegation, said:

"We must unite to protect our generations from hatred by showing the truth of the Holocaust through the educational system and by highlighting it in the Arab media. Why is it shameful to focus on the Holocaust in our educational curricula and in our Arab media? Unfortunately, denying the truth of the Holocaust plays into the hands of extremist Islamist organizations such as the Muslim Brotherhood and others."

Dr. Nir Boms, a research fellow at the Moshe Dayan Center at Tel Aviv University, who also participated in the delegation, agreed with Al-Khamis and clarified:

"Our region has seen so much hate and lives taken, with lives still being lost. It is up to us to bring some understanding and tolerance as an alternative. This message is our lesson from the March of the Living. It is the most important legacy we can share from here."

"Because of the conflict," added Dan Feferman, Sharaka's director of global affairs and a fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute. "for too long the Arab world has denied the Holocaust, claiming it's a conspiracy and a tool used by the Jews to justify things related to Israel. This delegation must educate the Arab and Muslim world about the Holocaust."

Nothing, it seems, infuriates extremist groups or the Axis of Resistance more than bringing them face-to-face with such historical facts, and being able to cast aside all doubt about everything that is going on in Israel and that has been so maliciously and falsely reported

If matters were more peaceful and normal, everyone could go there and see the reality for themselves. This suppression of the truth seems, in fact, the main reason that so many are against normalization and fostering relationships between people across cultural and political divides: they want their own people to see only their version of reality.

Rawan Osman, a Syrian who grew up in Lebanon and now lives in Germany, said she was afraid when she first saw ultra-Orthodox Jews in her neighbourhood of Strasbourg. It was not because she believed that the Jews were enemies, she said, but because the strict anti-normalization laws under which she had had been brought up in Syria and Lebanon, which forbid any contact with Israelis or Jews, had left their mark.

Mohammad Dajani, a former Palestinian professor at Al-Quds University, had a different experience: he still lives in the midst of the conflict. His life is at risk because of the pragmatic position he chose: to solve the conflict rather than to perpetuate it. It was not easy for him to join this delegation; he was urged, for his own safety and that of his family, not to attend. In the past, for his pro-peace stance, his car has been torched by extremists; his family still can be targeted.

Dajani explained that the situation under Palestinian Authority rule is bad. Textbooks, for example, do not include any mention of the Holocaust, and the word is often used on social media either to deny that it ever existed or to or call it fake. Dajani originally joined Fatah (the PLO), he said, to "liberate" Palestine, but when Jewish doctors and soldiers gave life-saving medical care to his parents, he said, he began to see the humanitarian situation from the other side. In March 2014, Professor Dajani courageously took a group of 27 Palestinian students to Auschwitz; upon their return, the Palestinian media and activists accused Dajani of being a "collaborator" or "agent" of the Israeli authorities, and threatened his employment at the university. After a few weeks of threats, he submitted his resignation, which was accepted. "My letter of resignation to Al-Quds University," he said at the time, "was a kind of litmus test to see whether the university administration supports academic freedom and freedom of action and of expression as they claim or not."

In recent years, however, especially since the signing of the Abraham Accords, the situation has changed. They made the voice of the Axis of Moderation louder and bolder. Supporters of the Axis of Resistance can no longer embarrass supporters of the Axis of Moderation, as they have done in the past, simply by accusing them of treason, or for doing nothing for the Palestinians or the Palestinian cause.

The Axis of Moderation and the states involved in the Abraham Accords are trying to strengthen relations between people and enrich their historical and cultural knowledge. A year ago, a permanent Holocaust memorial exhibition, the first of its kind in the Arab world, was opened at the Crossroads of Civilizations Museum in Dubai. It included survivor testimonies, photographs and objects from that time.

This year, His Excellency Ahmed Obaid AlMansoori, the Emirati founder of the exhibition and museum, led this history-making delegation from the UAE to Poland along with Eitan Nichloss, the newly-appointed ambassador of the International March of the Living in the Gulf States. Such delegations that expose people to historical evidence and facts that counter the radicals' manipulation of history, could go a long way to having a refreshingly positive influence in helping to solve the conflict still underway in the Middle East.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day this year was marked in many cities across the Arab world -- from Manama to Abu Dhabi to Rabat. The US Embassy in Cairo co-sponsored the city's first-ever official Holocaust commemoration. In 2020, His Excellency Sheikh Dr. Mohammad Al-Issa, the secretary general of the World Muslim League, led a delegation of Muslim religious leaders to Auschwitz; they repeated the words "Never again" and performed a prayer for the six million Jewish victims.

Peace cannot be built as long as extremism and ideological terrorism exist, and there can be no independent Palestinian state if generations are raised on violence and hatred in the absence of reason and logic. Through the new Abraham Accords, which differ from previous models in that they actively promote peace and prosperity for civil society, there is finally a glorious opportunity for people to see for themselves the reality of the Holocaust, for example, and better understand the dangers of radicalism, intolerance and racism to their own societies.

 

Dr. Najat Al-Saied is the Media Affairs and Academic Director of Sharaka and Adjunct Professor at AUE specialized in political media and communication. She can be reached at: najat@sharakango.com

Source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/18511/middle-east-moderation-holocaust

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

When Bullies Try to Dominate, Even Good People Will Be Among the Losers - Dr. Shmuel Katz

 

by Dr. Shmuel Katz

What allows rogue nations to feel safer?

 

The world is going through a very challenging period due to various factors that are enhancing existing undercurrents and allowing them to boil over and impact many people.

 

The perceived weakness of the current USA government on the global stage has allowed rogue nations to feel safer and push their agendas fearlessly. The poorly executed USA military disengagement from Afghanistan, the crumbling of the security at its southern border, the local inflation and economic instability, the self-inflicted dependence on foreign oil, and the social unrest within the country, are all contributing factors of the rise in international instability in the absence of a perceptibly strong United States world power.

