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December 18, 2005
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 PA "Categorically Rejects" U.S. Congress Resolution by Khaled Abu ToamehThe Palestinian Authority and Hamas rejected threats by the U.S. House of Representatives to cut off financial aid to the Palestinians if Hamas is permitted to participate in next month's parliamentary elections. (Jerusalem Post) Read More. See also Hamas to Run in Palestinian Ballot Despite U.S. Call Hamas will run in a Palestinian election next month despite a call from the U.S. House of Representatives to ban the militant Islamic group from contesting the ballot, Palestinian officials said. (Reuters) | |||
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 Hamas Stomps Fatah in Nablus, Jenin by Khaled Abu ToamehAccording to results published early Friday, Hamas won the Palestinian Authority primaries in Nablus with 73 percent of the vote, marking victory in 11 out of 13 districts. The Islamic party did well in other local elections, winning 72% of the vote in El-Bireh, a large suburb of Ramallah. Hamas' schools, clinics and other welfare programs - coupled with its fierce resistance to Israel - have won it grass-roots support among Palestinians fed up with Fatah's corruption. (AP/Jerusalem Post) Read More. | |||
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| Palestinian Rocket from Gaza Hits Ashkelon Palestinian terror organizations fired six rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israel on last week, including one that hit a Carlsberg beer warehouse on the southern outskirts of the city of Ashkelon, the army and witnesses said. (Jerusalem Post) Read More. | |||
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| Palestinian "Third Way" Rises by Ilene R. Prusher Hamas and Fatah have a new political rival. A group of Palestinian leaders and intellectuals has formed an independent list to run in January's Palestinian legislative elections, headed by Salam Fayyad. Many of those who perceive secular-nationalist Fatah as rife with corruption and infighting don't necessarily support Hamas's continued suicide bombings and rocket attacks on Israelis - nor its plans to Islamicize Palestinian society. (Christian Science Monitor) Read More. | |||
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 Tourism Up 28 Percent in Israel This YearThe number of tourists visiting Israel rose 28 percent in 2005, the Tourism Ministry reports. Almost 1.8 million people traveled to the country between January and November. Most of the visitors, 1.5 million, arrived by air. The overwhelming majority flew into Ben-Gurion International Airport, but more than 50,000 flew directly to the Red Sea resort of Eilat - 38 percent more than last year. (UPI/Monsters and Critics) Read More. | |||
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| No Holocaust Repeat, Israel Tells Iran Israel urged the world to "open its eyes" to the Iranian regime and its nuclear program after its president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, described the Holocaust as a "myth." "Thank God, Israel has the means at its disposal to bring about the downfall of this extremist regime in Iran. There will be no second 'final solution'," Prime Minister Sharon's spokesman Raanan Gissin said. "We hope that these extremist declarations will make the world wake up to the nature of this regime - especially the fact that Iran's nuclear program and its support of international terrorism represent not only a danger for Israel but for the entire Western civilization." (Melbourne Herald Sun) Read More. | |||
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 Is There a Military Option to Halt Iran's Nuclear Program? by Ze'ev SchiffThe international community - as opposed to any individual country - could exercise the military option if a decision is made that Shi'ite Iran's status as a nuclear power poses an international danger or threatens the stability of the world, and not just the Middle East. What remains uncertain is whether such a decision will ever be reached. (Ha'aretz) Read More. | |||
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 Iranian President Calls Holocaust a Myth by Jonathan FreedlandLast week the president of Iran chose to stand with the cranks, neo-fascists and racists who deny the factual truth of the Holocaust. Suddenly, the usual apologetics won't work. No one can say Iran's president was really complaining about Israel or Zionism, rather than Jews. No one can say he was talking about the West's colonial crimes. He was peddling, instead, one of the defining tropes of the racist hard right: Holocaust denial. It is a stance that seeks to deny Jews their history, their suffering, almost their very being. (Guardian-UK) Read More. | |||
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 International Red Cross: Hiding Behind a Crystal - EditorialThe 192 signatories of the Geneva Conventions decided to adopt a new international symbol - the Red Crystal - alongside the Red Cross and the Red Crescent. By bowing for so long to the utter rejection of the symbol of the Jewish people, and then devising for it a second-class status, the international community legitimized a hatred that is the antithesis of the Red Cross mission and the cause of many of the casualties it treats. (Jerusalem Post) Read More. | |||
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 Zarqawi and Israel: Is There a New Jihadi Threat Destabilizing the Eastern Front? by Dore Gold (pictured) and Lt. Col. (res.) Jonathan D. HaleviFor the first time, Israeli defense experts are noting that groups identifying with al-Qaeda - or the global jihad - are determined to acquire operational footholds close to Israel's borders. The most dramatic sign was the November 9, 2005, suicide bombing of three Jordanian hotels in Amman by "al-Qaeda Mesopotamia" - the organization led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Militant Islamic websites immediately announced: "After the attack in the heart of Jordan, it will soon be possible to reach Jewish targets in Israel." (JCPA) Read More. | |||
