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1. Israel Complains to UN after Gaza Missile Penetrates IDF Tank
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Israel has complained to the United Nations after an escalation in Gaza
terrorist attacks, including the first firing of an advanced Kornet
anti-tank missile from Gaza that penetrated a Merkava tank. The
soldiers inside the tank were not injured.
The advanced missile, apparently made in Iran, was fired last week
from a longer range than more primitive anti-tank rockets, and its use
two weeks ago was revealed on Tuesday by IDF Chief of Staff Gabi
Ashkenazi. Hizbullah used the Kornet in the Second Lebanon War in 2006.
Hamas and allied terrorists have attacked the western Negev with at
least 18 missiles and mortar shells since Monday in a sharp escalation
in violence. Lt. Gen. Ashkenazi said that the IDF retaliation included
buildings housing Hamas terrorists, the first time they have been
targeted, with the exception of “ticking bombs,” since the end of
Operation Cast Lead two years ago next month.
The complaint to the United Nations pointed out that a Kassam rocket
exploded near a kindergarten on a kibbutz Monday morning, wounding a
14-year-old girl and sending several others into traumatic shock.
“The incidents of the past several days are part of an escalation of
terrorist attacks emanating from Gaza that target Israeli civilians,
towns, and military personnel,” wrote Israel's United Nations Ambassador
Meron Reuben.
“Israel holds the de facto Hamas authority in the Gaza Strip
completely responsible for all of these incidents, which are carried out
in clear violation of international law,” he added. “In response to
such attacks, Israel has exercised and will continue to exercise its
right to self-defense.
“In a previous letter on 9 December 2010, I mentioned that the
escalation of such attacks should be viewed with the utmost seriousness.
With the intention of preventing the continued escalation of conflict,
the Security Council, the Secretary-General, and the international
community must send a clear and resolute message that these attacks are
unacceptable.
“In addition, the Security Council must give appropriate attention to
the smuggling of arms into Gaza, which continues to fuel violence and
instability in our region - in violation of numerous Security Council
resolutions, including resolution 1860.
“I wish to inform you that an identical letter has been sent to H.E.
Mr. Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations."
2. The Big Lie: ‘1967 Borders’ is a Fallacy, Says Former Ambassador
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
The term “1967 borders,” the Arab world’s mantra for the borders of a
PA state, never existed, says former Ambassador to Canada Alan Baker in a
research paper for the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.
Ever since neighboring Arab countries attacked Israel in 1948 as it
became an independent country for the first time in 2,000 years, there
were no borders, only temporary military lines defined by the 1949
“Armistice Lines” that ended, at least formally, the War for
Independence.
However, the Arab world has repeated the term “1967 borders” so much
that it has been adopted as fact by mainstream media and most
international leaders. The term refers to the 1949 ceasefire line from
which Israel military forces advanced at the beginning of the Six-Day
War on June 4, 1967 and should be called "pre-1967 War Armistice
Lines" or "1949 Armistice Lines". INN, it should be noted, has used
those accurate terms consistently..
Even Brazil, which recently decided to “recognize” the Palestinian
Authority based on the supposed 1967 borders, stated during a United
Nation debate on Resolution 242 in 1967 calling for negotiations for
boundaries, “Its acceptance does not imply that borderlines cannot be
rectified as a result of an agreement freely concluded among the
interested States. We keep constantly in mind that a just and lasting
peace in the Middle East has necessarily to be based on secure permanent
boundaries freely agreed upon and negotiated by the neighboring
States."
Baker (pictured) noted that Jordan, which also has adopted the fallacy
of “1967 borders,” said in the same debate, "There is an Armistice
Agreement. The Agreement did not fix boundaries; it fixed a demarcation
line. The Agreement did not pass judgment on rights political, military
or otherwise. Thus I know of no territory; I know of no boundary; I know
of a situation frozen by an Armistice Agreement."
Although the “1967 borders” denote lines of separation, they have no
basis in history, law, or fact,” Baker explained. “The 1949 armistice
agreements specifically stated that such lines have no political or
legal significance and do not prejudice future negotiations on
boundaries,” he continued.
“There are no provisions in any of the agreements signed between Israel
and the Palestinians that require withdrawal to the ‘1967 borders.’
There were never any geographic imperatives that sanctify the 1967
lines."
The "Armistice Lines” of 1949 were determined in agreements signed by
Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. They were not borders, Baker
pointed out. “The armistice demarcation line represented nothing more
than the forward lines of deployment of the forces on the day a
ceasefire was declared…. The line was demarcated on the map attached to
the armistice agreement with a green marker pen and hence received the
name ‘Green Line.’
