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1. PA Violence Continues; Direct Talks Reported to be Near
by Maayana Miskin
Palestinian Authority Arab terrorist groups have stepped up their attacks in Judea and Samaria as pressure over Israel-PA negotiations increases and rumors swirl regarding an impending move to direct talks.
Two IDF soldiers and a civilian woman were wounded in rock-throwing attacks in the past week. In other such attacks, vehicles were damaged but the passengers escaped injury. In one such case, a driver escaped unscathed despite being targeted by a barrage of Molotov cocktails; the vehicle was damaged.
PA officials recently admitted that Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is under intense pressure to agree to direct negotiations with Israel. Abbas has demanded that Israel freeze construction east of the 1949 armistice line and agree to use the line as the base for negotiations on the borders of a PA state. Only when Israel concedes will the PA begin talks, he says.
This week, two reports appeared to suggest that Israel is under pressure to agree to Abbas's demands. On Friday, the London-based Arabic daily Al-Hayyat reported that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has agreed to give Abbas 90% of Judea and Samaria for the establishment of a PA state, and to forcibly expel the roughly 50,000 Jews living in the area.
Netanyahu's office has denied the report. Netanyahu also reportedly told US envoy George Mitchell on Wednesday that he cannot accept the PA's latest demand - namely, that direct talks be renewed on the basis of a Quartet declaration that the Palestinian state be based on the pre-1967 borders. The prime minister reportedly said that the talks should simply begin without any pre-conditions.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported that Abbas may agree to direct talks if Netanyahu agrees to a PA state with borders based on the 1949 armistice line – an agreement that would leave the PA with all of Judea and Samaria and much of Jerusalem, including the Old City and other historically Jewish neighborhoods such as Shiloach (Silwan) and Shimon Hatzaddik.
The Reuters report was based on a letter written by European Union representative Catherine Ashton. Ashton allegedly said that Abbas would agree to direct talks next week if Israel gives in to his demand, and called on the international Quartet to provide Abbas with support.
Abbas has stated for some time that he is prepared to move to direct talks if Israel gives in to his demand for control over all areas that were under Jordanian control between 1949 and 1967.
2. Arab Israeli Arrested for US Serial Killings
by Elad Benari
An Arab Israeli has been arrested in the US on suspicion of killing five people and wounding 13 in a stabbing spree that spanned across three US states. Most of the men who were attacked were black and US police said Thursday that they believe the suspect chose victims based on the color of their skin.
33 year-old Elias Abuelazam was detained late Wednesday in Atlanta while he was trying to board a flight to Tel Aviv. He was arrested at the departure gate, after being paged by a Delta Airlines representative and getting up to identify himself.
Police suspect Abuelazam is behind the attacks that have taken place over the last two-and-a-half months in Michigan, Ohio and Virginia. It is alleged that his method of operation was to approach a lone man on a city street late at night, ask for directions or help with his car, and then to attack the person viciously, usually with a knife, according to a report on AFP.
The first attack was in late May in Flint, Michigan, when a 31-year-old black man was stabbed. Over the next two months, 13 more men were attacked by the serial stabber in and around Flint. Five of them died. In early August, three attacks were reported in Leesburg, Virginia, and one in Toledo, Ohio.
Abuelazam is an Arab Israeli citizen who is living in the US with a green card.
Police added that Abuelazam had a previous criminal record and had been arrested in 2007 for illegal gun possession, though the charges against him had been dropped. The Flint Journal reported that he has had several brushes with the law in the past, including having his drivers licence suspended, giving alcohol to a minor and simple assault.
He was identified to be the suspect of the stabbings through fingerprints. The investigation continues and police are also searching for possible connections with other stabbing incidents, said a report on MSNBC.Relatives of Abuelazam responded to his arrest on Thursday, saying they are convinced that he is innocent.
“He's an exemplary person, pleasant and quiet," said the relatives. "The whole family is in shock. We’re sure he’s being framed.”
3. Hadad's Arrest a Political Move, Libyan Admits
by Maayana Miskin
Israel obtained citizen Rafael Hadad's release from a Libyan prison by promising to release Arab terrorists from jail in Israel, according to Saeef al-Islam, the son of Libyan ruler Moammer Khaddafi.
