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August 5, 2014

Alleged leader of cell that killed three Israeli teens arrested

Leave a Comment / Israel /

The West Bank man believed to be the leader of the cell that kidnapped and killed three Jewish teens was arrested.

A gag order on reporting the arrest more than three weeks ago of Hussam Kawasme was lifted Tuesday evening, according to Israeli media.

Kawasme, of Hebron, was apprehended while attempting to flee with the help of his family to Jordan under a false identity, Ynet reported.

He reportedly admitted to serving as the leader of the cell that perpetrated the murders of Gilad Shaar, Naftali Fraenkel and Eyal Yifrach. Kawasme said that funding for the attack, which he used to buy weapons, came from Hamas in Gaza.

In his interrogation, Kawasme said he helped to bury the bodies on a plot of land he had purchased two months prior to the murders. He then helped the two men who drove the car and shot the teens to hide.

Security forces are still searching for the two men — Kawasme’s brother, Marwan, and Omar Abu Aysha. Marwan Kawasme, who is active in Hamas, was freed in the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange and deported to Gaza, The Times of Israel reported.

Another suspected cell member, Hussan Dofesh, also was arrested a month ago in Hebron.

The bodies of the three teens were discovered following a massive search on June 30 in a shallow grave in a field near Hebron, 18 days after they were kidnapped and murdered.

Alleged leader of cell that killed three Israeli teens arrested Read More »

Why I Made Aliyah During the War!

Leave a Comment / Blogs /


Last week in the middle of the war in Israel I made aliyah!  Why would I leave my easy life and  comfortable apartment exactly on the Beverly Hills border (the next house is Beverly Hills, if there is an earthquake I would land in Beverly Hills) to come to a small expensive one bedroom apartment in the center of Tel Aviv  when missiles are falling from the sky?


To live in Israel is my dream. Israel is my country, my home and my people. My name LiAmi means “My nation or people belong to me”.
The fact that I made aliyah during the war is even more special. Last Wednesday, I boarded an El Al jet with my two birds and together myself , Otto and Kahlua made aliyah. Yes it was a rare sight to see two parrots making aliyah as El Al employees gathered around the ticket counter in amazement because they were the first olim birds they ever saw. Maybe they will start a new trend?


Together we boarded a half empty flight the day the FAA banned air travel to Israel.  EL Al continued to fly as the ban was on American carriers only.  The 15 hour flight was a mostly contemplative quiet experience for me, even the birds were quiet.  During the flight, a beautiful Ethiopian Israeli flight attendant bent down by my seat to tell me she was so touched by my aliyah. She told me “Kol Hakavod”-(all the respect to me) and that this was such a beautiful thing to do during the war. I told her “this is nothing that the aliyah of her people was very special” when thousands of Ethiopians came at once.


My arrival at Ben Gurion Airport was an emotional experience. After three hours in the office of Misrad Klita –( Ministry of Absorption) at the airport  staffed by Russian immigrants, I was given my Teudat Zahut (identity card) some Israeli money and sent on my way. I was met by my best friend Ory who waited for three hours for me there and we took a cab to my apartment.


Now most of my life in Los Angeles was spent being very active in the Israeli and Jewish Community, from being the Director of Media at the Israeli Consulate, to my radio show, to my blog in the Jewish Journal and of course Sababa Parties, which I produced for years. I have always been known for being  a “tell it like it is guy”, whether in print, facebook or on the radio, I have pissed off a big “macher” or two or three- publically calling them out for their BS and hypocracy to the delight of the common person in the community and paying a personal price with those said “machers” in the process. But my mouth has also  been known for getting the impossible done. Well guess what, my mouth also made aliyah with me and it’s a good thing because it is needed in Israel.


Now things work, or don’t work -differently in Israel. Customer service in Israel is bad, worse or non-existent-  take your pick. If you are contemplating aliyah, a valium, vicoden or xanax is a mandatory must have. You will need it dealing with Israelis. Promise you. From fighting with cell phone companies (two companies and three phone numbers in three days) to cable and internet companies two visits to my home and still no internet,  your blood pressure will soar.

I asked my landlord for a key to the mailbox. Now my apartment door in a building with 20 apartments, says apartment #3. My lease says apartment #3. The landlord walks over to the mailbox and gives me the key to #5 and tells me that from now on I reside in apartment #5 and that is really my apartment number. Huh?  He explains that the apartments in the building are owned by different people and each person made their own apartment number with no rhyme or reason. Thus the floor above me has apartment numbers 7, 8, 240 and 250.   Ain li moosahg- (I have no clue).