“The Security Council in its resolution stressed the temporary nature
of the armistice lines that were to be maintained ‘during the transition
to permanent peace in Palestine.'"
The Armistice Agreement stated, “The basic purpose of the Armistice
Demarcation Lines is to delineate the lines beyond which the armed
forces of the respective Parties shall not move. The provisions of this
article shall not be interpreted as prejudicing, in any sense, an
ultimate political settlement between the Parties to this Agreement.
"The Armistice Demarcation Lines defined in...this Agreement are agreed
upon by the Parties without prejudice to future territorial settlements
or boundary lines or to claims of either Party relating thereto."
Baker quoted Judge Steven Schwebel, former President of the
International Court of Justice, who stated in 1994, "The armistice
agreements of 1949 expressly preserved the territorial claims of all
parties and did not purport to establish definitive boundaries between
them."
The current Arab campaign for recognizing the Palestinian Authority
according to the supposed “1967 borders” ironically is often based on
the oft-quoted UN Resolution 242. This is the resolution which Baker
noted emphasizes in its very first paragraph the “...respect for and
acknowledgement of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political
independence of every State in the area and their right to live in peace
within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of
force."
The Palestinian Authority has accepted in previous agreements the
concept that borders will be negotiated, but the Arab world’s
“diplomatic war of attrition” has virtually erased this perception in
the media and in the international community. A 1993 agreement signed by
Arafat states that there are, "...remaining issues, including:
Jerusalem, refugees, settlements, security arrangements, borders,
relations and cooperation with other neighbors, and other issues of
common interest."
The PA in the past several months has called for “negotiations” but in
reality has demanded that Israel accept the so-called “1967 borders”
without negotiation, lines which Baker’s research paper shows havs no
legal or historical foundation as borders.
%InAd1%
3. Netanyahu Decides to Ask Obama to Free Pollard
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Israel will formally and publicly ask U.S. President Barack Obama to
free Jonathan Pollard, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu announced
Tuesday. He said that government officials have paved the way for an
appeal through contacts with senior members of the Obama administration.
The appeal will represent a major step to rescue Pollard from a life
term in prison for passing to Israel classified documents when he worked
for the Pentagon. The usual punishment for the offense is up to four
years in jail, and he already has spent the last 25 years in American
prisons.
Prime Minister Netanyahu acted after pleas by Pollard’s wife Esther and
a string of events and reports the past few weeks that have weakened
the American case for imposing a life sentence on Pollard. The Prime
Minister’s office stated that the decision to appeal to President Obama
“was made following a series of talks and contacts…in recent months with
senior U.S. administration officials.”
One of those leading the free-Pollard movement is former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense Lawrence Korb,
who revealed that he has spoken with President Obama and U.S. Secretary
of State Hillary Clinton at least six times. He recently has said that
Pollard was not dealt with fairly.
Israeli governments have said they have made quiet efforts to free
Pollard, and Prime Minister Netanyahu warned them that his appeal to
President Obama may not succeed, if not backfire. Esther Pollard,
citing her husband’s deteriorating health, said that “this might be my
last chance to beg you to change your tactics. There is a greater risk
in doing nothing.”
American sentiment never has been strongly behind Pollard, who is
widely regarded as a spy although he was convicted of passing on
classified information and not for spying on the United States. CNN,
reporting Tuesday on the Prime Minister's and Korb's statements. labeled
Pollard a "spy."
In contrast, in Israel and in many Zionist communities in the Diaspora,
Pollard’s name is cited as a captive and his name is mentioned in
prayers for the return of missing Israel soldiers.
During Prime Minister Netanyahu’s previous term in office, he
recognized Pollard as an Israeli agent and granted him Israeli
citizenship.
"I intend to continue acting with determination for Pollard's release,
both because of the State of Israel's moral obligation to him and also
so that he might live with his family and be restoredf to health after
his prolonged incarceration,” Prime Minister Netanyahu said Tuesday.
On Monday, members of the movement to free Pollard held a ceremony at
which they named a park opposite the Prime Minister's home "Pollard
Park.
4. Egypt to Preserve Alexandria Synagogue as 'Jewish Monument'
by Chana Ya'ar
Egypt plans to restore Alexandria's lone remaining active synagogue,
the Eliahou Hanabi Synagogue – the city's “only Jewish monument,”
according to a report published in the Al Masry Al Youm newspaper.
Located on Nebi Daniel Street, the synagogue was hailed in the report
as “one of Egypt's most important Jewish historical sites.”
