Opuscula Gaza puts Israel Between a rock And a hard spot

WITH BIDEN, HARRIS-EMHOFF , and other “progressives” in control of the U.S., Hamas and its Iranian-backed crazies are again lobbing missiles at Israeli civilians.

Fortunately, Israel’s “Iron Dome” anti-missile defense prevents most of the “gifts from Gaza” from doing any physical damage to Israel. There IS psychological damage, especially to young children that the best defenses cannot prevent.

 

THERE IS NO QUESTION that Israel could reduce Gaza to ashes. The Israel Defense Force (IDF) has the capability, with enough resources left over to eliminate Hezbollah in Lebanon and Syria, or, for that matter, to send Iran back to the dark ages.

So why does it tolerate the renewed attacks from Gaza?

Several reasons.
1. Because, despite what anti-Semites claim, Israel makes every effort NOT to injure or kill civilians
2. Because if it DID eliminate Gaza’s tyrants, who would, could, step in to fill the vacuum?

During WW 2, with the nazis in charge of much of Europe, many occupied countries had “governments in exile.”

When the allies — primarily the U.S. and the (then) USSR — defeated the nazis and their collaborators, the “governments in exile” filled the vacuum left by the departing nazis and their sycophants.

Gaza lacks such a “government in exile.

When Japan surrendered, the U.S. military became the defacto government, but the mentalities of the Japanese and the Arabs of Gaza are vastly different.

The Gazans have been indoctrinated for generations to hate Israelis — Israeli Arabs, Israeli Jews, and Israeli Druze. While there are some Gazans who may feel otherwise, there probably are too few to influence the population to accept Israeli rule, even if only on a temporary basis.

The terrorist PLO/PFLP is not acceptable to either Israel or Gaza; Hamas pushed out the PLO/PFLP from Gaza apparently with little, if any objection by the residents.

Sponsor

Governments in exile need a sponsor, a nation that will
(a) Recognize their authority
(b) Provide sanctuary for the exiles
(c) Provide financial support
(d) Provide leadership and mentoring

Israel could provide all of the above, BUT it likely would be resented.

Iran supports Hamas (and Hezbollah), so it is not a contender.

The U.S. is not trusted anymore by anyone in the Middle East.

European powers? No better than the U.S.

Aside from China — already buying control of the world — only the Muslim states in the region are candidates to host a Gazan government in exile.

Egypt and Jordan might be good options. Most Gazans have an “Egyptian connection.”

Jordan is, at best, “shaky.” It has its own “Palestinian” problems and fears for its monarchy.

Egypt has a fairly strong military.

Egypt also has an official peace agreement with Israel (as does Jordan).

Egypt borders Gaza; at one point, Gaza was an Egyptian territory. (https://tinyurl.com/ej28hpcc)

Other Muslim countries in the region might be considered by the Gazans, but there are issues with the other countries’ governments and the distance from Gaza.

Morocco, for example, has a fairly stable government, but it is somewhat removed from Gaza. Likewise Bahrain and then UAE. They might be less initially acceptable to Gazans since they have “normalization” agreements with Israel. Lebanon and Syria are not good candidates due to their own internal conflicts. Qatar is in bed with Iran.

Gaza and surrounding states (Gaza too small to be seen).

Israel had experience with Gaza.

At one time, Israel controlled Gaza and Israelis developed a substantial hot house export business.

When Ariel Sharon expelled Israelis from Gaza, the locals quickly destroyed the hot houses and infrastructure, and with it a potential national income.

(Blogger’s opinion: Sharon made two major mistakes: invading Lebanon and expelling Israelis from Gaza.)

Gaza could be close to self-sufficient — it has access to the sea, it has an airport for Boeing 737-type aircraft — but its government’s belligerent behavior toward its neighbors — Egypt and Israel — prevent full commercial development.

It has the potential; all it needs is a good government.

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Comment on Gaza: Rock & hard spot

Opuscula Peace and the Ahmedah

A thought on the "normalization" agreements.

They are NOT "peace treaties."

They are, primarily, trade agreements.

A good start toward peace, but not peace.

Bahrani Foreign Affairs Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Donald Trump, and United Arab Emirates Foreign Affairs Minister Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan at signing of the Abraham Accords on September 15, 2020. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

 

In the weekday Ahmedah (אמידה) we — Sefardim — read

"ועושה לה תקוב טובה ואחרית שלום"

Give us good hope and afterwards peace.¹

What we have with the "normalization" agreements is hope.

Hope that the governments — as they stand now — won't make war on us or send troops against us.

It will be years before we have a true "peace" with these not-next-door neighbors.

"Peace" to this scrivener's mind means acceptance by all our neighbors, not just the governments.

Peace with governments AND people

We have a "peace" treaty with Egypt and another with Jordan.

But, except for officials, traveling to — or from — either country is less than casual; indeed, it can be dangerous.

An Israeli can travel to Jordan, but he must leave his sedur in Israel.

An Egyptian has difficulty LEAVING Egypt for Israel.

Once there was a direct flight between Cairo and Lod. A thing of the past.

There are flights from Amman to Lod, but via a third country, often Turkey. A half hour flight now takes about 18 hours.

It could be worse. Israelis are prohibited from entering the PLO/PFLA-controlled areas and entry into Gaza by a sane Israeli almost is suicide. (Hamas is holding two Israelis who voluntarily entered Gaza. Both are thought to be mentally deficient. Hamas refuses to return them to Israel.)

Long memories

The U.S. "civil war" was ended more than 150 years ago.

Yet, today — December 2020 — there are places where "damnYankees" still are not welcome. In the north, many Southerners still are automatically considered racists, bigots, even sans any evidence of this.

While it would be NICE to think that the people of Bahrain, the UAE, Sudan, et al will welcome us in friendship, the "man in the street" in the end counts more than those in the governments.

I did not include Morocco as it has a generally welcoming population, albeit there are those who oppose not only peace with Israel but the king as well.

Sad but true. A Jew may be

  ✡ Safer in Bahrain than in France.

  ✡ Safer in the UAE than in Germany.

  ✡ Safer in Morocco than England.

For now.

On the flip side, Israelis, particularly those whose parents came from Muslim lands, need to control their hate of Muslims, Israeli Muslims and visitors from the "normalized" countries. Again, government officials are one thing; the man in the street is altogether a different matter.

Notes

1 Ahmedah, winter prayer "ברך עלינו" which most Ashkenazim don't have.

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Comment on eace and the Ahmedah

Opuscula Asad wants Golan, PLO/PFLP deal, But offers nothing

SYRIAN DICTATOR BASHAR AL-ASSAD SAID THE ONLY WAY HIS COUNTRY WOULD MAKE PEACE with Israel is if Israel gives him the strategic Golan Heights.

PLUS, Israel must cave to its enemies.

Some people never learn.

 

A far better man than Bashar Al-Assad made a peace deal with Israel following which the man — Anwar El Sadat — got back the Sinai (but “stuck” Israel with Gaza). El Sadat and his partner for peace, Menachem Begin, were two old terrorists who had suffered personal losses in the wars between the two countries.

Al-Asad is no El Sadat and there is no one in power in Israel with Begin’s good sense.

January 8th, 1980, after first El Al flight to Egypt
Dan Hadani Archive, National Library of Israel @ https://tinyurl.com/yy87wm2x)

Iranian proxy

Al-Asad is in bed with the Iranians (Persians).

The Iranians continually promise to wipe Israel off the map.

Given the close relation with Iran, it is difficult to see how Israel would give up a militarily strategic position. It cost too many Israeli lives, both civilian — due to Syrian shelling Israeli civilian settlements — and military to claim the heights following Syria’s attacks on Israel.

Unlike a growing number of Muslim-dominated countries, Al-Asad fails to realize there are more economic and other benefits to “normalization of relations” with Israel.

Continuing to demand that Israel cave to the PLO/PFLP and Hamas/Islamic Jihad is a pipe dream. Perhaps if the Democrats recapture the White House in Washington, the U.S. will once again cater to the Palestinians, but if the Republicans prevail, Ramallah can expect less support from the U.S., Europe, and even other Muslim-dominated countries.