Now living in Tel Aviv in the middle of the war with missiles flying overhead, I do have to thank and give props to Hamas because I have met some very nice neighbors during the sirens in the middle of the night, when we all gather half-naked in the stairwell. It is however, kind of surreal to hear air raid sirens in a modern city in the year 2014.


I have amazing friends here. The friendships are deep and Israelis will do anything for a friend. Two of my friends Ziva and Danny guaranteed my apartment in case I fail to pay the rent. Ziva made sure the apartment was painted and cleaned and that the birds had new cages waiting for them upon their arrival. Other friends made a welcome party in my apartment the night I arrived to celebrate my aliyah.


My first week over all has been amazing. The unity in this country, which is known for Israelis fighting amongst themselves, is like nowhere else in the world. Our 64 boys who have been killed in the war fighting for our security look like angelic heroes in their photos. Over 30,000 Israelis went to the funeral of lone soldier Max Steinberg of Los Angeles, so he wouldn’t be alone.


This week has been one of many emotions, leaving my family, home, friends and community for the unknown. I am happy I did it.  A close friend wrote me on facebook asking me when I am coming home, I told him “I am home-this is my home”.

Why I Made Aliyah During the War! Read More »

Selena Gomez to Howard Stern, celebs share opinions on Gaza in tweets and rants

Leave a Comment / Hollywood /

What do Madonna, Javier Bardem and Rihanna have in common?

Aside from talent and many millions of dollars, they’ve all waded into the maelstrom of public debate over the Gaza conflict — and then had to extricate themselves when the going got tough.

For almost as long as the conflict has been raging, a parallel rhetorical fracas has been taking place among and between celebrities expressing their opinions on the Gaza conflagration. They’ve done so in one-line utterances on Twitter and Instagram, as well as in extensive comments on TV interviews, in advocacy videos and even in Op-Ed pieces.

The result has been the mess one might expect given the collision of social media, foreign policy non-experts and tabloid-style thinking with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

On July 18, pop star Selena Gomez urged her Instagram followers to “Pray for Gaza,” then followed up a few hours later to add that she was “not picking any sides.” That was more than enough for Joan Rivers, who capped off a pro-Israel tirade by sarcastically mocking Gomez as “that college grad,” then added, “Let’s see if she can spell Palestinian.”

It all might seem a bit silly except that celebrities have the eyes and ears of ordinary people as few others do, and in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the battle over public sentiment matters almost as much — some might say more — than the real battle on the ground in the Middle East.

“It definitely has an effect because there are many people who are out there that are not involved in Middle East politics, don’t know anything about it, and they form their opinions on the basis of what their favorite celebrity says,” said Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean and founder of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. “Is that fair? No, it’s not fair, but that’s the reality of the world we live in.”

Thus when, for example, married celebrity Spanish actors Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz (along with filmmaker Pedro Almodovar) signed onto a letter accusing the Israeli army of “genocide” in Gaza, Hier thought it was important to push back. He urged Jon Voight to publish a letter that the veteran actor had written in response, and the 75-year-old Academy Award winner agreed.

Voight’s reply, which appeared in the Hollywood Reporter, ripped Cruz and Bardem as “obviously ignorant of the whole story of Israel’s birth” and accused them of inciting anti-Semitism.

Whether it was Voight’s letter or the numerous other critiques of the couple, the pushback worked. Cruz released a statement noting that she was “not an expert on the situation” and that she only wished to promote peace. Bardem similarly announced, “My signature was solely meant as a plea for peace.”

In fact a number of the celebrities who have spoken out on the Gaza conflict have followed a pattern similar to that of Cruz and Bardem — a gesture in sympathy with the Palestinians (sometimes paired with harsh criticism of Israel) followed by criticism that leads to backtracking (possibly with the caveat that no bigotry was intended), finally capped off with a vague call for peace.

It was the path taken by Rihanna, who tweeted #Free Palestine, only to delete the tweet eight minutes later and subsequently post a picture of a Jewish and Arab boy walking arm in arm with the message, “Let’s pray for peace and a swift end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict!”

Madonna followed a similar path, though more elaborate, posting a picture of flowers with the caption, “These flowers are like the innocent children of GAZA! Who has the right to destroy them? No One!!!” She then quickly turned defensive, tweeting, “I do not support Hamas!” adding “I support Peace!” Then, in a twist, she posted a picture of herself with a pair of bare-topped, muscled back-up dancers — one wearing a Jewish star on his muscled abs, the other a Muslim crescent — proving again that Madonna can turn just about any discussion back to sex.

Of course, some celebrities have been more resolute in their opinions.

