February 2012

Review of Nasser Abufarha's Book on The Palestinian Culture of Violence / Anat Berko

The Making of a Human Bomb
An Ethnography of Palestinian Resistance (The Culture and Practice of Violence)
Nasser Abufarha
Durham: Duke University Press, 2009. 277 pp. $84.95 ($23.95, paper)
Reviewed by Anat Berko
Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya and George Washington University

Defending Jesus and Judaism / Alan Caruba

Jan.31 2012
As a book reviewer I receive countless requests to read books and, when I received one regarding “Kosher Jesus” by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, I was intrigued by the title. In addition to fathering nine children, the rabbi has written 27 books, is a regular contributor to The Huffington Post and the profile on his website is filled with achievements and encomiums

Never Again, for Now / Moshe Kantor

The evil that perpetrated the Holocaust still lives among us.
Jan 1 2012
In 1961, Swedish filmmaker Erwin Leise coined the phrase "Never again!" in his documentary "Mein Kampf." Over the years this slogan has been repeated many times. However, to return to its true meaning, the term has to lose its solely commemorative application and become an active part of the global psyche to understand and face evil.

A Divided Palestine Makes for a Hopeless Peace Process / Daniel Meyerowitz - Katz

Feb 1 2012
An AFP report yesterday indicated that, as predicted, Hamas and Fatah are dragging their feet on actually implementing the latest reconciliation deal.

Both sides have stressed their desire to repair the rift, but Mukhaimer Abu Saada, a political scientist at Gaza's Al Azhar University, said little of the deal appeared to have been implemented.

"On political prisoners, we hear that they are close; that the issue of Palestinian passports, newspapers will be settled," he said. "Every day we hear new promises."

Review of Banu Eligur Book / Kemal Silay

The Mobilization of Political Islam in Turkey
Banu Eligür
New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010. 317 pp. $85
Reviewed by Kemal Silay
Indiana University, Bloomington

In an era when an overwhelming majority of articles and books published on Islamism are apologetic in nature and often fall short in terms of academic and scholarly integrity, Eligür's study constitutes a shift in research design, data, analytical strength, and discursive qualities.

Abbas Blocks Young Leadership, Ensuring Hamas Victory / Khaled Abu Toameh

February 3, 2012
Fatah leaders in the West Bank announced this week that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is their only candidate for the presidential election expected to take place in May 2012.

The announcement enraged several disillusioned Fatah officials, some of whom called on the 76-year-old Abbas not to seek re-election so as to pave the way for the emergence of young and fresh faces.

Muslims in the West: Loyal to Whom? Mark Durie

January 18, 2012
Mark Durie is a theologian, human rights activist and pastor of an Anglican church. He has published many articles and books on the language and culture of the Acehnese, Christian-Muslim relations and religious freedom. A graduate of the Australian National University and the Australian College of Theology, he has held visiting appointments at the University of Leiden, MIT, UCLA and Stanford, and was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities in 1992. On January 18, he spoke to the Middle East Forum in Philadelphia.

Why No Peace? Prof.B.Rubin

Why No Peace? Because the PA Tells Its People that Murdering Israeli Civilians Makes You a Hero
February 3, 2012
The trouble with the Palestinian Authority (PA) is that while in the Western mass media it is virtually always portrayed as moderate the PA simply doesn’t act that way. Its contrary behavior involves not keeping its commitments, daily incitement to kill Israelis and destroy Israel in its institutions, and refusal to negotiate seriously.

La Repubblica:Interview with David Harris

Interview with David Harris
February 3, 2012
Note:David Harris is an American - Jewish leader
LR: First of all I would like to ask you the purpose of your visit to Italy. You will be also in other capitals in Europe. What will you discuss with Minister for Foreign Affairs Terzi and Minister for International Cooperation Riccardi?

The Plight of Venezuela's Jewish Community / Alon Lee

Feb 3 2012
Venezuelan Supremo Hugo Chavez often accuses Israel of committing genocide against the Palestinians.