Islam admitted that Libya, which held Hadad on charges of espionage, was aware that he was not a spy. “The Israelis do not send an Israeli spy, and even less one with a Jewish first name on his passport,” he said.
In explanation of why Hadad would be held in prison if he were clearly not a spy, Islam said, “I made use of this issue in favor of our Palestinian brothers in Gaza.” His actions may seem “opportunistic,” Islam said, but added, “my aim is to do good.”
"It is better to free prisoners from among our Palestinian sisters and brothers than to keep an Israeli in jail,” he said.
Hadad, who holds Tunisian and Israeli citizenship, was arrested in March while working on behalf of an organization dedicated to Libyan Jewish heritage.
In addition to the reported prisoner release, Israel apparently agreed, as part of the Hadad release deal, to allow Libya to fund a construction project in Gaza. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman did not give details of the deal, but told reporters that Libya's demands were “very reasonable.”
4. Canadian Jew Also Involved in Hadad's Release
by Elad Benari
In the wake of the release of Rafel Hadad, an Israeli who had been placed under arrest in Libya for five months, more details on the circumstances of his arrest and subsequent release are slowly being made available.
Behind the scenes negotiations took place in order to secure the release of Hadad, who had entered Libya using his Tunisian passport. American Jewish organizations, Italian intelligence, as well as Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and Austrian-Jewish businessman Martin Schlaff (who has ties to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi), all took part in these negotiations.
Shalom Life spoke with a member the Canadian Libyan Jewish community. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the individual who had also taken part in the negotiations for Hadad’s release revealed some further details on the negotiations.
The individual explained that Hadad was not arrested right away, but was rather stopped by security and released after a very short time. He remained in Libya and was subsequently stopped a second time and again released. It was only after the third time that Hadad was stopped that he was arrested, interrogated and placed in jail under allegation of spying, said the source.
The source told Shalom Life that after Israel had put a gag order on the story, behind-the-scenes negotiations for Hadad’s release began. Through a contact in Italy who is friends with Libyan leader Gaddafi’s son, he succeeded in making the Libyans aware of Israel’s desire to solve the problem without any publicity.
At the same time, said the individual, Schlaff was also holding discussions with the Libyans on this issue. He added that during the negotiations/discussions with Libyans, it appeared that they were interested in solving the problem and were very positive in trying to sort it out. One of the channels of discussion was through the Canadian/Italian and the son of Gaddafi.
The discussions had started before the flotilla aid ship was due to leave from Libya, explained the source. Once that story broke, those involved in negotiations were concerned that should problems with the Libyan ship arise, it would affect the negotiations of the release. In the last discussion, however, the Libyans assured all involved that they would finalize the release before the Ramadan holidays. They also assured the Italian contact that Hadad was in good health after concerns were expressed regarding his health.
The source told Shalom Life that the Libyans acted in a very responsible manner, and fulfilled their promises to the parties involved.
It has been speculated that Schlaff’s active involvement in the negotiations to release Hadad was due to the fact that he is not allowed in Israel due to previous corruption charges, and participating in the negotiations was his way of trying to correct his past mistake and lift the ban. Schlaff has indeed been the subject of a number of police investigations in Israel, due to his relationships with both Lieberman and former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Police suspect that Schlaff operated a number of shell companies to illegally fund Lieberman’s 2006 election campaign, and that he paid off a debt accrued by Sharon during his campaign for the Likud primary in 1999.
This past April, Schlaff chose not to attend his father’s funeral in Jerusalem, possibly because he was unable to receive assurances from police that he would not be arrested if he came to Israel.The day after Hadad’s release, Libya announced it will fund a $50 million project for Gaza. The project involves the construction of 1,250 homes and represents a rare agreement between Israel and Libya. It was originally reported that this was the price Israel agreed to pay for the release of Tunisian-born Hadad. However, Gaddafi’s regime insisted there was no connection between Hadad's release and the announcement of the project.
(Reprinted with permission from Shalom Life)
5. Turkey Cozies Up to Hizbullah with Iran
by Chana Ya'ar
Turkey has offered to join Iran in sending weapons to Hizbullah in Lebanon, with help from Syria, according to a report published in an Italian newspaper.
