Roberto Abraham Scaruffi: http://www.web-view.net/Show/0XFA093E69AFC5FDE6C338578A1C916704001E04F11E9434438186735DBD637488.htm

Thursday, 17 September 2009

http://www.web-view.net/Show/0XFA093E69AFC5FDE6C338578A1C916704001E04F11E9434438186735DBD637488.htm

HomeVideoMP3 RadioNewsNews BriefsIsrael PicsOpinionJudaism
Wednesday, Sep 16 '09, Elul 27, 5769
Today`s Email Stories:
UN: 'War Crimes' in Gaza
Mitchell and Bibi: It's All Talk
'Obama Policy Violates Treaties'
Heart-Rending Dilemma Reawakened
US Woman Freed from Arab Captor
Jewish Burial for Nazi Victims
More Website News:
IDF Nabs Netanya Attack Planner
Mass Rally Against Ahmadinejad
FDA Approves Swine Flu Vaccines
Beware Non-Kosher Shofars
Interview: New Chaim David CD
Video: Bnei Akiva New Year, New Zealand
MP3 RadioWebsite News Briefs:
Talk:The Renewal of All Creation
Is Rosh HaShanah a time for Joy?
Music:Shabbat
Erev Niggunim




1. Behind the UN Curtain: Goldstone Napped During Film of Rockets
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu UN Napped during Kassam Evidence

United Nations Human Rights Council Judge Richard Goldstone, whose 500-page report on Wednesday condemned Israel for war crimes, fell asleep while he was supposed to be watching a film showing Sderot children fleeing from rocket fire. Noam Bedein, head of the Sderot Media Center, told Israel National News Wednesday morning, “I screened a film showing the rocket explosions, and Goldstone fell asleep before my eyes."

[weJe Email readers, please click here to view this dynamic video footage.

Bedein and five others, including the mayor of Ashkelon and kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit’s father Noam, were the only Israelis to testify on the country’s behalf during the U.N. hearings. Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon explained that the government refused to cooperate with the Council because it was prejudiced against Israel from the outset. He said that an official Israeli appearance at the hearings would have given more justification to the report but would not have changed damning and foregone conclusions.

Bedein said he appeared as a private citizen and was not discouraged by the Foreign Ministry. “The U.N. asked me to appear because the Sderot Media Center is the only operation on the ground that has been presenting the rocket reality to the country.”

However, he added that he was given “30 minutes to present eight years of being attacked from rocket fire and mortar shelling.” While Goldstone was napping, the other three judges, Christine Chinkin, an Irishman and a Pakistani, sat silently.”

Bedein wrapped up his presentation by asking the panel. “What other democracy in the world would tolerate rockets in its territory?” He added, “That is how I finished, but all they said was ‘Thank you.’ I was expecting tough questions, but there were none.”

Hamas has attacked the western Negev with approximately 12,000 rockets and mortars since 2000, including nearly 8,000 missiles since the expulsion of Jews and the IDF withdrawal from Gaza in 2005.

Since the end of the Operation Cast Lead counterterrorist campaign, southern Israel has sustained 250 attacks, not including dozens of sniper shootings at soldiers and roadside bombs aimed at IDF vehicles at the Gaza separation barrier.

However, Goldstone’s lengthy report devoted only nine pages to the rockets, Bedein said. “Its comparison of Gaza with Sderot is ridiculous,” he added. “We teach children to run to bomb shelters in 15 seconds, and they teach their children to run to rooftops and be human shields” during Israeli retaliation.

The Goldstone Report blamed Israel for allegedly killing hundreds of “non-combatants,” including approximately 250 Hamas policemen.

Comment on this story



2. UN Investigator: Israel, Hamas Committed War Crimes in Gaza
by Hana Levi Julian UN: 'War Crimes' in Gaza

A report listing the findings of a United Nations investigation has accused the Israel Defense Forces of committing "actions amounting to war crimes" during Israel's counterterrorist Operation Cast Lead in Gaza.

The U.N. probe was led by former South African judge Richard Goldstone, whose report said Israel's actions might also be considered "crimes against humanity."

Goldstone added in the report that the incessant rocket attacks on southern Israel's civilian population that had sparked the military operation in the first place might also be considered war crimes.

