Friday, March 29, 2024
Friday, March 29, 2024
Get the Daily
Briefing by Email

Subscribe

WEDNESDAY’S “NEWS IN REVIEW” ROUND-UP

Contents:  Weekly Quotes |  Short Takes

 

Download Today's Isranet Briefing.pdf

 

On Topic Links

 

Feting Jerusalem: Editorial, Jerusalem Post, June 4, 2013

The Region: Passivity in the Face of Islamism: Barry Rubin, Jerusalem Post, June 3, 2013

Israeli Start-Up Device Gives the Visually Impaired a Way to Read: John Markoff, New York Times, June 3, 2013

 

"If I open a PA textbook and see that Israel doesn't appear on the map, or that Tel Aviv is designated as a settlement, and when a 3-year-old boy is brought up to admire suicide bombers – you can sign any agreement and in the end it will blow up in your face….We are being attacked over the issue of settlements. If we're talking about peace and coexistence, why are the Palestinians demanding territory free of Jews " — Moshe Ya'alon, Israeli Defense Minister addressing the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Monday [June 3]. "We're ready to begin the process immediately without preconditions, and discuss all the issues….We don't want to rule the Palestinians. We're ready to advance the diplomatic process, which Abbas is avoiding by setting preconditions. [But] “we are unwilling to pay a price just for them to come to the table,"  Ya'alon said. (Israel Hayom, June 3, 2013)

 

"Israel has to accept [the Palestinian position] to re-launch negotiations so that we can go back to the negotiating table as soon as possible to reach a solution to all outstanding issues and achieve the two-state solution on the 1967 borders.” — Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority at a press conference in Ramallah with Mohamed Waheed Hassan, President of the Maldives. (Jerusalem Post, June 4, 2013)

 

"Let’s be clear: If we do not succeed now – and I know I’m raising those stakes – but if we do not succeed now, we may not get another chance. So we can’t let the disappointments of the past hold the future prisoner….I fully recognize the challenges and predicament in which Israel finds itself, but I also firmly believe this is a hopeful time if we choose to make it so. This can actually be a time for possibility, a time for promise.  I still believe peace is achievable. Quite simply, peace pays." — John Kerry, U.S. Secretary of State, in a speech to the American Jewish Committee Monday [June 3]. "In reality, the dawn of a new era" – the Arab Spring – "is exactly the kind of time to recast Israel’s relationships, to change the narrative with a new generation that is starting to make its voice heard." (Jerusalem Post, June 4, 2013)

 

"We are very concerned about the new supply of sophisticated arms to Syria itself. We don’t understand Russia's position about it. Why should anyone supply [Syrian President Bashar] Assad with advanced ballistic or anti-aircraft or anti-ship rockets at this very time. Maybe, because of the disorder in Syria, of the very heavy dependence of Syria on the Iranians assistance, some of those weapons might unfortunately find their way to the Iranians. This is very bad, and against the weapon embargo on Iran." — Yuval Steinitz, Israel’s Minister for Strategic Affairs and Intelligence, at a speech at The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (JCPA). (Jerusalem Post, June 4, 2013)

 

“It’s a protest against all the things [the government] does – they just say, ‘We want this,’ and proceed to do it but in an undemocratic manner. I think these protests will grow, grow, grow, like a snowball. It’s the first time that you see such protests here – so many people coming together from so many different parts of society.” — Bak, 42, a Turkish protester manning a barricade near the scene of some of the clashes that broke out in Istanbul  on May 31. (Globe and Mail, June 3, 2013)

 

“Now we have a menace that is called Twitter. The best examples of lies can be found there. To me, social media is the worst menace to society. People are being misled by outright lies.” —Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish Prime Minister, in an interview on Turkish television during the countrywide demonstrations that swelled across Turkey since May 31. (Globe and Mail, June 2, 2013)

 

“If we start to lose control, you will see thousands of Iranians come to Syria, thousands of Lebanese, from Iraq also. They are going to fight, they are not going to watch. That’s part of their religion [Shiism] —Rafiq Lotof, a Syrian-American Shiite who left his pizza business in New Jersey to help Syrian officials organize militias known as the National Defense Forces to defend Shiite shrines from Sunni Syrian rebels. Days after pro-government militias killed scores of civilians last month in the Sunni village of Bayda near the Syrian coast, one Sunni resident declared in an interview: “Starting today, I am sectarian. I am sectarian! I don’t want ‘peaceful’ anymore.” (New York Times, June 1, 2013)

 

“It’s the first time in Turkey’s democratic history that an unplanned, peaceful protest movement succeeded in changing the government’s approach and policy. “It gave for the first time a strong sense of empowerment to ordinary citizens to demonstrate and further their belief that if they act like they did the last few days they can influence events in Turkey.” — Sinan Ulgen, the chairman of the Center for Economic and Foreign Policy Studies, a research group in Istanbul.
   “He criticized Assad, but he’s the same. He’s crazy. No one knows what he’s doing or thinking. He’s completely crazy. Whatever he says today, he will say something different tomorrow.” —  Murat Uludag, 32, a by-stander watching the running battles between protesters and Turkish police in the capital, Istanbul
   “When he first came to power, he was a good persuader and a good speaker. He brainwashed people with religion, and that’s how he got the votes. He fooled us. He’s a liar and a dictator.” —  Serder Cilik, 32, who was sitting at a tea shop watching the chaos in Turkey unfold. (New York Times, June 2, 2013)

