'Happy birthday, Jesus. Sorry your party is so lame.'
Michael Scott, The Office
Nov. 24, 2008
Bethlehem Mayor Victor Batarseh announced today 900 Palestinian Authority policemen will be sent to Jesus' traditional birthplace for Christmas. No, its not a present, but part of a gradual deployment of Palestinian troops in several West Bank cities.
The PA is negotiating with Israel to allow the forces to stay on after the holiday. PA security forces have so far taken over Nablus, Jenin and Hebron as a result of Palestinian negotiations with Israel. Israel is responsible for some parts of the West Bank, but is slowly turning over law enforcement authority to the Palestinians.
Bethlehem is traditionally known as a Christian Arab town. Christians once comprised more than 80 percent of the population. Now, however, the Christian population is less than 20 percent and the Muslims comprise 80 percent. Many have left due to persecution and the dire economic conditions.
Nov 24, 2008
But there is no Palestinian state yet
PLO leaders give Abbas the title 'President of Palestinian State'
Nov. 24, 2008
Why not? America has a king but no monarchy. Might as well give a stateless nation a president-of-state title. From the Jerusalem Post:
Nov. 24, 2008
Why not? America has a king but no monarchy. Might as well give a stateless nation a president-of-state title. From the Jerusalem Post:
Palestinian Liberation Organization leaders voted Sunday to give Mahmoud Abbas an additional title of president of the Palestinian state. The move comes ahead of the anticipated showdown with rivals from the Hamas over the end of Abbas' term.
Abbas was elected Palestinian Authority president in 2005. Hamas says his term ends in January. Abbas' loyalists say he has an additional year. Hamas rules Gaza, while Abbas runs the West Bank.
And on the northern front...
Hizballah training in full and flagrant violation of UN resolution
Nov. 24
While Gaza is heating up again in the South, Hizballah apparently conducted military maneuvers north and south of the Litani River this past weekend. Their military ops coincided with a military parade by Lebanese armed forces in downtown Beirut marking Independence Day.
Al-Arabiya TV reported that Hizballah didn't use weapons, but trained in mountain deployments and other military actions. The television network pointed that the Shiite movement was conducting its maneuvers despite UNSCR 1701, a resolution that bans Hizballah from south of the Litani River. (Reported at www.albawaba.com)
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the Second Lebanon War in summer '06, calls for a UN patrol between the Litani River in southern Lebanon and Israel's northern border. Hizballah is supposed to stay north of the river. The resolution has been completely ineffective.
Hizballah has also been said to have amassed more weapons than it had when it started the war against Israel 2.5 years ago and abducted two soldiers in a cross-border raid. Intelligence experts say that the smuggling over the Syrian border is unchecked. The terrorist movement (Hizballah means Party of Allah) also has seats in government as of this year's elections. Why would they need to conduct military operations completely disconnected from the national army?
Rhetorical question, I know.
Nov. 24
While Gaza is heating up again in the South, Hizballah apparently conducted military maneuvers north and south of the Litani River this past weekend. Their military ops coincided with a military parade by Lebanese armed forces in downtown Beirut marking Independence Day.
Al-Arabiya TV reported that Hizballah didn't use weapons, but trained in mountain deployments and other military actions. The television network pointed that the Shiite movement was conducting its maneuvers despite UNSCR 1701, a resolution that bans Hizballah from south of the Litani River. (Reported at www.albawaba.com)
UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the Second Lebanon War in summer '06, calls for a UN patrol between the Litani River in southern Lebanon and Israel's northern border. Hizballah is supposed to stay north of the river. The resolution has been completely ineffective.
Hizballah has also been said to have amassed more weapons than it had when it started the war against Israel 2.5 years ago and abducted two soldiers in a cross-border raid. Intelligence experts say that the smuggling over the Syrian border is unchecked. The terrorist movement (Hizballah means Party of Allah) also has seats in government as of this year's elections. Why would they need to conduct military operations completely disconnected from the national army?
Rhetorical question, I know.
Israel should consider killing Ahmadinejad, Israeli official says
Nov 24, 2008
The Hebrew media is all abuzz with a report from Australia's Sidney Morning Herald on Sunday. The Herald quotes former Israeli Army Chief of Staff Moshe Yaalon as saying "all options," including killing Iranian leader, must be considered to defeat the regime in Tehran
Labor party parliament member Ophir Pines said Yaalon's political statements were good for election season maybe but were irresponsible and "will set the Middle East on fire, lead to the international isolation of Israel and interfere with efforts to thwart Iran's nuclear program."
But whenever an Israeli army official makes comments like there, you can believe that everyone, including Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is listening and wondering.