The renovations are to be carried out by Cairo University's Center for
Antiquities and Environment Studies, according to the report, which
noted that “all Egyptian Jewish monuments” are to be renovated.
Ali Hilal, project manager at the Supreme Council for Antiquities, said the sites were considered a part of Egypt's heritage.
There once were 13 synagogues that once existed in the city of Alexandria, according to the website of the Association Internationale Nebi Daniel.
The largest of these, the Eliahou Hanabi Synagogue was built in 1850.
It was destroyed by Napoleon during his military campaign, and later
rebuilt. According to the Associate website, the 150-year-old house of
worship is actually built on the site of a much older synagogue, the
Voltera.
Guarded around the clock, the building is surrounded on three sides by
landscaped gardens. The synagogue, which itself is fairly well
maintained, is the only synagogue where services are maintained,
according to the Association.
Over the past year, Egypt has restored several of its synagogues,
including the Maimonides Synagogue in Cairo was rededicated -- although
Jews are not allowed to pray there.
%InAd2%
5. Hareidi Religious Jews to Join Rally for Judea and Samaria
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Thousands of hareidi religious Jews are expected to turn out at a
Jerusalem rally Thursday in support of Judea and Samaria. The 7:00 p.m.
rally at Zion Square in the center of the capital will be staged against
a defacto building freeze and as a “salute to Judea, Samaria and
Jerusalem residents.” Popular singers Ariel Zilber, Yishai Lapidot,
Mendy Jerufi and Gadi Elbaz will perform.
Support for nationalists by the hareidi religious community, which was
less common several years ago, provides an additional and strong ally
for Land of Israel activists.
One sticker that will be distributed to people will be written in
Yiddish, the first language of tens of thousands of people in religious
communities, and states, “The Land of Israel is ours.”
The Halamish
organization, which is organizing the rally, stated, “We must stop the
government from expelling more Jews, and Jewish law, as determined by a
council of sages, forbids giving land to non-Jews.
Halamish pointed out that although there is no official building freeze
in Judea and Samaria, there is a de facto freeze that it said is a
contributing factor to a severe housing shortage. Communities that have
been affected also include the hareidi religious cities of Beitar Illit,
located in western Gush Etzion, Modi'in Illit, located in Samaria and
near the city of Modi’in, and Emanuel, east of Kfar Saba and near the
Jewish communities of Ginot Shomron and Kedumim in central Samaria.
Organizers, relying on a statement from hareidi religious sages, said
that "the Holy Land is the foundation for building the truth, and it is
forbidden to separate the Land from the Torah because they are one. They
noted that the blessings recited after food thank the Creator for "the
land…the exodus from Egypt…and the Torah.”
Organizers recalled that before the expulsion of Jews from Gush Katif
in 2005, they distributed pamphlets to hareidi religious synagogues in
Ashdod warning them that the expulsion would be followed by missile
attacks.
“They laughed at such ‘extremist’ views, but then asked, 'Who would
have thought missiles would explode in Ashkelon, Ashdod, Be’er Sheva and
Kiryat Gat?'
“All saw after the expulsion of Jews from Gush Katif that the meaning
of a ‘peace agreement’ for terrorists is missiles and rockets. The
missile attacks proved it is impossible to make peace with terrorists."
6. Katz: Tel Aviv Luxury Areas Flooded Next by Illegal Immigrants
by Chana Ya'ar
MK Yaakov "Ketzaleh" Katz (National Union) is warning northern Tel Aviv
residents to unite with the rest of the city in fighting an influx of
illegal immigrants, or face a flood.
Katz argued Wednesday that wealthy residents of northern Tel Aviv
cannot abandon the city's impoverished southern neighborhoods in the
fight against the influx of illegal immigrants without the flood
eventually reaching the north as well.
“Soon thousands will be protesting in central Tel Aviv and in a year or
two thousands will be protesting in the north, as many of them carry
AIDS and tuberculosis,” he said. Katz was referring to Tuesday's rally against illegal immigrants living in southern Tel Aviv.
“The silence of the residents in northern Tel Aviv is like the
orchestra playing on the deck of the Titanic while its stern is
sinking,” Katz commented.
High Percentage of Migrants are HIV Carriers
According to a new report released this week by the Health Ministry, 17
percent of HIV carriers in Israel are illegal immigrants.
In addition, 13 percent of those with tuberculosis, are migrants, according to the report.
The ministry said it is reportedly examining ways to develop a network
in which to offer medical services to the illegal immigrants.