 

"I call on Muslims everywhere to help their brothers be victorious, "If I had the ability I would go and fight with them.Everyone who has the ability and has training to kill … is required to go. We cannot ask our brothers to be killed while we watch.” — Yusuf al-Qaradawi, an influential Sunni Muslim cleric whose TV show is watched by millions across the region, in his Friday sermon in the Qatari capital of Doha. He denounced Assad's Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, as "more infidel than Christians and Jews" and Shiite Muslim Hezbollah as "the party of the devil." (USA Today, June 1, 2013)

 

“I am not a politician at all. I’m not in this for rank or position. I’m in this because I fundamentally want to change the nature of politics in this country and, above all, I want my country back.” — Nigel Farage, head of the upstart UK Independence Party (UKIP) a right of centre party opposing gay marriage, promoting less immigration and pulling Britain out of the European Union. The UKIP’s popularity surged after the gruesome daytime beheading of a British soldier by a pair of Muslim extremists and is about to pass the Conservative party in the polls, to a gathering of foreign reporters Friday [May 24]. (Globe and Mail, May 25, 2013)

 

[U.S. Attorney General] Eric Holder is in a mess of his own making. More than two weeks ago, the attorney general testified to the House Judiciary Committee in categorical terms: ‘With regard to potential prosecution of the press for the disclosure of material, that is not something that I have ever been involved in, heard of, or would think would be a wise policy.’ Then The Post published the text of an affidavit Holder had authorized in an espionage case saying there was ‘probable cause’ to believe journalist James Rosen was a ‘co-conspirator and/or aider and abettor’ because of a leak he received. The affidavit cited ‘the reporter’s own potential criminal liability in this matter.’ Now House Republicans are talking about perjury, and it would seem that they have, well, probable cause…..”— Dana Milbank, in an op-ed article for the Washington Post. (Washington Post, May 31, 2013)

 

"The fence that we built in the south is achieving the result for which it was erected. As opposed to the over 2,000 infiltrators who entered Israel exactly one year ago…in May 2013 exactly two infiltrators crossed the border and were detained. Now we need to focus on repatriating the illegal infiltrators who are here."  Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a statement Sunday [June 2].  (Israel Prime Minister's Office, June 2, 2013)

 

Top of Page

 

 

MOST ISRAELIS AGAINST DIVIDING JERUSALEM (Jerusalem) 74% of Israeli Jews reject the idea of a Palestinian capital in any portion of Jerusalem. Only 15% say they would support relinquishing sovereignty over eastern portions of the city to the Palestinians, according to a Jerusalem Post-Rafi Smith poll conducted on Monday [June 3]  67% support a two-state solution, but only 8% want a solution based on the pre-1967 lines as proposed by the Palestinians and the Arab League. Of the 500 Israeli Jewish adults polled, 21% were religious or Haredi, 29% were traditional and 50% were secular. The poll was conducted amidst a major United States push to rekindle direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations that have been largely frozen since 2008. (Jerusalem Post, June 5, 2013)

 

AFRICAN COUNTRY AGREES TO TAKE IN ERITREAN LABOR MIGRANTS LIVING IN ISRAEL (Jerusalem) An African country has agreed to take in Eritrean labor migrants living in Israel, today numbering around 35,000, if Israel gives them agricultural training first. A senior Israeli official said Sunday that talks were underway with several countries that might accept the migrants. Israel has discussed the issue with Ghana, South Sudan, Uganda, and Kenya. (Ha'aretz, June 3, 2013)

 

PROSECUTOR IN ARGENTINA SEES IRANIAN PLOT IN LATIN AMERICA(Buenos Aires)  The special prosecutor investigating the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center here that killed 85 people released a report on Wednesday claiming that Iran had set up intelligence stations in different parts of Latin America with the aim of carrying out terrorist attacks directly or through Hezbollah, the powerful Lebanese militant group. The report by Alberto Nisman, who has already accused senior Iranian officials of planning and financing the 1994 bombing and Hezbollah of carrying it out, points to the resistance among some here to a recent thaw in relations between Argentina and Iran. The two nations agreed in January to establish a joint commission to investigate the attack, which has never been solved. (New York Times, May 29, 2013)

 

NEW PALESTINIAN PRIME MINISTER PUTS ABBAS AT ODDS WITH HAMAS(Ramallah) Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas named British-educated political independent Rami Hamdallah as new prime minister on Sunday, a move that was immediately condemned by Gaza Strip rulers Hamas. Mr. Abbas and the militant Islamic group agreed in principle last month to form a unity government for the divided Palestinian territories, and a Hamas spokesman said Mr. Hamdallah’s appointment threw that into doubt. Fawzi Barhoum told Reuters: “Abbas should have implemented the reconciliation [deal]” achieved in Cairo last month, rather than name his own independent candidate. The group called Mr. Hamdallah’s appointment “illegal.” (Globe and Mail, June 3, 2013)

