The Shamrak Report: Allies by Mutual Necessity? and more.....

Allies by Mutual Necessity?

by Bob Mason

The times are changing in the Middle East as alien nations find common ground in a bid to avert Iran supremacy within the region. The opening of the dialogue between Israel and Saudi Arabia is perhaps the most significant shift in the region...

Both nations hold a common view on Iran and its rise to power within the region. Both Israel and Saudi Arabia have a common ally in the US and the acting president also shares a similar view on Iran...

One particular article claimed that the Saudis had run tests on bringing down air defense systems to provide the Israeli Air Force a path of least resistance to Iran. Just this summer, former Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon said that Sunni Arab countries and Israel face the same threat of a nuclear Iran.

News of a secret visit by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Israel in September suggests that the need for stronger ties is ever increasing...

A great divide in the Middle East may be on the horizon as Israel and the US may well become a significant force behind the split. A rebalance of power is seen as a must and how Congress deals with the Iran – U.S nuclear agreement will be considered a key step in the process.

For Israel, the benefits are significant and finding allies across the Arab world will be considered key in dealing with the old foe. The Shi’a-Sunni divide is never greater and any prospect of nuclear capability on either side of the divide is a chilling one...

The greatest concern within the region will be the improving relations between Turkey and Iran... Of particular concern will be the military cooperation between the two and how events unfold in Syria, where the two currently support opposite sides...

Israel and the Saudis certainly have an incentive to manage Iran’s prominence and the country’s allegiances. With the Middle East having more than half of the world’s oil reserves, the US is also ever-present, as is Russia who has also taken a greater interest.

Although, the Saudis have frequently played down news of closer ties with Israel. Concerns over a backlash from the Arab world continue to leave talks almost clandestine in nature. There is also the possibility that Congress goes ahead and ratifies the Iran – US nuclear agreement, though some may consider fresh sanctions a greater threat to regional peace...

FOOD for THOUGHT by Steven Shamrak

Isn’t it strange and hypocritical that Kurds who are struggling for reclaiming their own historical homeland, Kurdistan, which is occupied by four Islamic states, are often called “terrorists” and have no international support? But murderous thugs of a fake Palestinian nation, who are occupying Jewish land and aim to destroy Israel and killing Jews, are receiving endless political and financial immoral support from international anti-Semites!

Bibi is a Two-Faced Wimp

Is Prime Minister Netanyahu for or against the death penalty for terrorists? Netanyahu was making a shiva call at the Salomon family’s home, he declared, on the record, that “the death penalty for terrorists is something for which the time has come. (But, as usual, officially he is playing a different tune!)

'Declaration of War’ - It Took just One Rocket!

Saudi Arabia has charged Iran with perpetrating an act of war against Riyadh by supplying advanced missiles to its proxy group in Yemen, the Houthi rebels. Riyadh is also doubling down on Lebanon after its Prime Minister, Sa’ad Hariri, fled to Riyadh, saying that Lebanon appears to be declaring war on Saudi Arabia via aggression by the Iranian proxy terror group Hezbollah. (How many attacks have Israel have endured from Gaza, and threats of war from Hezbollah? Isn’t it time to end playing games and end the war?)

Self-hating Leaderships Must be Changed

IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot recommended that President Reuven Rivlin not grant Elor Azariya's request for a pardon. An IDF court sentenced Azariya to 18 months in prison. Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman called on Rivlin to accept the request for a pardon and to release Elor Azariya from prison. (When will Israel remove Labour ‘apparatchiks’ from the IDF and justice system?)

Routing Israel-bashing in th UN

The UN General Assembly will condemn Israel nine times today (Nov. 10, 2017), “part of its annual ritual of enacting 20 Arab-sponsored resolutions singling out the Jewish state, and making no mention of Hamas stabbings, shootings or vehicular attacks against Jews in Israel. “While there will be a total of 20 resolutions against Israel this session, not a single UN General Assembly resolution is planned today or this year for gross human rights abusers such as Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Venezuela, China, Cuba, Pakistan or Zimbabwe” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch.

Annex Jewish Land "Reasonably"

A revolutionary ruling written by retiring Supreme Court Justice Salim Joubran, a Christian Arab, confirms that it is permitted to use private Arab lands to the betterment of local Jewish residents, and that such use does not defy International Law – because the settlers are also part of the civilian population.

Iran is Closing on Israel

Iran is building a permanent military base in Syria just south of Damascus, “Iran is devouring one nation after the other... “The good news is that the other guys are getting together with Israel as never before. It is something that I would have never expected in my lifetime,” Netanyahu said.

UN Continues Illegal Building

Even as PM Binyamin Netanyahu agreed with UN Sec Gen that future construction would be in accordance with law, UN prepares for new illegal construction. Declarations are one thing and deeds quite another! Only recently UNTSO has issued a tender for the demolition and reconstruction of one of the buildings built during the British Mandate in the Armon Hanatziv compound - in violation of the law and without a building permit. (Anything goes in anti-Semitic determination to destroy the Jewish state!)

Israel is Aiming 'High'

Israel wants to start exporting its cannabis around the world. Cannabinoid drops has helped many of the 60 autistic children enrolled in a neuro-pediatrician program. Israel has reputation as a global center for medical weed research, development and exports. Belgium, Netherlands, Romania, Portugal, Czech Republic, Germany and Switzerland are major potential markets for medical marijuana. The market for medical weed will reach $33 billion in 2024.

Reconciliation - When Kosher Pigs Fly

Arabs, once again, are not missing an opportunity to miss an opportunity. A week after the Palestinian Authority had announced that it had accepted responsibility for the Gaza Strip crossings, Hamas and Fatah are at odds over the management of those crossings. The longer the crossing to Egypt remains closed, the worse things are getting among Gaza’s civilians! (But they do not care – never have!)

Army Covers Up Its Ugly Mistake

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman asked President Reuven Rivlin to approve the pardon plea of Elor Azaria, who had been convicted of killing an Arab terrorist who had already been downed in Hebron in March, 2016. But on Sunday night, Israeli media reported that the IDF Chief of Staff, the Military Advocate General, and the head of the IDF Personnel Directorate, have all recommended that the request for pardon not be accepted.

Quote of the Week:

“Relocating the Embassy would not adversely affect negotiations over Jerusalem’s final status or the broader Middle East peace process, nor would it impair our diplomatic relations among predominantly Arab or Muslim nations. In fact, by its honest recognition of reality, shifting the Embassy would have an overall positive impact on US diplomatic efforts.” - John Bolton, former US Ambassador to the United Nations.

Death of the Terrorist – still in Denial!

'Palestinians' held rallies to mark the 13th anniversary of the death of their revered former leader Yasser Arafat last Thursday. 

The Palestinians have long accused Israel of poisoning him, charges the Israeli government firmly denies. His body was exhumed in 2012 for tests but a subsequent French investigation found again no proof of poisoning.

AIDS is still a Suspect

13 Jan 2005 (for more click on the title)

Conformation - Arafat Died from AIDS

Ahmad Jibril, Secretary-General of the PFLP General Command, on Hizballah’s Al-Manar TV, publicly admitted the truth about Yasser Arafat’s death for the first time.