Impossible dream

Al-Asad’s problem festers in Ramallah.

It is impossible for Israel to make peace with an enemy that refuses to negotiate.

In the past, leftist (Labor) governments caved to every demand the PLO/PFLP even BEFORE negotiations commenced.

Actually, had the PLO et al agreed to the 1947 partition plan, it would HAVE a state much larger than Israel of 1948.

The PLO/PFLP never kept any agreements with Israel.

Egypt has.

Jordan has.

Both Egypt and Jordan have benefited from the agreements, as has Israel.

The normalization with Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) already is showing signs of benefit to all concerned.

But Al-Asad?

Al-Asad has nothing to offer Israel in return for the Heights.

Israel could have, and still can, take Damascus militarily. That would be foolish and a waste of men, but it could be done. Syria cannot take Jerusalem, even with Fifth Column support.

(The same can be said for Beirut.)

If Al-Asad is serious about reclaiming the Heights, the first things (plural) he should do — but probably cannot and will not even if he could —

Get rid of Hezbollah
Settle the civil war in Syria
Disassociate Syria from Iran
Encourage the PLO/PFLP and Hamas/Islamist Jihad to (a) stop attacking Israel and (b) seriously negotiate with Israel before it looses everything.

Al-Asad and Ali Khamenei (Yousef Alhelou @ https://tinyurl.com/y2t7a2sq)

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Comment on Al-Asad

Opuscula A few thoughts About Israel-UAE Peace agreement

With a great deal of hoopla and self-congratulations, Trump’s son-in-law is taking bows for lining up the third Muslim country in the region to make a pact with Israel.

Peace almost always is a good thing.¹

The accord between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), regardless of what it actually entails, should be a good thing for the region. 

The Sunni-dominated UAE is a winner in the deal as it, like Israel, is threatened by Shiite-dominated Iran.

The UAE military is smaller (not being threatened by an immediate neighbor is helpful) than Israel’s Defense Force.

For 2020, United Arab Emirates is ranked 45 of 138 out of the countries considered for the annual GFP review. ²

Always in a state of readiness, the nation of Israel fields one of the most capable military forces in the world - despite its size. For 2020, Israel is ranked 18 of 138 out of the countries considered for the annual GFP review. ³

The UAE is a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a political and economic alliance of six Middle Eastern countries—Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman. The GCC was established in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in May 1981. The purpose of the GCC is to achieve unity among its members based on their common objectives and their similar political and cultural identities, which are rooted in Arab and Islamic cultures.⁴

 

Countries belonging to the GCC (Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc./Kenny Chmielewski @ https://tinyurl.com/y47oxzm5)

 

Because the UAE is a GCC member state, it is likely, albeit not assured, that the other member states will either follow UAE’s lead or at least use the UAE as a conduit to Israel.

Qatar currently is the main source of revenue for Hamas, until recently depositing US$15 million-a-month into the terrorists’ pockets. The funds were earmarked by the Qataris for humanitarian aid. Qatar also funds some PLO/PFLP activities.

Qatar recently sent two planeloads of medical supplies to the PLO/PFLP. Abu Mazen and friends rejected the aid since the supplies were landed in Israel sans Abu Mazen’s permission! (The PLO/PFLP lacks an airport to accommodate a modern jumbo jet.)⁵

Despite funding Hamas and the PLO/PFLP, Qatar apparently has, as do most of the GCC states, a pragmatic relationship with Israel. This is not new; as early as the 1970s Saudi were buying Israeli-made air conditioners; they worked better in Saudia’s climate than the European brands.

Israelis visit GCC states

Netanyahu visits Oman, Oct. 2018 ⁶

Communications Minister Ayoub Kara's trip to Dubai, Oct. 2018 ⁷

Sport & Culture Minister Miri Regev at UAE judo competition, Oct. 2018⁸ Regev, of Moroccan descent, also visited the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi.⁹

 

Israeli Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev, middle, shakes hands with Mohamed Bin Tha'loob Al Derai, President of UAE Wrestling Judo & Kickboxing Federation, after one Israeli player won the bronze medal during the Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Judo tournament in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Oct. 27, 2018. (AP/Kamran Jebreili @ https://tinyurl.com/y266oxes)

 

Some concerns

The rapprochement between Israel and the GCC is not without concerns.

For example, Qatar had been at odds with other GCC members and Egypt for some time. ¹⁰

Direct Flights Emirates and Etihad already overfly Saudia to deliver aid to the PLO/PFLP. Will Israeli airlines (El Al, IsrAir) be allowed to overfly Saudia? Saudia is a GCC member.

Iran is troublesome for ALL middle eastern countries (and beyond).

Will agreements between Israel and individual GCC states include mutual military assistance? Israel has the strongest and best trained military in the region. While there is military cooperation with Egypt, a mutual assistance agreement to defend against a belligerent state (e.g., Libya) is not part of the public peace deal.

PLO/PFLP & Hamas Will the GCC states abandon the “Palestinians” and would that be good for Israel.

Both the PLO/PFLP and Hamas, with Islamic Jihad at its side, have proven their dependence on Israel, yet all are bent on Israel’s destruction. If the GCC quits funneling funds to the terrorists, if the GCC quits supporting the terrorists politically to the rest of the world (primarily the EU), will the terrorists finally be driven to abandon terrorism and make a true peace with Israel? One that does not have an “expiration date.” Or will the terrorists continue to receive support from the EU, and — like Pharaoh — “harden their hearts” and continue their sworn goal of a Jewish-free “Palestine.”

---

Sources

1. Peace is not a good thing when it is faux pax^cq (see https://tinyurl.com/y4utkrv3) that allows a sworn enemy, e.g., Hamas or Hezbollah, to rearm and prepare for a new aggression.

2. UAE military: https://tinyurl.com/y45g4cy6

3. Israel military: https://tinyurl.com/ya9wppoa

4. GCC: https://tinyurl.com/y47oxzm5

5. Medical supplies to PLO/PFLP: https://tinyurl.com/y2dtsu37

6. Netanyahu in Oman: https://tinyurl.com/yd48z583

7. Ayoub Kara in Dubai: https://tinyurl.com/y6c9yput

8. Mimi Regev at judoka: https://tinyurl.com/yytd8buk

9: Miri Regev outside mosque: https://tinyurl.com/yarefvqx

10. Qatari conflicts: https://tinyurl.com/y4fd63ep

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Comment on Peace pact

Opuscula Will PLO/PFLP Decision Kill Area “A”?

ABU MAZEN, the alleged “leader” of the PLO/PFLP¹ in Oslo’s “Area A,” is promising to end all cooperation with Israeli security forces.

The problem is, even armed with U.S.-provided weapons, the PLO/PFLP cannot — or will not — prevent terrorists from entering Israel.

The bottom line is that Israel will be forced — by “Palestinians” — to take over and the Muslims will lose yet another piece of land.

 

Map by unnamed person claiming to be an American journalist living in Ramallah (https://tinyurl.com/ybzusjh5)

 

Israel has a right to live in peace and security, and it that means taking over Area A, as it took over all of Jerusalem and much of Judea and Samaria (Areas B and C).

Like Joe Biden; Abu Mazen is tripping over his tongue to the detriment of his constituents.

Area A, shown on the map, above, is ungovernable.

You cannot go from Jenin to Ramallah or Ramallah to Hebron in one contiguous area.

Had the PLO/PFLP come to a peace agreement with Israel before Oslo, the “Palestinians” could have had a real state.

Had the PLO/PFLP even considered President Trump’s grand plan, “Palestinians” could have had a real state — even linked to Gaza (which may be one reason Abu Mazen refused to even consider the plan).

Had the PLO/PFLP come to a peace agreement with Israel, residents of yet another Muslim state could have had better education, better medical care, better jobs (working in Israel or for Israeli firms setting up in the new state), improved incomes, less mothers crying for their dead children (on both sides).

It might not have been a Canada-U.S. relationship (even that one started off with some difficulties) but perhaps more of a Mexico-U.S. relationship.

Israel’s peace deal with Egypt is holding. It’s agreement with Jordan is, admittedly, shaky, mostly because Jordan’s king is threatened by the Palestinians in his kingdom, the “real” Palestine.

