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Today's issues: Learning from King Hussein, Philippine President Duterte is an unwanted guest in Israel, before separating religion from state the state must separate religion from policy, and Italy vs. BDS.
The Jerusalem Post laments the animosity towards Israel on the Jordanian street, as expressed by the joy displayed by Jordanians upon the release from a Jordanian prison this week of Ahmed Daqamseh, who served just 20 years for the cold-blooded murder of seven Israeli schoolgirls aged 13 and 14, and reminds readers that after the massacre, King Hussein “personally traveled to Israel to comfort the mourning families and apologize.” The editor calls upon King Abdullah “to follow in his father’s footsteps and, at the very least, condemn Daqamseh. Ultimately, lasting peace between the countries is a strategic interest for Jordan, just as it is for Israel. It is time for everyone – on both sides of the Jordan River – to understand that.”
Haaretz comments on the forthcoming official visit to Israel of Rodrigo Duterte, president of the Philippines, a leader who has had thousands of his own citizens killed and whose model in the war against drugs is Adolf Hitler and the extermination of the Jews, and states that despite this, as far as PM Netanyahu is concerned, “Duterte is a welcome guest.” The editor says: “It may be hard to expect a prime minister who in recent years has dragged Israel to a moral abyss to have a bad impression of a leader who crudely disregards human and civil rights, and for whom Hitler is a model and ideal,” and adds: “Nonetheless, it would be better if Netanyahu, in his position as foreign minister as well as premier, would display responsibility and find a diplomatic excuse to call off this visit.”
Yediot Aharonot comments on the contro versy surrounding the sermons and preaching of religious leader Rabbi Yigal Levinstein, and asserts: “Rabbi Levinstein can be defined as a anomaly, but the biggest problem is how religion is taking over policy. The State of Israel was established to fulfill the national—not religious—revival of the Jewish people.”
Israel Hayom praises the vast majority of Italian researchers who are in favor of strengthening ties with Israel, and notes that despite a vocal minority trying to negate Israel's right to exist, “Over the past few weeks, the State of Israel and the Jewish community in Italy won an important battle against supporters of the [BDS Movement]. To win the war, we must strengthen the hands of the academic leadership in Italy and continue all the more forcibly in our efforts to shape world public opinion.”
[Amnon Abramovich and Emanuele Dalla Torre wrote today's articles in Yediot Aharonot and Israel Hayom, respectively.]
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ISRAEL DEFENCE FORCES
Overnight, Monday, February 27, 2017, a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip hit an open area in the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council.
In response to the attack, the IAF targeted five Hamas positions throughout the Gaza Strip.
Lt. Col. Peter Lerner, IDF Spokesman: "The IDF holds Hamas accountable for any attacks from the Gaza Strip that jeopardize the safety of Israelis and breach Israel's sovereignty."
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Amb Roet addresses UNSC on wave of violence in Israel
Even now, as the violence continues and lives are lost every day, instead of calming tensions, Palestinian leaders continue to lie and use inflammatory rhetoric. They are stoking the flames by portraying terrorists as innocent victims.
Israel's Deputy Permanent Representative, Ambassador David Roet, addressed the emergency Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East:
As we sit here today, Israel is facing an onslaught of terrorism; men, women and children are being stabbed to death on the streets on a daily basis. Yet for them there has been no demand for an emergency session at the Security Council; no calls for the Palestinian leadership to stop their incitement; and not even a whisper of condemnation of these acts in this hall.
Eitam and Naama Henkin were shot to death while driving in their car. Their four children were in the vehicle and watched their parents die in front of their eyes. These are just a few of the silent victims of Palestinian terror. Apparently, this Council has not seen fit to honor their memories with even the slightest recognition.
Mr. President,
Over the course of the last month, 24 terror attacks have claimed the lives of eight Israelis, and injured 70. Fifteen of them are still hospitalized. This tide of terror has washed over the entire nation and it spares no one: Young and old are being targeted every day. Israelis do not feel safe walking down the street, they avoid taking the bus to work, and they fear for the lives of their children every time they walk out the door.
The root cause of this wave of terror is clear. It is inflammatory rhetoric and lies lit the fuse, and incitement that keeps feeding the flames.
The wave of violence that Israel now faces began with lies about the Temple Mount. Abbas has continually accused Israel of trying to change the status quo. Just two days ago he claimed that, quote "Israel intends to make Al-Aksa Jewish." This is a deliberate and malicious lie.
