What exactly is the right to self determination that nations enjoy? Must it take form in an official state, or can it be actualized via other means such as political autonomy?

By Dan Illouz, JPOST

One of the strongest arguments of the Zionist Left is based on the very principles that lie at the foundation of Zionist nationalism and the right to self-determination.

The Zionist Left argues that Zionism doesn’t just allow for the creation of a Palestinian state, it mandates it.
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By Giulio Meotti, INN

Have the Christians in the West heard Islamists proclaiming daily that they will not stop until Christianity is wiped off the face of the earth?

The dramatic situation has been perfectly described by Rabbi Haïm Korsia, Chief Rabbi of France, who called for a reaction of fraternal solidarity in the face of hatred against Christians, and established a comparison with the destruction of Eastern Jewry:

“Where are the Jewish communities which once lived in Aleppo, Beirut, Alexandria, Cairo and Tripoli? Where are the schools of Nehardea and Pumbedita in Iraq? And where is the flourishing Judaism of Esfahan and Tehran? In our memory alone. Expelled, killed, decimated, persecuted and exiled, Eastern Christians are now personally experiencing the same experiences of the Jews who once lived in those places”.
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T. Belman. I could point out many things but will content myself with just a few. UNCHR could simply have endorsed the Report. Instead it made certain to frame the Report by repeating many falsehoods, which are now believed by many due to the constant repeating. So it stresses that the FGC applies to the “Palestinian Occupied Territories and East Jerusalem”. Notice the capitalization. They are embedding this concept in the minds of the world. Similarly, there is no binding law which holds that the FGC applies to these lands. The Levy Report holds otherwise.

It emphasizes humanitarian law but is silent on the established Rules of War that Israel abides by. It stresses all Israel damning reports whether proved or not and is silent on the reports and evidence Israel and certain NGO’s presented to them to counter.

What the UN and various NGO’s want to accomplish is to change the law of self defense by prohibiting the killing of civilians, no matter what. Rather than fight back as present rules allow for, they want to outlaw Israel fighting back and in effect are saying that Israel should retreat of capitulate to demands rather than fight back. They are saying that the mere fact that so many civilians (with distorted numbers) have been killed by Israel, is proof Israel is guilty of a war crimes.

I could go on.

The following is the the full text of the UNHRC inquiry into human rights violations during last summer’s war with Hamas in Gaza.

Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,

Recalling the relevant rules and principles of international law, including international humanitarian law and human rights law, in particular the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, which is applicable to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem,
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T. Belman. The government fell shortly thereafter and thus the Bill never got drafted, much less signed. The Begin Bill presently being discussed, did not follow these guidelines, just the opposite. Unfortunately the article referencing the Begin Bill did not provide a copy of it for inspection.

A bird’s-eye view of the facts, arguments and motivations behind the proposed legislation that is roiling Israeli politics
BY HAVIV RETTIG GUR, TOI December 1, 2014

So much has been written about the nation-state bills, and so much of it has been wrong on the basic facts, that a straightforward primer on the existing versions and a brief sketch of the arguments around them may provide readers with basic tools to grapple with the issue.

A government-sponsored bill is currently being written at the direction of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and under the supervision of Attorney General Yehudah Weinstein. Contrary to reports in both Israeli and foreign media, from a New York Times editorial to the world’s largest wire services, the cabinet did not pass a nation-state bill two weeks ago. Rather, it passed a 13-page decision that committed the government to supporting two right-wing versions of the nation-state bill in a preliminary vote in the Knesset, “but only,” the cabinet decision reads, “on condition that the proponents [of the two bills] agree that their bills will be attached [Israeli legislative terminology for ‘subsumed’] in a government-sponsored bill that will be proposed by the prime minister on the matter, which will be drafted on the basis of the principles contained in the appendix to this decision, and which will be adapted to it [the government bill].”
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T, Belman. Israel’s complaint is that Hamas was not hammered enough. No. Had Hamas been put on the carpet equally to Israel, it would in no way have exonerated Israel. Israel shouldn’t be there at all. In light of all the evidence and reports submitted in defense of Israel’s action, Israel should have been lauded, not condemned. The fact that Britain, France, German merely abstained was to be expected because they have declared “war” on us. But the fact that India abstained was deeply disappointing..

Israeli envoy slams decision, calls adopted resolution ‘an anti-Israeli manifesto’ which ignores international law violations by Hamas.