Ahmad Jibril: When Abu Mazen came to Damascus with his team, I asked them: “What happened to the investigation into the death of Abu Ammar [Arafat]? The Israelis killed him. He was my colleague ever since 1965 and used to sleep at my home. He and I followed the same path.” Is it conceivable that when Rafiq Al-Hariri was killed, all hell broke loose, even though he was just a merchant in Saudi Arabia, who later entered politics, whereas the death of Yasser Arafat, who for 40 years had been carrying his gun from one place to another, is not investigated? Is this conceivable?

They were silent, and then one of them said to me: “To be honest, the French gave us the medical report, that stated that the cause of Abu Ammar’s death was AIDS.” I am not saying this, they did. Now they pretend that they miss Yasser Arafat, and complain that (Hamas) entered his house in (Gaza) and so on... I say to every honorable member of the Fatah movement that he should be happy that we got rid of the plague, which had been imposed upon them and upon the Palestinian people. The Fatah movement now has an opportunity to renew itself.

Israel is the Only Option

by Moshe Feiglin

“And if the woman will not desire to follow you, and you will be absolved of my oath – just do not return my son to there.” (From this week’s Torah portion, Chayei Sarah, Genesis 24:8)

Abraham is already old and has lived out most of his days. Yitzchak is the only link in the chain that will forge ahead with his world-wide faith revolution. Under the circumstances, it would seem that for a good wife from a distinguished family – it would be worthwhile to leave Israel for a few years.

But Abraham says an emphatic “no”. “Just do not return my son to there.”

Abraham understands something that we have forgotten. A sizeable portion of Israel’s citizens hold foreign citizenship in addition to their Israeli ID cards. For them, the Land of Israel is an option – not a final destination. If things are not working out here as planned, thank you very much and goodbye. Look for us in Europe or the US.

But the Land of Israel is not merely a privilege. It is not optional. There is simply no other place for a Jew. The Exile is finished and we are rapidly progressing to a time when the majority of Jews will live in Israel.

Lamentably, many Jews still retain their exile mentality. The wandering Jew is alive and well in the worldview of Israel’s leaders and the part of Israeli society that believes that it can arrange itself a more comfortable option, if need be.

If Israel’s leaders would assert that for the Jews, Israel is the only option, nobody in the UN would dare question the necessity of a Jewish State in the world and Iran would not dare threaten our existence. They would understand that when a country with nuclear capabilities faces an existential threat and has its back to the wall, it will make use of its weapons. But “existential threat” is not in the lexicon of Israel’s leadership and part of its citizenry. Worse comes to worse, they can always hop the first plane to Europe, Canada or the USA.

The world clearly senses that we have not internalized the fact that the Land of Israel is our final destination; the last, blessed stop on our 2000 year journey. But the moment when every Jew will have to make the fateful choice is rapidly approaching.

Shabbat Shalom.

Leonard Cohen Was a Zionist (and a Feiglinite) – I Know Because He Told Me So

Leonard Cohen in concert in 2008. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

by Dovid Efune

A year has now passed since the death of the great poet and singer Leonard Cohen. He’s been remembered no doubt for his music, but also — among Jews — for his deep sense of pride in his Jewish identity.

In Israel, he was lauded as a great friend of the Jewish state. Both the country’s president and prime minister issued statements of mourning upon his passing, remembering Cohen’s historic visit to Israel in 1973. “I will not forget how he came to Israel during the Yom Kippur War in order to sing to IDF soldiers, out of a deep feeling of partnership,” Netanyahu said.

It was during that trip to Israel that Cohen wrote the song “Lover Come Back To Me,” composed amid falling bombs in the Sinai desert. The ode ends with the words, “And may the spirit of this song, may it rise up pure and free. May it be a shield for you, a shield against the enemy.”

But doubts were also raised. An article published by the Forward asked, “Was Leonard Cohen a Zionist?” and answered, “The short answer is no.” The article asserted, “The characterization of Cohen as a straightforward Zionist is nonsense,” citing a poem from Cohen’s 1984 poetry compilation The Book of Mercy:

Israel, and you who call yourself Israel, the Church that calls itself Israel, and the revolt that calls itself Israel, and every nation chosen to be a nation — none of these lands is yours, all of you are thieves of holiness, all of you at war with Mercy.

With this discussion surrounding Cohen’s views on Israel, it struck me that his first yartzheit — today — may present an apt occasion to shed some light on the matter. Having discussed the issue with Cohen at great length — and not so long ago — I felt duty bound to contribute to the conversation.

It is with respect and humility that I do so, and with the full understanding that, as the Forward noted, “Leonard Cohen was far from dreaming in black and white.” I also acknowledge that, as with many of us, it is quite feasible that his views may have evolved throughout the course of his life.

I was first introduced to Cohen in mid-2015 by The Algemeiner’s chairman and publisher Simon Jacobson, who had connected with the singer decades earlier on more spiritual grounds.

Cohen was a regular reader of The Algemeiner and when I informed him of a planned trip to Los Angeles that summer, he invited me to come meet with him at his home.

He lived in a small, simple two-story house in the city’s Mid-Wilshire neighborhood and when I pulled up at his place late that June afternoon, he was sitting on a deckchair on the lawn out front and beckoned for me to sit down beside him.

And there we sat — for close to three hours — discussing the intricacies of Middle East politics, as we chewed on kosher cookies and his housekeeper served cup after cup of strong Turkish coffee.

I was struck firstly by the depth of his knowledge on the subject, especially his familiarity with lesser-known Syrian rebel groups and the complex web of alliances in the war-torn region. Throughout the discussion, he maintained a deep sense of sympathy and concern for the victims.

Our discussion soon turned to Israel. We spoke about his “Concert for Reconciliation, Tolerance and Peace” in 2009, at a Ramat Gan soccer stadium, which was attended by a crowd of 47,000. He had faced criticism from the boycott Israel crowd for the show and had attempted to schedule a parallel performance in Ramallah, but had been rebuffed by the Palestinians. In our conversation, he seemed frustrated that his overtures had been rejected.

He appeared equally vexed by the outcome of the peace effort he had hoped to initiate with his donation of the proceeds — some $2 million — to a project aimed at bringing Israeli and Palestinian children together. I haven’t delved into the details of how that project turned out, but got the sense that Cohen felt the money had gone to waste.

In an effort to better understand his current perspective of the issue, I asked if there was a particular Israeli politician who resonated with him, whose ideas he found appealing. “Moshe Feiglin,” he responded, referring to the former leader of the Manhigut Yehudit faction of the governing Likud party.

I was surprised by Cohen’s familiarity with Feiglin, no less that the nationalist leader’s views had found favor with the octogenarian star. “We need to separate from them (the Palestinians),” he told me. “But it must be humane.”

Feiglin has long held the view, as he explained in an AFP interview in 2008, that the Palestinians “will have to seek the right to self-determination in Arab states.” Feiglin added, “Israel will encourage the Arabs to emigrate to their countries and assist any Arab who wishes to do so.”

We didn’t discuss any of Feiglin’s other controversial views, some of which Cohen would most likely have rejected.

I stayed in touch with Cohen until a few months before his death. He was always warm, graceful, selfless, humble and very Jewish. In all our correspondence he signed off with his Hebrew name, Eliezer, and often included the traditional priestly blessing.