Jewish Voice for Peace posted a video of celebrities holding the names of Gazans who had been killed. The video included Eve Ensler, Mandy Patinkin, Roger Waters, Chuck D and Brian Eno. Eno also posted an editorial on David Byrne’s website that was highly critical of Israel.

On the other end of the ideological spectrum, Jackie Mason and Howard Stern cut loose with diatribes aimed at critics of Israel.

“If you’re anti-Israel then you’re anti-America,” Stern announced on his radio show.

A few celebrities have chosen to weigh in more carefully.

Woody Allen, no stranger to controversy, steered clear this time, saying, “This situation remains tragic and terrible, and the leaders in Israel and the leaders in the Arab world have not been able to come to an agreement.” He tipped his hand a little, though, when he added that “the Arabs were not very nice” at Israel’s founding, and “it led to problems.”

The effect of all the back-and-forth is difficult to judge. Omri Ceren, a senior adviser at The Israel Project, a pro-Israel advocacy group, noted that U.S. public opinion had stayed steady in favor of Israel, or in some demographics grown even more supportive, since the start of the conflict.

Do Stern and Voight wield more clout than Eno and Chuck D?

Ceren suggested instead, “It’s much more likely that Americans aren’t going to celebrities for their foreign policy analysis.”

Selena Gomez to Howard Stern, celebs share opinions on Gaza in tweets and rants Read More »

European governments must act to stem rising anti-Semitism

Leave a Comment / Opinion /

The conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza is spilling over into Europe, where in the past several weeks, Jewish communities have witnessed a chilling display of anti-Semitism, the likes of which has not been seen in many years.

European governments need to act decisively to stem this tide of hatred.

No longer content with cloaking hatred of Jews in the garb of anti-Zionism or opposition to Israel, demonstrators have marched through the streets of Berlin, Brussels and other European cities to the cry of “death to the Jews” and “gas the Jews.” In Paris and its suburbs, wild mobs bent on destruction have run amok, attacking synagogues and the Jewish worshippers in them. They’ve burned cars, looted shops and smashed store windows.

It wasn’t that many years ago when legions of storm troopers paraded through German streets chanting “Sharpen the long knives on the pavement; let the knives slip into the Jews’ bodies.”

The irony that most of today’s demonstrators are themselves recent migrants to Europe or descendants of newcomers cannot be lost on anyone. Sadly, however, this pathology is not only confined to European Muslims but to a whole host of rancorous elements in European society.

Of course, there is another side of the coin that is cause for cheer. Remarkably, all 28 foreign ministers of the European Union member states have called for the disarmament of Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza. Moreover, some Arab countries, most notably Egypt, are quietly rooting for Israel on the sidelines in the hope that it will eventually succeed in neutralizing Hamas.

But that still does not diminish the gravity of the terrible scenes being played out across Europe. As much as we can draw attention to this worrisome phenomenon, at the end of the day it is the European governments, along with the people of Europe, that must take a stand. Some of the governments have already begun to do so, but one can only hope that more will follow and act with vigor.

The World Jewish Congress has called on European governments to strengthen police protection of Jewish sites and to ban or disband violent rallies. Governments must stop the agitation and protect their Jewish populations or Jews will ultimately turn their back on those countries.

Jews live in Europe by right, not sufferance. Their manifold contributions to the development of what we call European civilization are too numerous to recall, even if they are not always recognized, and certainly not by those who have an anti-European agenda.

Given the present ambiance in Europe, it is understandable that some of them will eventually decide to leave the continent. Thousands of French Jews have already done so, and more are on the way. We certainly respect their decision and will aid our brethren however we can.

Beginning at the end of the 1980s, with the fall of communism, Jewish life has been revitalized in many cities in which no one would have believed there was a Jewish future — places such as Warsaw and Vilnius, Bucharest and Sofia. At that time, no one questioned why Jews in Paris or elsewhere in Western Europe were living where they were. That we have to do so today is a sad commentary on where we have come since then — 70 years since the embers of the ovens of Auschwitz went cold.  But we will never award Hitler and his modern-day disciples a posthumous victory by acquiescing to a Judenrein Europe.

Today’s fight is between supporters of Hamas and people who believe in decency, mutual respect and liberalism — all the best in European traditions. But Europeans will have to reach that conclusion themselves. The most thoughtful among them already understand that a continent in which Jews do not feel comfortable is not a healthy place for anyone.

(Robert Singer is the CEO of the World Jewish Congress, which represents Jewish communities in 100 countries to governments, parliaments and international organizations.)

European governments must act to stem rising anti-Semitism Read More »

Israelis on Gaza border fear threat from tunnels isn’t over

Leave a Comment / Israel, Mobile, Mobile-Homepage, News /

Many Israelis living on the Gaza border were unconvinced by their military's announcement that its mission was accomplished in a nearly month-long campaign aimed at ending rocket strikes and tunnel infiltration.