"There is also evidence that Palestinian armed groups committed war crimes, as well as possibly crimes against humanity" by firing rockets and mortars at Israeli citizens," according to the 575-page report. "Where there is no intended military target and the rockets and mortars are launched into civilian areas, they constitute a deliberate attack against the civilian population," said the report. "These actions would constitute war crimes and may amount to crimes against humanity."

Report Called Hamas Buildings 'Civilian Objects'

The report, which cited seven incidents in which IDF soldiers allegedly deliberately gunned down PA Arab civilians as they ran for cover while waving white flags, will be presented to the U.N. Human Rights Council later this month.

The report also alleges "a director and intentional attack" on Gaza City's Al Quds Hospital and the ambulance station next door. It also cited an incident in which it said that the IDF fired at a mosque during prayer services, killing 15 worshippers, and had shelled a house where soldiers had forced PA civilians to assemble in the Samouni neighborhood of Zeitoun, south of Gaza City. Also cited were accusations by PA Arabs that they had been used by IDF soldiers as human shields while their houses were searched.

In addition, the report condemned the IDF for attacking "buildings and persons of the Gaza authorities," saying "there is no evidence that the Legislative Council building and the Gaza main prison made an effective contribution to military action," and referred to both as "civilian objects."

The investigators disregarded the fact that the Hamas terrorist organization that governs the Gaza region -- and the buildings in question -- were the source of the endless rocket and mortar attacks on Israel's citizens that had sparked the military operation.

Israel: Mission was a 'Kangaroo Court'

Israel's Foreign Ministry, which had refused to cooperate with the investigation from the beginning, rejected the accusations.

"The mandate of the mission and the resolution establishing it prejudged the outcome of any investigation, gave legitimacy to the Hamas terrorist organization and ignored the deliberate Hamas strategy of using innocent Palestinian civilians as human shields for launching terrorist attacks against Israel," said the ministry in a statement.

However, it added, "Israel will read the report carefully." NGO Monitor President Gerald Steinberg had harsh words for both the probe and its conclusions, and told CNN in an interview that the mission had been tantamount to a "kangaroo court."

The Foreign Ministry also explained in its statement that Israel felt it could not participate in the investigation committee "because of the one-sided mandate given to Judge Goldstone, which ignored the thousands of missiles fired by Hamas against Israeli citizens, which made the operation in Gaza necessary."

The statement was distributed to the United Nations in Geneva by the Israeli mission to the U.N.

Comment on this story



3. Mitchell, Netanyahu End Talks with Agreement for More Talk
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu Mitchell and Bibi: It's All Talk

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and visiting U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell concluded their second straight day of talks around noon Wednesday, and failed to see eye-to-eye on American and Palestinian Authority demands. They agreed to meet again on Friday, after Mitchell talks with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

An American embassy official told Israel National News that Mitchell’s style is to work quietly, without the usual news conferences that often try to put on a positive face regardless of the content of discussions.

The main issue is building homes for Jews in eastern Jerusalem, neighborhoods in Judea and Samaria, which U.S. President Barack Obama has characterized as “illegitimate settlements.” Prime Minister Netanyahu, facing stiff coalition opposition to further concessions to the PA and the U.S. government, has drawn the line at Jerusalem and at 2,500 housing units that already have been started in Judea and Samaria.

Abbas has said he will settle for nothing less than a total building freeze before agreeing to meet again with the Israeli Prime Minister. Mitchell's immediate aim is to arrange a conversation between Abbas, President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu when they visit the next session of the General Assembly of the United Nations later this month.

American government spokespersons have said Mitchell is “cautiously optimistic" despite the apparent insurmountable gap.

Mitchell also met with PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad Tuesday night; Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon are on his list of destinations for meetings as well.

Asked by reporters in Washington if Mitchell and Prime Minister Netanyahu made progress in their talks, U.S. State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said, “Well, these meetings are still going on. They will talk again tomorrow.”

Pressed as to why he thinks the talks are good, Kelly answered, “As I’ve said many times, these are important talks. We want to give them a chance to succeed. And I’ll leave it at that."

Journalists refused to accept Kelly’s response and one correspondent continued, “I think there’s a discrepancy because the last time you described a meeting as positive between Mitchell and the Israelis, it was anything but. Can you say whether you feel like they are any closer now to an agreement than they were a day or so ago?"

Kelly repeated, “Again, I think that – I think we are moving forward. I think the fact that they agreed to meet again tomorrow to continue discussions is a good sign. But beyond that, I really don’t have anything else to share with you."