Let me be clear. Prime Minister Netanyahu has stated time and time again, including from the podium in the UN General Assembly just two weeks ago: Israel is firmly committed to the status quo which protects the right of Muslims to pray in the mosque, as well as the freedom of all people, Muslims, Christians, Jews and others, to visit the Temple Mount.
Since 1967 Israel has placed the utmost importance on protecting the freedom of religion and worship for all faiths. From the outset, Israel has done everything in its power to preserve the sanctity of this site, which is sacred to the three monotheistic faiths.
In contrast, militant Islamist agitators have used the al-Aqsa Mosque as a staging grounds for a calculated, violent provocation. On the Eve of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashana, radical Islamists stockpiled rocks, planks, wooden sheets and fireworks, as well as Molotov firebombs and explosive devices to prevent Jews and Christians from visiting the Temple Mount.
The Palestinians and the representatives of the Arab countries speak of the sacredness of their holy sites. When the Islamist militants desecrated al-Aqsa by using it as a weapons depot, did any of them speak out?
Of course not. Instead, Mahmoud Abbas defended these rioters, and lit the spark which set our region ablaze. He declared, and I quote: "We welcome every drop of blood spilled in Jerusalem... With the help of Allah, every shaheed will be in heaven, and every wounded will get his reward... Al-Aqsa is ours, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher is ours, everything is ours, all ours. They have no right to desecrate them with their filthy feet." I repeat, their filthy feet.
Can you imagine the reaction if an Israeli leader, any leader, would have uttered such a hateful statement? The Security Council would have wasted no time in convening to condemn it. Yet, when the President of the Palestinian Authority makes such a blatantly prejudiced statement, the reaction of this Council is complete silence.
Mr. President,
Even now, as the violence continues and lives are lost every day, instead of calming tensions, Palestinian leaders continue to lie and use inflammatory rhetoric. They are stoking the flames by portraying terrorists as innocent victims. Just two days ago, in a television broadcast to the Palestinian people, Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel of killing an innocent thirteen year old Palestinian boy.
There are two facts that Abbas did not share with his public. First, he is not dead. He is fully conscious and is being treated in an Israeli hospital. Second, he is not innocent. This 13-year-old Palestinian terrorist brutally attacked a 13-year-old Israeli boy who was riding his bicycle, stabbing him no less than 15 times. When a young child decides to pick up a knife, instead of a basketball or a book, something is deeply wrong.
Such acts of terror do not occur in a vacuum. They are a product of a deliberate policy of incitement aimed at filling the minds of Palestinian children with hate.
From an early age, Palestinian children are subjected to propaganda that promotes hatred and incites to violence; Young children watch TV shows with friendly hosts that encourage them to kill all the Jews and become martyrs. Schoolchildren in the West Bank study using official Palestinian Authority textbooks that legitimize indiscriminate violence against Israelis. Palestinian teenagers follow facebook posts and twitter feeds that call on them to stab Jews and that applaud violent acts like the murder of Eitam and Na’ama Henkin.
Mr. President,
The situation is indeed dire, but there is a way forward. Just yesterday, Prime Minister Netanyahu expressed his willingness to meet with the Palestinian leadership in order to bring calm to the region.
Two weeks ago, Prime Minister Netanyahu stood here in the UN and declared that he is ready for direct negotiations with the Palestinians without any preconditions. If this Council is serious about promoting peace, it must join in Prime Minister
Netanyahu’s call, and insist that President Abbas comes to the negotiating table.
Israel’s historic agreement with Egypt and with Jordan proves that direct negotiations can lead to a real and a lasting peace. Only such negotiations can create a new reality for all the people of the region.
Amb. David Roet delivers remarks at UNSC's emergency meeting on the Situation in the Middle East
Photo : Ambassador David Roet addresses the UN Security Council
Copyright: UN Photo/Amanda Voisard
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IDF Response to the Attacks Against Israeli Civilians and IDF Forces from the Gaza Strip
Earlier this evening February 6, 2017, the IAF targeted three Hamas posts in the northern Gaza Strip.
The IDF targeted these locations in response to the projectile fired from the Gaza Strip at Israeli communities earlier today and the attack against IDF forces operating near the border with the southern Gaza Strip as well as other incidents from Gaza in the last month.
Lt. Col. Peter Lerner IDF Spokesman: "Hamas is accountable for the unacceptable aggression that threatens the wellbeing of Israelis and breaches Israeli sovereignty. This reality jeopardizes the stability and security in the region. The IDF will continue to defend Israeli civilians against the threats emanating from Hamas' Gaza."
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Photo Scene of terror attack in Pisgat Zeev neighborhood of Jerusalem on Oct 12. 13-year-old boy riding his bike critically wounded.