As time goes on, the PLO/PFLP is losing support from established Muslim states, in large part due to the non-elected government in Ramallah. (The Europeans still find ways to put Euros into the pockets of Abu Mazen and his cronies and to fund the PLO/PFLP’s “slay-for-pay” coffers.)

Abu Mazen, for his own part, needs Israeli security to alert him to approaching Hamas killers who want his head.

Given that Gaza would be part of Trump’s “Palestinian” state might be why Abu Mazen is so steadfastly against the plan to the point of not even looking at it.

None of the “Palestinian” despots in Ramallah or in Gaza have made any progress toward peace with Israel. Hamas, more than the PLO/PFLP, frequently announces that it’s sole goal it to destroy Israel.

 

Israel without Jews

Yet, in reality, if all the Jews who came after 1900, and their descendants, were to leave Israel, the end result would be lack of medical care for the Muslims, lack of education for the Muslims, lack of science and agricultural advances ... in other words, the land would return to its status when Samuel Clemens (right) toured it in 1867. Then Clemens (Mark Twain) wrote: Throughout Innocents Abroad², Twain explicitly states that the area was desolate and devoid of inhabitants. His group entered Palestine from the north, passing through such sites as the Sea of Galilee, the Banias, Nazareth, Jenin and Nablus.

Riding on horseback through the Jezreel Valley, Twain observed, “There is not a solitary village throughout its whole extent – not for 30 miles in either direction. There are two or three small clusters of Bedouin tents, but not a single permanent habitation. One may ride 10 miles, hereabouts, and not see 10 human beings.”

Six hundred years before Twain’s visit, Rabbi Moses ben Nachman, known as Nachmanides (1194-1270), commenting on a verse in Leviticus that describes the curses that will befall the land of Israel, wrote that the devastation “constitutes a good tiding, proclaiming that during all our exiles, our land will not accept our enemies... Since the time that we left it, [the land] has not accepted any nation or people, and they all try to settle it... This is a great proof and assurance to us.”

The 13th-century scholar wrote that Israel will remain desolate until the Jewish People assume control. But when the people of Israel finally return to the land of Israel.

While the Muslims came to Israel and drove out some Jews, the only thing they managed to accomplish was to build on top of Judaism’s most holy site (for their third level holy site — they turn their posteriors to their precious mosque when they recite their prayers; some honor.

Did they bring agriculture to Israel? No.

Did they build colleges in Israel? No.

Did they build cities, great or small, in Israel? No.

In order for a land to be a people’s land, the people have to develop it.

The Muslims did nothing.

To be fair, what Jews remained in Israel mostly were beggars depending on handouts from Europe, Asia, and the Americas. But they DID have cities and they DID have education of a sort, and they DID have a court system.

 

Eyes that cannot see

Abu Mazen, et al, have eyes that cannot see that a lasting peace with Israel back in 1948 would be what today’s PLO/PFLP call “Palestine” would have been much larger and uncontested.

Of course Abu Mazen’s “Palestine” would be ruled from Amman, not from Ramallah, but that apparently was NOT a problem until Israel defeated five invading Muslim armies (Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and) Syria). Many “Palestinians” left what was the fledgling state of Israel so the “glorious invading Muslim armies could drive the Jews into the Sea.” Their descendants are living in UN “refugee” camps to this day.

More land was lost for the PLO/PFLP in 1967 when Israel was attacked by Egypt, Jordan, and Syria, and still more land during the “Yom Kippor” war of 1973 led by Egypt and Jordan.

Israel returned the Sinai to Egypt (but Egypt refused to accept Gaza) in exchange for a peace agreement. Jordan was allowed to maintain control of the mosque in return for a peace agreement with Israel. Due to Syria’s continuing belligerency, Israel remains in control of the Golan.

 

An aside: Yassir Arafat was born and raised an Egyptian. He co-founded Fatah in 1959 and joined the PLO in 1967.³

 

 

Sources

1. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) is an organization founded in 1964 with the purpose of the "liberation of Palestine" through armed struggle, with much of its violence aimed at Israeli civilians (https://tinyurl.com/dy2r89u)
The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) is a secular Palestinian Marxist–Leninist and revolutionary socialist organization founded in 1967 by George Habash. It has consistently been the second-largest of the groups forming the Palestine Liberation Organization (the PLO, founded in 1964), the largest being Fatah (founded in 1959). As of 2015 the PFLP boycotts participation in the PLO Executive Committee and the Palestinian National Council. (https://tinyurl.com/q5229j3)

2. Samuel Clemens: https://tinyurl.com/y9wqqaur

3. Arafat: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yasser_Arafat

 

עינים להם ולא יראו * אזנים להם ולא יאזנו

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comment on End of Area “A”

Opuscula Israel government: Caught between Hammer & anvil

Hamas & Friends have put Israel between the hammer and the anvil, or if you prefer, a rock and a hard place.

UNLESS ISRAEL “PUTS DOWN” Hamas & Friends — other Islamist crazies — the northern Islamist crazies in Lebanon will think that Israel is weak; that it cannot defeat both Iran proxies.

Militarily it CAN defeat Hamas et al in Gaza and Hezbollah in the north.

The problem for Israel is “collateral damage.”

The UN will rage about nasty Israel which never should defend itself from the kind Muslims who want to destroy it. Gandhi lives on at the UN.

Leftists the world over also will tear their hair, beat their chests, and chastise Israel for responding to enemy attacks in a “non-proportional” manner.

Here’s a thought. If Israel’s population is, say, 9 million¹ and worldwide population of Muslim-controlled nations is in excess of 1 BILLION² that would mean for every Israeli — Christian, Jew, Muslim, and “other” — killed, maybe 70,000 Muslims should die to keep things within the UN’s “proportional” stupidity. (I lost my slide rule so my 1-for-70,000 may be conservative.)

 

CEASE FIRE

When Hamas et al has used nearly all of it’s Iranian-funded missiles, it will cry to Egypt to arrange a cease fire with Israel.

Just as it did before this latest spate of missiles fell on Israel.

And just as it did before.

Israel’s politicians and generals accept the cease fire and, once again, put the population in danger.

This is NOT the Likud of Began and (David) Levy. Indeed, it is about as forceful as the former Labor governments — and Israel’s enemies know it.

Israel CAN, and HAS, made lasting peace agreements with Egypt (first) and Jordan. Began was Prime Minister when Anwar El Sadat came to Jerusalem to sign the treaty with Began and Israel. (For his effort, Islamists in Egypt assassinated Sadat.)

 

Above: Began and Sadat in Jerusalem

 

Interestingly, Began tried to give Gaza back to Egypt. Sadat was a better bargainer than Began and refused Gaza. Sinai, yes; Gaza, no. Brilliant man, Sadat.

Unless Israel wants to continue harassment from the Hamas & Friends and Hezbollah, and possibly Syria’s Bashar al-Assad who butchers his own countrymen, it MUST put down Hamas forcefully, so forcefully that it no longer is a threat, even with Iranian aid.

Unfortunately, with several Islamists groups vying for power in Gaza, the civilian “collateral damage” count will likely be far higher than Israel would like. (Despite UN and leftists “news” reports, Israel DOES try to avoid true civilian causalities. It has been proven again and again to the embarrassment of the provocateurs.)

Israel does not want to control Gaza; it would prefer Egypt to rule the strip, at least until a government that wants good for the governed — peace, a decent economy, plans to restore infrastructure, and to restore dignity to its people.

The U.S. did it in Japan after World War 2; Egypt, with Israeli cooperation, might be able to succeed in 2020.

But first, Israel must — there no longer is an option — destroy Hamas and its jihadist cohorts.

If “the world” wants to help the civilians of Gaza, it should figure out a way to keep Iranian money and influence out of the strip.

Failing that, Israel can expect its northern communities to once again come under missile fire.

Again.

Sources

1. http://tinyurl.com/yynwb8jj

2. http://tinyurl.com/kgwmcoo

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Comments on hammer & anvil

Opuscula Of cease fires And other lies

HAMAS, while denying it had anything to do with the several missiles recently fired toward Tel Aviv, was quick to run to Egypt and beg the Egyptians to arrange a cease fire with Israel.