%InAd3%
7. US Senators' Report Slams Britain and Scotland on Lockerbie
by Amiel Ungar
A report released yesterday by four US senators Robert Menendez, Frank
Lautenberg, Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrandall, Democrats
representing New York and New Jersey concluded that BP (the oil
company), the British Government and the Scottish Government, that under
devolution is in control of justice, colluded in the "humanitarian
release" of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi. Megrahi was a Libyan intelligence
agent convicted of the Lockerbie bombing of Pan Am flight 103 plane over
Scotland 22 years ago that resulted in the death of 270 passengers and
crew.
The bottom line of the report was: “The threat of commercial warfare
was a motivating factor. The U.K. knew that in order to maintain trade
relations with Libya, it had to give into political demands. Faced with
the threat of losing the lucrative BP oil deal and other commercial
ties, the U.K. agreed to include al-Megrahi’s release in a Prisoner
Transfer Agreement (PTA) with Libya".
Qatar was also heavily involved in the Scottish decision, holding out
the possibility of business deals and massive development loans that
would have boosted the status of Scotland's First Minister Alec Salmond.
The senators want an apology from Britain and al-Megrahi's return to
prison.
When al-Megrahi was released in 2009 back to Libya on compassionate
grounds, Scottish doctors wrote that he had at most 3 months to live due
to prostate cancer. We are now approaching 2011 and al-Megrahi is alive
and with us. Either Libyan oncology is more advanced than Britain's or
there was something suspect in the doctor's assessment.
A judicial panel in Scotland reviewed the release and produced an 800
page report with voluminous appendices, but the report is not being made
public. Relatives of the victims have demanded a public inquiry that
has been rejected by Foreign Minister William Hague on the grounds that
"it would not be in the public interest", reports the British Telegraph.
The Foreign Office claimed after the publication of the senators'
report "Senator Menendez's report contains no evidence to demonstrate a
link between the pursuit of Britain's legitimate commercial interests in
Libya and the Scottish Executive's decision to release Megrahi on
compassionate grounds."
The Scottish Government downplayed the report: "This is not an official
report of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee - it is an incorrect
and inaccurate rehash by four senators of material that has been in the
public domain for many months, and we entirely reject their false
interpretation."
Meanwhile, back in Libya, al-Megrahi's relatives are letting it be
known that he is at death's door (this time for real) and that upon his
death they will appeal his false imprisonment and maltreatment in
Britain as he was innocent of the charges. The release, they claim, was
not part of a deal to advance British commercial interests but to
prevent the prisoner from filing a successful appeal.
8. U.S. Imposes New Sanctions on Iran
by Elad Benari
The United States announced on Tuesday that it will be expanding the
sanctions already imposed on Iran over its nuclear and missile programs.
As part of the sanctions, the Treasury Department added five Iranian
companies to its financial blacklist, including two banks, an insurance
company, a freight forwarder and the state-owned shipper. The sanctions
bar the firms, which are linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps,
from the U.S. financial system. Any assets the firms may have in U.S.
jurisdictions will be frozen.
Among the firms targeted by the sanctions is the Moallem Insurance
Company for providing marine insurance to Islamic Republic of Iran
Shipping Lines (IRISL) vessels and the Ansar Bank and Mehr Bank for
providing financial services to the Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Also affected is Bonyad Taavon Sepah and its executive director, Parviz
Fattah. Bonyad Taavon Sepah is a quasi-governmental financial services
firm that handles investments for the Revolutionary Guard.
The Pars Oil and Gas Company, which is responsible for tapping some of
the world's largest gas fields, was also hit with sanctions after the
Treasury Department indentified the company as being owned or controlled
by the Iranian government.
Under Secretary of Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence
Stuart Levey was quoted as saying about the new sanctions: “Both the
IRGC and IRISL are major institutional participants in Iran's illicit
conduct and in its attempts to evade sanctions. We will therefore
continue to target and expose their networks.”
Tuesday’s sanctions follow an earlier round of sanctions
approved by the U.S. last June and which penalize companies that sell
gasoline to Iran or that do business with the Revolutionary Guard Corp.
The UN also imposed sanctions
on the Islamic Republic last summer, banning Iran's purchasing of heavy
weapons such as attack helicopters and missiles as well as toughening
rules on financial transactions with Iran's banks.
Other world powers which have imposed sanctions on Iran include the European Union, Canada, and Australia,
who in July imposed travel and financial bans against more than 110
businesses and individuals in Iran's financial and transportation
sectors, and also imposed a ban on business dealings involving nuclear
or missile technology, uranium mining and trade in all arms and related
material, including anything that might be used for nuclear, missile,
chemical and biological weapons development.
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