And so voluminous is the Chavez definition of the term that it is a surprise he has failed to notice that half of his own country’s 200-year-old Jewish community has disappeared since he assumed power in 1998. But then the evaporation of this patriotic, productive, and loyal group is largely a consequence of Chavez’s hostile policies and rhetoric.

International Condemnation of PA Mufti incitement Against Jews / Itamar Marcus et al

International condemnation of PA Mufti following PMW exposure of religious hate speech
by Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik
Jan. 25, 2012
International condemnation of PA Mufti
following PMW exposure
of religious hate speech
PA rejects condemnation as "incitement"

Palestinian Media Watch's exposure of the PA Mufti's speech citing the Islamic tradition (Hadith) that anticipates the killing of Jews by Muslims has brought Israeli and international condemnation of the Mufti and the Palestinian Authority.

Why Did the Arabs Suffer "Nakba" in 1948/ Prof.B.Rubin

Why Did the Arabs Suffer “Nakba” (Disaster) in 1948 and Every Day Since? The Surprising View of the Man Who Coined That Term
February 5, 2012
It’s ironic how the West has adopted the narrative of the very people who caused so much disaster in the Middle East. There are two reasons: The ignorance of the Western “experts” and the domination of the radical interpretations that made the mess in the first place.

UN Watch Accuses UN of Bias Against Israel / Hillel Neyer

Hillel Neuer accuses U.N. of bias against Israel
Fab.5 2012
"Hillel Neuer, executive director of the Geneva-based monitoring group U.N. Watch, said it was time for Russia to end 'its increasingly futile effort to shield the doomed Assad regime. Russia would do better to prepare the dictator's Moscow asylum—something he will be needing sooner rather than later,' Neuer said." —AP in CBS News, Jan. 31, 2012. more...

ROCHESTER, Feb. 5 - Hillel Neuer, executive
director of United Nations Watch, traveled
across an ocean to deliver a passionate

Are Egypt's Islamists Heading for a Fall / Daniel Pipes

February 4, 2012
Terrified of the secular/modern/liberal demonstrators who made their presence known in Tahrir Square, as well as of the soccer hooligans, Mohamed Tantawi and Egypt's Supreme Council of the Armed Forces have forged a mutually beneficial relationship with the country's Islamists, thereby blocking their joint opponents from power. Very clever – but maybe too clever by half. Here's why:

Over half of Egypt's caloric consumption comes from abroad, leaving the country vulnerable to international staple prices.

Aya's Story: Israel's Medical Treatment to Palestinians / Ray Cook

05 Feb 2012
How often do we hear or read about how terrible Israel is preventing Palestinians in dire need of medical treatment getting through checkpoints and borders quickly enough?

How many reports have you read which characterise the massive humanitarian efforts of the Israeli medical community as somehow being part of the ‘occupation’?

I have written before about the extraordinary Rambam Medical Centre in Haifa.

Harvard's Middle East Outreach Center: Propaganda for Teachers / Stephen Schwatz

February 5, 2012
In 2005, Saudi prince Alwaleed Bin Talal donated $20 million dollars each to Harvard and Georgetown Universities.

Britain's Agenda of Anti - Israeli Hate and the New Triangle in the Mideast / Robin Shepherd/

Feb 6, 2012
As Islamist extremists take power in Egypt and beyond, the New Statesman publishes a vicious, defamatory trash job on Israel’s democratic traditions
Ben White has taken to the New Statesman to attack Israel yet again
Robin Shepherd, Owner / Publisher

Palestinian Authority: Write Only Nice Things About Your Leaders / Khaled Abu Toameh

February 7, 2012
Facebook has become a dangerous playground for Palestinians living under the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank.

The US-backed Palestinian Authority security forces belonging to Mahmoud Abbas and Salam Fayyad have been monitoring the activities of Palestinians on Facebook to make sure that no one criticizes them.

The Palestinian Authority wants Palestinians to write only nice things about their leaders. Criticism should be directed only against Israel. Those who fail to toe the line will find themselves either behind bars or without work.