Once again, the current Israeli Prime Minister caved and a cease fire was ordered.

 

Above: Drybones cartoon

 
IT IS INTERESTING how Hamas cons the current Prime Minister into a cease fire after it (Hamas) tries to slaughter Israelis indiscriminately.

The last time Hamas pulled the wool over the PM’s already shut eyes it even admitted the cease fire was only for a short time — until it could restock its Iranian missile arsenal.

The “blind in one eye and can’t see out of the other” PM agreed to the convenient-for-Hamas cease fire.

And Israelis were shelled again.

Hamas, according to most in the know, has absolute control of Gaza. The PLO in Ramallah has no say even though it transfers funds to Hamas.

MEANWHILE, Hamas intends to send civilians to the border with Israel to launch balloon and kite bombs.

 

I FIND IT “FUNNY,” albeit not “ha-ha funny,” that Hamas does not send people to the border with Egypt. I believe Egypt cleared the area near its fence with Hamas so balloon and kite bombs would fall harmlessly on vacated land. (The wind also plays a role in the bombs’ flights.)

While both Egypt and Israel close their borders to Hamas, the media ignores the former and blames Israel for Hamas’ aggressive behavior.

It must be admitted that Hamas does allow a few of is resident prisoners to visit Israel for medical treatment; another things the media is loathe to report.

The problems for the Israelis are two:
1. There are people in Gaza who would like to see Hamas deposed; these people are not (necessarily) Israel-haters.
2. Gaza is ungovernable; if Hamas is eliminated, there will be an administrative vacuum that the PLO will try to fill. Israel will not make the mistake of occupying Gaza again.

In the first instance, more or less “innocent” Gazans would die if Israel decided to “carpet bomb” the strip, a concept easily within Israel’s capability. Israel, no matter how “right wing” the government, would not even contemplate such an action.

The bottom lines are:
a. Israel must find a Muslim state (Egypt, Jordan as examples) willing to assume control of Gaza, then
b. Israel needs to eliminate Hamas and associated terror groups; to cut out the cancer that plagues Gaza.

Begin, in his negotiations with Sadat, tried to give Gaza (back) to Egypt. Sadat was smart enough to refuse Begin’s “offer.”

 

MEANWHILE, sundry “news media” claim that Egypt’s President Al-Sisi has told the tyrants of Gaza that if Israel decides to remove them, Egypt will not interfere in any way.

“Not interfere,” but not assume control of the strip, either. Like Anwar Sadat before him, Al-Sisi is nobody’s fool when it comes to governing Gaza. I doubt his hesitancy is fear of the PLO, but perhaps in consideration of Jordan’s king, whose control of Jordan already is on shaky ground with his own PLO fifth column.

It is amusing that a peace agreement between two old terrorists — Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin (below) — should be so solid and beneficial to both countries.

 

Two old terrorists: Egypt’s Anwar Sadat and Israel’s Menachem Begin

 

By contrast, the agreement between Jordan’s then-Prime Minister Abdelsalam al-Majali and then Israeli PM Yitzhak Rabin seems less solid. Rabin is infamous for shooting at Jews on the ship Altalena (under Ben Gurion’s orders — . see http://tinyurl.com/y25ys3gq )

PLAGIARISM is the act of appropriating the literary composition of another, or parts or passages of his writings, or the ideas or language of the same, and passing them off as the product of one’s own mind.

Truth is an absolute defense to defamation. Defamation is a false statement of fact. If the statement was accurate, then by definition it wasn’t defamatory.

Comments on Cease fire

Opuscula Removing Hamas Leaves a vacuum

THE QUESTION BEING ASKED BY MANY in Israel and in the United States – and perhaps elsewhere – is:

If the IDF can eliminate Hamas, why doesn’t it do it?

Good question.

Simple answer: Who has an organization that can rush in and fill the role of government?

Image above shows map of Gaza Strip and surrounding areas

UNLIKE IRAN and some other nations with despotic rulers, Gaza lacks a shadow government, a government of people prepared to assume the duties of an overthrown government.

There may be a movement in Gaza able to take over the deposed Hamas role, but apparently it is a deep secret.

Egypt could step in on an interim basis, but so far it has declined to consider the possibility.

Menachem Begin tried to give Gaza to Egypt, but Anwar Sadat was too smart and refused Begin’s “gift.”

Israel ruled Gaza for a number of years. Israeli farmers set up greenhouses and an infrastructure to make the strip self-supporting. When Ariel Sharon forced the Jews out, the indigenous Muslim population quickly destroyed the greenhouses and infrastructure.

Israel, understandably, does not want anything to do with a Gaza government, even on a temporary basis.

When the nazis were defeated (and many escaped to Latin America and the U.S. or were “invited” to the then Soviet Union), the Allies set up governments in their sections.

After the bombs fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Japanese sued for peace, the Americans established an interim government.

Both Germany and Japan today have viable, stable, independent governments.

When the U.S. and its allies overthrew Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi government, neither the U.S. nor its allies had the foresight – or perhaps hindsight – to establish an interim government to rule until the Iraqis could develop a cadre of politicians who would be sufficiently popular to run the country after the U.S. and its allies went home.

Iran was a different model.

When the shah was overthrown, a shadow government headed by the Ayatollah Khomeini filled the vacuum. Khomeini returned from exile in England and took control of the government.

When the nazis were chased out of France, the arrogant Gen. Charles de Gaulle managed to assume political power.

There are no De Gaulles in Gaza.

There are no leaders in Egypt or Israel willing to help Gazans set up an independent government.

The PA in Ramallah can’t govern its own areas, and although Abu Mazen would like to claim he is the president of Gaza as well as the PA, Hamas and the local population chased the PA government’s personnel out of Gaza. Mazen and the Ramallah government would not be welcome in Gaza.

Bottom line: Israel is “stuck” trying – and failing – to protect Israelis near the Gaza border.

If it eliminates Hamas, which it surely could do, what would replace it? The Islamic Brotherhood is the prime candidate, and it is no better – possibly worse for Israel and the Gaza population – than Hamas.

It is suggested that not all Gazans are happy with Hamas, but apparently few Gazans are prepared to make peace with Israel.

For Israel, the bottom line is to suffer Hamas until the Gazans develop a shadow government – even if that government is formed and waiting in exile – Egypt or Jordan, perhaps – ready to return and assume control of the strip with a little help from foreign sponsors – again, Egypt, Jordan, and possibly Israel.

The “fly in the ointment” is Iran, Hamas’ sponsor. Iran will not willingly give up its puppet on Israel’s southern border anymore than it will allow Lebanese to rule their country without its proxy, Hezbollah.

Unlike Gaza, the Lebanese could have a Hezbollah-free government in place in short order; the Lebanese have a great deal of experience in self-rule.

For all the aggravation and danger Hamas presents to Israel, there is nothing to replace it except anarchy.

Until Gazans decide they want a better government, if the choice is Hamas or anarchy, Hamas seems to be the lesser of two evils.

PLAGIARISM is the act of appropriating the literary composition of another, or parts or passages of his writings, or the ideas or language of the same, and passing them off as the product of one’s own mind.

Truth is an absolute defense to defamation. Defamation is a false statement of fact. If the statement was accurate, then by definition it wasn’t defamatory.

Comments on Keeping Hamas

Opuscula 3 state Solution

 

FORGET ABOUT A "TWO-STATE" SOLUTION to the Israel-"Palestinian" problem.

It's an imaginary problem anyway.

Consider the facts.

WHEN THE ENGLISH MANDATE was in force, "Palestine" included what now is Jordan and Israel.

Then the English, as they are wont to do, carved out a chunk of the their Mandate area - not to be confused with the French Mandatory area to the north - to pay off a Saudi family, England established the Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan.

England then divided Transjordan into two unequal parts; the part on the east side of the Jordan River lost the "Trans" and became, simply, "Jordan." The part of Transjordan on the west side of the river (hence "West Bank") became "Palestine."