IRANIAN AMERICAN IN IRAN-BACKED PLOT TO KILL SAUDI AMBASSADOR GETS 25 YEARS (Washington) An Iranian American used-car salesman from Texas at the center of a bizarre plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States was sentenced Thursday in federal court in Manhattan to 25 years in prison. Mannsor Arbabsiar, 58, had pleaded guilty in October to a charge of murder-for-hire and two counts of conspiracy for his role in attempting to orchestrate the 2011 bombing assassination of Adel al-Jubeir while the ambassador dined at Cafe Milano, an upscale Georgetown restaurant. Prosecutors said Arbabsiar was recruited by a cousin who was a senior official in the Quds Force, which in 2007 the Treasury Department designated a terrorist supporter, according to court papers. (Washington Post, May 31, 2013)

 

DEVICE FROM ISRAELI START-UP GIVES THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED A WAY TO READ (Tel Aviv) The OrCam device is a small camera worn in the style of Google Glass, connected by a thin cable to a portable computer designed to fit in the wearer's pocket.  The system clips on to the wearer's glasses with a small magnet and uses a bone-conduction speaker to offer clear speech as it reads aloud the words or object pointed to by the user.  It recognizes English-language text and beginning this week will be sold for $2,500, about the cost of a mid-range hearing aid. The system is designed to both recognize and speak “text in the wild,” a term used to describe newspaper articles as well as bus numbers, and objects as diverse as landmarks, traffic lights and the faces of friends. (New York Times, June 3, 2013)

Top of Page

 

On Topic

Feting Jerusalem: Editorial, Jerusalem Post, June 4, 2013—Forty-six years ago today Israel embarked on a war against the combined armies of its Arab neighbors – Egypt, Syria and Jordan. Today, 46 years after reunification, Jerusalem is Israel’s largest city with a population of over 800,000.

 

The Region: Passivity in the face of Islamism: Barry Rubin, Jerusalem Post, June 3, 2013—While anger and despair are going to rise in Egypt these factors are not in themselves enough to bring down a regime.

 

Device From Israeli Start-Up Gives the Visually Impaired a Way to Read: John Markoff, New York Times, June 3, 2013—Liat Negrin, an Israeli who has been visually impaired since childhood, walked into a grocery store here recently, picked up a can of vegetables and easily read its label using a simple and unobtrusive camera attached to her glasses.

 

 

Ber Lazarus
, Publications Editor
 Canadian Institute for Jewish Research
/L'institut Canadien de recherches sur le Judaïsme   www.isranet.org  Tel: (514) 486-5544 Fax: (514) 486-82843

 

 

Visit CIJR’s Bi-Weekly Webzine (current issue: “Israel’s Levy Report”:  ISRAZINE.

 

CIJR’s ISRANET Daily Briefing is available by fax and e-mail.
Please urge colleagues, friends and family to visit our website for more information on our Briefing series.
To join our distribution list, or to unsubscribe, contact us at https://isranet.org/.

 

The ISRANET Daily Briefing is a service of CIJR. We hope that you find it useful and that you will support it and our pro-Israel educational work by forwarding a minimum $90.00 tax-deductible membership contribution [please send a cheque or VISA/MasterCard information to CIJR (see cover page for address or “Donate” button on Website)]. All donations include a membership-subscription to our respected quarterly ISRAFAX print magazine, which will be mailed to your home.

CIJR’s Briefing series attempts to convey a wide variety of opinions on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world for its readers’ educational and research purposes. Reprinted articles and documents express the opinion of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the Institute.

 

 

 

Donate CIJR

Become a CIJR Supporting Member!

Most Recent Articles

Day 5 of the War: Israel Internalizes the Horrors, and Knows Its Survival Is...

0
David Horovitz Times of Israel, Oct. 11, 2023 “The more credible assessments are that the regime in Iran, avowedly bent on Israel’s elimination, did not work...

Sukkah in the Skies with Diamonds

0
  Gershon Winkler Isranet.org, Oct. 14, 2022 “But my father, he was unconcerned that he and his sukkah could conceivably - at any moment - break loose...

Open Letter to the Students of Concordia re: CUTV

0
Abigail Hirsch AskAbigail Productions, Dec. 6, 2014 My name is Abigail Hirsch. I have been an active volunteer at CUTV (Concordia University Television) prior to its...

« Nous voulons faire de l’Ukraine un Israël européen »

0
12 juillet 2022 971 vues 3 https://www.jforum.fr/nous-voulons-faire-de-lukraine-un-israel-europeen.html La reconstruction de l’Ukraine doit également porter sur la numérisation des institutions étatiques. C’est ce qu’a déclaré le ministre...

Subscribe Now!

Subscribe now to receive the
free Daily Briefing by email

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

  • Subscribe to the Daily Briefing

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.