He was certainly a man of peace, and made great efforts to contribute to the healing of the region. But — not unlike the journey traveled by many Israelis — it seemed that the obstructionism he encountered left him more sympathetic with the Israeli view best expressed by the great Zionist leader Ze’ev Jabotinsky, in eloquent testimony before the British Peel Commission on Palestine in 1937:

It is quite understandable that the Arabs of Palestine also prefer to be the Arab state No. 4, or No. 6 — that I understand. But when the Arab claim is confronted with our Jewish demand to be saved, it is like the claims of appetite versus the claims of starvation.

Dovid Efune is the editor-in-chief and CEO of The Algemeiner.

Moshe Feiglin: Death Penalty for Terrorists is the Moral Thing To Do (video with Eng subs)

Rabbi Ari Kahn: Walking Together (video)

The Jewish-Arab demographic about-face

by Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger

In 2017, Israel is the only advanced economy and Western democracy endowed with a relatively high fertility rate, which facilitates further economic growth with no reliance on migrant labor. Moreover, Israel's thriving demography provides for bolstered national
security (larger classes of recruits) and a more confident foreign policy.

In contrast to conventional demographic wisdom, Israel is not facing a potential Arab demographic time bomb. In fact, the Jewish State benefits from a robust Jewish demographic tailwind.

At the outset of 2017, for the first time - and in defiance of projections made by Israel's demographic establishment since the early 1940s - Israel's Jewish fertility rate (3.16 births per woman) exceeds Israel's Arab rate of fertility (3.11). Actually, in 2017, Israel's fertility rate is higher than most Arab countries (e.g., Saudi Arabia – 2.1 births per woman, Kuwait – 2.4, Syria – 2.5, Morocco – 2.1, etc.).

The Westernization of the Arab fertility rate has also been in effect in Judea and Samaria: from 5 births per Arab woman in 2000 to about 3 in 2016; from a median age of 17 in 2000 to 21 in 2017.

The substantial, systematic Westernization of Arab fertility – from 9.5 births per woman in 1960 to 3.11 in 2016 – has been a derivative of the accelerated integration of Israeli Arabs into modernity, in general, and the enhanced status of Israel's Arab women, in particular.

For example – as it is among the Arabs of Judea and Samaria, whose fertility rate is similar - almost all Israeli Arab girls complete high school, and are increasingly enrolling in colleges and universities, improving their status within their own communities. This process has expanded their use of contraceptives, delaying wedding-age and reproduction, which used to start at the age of 15-16, to the age of 20 year old and older.

In addition, Arab women are increasingly integrated into Israel's employment market, becoming more career and social-oriented, which terminates their reproductive process at the age of 45, rather than 50-55 as it used to be. Furthermore, an intensified urbanization process has shifted an increasing number of Israeli Arabs from self-reliant agricultural to urban jobs, and from private rural homes to urban apartments, which has reduced the need for - and the convenience of raising– many children.

At the same time, since 1995, there has been an unprecedented rise in the rate of Jewish fertility - especially in the secular sector - resulting from a relatively-high level optimism, patriotism, attachment to national roots and collective/communal responsibility.

From 80,400 Jewish births in 1995, the number surged to 139,400 in 2016, while the annual number of Arab births remained stable at around 41,000. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the 73% rise in the number of Jewish births took place despite the mild decline of ultra-orthodox fertility (due to expanded integration into the employment market, higher learning and the military) and the stabilized modern-orthodox fertility, but due to the rising fertility of the secular Jewish sector.

The unprecedented tailwind behind Israel's burgeoning Jewish demography is documented by the proportion of Jewish births in the country: 77% of total births in 2016, compared with 69% in 1995. Also, in 2016, there were 3.2 Jewish births per Arab birth, compared to 2.2 births in 1995.

Moreover, while Aliyah (Jewish immigration to Israel) persists in higher numbers than forecasted by Israel's demographic establishment (26,000 in 2016), it has a dramatically higher potential, which obliges Israel to reintroduce the pro-active Aliyah policy – in France, throughout Europe, Russia, Ukraine, Argentina, etc. – as it was prior to the Aliyah of one million Jews from the former USSR during the 1990s.

Simultaneously, an annual Arab net-emigration has been documented, persistently, from Judea and Samaria (about 20,000, annually, in recent years), while the annual net-number of Israeli emigrants (staying abroad for over a year) – total departures minus total returnees – has decreased substantially: from 14,200 in 1990 to 8,200 in 2015. At the same time, the population of Israel almost doubled from 4.5MN in 1990 to 8.4MN in 2015.

In 2017, the total number of Arabs in Judea and Samaria is 1.8MN, not 3MN as claimed by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. The latter includes in its count over 400,000 Palestinians who have been away for over a year; over 300,000 Jerusalem Arabs, who are doubly-counted (by Israel and by the Palestinian Authority); and 100,000 Palestinians who married Israeli Arabs and received Israeli ID cards, who are also doubly-counted.

Furthermore, the Palestinian Authority claims zero net-migration, ignoring the annual net-emigration (from Judea & Samaria) of 20,000 Arabs in recent years, and the systematic net-emigration since 1950, which has been on the rise since the year 2000. A September 7, 2006 World Bank study documented a 32% inflated number of births claimed by the Palestinian Authority.

In March 1898, the leading Jewish demographer and historian, Simon Dubnov, ridiculed the Zionist vision, claiming that by 1998 there will be no more than 500,000 Jews in the Land of Israel….

In October 1944, the founder of Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics, Prof. Roberto Bachi, contended that under the best-case-scenario, in 2001, there will be 2.3MN Jews in the Land of Israel, a 34% minority….

However, in 2017, in defiance of demographic conventional "wisdom," there are 6.8MN Jews in the Land of Israel (including Judea and Samaria), a 66% majority, benefitting from a robust demographic tailwind.

The Yishai Fleisher Show: Hebron, Chaos and Perfection

“The L-rd will not cast off His people, nor will He forsake His inheritance.”

by HaRav Dov Begon
Rosh HaYeshiva, Machon Meir

Abraham said to the Hittites: “I am a stranger and a resident with you. Sell me property for a burial place with you so that I can bury my dead” (Genesis 23:4). Rashi explains: “‘I am a stranger and a resident’: If you agree to sell me the land then I will regard myself as a stranger and will pay for it, but if not, I shall claim it as a resident and take it as my legal right, because G-d said to me (Genesis 12:7), ‘To your seed I shall give this land.’”

Two options faced the nations who ruled over the Land -- either to recognize willingly Abraham’s rights over the Land, or to deny those rights. In the latter case, however, Abraham would justly take it from them by force, on the strength of G-d’s promise to him.

The deeds of the fathers presage those of the sons.

Today, the Jewish People and the Arabs are in a similar situation. The Arabs have two options: They can recognize the exclusive rights of the Jewish People, backed up by the divine promise, “To your seed I shall give this land,” or they can deny our rights to our land. In the latter case we will justly take it, by force, backed up by G-d’s command and by His covenant with us, as did Joshua, King David, Matityahu the Hasmonean, and others...

True, there are some who think that we have to separate from the Arabs and separate from Eretz Yisrael -- G-d forbid -- and hand it over to the Arabs. They think that by such means peace, tranquillity and quiet will come to our land. Yet regarding this it says, “There are many devices in a man’s heart, but it is the counsel of the L-rd that shall endure. The counsel of the L-rd shall endure forever” (Proverbs 19:21; Psalm 33:11).