A little history on the name "Palestine." According to Wikipedia, Roman Emperor Hadrian changed the name of the province to Syria Palaestina and Jerusalem to Aelia Capitolina, which certain scholars conclude was done in an attempt to remove the relationship of the Jewish people to the region.

Additional references:
Is the name Palestine an accurate name for Israel?
Origin of the Name Palestine
Palestine Since The Romans

Search for "Hadrian" in each of the above articles.

After the Romans sacked the Temple c 70 CE, to further demoralize the Jews the conquers renamed the area "Palestine" a name that was never known when government was in Jewish hands. Even during the Babylonian exile (from 598/7 to 587/6 BCE) the name remained Judea and Israel.

In 1948, the UN partitioned the land west of the Jordan River (hence "West Bank"). Partition plans had been offered to both Muslims and Jews; the former rejected all proposals. When Israel declared its independence, five Arab states joined in the invasion of Israel (Palestine): Egypt, Transjordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq; while the two contingents came from Saudi Arabia and Yemen. This in addition to attacks from Palestinian irregulars and volunteers from the Arab world.

Also see The War of 1948

Many Muslim Arabs either left Israel at the urging of the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Grand Mufti Hajj Amin El Husseini, to escape the fighting, or were chased out by Jews who feared they were fifth columnists. (Meanwhile, Jews were forced out of Muslim countries that had been their homes for generations. Unlike the Muslims who left Israel, the Jews were absorbed by the state and not left in UN camps.)

According to the US Consul in Haifa, ". . . local mufti-dominated Arab leaders" were urging "all Arabs to leave the city, and large numbers did so." (Aubrey Lippincott, U.S. Consul General in Haifa, April 22, 1948 )

Jordan occupies, abandons the "West Bank"

A History Today entry titled Jordan Formally Annexes the West Bank states that In 1948 King Abdullah’s Arab Legion, trained and led by British officers, took the Jewish quarter of Old Jerusalem and seized control of the West Bank area on the western side of the Jordan, which included Jericho, Bethlehem, Hebron and Nablus.

The annexation of the West Bank, which more than doubled Jordan’s population, was chewed over in talks with Israel which petered out in March 1950. In April, 1950 Jordan held an election for a new parliament to represent both banks of the Jordan. The newly elected parliament passed a resolution affirming support for ‘complete unity between the two sides of the Jordan and their union into one state’ and formally incorporating the West Bank into the Hashemite Kingdom of the Jordan.

A Palestine Facts entry titled Jordan Renounced Claims to West Bank, 1988 details the trials and tribulations Jordan had with the PLO.

According to the resource, Arab and international recognition of the PLO as "the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinians," the overwhelming PLO victory in the 1976 municipal elections in the Territories, and the fact that seventy percent of the Jordanian population is of Palestinian origins, made it impossible for Jordan to compete with the PLO over representation of the Palestinians in the Territories without jeopardizing its domestic stability. In July 1988, in response to the accumulated pressures and the months of intifada demonstrations by Palestinians in the West Bank, King Hussein of Jordan ceded to the PLO all Jordanian claims to the territory.

The "birth" of the West Bank as a Political Entity, "Palestine," was 1988.

Egypt Gaza

According to a Wikipedia entry Occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt , Egypt "occupied" but did not "annex," Gaza.

The occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt occurred between 1948 and October 1956 and again from March 1957 to June 1967. From September 1948, until its dissolution by Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser in 1959, the Gaza Strip was officially administered by the All-Palestine Government. Although largely symbolic, the government was recognized by most members of the Arab League. Following its dissolution, Egypt did not annex the Gaza Strip but left it under military rule pending a resolution of the Palestine question.

While many suggest that Sadat refused to accept Gaza as part of the Sinai deal, there seems no concrete evidence of this. To the contrary, Sadat apparently wanted to support a PLO presence in Gaza.

Three states?

Israel is not going away. It seems prepared to accept a "Palestinian" presence in a limited portion of the so-called West Bank.

Israel would prefer that the "Palestinian" enclave on the West Bank be reincorporated into and ruled by Jordan as it was until Jordan washed its hands of the "Palestinian" problem (Arafat) and that Gaza be controlled by Egypt.. The majority of Jordan's population is Palestinian.

Jordan, as a stable political entity with an established peace agreement with Israel would be, at least in Israel's point of view, the ideal owner, or at least manager, of "Palestine" areas A and B. A cross-border connection, perhaps initially manned by a joint Israel-Jordan-"Palestinian" guard, would assure that "Palestinian" terrorists are kept in "Palestine" and prevented from entering Jordan or Israel.

A note on Areas A and B. These areas contain places holy to both Muslims and Jews. Under PA control, these areas will be forbidden to Jews (and possibly Christians, too), and unlike Israel with its large Muslim population, no Jews will be allowed to reside in "Palestine."

Egypt, given that Hamas and the Islamic Brotherhood rule Gaza, probably doesn't want the strip, even if most Gazans are Egyptians, but a Gaza divorced both geographically and politically from the "Palestine" of the West Bank, cannot survive. It needs to make peace with Israel or Egypt - preferably both - to develop a deep water sea port and to repair its airport.

A "two state" solution simply won't work. Neither Gaza nor "Palestine" can survive economically - even with all the foreign aid pouring in each year - without a cohesive state.

A "two state" solution might be possible involving Israel and "Palestine" or between Israel and Gaza, but neither is likely given the continuing attacks and counter-attacks.

A "three-state" solution has the best chance of success; one that puts sensible heads in control of the "Palestinians" of the West Bank and Gaza.

Opuscula Round about Peace process

 

THE (SAUDI) KINGDOM WON'T SIGN A PEACE AGREEMENT with Israel, but it WILL keep to the Egypt-Israel pact for the sake of two islands.

In a deal between Egypt and the kingdom, Egypt surrendered two islands to its "across the gulf" neighbor, Saudi Arabia, the "kingdom."

ACORDING TO A NUMBER of reports from Israel, Israel was informed of, and is on board with, the swap of flags over two islands at the confluence of the Gulf of Aqaba and the Gulf of Suez (merging to become the Red Sea).

The reports ALSO stated that the Saudis will honor the terms of the Egypt-Israel agreement. This basically means that Israel-flagged ships, such a ZIM freighters, will continue to pass the two islands - Sanafir and Tiran - at the southern end of the Gulf of Aqaba unmolested.

Some reports, notably Arutz Sheva/Israel National News would have readers believe that the islands were off the coast of Eilat. The islands are, according to Google Maps, 134.5 miles (167.93 km) from Eilat, hardly "off the coast." (As with U.S. "journalists," facts are a minor inconvenience to be overlooked.)

According to the Arutz 7 article, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told Egyptian editors in comments published Monday that Cairo would not cooperate with Israel following the transfer, and that there will be no coordination between the sides. However, he made clear that Saudi Arabia "will honor all of Egypt's legal and international commitments in regard to the two islands."

I suspect that "Cairo would not cooperate with Israel" regarding the two islands" not that the island swap would prevent continued Cairo-Jerusalem communicatons.

Saudi Arabia has also promised not to use the islands for military purposes, the Egyptian daily Al Ahram reported.

For years Israel's neighbors, including the PA and Hamas-in-Gaza, have quietly been doing business with the "Zionist occupiers." Israeli-made air conditioners and refrigerators have been popular in the kingdom for decades. The fact the products are made in Israel loses out to pragmatism and reliability.

Still, the kingdom has, by the backdoor, made a perhaps politically awkward peace with Israel by agreeing to maintain the status quo of the islands.

Modern "journalism" Newspaper's politics Vs. reality on the ground

 

ACCORDING TO THE WORLD BANK website,

“Gaza’s unemployment and poverty figures are very troubling and the economic outlook is worrying. The current market in Gaza is not able to offer jobs leaving a large population in despair particularly the youth,” said Steen Lau Jorgensen, World Bank Country Director for West Bank and Gaza. “The ongoing blockade and the 2014 war have taken a toll on Gaza’s economy and people's livelihoods. Gaza’s exports virtually disappeared and the manufacturing sector has shrunk by as much as 60 percent. The economy cannot survive without being connected to the outside world.”

Just the facts.

