Promises and Betrayals in the Middle East

Documentary on how British double-dealing during the First World War ignited the conflict between Arab and Jew in the Middle East.
This is a story of intrigue among rival empires; of misguided strategies; and of how conflicting promises to Arab and Jew created a legacy of bloodshed which determined the fate of the Middle East.

Eritrean envoy to Israel calls for arrest of lynch mob

Haftom Zarhum, a 29-year-old Eritrean migrant, died in a Beersheba hospital on Sunday night after he, mistaken for an accomplice of a suspected attacker that killed an Israeli soldier, was shot by a security guard and kicked by bystanders. A video published online following the incident purported to show the Eritrean being kicked by several people as he lay bleeding on the ground.

Israeli police have not yet made any arrests two days after the incident. The private security guard who shot the unarmed Eritrean was questioned by the police and later released, Israeli police spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld said. “We have arrested no one at this point, but we are still looking for people for questioning over this incident," Rosenfeld told Al Jazeera.

Footage released online from the bus station clearly showed faces of some of those who participated in the lynching, which Al Jazeera’s reporter in Israel Elias Karram said, included two Israeli officers. Moreover, an Israeli man, in an appearance on Israeli Channel Two on Monday evening, said that he had been one of those who kicked Zarhum. It remains unclear if Israeli authorities questioned the Israeli man or took any action against him. Footage from the station showed at least one Israeli soldier kicking Zarhum in the head as he lay bleeding on the floor of the terminal. Another man lifted a bench and dropped it on Zarhum's head as another tried to protect him by placing a bar stool over his body.

More at  Al Jazeera English – Also see nydailynews.com

Duvdevan Unit

Unit 217, frequently called Duvdevan (Hebrew: דובדבן‎; lit. cherry) is an elite special operations force within the Israel Defense Forces, directly subordinate to the West Bank Division. Duvdevan are particularly noted for conducting undercover operations against militants in urban areas. During these operations, Duvdevan soldiers typically wear Arab civilian clothes as a disguise.

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Best of Norman Finkelstein

Norman Finkelstein is an American political scientist, activist, professor and author. His primary fields of research are the Israeli--Palestinian conflict and the politics of the Holocaust.

Death of 18-month-old in arson attack heightens tensions in West Bank

The slumbering Dawabsheh family never stood a chance when a pair of arsonists crept into their home in a village in the West Bank in the early hours of Friday. A smashed window, a flaming molotov cocktail, a whoosh of fire and piercing screams followed. Within minutes, the parents had crawled from the house with life-threatening third degree burns covering most of their bodies. Inside, four-year-old Ahmad was shrieking in fear and pain; his infant brother, Ali, just 18 months old, was dead or dying, his body burned beyond recognition.

Within hours, the Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, condemned the attack – quickly attributed to extremist Israeli settlers – as an “act of terrorism”, the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, denounced it as a “war crime”, and the European Union and United Nations had demanded swift action to bring the perpetrators to justice. Thousands of Palestinians attended Ali’s funeral and other protests in the West Bank, their anger fuelled by a litany of settler violence and intimidation. The family’s home in Duma, near the Palestinian city of Nablus, was left blackened with soot and coated in ash, although graffiti left by the arsonists was still visible: “revenge”, “price tag” and “long live the Messiah” were scrawled in Hebrew letters.

More at The Guardian

US Congress Gives Netanyahu 25 Standing Ovations For Insulting Holocaust Victims And President Obama

The Prime Minister of Israel was gifted the opportunity to launch a scathing attack on the foreign policy of the United States, in the US Congress, against the wishes of the American President – and won 25 near-hysterical standing ovations for doing so. After Republican Speaker John Boehner invited the Israeli PM to speak (just two weeks before Israeli elections) without consulting the White House, it was announced that President Obama, Vice President Biden and Secretary of State John Kerry would snub Netanyahu’s speech and visit. All-in-all, 55 Democrat lawmakers boycotted the speech.

Nevertheless, a packed Congress threw down the red carpet for Netanyahu today, while he lobbied American lawmakers to block the foreign policy efforts of their own President. Blow-by-blow, Netanyahu pilloried Obama’s negotiations with Iran. He hectored the President like a school principal scolding an errant child. There was zero respect shown to the Office of the US President, or the diplomatic relationship between the nations.

“This is a bad deal — a very bad deal. We’re better off without it,” Netanyahu told Congress, and got a standing ovation.
“It paves Iran’s path to a bomb,”
“The battle between Iran and ISIS doesn’t turn Iran into a friend of America. … the enemy of your enemy is your enemy.”

But it wasn’t just President Obama that Netanyahu threw shade upon today. The Israeli PM also echoed a distasteful trope – common in modern, muscular Israeli society – that victims of the Nazi holocaust were too weak

More at Addicting Info

Being An Antiwar Activist In Israel Is Dangerous

Being an antiwar activist in Israel is dangerous. Israelis who protested against the 2014 Gaza offensive were threatened, harassed and attacked. Some even lost their jobs.