And what is that “counsel of the L-rd”? “For the L-rd chose Zion. He desired it for His habitation” (Psalm 132:13); “The L-rd chose Jacob for Himself, Israel for His own possession” (135:4); “The L-rd will not cast off His people, nor will He forsake His inheritance” (94:14).

To what may this be compared? To a couple in the process of getting a divorce. They argue fiercely over who should get the property. Yet let us suppose that the property belongs to one of the spouses who inherited it from his ancestors and that it is listed as such in the Israel land registry, etc., etc. The second one has no rights to the apartment and all the same he demands the whole apartment for himself and uses force and violence against the one to whom the apartment really belongs. Ultimately, because of the violence, the other spouse is all but ready to concede part of the apartment, if only because he wants to get divorced. Yet the other side wants the whole apartment and will not give in. They come before the judge who clarifies who really owns the apartment. He determines unequivocally that the apartment belongs to its true owners and he rejects the claims of the violent spouse who wishes to steal what does not belong to him.

We and our government must know and recognize the truth that Eretz Yisrael belongs only to the Jewish People. We must not concede the least bit of our land. If the Arabs wish to separate from us, they can, but without Eretz Yisrael. We can give them gifts, just as Abraham did when he sent away Ishmael. If there are among us some who still think nonsensical thoughts about it being possible to concede part of the “apartment” in favor of the Arabs, and thereby to achieve peace, they are mistaken. Only when the violence reaches their own homes will they recognize their painful error.

Yet the day is not far off when the Arabs, and all the nations of the earth, will recognize that the words of the prophets of Israel, and G-d’s promise to us, are the truth. The Jewish People are arising to rebirth in Eretz Yisrael, and they shall continue to rise up like a lion over the whole length and breadth of our land until we merit the fulfillment of, “The Lrd shall be King over all the earth. On that day the L-rd shall be one and His name One” (Zechariah 14:9).

Looking forward to complete salvation,
Shabbat Shalom.

Yerushalayim and Me'arat Hamachpela

by HaRav Mordechai Greenberg
Nasi Hayeshiva, Kerem B'Yavneh

In the beginning of Parshat Va'era, Rashi cites the Midrash that after Moshe complained to G-d, "Why have You done evil to this People" (Shemot 5:22), G-d said: "Woe to those who are lost and no longer found. I have what to regret over the death of the patriarchs ... When Avraham sought to bury Sara, he did not find a plot, until he bought it at great cost ... and they did not question My ways. But you say, 'Why have You done evil?'"

The question arises: Is it possible to compare Moshe's complaint about the difficult exile to Avraham's acceptance that he has to expend a sum of money to purchase a burial plot? What difficult trail did Avraham have when he had to purchase the field?

Moreover, R. Yona, in his commentary to Pirkei Avot, writes that the purchase of Me'arat Hamachpela was the final trial, and this was more difficult than the trial of the akeida! How can this be?

Pirkei D'Rabbi Eliezer describes Avraham's connection to Me'arat Hamachpela. When Avraham prepared the feast for the three angels:

He ran to bring a calf, and the calf ran away from him and entered Me'arat Hamachpela, and [Avraham] entered after him there. He found Adam and Chava lying on beds and sleeping, with candles burning over them, and a fragrant aroma upon them. Therefore, Avraham desired Me'arat Hamachpela for a burial site.

He spoke to the people of Yevus to purchase Me'arat Hamachpela from them for a full price with gold and an eternal deed as a burial site. Were they Yevusim; were they not Chittim? Rather, they were called after the city Yevus (Yerushalayim), and the people refused. He began bowing to them, as it says, "Avraham bowed before the people of the land." They said to him: We know that G-d is destined to give you and your descendents all of these lands. Seal with us an oath that Bnei Yisrael will not take over the city of Yevus without the agreement of the children of Yevus. Afterwards, Avraham purchased Me'arat Hamachpela for a full sale and in writing forever as an eternal heritage, as it says, "Avraham listened to Ephron..."

What did the people of Yevus do? They made idols of copper and placed them in the city streets and wrote Avraham's oath on them. When Israel entered the Land, they wanted to enter the Yevusite city, but were not able to enter, because of the sign of the covenant of Avraham's oath, as it says, "The children of Binyamin did not drive out the Yevusite, inhabitants of Yerushalayim, so the Yevusite dwelt with the children on Binyamin, in Yerushalayim, until this day." (Shoftim 1:21)

Pirkei D'Rabbi Eliezer continues to describe all the delays in the conquest of the city of Yevus until David purchased the plot from Aravna the Yevusite. This entire delay was caused by Avraham's oath to the people of Chet, as the Yevusites said to David, "You cannot enter the Yevusite city until you remove these idols that have Avraham's oath written on them."

This was the great trial of Avraham. Sara's burial came a few days after descending from Mt. Moriah, after the trial of the akeida, in which he was promised the great future of this mountain: "Hashem will see; as it is said this day, on the mountain Hashem will be seen." (Bereishit 22:14) Now he fell from great heights to great depths, and he cannot bury Sara in the place he so much wanted, unless he would forego Yerushalayim.

Who knows G-d's secret ways, and how can we understand the many delays in the capture of Yerushalayim from the days of Avraham to our days, with the declaration, "The Temple mount is in our hand!" - and it is still not completely.

The issue is deep and complex; we will explain only briefly. Chazal say: "Netzach is Yerushalyim, and hod is the Temple." Rav Kook zt"l explains that netzach indicates struggle and victory (nitzachon). For Yerushalayim, the kingdom of Israel, we must struggle, and we will be victorious. However, the Temple itself will ultimately be recognized by the nations themselves, without a struggle, as the place of the Divine Presence, from which all human culture and ethics emanate. We do not force this upon the nations of the world. They will ultimately recognize the splendor of this place, and will come and call, "Come, let us go up to the Mountain of Hashem ... From Zion Torah will go forth." (Yeshaya 2:3) Only after we appreciate the splendor of the place will we have full control over the place: "Hod - this is the Temple."

HaRav Nachman Kahana on Eliezer’s Agenda

BS”D

Parashat Chayai Sarah 5778
by HaRav Nachman Kahana

Avraham Avinu sends his servant, Eliezer of Damascus, on a vital mission to find a suitable wife for Avraham’s son Yitzchak; thus entrusting Eliezer with the future of Klal Yisrael.

Towards evening, Eliezer arrives in record time at Avraham’s birthplace, Ur Kasdim, setting his caravan to rest by the town well. He then turns to the God of his master with a request that He “…show kindness to my master Avraham” (Bereishiet 24: 15-20.) Verse 15 begins:

“And it came to pass, that before He (Eliezer) had finished speaking, Rivka approached…”

The Torah points out that before Eliezer concluded his prayer to God, the selection had already been made.

In verse 17, we are told that Eliezer runs to meet her. He did not walk politely, as befitting one who is approaching a young maiden for the first time. He runs towards her.

In verse 18, we are told that Rivka “…hastened to put down her pitcher” and to pour out water for the ‘parched’ Eliezer.

In verse 20, Rivka is once again hurrying:

“And she hastened and emptied her pitcher into the trough”, and then, “…and she ran again to the well to draw (water)”

In all, Rivka is described as running three times.

Question one: What is happening here?

Question two: In verse 42 where Eliezer is relating to Rivka’s family the events of the last hour, Rashi quotes the Tanna R. Acha who lauds Eliezer’s choice of words as being more spiritually dramatic than the study of Torah of later generations. What did R. Acha see in Eliezer’s description of the day’s events?