But then the UK's Guardian puts its twist on the World Bank report, leading off with

World Bank report says Israeli blockades, war and poor governance have left 43% of people out of work and the strip facing dangerous financial crisis

And then it adds, almost as an after-thought

The economy of Gaza – assailed by war, poor governance and a joint Israeli-Egyptian blockade – has reached the “verge of collapse” with the coastal strip suffering the highest rate of unemployment in the world.

NO ONE WILL ARGUE that Gaza's economy is a shambles; nor will anyone argue that because the economy is in the toilet, unemployment is high.

Likewise, no one denies - certainly not Israel or Egypt, the two countries that blockade Gaza - that part of the problem is that getting goods into and out of Gaza is difficult due to the blockades.

BUT

No one seems to care

* WHY Egypt and Israel blockade Gaza

* That Israel- and perhaps Egypt, too - DOES allow raw materials into Gaza and allows exports, primarily fruits and vegetables, to be exported from Gaza to the "Palestinian Authority" (PA) and elsewhere.

* That, like the PA's leaders, millions of dollars have gone into Hamas' pockets when they were intended to help the residents of Gaza.

The world has pledged USD 3.5 billion to Gaza.

Interestingly, The Guardian article included a photo of a "smuggling tunnel" with the caption:

Smuggling tunnels have been the lifeline of the Gazan economy during the Israeli-Egyptian blockade.

adding that

Gaza has been governed by the Islamist group Hamas since 2007 and has struggled with mounting problems since the closure of the smuggling tunnels to Egypt, which had acted as an economic and social pressure valve

conveniently omitting the fact that the smuggling tunnels were used to send terrorists into Israel to murder civilians young and old.

Fox, running an Associated Press (AP) article, reports that

Since its takeover, Hamas has fought three wars with Israel, including 50 days of fighting last summer in which thousands of Gaza buildings were either destroyed or damaged. Over 2,200 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians, were killed during the war. On the Israeli side, 67 soldiers and six civilians were killed.

The report said Gaza's economy was badly hurt as a result of the fighting, especially the agriculture, construction, manufacturing and electricity sectors.

It said about 43 percent of Gaza's 1.8 million residents are unemployed; a figure it said is the highest in the world. Youth unemployment reached about 60 percent by the end of last year, it said.

It might be suggested that Hamas, Gaza's heavy-handed rulers, are deliberately keeping unemployment high (about 60 percent according to Fox) to encourage attacks on Israel, and to a lesser extant, Egypt. Striking out at Hamas, the cause of the enclave's problems, is almost guaranteed death.

The World Bank concluded Gaza's problems were two-fold:

It charged that "blockades, war and poor governance have strangled" the economy of the Gaza Strip, ruled by the Islamic militant group Hamas.

The report said Gaza's GDP would have been four times higher if not for conflicts and restrictions, including a blockade in place since 2007

while in reality ALL the blame lies on Hamas since it declared war first on Israel and then on Egypt (causing the blockade) that, in turn, caused high unemployment.

Still, its easier to blame it all on Israel.

Opuscula Great idea Dies at birth

 

Choose your headlines:

   Egypt offers Abbas a Palestinian state in Sinai

   Sisi Offered Abbas: Create Palestinian State in Sinai

   Egypt: Establish Palestinian State in Sinai

Unfortunately, there were later headlines, including

   El-Sisi denies claims he’ll give Sinai land to Palestinians

   Egypt Denies Offering Land for ‘Sinai State of Palestine’

Good as it seemed, the plan if it was proposed would never be accepted by the PA politicians or the "West Bank" Muslims.

Just as we refused to accept the English offer to carve a Jewish homeland out of Uganda, the indigenous Muslims of the area controlled by the PA will never accept any land other than the land they are on now. Unlike the Jews under Israeli government control, no one will send a PA army in to forcibly remove Muslims from the homes they have occupied since the area was controlled by Jordan.

It could have been a win-win-win if (a) el-Sisi had indeed made the offer and (b) Abu Mazen and the former residents of Jordan had accepted.

The plan would have united all PA territories into one large, viable unit.

The plan would have given a united PA the ability to create sea ports in Gaza and on the Suez.

The plan would have given a united PA at least one airport - albeit one that needs substantial repair.

The plan would have given former Jordanian citizens new, modern homes compliments of the UN, EU, possibly the Arab states - especially those who want to empty the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) camps festering within their borders. New homes are contingent on the PA rulers making certain building materials are used for buildings and not tunnels or bunkers from which to fire missiles at Egypt and Israel.

The downside is that Abu Mazen would be face-to-face with his nemesis Hamas. He has proven he cannot control Hamas and he cannot prevent attacks on Israel and Egypt by Hamas.

More, the new country would be between two others it has made enemies: Egypt and Israel. Given the cooperation between the two against Hamas, the new country could could be squeezed by the two armies into a quiet, if not peaceful, state.

On top of that, the alleged offer from el-Sisi came with a rope - not just a string - attached; the former Jordanians would have to forego - give up - any demands that Israel return to its earlier borders. Any hope to have the historic Jewish capital become even a shared capital would be lost.

The real roadblocks - assuming el-Sisi did make the offer - are that

(a) The PA would lose its raison d'etre, its reason to exist.

(b) The PA would lose its claim to Israeli land, including the so-called "West Bank" captured from Jordan following the latter's invasion of Israel.

(c) The anti-Semites would lose one reason to hate Jews and Israel - they should be able to afford to give up one reason; they have imagined so many.

(d) The relocated Muslims would have to work to make the Sinai blossom; to irrigate and plant new olive trees and fruit orchards.

ON THE OTHER HAND, the Sinai has oil fields. Oil fields already in place. The map, below, shows known oil reserves. The relocated "Palestinians" could hire contractors to extract the oil and pay royalties to the residents (assuming any would get past the leadership's pockets).

It would be interesting to see how the former citizens of Jordan would vote if all the options - all the pros and all the cons of relocation - were presented to them honestly.

From Israel's perspective, creating a Palestinian state in the Sinai, to include Gaza, would have been a positive move. For the former Jordanians with foresight or greed, the move also would be a positive. For the Islamists and PA politicians, this could, if they played their cards right, also reward them with oil money and money that could be diverted to tunnels and rockets. I don't know what Egypt expected to gain; perhaps putting the PA on the hot seat to maintain a "no fire zone" in the Sinai where today bandits roam freely.

Opuscula It is all in how The message spins

 

The Times of Israel for Friday, September 5 2014, has two related articles that give a clue as to how Israel and its gas clients view proposed sales to Jordan.

Israel-Jordan gas deal a bulwark against Jihadis: expert

Jordanian minister downplays Israeli role in large gas deal

The first article (Israel-Jordan) has a "feel good" top that states Top security official says the $15 billion sale of Israeli natural gas could bolster regimes in Jordan and Egypt

The second article (Jordanian minister) tells how this will play in Jordan: Mohammad Hamed says US firm Noble Energy will be supplier, though resources will be from Israeli field.

Maybe it's better that way; if the jihadists want to stir up trouble - OK, even more trouble - for Israel they can claim the money-hungry Jews are charging Jordan and Egypt exorbinate prices even if the prices are at or below the market price (and probably lower than what Israel Electric Corp will be paying in Israel).

Israel already has a deal to sell to the "Palestinians" even though they are notorious for not paying their bills.

Israel-Jordan gas deal a bulwark against Jihadis: expert

The agreement to sell Jordan natural gas worth $15 billion over the next 15 years is the third leg of a trilateral regional arrangement designed to shore up relations between Jerusalem, Amman and Cairo – and to ensure the survival of the regimes in two Arab nations, according to Brig. Gen. (Res.) Nitzan Nuriel, research associate at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism, IDC Herzliya. “Israel will produce the gas, Egypt will liquefy it, and Jordan will benefit from it, along with Egypt and Israel,” said Nuriel. “The people in all three countries will be very happy to have a secure supply of energy at a reasonable price.”

“Of course they (Jordan) are free to back out of this gas deal, but they know that this is the best alternative for them. Israel is not going to play politics with the gas the way some Gulf states have tried to, and they know this. With Israel, a contract is a contract, and the secure supply of energy at a reasonable price will help people ‘forget’ where it came from.”