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Delaware: Arad's Emissary Takes Delaware by Storm by Idan KligermanLast week, at the University of Delaware campus I was honored to participate in a joint event sponsored by the Muslim Student Association and the Kristol Center for Jewish Life (Hillel), which benefited Pakistan earthquake relief efforts. Muslim students on campus felt a special kinship with the victims of this devastating natural disaster. They emailed all the student organizations seeking co-sponsors for a fundraising event. Hillel was the only campus group to respond. Both groups cooked together in the Kristol Hillel Center's kitchen, learning about each other's foods and customs. The Hillel students made posters that explained how Israel welcomes people from many cultures and celebrates diversity. The author (pictured left) is a JAFI emissary from Arad, Israel to Delaware. (Jewish Agency for Israel) Read More. | |||
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 Harvard Urged to Return $20M Gift by Pedro V. MouraRep. Anthony D. Weiner (D-N.Y.), wrote a letter to University President Lawrence H. Summers urging him to return the recent $20 million gift for Islamic Studies given by a Saudi prince. "Although an Islamic Studies Program would be a wonderful addition to the University, the funding for it should not come from a source of extremist hate," Amy M. Zelcer '07, president of Harvard Students for Israel, wrote in an e-mail. She cited a 2002 CBS Marketwatch article that said the Saudi Prince donated $27 million and 100 four wheel drive vehicles to families of Palestinian suicide bombers. (Crimson) Read More. See also Use of $20M Donation Debated by Dan R. Rasmussen (Crimson) | |||
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 Illinois State: Professor Criticizes Iranian President's Views by Michael MillerThe Iranian president is "an idiot" for claiming Wednesday that the Holocaust is a "myth," an Illinois State University professor and department head said. "This is just outrageous," said Dr. Jamal Nassar, head of the politics and government department at ISU. "It shows ignorance on his part and lack of judgment as a president of a country." (Peoria Journal Star) Read More. | |||
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 UNESCO Honors Israel's Technion InstituteUnder the auspices of UNESCO (The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization), a 'Salute to Technion' evening will take place next week in the UNESCO Center in Paris. Participating in the event will be priests, sheiks and rabbis, along with ministers in the French government and senior scientists. (Israel21c) Read More. | |||
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 Yeshiva University Students to Visit Displaced Gaza Residents to Offer SupportThe Center for the Jewish Future will sponsor two days of programming for Yeshiva University students in Israel during winter break. On January 16 and 18, students will visit the displaced communities of Nitzan, Ir HaEmuna, Yad Binyamin and other locales to learn about the situations following the disengagement from Gaza. Students will spend the first day speaking with community members. On the second day, students will volunteer in greenhouses and communal settings. (Yeshiva University) Read More. | |||
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| Yeshiva: Hillary Clinton Shows Staunch Support for Israel at Hanukkah Convocation Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton expressed unequivocal support for Israel and described the United States and Israel as partners against terrorism in her address at Yeshiva University's Hanukkah Dinner and Convocation. "If people in the Middle East are not sure what democracy means, they should look to Israel," she said. "The bonds between the United States and Israel are forged in a common struggle for human rights, democracy, and freedom." (Yeshiva University) Read More. | |||
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 UC Davis: Hateful Comments Do Not Represent All of Academia by David BialeLike any other human community, universities are susceptible to intellectual fads and "group think." Diversity of opinion is definitely desirable on the Middle East as on any other subject. But such diversity will not come from a government Diktat, but instead from the self-regulation of the academic marketplace. It would be a mistake to generalize that anti-Semitism is rife on the Davis campus. The overwhelming majority of Davis students harbor no ill will toward their Jewish counterparts. Before we say that the sky is falling, let's keep some perspective. The author is a professor of Jewish history at UC Davis. (Jewish News Weekly) Read More. | |||
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| Harvard: Prince of Tithes - Editorial Harvard and Georgetown announced this week separate gifts of $20 million each from Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal to fund Islamic studies. "Bridging the understanding between East and West is important for peace and tolerance," Harvard quoted the prince as saying. When it comes to promoting peace and tolerance, though, the money might have been far better spent in his homeland. Saudi schools systematically seek to inculcate students with a loathing of Christians, Jews and virtually anything identified as "Western." How about endowing a bridge called the "Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding" in Riyadh? (Wall Street Journal) Read More. See also Jewish Groups Keep Watchful Eye as Schools Receive Saudi Donations by Dina Kraft (JTA) | |||