Let’s return to the rush of people and events as described earlier. What we are witnessing here can only be described as the “theater of the absurd,” with Rivka unnecessarily rushing and running in double time to provide water for Eliezer’s entourage. But, in fact, there is nothing absurd in Rivka’s seemingly un-ladylike rushing. It was the necessary result of Eliezer’s premeditated and deliberate attempt to sabotage his mission.

Eliezer had an agenda.

On one hand, as the loyal servant of Avraham, he had to fulfill the mission of finding a suitable wife for Yitzchak. On the other, Eliezer had a daughter who he very much wanted Yitzchak to marry. Eliezer had to reconcile these two seemingly incompatible choices.

But in order to make them compatible, Eliezer concluded that he would make an honest attempt to find a wife, and if it failed he would be in an honest position to offer his daughter to Avraham as a wife for Yitzchak.

Let us return to verse 11 where we are informed that Eliezer arrives at the city

“…at the time towards evening, when the women come out to draw water.”

It is not yet night, because no one comes out to “draw water” in the darkness. Yet, it is not afternoon which is too early to draw water for the evening meal. Eliezer arrives a bit before the sh’ki’a – sundown – when there is still some daylight, but darkness is quickly descending.

In verse 12, Eliezer says:

“Oh Lord, the God of my master Avraham, may you so arrange it for me this day, that You do kindness with my master Avraham.”

Eliezer is not just asking for a kind-hearted young lady, of whom there must have been more than one in the entire city, Eliezer is conditioning it to happen “on this day,” when “this day” is about to end, as stated above that Eliezer arrived just before sh’ki’a.

Eliezer is putting God “to the test,” to resolve everything in just a few minutes. If night descends and the “basherteh” is not found, then Eliezer’s mission will have been executed honestly but unsuccessfully and his daughter transformed into a suitable candidate as Yitzchak’s wife.

However, HaShem knows the inner workings of every mind, so He has Rivka running three times in her need to bring drink to the entire caravan, finishing with barely a few moments to spare before the end of day. In verse 21, we are informed that Eliezer is amazed at what has just transpired before his unbelieving eyes. He is so overcome by the realization that Hashem had “read” his thoughts and undermined his plan to give the search a time limit of several minutes, that he is unable to contain himself and feels that he must relate the events of the day to Rivka’s family.

Eliezer has another opportunity to block the choice of Rivka, when Lavan and Rivka’s mother request that she stay on a while longer at home. But Eliezer already understood that no man can prevent the will of HaShem from being done. Eliezer argues with the family that he cannot wait, and that Rivka must come with him now, to which Rivka agrees against the wishes of her family.

In our own day, many of our spiritual mentors in the galut, together with the willing cooperation of their disciples and congregants, are creating a “theater of the absurd” in too many important issues in our lives.

In our contemporary “theater of the absurd,” there are star actors, bit actors and, of course, the viewers. Our theater is a caustic comedy, and, unfortunately, there is no director or producer to scream out “cut”.

A major absurdity is that while singing the praises of Eretz Yisrael, many spiritual mentors in galut have never stepped foot in the holy land; and many who have been here have no intention of leaving their “golden galut”. Not only do these leaders distance themselves from HaShem’s gift to Am Yisrael, they influence believing Jews that to live in the galut is God’s will and to return to Eretz Yisrael is anti-Torah. Three times a day they sing the praises of Eretz Yisrael in birkat hamazon (grace after meals), and more times in the liturgy, while they have no intention of ever living in the holy land.

They sing the praises of Yerushalayim, as one who finds pleasure from the beauty of legendary Atlantis, which supposedly sank under the Mediterranean Sea. They sit and wait for the gates of their galut jail to open, while ignoring the reality that the hinges of the gates have been uprooted with the establishment of Medinat Yisrael, whose first official act was to pass the Law of Return, permitting free and open aliya to every Jew in the world.

The actors in our theater of the absurd taste sweet as bitter and bitter as sweet. They call the gentile lands of Europe, the USA, Australia, England, etc. “home”, while they claim that the Jews in Eretz Yisrael are in golus.

They erect imposing buildings for their shuls and yeshivot while ignoring the reality that these edifices will very soon be churches or mosques.

No matter what these leaders claim, any connection between their clinging to the exile and spirituality is even less than coincidental. All the books, articles, drashot (sermons), and speeches on the necessity to wait for the Mashiach – who they claim will roll out the red carpet for the holy Jews of the galut to whisk them off to their luxurious villas in the Holy Land – are as realistic as was Eliezer’s plan to thwart HaShem’s plan to choose a wife from Avraham’s family.

One can lie to friends, to one’s wife and to oneself, but not to HaShem, who knows the real “me”, and real “you”, and real “us”.

Eliezer is taught this lesson, and R. Acha praises him for seeing the truth. The conclusion? – I will let you, dear reader, draw your own.

Shabbat Shalom,
Nachman Kahana
Copyright © 5778/2017 Nachman Kahana

The Wet Head is Dead

by Shmuel Sackett

Back in the 60’s, the popular look for men was to have a greased head of hair. They used Vitalis or Lucky Tiger to keep their hair slicked back and looking good. In the early 70’s, Gillette changed all that with a product called “The Dry Look”. It was a hairspray for men that promised a cool, yet totally dry look. The advertising campaign they ran was tremendously successful and their slogan was quite catchy; “The Wet Head is Dead”. The TV ad was very direct; “You don’t have to use oil, creams or even water on your head… the wet head is dead! Long live the dry look!”

Why do I mention this, all of a sudden? Because 40 years later, I have come to the conclusion that the wet head is alive and well. I discovered this because I am presently in New York where, unlike Israel, men work on Friday. Since Shabbat starts very early these days, I noticed that many men come to shul Friday night with a “wet head”. I don’t blame these men who are forced to work Fridayafternoon and race home on the last train before Shabbat. I used to be one of them. I remember the days of running full speed, straight into the shower on Erev Shabbat, then continuing my race to shul with a head still dripping. (I never minded the wet head but feared that I left some shampoo behind…) As I looked around the shul these last two weeks, I noticed many of these “wet heads” and I felt bad.

I felt bad because I know now, what I didn’t know back then, when I too was a “wet head”. I know now that it doesn’t have to be this way. The fighting with the boss to leave early Friday afternoon, the working on Chol Ha’Moed, the davening shacharit in the pitch dark just to make it to work on time, the uncomfortable feelings of eating an “airline kosher meal” at the annual convention, the search for a heter to shave during sefira and the nine days, the internal battle of wearing vs not wearing a kippa at work… All of these struggles – and I sympathize with every one because they are indeed struggles – can be completely avoided. How? By living in a country where Jews are not the minority.

America is a wonderful country and we need to thank Hashem for the fantastic blessings we have had here but let’s be totally honest; it’s not where we belong. As wonderful as things are, this is a non Jewish country and we will always be foreigners in this land. Yes, we have built Yeshivot here and Jewish communities have thrived but we are – and always will be – the guests and never the hosts. This is why Friday afternoons in the winter become very uncomfortable for Jewish professionals. It is the same reason why the most religious man feels he must shave during the nine days – or during the “shloshim” for a parent… because a guest must follow the rules.

