Obama to confront a Middle Eastern nation over its nuclear program...

...But it's not Iran! How’s this for change?

May 7, 2009

Iran gets a hug. Israel gets a warning. The Bamster’s latest foray foreign policy has left many heads spinning. The West has come to accept his tactful strategy of “talking” to Iran. Even Israeli Pres. Shimon Peres said Israel accepts, even cheers the U.S. in chatting with Ahmadinejad. 

So it came as a shock when this news was reported in the Washington Times: 

President Obama's efforts to curb the spread of nuclear weapons threaten to expose and derail a 40-year-old secret U.S. agreement to shield Israel's nuclear weapons from international scrutiny, former and current U.S. and Israeli officials and nuclear specialists say.

The issue will likely come to a head when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Mr. Obama on May 18 in Washington. Mr. Netanyahu is expected to seek assurances from Mr. Obama that he will uphold the U.S. commitment and will not trade Israeli nuclear concessions for Iranian ones.

Assistant Secretary of State Rose Gottemoeller, speaking Tuesday at a U.N. meeting on the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), said Israel should join the tUniversal adherence to the NPT itself, including by India, Israel, Pakistan and North Korea, ... remains a fundamental objective of the United States," Ms. Gottemoeller told the meeting, according to Reuters.

She declined to say, however, whether the Obama administration would press Israel to join the treaty.

A senior White House official said the administration considered the nuclear programs of Israel and Iran to be unrelated "apples and oranges."

It’s no wonder Israelis are nervous about Obama. A recent poll of Israelis showed that while 60 percent said they had either a "somewhat favorable" or "very favorable" opinion of Obama, and 14% said their attitude toward him was unfavorable, only 32% of the respondents said they approved of Obama's policies toward Israel, and 21% said they disapproved.

The Hebrew-language newspaper Yisrael Hayom (Israel Today) noted in an editorial today that the American demand that Israel sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty is nothing new, but questions the timing. "The [American] government is currently showing a terminological openness toward policy initiatives that are not to Israel's liking. This willingness must not be applied to the policy of ambiguity that has characterized Israel's nuclear policy for decades."

More numbers in the poll: 66% of Israelis said they would support military action if diplomatic and economic efforts failed to stop Iranian nuclear armament and 75% of them would support this action even if Obama was opposed.

Pilgrim of Peace?

Christians are ambivalent; Jews are apathetic; some Muslims are angry, some are attending mass

May 7, 2009

Pope Benedict XVI announced that he is coming as a "pilgrim of peace" to the Holy Land, and indeed, many positive expectations can be attributed to his visit. But lurking among all religious groups in the country is a quiet murmuring about the Pontiff's time here.

Muslims: Benedict offended Muslims worldwide when he quoted in September 2006 a medieval description of the religion as "evil and inhuman" and "spread by sword." In Nazareth, Imam Nazem Abu Salim and his followers strung up a banner across the city's main square warning the Pope: "Those who harm Allah and His Messenger – Allah has cursed them in this world and in the hereafter, and has prepared for them a humiliating punishment." Benedict did not endorse the text, and made it clear that it did not reflect his own views, but Muslims violently protested in cities around the world and even attacked churches in Palestinian areas. The Northern Islamic Movement called on Muslim leaders to boycott interfaith meetings that are to be held during the Pope's visit. 

Nevertheless, many Muslim students who attend Christian schools in Nazareth and Bethlehem will be attending mass with their classmates.

Jews: Benedict offended Jews when he reinstated Holocaust-denying bishop Richard Williamson a couple months ago. Another lingering issue is the proposed beatification (one step below sainthood) of Pius XII, accused of ignoring the Holocaust. Because of that, Benedict will visit Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial but will not go inside the main room which has a plaque critical of the former World War II era pope.

During Operation Cast Lead in January, the Pope appeared unsympathetic to Israel when he sympathized with Gazans. He mentioned during a mass the deaths of Palestinians killed in Israel's bombardment of the Gaza Strip, which Israelis found unfair since he never mentioned the daily rocket attacks on southern Israel, ongoing for nine years.

Christians: You would think that the Christian community would be most thrilled about this visit, but a general skepticism has pervaded the rankled minority. A Jerusalem resident, who once lived in Bethlehem, said he has no expectations from the Pope. He ticked off on his fingers the reasons: 1. the last time a Pope was here, the economy proceeded to head south after his visit (that could, technically, be attributed to the intifada, not the pope); 2. the Pope is visiting, like his predecessor, a Palestinian refugee camp and will probably make a monetary donation there, like his predecessor did in 2000. There are no Christians in a refugee camp - why give them the money and not the Christians who are also struggling economically? So asked this unhappy Christian who has long since left the West Bank with no plans of returning.