 

The terror sponsoring Iranian regime continues to threaten the free world. They are exploiting the weakness of the Western governments and the international dependence on oil and gas, to negotiate in bad faith, an atomic deal, which will allow them to become an atomic power with highly sophisticated long-range delivery systems. The insanity of the “Iran Deal” became even more evident when it came to light that the main negotiators for the United States in the deal are the Russians, who have a conflict of interest as they will directly benefit from helping the Iranians build a 10-billion-dollar nuclear reactor. The Iranians are also involved in the destabilization of Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Gaza, Venezuela, and the Arab Golf states. As these societies slide into hostility and become more involved in wars and terror, more people will suffer – including those who support the Iranian regime. At the same time, any perceived opposition to the Iranian regime within Iran itself, is being crushed without mercy, by loyalists of the regime.

 

In a move that seemed to exploit the European dependence on Russian oil and the perceived weakness of the international community, Russian President Putin decided to expand his control over additional territories in Europe and invaded the Ukraine using brute force, and has yet to change course. He targeted everyone; he did not discriminate between supporters of the Russians and supporters of the Ukrainians. President Putin’s actions were likely encouraged by the lack of resounding international condemnation following the Russian invasion of Chechnya, Georgia, Crimea and the buildup of the Russian presence in Syria.

In the meantime, President Xi in China is building a large economic infrastructure and a huge military force. The Chinese expansion of their economic and political influence, in the South China Sea and elsewhere across the globe, is not a coincidence. It followed the weak international response to the Chinese government oppression of their minorities and others, their ignoring international agreements regarding Hong Kong, their implementation of unusual self-serving business practices, their incursion into the Solomon Islands, their creation of military bases in the newly created islands in the South China Sea, their building of multiple deep-water seaports in Africa, and their threats to abolish the independence of Taiwan, etc.

 

All the while, the Palestinian Authority and other terror affiliates are enhancing their efforts to deceive the oblivious around the world, and are building an even larger terror infrastructure, which is also hurting many of their own supporters. They are even sending brainwashed oblivious individuals to kill and be killed for dubious causes. The Palestinian Authority’s responsibility in causing harm to innocent men women and children, while destroying their own future and welfare, has yet to be recognized by the international community. These ongoing acts of terror are encouraged by the inability, or the unwillingness, of the international community to call out the true perpetrators of terror and deception in the Middle East and beyond.

 

The recent wave of terror in Israel, which was instigated by Hamas and other terror organizations, generated a relatively weak response from the Israeli government. Exploiting the situation, the Arab Muslim party Ra’am, which is included in the Israeli government coalition, is accusing Israel of the deterioration of security, and is threatening to leave the coalition. Ra’am makes these claims while ignoring the fact that the instigators and perpetrators of these terror incidents were the various Arab terror organizations (e.g., those who amassed rocks and fire crackers at the Al Aqsa Mosque to attack Jewish worshipers below at the Kotel).

 

Unfortunately, many in the media and in academia are falling for the deception and are therefore promoting the wrong narratives, which helps to misinform their ignorant followers. To make matters worse, cancel culture undermines the ability to engage in dialogue that could otherwise address misinformation.

 

As an aside, similar techniques of deception and misinformation at the global political stage trickle down and are reflected in the behavior of some individuals in other arenas.

As cancel culture becomes more common, those who think that they are more powerful than others may use it to their advantage, assuming that the timid will give up, and let them get away with their self-serving agendas. Many individuals do not want to be harassed or marginalized by bullies and will not stand up against them. This encourages even worse behavior, with nefarious consequences. 

 

This is true for corporations that will fire employees with whom they disagree politically or ideologically even when those individuals are not undermining the corporation, its employees, or customers.

 

This is true for the military that will remove from duty, soldiers and officers who may disagree with some questionable mandates, while still performing their duties with honor.

This is true for the FBI who may choose to target parents who speak up in school board meetings against exposing their children to questionable critical race theories and gender related indoctrination.

 

And this is true also in simple social gatherings where people choose not listen to each other and instead try to marginalize and degrade any dissenting opinion.

 

It is a high time to call a spade a spade and expose the bad operatives, whoever they are, so that more responsible people at the global and local levels will have the tools to form an appropriate public opinion, which should have a positive effect on the decision makers, to the benefit of all good citizens. We should also expose those who preach the value of “free speech” but will limit or block the dissemination of opinions with which they disagree. An open and responsible dialogue will go a long way to secure a better future for all.

 

Dr. Shmuel Katz

Source: https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2022/05/when-bullies-try-dominate-even-good-people-will-be-dr-shmuel-katz/

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

Biden is a human- and drug-trafficking monster - Patricia McCarthy

 

by Patricia McCarthy

Joe Biden joined forces with the most lethal criminal organizations on day one of his presidency.

Starting on the day he was illegitimately inaugurated, Joe Biden began his joint operation with the drug cartels that control the border between the US and Mexico.  By stopping the building of the border wall (and leaving the paid-for supplies to rust in the desert) he declared the border open to all comers, luring thousands of naïve migrants wanting a better life to risk their lives to get here. 

YouTube screengrab

But the opened border was open as well to the cartels that traffic in drugs and humans, especially young girls.  Biden effectively went into business with the most brutal, barbaric people on the planet.  These criminal organizations long ago discovered that they could double the massive profits they rake in from drug smuggling by trafficking human beings.  

Joe Biden joined forces with the most lethal criminal organizations on day one of his presidency.  He invited disaffected migrants from around the world to flock to our southern border; they would be welcomed he said and indeed they have been, all two millions-plus of them. 

Thousands of those that come and are welcomed into the US, unvetted, are young men traveling alone.  Many thousands of others are unaccompanied children.  What happens to them when they arrive?  Well, no one knows exactly; they are welcomed at the border, given smart phones, hotel rooms, and cash for travel.  Often the young girls are separated from their families if they were traveling with their families.  

Meanwhile, our homeless citizens, many of whom are veterans, are treated like vermin, left to live and die on the streets of major cities run by Democrats.  The city of San Francisco is a case in point; it has been utterly degraded by leftist policies that promulgate drug use and ignore the mental illness and criminal behavior of these people who live on the streets and have destroyed the quality of life in the neighborhoods they inhabit. 

The left’s live-and-let-die attitude may well be the death of us all.  The cities that ignore their homeless are the same cities that refuse to charge and imprison violent offenders who are wreaking death and injury on those cities’ streets.  Since he took office, Biden has, and continues to exacerbate the decline of America’s once civil society.  