Things in Israel are much different. As I have written many times, there are many areas that we still need to improve on, but for the Jewish professional working man and woman, you simply cannot beat working in Israel. All major companies work Sunday-Thursday, which means no work on Friday so, like Gillette said; “The Wet Head is Dead!” You come to shul Friday night with a nice, dry head of hair.

But there’s more… much more. Most companies are closed the entire Sukkot and Pesach so you can enjoy the holiday the way it was designed to be (and not have the days deducted from your vacation time!). All hotels are kosher so the annual convention, even if held in Eilat, is no problem at all. You can sit and enjoy the food together with your co-workers and not feel isolated. Men will never have a problem with a kippa nor will women have problems with head coverings. There is never any work on Erev Yom Tov and you can take off work on Purim and Tisha b’Av. Nobody will question your “sefira beard” and by law, should you need to sit shiva, you will be given 7 days off – once again, not deducted from your vacation time.

This is what it means to live in a Jewish state. Is everybody frum all around us? No. But that’s not what I am referring to. My focus here is on a Jewish culture vs a non-Jewish culture. Like it or not, in the coming days, no matter where you are in America, you will hear Christmas songs. There’s no way around it. The newspapers will be filled with Christmas sales, you will see your neighbor’s house light up and you will probably bump into 5-6 Santa Clauses each day as you walk in Manhattan. That’s what happens when you live in New York.

In Israel, even in a secular city like Tel Aviv, you will not see any Santas. Rather, you will trip over stores selling jelly donuts (some may even have some jelly!!) and you will see store after store selling gifts for… Chanukah! Almost every store lights a menorah each night of Chanukah and every person you meet – even the ones most removed from Jewish observance – will wish you a “Chag Sameyach”!

Let’s stop living as guests in someone else’s home. Yes, the host has been very kind to us but we have overstayed our welcome. The time has come to thank the host and move out to our own place, with our own culture and traditions. No more being the weird guy who leaves early on Friday, doesn’t show up for work in September and eats airline food instead of rib steak. And no more coming to shul with hair that’s dripping wet. The wet head is dead! Long live Erev Shabbat in Israel! Come home now.

The Lies of Rashid Khalidi and John Kerry

Columbia University professor Rashid Khalidi spoke to the United Nations to condemn them and the British for the Balfour Declaration. Here are his lies laid bare: https://firstonethrough.wordpress.com/2017/11/05/a-response-to-rashid-khalidis-distortions-on-the-balfour-declaration/


With Kerry the known liar who tired to throw his fellow soldiers under the bus, it's also about gross stupidity and arrogance.
In Newly Revealed Recording, Kerry Blames Israel for Stalled Peace Talks With Palestinians

Here's to the "Experts", Terrorism's Great Whitewashers

by Bruce Bawer

• Never mind that the holy books of Islam quite clearly spell out the doctrine of jihad and the heavenly rewards that await jihadist martyrs. No, according to MSNBC "terrorism expert" Malcolm Nance, Manhattan attacker Sayfullo Saipov's butchery was "anti-Islamic".
• According to Nance's theory, every Islamic terrorist in our time somehow overlooked the real lessons of Islam and instead made exactly the same flub, mistaking Osama bin Laden's bloodthirsty lesson of murderous violence for the thoroughly peaceful tidings of the Koran.
• To fail to see a continuity between, on the one hand, the Islam of the terrorists, and, on the other, the Islam of forced marriages, honor killings, female genital mutilation (FGM) and the niqab is to engage in denial and a total whitewash. But then, whitewashing Islam is the true area of expertise of so many of these so-called terrorism experts.

Olivier Roy, a prominent French "terrorism expert," strives to uncouple Islamic terrorism from Islam itself, even in its most extreme form. (Image source: Internaz/Leonardi e Parlamenti/Flickr)

Thank heaven for the "terrorism experts." After Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov mowed down pedestrians and bicyclists in Manhattan on Halloween, murdering eight innocent people, what would we have done without Malcolm Nance, who, identified as an "MSNBC Terrorism Analyst," assured viewers of that cable network that Saipov's action was

"not Islam, whatsoever. None of this is condoned. Including the, you know, sacrificing and getting yourself killed at the end of a terrorist attack, none of that is Islamic, it's anti-Islamic."

Weirdly, Nance even chuckled partway through that last sentence, as if the idea that jihad is jihad were too absurd to take seriously.

Continue Reading Article

Dr. Mordechai Kedar Discussing Trump’s Major Blow to the Iran Nuclear Deal

The US Betrayal of Kurdistan Should be a Warning Sign for Israel

by Dr. Mordechai Kedar

The Kurdish people have an inalienable right to their own national homeland just as other nations do. The Kurds are the largest ethnic entity in the world, numbering some 30 million people, which does not have a state of its own. Over three years ago, I declared – here on Arutz Sheva – that the world is obligated to see to it that historic justice is granted the Kurds by supporting their dream of being a free nation in their own land.

A referendum was held last month among the Iraqi Kurds over whether or not they should declare independence, while in the background threats emanating from Turkey, Iran, the Iraqi government and even Bashar Assad could be discerned. Joining them were other countries, including the USA and Europe, all of them warning the Kurds – and especially their leader, Masoud Barzani – not to attempt a one-sided declaration of independence. The neighboring countries fear a snowball effect on other minorities in their own countries, including their resident Kurds. More distant countries fear another war in the oil-rich regions such as northern Iraq, which could lead to a much wider conflict.

The referendum showed that a vast majority, over 90% of those voting, support independence. This resulted in Masoud Barzani, head of the Kurdish region, acquiring the ability to wield powerful leverage against the Iraqi government, which was naturally unnerved by the results and tried its best to convince Barazani not to declare independence.

The two main issues in the dialogue between Barzani and the Iraqi regime are:

1. Delineating the borders of the Kurdish region and whether the oil fields and the nearby city of Kirkuk are within those borders and

2. What happens to the oil that flows under the ground in the Kurdish region – are the profits Iraqi or do they belong to the Kurds?

Except that Barzani is not the only Kurdish actor on the stage. Jilal Talabani, his rival, did not support the hopes for Kurdish independence espoused by Barzani, and was of the opinion that the Kurds must remain within the national framework of Iraqi sovereignty. He was once the Iraqi president – mainly a ceremonial post – from 2005 to 2014, and died in Germany two weeks ago, on October 3, 2017. A pragmatist, he based his opinion on the realistic understanding that a declaration of independence would have a severely negative effect on the Kurds, because all the surrounding countries would do their utmost to ensure its failure, not balking at the idea of starving the Kurds to death by putting their region under siege.

The differences between Barzani and Talabani are nothing new. In fact, the two famiiies have been at odds for decades, and in the second half of the twentieth century there were actual battles between the two, involving weapons and resulting in dead and wounded. The Iraqi regime knew this well and took advantage of it by forming a coalition of one side against the other. The factionalism of the Kurds prevented them from forming a united stand and the neighboring states – Turkey, Iran and Syria – knew how to make use of this factionalism for their own ends.

This week, the dispute led to facts on the ground: The Iraqi army, supported by Shiite militias, moved towards Kirkuk and the Kurdish Peshmerga fighting force left the city without doing battle. Within two days the Iraqis took over the city and its adjacent oil field without resorting to violence, neutralizing an important part of the leverage Masoud Barzani was hoping th wield during negotiations with the Iraqi government. It seems that the Pershmega are not united and reflect the ongoing internal dispute among the Kurds. Some listen to Barzani’s orders and others act under the influence of Talabani. The forces guarding Kirkuk were under the sway of Talabani and gave up in the struggle against the Iraqi army’s takeover, to Barzani’s dismay. The internal strife among the Kurds distances them from their dream of independence, a dream that will only move farther away for as long as they cannot agree on its parameters.