By Itamar Eichner, YNET

The UN Human Rights Council on Friday voted to adopt a report made by a UN inquiry commission on Operation Protective Edge in Gaza last summer, calling on Israel and the Palestinians to prosecute alleged war crimes and to cooperate with the International Criminal Court’s preliminary investigation.

Forty-one countries voted in favor of adopting the report, five abstained – India, Kenya, Ethiopia, Paraguay, Macedonia – and only one, the United States, voted against, saying it was biased against Israel.
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Obama will get his “legacy.” Kerry will get his Nobel. And Iran will get the bomb.

By Charles Krauthammer, WaPo

The devil is not in the details. It’s in the entire conception of the Iran deal, animated by President Obama’s fantastical belief that he, uniquely, could achieve detente with a fanatical Islamist regime whose foundational purpose is to cleanse the Middle East of the poisonous corruption of American power and influence.

In pursuit of his desire to make the Islamic Republic into an accepted, normalized “successful regional power,” Obama decided to take over the nuclear negotiations. At the time, Tehran was reeling — the rial plunging, inflation skyrocketing, the economy contracting — under a regime of international sanctions painstakingly constructed over a decade.
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The real cause of the plummet in investments in Israel lays elsewhere. And to understand it we need to understand recent developments in the natural gas industry.

By Caroline Glick, JPOST

Direct Foreign Investment in Israel is in free fall. According to a report published last month by the UN Conference on Trade and Development, (UNCTAD), foreign direct investment in Israel in 2014 was 46 percent below levels in 2013, dropping from $11.8 billion to $6.4bn. During the same period worldwide direct foreign investment dropped a mere 16%, meaning the drop in investment in Israel was nearly three times the global average.

Some responded to the report by blaming Operation Protective Edge or the boycott Israel movement for the sudden downturn. And there is probably something, although not much, to that view.
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Bennett’s recent declaration on reconstructing Gaza again exposes his shortsighted, unrealistic political thinking

By Martin Sherman, JPOST

MAIN FINDINGS: Findings of the second quarter of 2015 indicate a high level of frustration among Gazans, with half of the respondents stating that they are considering emigration from the Gaza Strip. This is the highest percentage ever recorded in our polls. – The Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, Public Opinion Poll No (56) – June 9

Groups like Islamic Jihad have been a part of what many consider to be a deteriorating status quo in Gaza, where Hamas’s rule has been challenged by splinter organizations and terrorist cells who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. – The Jerusalem Post, June 27
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Carly Rose Sonenclar, a 13 year old Jewish girl, sang this song on American X Factor in 2013.

Unforgettable performance.

At the 2014 Oscars, they celebrated the 75th anniversary of the release of the “Wizard of Oz” by having Pink sing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”, with highlights from the film in the background. But what few people realized, while listening to that incredible performer singing that unforgettable song, is that the music is deeply embedded in the Jewish experience.
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Professors call on Deputy FM Tzipi Hotovely to release formal response clarifying Israel’s legal presence in Judea-Samaria.

By Uzi Baruch, INN

Academics at the Menachem Begin Heritage Center held a discussion yesterday about the academic boycott against Israel at the initiative of Professors for a Strong Israel.

During the hearing, experts called on Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely (Likud) to deepen public awareness of the legality of communities over the 1949Armistice lines in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, as well as in the Golan Heights – efforts which have not been launched until now.
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by Daniel Doron, The Jerusalem Post

^{Excerpt of an article originally published under the title, “Reforms – Prospects and Impediments.”}

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) consults with Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.

Our highly concentrated “system” has impoverished a nation with excellent human capital and corrupted its economy and politics. Unless we get rid of it, it may endanger Israel’s survival.

There are two political leaders who may be able, if they are lucky and if they manage to put aside partisan considerations, to overcome the immense obstacles that any significant reform meets in Israel from powerful vested interests that protect the corrupt system from which they benefit. They are Prime Minister Netanyahu and Finance Minister Kahlon.
Our ‘system’ has impoverished a nation with excellent human capital and corrupted its economy and politics.
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By Stuart Kaufman

If I forget thee, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget her cunning.
Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth,
If I remember thee not;
If I set not Jerusalem above my chiefest joy.
  Psalm 137:5-7

I am a Jew. I am a man of faith. I believe in the G-d* of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. I believe in the Five Books of Moses, called by Jews “the Torah,” called by others the “Hebrew Bible” and by still others the “Old Testament.” I believe in my heart that G-d granted the land of Israel to the Jewish nation to be held for eternity. Finally, I believe that Jerusalem is and will always be the absolute and undivided capital of the state of Israel.
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On November 24, 2006, at the age of 92, a man named Stanley Goldfoot passed away. He is remembered by family and friends for his love for and devotion to Israel and the Jewish people.