In June, Israel signed a deal with Egypt to transfer gas there, where it will be liquefied, and then shipped back to Israel – and now to Jordan as well – for use in electrical plants. “For the first time, all three countries will have a safe, assured, and cheap supply of electricity,” said Nuriel. “Israelis will benefit, of course, but in Jordan and Egypt – both countries with large impoverished populations – the gas deal will be a solid, measurable metric of the benefits of peace and regional cooperation. That will help boost the regimes in the eyes of the masses, and strengthen both Egyptian President el-Sisi and Jordan’s King Abdullah in their own struggle against Islamist insurgents.”

No one seemed to address the question of the transmission lines' security and protection from Islamists and, sadly, extremist Israelis.

While it might help the incumbents in Egypt and Jordan, as long as the facts that (a) the gas is from Israeli off-shore fields and (b) the deal, Noble Energy not withstanding, still is between Israel and its neighbors on the other side of Israel's two quite borders.

What the deal probably does NOT do is put Israel in a good light to Egyptian and Jordanian citizens. They won't be told the gas is from Israel and transferred via Israel (in Egypt's case, from Israel to Egypt where the gas will be converted, then back to Israel and hence to Jordan. Egypt also may convert Israeli gas for distribution elsewhere - adding cash to Egypt's coffers for its service.)

They also won't see any direct impact (except perhaps lower electric bills). At this point, the intent is to use the gas to fuel electrical generating plants.

Jordanian minister downplays Israeli role in large gas deal

Doing what Muslims seem to do best - deny reality when it is in front of them, the Times writes that Rebuffing suggestions of improved ties with Israel, Jordan’s Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Mohammad Hamed noted Thursday that an estimated $15 billion gas deal announced Wednesday is not between the Israeli and Jordanian governments, but was rather forged between the Hashemite kingdom’s electric company and the US Noble Energy group.

On Wednesday, representatives from Israel’s Delek Group Ltd. and the US Nobel Energy Inc. company signed a memorandum of understanding in Amman, under which it agreed to supply the Hashemite Kingdom with $15 billion worth of natural gas from its Leviathan energy field over a decade and a half.

Israel decided last year to export 40 percent of the country’s offshore gas finds, and has since signed a 20-year, $1.2 billion deal with a Palestinian firm, and in June signed a letter of intent to supply energy to an Egyptian facility as well.

According to the Middle East Institute,

In January 2014 Israel signed its first natural gas export deal through which the Palestinian Power Generation Company (PPGC), the Palestinian Authority’s electric utility company, will purchase $1.2 billion worth of Israeli natural gas over a 20-year period. The gas will be shipped to a $300 million power plant that PPGC plans to build in the West Bank city of Jenin, with gas sales scheduled to commence in 2016 or 2017 when the Leviathan field will begin producing.

The deal could reduce Palestinian dependence on Israel’s electric grid, through which Palestinian energy needs are currently met. Under the existing arrangements, the Palestinian Authority has accrued a sizeable debt to the Israeli Electric Company due to habitual missed payments.

While the deal will not ease the West Bank’s heavy reliance on foreign energy, it has motivated the construction of a substantial Palestinian power plant, which should allow Palestinians to produce their own electricity, increase their capacity to manage energy, create jobs in the West Bank, and provide the basis from which to launch future energy partnerships.

Again, the "Israeli connection" will not be known to the average Jordanian, Egyptian, or "Palestinian", just as the amount of Israeli medical care is a closely guarded secret in the territories. If the people ever learn the truth, the Islamists would have to pack up and go home - wherever that might be (England, the US, France, Germany?).

יהיה טוב

Opuscula When the world Hates you anyway

 

It seems that no matter what Israel does, the world rushes to castigate it.

Never mind that many of the attacks are simply untrue or unwarranted.

If Israel - or the Jews - do it, it's wrong.

So . . .

Maybe it's time we stopped worrying about what the world thinks.

Jews are forbidden to pray on the Temple Mount.

Solve the problem: Remove the Moslem Waqf from control of the site and station Israeli soldiers there to allow ALL people to visit and pray peacefully on the mount. (If certain rabbis want to prohibit their followers from access to the mount, let them, but don't deny access to anyone who wants to go up - peacefully.)

No more freedom for murderers - any murderers; not Jews, not non-Jews. Allow capital punishment for people who commit multiple murders.

Divide Israel into two states, with the non-Israel portion having unrestricted access to Jordan via a narrow corridor. The world will complain, but with the corridor, residents of the so-called Palestinian Authority would have access to an international airport (Amman) and access to the sea (Aqaba); two things they lack - and complain about - now. Arabs in the section of the "West Bank" who end up inside Israel would have the option: Accept Israeli citizenship with its benefits and burdens or move. Jews in the PA-assigned areas would be forced out - to Israel or elsewhere (since the PA has made it abundantly clear that "Palestine" will be free of Jews.) If the PA compensates Jews for their lands, then Israel must compensate Arabs for their lands; but if not, then not.

Reclaim Hebron. Abraham bought the cave and although the descendants of Ismael may have some minor claim with the Jews, the bodies buried in the cave are Jews, not Moslems. (There was no Islam at the time so how can Moslems claim ownership?)

Demand that Moslem sympathizers live in areas targeted by Islamist terrorists. Settle them in Sedrot and Ashdod, in Kiryat Arba and Metula. Better, place prisons in those areas to house terrorists and their sympathizers.

Build a wall - not just a fence, but a wall as the U.S. has done on its border with Mexico. Until the Moslems prove themselves ready to coexist with Israel, prevent any crossing of the border with the PA. If a PA citizen needs to travel, if a citizen needs medical care, let the citizen travel to Jordan. (In Aza, the citizens can travel to Egypt - if Egypt will allow them entry.)

Cut off all utilities to the PA. No more Israeli electricity - unless perhaps if paid in advance. No more Diesel fuel for PA generators; not more gasoline for PA cars.

It will be OK - the PA will have open borders with Jordan and Egypt, both of which can provide what Israel withholds.

If Israel is attacked by rocket fire from the PA, let Israel return the fire as indiscriminately as the PA rocketeers fire at Israel. If civilians are injured or killed . . . isn't that what the terrorists want, to injure of kill Israeli civilians? - too bad, "collateral damage."

We know that giving up territory will not satisfy the powers of the PA; getting Aza and its infrastructure proved that. (Israel must not make the same mistake with the Golan.)

No matter what Israel does, the world will condemn it so it might as well do what is in its own best interest.

Once the Moslem in the White House is gone, the U.S. may once again be Israel's friend . . . if Israel even needs the U.S. given its budding relationships with nuclear powers China and India.

Something to consider.

Opuscula Should Israel compensate Egypt for plagues, exodus?

 

Ahmad al-Gamal, an Egyptian columnist for Egyptian daily Al-Yawm Al-Sabi, advocated in the newspaper on March 11 that Egypt sue the State of Israel for damages caused by the 10 Biblical plagues. (From an article in the Times of Israel, http://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-to-pay-up-for-10-plagues/#ixzz2xZ2QZb2D.)

Good question.

The topic, along with Is Moses guilty of murder? for killing the Egyptian taskmaster and Did the Egyptians give us gifts out of friendship or out of fear? seem like excellent subjects for Jewish tweenagers and teenagers, especially if they are studying talmudic logic.

Al-Gamal, although I suspect he was writing with tongue in cheek, makes some interesting points in the Times of Israel article; points than deserve consideration.

It's a bit late for Pesach 5774 (2014), but it seems it might be worth consideration for pre-Pesach 5775 (2015) studies.

Teachers might take a group of youngsters and tell them they are the plaintiffs' attorneys - they would represent the Egyptians demanding compensation for all the woes Al-Gamal claims we inflicted upon them. Another group of youngsters could be the defense team, our lawyers. Still others could serve as a jury, and a well-respected and learned adult would act as judge (to assure the arguments were proper).

There might even need to be a team to defend Pharaoh against charges that it was his, not the Egyptian people's, fault that HaShem sent the plagues. ("Hey, I wanted to let the Jews go, but HaShem hardened my heart; what could I do?" This, of course, opens a discussion on "free will.")

