My thoughts exactly.

Today in History

The Middle East keeps making the headlines.  The carnage in Syria, the weekly violence in Iraq, the political instability in Lebanon, the uncertainty in Turkey, the threat posed by Iran in the region, all seem to take a backseat to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the perennial pursuit of the “peace process.”  A lasting peace seems like a chimera chased by indefatigable peace processors – U.S. Secretary Kerry’s initiative being the last one in a long line of failed attempts since 1993.

When the resolution of a complex problem hits a stalemate repeatedly and almost predictably since its inception, the smart thing to do is to revisit the fundamentals, long forgotten in the past twenty years of diplomatic frenzy.  A look back at recent history is essential.
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By Clare Lopez, Center for Family Security

Libya in 2011 marks the place and the time that the United States (U.S.) and the Obama administration formally switched sides in the Global War on Terror (GWOT). A mere 10 years after al-Qa’eda (supported by Hizballah and Iran) attacked the American homeland in the worst act of terrorism ever suffered by this country, U.S. leadership decided to facilitate the provision of weapons to jihadist militias known to be affiliated with al-Qa’eda and the Muslim Brotherhood in order to bring down a brutal dictator who also just happened to be a U.S. ally in the GWOT at the time.

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by Dr. Reuven Berko, Israel Hayom

NGO MONITER

Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland, and Netherlands partner with “lawfare” institute at Birzeit U.

Jerusalem – In a detailed report released today, Jerusalem-based research institute NGO Monitor shows that the new funding platform, called the “Secretariat,” will support political and legal warfare against Israel, in direct contrast to the stated program goals of promoting “human rights and international humanitarian law.” The Secretariat is a joint NGO funding initiative of Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland, and the Netherlands, with a projected four-year budget of $17.6 million.

In March 2014, the Secretariat announced grants for 24 Israeli and Palestinian NGOs.

“Contrary to its claim to have undertaken ‘a thorough, transparent review process,’ the Secretariat has again chosen to support political advocacy organizations clearly lacking the ability to carry out government objectives,” stated Prof. Gerald Steinberg, president of NGO Monitor. “Instead, the NGO grantees engage in legal warfare against Israeli officials and companies that do business with Israel, promote BDS (boycott divestment, and sanctions) campaigns, and exploit the false ‘apartheid’ analogy to demonize Israel.” Read more…

In his latest speech, the former British prime minister brands Israel as a central player in the Western alliance facing off with Islamic extremism.

Tony Blair speech: ‘Why the Middle East matters’

Apr. 23, 2014 | 12:21 PM

Tony Blair: World must take a stand against radical Islam

By Haaretz | Apr. 23, 2014 | 12:27 PM |  16

The inescapable conclusion from reading the full text of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s speech on Islamic extremism on Wednesday in London is that it could have been an address by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This will of course be seen as great news in the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem. For those around the world who despise either (or both) of the two men, this is further proof – if needed – that Blair has long ago crossed over to the dark side. It’s not only his dichotomy of the forces of enlightenment fighting the forces trying to plunge the world into a new dark age – but also his policy prescriptions proposed that tally with official and unofficial Israeli policies.
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Israel’s policy of recognizing Arab land claims based on Jordanian law is anti-Jewish, anti-Zionist and anti-democratic.

By Moshe Dann, JPOST

My recent article on the Ottoman Land Law (“Arab land claims: Are they valid?” February 11, 2014 ) explained why, according to this law, Arab claims of private ownership against settlements were baseless. Yet, Israel’s legal establishment – High Court justices, legal advisors, attorneys general, ministers and politicians – accept these land claims as valid. The following analysis explains why and, hopefully, will encourage further investigation.

DEBKAfile Special Report April 24, 2014,

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu announced Wednesday night, April 23, that Israel is breaking off peace talks with the Palestinians pending reassessment of the process after Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah signed a unity pact with Hamas in Gaza City. A special foreign affairs and defense cabinet meeting takes place Thursday to decide how to handle this change in the Palestinian status.

The United States informed Abbas that if Hamas and Jihad Islami, both listed as terrorist organizations, were co-opted to the Palestinian Liberation Organization, Washington would discontinue its annual recognition of the PLO.
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[I have nothing against this policy except that it should apply equally to illegal Arab construction. T. Belman]

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon orders military, police and Civil Administration to prioritize razing illegally built structures in Judea and Samaria outposts and settlements where residents are prone to violently clashing with security forces.

Israel Hayom Staff
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon has instructed Israel
Defense Forces commanders across Judea and Samaria to accelerate the razing of illegally built structures in settlements and outposts where security forces meet violence from extremists, Army Radio reported Wednesday.

According to the report, the order, which was given in a closed forum, extends to police and Civil Administration forces in the area as well.

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Palestinian factions reach deal after late-night reconciliation talks in Gaza;

Netanyahu: Instead of making peace with Israel, Abbas is making peace with Hamas.

YNET NEWS

Fatah and Hamas have reached an agreement in principle to form a unity government within the “next five weeks,” officials said early Wednesday.

A Palestinian official who attended Tuesday’s late-night meeting said there had been an “agreement in principle” on forming a “government of experts,” a term for a cabinet staffed by technocrats rather than politicians.