A Letter to the World from Jerusalem 1969
by Eliezer ben Yisrael ( Stanley Goldfoot)

I am not a creature from another planet, as you seem to believe. I am a Jerusalemite, like yourselves, a man of flesh and blood. I am a citizen of my city, an integral part of my people.
I have a few things to get off my chest. Because I am not a diplomat, I do not have to mince words. I do not have to please you or even persuade you. I owe you nothing.

You did not build this city, you did not live in it, you did not defend it when they came to destroy it. And we will be damned if we will let you take it away.

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Europe prioritizes our conflict over wars that are not only much bloodier, but also do far more harm to its own welfare

By Evelyn Gordon

The media have recently been full of horror stories from around the globe. The terror attacks that killed over 100 people on three continents last Friday got the most press, but they were far from the worst. In Sudan, the government isdeliberately bombing civilians in the Nuba Mountains. In South Sudan, a civil war has displaced more than 1.5 million people, left over half the country in danger of going hungry and produced endless atrocities, like boys who are castrated and left to bleed to death. In Myanmar, stateless Rohingya Muslims have effectively been put into concentration camps. Worldwide, the number of displaced people hit a record high of 59.5 million last year, with almost a fifth of this total coming from the Syrian civil war alone. And all this is just the tip of the iceberg.
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Without a sense of exceptionalism, a country of chosen people cannot prosper

By David Goldman, TABLET

Biblical Israel was America’s inspiration. Its successor, the State of Israel, yet may be America’s salvation, though usually the issue is put the other way around. America’s founders, to be sure, saw in their “new nation, conceived in liberty” a new Israel, and Lincoln dubbed Americans an “almost chosen people.” We long since put the notion of national election on the back shelf along with other memorabilia of the Revolution and Civil War. But Israel’s founding and fight for survival strike a chord in our national character that reminds of us what we were and still should be.
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Middle East allies accuse Barack Obama and David Cameron of failing to show strategic leadership in fight against Islamic State

 by Con Coughlin, Defence Editor, The Telegraph, Jul 1, 2015

T. Belman. I fail to see the value of this wishy-washy Bill. It provides no definition of a “national homeland of the Jewish people”. The leaves it open to Court to define it as it wishes. By removing our exclusive right to national liberation and reaffirming equal rights for all, we have gutted the whole purpose of the law in the first place. In fact passing the law will reduce our Jewish rights.

While still advocating Israel as ‘national homeland of Jewish people,’ Begin’s bill stresses Israel’s democratic character.

By Cynthia Blank, INN

The Jewish State Law is back, Walla! News reports Thursday, but this time in a much more watered down fashion.

Eight months after the 19th government dissolved, in part over the controversial bill, MK Benny Begin (Likud) has submitted a diluted version, called, “Basic Law: The State of Israel.”
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BU adopts biased program that forces Jewish students to empathize with terrorists into its School of Education.By Cynthia Blank, INN

An anti-Israel education program that has made the rounds across high schools in the United States has now been fully incorporated into Boston University’scurriculum.

According to Americans for Peace and Tolerance (APT), the Axis of Hope group’s workshop, “Whose Jerusalem,” has found a permanent home at The Global Literacy Institute at BU’s School of Education.

“Whose Jerusalem” focuses on the Arab-Israeli conflict, and, according to APTPresident Charles Jacobs, it portrays “a highly inaccurate account of history,” while simultaneously trying to “indoctrinate students against the state of Israel.”
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By Ted Belman, Feb 2014  (also published on AMERICAN THINKER)

Michael Oren, the former Israel Ambassador to the US in a recent interview, said Israel should consider unilaterally withdrawing from parts of the West Bank and declaring its own borders if the current peace negotiations with the Palestinians fail. This idea has often been raised, and rejected, by Israeli leaders across the political spectrum

“I’m aware there’s no perfect solution here,” Oren concluded. “Every option involves risks, untold circumstances. But I can’t emphasize enough the importance of having what I refer to as the Zionist option: We do not outsource our fundamental destiny to Palestinian decision making.”

With that rational he proposes that Israel announce a Plan B that she would implement in the event the Palestinians act on their Plan B, namely to go to the international community for recognition as a state “Their Plan B includes international sanctions, targeting our economy, completely delegitimizing us in the world.” he said.
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