We say, immediately after the four questions that עבדים היינו לפרעה במצרים - "we" were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt.

That statement makes two points.

1. We are to consider that we, along with our ancestors, were slaves in Egypt.

2. That we were slaves to Pharaoh, which plays into the plaintiffs' lawyers' hands as to assigning "fault."

The first point adds some personal involvement - part of the seder's purpose.

How would the children and young adults present the case for the Egyptians, the Pharaoh, and us; how would a peer jury rule?

Educators can "adjust" the trial to the youngsters' ages and abilities. Perhaps locaal lawyers can be enticed to advise and mentor the young lawyers.

Just to add interest, what about the descendents of the Egyptians who left with us? How are they to be treated? Do we sue them for sharing the man(na) and for the protection of the fire by night and cloud by day. Who would sue them for those things, anyway? HaShem?

What about Aaron and his staff/snake - is there any remedy the Egyptian magicians can seek because Aaron's snake devoured their snakes?

Pesach should be more than cleaning and a quick read of the hagadah. It is supposed to be an educational experience.

I wish that as a youngster someone had asked the question: Do we owe the Egyptians compensation? I think it's a great question.

Caveat: I am not a teacher (my spouse is) and I don't play one on tv. (Teaching truly is an art; I never learned to stay within the lines.)

Where are the Left's Voices against Egypt

 

Egypt bars Leftists from entering Aza

 

In an Associated Press (AP) article by Maggie Hyde, heded Activists heading to Gaza stuck at Egypt airport, we learn that "More than 40 women on their way to Gaza as part of a delegation for World Women's Day are staging a sit-in inside the Cairo International Airport after being refused entry into the country since Tuesday, airport officials in Egypt and activists said Thursday."

Had Israel prevented these women from entering Aza the world would be up in arms; how DARE those Jews prevent these peace loving women from visiting those equally peace-loving folks in Aza.

Where is the noise? Where is the condemnation of Egypt?

What excuse did the Egyptians offer for preventing the group's travel to the Hamas-controlled Strip? According to the article, Egyptian airport and foreign ministry officials denied that the activists had been denied entry for any reason other than security concerns.

"Foreign Ministry spokesman Badr Abdel-Attie said that the group had not been allowed to travel to Gaza through Egypt because they did not have the proper licensing.

"Abdel-Attie said that the security situation in the Northern Sinai Peninsula is too precarious for Egypt to secure the passage of the large group, due to government operations against "terrorist groups" there. He said the group had contacted the Egyptian government before traveling, and that officials told the group to delay the trip until things had quieted down."

So, the women, from the U.S., France, and Belgium, are staging a sit-in inside the Cairo International Airport

Meanwhile,

Iran sells missiles to Israel

Paid for by PA

It's a repeat of an old joke going back to the Yom Kippur War when Egypt's Third Army managed to cross the Canal.

The Third was surrounded by Israeli troops and forced to abandon its Russian-provided weaponry. Tanks quickly were repainted with Israeli colors.

Israelis joked that the Russians simply were delivering the weapons to Israel via the Egyptian army.

Now, Syria allegedly returns some medium-range rockets to its supplier, Iran and Iran forwards (resells?) the weapons to Hamas in Aza.

Since the Israelis were on to the plot, they tracked the weapons as they floated past Sudan's coast. According to the Israelis - and "confirmed" by Obama's sources - the rockets were supposed to be off-loaded in Sudan and then transported to Aza via Egypt.

To its credit, Egypt has been interdicting weapons bound got Hamas as much as it can given its resources in the areas in which smugglers operate.

Iran's crazies always are threatening to send rockets into Israel; perhaps this is what the ayatollah intended.

It would make a good Purim spiel.

Draw your own conclusion

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Iranian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday called invalid a press release by the White House alleged to be the text of the nuclear agreement struck by Iran and the Group 5+1 (the US, Russia, China, Britain and France plus Germany) in Geneva on Sunday.

The above was reported by:

Iran's FARS News Agency - http://tinyurl.com/jwu62de

Israel's Ynet in Hebrew - http://tinyurl.com/psxa46b

Israel HaYom - http://tinyurl.com/p2ma5e6

Arutz Sheva - http://tinyurl.com/qapwdwa

Washington (DC) Free Beacon - http://tinyurl.com/nyvbadr

The FARS hed reads: "Iran Strongly Rejects Text of Geneva Agreement Released by White House"

According to Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham on Tuesday, “What has been released by the website of the White House as a fact sheet is a one-sided interpretation of the agreed text in Geneva and some of the explanations and words in the sheet contradict the text of the Joint Plan of Action (the title of the Iran-powers deal), and this fact sheet has unfortunately been translated and released in the name of the Geneva agreement by certain media, which is not true."

She said that the four-page text under the name of the Joint Plan of Action (which has been released by the Iranian foreign ministry) was the result of the agreement reached during the Geneva talks and all of its sentences and words were chosen based on the considerations of all parties to the talks. In fact one of the reasons why negotiations between Iran and the G5+1 took so long pertained to the accuracy which was needed for choosing the words for the text of the agreement, Afkham said, explaining that the Iranian delegation was much^sic rigid and laid much emphasis on the need for this accuracy.

The full text of the agreement, at least as FARS has it, is displayed on the FARS website (ibid.).

GRANTED, any agreement among people having different first languages is open to some interpretation, but apparently what John Kerry told his boss and what Iran's participant told the ayatollah are two different things.

For all that, given the Moslems' respect for truth and honoring agreements, the claims by Iran's spokeswoman come as no surprise.

Many people apparently have said it: Treaties are just pieces of paper.

Certainly Oslo has no value.

Except for the most left wing and a few Jew and Israel bashers, everyone has to admit that the Muslims breeched every one of the Oslo agreement's articles.

It would appear that the U.S. Secretary of State failed to learn from recent history, or perhaps he is a Pollyanna who believes, as apparently his boss believes, that appeasement a la Neville Chamberlain will win friends for the U.S. and spare it from the Muslim goal of a global caliphate.

Of course Kerry's boss understands Muslims. Although he claims to be something other than a Muslim, he did attend a madras as a youngster and while his Chicago church is not a mosque, its preacher spews hate for all not like him; it seems safe to think POTUS does understand the Muslim mentality.

It would be nice if the Muslims could be trusted to honor agreements, but - correct me if I am wrong - doesn't the Koran permit lying to achieve a Muslim purpose? - so far there is NO indication that Muslims as a group CAN be trusted; certainly Israelis are painfully aware than a treaty with the so called Palestinian Authority is worth less than the paper on which it is printed.

TO BE FAIR, despite internal turmoil, Egypt has kept, more or less, its treaty with Israel, much to the benefit of both countries. Likewise Jordan. Turkey and Morocco are a different story if recent reports from Morocco are correct.

MEANWHILE, the Hurriyet Daily News, which bills itself as the "leading news source for Turkey and the region" ( http://tinyurl.com/lqauly7), reports under the hed "Turkey, Iran to become backbone of regional stability: Davutoğlu" that "A growing partnership between Turkey and Iran will enhance the region’s stability," Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoğlu said in Tehran, where he is attending the Economic Cooperation Organization 21st ministers’ meeting, on Nov. 26.

“In my point of view, when Turkey and join hands, this will not only benefit both countries, but also become the backbone of regional stability,” Davutoğlu said, pointing to the potential of further cooperation in energy.

“Turkey’s annual energy demand is $60 billion. Turkey is a corridor country, is a producer country. If we fuse both potentials, Turkey could become the corridor of energy provider Iran,” Davutoğlu said. He also added that closer ties would also have a major impact on the sectarian divide in the Middle East."

I'm not certain what Davutoğlu means by "sectarian divide in the Middle East." Sectarian divide as in Shia vs. Sunni or as in Muslim vs. all others, in particular the Jews of Israel.

Turkey used to have civil relations with Israel and its national airline carried many Jews to and from Israel. Naturally, the split is Israel's fault; it had the nerve to enforce a legal blockade of Aza; although it offered an alternative port (Ashdod), the organizers of the trip - including an Israeli MK ! - refused the offer.