Israel's government, they said, had taken too long to deal with the network of underground passages Palestinian militants had been digging for years, and it may have acted prematurely in pulling the army out of Gaza on Tuesday, just before the start of a 72-hour truce.

“They knew about it for so long and did nothing. Who can promise me that all the tunnels have been destroyed? I am angry that they are not pressing on with the offensive,” said Leah Musafi, 30, who lives in Nir Am, a kibbutz next to the Gaza border.

Two weeks ago, residents of the kibbutz, or collective farm, were locked down for hours after militants from Hamas, the Islamist group that dominates Gaza, crossed through a tunnel about 1.5 kilometres (one mile) away. Ten Gaza gunmen and four Israeli soldiers were killed in the ensuing gun battle.

After the Israeli offensive began on July 8, lockdown quickly became a regular event, with several infiltrations during the fighting. Musafi and her children, along with many other families, left Nir Am while the battles raged.

“There are soldiers here now, but for how long? A week? Two? Then they'll forget us. There will be an infiltration, people will be killed. If we are told one more time to lock ourselves up at home, I am taking my kids and leaving,” she said.

Another Nir Am resident, who asked not to be identified, stood guard, weapon in hand, with two soldiers guarding its gate.

“The army knew about the tunnels but they tried to keep it from the residents,” he said. “There are probably more tunnels here. Maybe not thirty, maybe only three, but it just takes one. There is a lot of anger here over it. A lot of people wanted the army to go in deeper and root the problem out.”

Israel says it destroyed 32 attack tunnels but believes many more, which serve as bunkers and weapon caches, criss-cross the densely populated Palestinian enclave.

As the cease-fire took hold, Major-General Sami Turgeman, chief of Israel's southern command, offered words of assurance to the border communities.

“I can say to the residents of the south that they can return home, and feel secure. We accomplished our mission: we destroyed all of the tunnels we knew about and those we uncovered.”

“GOOD NEIGHBORS”

Ten minutes drive from Nir Am, past abandoned fields of dry, wilted sunflowers covered with sand raised up by hundreds of military vehicles, is Nahal Oz, another border kibbutz. The massive damage to the cramped grey housing blocks of Gaza caused by Israeli shelling can be seen across the fence from the leafy, flowering grounds of the kibbutz.

Last week, Hamas gunmen crossed through a tunnel and shot dead five Israeli soldiers at a watchtower near Nahal Oz. Empty shellcases fired into Gaza lay in an adjacent field, where forces now gone had been stationed.

“Who knows what will happen now when the army leaves? That's the big question hanging over the heads of the families who left and must now return. They are waiting to see if it stays quiet,” said Ester Taranto, who has lived in the kibbutz for 36 years.

Taranto said some residents in the farming communities had known about the tunnels for years. “The army didn't take it in. Now the penny has dropped,” she said.

An Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday promised local officials on the Gaza periphery that a border fence will be improved with movement sensors and cameras.

Netanyahu also said military units would be stationed at the communities for quick response to future infiltrations. The official said Israel was working on development of tunnel sensor technologies but their deployment would take time.

Taranto said that before the first Palestinian intifada, or uprising, in 1987, her family would travel to Gaza regularly to spend Saturdays at the local markets and restaurants.

“We were good neighbours back then. I wish we could go back to those peaceful days, but look where we are.”

Editing by Jeffrey Heller, Larry King

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Diary of an IDF Father

Leave a Comment / Israel /

These are the e-mails of Marvin Hankin, father of two IDF soldiers, Aviel and Gilad, currently stationed in Gaza. Aviel, age 27, is a medical officer for his unit; in August, he will finish the first year of his five-year commitment. Gilad, 22, was drafted into the tank corps at age 19; he will complete his three-year commitment in November. Marvin lives in Jerusalem with his wife Irit.

July 25, 2014

The war here has been going on now for just over 2 1/2 weeks.  Hamas fires 100 to 120 rockets every day into Israel.  Over 2,000 rockets have been fired into Israel since this present war started.

When rockets are fired against the targets in Israel, air raid sirens sound out in the target area.  Towns close to Gaza have 15 seconds to run to the nearest air raid shelter. Here in Jerusalem, we have 90 seconds to run down the stairs to shelter in the basement of our building.  Another plus for living on the first floor. Even inside the shelter, we can hear the overhead explosion as the “Iron Dome” anti-missile system intercepts the incoming rocket.  We are instructed to remain inside the shelter for 10 minutes as debris from the overhead explosion fall to the ground, and these can also cause damage and injury.  Actually, it has been quiet here in Jerusalem as we haven't had a rocket here now for the past week.