Check in to any legitimate site that tells the truth about what is occurring at the border and one will learn that the women and children who make the trek from Central America, through the Darian Gap in their devastatingly dangerous goal to reach the US, and you will learn that on the journey the women and young girls are repeatedly raped and otherwise sexually abused. 

Once they arrive, they are put on planes and busses and shuttled to parts unknown in the middle of the night.  Once here, the public has no idea what happens to them; their families owe money to the coyotes who got them to the border.  They are expected to pay back that money.  Often there is no information on the children but for a phone number in their pocket; the coyote’s phone number.  Into whose custody are they delivered?  Most likely to one of the many NGOs of questionable ethics that are raking in the big bucks… for what?  Housing these people or selling them? 

There is something so terribly rotten within this administration, within the Democrat party and the Republican swamp dwellers, that they are willing participants in the abuse and trafficking of children.  They are obsessively committed to making abortion legal and free up to and even after the birth of a full-term baby.  Apparently Catholic Biden approves of this along with most activist Democrats; Psaki was asked and she affirmed that fact.  Abortion is the hill on which they are willing to die.  Here is a paragraph from blogger DiploMad, a retired foreign service officer:  

Speaking of depressing, the Democratic party back home has shown its destructive malice once more. Over the years, I have written many times about the Democratic Party obsession with killing and abusing children. They want unfettered abortion, infanticide, and normalizing of pedophilia. They want children bombarded with sex from kindergarten on up. Their response to the leak from the Supreme Court is further evidence of the progressive obsession with killing children, especially black children. Yes, the Democrats hold up as their hero the racist eugenist Sanger who founded Planned Parenthood in order to kill black babies and eliminate black people from American life. This is, of course, all of piece with their war on the police which results in thousands of dead black youths in our cities. There is something criminally insane with the world's oldest political party.

Mark Crispin Miller has a column up titled What do the FBI, “our free press” and the #MeToo movement have in common?  They all could not care less about the rape of children.  Good point.  Someone else asked on Twitter “Would you like to know how I’m positive that the FBI protects high-profile pedophiles?  They raided Epstein’s private island, confiscated computers, hard drives various electronic devices, along with 20,000 images from his mansion in Manhatten [sic] and didn’t make a single arrest.”

Is it any wonder then that the DC establishment, Democrats and establishment Republicans, are not at all concerned by the Biden administration’s joint venture with the Mexican drug cartels and their massive program of human trafficking?  Do they worry about the tons of fentanyl pouring over the order and killing tens of thousands of people?  No; it’s who they are. They do not value individual human beings; we are only pawns in their game of power and never-ending quest for personal wealth.    They are adherents of Stalin’s view that “The death of one man is a tragedy; the death of millions is a statistic.”

The Biden administration is secreting these unaccompanied children into cities throughout the nation.  Why is where they are being sent a secret?  The obvious answer is that whatever is being done to them is criminal.  With Biden in the White House, the true nature of the Democrat party and its fellow travelers in Congress have been exposed for all to see.  

Even with his diminished mental capacity, Joe Biden has done terrible damage to this country and the tens of thousands of migrants he has imported for a variety of purposes, among them cheap labor; they will all become serfs in the literal sense.  

Most devastating however is allowing the cartels to operate freely within our borders for the illicit abuse of children.  Most disgusting of all is that Biden seems to revel in his reign of terror over these young victims. In closing, the words of Albert Einstein: “The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.”

 

Patricia McCarthy

Source: https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2022/05/biden_is_a_human_and_drugtrafficking_monster.html

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

The Entire BDS Movement is a Fraud - Civis Americanus

 

by Civis Americanus

The enablers of Hamas and its agenda are the absolute dregs of our society and should be treated as such at every opportunity.

The express purpose of the Arab League's Resolution 1547 was to weaponize displaced Palestinian Arabs against Israel. This is incontrovertible and damning evidence that every single organization and business that is involved in the anti-Israel boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement is at best a stooge and enabler, if not a willful participant, in an international fraud that abuses the trust of the entire international community to support the agenda of terrorists. 

Here is what the Refugee Affairs Department of the PLO, whose Israel-free map of "Palestine" is self-explanatory, doesn't want you to see because they removed it from their website while forgetting that Archive org kept a backup that features a picture of the terrorist Yasser Arafat. Google translates this as follows. "The Political Affairs Committee… affirming the previous decisions of the League Council in this regard, recommends that the governments of member states consider creating job opportunities for Palestinian refugees residing in their territories with sympathy, while preserving their Palestinian nationality as a general principle."

The Algemeiner article therefore contends accurately, "…Arab countries just want to keep the Palestinian refugee problem alive to be used as a weapon against Israel." This makes every single participant in the BDS movement, and every supporter of the so-called Right of Return, a useful idiot at best for this agenda and a willful enabler at worst. The charter of Hamas reinforces even further that supporters of BDS are enablers for genocide of Jews, apartheid treatment of Christians, and violence against women, LGBT people, and those Hamas deems to be the wrong kinds of Muslims.

• Hamas calls for genocide of Jews and libelously accuses Muslims of sharing the depraved ideology that Hamas calls Islam. "The time will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews (and kill them); until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: O Muslim! there is a Jew hiding behind me, come on and kill him!"
• Hamas calls for apartheid treatment (dhimmitude) of Christians under Islamic rule. "The term used is 'Dhimam,' the plural of 'Dhimma,' the very word in Islamic tradition, which defined the status of Jews (and Christians) under Islam. These People were protected and safe if they paid a special Capital tax and recognized the hegemony of Islam." BDS supporters who accuse Israel of apartheid are themselves enablers of apartheid.
• Hamas says quite openly that the depraved ideology it calls “Islam” has the right to conquer land by force, thus putting it into the same camp as Nazi Germany, the Stalinist Soviet Union, and Putinist Russia. "The Holy land is regarded, like all lands conquered forcibly by Islam, as unalienable property belonging to the Muslim public." King Jan Sobieski III (Vienna, 1683, where Janissaries were trampled into the dirt by the Winged Hussars), Herbert Kitchener (Omdurman, 1898 where Mahdists were gunned down with modern artillery, trampled by the Twenty-First Lancers, and shot by Winston Churchill), Charles Martel (Tours, 732), and Prince Eugene of Savoy (Zenta, 1697) knew what to do with Islamists who believe they have the Allah-given right to rule the world. It's the same thing the Allies did with Nazis who believed the same thing.
• The Palestinian Authority as well as Hamas sanction discrimination and even violence against LGBT people. This makes the entire BDS camp complicit, whether through ignorance or intention, in violent discrimination against LGBT people.
• Domestic violence against women is socially acceptable in "Palestine." "...the law has continued to allow men who murder, assault and rape women in the Palestinian territories to receive significantly reduced sentences." The deep concern of all the "woke" leftists in gender studies and diversity studies departments for the rights of women and LGBT people ends where the Third World in general and "Palestine" in particular begin.
• Muslims and mosques are not immune from the terrorists' mindless violence. Terrorists ruined Ramadan this year for peaceful Muslims by bringing rocks and other weapons into the Al-Aqsa Mosque, apparently played soccer while wearing shoes in the mosque, and started violence that resulted in damage to the mosque.
• BDS supporters are also enablers of school shooters, Seder bombers, pizza shop bombers, child murderers, and the murderers of the Fogel family.
• Vladimir Putin, who is engaging in his own long litany of war crimes including attacks on civilians, rape, torture, and forced displacement of Ukrainians, welcomed Hamas to Moscow.