The tragedy that has befallen the Kurds is even greater because their fighters, part of the coalition led by the US, were the most important force fighting ISIS. They were given arms, weapons, funding and training by their coalition partners, but it is they and not the coalition’s fighters, who shed their blood in street to street, house to house, room to room fighting against ISIS. Hundreds of Peshmerga fighters were killed and wounded in the long, exhausting battle to liberate Mosul from the Jihadists of the Islamic State.

The Kurds expected the world, headed by the US, to stand behind them once ISIS was defeated, remembering their large contribution to that defeat and supporting their demand for independence. These hopes were dashed very quicly when the official American stand turned out to be that “we have no intention of interfering in internal Iraqi affairs” – that is, the US will not support the Kurdish demand for independence led by Masoud Barzani, this despite the referendum and their historic rights. Those Kurds who longed for independence are disappointed and feel betrayed by the nation with whom, for whom and in whose name they fought for a lengthy and bloody period, one filled with battles and Kurdish victims sacrificed in the war against ISIS.

It is possible that the American stand is based on Talabani’s approach, one which saw no need –certainly not an immediate one – for declaring independence and preferred that the Kurds integrate into the Iraqi state for good. Naturally, Talabani’s loyalty to the Iraqi regime is explained by rumors of bribery, jobs and other favors he and his men received from Iraq and Iran. On the other hand, rumors say that Barzani received his own favors from the Saudis, who are interested in preventing a Shiite axis led by Iran. The Mideast news sources are full of these hard to prove stories (Anyone who thinks that Trump invented the concept of “fake news” is unfamiliar with the media and political discourse of the Middle East…)

Conclusions Israel must draw from the Kurdish saga

For the last several years, and particularly since the signing of the nuclear agreement between Iran and the world powers, there has been a discernable warming of relations between Israel and the Arab nations who feel threatened by Iran. Those include Saudi Arabia, the Emirates, Kuwait, Egypt and Jordan. As a result there are Israeli pundits, army officers and politicians who view the current regional situation as a golden opportunity that Israel must take advantage of by accepting the Arab peace proposals, establishing a Palestinian state and embarking on a new era of cooperation with the “moderate Sunni axis” in order to bring peace and security to Israel and the entire area. Why? Because all these countries fear Iran as much as, and possibly more, than Israel does.

But let us suppose that the Iranian threat disappears because Israel succeeds in an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities. As a result, war breaks out between Israel and Iran (including Hezbollah), Israel sacrifices hundreds of soldiers and civilians – and the Iranian problem ceases to exist. Will the Arab and Western worlds be grateful to Israel and act to protect Israel’s interests?

The answer is simple: What happened to the Kurds will happen to Israel. The Kurds fought ISIS, sacrificed their soldiers and people, and were thrown to the wolves once they were not needed. That is exactly what the world’s nations will do to Israel once it extricates them from the Iranian problem. Why not? The immediate interests of each and every country and not the moral rights of the Kurds and the Israelis are what makes the world go round.

Israel will indeed be the darling of the “moderate Sunni axis” – that is, for as long as there is an Iranian threat. Once that is gone, the fracturing of Iran into ethnic components (on the lines of the former USSR, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia) will obviate the need for relations with Israel. For this reason, Israel would do well not to give up its lands for a piece of paper with the word “peace” stamped on it, because that paper can easily fly away in the desert wind while the worlds on it fade in the blazing Middle Eastern sun.

There are two unassailable proofs for this phenomenon: The first is the peace with Egypt. This peace was a result of Sadat’s need for economic assistance from Europe and Europe’s insistence that peace with Israel precede the granting of that aid so that its money is not squandered on wars. That peace treaty did not stand in Mubarak’s way when he allowed Hamas and its supporters to smuggle arms from Sinai to Gaza, because it was in Mubarak’s interests to bring about a war between Israel and Hamas, allowing Israel to do the dirty work with the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood. As soon as the Sinai became Jihadistan and began fighting Egypt, the weapons smuggling from Sinai to Gaza ceased abruptly. In sum, the peace between Israel and Egypt exists for as long as it suits Egyprian interests.

The second proof is the peace with Jordan, based on Yitzchak Rabin and King Hussein’s shared interest in preventing a Palestinian state from being established. This common interest created wide-ranging cooperation between the two countries. Hussein’s son, Abdullah II, changed his father’s policies and is a strong backer of the idea of a Palestinian state in Judea and Samaria whose capital is East Jerusalem . That is why he acts against Israel in every international forum, as if he were one of Israel’s greatest enemies. He relates to the peace treaty as an agreement to refrain from war and no more, while enjoying the economic benefits he gained from it.

The clear conclusion from the Kurdish, Egyptian and Jordanian situations is that Israel must not jeopardize its existence, security and interests by placing them in bankrupt Arab insurance companies. Israel absolutely must strengthen its position in the Land of Israel, create local governing emirates for the powerful Arab families in urban Judea and Samaria while battening down Israeli control of the rural areas. No peace treaty can give Israel a lasting insurance policy, and the faster Israel and the world internalize this truth the better.

Written for Arutz Sheva, translated from Hebrew by Rochel Sylvetsky, Consulting and Op-ed Editor, Arutz Sheva English site.

The Shamrak Report: Israel is a Test-tube for Islamic Terror and more.....

by Philippe Assouline

Israel is tritely known as the start up nation, the incubator for ideas and products that change our lives – usually for the better – in an increasingly high-tech world. Your ever-smaller cell phone, that GPS app... non-invasive medical procedure and those persimmons that magically never seem to go bad, those were all created in Israel, and tested on Israelis, before getting the OK to go global.

So too, alas, with the modern scourge of undiscriminating Jihadi mass murders, occasionally referred to as terrorism by Western media. Like the most famous of technology companies, Jihadi terror tragically also uses Israel as its R&D center, and the Israeli populace, it pains me to write, as its guinea pigs.

After doing so with suicide bombings in the 90s, Palestinian Jihadists (whether of the admittedly religious Hamas variety, or of the “secular” Al Aqsa Martyrs brigades of the PLO) invented, tested and made ever more lethal truck terrorism, stabbing rampages and mass shootings through Israeli “experiments,” that is, through attacks on Israeli moms, dads, sons, daughters and grandparents...

They instead earned Palestinians an endless stream of gushing profiles in liberal media outlets, a global pulpit, wall to wall political support, and the permanent benefit of any moral doubt with Western intelligentsia... it is no coincidence that the mass-killing tactics developed in Ramallah, tested in Jerusalem and rewarded in Norway are becoming ubiquitous in London, Nice and, now, New York City.

If we don’t grasp that the mass murders committed by ISIS have their genesis in Yasser Arafat being rewarded for mass murder with global (including, at times, liberal Jewish) adulation, we will fail – whatever else we do to fight Jihadism...

What is clear is that any assault on Jihadi ideas must attack that poisoned tree at its root not selectively prune only some of its most obtrusive jagged branches. There can be no exceptions in fighting terrorist ideas: the fetid poison of Hamas and Hezbullah are the same as that of Boko Haram and Al Qaeda... 