Aviel and Gilad are both in the army now and are either inside Gaza or on the border of Gaza waiting to go in. They have been there for the past three weeks.  Both are in the tank corps, but in different battalions. Aviel is a medical officer. He is the only doctor for his whole battalion, and as his tank goes into Gaza, he goes in, riding in the back of a tank, treats the wounded soldiers, and sends them back out of Gaza to hospitals for further treatment. Aviel will be in the army for a total of five years. Gilad is in the army for a total of three years, and he now is close to the end of his service — he finishes at the end of November.  He is the gunner inside a tank. His unit is also inside Gaza, but he is just outside the border of Gaza.

We usually hear about once a day from the boys. But Aviel's cell phone battery has just run out, and he has no facilities to recharge.  Out last message from him was yesterday.

The two boys are at an area that must be about the most dangerous a person can imagine. Of course, this keeps Irit and me awake at night.  For the last two weeks now.

There is talk of a cease fire.  On a national level, we feel there should not be a cease fire until the Israeli army has completely destroyed hamas' ability to fire rockets and has completely destroyed all the tunnels.  On a personal level, for us, a cease fire can't come too soon. We haven't seen the boys in almost a month, and we want them home for dinner with us.  The sooner the better.

UPDATE

Gilad just called us.  A soldier in his unit was killed just a short while ago.  He was quite upset. It was also just notified on the TV.

July 28

Aviel has been inside Gaza ever since the ground offensive started. His battery for his cell phone ran out and we haven't heard from him since this past Friday.

We hear each day from Gilad as he is able to keep his phone charged up on the field generator.  He has been on the border of Gaza since this campaign began, but hasn't actually entered Gaza.

Israel has been generally successful in intercepting the hamas rockets using the “Iron Dome” anti-missile system.  Now for a couple of days, hamas has introduced the use of mortars.  These are a low tech short range weapon and the anti-missile system is useless against it. 

A few hours ago, a mortar was fired over the border and landed very near Gilad.  He was not injured, but four of his friends were killed before his eyes and two others were seriously injured. His unit has been moved a few kilometers further back out of the range of the mortars.  Gilad phoned us.  He is quite upset, very disturbed and very distraught.  He feels he needs to talk right now to a psychologist. Of course, we have an expert psychologist in the family but she is too far away to help. 

How nice if the army would let Gilad come home for a few days.  Would he likely go back to the war after a few days at home?  Knowing his character, the answer would be a loud yes.

July 29

We spoke to Gilad today. He spent a rather restless night, with thoughts of the bloody events from yesterday in his head all night.

He explained to us just what happened.  He was sitting at the encampment with a circle of friends.  He got up to walk over to a box to take out something just when a mortar struck at just the place he had been sitting a minute before.  Four of his friends died and two were seriously injured.  He was unhurt.  But very upset at the sight before his eyes. 

The commander of the unit had a long talk with the soldiers last night and again this morning to reassure them.  An army officer is to visit them later during the day.  She is a social worker and psychologist — I didn't get clear her position.  He did sound a lot better than last night.  Of course, last night just after the event, he was understandably upset.

UPDATE

After not hearing from him since Friday, Aviel finally called this afternoon.  He still does not have any battery on his cell phone, but he was able to use a friend's phone to call us. He is well and was in good spirits.  For most of the last three weeks, he has spent most of his time in the back of a tank. That's how he travels to the battlefield in Gaza.  And it is where he sleeps.  Because it is a safe place, and he is ready to go if he is needed urgently.  The back space in the tank seems to be tiny, but he says that if he is tired enough, he is able to sleep.

Gilad seems to be a lot better.  He is still in mourning for his friends. But when we spoke, he seemed to be in good spirits. A lot better than at this time yesterday.

We hope we will continue to get daily contact with the two of them.

July 31

We spoke this morning with both Gilad and Aviel.  Aviel for only a few seconds as he is always on the move.  But he had a short break and they took them to a facility where they had a shower, and he said he feels like a mensch.  A real treat. Gilad had a little more time to talk with us.  He is better, but we could tell from his voice that he still suffers mentally from his recent tragic experience. They have three army officers who speak to them all the time. I guess we have to expect it to take a while for him.

This is Thursday noon.  If there is not some unexpected drastic development in the next 24 hours, it looks like we will have another erev shabbat dinner tomorrow without our two soldiers.  That makes our dinner table seem way too under populated. We like a nice family crowd for our Friday night dinners.

August 4

Gilad is home!!!   What a nice surprise!!!