Demography is Destiny in Syria / Aymenn J.Al - Tamimi et al

February 6, 2012
Among the second wave of Arab Spring uprisings that followed Tunisia, Syria was the most spectacular "out of the blue" that suddenly arose in the face of the media and analytic community. Just days before Deraa exploded with protests last March, some analysts were still scrutinizing Syria's circumstances and declaring the country to be immune from the Arab Spring. Nor did reporters who visited the country spot signs of a brewing storm.

Egypt et Cetera: When the Moderates are Radicls You are in Trouble / Prof.B.Rubin

February 7, 2012
Dear readers,

I’d like to share with you a secret. Every day I read and hear things by people who claim to be experts on the Middle East. I have read them on the land; I have read them on the sea; I have read them in the air.

And they will never surrender to reality. Here are the two main causes of error:

Top U.S. Law School to Legitimate UN'S 9/11 Conspiracy Theorist R.Falk / Hillel Neuer

Feb.7 2012
GENEVA – Seventy years ago, President Roosevelt coined a term for the global alliance against Hitlerism, which resonated at once with Churchill: United Nations.

Endorsed by 26 states on January 1, 1942, the Declaration by United Nations made history by elevating human rights and religious freedom as international principles, and pledged a common struggle against “savage and brutal forces seeking to subjugate the world.”

By 1945, as war-making gave way to peace-preserving, the alliance developed into the colossal world instrument we know today.

A Year after the Revolution: Egypt and the U.S. Battle over Democracy / DR.Jacques Neriah

February 5, 2012
In a move former President Hosni Mubarak’s regime did not dare to make, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) ordered Egyptian soldiers and police to raid the offices of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Cairo on December 30, 2011.

The New PA - Hamas Agreement / Jonathan D.Halevi

The New PA-Hamas Agreement: Opening the Gates to the Trojan Horse
February 8, 2012
On February 6, 2012, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal signed a new agreement to create a Palestinian national unity government for the West Bank and Gaza. The agreement, known as the Doha Declaration – under the patronage of the emir of Qatar, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani – includes the following provisions:

The continued functioning of the PLO via the reformation of the Palestinian National Council, together with elections to the presidency and the parliament.

Iran's Ayatollah:"Kill All Jews and Annihilate Israel"/ Lee Moran

'Kill all Jews and annihilate Israel!' Iran's Ayatollah lays out legal and religious justification for attack
6th February 2012
Doctrine says Israel would be wiped out in 9 minutes
Ties: A website associated with Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has outlined why it would be acceptable to kill all Jews and annihilate Israel

A website with close ties to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has outlined why it would be acceptable to kill all Jews and annihilate Israel.

Arab World: Taking Center Stage / Jonathan Spyer

February 5, 2012
The diplomatic route to change in Syria is firmly blocked. Russia, for its own reasons, is refusing and will continue to refuse to allow any resolution promising serious action against the regime of President Bashar Assad to pass in the United Nations Security Council.

My Son the Soldier / Ray Cook

08 Feb 2012
Next week I shall be returning to Israel for the first time in 10 months.
This is not really a holiday break.

My elder son, who made Aliyah last year, will be joining the IDF.

This is a surreal moment for me. It’s difficult enough to think that my son is an Israeli, that’s pretty hard to get your head round; after all, the family has been English for 100 years, and before that Russian, Polish and Latvian for centuries.

Why I Filed Title VI Complaint against the President of UC / Tammi Rossman - Benjamin

Published February 08, 2012, issue of February 17, 2012.
Mark Yudof, president of the University of California, claims that two federal complaints against his university, alleging a hostile environment for Jewish students, are without merit.

Gulf Arab Leaders on Obama's Administration / Prof.B.Rubin

Gulf Arab Leaders: Obama Admin. Is Biggest Threat to our Security
February 7, 2012 - 4:11
Want to understand the real Middle East? Then pay attention to the following. Let’s say an important and outspoken Gulf Arab gave a frank and thoughtful assessment of the region’s security problems. What would he say and what would that tell you? And how would that differ from the stereotypes of what Arabs — especially non-Islamist Arab leaders — think as presented by the Western media and academia?