Remember that an enabler is not an accomplice or an accessory, but rather somebody who whitewashes and otherwise excuses the behavior of the violent criminals involved. As but one example, somebody who says of a battered woman that "she fell down the stairs" or "she provoked him" did not participate in the crime, and is not guilty of a crime unless he makes the indicated statements under oath, but the enabler is still a lousy specimen of a human being.

The enablers of Hamas and its agenda are similarly the absolute dregs of our society and should be treated as such at every opportunity. William Jacobson of Cornell Law School and Legal Insurrection filed an apparently unsuccessful complaint against the ASA for ultra vires (outside its charter or scope) activities with the IRS. I have reported some 501(c)(5) unions on these grounds as well but the IRS has not so far revoked anybody's tax exemption for ultra vires. I also searched the websites of some BDS-supporting 501(c)(3) tax-exempt entities including but not limited to Black Lives Matter Global Network and found what could be construed as efforts to influence an election, of which the IRS takes a very dim view. Tax exemptions have been pulled for this reason. The web pages in question, including a BLM tirade against Donald Trump prior to the 2020 election along with Patrisse Cullors' video calling for his ouster, have of course been reported.

This IRS document suggests however that ultra vires could indeed be cause for revocation: "An organization must pursue the exempt activities it promised in its IRS application for exemption." It might therefore still be worthwhile to compare the charters and mission statements of 501(c)(3) professional and religious organizations, and 501(c)(5) unions, as reported to the IRS on Form 990, to their actual behavior and file Form 13909 is there is an obvious discrepancy.

Ben & Jerry's social responsibility claims meanwhile went out the window when it was found to be selling sugary dog treats that cost more per ounce than pure peanut butter. Florida's Ron DeSantis called on FSU to pull its organizational membership in MESA. The bottom line is however that all BDS supporters are, at best, useful idiots for Hamas terrorists whose agenda includes genocide of Jews and mistreatment of others not like themselves. They must be viewed in the same light as Russian trolls who whitewash and excuse Vladimir Putin's war crimes in Ukraine, and treated as enablers, whether due to ignorance or malice, for the enemies of civilized Humanity.

 

Civis Americanus is the pen name of a contributor who remembers the lessons of history, and wants to ensure that our country never needs to learn those lessons again the hard way. He or she is remaining anonymous due to the likely prospect of being subjected to "cancel culture" for exposing the Big Lie behind Black Lives Matter.

Image: Montecruz Foto

Source: https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2022/05/the_entire_bds_movement_as_a_fraud.html

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

Opposition: United front to bring down govt, no Netanyahu plea deal - Israel National News

 

by Israel National News

Former PM Netanyahu convenes opposition leaders to prepare for Knesset summer session. "This weak govt has lost legitimacy."

Former PM Benjamin Netanyahu                                                   Shalev Shalom/TPS

 

On Sunday morning, former Prime Minister and Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu met with the other leaders of the opposition parties - Shas, United Torah Judaism, and Religious Zionism.

During the meeting, held ahead of the opening of the Knesset's summer session, the parties agreed upon a determined and united struggle to bring down and replace the current government: "The government has lost its majority in the Knesset - it no longer has any legitimacy in the eyes of the public," said Netanyahu.

Netanyahu informed the party leaders that the notion of a plea deal with the State Attorney's Office has been dropped, and the Likud party emphasized that, "Netanyahu intends to return to the position of prime minister - in a national government to be established in the current Knesset or following elections in which he is confident that the Likud under his leadership will win. There is no other option and the spin doctors and their messengers should get used to it."

Meanwhile, at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett rejected the demand of the King of Jordan and Ra'am chairman Mansour Abbas to change the arrangements for Jews to enter the Temple Mount and to expand the role of the Waqf at the site.

Bennett said: "I want to make it clear here that there is, and will not be, any political consideration regarding the war on terror. And of course - all decisions regarding the Temple Mount and Jerusalem will be made by the Israeli government, which is sovereign in the city, without regard to foreign considerations. We certainly reject any foreign intervention in the decisions of the Israeli government."

The Prime Minister emphasized that, "The State of Israel will continue to maintain a respectful attitude toward members of all religions in Jerusalem, as we have always done. United Jerusalem is the capital of only one state - the State of Israel."

Addressing his coalition partners, Bennett said, "Everyone who has a drop of national and civic responsibility must act with all his might for the existence and preservation of this good government, and I expect and know that all parties and all party leaders are going to get involved and have already made their contribution."

 

Israel National News

Source: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/327151

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

'The manhole cover lifted, and 8 soldiers climbed out...' - Israel National News

 

by Israel National News

Elad resident describes two tense days with murderers still on the loose and hundreds of security officers in the city.

 

Security officers patrol Elad as local residents look on                                   Yossi Aloni/Flash90

Following the arrest of the terrorists who committed last week's horrific attack in Elad, Rabbi Yosef Barkatz, a resident of Elad and one of the organizers of the Dirshu Torah program, expressed the relief felt by the city's residents following the tense days when the two Arabs were still on the loose.