That, along with the usual military means, may well make a difference. Because if Jihadist lunacy can be exported by Saudi Arabia and others via madrassas, so too can a version of Islam that is hostile to terrorism and shames it as cowardly, unmanly and sinful.

... it is time to stop giving the Palestinians a free pass. If terrorism is rewarded or even explained away when it targets Israeli innocents, the record is unequivocal that the same terrorism will then spread to Europe, Canada, India, the US… If despicable apologists for Palestinian Jihad like Linda Sarsour and BDS are for no logical reason treated like paragons of humanism (including by how many Jews?), then so too will apologists for terrorism in Paris and Barcelona become normalized. 

If Europe wants its streets back, it must help Israel secure hers. It has to become taboo to target any civilians, for any professed cause, at any time - not just those in European and American nightclubs.

WIN a MILLION - New York businessman William Langfan has offered an unprecedented $1 million prize to anyone who shows that the Palestinian National Council (PNC) has ever changed the PLO charter to accept Israel's existence, as is widely believed. The offer is particularly timely, less than 24 hours after Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas announced that he no longer sees himself as bound by the Oslo Accords.

FOOD for THOUGHT by Steven Shamrak

Turkey, a member of NATO, has signed a deal to arm its forces with Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missiles. The deal is worth $2.5bn. Recently, the United States has offered Ankara an aid package that includes $6 billion in grants (aid) and up to $20 billion in loan guarantees. Hypocritical Anti-Semites are demanding an end of the US financial aid to Turkey!

Will Self-Hating Left Ever Learn - Arabs Hate!

Two Israeli women, members of the leftwing Machsom Watch, which monitors and documents the conduct of Israeli soldiers and policemen at checkpoints in Judea and Samaria, were attacked and robbed by Arabs 

in the village of Azzun. Arabs began to attack the women’s vehicle with cinder blocks and stones, until IDF forces were rushed over and the women were rescued from a lynching quite miraculously. (When will Jews learn that Arabs and anti-Semites generally hate all Jews? No appeasement will make them love us!)

Disarming Hezbollah the Israeli Way

Israel’s fighter jets fired seven missiles at the “industrial zone” 30km south of Homs. Syrian Air Defense Forces 72nd Brigade aimed several S-2 and S-75 air defense system missiles “at the raiding warplanes.” Syria’s air defense command operates under the Russian command, and so the Russian officers on the spot would have given the green light for Syrian missile fire.

UN Czar ‘Unaware’ of Human Rights Violations by Palestinian

The United Nations must “review Israel’s status as a law-abiding member” of the world body by declaring its “occupation as illegal,” said Michael Lynk, the UN rapporteur for Palestinian human rights... At the same time, Lynk told the reporters he was “unaware” that he, too, could cite violations committed by Palestinians – although UN Watch has been sending him reports and letters to this effect repeatedly. (It is in his job description – blame Israel for everything, but ignore every terror act and ugliness committed by the PA, Hamas, Fatah and other so-called Palestinians!)

Stop Apologising - Remove Enemies!

Several hours after the demolition of the tunnel from Gaza to Israel, IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis responded to a reporter’s question about the goal of the tunnel blast, saying that the operation was intended only to destroy the underground infrastructure and was “not in any way” meant to assassinate senior terrorist leaders. Education Minister Naftali Bennett accused the military of “apologizing”.

Israel is the ONLY True Friend the US has!

Israel and the United States on Wednesday voted against a UN resolution condemning the US embargo on Cuba. The resolution was overwhelmingly adopted by a vote of 191 to 2, leaving the US and Israel as the only opposing voices in the General Assembly. 

Is Israel the Only Democracy with a Moral Compass?

Breaking with the stance of other Western countries, Israel decided on Monday not to express an official opinion on the issue of Catalan independence in the meantime, NRG reported. According to the report, Spain asked Israel over the weekend to publicly declare that it does not support Catalan independence, as part of Spain’s efforts to garner international consensus on the matter. (Spain and others idiots support the independence of the fake people, Palestinians, but not the independence of Catalans, Basques or Kurds. Shame on you anti-Semites!)

Fatah Condemns Israel for Destroying Terror Tunnels.

The Fatah movement, headed by Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas, issued a statement condemning what it called "the Israeli crime directed against our people in Gaza, which resulted in the deaths of eight civilians and the wounding of 14 others." The statement was referring to the IDF destroying terror tunnels leading from Gaza into Israel, during which terrorists were killed, including a senior member of the Islamic Jihad.

(One can't make this 'comedy script' up!)

When Words are not Matched by Deeds!

Israeli Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon (Kulanu) met with senior PA officials in Ramallah, including PA premier Rami Hamdallah. The meeting took place despite a declaration earlier this month by the Netanyahu government that Israel would not negotiate with the PA following the signing of the Hamas-Fatah reconciliation deal. (That is why nobody takes Netanyahu seriously!)

Is Trump Really pro-Israel?

The minister behind the proposed “Greater Jerusalem Law”, which would annex 19 Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria to the city of Jerusalem isn’t backing down, despite the apparent opposition of the Trump administration and pressure from Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to keep the issue off the table for the time being. Katz also said that he was somewhat surprised by the pressure from the US to shelve the plan, noting “The Americans have known about the law for months. I spoke about it in depth with (Trump envoy Jason) Greenblatt and (US Ambassador to Israel David) Friedman, and they never expressed any opposition.” (Is silence a new anti-Israel tactic?)

Quote of the Week:

"Balfour (and San Remo) should have saved much of European Jewry. The White Paper abrogated Balfour, and violated basic human rights, to kow-tow to the threat of Arab terrorism (instigated and supported by British). If anyone is going to ask for apologies from the British, it should be the Jewish people for the immoral policy that sentenced hundreds of thousands (millions) of our relatives (Jews) to death." - elderofziyon.com - Adoption of the White Paper, which was widely supported by most countries, in 1939 prevented the escape of Jews from the horror of Nazi instigated Holocaust. Most of the non-Jewish population of Europe was wilfully and eagerly participating in it!

Wind of War from Lebanon

by Tamar Pileggi

Lebanese President Michel Aoun warned that all the citizens of his country are willing to battle Israel in a future war.

“All the Lebanese are prepared to fight against Israel,” Aoun told Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Rai. “Yes, we are a small country, but we have re-established our national unity (with Hezbollah), and part of that is the united opposition to anyone who attacks our country.” (It means that Lebanese government has just admitted its responsibility for future attacks against Israel by Hezbollah – no more pretending ‘we are not respectable’!)

...Israel believes that the organization employs a force of approximately 25,000 full-time fighters - 5,000 of whom underwent advanced training in Iran - with another at least 20,000 fighters in reserve units.

Hezbollah boasts of possessing attack drones, air defense systems, armoured personnel carriers and even tanks. It is also believed to have the Yakhont shore-to-sea missile, with which it can threaten Israeli Navy ships.

Hezbollah is believed to possess between 100,000 and 150,000 projectiles, most of them short range. Israeli officials assess that in a future war, the group would be able to sustain a firing rate of over 1,000 missiles per day.

The group’s leaders threaten to attack or destroy Israel on a regular basis, while Israeli leaders have warned that in a future round of hostilities it would not distinguish between Lebanon and Hezbollah.