The agreement, between members of the PLO and Hamas, was reached following talks in Gaza City which began on Tuesday evening, a member of the PLO who wished to remain anonymous told AFP.
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• Following the lead of Egypt, Saudi Arabia has decided to join the battle againstjihadists in the Middle East, where movements led by al-Qaeda and Iran strive to topple the ruling Arab regimes. The leading regimes realize that these movements have a common goal: to destroy the prevailing political order and replace it with either a Sunni caliphate based on the strictest interpretation of Islamic law or a state modeled after the Shiite Islamic Republic of Iran.
• Saudi Arabia’s decisions to designate the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group and downgrade diplomatic ties with Qatar to protest its support for the Brotherhood mark an important turning point in the kingdom’s approach to international terrorism.

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By Ted Belman
 
Jonthan Tobin wrote recently an article that mentioned Sarah Palin in which he accused her of quitting. This illicited a strong rebuff from James V. DeLong entitled Commentary and Sarah Palin
 
Feel free to read it but be sure to read the 760 comments and counting made since the article was published on the 21st.
 
The comments are overwhelmingly in her favour.

Here’s one:

Sarah Palin has stood her ground for the last 5 years against all the hate the media could throw at her or her family to fight for this country. She worked tirelessly to forward the commonsense conservative agenda she had always articulated and she continues her work to help put government back on the side of the people.

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By Giulio Meotti, INN

There is an expression in the Mishna: “In a place where there is no one else [doing what needs to be done], try to be a man”.

Baruch Mizrahi was that man.

1. A strange atmosphere of heavy acquiescence, guilty silence and moral equivalence followed his assassination on the road to Hevron. Then, when I saw the photos from his funeral, the face of his wife and the pain of his children and friends, I understood something even more intollerable, even though it needs to be said.

Israel today is dominated by a cold and cynical oligarchy, a self proclaimed élite which made possible the last unpunished assassination near Hevron.
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DEBKAfile Exclusive Report April 22, 2014,

Syrian rebels have been sighted wielding anti-aircraft weapons in various combat sectors including the Damascus region in the last few days. Just as on April 6, DEBKAfile was the first publication to disclose the arming of Syrian opposition forces with their first US weapons, BGM-71 TOW anti-tank missiles, our military sources now reveal that they have also acquired – and are using – Russian-made 9K310 Igla-1 aka SA-16 anti-tank rockets, which have an operational range of 5.2 km.

The SA-16 is not new, but it is effective and has been widely used for the past 30 years by various armies in several world conflicts.

According to our sources, the very US-Saudi suppliers, who brought the TOW missiles to certain Syrian rebel units through Jordan and Turkey, are now consigning the anti-tank weapons through the same route.
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A SONG IS BORN

(Sorry. I don’t know who wrote this introduction)

What a beautiful story and presentation.  The vocalist was excellent as you will see and hear.

The first time Andrée Geulen, a 20-year-old teacher in a Brussels, Belgium school, was confronted with the persecution of the Jews was when one day some of her students arrived at school with the compulsory yellow star on their clothes.  Like many other Belgians, until that time Geulen hadn’t paid attention to the anti-Jewish measures and the persecution of the Jews.  But once she was faced with the discrimination of her students, she decided to act.  She ordered all her students to wear aprons to school, thus covering the humiliating marking imposed on the Jews.

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By Daniel Greenfield, FPM
 
Few divides are as impossible to bridge as those of religion. You either believe or you don’t.
 
When it comes to Islam, non-Muslims are expected to take its goodwill on faith. If you believe your eyes and ears, Islam and violence go together like peanut butter and jelly. But if you believe Muslims and their spin doctors with academic degrees, Muslims are the victims of other religions.
 
If Muslims fighting Christians, Jews, Hindus and Buddhists are the victims of non-Muslims, what are we to make of Muslims fighting other Muslims in Syria, Lebanon and Iraq? Religious civil wars make it hard to believe that Muslims are the victims of other religions instead of the authors of their own violence.
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By Joseph Puder, FPM
 
In his ploy to avoid negotiations with Israel that might actually force him to make such minimal concessions as “ending the conflict” with Israel, and recognizing Israel as the “state of the Jewish people,” Mahmoud Abbas, Chairman of the Palestinian Authority (PA) can count on the European Union (EU) to support him.
 
That support has been both financial and political. Financially, the EU has written a virtual “blank check” for the Palestinians to use with no accountability.
 
Politically, the EU has deemed the Palestinians as “underdogs,” deserving uncritical support. In both cases, EU support for the PA has done little to advance a lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
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Op-ed: If both Jews and Palestinian Arabs start their historical narrative with beginning of Zionism, Jews have deeper moral claim to Land of Israel.
 
Lawrence J. Epstein, YNET NEWS
 
Beginning the story of Jewish nationalism with the forerunners of the Zionist movement or the First Aliyah or the arrival of Herzl already grants Palestinian Arabs their greatest moral argument.
 
This is so because if the Jewish nationalist starting point is, say, 1890, then there were already large numbers of Arabs living in the Land of Israel. The exact numbers aren’t known, but the standard demographic estimate is that there were probably close to 500,000 Muslims and Christians who were living in the land by 1890, with ten times more Muslims than the 43,000 Jews. It is those numbers that seem to present Zionism’s founding with a moral problem.
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Sharia in America
 
Atlas Shruggs
 
FREEDOM OF SPEECH IN THE AGE OF JIHAD