"People taking the Dirshu examinations had a scheduled test day last Friday, the day after the attack, and the tests were to be held in the Derech Hachaim synagogue, just 200 meters away from where the attack happened," Rabbi Barkatz related.

"On the morning of last Friday, after that terrible night, I was sure that most of those scheduled to take the test would pass on it, or ask me to fax them the test so they could complete it at home. That morning, I met with a senior police officer who had arrived in Elad, and I asked him if, from a security perspective, we could hold the examination, or whether it would be advisable to be cautious and cancel it, given that the manhunt after the terrorists was still in high gear, with no information on where they might be hiding out.

"The officer told me not to worry - he explained that Elad was full of security forces," Rabbi Barkatz said. "I don't know if I'm permitted to reveal the number he told me, but it was a very big number, almost ridiculously large, with some in uniform and others plainclothes, as well as Shabak agents and special forces from the police and the army.

"The officer added that he was familiar with the Dirshu program and recognized its importance. He said to go right ahead with the test, and to provide me with an added sense of security, he said he would send special protection."

Indeed, that was what happened. "During the test, I could see security officers outside the synagogue, some in uniform and others not, and inside the building there was a civilian security officer armed with a gun, constantly scanning the surroundings to be ready to pounce on a threat the moment it emerged."

Rabbi Barkatz continued, "To my surprise, everyone came to be tested; not a single regular was missing. The atmosphere was heavy with the tragedy so fresh and the sound of helicopters over our heads. On the one hand, the security presence gave us a certain sense of security; but on the other hand, it also served to remind us that the terrorists were still at large and we were still in danger."

During Shabbat, the atmosphere lifted somewhat, Rabbi Barkatz described, even though the terrorists still had not been caught. "On Friday evening, people were still frozen in shock, and you didn't see a smile on anyone's face, but by the next morning, people were less obviously traumatized."

On Shabbat afternoon, Rabbi Barkatz related, a surreal event occurred right before his eyes: "I was standing by the window and looking out at the street, watching the security officers patrolling, and suddenly, I saw something strange - in the middle of the street, the manhole cover to the rainwater runoff system suddenly lifted up, and then eight soldiers armed with guns and torches emerged from it.

"I went out to see what was going on, and one of the soldiers told me that they had been told to search the underground rainwater channels in case the terrorists were hiding out there, and that they had searched under the entire city. The soldier told me that it was lucky it was Shabbat," Rabbi Barkatz added, "because if it had been mid-week, everyone would have been there taking photos...

"And the soldier added that his troops were having a 'hard' time patrolling the streets," Rabbi Barkatz added with a smile, "because their pockets were full to bursting with all the chocolates and cakes people kept pressing on them."

On Sunday morning, the news arrived that the terrorists had been apprehended, not far from the city. "Thank G-d, good news, and of course we are also very grateful to the security forces who did everything they could to lay their hands on these murderers."

 

Israel National News

Source: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/327155

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

COVID-19 in Israel: PCR testing system at airport set to end, no longer required - Shira Silkoff

 

by Shira Silkoff

The decision to end COVID-19 testing at the airport was made in light of the decreased spread of infection and decreased morbidity.

 

PASSENGERS CHECK IN at Ben-Gurion Airport. We all need to be on the lookout for phishing or fake emails or messages to trick people into falling for a scam.

(photo credit: FLASH90)

Incoming travelers will no longer be required to undergo PCR tests upon landing at Ben-Gurion Airport starting from May 20, Israel’s Health Ministry announced Sunday.

The decision to end COVID-19 testing at the airport was made in light of the decreased spread of infection and decreased morbidity, and following discussions between Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz and rime Minister Naftali Bennett, along with other Health Ministry officials and Israel Airport Authority staff. 

With that, however, they formulated a plan that would allow for the quick reimplementation of either a full or partial COVID-19 testing system at the airport, should the need once again arise. 

In a statement shared via social media, Horowitz stated that the decision to end airport PCR testing was a continuation of the Health Ministry’s COVID-19 policy under his leadership.

“We provide all the tools to protect public health, but where there is no need and it is not necessary, we will not impose restrictions on the public,” he said. 

Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz, December 30, 2021. (credit: AVSHALOM SASSONI/MAARIV)

An estimated 1,700 new COVID-19 cases were recorded across Israel on Saturday, a Sunday morning Health Ministry update showed. There are currently 16,337 active cases of the virus in Israel, and of that number, 132 people are reported to be in serious condition, with 53 people intubated and six connected to ECMO machines.

There was a 5.02% positive return rate for the 35,344 PCR and antigen tests taken across Israel on Saturday, and the R-rate currently stands at 0.81. 

Since the start of the pandemic, 10,741 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported in Israel. There has been a consistent decline in morbidity in recent weeks, with only six new deaths being recorded in the last seven days - a 71% decrease from a week prior. As of now, no new coronavirus-related deaths have been recorded since May 4.

The spread of infection has also greatly decreased over the last few weeks, and only one area of Israel - Beit El -  is still classified as red under the government’s coronavirus “traffic light” system, with 27 positive coronavirus cases for every 10,000 people.

Large cities including Tel Aviv (18 positive cases per 10,000 people) and Haifa (21.2 per 10,000) are classified as yellow, along with Ashdod, Rishon Lezion, Eilat and multiple other localities across the country.

As of Sunday morning, Jerusalem is classified as a green city, with just 8.3 positive cases per 10,000 people. Other green areas include Bnei Brak (1.5 per 10,000), Beit Shemesh (4.2 per 10,000) and Umm el-Fahm (1.8 per 10,000).

 

Shira Silkoff

Source: https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-706124

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

Elad terrorists caught after three-day manhunt - Anna Aharonheim

 

by Anna Aharonheim

Police caught the two suspects, 19-year-old As’sad al-Rafai and 20-year-old Emad Subhi Abu Shqeir, alive in a forested area in Israel.

 

Israeli security forces capturing the two terrorists who carried out an attack in Elad on May 5 that left three dead, May 8, 2022.

(photo credit: SCREENSHOT ACCORDING TO 27A OF COPYRIGHT ACT)

Israeli security forces caught the two terrorists who carried out a deadly attack in Elad, four days after they went on a rampage in the city.