Now Is The Time To Fight For Jewish Refugees / Lyn Julius

02/08/2012
Contrary to recent misleading press reports, no Jew seeks a “right of return” to Arab states.
PALESTINIANS LEAVE with their belongings from the Al-Barad Palestinian refugee camp, near Tripoli, L By Bloomberg

Muslim Persecution of Christians :January 2012 / Raymond Ibrahim

Muslim Persecution of Christians: January, 2012
February 9, 2012
She was flogged -- given 40 lashes as hundreds of Muslim spectators jeered -- for embracing a "foreign religion."

Arab Liberals:Here's How the Muslim Brotherhood is Fooling the West / Prof.B.Rubin

February 9, 2012
Since we can’t get good coverage of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood in the Western media, it’s necessary to turn to the Islamists’ intended victims — Arab liberals — to get a better picture. NowLebanon explains it all to you in an article on what it calls the “media blitz” of the Muslim Brotherhood and its politicians in the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP):

The Muslin Brothers Moderation Myth Revealed / Prof.B.Rubin

The Muslim Brotherhood Moderation Myth Revealed, Then Quickly Dropped Down the Memory Hole
February 1, 2012
It is amazing how mass media coverage of the Middle East switches gears and implicitly admits to having been wrong while continuing with the same themes. Or sometimes, buried deep inside an article, there’s a flash of truth that conflicts with everything else that’s been said, even by the same reporter. But then the light goes out; the stygian dark returns; and it was as if that flash had never taken place.

For Palestinians, No Arab Spring / Khaled Abu Toameh

February 10, 2012
Abbas collecting autocratic titles, including those he denied to Arafat.

At a time when Arab heads of state are facing popular uprisings demanding reforms and democracy, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has secured himself yet another job: Prime Minister.

Earlier this week, Palestinians were surprised to hear that Abbas had reached a deal with Hamas to form a unity government that would be headed by the Palestinian president.

Countering Challenges to Israel's Legitimacy / Prof.Alan.M.Darshowitz

159
Of all the nations on the face of the earth, Israel has the most lawful origin. It was conceived in law,
born through law, and has survived lawfully. It is not among the nations, such as the United States,
born in bloodshed through revolution. Nor has it, like other nations, been expanded through
aggressive warfare. It was not settled by outsiders, as were Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the
United States, and other countries. It did not, like those countries, rid itself of virtually the entire

Why Saudi Prince Funds Middle East Studies in America / Cinnamon Stillwell

Feb 10, 2012
Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal--million dollar benefactor of Middle East studies programs at Harvard University, Georgetown University, and beyond--spoke at Harvard this past Wednesday. The prince touts himself as a model of liberalism in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia--in a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, he advocated for reform among Middle Eastern monarchies in response to the demands of the "Arab Spring"--and he has always claimed that his funding for Middle East studies in the U.S. springs from nothing more than a desire to promote cross-cultural understanding.

Reflections a Year after Hosni Mubarak's Resignation / Daniel Pipes

February 11, 2012
1. Dewy-eyed predictions of democracy within the year proved to be as silly as they appeared to be back then. Instead, a power-hungry military leadership shows it will do whatever necessary to remain in the saddle.

2. The real action has yet to come. The Syrian regime seems destined to fall and that could have destabilizing repercussions in the Middle East's most important country, Iran.

Why Israelis are Pessimistic about Arab Spring / Amichai Farkas

Feb.8 2012
Protests against Egypt's slow pace of reform continue to take place in Tahrir Square

Unlike in much of the Western world, here in Israel the Arab Spring has not been met with fanfare and high hopes. Considering the blatant anti-Semitism that’s all-pervasive in places like Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia, is it any wonder?

THE ESSENCE OF CONTEMPORARY LEFTISM AND ISLAMISM REVEALED / PROF.B.RUBIN

The Essence of Contemporary Leftism And Islamism Revealed: Freedom or Slavery to Those Who Claim to Know Best?
February 10, 2012
“Different men often see the same subject in different lights.” — Patrick Henry, 1775

Below is a fascinating exchange telling us not only about the contemporary state of Islam, Islamism, and the political issues involving them, but also about the debates and conflicts shaping Western civilization today. The exchange also taught me about the common theme between revolutionary Islamism and the revolutionary leftism that today masquerades as liberalism.