The daily Corriere Della Sera quoted sources Wednesday evening who said that Turkey will “send sophisticated weapons, rockets and guns to Syria that will end up in Lebanon.”
The sources went on to say that the Iranian Revolutionary Guards would “facilitate the transition, ensure safety, watch loads on the routes, and provide support to the border.” According to the report, Iran intends to build a network that will supply the Gaza-based Hamas terrorist organization with weapons as well, similar to the weapons network that operates in the Sudan.
The newspaper also reported that Turkish and Iranian intelligence heads Hakan Fidan and Hossein Taeb allegedly met to discuss logistics and relations between the two nations.
Israeli Premonition?
Nearly two weeks ago, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak expressed concern that Turkey might pass on some of Jerusalem's intelligence information to the Islamic Republic.
Barak, whose remarks were recorded and broadcast by IDF Radio, told a private meeting of his Labor Party associates that “Turkey is a friendly country and a strategic ally. But the nomination in recent weeks of a new chief of the Turkish secret services, who is a supporter of Iran, worries us.”
The appointment, Barak told his colleagues, might lead to “the Iranians obtaining access to classified information... There are quite a few [Israeli] secrets in their hands. The thought that they may now be open to Iran is disturbing," he admitted.
Turkish Under-Secretary Halit Cevik summoned Israeli Ambassador Gabi Levy to a meeting in Ankara to express his outrage over Barak's comments.
Fidan, 42, was appointed as head of MIT, Turkey's National Intelligence Organization, on May 27. He had previously served as Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs to the prime minister, and represented the country at the United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
The IAEA's inspectors have been attempting to identify Iranian nuclear capabilities, as the agency's director worked to convince the country to end its nuclear development program. As a member of the IAEA, Fidan was heavily involved in negotiating with Iran over its uranium enrichment activities.
Ankara sealed a deal on May 17 with Iran to export some of its uranium for enrichment to Turkey in exchange for nuclear fuel. Turkey also voted against a June 9 U.N. Security Council decision to impose increased sanctions against Iran that were intended to further pressure the Islamic Republic into abandoning its uranium enrichment program.
6. Al-Qaeda Plots Against Saudi Monarchs, Israel
by Maayana Miskin
Al-Qaeda leaders in Yemen have called to topple Saudi rulers and murder Christians living in Saudi Arabia, according to a taped statement released Wednesday. The person speaking in the tape identified himself as senior Al-Qaeda operative Saeed al-Shihri, but his identity could not be confirmed.
The tape also included a call for rogue terrorist attacks on Israel. Addressing Al-Qaeda supporters in the Saudi Arabian army, the speaker said, “Bear arms against Israel... Whoever is a pilot should seek martyrdom in the skies of Palestine, and whoever is in the navy should aim his weapons at the Jews...”
United States officials have issued a warning to Americans staying north of Riyadh. Terrorists may be planning to attack Western nationals in the Al-Qassim province, they said.
The speaker in Wednesday's tape called on Al-Qaeda supporters to collect information on the Saudi royal family. Those who have access to members of the royal family should kill them, he said. He called to murder Christians as well.
Al-Qaeda has called to attack the government of Saudi Arabia for allegedly supporting the US in its wars on terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan. The international terrorist group is also engaged in battling the Yemeni army, which it has attacked several times this summer.
Al-Shihri is the deputy leader of Al-Qaeda in Yemen, one of Al-Qaeda's larger branches. He was imprisoned for several years in the US-run Guantanamo Bay jail and released in 2007 to Saudi Arabia, where he underwent a rehabilitation program for terrorists.
7. 75 Years Without Rabbi Kook: Selected Quotes
by Hillel Fendel
Friday, the 3rd of Elul, 5770 (August 13, 2010) marks the 75th anniversary of the death of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook, arguably the most influential and revered rabbi of the 20th century.