Israel Police, Shin Bet and IDF capturing the two terrorists who carried out an attack in Elad on May 5 that left three dead (credit: Israel Police, Shin Bet, IDF).

IDF forces, Shin Bet officers and police caught the two suspects 19-year-old As’sad al-Rifai and 20-year-old Emad Subhi Abu Shqeir, both from Rumana in the Jenin area of the West Bank, alive in a forested area close to Elad near Park Nahshonim.

 

Initial reports that Israeli security forces have caught the terrorists who killed 3 civilians in Elad last week. They were caught alive

— Anna Ahronheim (@AAhronheim) May 8, 2022

 

They were located after a massive manhunt where security forces including special forces from the IDF’s commando units, advanced technologies including intelligence, canine units and helicopters.

On Saturday a force consisting of Shin Bet officers as well as troops from the IDF’s Maglan commando unit and Mirol Reserve Unit identified suspicious objects in the area, which led security forces to concentrate around a quarry. The force returned to the area on Sunday morning and identified suspicious movement and arrested the two.

The terrorists were unarmed.

Suspects in the Elad ax terrorist attack, 20-year-old Tzabahi Abu Shakir (Left) and 19 year-old Assad al-Rafai (Right). (credit: ISRAEL POLICE)

In a video from the scene, al-Rifai is heard identifying himself and his accomplice Subhi Sbaihat. When asked by an officer what he was doing in the area, he answered “an operation, the Elad operation.” The officer asked what happened in the operation to which he answered “I don’t know exactly, we hit people.”

The three victims in the deadly attack on Thursday were identified as 44-year-old Yonatan Havakuk, a father of five, 40-year-old Boaz Gol, a father of five and 35 year-old Oren Ben Yiftach a father of six from Lod. Together they left behind 16 children.

At the opening of the Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett extended his condolences to the families of the three victims and thanked the security forces for capturing the terrorists.

“We said we would get our hands on the terrorists, and so we did,” he said, adding that nevertheless, the capture of terrorists is no longer sufficient.

“We are at the beginning of a new stage in the war on terror - it is impossible to incite and rest. You can not throw a match and run away,” he warned, adding that “the greatest task of the Israeli government is to restore personal security to the citizens of Israel.”

Therefore, he said, “I instructed the National Security Council, in coordination with the Defense Ministry to present to the government an orderly and budgeted plan for the establishment of a national guard, by the end of the month.”

"I want to make it clear here that there is not, and will not be, any political consideration when it comes to the war on terror,” Bennett stressed.

Public Security Minister Omer Bar Lev commended the security forces on the arrests, saying that “we will continue to pursue with determination our enemies all the time, and everywhere, and we will reach them. "

"I congratulate the security forces on capturing the two terrorists who committed the murder in Elad. In the last two days, the best forces in the police, the Shin Bet and the IDF have worked together to get their hands on them, and so it has happened. With determination, we seek our evil all the time, and everywhere, and we will reach them. "

Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai arrived at the scene shortly after the arrest and thanked the security forces for their work.

"We said we would not be quiet or rest until we put our hand on them and so it was,” he said. Every terrorist knows that the long arm of the Israel Police and the entire security system will reach anyone who harms Israeli citizens. We are determined to continue the war on terror.”

IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kohavi praised the forces saying that just this morning he took part in a situational assessment about the manhunt.

“Over the past weekend, IDF forces worked together with the police and the Shin Bet, leading to the capture of the murderers. We will continue to work to stop terrorism and strengthen the security and sense of security of the citizens of the State of Israel,” he said.

Earlier in the day Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai was quoted by Ynet News as saying that "we're in the right direction overall - we assume that the terrorists are still in the area, and activating all their resources and abilities.”

Following their arrests, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem saluted the attackers, saying that “the heroes of the Elad operation stopped the Zionist entity that possesses nuclear weapons with just one foot and exposed the fragility of the Zionist security system.” 

 

Anna Aharonheim

Source: https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-706116

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

Perils of Putin's Victory Parade - Amir Taheri

 

by Amir Taheri

Putin invaded to prevent Ukraine from becoming European, not knowing that Russia itself will eventually have to bury its Slavophile illusions and adopt the "Westernization" strategy

• Rather than signaling the end of hostilities, Putin may announce a widening of the perimeters of a war he no longer controls.

• The invasion [of Ukraine] has led to an unexpected strengthening of creaking political and military bonds among Western powers and whetted their appetite for regime change in Moscow, something that many, perhaps even most, would have shied away from before Putin began raining his missiles on Kiev.

• US President Joe Biden has publicly called for ending Putin's domination of Russia. British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss says the Western aim is to so weaken Russia that it is never again able to invade another country. French Minister of Finance and Economy Bruno Le Maire says the aim of the war is to "destroy the Russian economy." Other senior Western officials speak of bringing Putin and his close associates to justice on charges of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The British government has already asked a commission to start working on that scheme.

• Like Hussein and Milosevic, Putin dreams of surrounding Russia with countries with regimes that resemble his, ignoring the fact that reality was developing in the opposite direction with Russia or Iraq or Serbia, ending up resembling the geopolitico-cultural sphere in which fate or events of history has located them. Putin invaded to prevent Ukraine from becoming European, not knowing that Russia itself will eventually have to bury its Slavophile illusions and adopt the "Westernization" strategy supported by such unlikely partners in a dream as Peter the Great, Herzen, Turgenev and Belinsky.

The invasion of Ukraine has led to an unexpected strengthening of creaking political and military bonds among Western powers and whetted their appetite for regime change in Moscow, something that many, perhaps even most, would have shied away from before Putin began raining his missiles on Kiev. Pictured: Russian President Vladimir Putin makes a speech in Red Square during a Victory Day military parade marking the 75th anniversary of the victory in World War II, on June 24, 2020 in Moscow, Russia. (Photo by Sergey Guneev - Host Photo Agency via Getty Images )

What do you do when you have called a victory parade but have no victory to parade?

This is the question that Russian President Vladimir Putin faces as his faction factory prepares to churn out a gigantic street show in Moscow with Tsarist eagles with varvels bearing Volodya's coat of arms.