Comment on this story



4. NGO: Obama's Israel Policy Violates International Treaties
by Gil Ronen 'Obama Policy Violates Treaties'

Members of the non-governmental group (NGO) “Justice Now!” claim that U.S. President Barack Obama's policy against Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria violates internationally recognized treaties, and they are threatening to take legal action.

Justice Now! reported it has gathered the evidence necessary to file a case in the United States against the U.S. government's “continued violations of the treaties that recognize Israel's rights to its internationally recognized legal borders, the prohibition against ceding any land belonging to the Jewish National Home, and supporting the right of Jewish settlement within those internationally recognized borders.”

[weJe Can't see the video? Click here to view the report!

Justice Now! aims to “educate the world” regarding the legal borders of the Jewish national home, which it says comprises all Israel, including all of Judea, Samaria, the Gaza Strip, the entire city of Jerusalem, and more.

These borders were recognized by the United States in a 1924 treaty with Great Britain, the group explains, and they are still guaranteed by that treaty. Furthermore, the U.S. Constitution calls a treaty the "Supreme Law of the Land" and the Courts have the power to force the federal executive branch (President, Secretary of State, etc.) to honor treaties. Justice Now! says it may seek a court ruling to compel the U.S. government to recognize Israel's sovereignty through all of the borders expressed within the Balfour, San Remo, and Mandate documents.

Letter to Obama

Justice Now! says it intends to send a letter to the Obama administration urging it to respect Israel's rights under international law to settle and build within all of the lands of the Jewish homeland.

The group's experts are currently giving a series of lectures on the subject (in English) on Wednesday nights at 8:00 p.m. at the OU Israel Center, 22 Keren HaYesod Avenue, Jerusalem. The next lectures are: Sept 16: Jerusalem under International Law. Sept 23: Is it really an occupation? A look at the Geneva Conventions and Israel's presence in Judea and Samaria. Sept 30: Israel's rights to build the Security Fence, or Why Build a Fence Through the Middle of Your Own Backyard

More detailed information is available on the organization's web site.

Comment on this story



5. Dilemma: Who Decides Whether Bereaved Son Should Serve?
by Hillel Fendel Heart-Rending Dilemma Reawakened

May the brother of a fallen soldier serve in a combat unit? The controversial question has arisen once again in a big way, following the death of Asaf Ramon, whose astronaut father was killed in space.

Various politicians and public figures have weighed in on the question, and Knesset Speaker Ruby Rivlin promises that the Knesset will discuss the matter. At present, a child of a bereaved family may not serve in a combat position without his parents’ consent.

Bereaved mother: "The commander said I was within my rights, but I should remember that if I don’t let my son go in, he’ll never forgive me…"





“The tragedy of the Ramon family has sparked anew the dilemma of whether or not this too-heavy responsibility should be placed on the bereaved family,” Rivlin said. “As soon as the next Knesset session begins [after the upcoming holiday,” he told a gathering of 50 war- and terrorism-bereaved families, “the Knesset will have to address this topic, and the families will have to have their say.”

Likud MK Danny Danon, Chairman of the Children’s Rights Committee in the Knesset, said he has received many requests to hold a hearing on this matter. He added that he plans to initiate legislation stipulating that the boys themselves decide whether or not to enlist in a combat unit, without requiring their parents’ consent.

MK Nachman Shai (Kadima), on the other hand, says that Israel must set an across-the-board policy forbidding children of a bereaved family to serve in dangerous army positions. He has asked that the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee hold a session on this issue.

Yet another opinion was expressed by MK Moshe Matalon (Israel Our Home). He said that the status quo is acceptable: “We cannot allow politicians and outside elements to get involved in this painful question. Only those who have experienced the loss of a loved one can make this decision; everyone else should just salute and respect the fallen.”

Defense Minister Ehud Barak agrees that the families should continue to decide, and added that the army does not allow two brothers to participate in the same dangerous mission: “We sometimes had to decide which of two brothers in the same commando unit should take part in a mission; under no circumstances would both go. I remember the Netanyahu brothers competing between them all the time as to which of them would go on the mission.”

Former IDF Personnel Corps Commander Gen. (res.) Elazar Stern noted that the dilemma takes on acute dimensions “when you face those youngsters who want to be combat-worthy in order to continue the tradition of their father or brother… Even if a law is passed, it will not be able to withstand a mother who wants her son to be drafted into a combat unit.”