AJ+

Modern Israel Is Looking Like Nazi Germany

The genocidal public discourse against Palestinians and non-Jews in Israel is reaching fever pitch,  and if we’ve learned anything from the horrors of the 20th century it is that fascism doesn’t stop, it must be stopped.  We need to call time on Israeli fascism.

Independent Israeli journalist David Sheen brought this image to attention, with this tweet:

You may find this image shocking, eerily reminiscent of the treatment of Jews in Nazi Germany, African Americans through the era of the Jim Crow segregation laws, or the UK hotel signs of the 1950’s reading ‘No Blacks, no dogs, no Irish’.  I do not make these comparisons for kicks, hype or wanton disregard for these past horrors.  It is because of those disgraceful periods in our history that we must not stand by while it happens again.

At Addicting Info some samples of the sort of sentiments now acceptable to air in public in Israel today.

Fascism Grips Israel (Global Research) -  Einstein Letter Warning Of Zionist Facism In Israel

Israelis Chant “N*ggers Go Home” Carrying ISIS-Style Flags At Anti-African Rally

Video footage of Jewish Israelis with ISIS-style flags, chanting “niggers go home” at an anti-African rally in Tel Aviv on October 5 has surfaced. Hundreds of protesters could be heard in streets of Tel Aviv chanting anti-African racial slurs, following an Israeli High Court ruling to close down “Holot” detention facility within 90 days. Holot is essentially an internment camp holding about 2,300 of 60,000 African asylum seekers in Tel Aviv. Israelis are outraged by the court decision to close “Holot,” where African migrants from Eritrea and Sudan have been locked in facilities overnight and are forced to sign in several times per day.

More at Addicting Info

Norman Finkelstein on Gaza conflict, Hamas goals and Iron Dome myth

As debate and international concern grow over Gaza, RT's Mona Zughbi sits down for an exclusive interview with American political scientist, activist, professor, and author Norman Finkelstein . We take a deeper look into the the war on Gaza that has left almost two thousand Palestinians, mostly civilians dead.
Finkelstein, who has extensively studied and written about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for over 3 decades explains the reason behind this offensive and what the end game will be for Gaza. In addition to this analysis, he answers questions about Hamas' rockets and tunnels as well as Israel's Iron Dome. We take a look at how these components came together resulting in the deadliest attack in Gaza.

Also see: American Radical - The Trials of Norman Finkelstein

Hollywood Studios Blacklist Penelope Cruz over Gaza Letter Accusing Israel of 'Genocide'

Actress Penelope Cruz and her husband Javier Bardem have roused the fury of Hollywood producers, with pledges made to snub the Spanish couple. Oscar-winner Bardem and Cruz signed an open letter speaking against "the genocide perpetrated by the Israeli occupation army".

The letter accused Israel of "advancing on Palestinian territories instead of withdrawing to the 1967 borders. "Gaza is living through horror… while the international community does nothing." The Spanish letter was signed by 100 leading figures in the film industry, including director Pedro Almodovar.

One top producer who has worked with Cruz says he privately has vowed not to hire her again, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Another top Hollywood executive also privately expressed his disapproval, saying he's "furious at Javier and Penelope" and wasn't sure about working with the Spanish couple again. Relativity Media chief executive Ryan Kavanaugh was the only studio head willing to go public with his views: "As the grandson of Holocaust survivors, I know that anyone calling what's going on in Israel 'genocide' vs. self-defense is either ignorant and shouldn't be commenting or is truly anti-Semitic."

International Business Times

Two Jewish Voices Fiercely Debate Gaza Siege

Max Blumenthal vs. ZOA’s Morton Klein

CrossTalk: Target-Gaza

As Israel appears to be preparing for yet another assault on the Gaza Strip, what does it want to achieve? Is the goal to completely destroy Hamas? And should we expect Washington to stand by and watch the killing of civilians? CrossTalking with Dan Arbell, Norman Finkelstein and Mouin Rabbani.

Israeli troops mass on Gaza border in preparation for ground attack

Israel was today massing its troops on the Gaza border in preparation for a possible ground attack - just hours after its airforce struck a mosque that was allegedly being used to hide Hamas's weapons. Donning military gear and carrying rifles, thousands of soldiers moved into a new position on the border on the fifth day of the deadly conflict, which has so far claimed the lives of more than 120 people.

They were spotted transporting armoured vehicles along the border, before setting up and firing shells towards members of the militant group Hamas. The latest move is in preparation for a potential ground offensive, with some 33,000 reservists mobilised out of 40,000 approved by Israel's cabinet.

Traumatised: Social worker Selva, 63, was badly injured after her employer Beit Lahia Disability and Rehabilitation Services' headquarters were destroyed in an airstrike.

Meanwhile in Israel…

More at Mail Online

Racist Movement in Israel Looking for ‘Right to Kill Non-Jewish Children’

“In Israel itself, there is a growth of racism,” Brownfeld began. “There is a growth of religious extremism. “The book, The King’s Torah, was a best seller,” He continued. “This is a book that said Jews and non-Jews are basically different in nature. Jews are much closer or to God than non-Jews who are referred to as uncompassionate.”