There was a memorial service for one of his friends who were killed a week ago.  The memorial service was at his hometown of Safed, and a number of soldiers from Gilad's unit went by an army bus.  When the service was over, they allowed Gilad to come home for a day.  Maybe two??

I just picked him up at Jerusalem's central bus station and brought him home.  We haven't seen him in over a month now.  He looks fine now. How really good to see him.  With a beard.  A bit thinner now.  He hasn't had much of an appetite since the incident a week ago. Maybe some of his favorite home cooking will help him over that.

Now it's Aviel's turn to come home.  Cross your fingers everyone.

Diary of an IDF Father Read More »

Is it Over?

Leave a Comment / Blogs, Israel /

As I write this, the 72 hour ceasefire appears to be holding, and the IDF has withdrawn its troops from Gaza. The unpredictability of this conflict, however, makes it impossible for me to write with any confidence that by the time it is read it will not be hopelessly out of date.

After a month of seeing this war endlessly debated on TV, online, and in social media, sending care packages and letters to kids of friends in Israel, worrying about the number of people buying into the misinformation, concern over the innocents and IDF soldiers wounded and killed, I sincerely hope it is over.

Only I know it is not over.

Even if, please God, the cease fire holds, the struggle is not over. The IDF will investigate each and every claimed civilian death, and will try to put each one into context. Some of the deaths will turn out to be the result of IDF errors. Some will be the result of Palestinian rockets that were misfired. Many of the supposed civilians will turn out to be militants. All of the facts will be asserted, denied and debated.

Now is a time of hope and possibility. It is possible this will be a turning point for Gaza. It is possible the people of Gaza will be fed up with Hamas and the destruction it has brought them. It is possible they will see the tons of cement and the millions of dollars spent on building tunnels for war instead of building homes, schools, and hospitals, and will say, “enough is enough.”

It is possible that an international body – not, God willing, the impossibly biased UN – will be put in charge of demilitarizing Gaza and ensuring that the aid which inevitably pours in is put to good use. It is possible that the next truckloads of cement will be used to rebuild infrastructure rather than terror tunnels. It is possible the next several millions of dollars spent will be for the good of the people of Gaza and not for the rearming of Hamas.

I know it is possible. I fear it is unlikely.

I see the rise of anti-Semitism in Europe and in the United States. I see it here, where I live. Where I always felt perfectly safe living openly as a Jew, and now feel a little less safe. I see the bias at the UN, which, at least, admitted that some of its own facilities were being used to store Hamas rockets. I see it will be very difficult to find an international group willing to watch over the demilitarization of Gaza, let alone one that both the people of Gaza and Israel will trust.

I like to see myself as a realist, with optimistic leanings. I want to believe this can be the dawning of a new day for the people of Gaza and Israel. I fear that it will only be a break in the hostilities.

—————-
“Like” the “>follow me on Twitter.

Is it Over? Read More »

Who won and who lost in the Gaza war?

Leave a Comment / Is Featured?, Israel, Lead Story, Mobile, Mobile-Homepage, News /

Now that the latest Gaza conflict appears to be over – or, nearly, so — it’s time to take stock of the winners and losers.

Who won the war?

Perhaps more than the other two Gaza conflicts in the last six years, Israel is the clear winner this time. The Israel Defense Forces dealt a serious blow to Hamas’ tunnel infrastructure, effectively neutralized the Hamas rocket threat thanks to the Iron Dome missile defense system and destroyed hundreds of Hamas targets in Gaza.

Hamas’ aim of doing significant damage to Israel failed. The organization’s numerous attempts to kidnap Israelis – soldiers or civilians – came up empty. The incessant rocket fire did not succeed in causing a mass casualty event or significant damage inside Israel. Hamas enjoyed a brief victory when most foreign airlines suspended flights to Ben Gurion Airport after a missile strike nearby, but the airline suspensions only lasted a couple of days.

In all, three civilians were killed in Israel during the war: two from mortar fire in the immediate vicinity of the Gaza border and one from a rocket for which Iron Dome wasn’t deployed because its target was a sparsely populated area.

Israel lost 64 soldiers in the fighting, but nobody expected the army to escape casualties once the ground invasion of Gaza began. Death is the inevitable price of an extensive military operation in hostile territory. The question is whether the price Israel paid in this war will be worthwhile in the long run, and how long will it be till the next round of fighting.

Did Hamas lose?

Hamas certainly doesn’t come out of this victorious. Its operational capabilities took a heavy hit, thanks to Israel’s bombardment, the discovery and destruction of dozens of tunnels running under the Israel-Gaza border, and the depletion of a big chunk of Hamas’ rocket caches.