Copyright: Israel Police
Palestinian incitement and terrorism: Truth and lies
The recent series of attacks against Israelis is the direct result of incitement by radical Islamist and terrorist elements, calling on Palestinian youth to murder Jews. The incitement includes the spread of false claims against Israel, in particular regarding the status quo on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The culture of hate in the Palestinian media, schools and social networks, together with the statements of Palestinian leaders, has reached new and gruesome heights.
The Palestinian Authority, including its chairman Mahmoud Abbas, are using inflammatory Islamic rhetoric to spread false and malicious claims against Israel, and treat those who engage in the murder of Israelis as heroes. These statements amount to official incitement to violence and can only serve to exacerbate the situation.
Radical Islamists are bringing explosive devices, Molotov cocktails and other weaponry onto the Temple Mount, thus deliberately desecrating, damaging and endangering the holy site and turning it into a battle field. The militarization of a site revered by all should be universally condemned. The aim of these elements is to change the status quo and to prevent visits by non-Muslims on the Mount.
The status quo protects the right of Muslims to pray on the Temple Mount, as well as the freedom of all people, whether Muslims, Christians, Jews or others, to visit the Mount. Visits to the Temple Mount over the past year included nearly 4,000,000 entries by Muslims, about 200,000 entries by Christians, and about 12,000 entries by Jews.
Israel is making every effort to restore calm. To this end, as well as in order to lower tensions on the Temple Mount, the Prime Minister instructed political leaders to refrain from visiting the Temple Mount, including Government ministers and Members of the Knesset.
Israel expects the international community to condemn the recent terror attacks and to call for an end to the Palestinian incitement to violence.
Israel remains committed to dialogue with the Palestinian leadership and would like to see the renewal of direct peace talks as soon as possible.
The Palestinian Authority and radical Islamist elements are using inflammatory Islamic rhetoric to spread malicious lies against Israel. Israel calls on Mahmoud Abbas and other Palestinian leaders to stop incitement to violence and to call for calm.
Truth and Lies
PM Bureau (October 14): "Abu Mazen's comments this evening were incitement and lies. The youth he is talking about is alive and hospitalized in Hadassah, after he stabbed an Israeli youth, who was riding a bicycle at the time. While Israel maintains the status quo on the Temple Mount, Abu Mazen, with his words of incitement, makes cynical use of religion and thus brings about terror."
Over the past two weeks, numerous terrorist attacks have been perpetrated against Israeli citizens across the country. Seven Israelis have been murdered and 15 of the wounded are still hospitalized. Most of the terrorists are Palestinian youth under the age of 25 (the youngest attacker is 13 years old), incited to violence by a widespread Palestinian culture of hate.
For years, Palestinian youth has been indoctrinated in schools and on television to follow in the footsteps of arch-terrorists and to engage in indiscriminate violence against Jews. In recent years, this poisoning of children's minds has been exacerbated by hate speech and calls for murder on the Palestinian social media, which are playing a critical role in the latest wave of terror.
The Palestinian Authority, as well as radical Islamist elements, are using inflammatory Islamic rhetoric to spread malicious lies against Israel:
The Truth: Israel guarantees freedom of worship in Jerusalem for members of all faiths and is fully committed to maintaining the status quo on the Temple Mount, which protects the right of Muslims to pray on the Mount, as well as the freedom of all people, to visit the Mount.
The Palestinian Lie: A false claim blaming Israel for seeking to alter the status quo on the Temple Mount. Given the high sensitivity of the issue, the fact that the Palestinian Authority propagates such lies amounts to official incitement to violence.
The Truth: A 13 year old Palestinian teenager viciously attacked two Israelis on 12 October, one of them a 13 year old boy riding his bicycle. The Israeli boy was stabbed 15 times by the Palestinian boy and his cousin, and is hospitalized in critical condition. Police shot the attackers, wounding the Palestinian teenager, who is currently hospitalized in Hadassah University Hospital, and is stable and conscious. His cousin was killed.
The Palestinian Lie: According to Palestinian media, the Palestinian teenager was killed arbitrarily by Israeli security forces. This propaganda deliberately ignores the fact that the teenagers were filmed on a local security camera waving knives and running through the streets in a murderous killing spree. Moreover, the teenager is very much alive, receiving treatment in an Israeli hospital.
Israel calls on Mahmoud Abbas and other Palestinian leaders to stop incitement to violence and to call for calm. Palestinian youths deserve to receive an education that will lay the basis for a better future of peaceful coexistence and cooperation with their Israeli neighbors.