The first Chief Rabbi of the Holy Land in modern times, Rabbi Kook's breadth of thought, knowledge, leadership and piety were unmatched. Rabbi Isser Zalman Meltzer, who headed the hareidi-religious Council of Torah Sages, once said to the famous sage Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinsky of Vilna, “We are considered Torah giants only up until the point that we reach the door of Rabbi Kook’s room.”
Rabbi Kook was born in 1865 in a village in Latvia. When he was 19, he both received rabbinical ordination from Rabbi Yechiel Michal HaLevy Epstein, the author of the Arukh HaShulchan, and became engaged to the daughter of the Aderet, Rabbi Eliyahu David Rabinowitz-Teomim. She gave birth to a daughter, but died just a few years later. Thereafter, Rabbi Kook married her first cousin, daughter of the Aderet’s twin brother; she bore him two daughters and a son, the famed Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook.
He served as Rabbi in Zeimel (Lithuania) and Boisk (Latvia) before being offered the position of “Rabbi of Jaffa and the Farming Villages.” He arrived in the Holy Land in 1904, and served in this position for ten years – until he departed for Europe in 1914 to take part in the Agudat Yisrael convention, and found himself trapped by World War I. He became the rabbi in London’s largest synagogue, having set a condition that he would return to Jaffa as soon as feasible.
After he returned, he was appointed Rabbi of Jerusalem, and shortly afterward established the Chief Rabbinate. Rabbi Kook became Chief Rabbi of the Holy Land in 1921, with Rabbi Yaakov Meir chosen to serve as the Chief Sephardic Rabbi.
In 1924, Rabbi Kook founded the Central Universal Yeshiva, known even today as Merkaz HaRav, the flagship yeshiva of the religious-Zionist public. He formulated its objectives as “a yeshiva to which the best students will stream from all over the world, outstanding in talent, inspiration, idealism… to return the crown to its former glory, and to become expert in the Torah of the Land of Israel and in the revival of sanctity in the Holy Land.”
Rabbi Kook was the officiating rabbi at the weddings of many future rabbis, including the contemporary Torah giant Rabbi Shlomo Elyashiv, as well as the late Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach.
Rabbi Kook died in 1935, and no funeral in Israel was larger than his for decades afterwards; approximately one-fourth of the entire Jewish population in the country was there.
"It is unbelievable,” writes a modern-day student of Rabbi Kook, Har Bracha’s Rabbi Eliezer Melamed, “how so many varied talents could be integrated into one soul. His knowledge encompassed every field of Torah study and philosophy, his memory was phenomenal, his piety was unrivaled, he was courageous and a man of truth who paid a high personal price for standing up for truth, he was friendly, charming and fascinating, he was both intellectual and poetic, and he was very active spiritually and publicly on behalf of the Torah, the nation and the land…”
His vision of national and personal redemption led him to love and view the entire world in both its macro and micro formats.
Quotes from his writings:
“The truly righteous [lit., the pure righteous ones] do not complain about evil, but rather add justice; they do not complain about heresy, but rather add faith; they do not complain about ignorance, but rather add wisdom.”
“The great love that we feel for our nation will not blind us from seeing its faults – but even after the most wide-ranging critical review, [we know that] it is free from all faults.”
“The thought of a happiness that comes from outside the person, brings him sadness. But the recognition in the value of one’s will and the freedom granted by its uplifting, brings great joy.”
“One whose soul does not wander in the expanses, one who does not seek the light of truth and goodness with all his heart, does not suffer spiritual ruins – but he will also not have his own self-based constructions. Instead, he takes shelter in the shadow of the natural constructions, like rabbits under boulders. But one who has a human soul cannot take shelter in anything other than constructions that he builds with his own spiritual toil…”
“When one looks truly at the good side of everyone, others come to love him very naturally, and he does not need even a speck of flattery.”
“There are free men with the spirit of a slave, and slaves whose spirit is full of freedom. He who is true to his inner self is a free man, while he whose entire life is merely a stage for what is good and beautiful in the eyes of others, is a slave.”
“We [Israel] are great, and our foibles are great, and therefore our troubles are great – but our consolations will also be great.”
“The desire to be good to all with no restrictions - not in the quantity of those to whom we are good nor in the quality of the good we perform – that is the inner nucleus of the essence of the soul of Israel.”
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