Christians in Gaza are also offended that the Pope is visiting Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, but not going to Gaza. Admittedly going to Gaza would be a security nightmare. But they are upset nonetheless.

Israel activates 'Operation White Cloak'

May 7, 2009

Operation White Cloak is underway. Really, I could stop writing right there: I love the name 'White Cloak.'

Yes, this is the Israeli security detail for protecting the Pope, replete in his white robes, but without his Popemobile, deemed "not safe enough" by Israel's ultra-vigilant security. Israel is deploying 60,000 police officers and 20,000 secret service agents and soldiers during the week of the tour, most of them in Jerusalem.

Protecting the Pope is the most intense security detail for Israel, according to Raphael Ben-Hur, senior deputy general of the tourism ministry, even greater than that of visiting American presidents.

“The Pope is one of the most important people all over the world and we have to secure him,” he said.

I was here for U.S. Pres. George W. Bush's visit nearly a year ago to celebrate Israel's 60th anniversary. He was only here three days but the city was shut down. Certain streets were forced to evacuate and if any cars remained, they were towed. The entire neighborhood of the Central Bus Station, a major transportation hub, was desolate during Bush's speech at the convention center. I walked about a mile after the event until I could even find a taxi to catch. The neighborhood was vacated.

The Ministry of Tourism is expecting between 10,000 to 15,000 additional tourists in conjunction with Il Pappa's tour of the Holy Land. At the Nazareth mass, an outdoor arena will hold 40,000 people, while the Jerusalem mass will accommodate 5,000 to 6,000.

The State of Israel has alloted 43 million shekels (a little more than $10 million) for the trip. The Pontiff's official tour has been a good excuse for the three cities on his tour to get a much-needed facelift, just like the last papal tour in 2000 when John Paul II visited. Olive trees have been planted in the Kidron Valley in Jerusalem. The walkway down to the mass site - in the valley between the Eastern Gate of the Old City and the Mount of Olives - is getting repaved so as to accommodate the Popemobile. The area was once a haven for drug addicts and dealers. Now it is a massive construction site which must be done for Tuesday's mass.

Nir Barkat, Jerusalem’s mayor, has a vested interest in the trip too because it shines the spotlight on his city. Bringing 1 million tourist s a year to Israel’s capital was a stated goal of Barkat’s campaign. This international exposure should be a boon to the city.

Already, an extra 10,000 to 15,000 tourists are expected in conjunction with the pope’s visit.

In Nazareth, an amphitheater for the mass has been built along with a helicopter pad, according to a reporter who visited there. New roads, sidewalks, and other general construction needed since the founding of the state, she said. I can't wait to see it myself. Nazareth, the city where Jesus was raised, now has a Muslim instead of Christian majority, a switch in the last few decades.

As I've reported before, Christians in Israel and the Palestinian territories are leaving for various reasons. Here is some info from the website Palestine Facts:

After World War II, Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, was 80% Christian and Nazareth 60%. Now those percentages are 20% and 30% respectively, and are shrinking. Jerusalem Christians were a plurality in the 1920s; today, they number under 2 percent of the city's population.

Serious violations of religious freedom are reported from within the Palestinian Authority, especially the persecution of Muslims who have converted to Christianity. In the Christian town of Bet Jella, a human rights lawyer reported brutal interrogation methods and arbitrary arrests based on fabricated criminal charges against Muslims who have converted to Christianity and their families. His report includes testimony about torture from victims who were terrified to criticize the Palestinian Authority and their secret police.

In Nazareth, the Christian population has decreased dramatically due to the rise and spread of militant Islam. The Islamic Movement (a radical Muslim group) has demanded the construction of a mosque near the Church of the Annunciation, a mosque even some moderate Muslims oppose. On Easter, 1999, the Muslim group burned Christian stores and targeted Christians over the issue; attempts to intervene were frustrated because Christians are terrified to speak out.

Hundreds of Christian families have left Palestinian towns like Bet Jella and Bethlehem during the al-Aqsa intifada, caught literally in the crossfire between Palestinians and Israelis. On the West Bank, a nearly-permanent Muslim boycott of Christian businesses is achieving its objective: driving the Christians to emigrate.

In October 2000, Christians were attacked in Gaza after a Palestinian Muslim leader called for a "jihad" against both Jews and Christians.

In February 2002 a Muslim mob, including Palestinian Authority Special Forces, burned Christian businesses and attempted to destroy the Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches in Ramallah. The attack occurred after a Christian man killed a Muslim while being pursued by a Muslim gang because he refused to pay protection money for safe passage to his home.

Christians in the Palestinian territories will also get to see the Pope - about 200 Gazans have received passes to attend the mass in Bethlehem. I had thought there were only 2,000 Christians of the 1.6 million residents there, but latest statistics claim there are 3,800. I'm not sure that these passes were actually issued either.