The “Yad LaBanim” soldiers’ memorial organization, which was founded some 60 years ago by mothers whose sons had fallen in battle, took a stand on this painful question as well. In a letter to the IDF and to the Defense Minister, the organization opines that mothers must be taken out of the picture, and the decision of whether to draft the soldiers in question into combat units left exclusively in the hands of the army. “Relieve us from dealing with this fateful decision,” the organization requests.

Atty. Yehudit Shachor, whose son Uri was murdered by Palestinian terrorists in Wadi Kelt near Jericho, disagrees with Yad Labanim. She spoke on Wednesday with Arutz-7’s Hebrew newsmagazine about the dilemma she and her husband faced when her son began to approach army age: “My son Uri was murdered in 1995, and my little son Binyamin was then 9… When he studied at the Atzmona pre-military yeshiva academy, which encouraged combat duty, he talked a lot about his dream of fighting in a combat unit. It was clear that we would allow him to fulfill his dream; we signed our approval, and said, ‘May G-d watch over you.’”

“The army cannot make this type of decision for the family. The people involved are too young… I’ll give you an example: During Operation Cast Lead, shortly after I had another tragedy – my husband passed away – I was informed that two of my sons were inside [Ga. I really felt like I was about to fall apart… I called my son’s commander, and asked him not to send my son into Gaza. He said that I was within my rights, but that I should remember that if I don’t let him go in, he’ll never forgive me… I asked my son not to go in, and he agreed – and even then, the commander told him that he should go in and put into practice all that he had learned and that he would not forgive himself otherwise. My son did not go in, but this shows that the commanders only see the military side, and not the entire picture.”

Comment on this story



6. Ex-Commandos Rescue US Woman Imprisoned in Arab Home
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu US Woman Freed from Arab Captor

Former IDF commandos secretly entered a Palestinian Authority village on Monday and rescued an American woman and her 2 1/2-year-old son from her Muslim husband, who had beaten and and held her captive for three years. The woman and child flew to the United States Wednesday night and are en route to her family’s home in Ohio.



The Arab met the woman during a visit to the United States and enticed her to return with him to Israel and to the house where he lives with his first wife and several children, according to Voice of Israel government radio military reporter Carmella Menashe, who reported the story.



“She had no idea of where she was and was unable to escape,” Menashe reported. The woman wore Muslim clothes, including a veil over her face, and the man threatened her that she never would see her child again and that security agents would pick her up if she fled. She was kept under guard to make sure she could not reveal details of her ordeal on the telephone.



Her family, knowing she was somewhere in Israel, unsuccessfully tried to get the U.S. Consulate in eastern Jerusalem and the Palestinian Authority to help, and finally a member of the family turned to a friend in Israel, a former commando in the Israeli Defense Forces.



To read the rest of the suspense-filled story, click here!

Comment on this story



7. The Race to Give Nazi Mass Execution Victims a Jewish Burial
by Hana Levi Julian Jewish Burial for Nazi Victims

Russian and U.S.Jews are engaged in a race against time to provide a proper Jewish burial for the victims of mass executions perpetrated by the Nazis in countries of the former Soviet Union.

The five-year project, which began this month, is dubbed "Dignity Return" and is being led by Yurij Kanner, president of the Russian Jewish Congress, together with Rabbi Marc Schneier, chairman of the World Jewish Congress in the United States.

"We've agreed to united Jewish communities' efforts and attract the whole world public opinion to the project in order to raise the Holocaust subject to a new world level," said Kanner. "We'd like to do all as quickly as possible, as very few witnesses are left to show the burial fields," he explained.

Both Jewish leaders hope to inspire thousands of people around the world to volunteer in the effort to bring the remains of victims found in Belarus, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, the Ukraine and Estonia to a final resting place, in accordance with Jewish law.

The initiative is being supported by Jewish organizations from the United States, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova and the Ukraine.



“These sites, all but forgotten and neglected, must be restored as part of our history as a people,” said Rabbi Schneier, who noted that the number of people who can share a personal experience from the Holocaust is growing smaller by the day.

"As a result, it is increasingly up to those who were born after the Holocaust to preserve and protect their stories and these sites so that Holocaust revisionists will be unable to change history, and our call of ‘never again’ will continue to resonate from one generation to the next,” Rabbi Schneier said

Comment on this story