But it’s hard to say exactly how much damage Hamas suffered because so much of what the terrorist group does takes place underground – literally and figuratively. The true picture of Hamas’ capabilities may only become clear in the months and years to come.

Moreover, Hamas does not live by the gun alone. Its power depends in large part on popular support. By that measure, Hamas is likely to get points among Palestinians for standing up to Israel – in contrast to the Palestinian Authority, which cooperates with Israel on West Bank security.

In the broader region, however, the reaction of other Arab countries to the Israel-Hamas conflict underscores just how little fondness there is for Hamas, an antagonist allied with the Arab autocracies’ own Islamist foes. Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates all stood by while Israel pummeled Gaza, in many cases withholding even pro forma criticism. In past conflicts, they at least paid lip service to the Palestinian cause. This time, there was much public criticism of Hamas.

With Hamas’ weapons stores depleted, it’s going to be much harder for the terrorist organization to rearm without as much financing from the Arab world and without Egypt acting as a smuggling conduit to Gaza.

The PR war

Israel may have enjoyed broad support from foreign governments for its war against Hamas – notwithstanding the criticism this week from the U.S. State Department about a specific Israeli strike on a U.N. school in Gaza – but its public image among regular people probably bears some resemblance to the rubble in Gaza.

To watch the news of this war was to see image after image of human and structural destruction in Gaza. The virulently anti-Israel demonstrations around the world, some of which included anti-Semitic expressions, were a potent sign of the response to the war.

Most people, of course, didn’t take to the street. Their extent of involvement with the war came from watching TV, reading the paper, or perusing their Facebook feed. Chances are what they’ll remember most won’t be the photos of Israelis taking cover in bomb shelters or IDF soldiers riding tanks into Gaza or Hamas fighters shooting at them (the only ones of those we have are from IDF cameras). It will be the images of Palestinian children moments after they were killed while playing on the beach, the photo of a Gaza girl’s bloodied corpse laying abandoned on a hospital stretcher, and the endless images of mothers and brothers and fathers and daughters weeping as they confront the unfathomable grief of losing their loves ones.

It’s going to be difficult for Israel to overcome association with those images.

In all, the Palestinian death toll was estimated by Palestinian sources at about 1,900, with Palestinians claiming about 80 percent were civilians. Those numbers will be a subject of deep dispute. Israel says the true proportion of civilians among the dead is far lower than most estimates because, as journalists in Gaza have acknowledged, combatants in Gaza are hard to distinguish from the civilian population.

Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli politics

Though he ran virtually unopposed in Israel’s last elections, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hardly a universally beloved figure in his country. But his prosecution of the war enjoyed near universal support in Israel, with polls showing 95 percent of Jewish Israelis supporting the war.

Netanyahu appeared reticent to launch the war, tried to avoid a bloody ground operation by agreeing to three separate cease-fires before the invasion began and, once the extent of the tunnel problem became clear, stayed the course for as long as most Israelis thought necessary to destroy the tunnels.

Now that the war appears over, expect the love-fest to fizzle. Some on the hawkish right already have criticized Netanyahu for foregoing a more ambitious Gaza operation in which the IDF would stay in place for months in order to rout Hamas. On the tactical side, the public will want to know why the IDF did appear to be sufficiently prepared for (or maybe even aware of) the extent of the Hamas tunnel threat. And on the left, there’s likely to be growing criticism of Netanyahu for failing to take advantage of opportunities before the war to work with P.A. President Mahmoud Abbas to weaken Hamas and advance the diplomatic track.

All in all, however, Netanyahu’s stock has risen.

The U.S.-Israel relationship

One place outside of Israel where Netanyahu’s stock may not be up is in the White House.

On substance, the U.S.-Israel relationship is as strong as ever, with close cooperation in the arena that may matter most: defense. On Monday, President Obama signed a bill giving Israel $225 million in emergency aid for Iron Dome, a project the Obama administration already has supported to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.

But as far as appearances go, the relationship between the Obama administration and the Netanyahu government looks as troubled as ever. The Israelis are still seething over what they said was a July 25 cease-fire proposal from Secretary of State John Kerry that endorsed Hamas goals, and the Americans are still angry over what they describe as Israeli mischaracterizations of that episode and the subsequent slander of Kerry.

On Monday, the State Department said it was “appalled” by Israel’s “disgraceful” shelling of a U.N. school, prompting anger in Jerusalem over the strident condemnation.

With strong support for Israel in Congress and among Americans generally, whatever tensions may exist between Obama and Netanyahu will take a far back seat to Israel and America’s mutual interests. And despite the tiffs, the Obama administration’s expressions of support for Israel’s right to self-defense from rockets – and Israel’s expressions of appreciation for U.S. support – were a refrain throughout the four-week Gaza war.