Hezbollah Renounces its Support of Iran / C.J.Radin

February 9, 2012
Iran is Hezbollah's principal supporter and financier in Lebanon. Israel is one of Hezbollah's main adversaries. So it should have come as no surprise when, in November 2011, the leader of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, announced that Hezbollah would support Iran if it were attacked by Israel , as reported by The Daily Star in Lebanon:

The War on Christians / Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, best selling author, film director, and fearless advocate of women’s rights in the Arab and Muslim world, takes on what one writer called “the most politically incorrect subject of all human-rights reporting” — the persecution of Christians by radical Islamists:

The Smoking Gun: Arab Immigration into Palestine, 1922 - 1931 / Fred M/Gotthell

In deep antiquity, particularly in Egypt, the early civilization where the arts were most strongly developed, the visualization was aspective: that is the artist, working in paint or low-relief sculpture, conveyed to his two-dimensional surface not so much what he saw as what he knew was there.

- Paul Johnson, The Renaissance

Number of readers on Jan. 2012: 35,712

The number of readers of my web site in Jan.2012 grew in 4,000 readers.
present number:35,712

The Rise of Hamas:"Death to the Jews" / Khaled Abu Toameh

January 10, 2012
The Islamist frenzy that is currently sweeping the Arab world has seen Hamas rise to become a legitimate and recognized player in the Palestinian and international arena.

Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh last week began a tour of a number of Arab and Islamic countries, where he has so far been received as a hero and with chants of "Death to Jews!"

Jordan's King Abdullah Needs to Wake Up - Fast / Khaled Abu Toameh

February 13, 2012
In the end he will have to fire himself.
Facing growing criticism over lack of reforms and transparency, Jordan's King Abdullah has announced an unprecedented crackdown on corruption, sending a number of his former top government officials to prison.

But the clampdown has only increased the appetite of the Jordanians, who continue to press for harsher measures against senior officials suspected of embezzling public funds and abusing their powers.

Are Levant Minorities Extending A Hand To Israel / Pinhas Inbari

13 February 2012
Amidst the crisis in Syria, Hezbollah’s former secretary general, Subhi Tufeili, declared that Hezbollah would eventually seek an alliance with Israel.

Earth - Shattering News from Gaza / Daniel Meyerowitz - Katz

Feb 13 2012
Literally Earth-shattering, according to Iranian state media
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says the powerful feelings of the regional nations towards Gaza have been instrumental in the eruption of the region's volcano.

Antisemitism in the Media: Tip of the Iceberg / Mudar Zaharan

February 14, 2012
Are the media actually interested in helping the Palestinians, or really just in bashing Israel? The media's overkill fixation on bashing Israel hurts not only Jews and any chances for peace, but also Palestinians.

Helen Thomas, dubbed "the First Lady of the Press", was a renowned veteran reporter, "a trusted source" on White House politics, and for decades, considered a public opinion-maker, when on May 27, 2010, she made anti-Semitic remarks: she wanted Jews to simply "get the hell out of Palestine" and return "Home to Poland, Germany" or "America."

Hamas PM Haniyeh Calls Israel "Cancer" / Khaled Abu Toameh

02/14/2012
Rounding up a three-day visit to Iran, Haniyeh reiterates refusal to recognize, compromise with Israel.
Hamas PM Ismail Haniyeh arrives in Tehran By REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl

Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh continued Monday to issue fiery statements about Israel, which he compared to a cancer that is threatening to spread to other parts of the body.

Rounding up a three-day visit to Iran, Haniyeh said in an interview with an Iranian TV station that Israel remained the “main enemy” of the Arab and Islamic world.
Related:

What to do About Syria / Prof.B.Rubin

February 13,
There is a strong case that can be made for doing nothing about the Syrian civil war, but a stronger case can be made for doing something relatively low-cost and ineffective, indeed, precisely what the Syrian opposition is requesting.

Forget about major military intervention, which would be dangerous, costly, and above the level of available resources.