“The ten commandments, thou shalt not kill, according to this book written by Orthodox rabbis, who are financed by the Israeli government, this book says that thou shalt not kill refers only to one Jew killing another; not killing non-Jews,” Brownfeld asserted. “In fact, it discusses the circumstances under which it is all right to kill non-Jewish children.”

Mediaite

Sharon's Legacy Includes Massacres of Palestinians and Lebanese

Shir Hever: Despite disobeying direct orders and overseeing a number of massacres, Ariel Sharon's military career advanced because he was willing to terrorize Palestinians and nearby countries.

Part 2  on The Real News

Ex-Israeli PM Ariel Sharon dies

The iconic but controversial former Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, has died after his medical condition significantly deteriorated, his son confirmed to the media. The 85-year-old politician died in Tel Aviv’s Tel Hashomer hospital, also known as the Chaim Sheba Medical Center, where he had been in a coma since January 2006 after suffering a stroke and brain hemorrhage. For nearly eight years Sharon was on respiratory life support, occasionally opening his eyes and moving fingers. He was supported by fluids through a feeding tube.

RT News - The Crimes of Ariel Sharon (Counterpunch)

Israeli troops fire on Palestinian farmers

International activists have been accompanying Palestinian farmers to their lands near the separation barrier between the territories occupied in 1948 and the Gaza Strip. We have noticed, in recent days, an increase in the presence of the Zionist occupation forces. A few days ago, we felt more drones and F-16, then Jeeps and bulldozers began to move near the barrier more often. On Sunday, 22nd December, two Jeeps were stationed in front of the area where farmers were seeding and tractors plowing. They fired shots into the air and one the the ground. This video shows the last episode.

Olive, orange and lemon trees grew in these fields until the second Intifada. Then bulldozers and tanks of the occupying forces uprooted them. After “Operation Cast Lead,” the no-go zone was established at 300 meters, but aggression towards Palestinians was not limited to that area. According to UN reports, high-risk areas in some places reach two kilometers from the barrier, and included 35% of all arable land in Gaza.

More on International Solidarity Movement

Mossad trained Mandela

Nelson Mandela, the former South African president who passed away earlier this month, received sabotage and weapons training by Mossad operatives in 1962, a report by the Israeli daily Haaretz revealed on Friday. During the training, which took place a few months before Mandela was arrested and jailed for over 27 years, he reportedly expressed interest in the tactics of Israel's pre-state underground military organization the Haganah.

According to documents of the Israel State Archives labeled "Top Secret," Mandela was trained by Mossad operatives in Ethiopia where he stayed while attempting to garner support from African leaders for the armed wing of the underground African National Congress (ANC). At the time, the operatives were unaware of Mandela's true identity as he was going by a fake name. In a letter sent to Israel's Foreign Ministry about two months after Mandela was arrested in South Africa, Mossad agents told of a man who called himself David Mobsari.

“As you may recall, three months ago we discussed the case of a trainee who arrived at the [Israeli] embassy in Ethiopia by the name of David Mobsari who came from Rhodesia,” the letter said. “The aforementioned received training from the Ethiopians [code for Israeli embassy staff, almost certainly Mossad agents] in judo, sabotage and light weapons.”

The letter also said that the man "showed an interest in the methods of the Haganah and other Israeli underground movements," and that he "was familiar with the problems of Jewry and of Israel, and gave the impression of being an intellectual." "The staff tried to make him into a Zionist,” the operative added. “In conversations with him, he expressed socialist worldviews and at times created the impression that he leaned toward communism,” the letter continued, adding that the man who called himself David Mobsari was the same man who had been arrested in South Africa.

More on i24news

Also see: Israel's immoral alliance with South Africa

Israel to demolish Bedouin village for national-religious Jewish town

The Israeli government voted on Sunday to raze a Bedouin-Palestinian village of 500 citizens to clear space for a Jewish town, prompting yet more protests against Israel’s unabated policy of settlement construction.

The government ministers moved to evict residents from the Bedouin village Umm al-Hiran in accordance with the terms of the so-called “Prawer plan," which calls for the resettlement of large numbers of Bedouin villages.
The Bedouins have been offered alternative sites to which to relocate, but they plan to hold protests against what they claim is “discriminatory treatment by the state,” as quoted by Haaretz, the Israeli daily.
Liberal Israeli publications have harshly denounced the treatment of the Bedouins, who are being displaced by the very military that some of them proudly served.
“These are Israeli citizens – citizens in a ‘democratic’ state, some of whom have even served the country militarily – who are now having their homes destroyed,” David Harris-Gershon wrote in his blog for the Tikkun Daily.
The Israeli government’s reasoning for demolishing Umm al-Hiran is that the villagers never received ‘official’ zoning rights to settle the land. However, critics say Israel refused to give a stamp of approval to the village, despite ordering villagers to settle the site in 1956.
Other commentators point to the ‘symbolic location’ of the Bedouin village, situated as it is in the Negev Desert, described by Israel’s first Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion as “Zionism’s final frontier.”

Full story on RT News