The Hebrew media is all abuzz with a report from Australia's Sidney Morning Herald on Sunday. The Herald quotes former Israeli Army Chief of Staff Moshe Yaalon as saying "all options," including killing Iranian leader, must be considered to defeat the regime in Tehran
"We have to confront the Iranian revolution immediately. There is no way to stabilize the Middle East today without defeating the Iranian regime. The Iranian nuclear program must be stopped. All tools, all options, should be considered."According to the article, asked whether "all options" included taking out the Iranian leadership by military strikes, including on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Yaalon replied, "We have to consider killing him."
"I was chief of staff during Operation Iraqi Freedom (the US invasion of Iraq in 2003) and I was surprised the US decided to go into Iraq instead of Iran … Unfortunately, the American public didn't have the political stomach to go into Iran. Military intervention (in Iran) would not be one strike. It needs to be a sustained operation … Any military strike in Iran will be quietly applauded by Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the Gulf states. It is a misconception to think that the Arab-Israeli conflict is the most important in the Middle-East. The Shiite-Sunni schism is much bigger, the Persian-Arab divide is bigger, the struggle between national regimes and jihadism is much bigger. And I can't imagine the US will want to share power in the Middle East with a nuclear-armed Iran."In response to the article, Yaalon said he did say the Iranian regime could be defeated through political, diplomatic and economic means, but with a military strike being the last resort.
Labor party parliament member Ophir Pines said Yaalon's political statements were good for election season maybe but were irresponsible and "will set the Middle East on fire, lead to the international isolation of Israel and interfere with efforts to thwart Iran's nuclear program."
But whenever an Israeli army official makes comments like there, you can believe that everyone, including Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is listening and wondering.
Rockets continue in the South
Nov. 24, 2008
Since the cease-fire (more accurately called a tadiyeh, or calm) that was declared on June 19, more than 90 rockets have been launched by Hamas in Gaza at Israelis. More than a third of these rockets fell in one November day alone (35 on Nov. 5).
Israel has held her fire for the most part until recently. But during the tadiyeh, Hamas has been smuggling in arms from Egypt through its vast tunnel network that reaches under the border and has conducted major training session for its fighters.
This is what Israelis have known and tried to say all along, but the Palestinians are also admitting it: A Palestinian Popular Resistance Committees rep told the London newspaper Asharq al-Awsat that terrorists have used the tahdiyeh “to train in the abduction of [Israeli] soldiers and martial arts,” and he threatened Israel with “unpleasant surprises.”
And who doesn't love surprises?
Meanwhile, Hamas took it as a sign of victory when the Israel Defense Forces moved out permanently from their base at Zikim, south of Ashkelon, last week. The base is within a couple miles of Gaza. A rocket attack on the base wounded 69 soldiers in 2007.
Former Defense Minister Moshe Arens said the army's decision is a reflection of "the government's reckless policy of retreating instead of fighting our enemies." Such retreat only encourages the enemy to continue firing rockets, he said.
Hamas agrees. Palestinians, predictably, gloated and claimed victory. From Ynet:
Since the cease-fire (more accurately called a tadiyeh, or calm) that was declared on June 19, more than 90 rockets have been launched by Hamas in Gaza at Israelis. More than a third of these rockets fell in one November day alone (35 on Nov. 5).
Israel has held her fire for the most part until recently. But during the tadiyeh, Hamas has been smuggling in arms from Egypt through its vast tunnel network that reaches under the border and has conducted major training session for its fighters.
This is what Israelis have known and tried to say all along, but the Palestinians are also admitting it: A Palestinian Popular Resistance Committees rep told the London newspaper Asharq al-Awsat that terrorists have used the tahdiyeh “to train in the abduction of [Israeli] soldiers and martial arts,” and he threatened Israel with “unpleasant surprises.”
And who doesn't love surprises?
Meanwhile, Hamas took it as a sign of victory when the Israel Defense Forces moved out permanently from their base at Zikim, south of Ashkelon, last week. The base is within a couple miles of Gaza. A rocket attack on the base wounded 69 soldiers in 2007.
Former Defense Minister Moshe Arens said the army's decision is a reflection of "the government's reckless policy of retreating instead of fighting our enemies." Such retreat only encourages the enemy to continue firing rockets, he said.
Hamas agrees. Palestinians, predictably, gloated and claimed victory. From Ynet:
"The evacuation of Zikim serves as further proof that the IDF is going from defeat to defeat," Abu Abur, a spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), told Ynet. "It began with the withdrawal from Lebanon (May 2000), the pullout from Gaza (August 2005), the defeat in the Second Lebanon War (summer 2006) and, of course, the daily beating from the Palestinian resistance. Zikim won't be the last place from which Israelis will be evacuated."This is why the next election is all about land-for-peace. Withdrawal hasn't worked any time it has been practiced in recent history.
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