The answer is that Putin is likely to keep the parade on May 9 and invent a victory to go with it. Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, an erstwhile chum of Putin, even claims that Tsar Vladimir will declare victory in his war against Ukraine in tune with his cheat-and-retreat tactic of one step backwards to prepare for the next two steps forward.

We shall soon know whether Orbán's prophesy is anything but wishful thinking. Rather than signaling the end of hostilities, Putin may announce a widening of the perimeters of a war he no longer controls.

But one thing is certain: Putin has used partial or even imaginary victories before to camouflage tactical defeats. He did that in 2008 after invading Georgia and annexing South Ossetia and Abkhazia and repeated the tactic in 2014 after invading Ukraine and annexing Crimea.

This time, however, Putin may find his cheat-and-retreat tactic more problematic. In invading Ukraine again he made two big mistakes. First, he set himself the goal of conquering and reshaping Ukraine as a whole as a vassal state if not a mere province of Mother Russia.

Secondly, he marketed his aggression as a defensive imperative against Western "conspirators" trying to carve Russia into several mini-states.

The invasion has led to an unexpected strengthening of creaking political and military bonds among Western powers and whetted their appetite for regime change in Moscow, something that many, perhaps even most, would have shied away from before Putin began raining his missiles on Kiev.

Thus even if Putin were to declare victory and thus signal the end of hostilities, at least for the time being, there is no guarantee that Western powers would simply abandon their declared, at times contradictory, war aims.

US President Joe Biden has publicly called for ending Putin's domination of Russia. British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss says the Western aim is to so weaken Russia that it is never again able to invade another country. French Minister of Finance and Economy Bruno Le Maire says the aim of the war is to "destroy the Russian economy." Other senior Western officials speak of bringing Putin and his close associates to justice on charges of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The British government has already asked a commission to start working on that scheme.

Just a few months ago all the talk in Western capitals was about a possible ceasefire followed by negotiations to bring a quick end to hostilities as a priority. Now, however, that priority has faded into diplomatic fog as Western leaders compete with each other to supply more weapons to Ukraine and impose more sanctions and Russia, moves that are bound to prolong rather than shorten the war.

The problem is that, though regime change in Moscow seems to be the ultimate aim of Western leaders, none has spelled out a credible strategy to achieve it. This may be due to a desire to use diplomatic ambiguity as a political weapon against Putin. But its side effect could be the prolongation of a war that cannot produce total victory for either side.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's address to the Ukrainian parliament last week signaled a worrying confusion in Western policymaking circles which seem unable to treat the need to end the war and the necessity of regime change in Moscow as two separate, though obviously interlinked, issues.

Denying Putin a way out of the hell-hole he has dug for himself may be prolonging the war and the humanitarian tragedy it has created. Whether we like it or not, Putin is still capable of using his looming defeat in Ukraine as a prop in a narrative of victimhood thus prolonging his own hold on power.

However, by focusing on the need to end the war as quickly as possible, even if that might save Putin face, we would leave him with a severely weakened military machine, a crippled economy and a partially deflated ego balloon. This does not mean abandoning regime change as a strategic goal. It is clear that without closing the Putin chapter, Russia will not be able to return to the international family of nations as a normal member obeying at least some of the rules. The aim is not to humiliate let alone crush Russia, a nation that will ultimately pay the price of Putin's misguided adventures.

We have witnessed similar dilemmas before.

Some Western analysts had argued that Iraq under Saddam Hussein was a permanent threat to regional security or even world peace and that regime change in Baghdad ought to be treated as a priority. But once Hussein had triggered the Kuwait war, the priority became the end of the war and of Iraqi occupation. Regime change was relegated to a lower rung but not forgotten, and eventually achieved once Hussein, thanks to his megalomaniac management of misery as a life-style, had lost much of his domestic constituency. When the time came for regime change even his elite Republican Guard went AWOL.

In former Yugoslavia, too, regime change was postponed as a priority in favor of ending the Serbian war against Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo. The Clinton administration unrolled the red carpet for Slobodan Milosevic, alias "the butcher of Belgrade" and even offered him a sort of victory on a diplomatic platter in Daytona. Ultimately, however, it was clear to all that there could be no end to war in the Balkans without sending Milosevic and his associates to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague.

Like Hussein and Milosevic, Putin dreams of surrounding Russia with countries with regimes that resemble his, ignoring the fact that reality was developing in the opposite direction with Russia or Iraq or Serbia, ending up resembling the geopolitico-cultural sphere in which fate or events of history has located them. Putin invaded to prevent Ukraine from becoming European, not knowing that Russia itself will eventually have to bury its Slavophile illusions and adopt the "Westernization" strategy supported by such unlikely partners in a dream as Peter the Great, Herzen, Turgenev and Belinsky.

So, if Putin's parade could be a prelude to peace, no one, not even Volodymyr Zelensky, whom Tsar Vladimir dismissed as a Merry Andrew if not a clown, should try to rain on it.

One is curious to see if the letter Z, the symbol of Putin's elusive victory, features in the Moscow Victory Parade or will Tsar Vladimir remember Shakespeare' naughty line: "Thou whore son zed, thou unnecessary letter!"

This article was originally published by Asharq al-Awsat

 

Amir Taheri was the executive editor-in-chief of the daily Kayhan in Iran from 1972 to 1979. He has worked at or written for innumerable publications, published eleven books, and has been a columnist for Asharq Al-Awsat since 1987.

Source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/18510/putin-victory-parade

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

Iran Mullahs Escalate Threats Against Jews, Biden Administration Appeases Mullahs Even More - Majid Rafizadeh

 

by Majid Rafizadeh

Since the Biden administration assumed office, it has pursued the maximum appeasement policy with the ruling mullahs of Iran.

• These US rewards to Iran for terrorism, destabilizing the region, treating its own people with brutality and cheating on 2015 nuclear deal would significantly increase Iran's revenues; these, in turn, will doubtless be funneled into the pockets of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Quds Force and their militia and terror groups including Hamas, the Houthis and Hezbollah for still more expansionism and terror.

• Additionally, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi openly called for the destruction of Israel as he addressed anti-Israeli rallies: "This great movement that we are witnessing today in the form of protests is a symbol of the solidarity of the Muslim people that will lead to the destruction of the Zionist regime."