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| Harvard: A Princely Donor. Alwaleed's Donation Deserves to Be Welcomed - Editorial One concern is how Saudi gifts to other academic departments across the country may have changed the tenor of those departments away from scholarship concerns and towards pro-Palestinian, anti-Israeli activism. This has been especially true at Columbia, nicknamed the "Bir-Zeit on the Hudson." While we are concerned about what events and professors will be funded by the Prince's gift, we are genuinely excited and grateful at his attempt to improve American understanding of Islam. As long as Harvard has the independence to use the gift in the way that it chooses - and with conscious prudence required to avoid homogeneity - Prince Alwaleed will have the satisfaction of having breathed new life into the study of Islam at Harvard. (Crimson) Read More. | |||
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 In Order to Restore Accountability, Campuses Need Oversight by Gary TobinWhile most faculty members and students are not anti-Semitic, traditional anti-Semitism often masquerades as "legitimate criticism of Israeli government policies." Academia's embrace of multicultural values has been subverted to include perverse ideologies, including some that condone anti-Semitism as part of the Israel policy debate. Anti-Semitic incidents on campuses are less frequent and visible than in the earlier part of the decade. Yet they have hardly disappeared. (Jewish News Weekly) Read More. | |||
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 Spielberg's "Munich" Is Criticized by Ira StollThe New Republic's Leon Wieseltier writes "The film has no place in its heart for Israel....The film proclaims that terrorists and counter-terrorists are alike," Mr. Wieseltier writes. In The New York Times, columnist David Brooks wrote, "Spielberg has to distort reality to fit his preconceptions....In Spielberg's Middle East the only way to achieve peace is by renouncing violence. But in the real Middle East the only way to achieve peace is through military victory over the fanatics, accompanied by compromise between the reasonable elements on each side." (New York Sun) Read More. See also One Day in September (Film Education) | |||
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 "Munich": Terrorism of '70s Forced Israeli Move Against Munich Terrorists by Hirsh GoodmanTo understand Israel's decision in 1972, it's necessary to understand what that time was like for Israelis. Nowhere on earth, it seemed, was it safe to travel, let alone do so openly as an Israeli. The terrorist attacks were at home, abroad, everywhere. This danger threatened to cripple the country economically, physiologically and diplomatically. It was something that could not go unchallenged. If not confronted, the threat would bask in its own success and grow. It had to be defeated. In declaring its war on terror in the 1970s, Israel was responding to a threat of international proportions and strategic consequences; it was not on a campaign of vengeance. (Los Angeles Jewish Journal) Read More. | |||
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 Useless ID Nominated for "Best Band of 2005" by the Israeli Music ChannelUseless ID has been nominated as Best Band of 2005 by the Israeli Music Channel. The nomination comes for their recent Kung Fu release, "Redemption," which was produced by Bill Stevenson. The band also features prominently in the documentary Jericho's Echo which will have its European premiere in Berlin, Germany, on December 18th. (Punk News) Read More. | |||
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 Druze Beauty to Make History by Roee NahmiasOn Sunday, December 18, 14 young ladies will compete in Israel's Arab Beauty Queen pageant, which will be held for the first time since the eruption of the second intifada in 2000. This year's contest, which will be held at the Haifa Auditorium and is sponsored by the Arabic weekly Kul al-Arab, will feature 18-year-old Lada Abu-Salach, the first-ever Druze to participate in the event. Abu-Salach, who hails from Majdel Shams in the north, is a high school student who enjoys belly dancing and manages a restaurant in her spare time. (Ynet News) Read More. | |||
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| Israeli Researchers Help Stem Mental Retardation in Arab Village by David Brinn Following three years of research in the village, an Israeli team has identified a gene that causes mental retardation, as well as a series of blood tests that can determine if adults are carriers of the gene or if a young fetus is likely to possess the gene. (Israel21c) Read More. | |||
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Maine: Tal Shpaizer Can't Prevent Maine Swimming LossThe University of Maine men's and women's swimming and diving teams competed on Saturday in a dual meet hosted by Boston University. Tal Shpaizer won both her events in the 100 back; Shpaizer (Shoham, Israel) touched first with a time of 59.80. (Go Black Bears) Read More. | |||
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 $500,000 Pledge Brings Hope to Donkey Rescue Mission by Tim ButcherA former British Airways stewardess who is pioneering free health care for Palestinian donkeys received an early Christmas present last week when a British charity promised £281,000 in support. Lucy Fensom has spent the past five years in Israel running a donkey sanctuary on a shoestring budget. She and her Israeli husband offer equine advice and services to Palestinians. (Telegraph-UK) Read More. | |||
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 What Should Israel Do with Marwan Barghouti? Marwan Barghouti was arrested in April 2002 and first appeared in court the following August - charged with the killing of 26 people and belonging to a terrorist organization, the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade. The Brigade possibly sealed his fate when it issued a statement in 2002 claiming him as its leader. - BBC News | |||
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