The peace process

It might be easy to forget, but before the kidnappings, revenge kidnapping and Palestinian unrest that preceded this conflict, there was the collapse in April of U.S.-brokered peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Does this war giving the two sides new incentives to return to the negotiating table?

Though Israel was the winner in Gaza, this war hardly represents a final victory. Hamas has survived to fight another day.

Dovish Israelis argue that Israel needs to seize the opportunity to strengthen Hamas’ rivals in the West Bank – the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority – and show Palestinians that they have more to gain through diplomacy than violence. The doves say this conflict shows the dangers of inaction on the diplomatic front, and that engaging with a Palestinian unity government that includes Hamas ultimately discourages Hamas from stirring up trouble in Gaza.

Hawkish Israelis argue that it would be folly to negotiate with a Palestinian government that includes Hamas, a terrorist group dedicated to Israel’s destruction. They also point to Gaza as a cautionary tale for the West Bank, arguing that ceding more control to the Palestinians in that area may one day lead to rocket and tunnel problems from there.

Before the war, Netanyahu endorsed the latter position. It’s not clear that the war has changed his mind, and it’s unlikely his Cabinet will push him leftward.

For Abbas, it would be hard to return to the negotiating table opposite a party that, during the war, he accused of perpetrating genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.

For the Obama administration, the failure of Kerry’s months-long negotiating push, a dim view of Netanyahu’s inclinations to make concessions toward Palestinian statehood and Obama’s slide into lame-duck status all make a renewed negotiating push unlikely.

Significant changes in the Israeli-Palestinian relationship may have to wait till changes in government — on all sides. Well, that or divine intervention.

Who won and who lost in the Gaza war? Read More »

Spain suspends arms sales to Israel over Gaza operation

Leave a Comment / Worldwide /

The Spanish government “provisionally suspended” arms sales to Israel over its operation in Gaza.

The country’s Interministerial Regulatory Board on Foreign Trade and Defense made the decision last week in Madrid, the Spanish daily El Pais reported Monday.

Spanish arms sales to Israel are limited, and were more than $6.5 million in 2013, or just over 1 percent of total Spanish exports. The arms included missile components, all-terrain vehicles, grenade fuses and optical systems.

The suspension will be reviewed in September at the next meeting of the interministerial committee, which is made up of of representatives of the ministries of the presidency, economy, foreign affairs, defense and finance. In the last year, Spain also has suspended arms sales to Egypt, Ukraine and Venezuela.

Spain’s minister of foreign affairs, Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo, in a speech to the Spanish Congress the same days as the arms sales suspension described as “shocking” the numbers of victims in the bombing of Gaza.

Garcia-Margallo recognized “the right of Israel to protect its citizens, but conditioned the principle of proportionality and respect for civil protection they deserve, which is nothing but a manifestation of international humanitarian law.”

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Pro-Israel, pro-peace rally draws 3,000 in San Francisco

Leave a Comment / United States /

SAN FRANCISCO (j. weekly) — Some 3,000 Israel supporters turned out in downtown San Francisco for a pro-Israel, pro-peace rally.

The Bay Stands With Israel solidarity rally on Sunday began across the street from San Francisco City Hall, with speakers from Jewish organizations, synagogues, and state and city government. Police estimated the crowd at 3,000.

Afterward, some 1,200 demonstrators marched along Market Street to Justin Herman Plaza, a mile away, under police escort.

In contrast to anti-Israel demonstrations held in the city the previous two weekends, the pro-Israel event was peaceful. Six counterdemonstrators, one holding a large Palestinian flag, stood near the rally, and a few protesters followed the post-rally march, but no altercations ensued.

Among the signs on display at the demonstration were placards reading “I stand with Israel,” “Kids deserve peace,” “Israel is the only country in the Middle East where they don’t burn American flags” and “More Hummus, Less Hamas.” There were also hundreds of Israeli flags.

“Israel has been vilified in parts of the Bay Area,“ Rabbi Doug Kahn, head of the local Jewish Community Relations Council, said in his speech to the crowd. “For what? For defending its citizens from incessant rocket attacks? For caring enough about its citizens, Jewish and Arabs, to build an elaborate defense system? For risking its own soldiers’ lives to minimize casualties among innocent civilians used by Hamas to hide behind?

“Enough of the hypocrisy by Israel’s detractors. We must dedicate ourselves more than ever to share the real Israel that we know and love.”

The rally was spearheaded by a group of young Israeli-Americans and co-sponsored by 38 Jewish organizations.

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