• Since the Biden administration assumed office, it has pursued the maximum appeasement policy with the ruling mullahs of Iran.

• Instead of standing with its staunch allies in the Middle East, the Biden administration appears determined to stand with the Iranian regime. The ruling mullahs nonetheless appear intent on taking over their oil-rich neighbors, and eliminating Israel and the United States -- all as America seems to imagine, falsely, that it can bribe its way into being spared.

These US rewards to Iran for terrorism, destabilizing the region, treating its own people with brutality and cheating on 2015 nuclear deal would significantly increase Iran's revenues; these, in turn, will doubtless be funneled into the pockets of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Quds Force and their militia and terror groups including Hamas, the Houthis and Hezbollah for still more expansionism and terror. Pictured: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi delivers a speech in Tehran, on January 3, 2022. (Photo by Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images)

When it to comes to the Iranian regime, all the Biden administration seems to care about is appeasing the ruling mullahs, reaching a weak nuclear deal with the Islamic Republic, and enhancing the global legitimacy of a country that the US itself called "the world's worst state sponsor of terrorism."

These US rewards to Iran for terrorism, destabilizing the region, treating its own people with brutality and cheating on 2015 nuclear deal would significantly increase Iran's revenues; these, in turn, will doubtless be funneled into the pockets of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Quds Force and their militia and terror groups including Hamas, the Houthis and Hezbollah for still more expansionism and terror.

Since the Biden administration assumed office, it has pursued the maximum appeasement policy with the ruling mullahs of Iran. These acts have included removing one of Tehran's terrorist proxy groups, the Houthis, from the List of Foreign Terrorist Organizations, as well as lifting sanctions on Iranian entities involved in missile production, the Mammut Industrial Group and its subsidiary Mammut Diesel, which had been sanctioned by the Trump administration. Appeasement also included turning a blind eye to the theocratic establishment's military adventurism in the region, such as launching barrages of missiles in Iraq where US troops were stationed; sending precision guided missiles to Syria, and smuggling weapons to the Houthis in Yemen.

How has the Iranian regime responded to America's attempts at propitiation? By launching more missiles near US bases in Iraq and by ratcheting up its threats against US allies in the Middle East, primarily Israel. Only last week, at the end of April, reports surfaced that Israel's Mossad has recently foiled terrorist attempts by the Iranian regime to assassinate an Israeli diplomat who works at the Israeli consulate in Istanbul, as well as an American General stationed in Germany and a journalist in France. The names of the individuals targeted were not revealed.

Also late last month, Mansour Rasouli, a member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), was arrested in a European country in relation to the planned terrorist attack. He was reportedly a member of Unit 840 of the Quds Force, an elite branch of one of the five militias of the IRGC, and the one that conducts foreign operations to export the mullahs' Islamic revolution abroad. Rasouli reportedly received $150,000 to prepare the assassinations, and was promised an additional $1 million after he killed the three targets. It is at the moment unclear if the Biden administration is considering removing the IRGC, designated as a terrorist organization by the Trump administration, from the List of Foreign Terrorist Organizations. The Biden administration might be retaining just the Quds Force on the list, an act that that would create a grievously fictitious loophole that the ruling Iranian regime will be sure to exploit to the fullest.

Recently, Israel's intelligence services foiled an assassination attempt against an Israeli businessman, Yair Geller, in Turkey. The Iranian cell, consisting of nine individuals, was reportedly run by Yassin Tahermkandi, age 53, an Iranian-based intelligence officer, and Saleh Mushtag Bhighus, his Turkish counterpart. Iran's regime also targets foreign political leaders and diplomats whom the regime opposes, and recently has called for the assassination of high-level American officials . The Iranian regime apparently also has "target packages," which presumably include foreign citizens, residents who are human rights defenders, critics of the Iranian leaders, political activists, and dissidents.

On April 29, 2022, the ruling mullahs of Iran and Hezbollah also held "al-Quds Day," or Jerusalem Day, where demonstrators chant "Death to Israel" and "Death to America" while the Iranian regime shows support for Palestinians and promotes the destruction of the Jewish state. Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, one of Iran's proxy militias, praised recent deadly rocket attacks against Israel coming from Gaza and Lebanon. He also threatened other Arab nations that they will be attacked by Iran if they allow Israel to use their territory as a military base.

Additionally, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi openly called for the destruction of Israel as he addressed anti-Israeli rallies:

"This great movement that we are witnessing today in the form of protests is a symbol of the solidarity of the Muslim people that will lead to the destruction of the Zionist regime."

Other high level officials joined him, including General Esmail Ghaani, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps's expeditionary force, as well as the Quds Force, who announced his support for any group that will attack Israel. "We support any front that is formed against this criminal regime," he announced, "and we will support any community that is ready to fight this criminal regime". IRGC commander General Hossein Salami stated that his government will not give up until it reaches its goal of destroying Israel:

"You know we are people of action and reaction. Our answers are painful and we set the stage for our goals. We will not give up on you, wait; You have seen our answers."

And on occasion of the recent Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Iranian regime's state-controlled daily newspaper Kayhan published a front-page article praising Hitler and bashing the Jews, which stated:

"[T]he logic that Hitler showed by expelling them [the Jews] from Germany is that he is smarter and more courageous than all current European leaders".

The editor-in-chief of Kayhan, Hossein Shariatmadari, is considered to be close advisor and representative of the Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. European nations, it adds, have "endorsed the myth of the Holocaust" because they are looking for an "excuse for [their] cowardice and humiliation." The Iranian regime also sponsors Holocaust denial cartoon contests.

Instead of standing with its staunch allies in the Middle East, the Biden administration appears determined to stand with the Iranian regime. The ruling mullahs nonetheless appear intent on taking over their oil-rich neighbors (such as here and here), and eliminating Israel and the United States -- all as America seems to imagine, falsely, that it can bribe its way into being spared.

• Follow Majid Rafizadeh on Twitter

 

Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a business strategist and advisor, Harvard-educated scholar, political scientist, board member of Harvard International Review, and president of the International American Council on the Middle East. He has authored several books on Islam and US foreign policy. He can be reached at Dr.Rafizadeh@Post.Harvard.Edu

Source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/18507/iran-threats-jews

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter