Wednesday’s “News in Review” Round-Up

Media-ocrities of the Week

 

“Israel claims the [targeted Palestinians] were about to launch a rocket over the border from Gaza. Hamas of Gaza denies that, but retaliatory rocket attacks were launched from Gaza after the Israeli strike. They were the first rockets fired from Gaza in more than a year.…”—Canadian Broadcasting Corporation news anchor Reshmi Nair, erroneously claiming that last week’s unprovoked and indiscriminate firing of more than 130 rockets into Israel from Gaza represented the first such incident in over a year. According to the Israel Defense Forces, in “2012 alone, over 270 rockets fired from the Gaza Strip hit Israel” and “in 2011, 627 rockets from Gaza hit Israeli towns.” In response, HonestReporting Canada contacted senior editors at CBC News to alert them of the misstatement; the station thereafter commissioned an on-air correction expressing “regret” for the “error.” (HonestReporting Canada, June 20.)

 

“In a race for Congress between an anti-Zionist black activist and a black activist who is a bought and paid for Zionist Uncle Tom, I’ll take the anti-Zionist any day.… Why? Because I think there’s no greater danger facing the…world than the unbridled power of Zionist globalism.”—Former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard and self-described “white nationalist,” David Duke, endorsing African-American and fierce anti-Israel critic Charles Barron in New York’s 8th Congressional District Democratic primary. Barron has in the past referred to Gaza as “a virtual death camp, the same kind of conditions the Nazis imposed on the Jews,” and accused Israel of “massacr[ing] the Palestinian people…[in] what amounts to genocide.” [According to preliminary results, Barron lost the primary race to state Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries by a two-to-one margin—Ed.] (FrontPage, June 22 & JTA, June 27.)

 

“I must mention human rights violations in Syria and, being in Israel, human rights violations in the West Bank. Silence in the face of evil is evil.”—Michael Wernstedt, grand-nephew of Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish diplomat who rescued 100,000 Jews during Holocaust, equating Israel’s policies in the West Bank with the Syrian regime’s violent suppression of the ongoing uprising. Wernstedt has since backtracked from his comments—made at a symposium at the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum marking 100 years since Raoul Wallenberg’s birth—conceding he has never visited Judea and Samaria and that his information comes from three notoriously anti-Israel NGOs: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and B’Tselem. (Jerusalem Post, June 27.)\

 

Weekly Quotes

 

“Egypt is for all Egyptians, all of us equal in our rights and our responsibilities to this nation.”—Muslim Brotherhood member Mohamed Morsi, in his first speech after being declared winner of Egypt’s presidential election, pledging to establish a “modern, democratic, and constitutional government.” Carrying “a message of peace,” Morsi also promised to “honor international treaties and agreements,” a possible reference to the 1979 peace deal with Israel. He concluded by paying tribute to the “blood of the [Egyptian revolution’s] martyrs.” (Times of Israel, June 24 & Wall Street Journal, June 25.)

 

“He did not give any interview to Fars News and everything this agency has published is baseless.”—Spokesman for Egyptian president-elect Mohamed Morsi, after Iran’s Fars News Agency published excerpts of an alleged June 24 interview with Morsi in which he vowed to “revise the [Israel-Egypt] Camp David [peace] treaty”. (Weekly Standard, June 25.)

 

“We look forward to working together with President-elect Morsi and the government he forms.… The United States…stand[s] with the Egyptian people as they pursue their aspirations for democracy, dignity, and opportunity, and fulfill the promise of their revolution.”—White House spokesman Jay Carney, congratulating the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Morsi on behalf of the Obama administration. (Weekly Standard, June 24.)

 

“Israel looks forward to continuing cooperation with the Egyptian government on the basis of the peace treaty between the two countries, which is a joint interest of both peoples and contributes to regional stability.”—Excerpt of a statement issued by Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s Office, urging the new Egyptian government to uphold the 1979 peace agreement. (JTA, June 24.)

 

“I am confident that the West will deal with Hamas and remove the movement from the terrorism list.”—Hamas official Ahmad Yousef, predicting that the ascendance of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas’ progenitor, will pave the way for “the international community to recognize [Hamas].…” (Independent Media Review and Analysis, June 26.)

 

“We hope that the first action to be taken by the new Egyptian president will be the removal of the siege of the Gaza Strip, reopening of the border crossings and facilitating transit of construction materials and financial aid…[into] this war-stricken region.”—Yousef Rezqeh, a political advisor to Hamas leader in Gaza Ismail Haniyeh, calling on Egypt’s president-elect to pressure Israel into removing the legal blockade on Gaza. For his part, Haniyeh confirmed that his terror group “will look to Egypt to play a big, leading role…in helping the Palestinian nation get freedom [and] return home.…” (Independent Media Review and Analysis & FrontPage, June 26.)

 

“We will not accept our citizens’ way of life being harmed and we will not tolerate citizens getting hit from Sinai terror.”—Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, warning Egypt that Israel “will not accept [Sinai-based] rocket fire.” [Over the last several months, Israel’s response to the growing terror threat emanating from Sinai has been reserved, in part because it did not want to be seen as interfering in the Egyptian election. Now that the election is over, however, Defense Minister Barak appears to have toughened his stance—Ed.] (Jerusalem Post, June 25.)

 

“The image shows heavy machinery tracks and earth displacement throughout the site. There is evidence of…excavation activity near the…building suspected to contain the high explosive [nuclear] testing chamber.”—Excerpt of a report by the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), a US security organization which monitors Iran’s nuclear program, claiming new satellite imagery of the Islamic Republic’s Parchin military facility “shows what appears to be further sanitization activity.” ISIS last month voiced concerns that Iran was trying to “destroy evidence” of atomic research at Parchin, including the razing of two small buildings. International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors continue to be denied access to Parchin despite repeated appeals. (Reuters, June 20.)

 

“A nuclear Iran will be the end of the nonproliferation regime: Saudi Arabia will turn nuclear immediately, Turkey within several years, and probably the new Egypt will start moving to do it. Not to mention the potential of weapons-grade material leaking into the hands of terrorist groups from Iran.”—Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, warning the West that Iran’s acquisition of nuclear weapons will trigger a proliferation race in the Middle East. When asked about the likelihood of reaching a diplomatic solution to Iran’s drive for nuclear capability, Barak stressed that Israelis “hope [to] wake up and there will be an agreement…but we are too realistic.” (Jerusalem Post, June 21.)

 

“If the Zionist regime takes any [military] actions against Iran, it would result in the end of its labors.…  It is they who will be destroyed.”—Brigadier-General Mostafa Izadi, deputy chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces, claiming an Israeli military strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities would lead to the collapse of the Jewish state. (Reuters, June 23.)

 

“The Iranian regime is…composed of…anti-Semitic fanatics who have a detailed worldwide plan, part of which, as they admit openly, is the destruction of the State of Israel.… Hitler also said crazy things and succeeded in carrying out his plan.”—Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, condemning Iranian first Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi for a speech he gave at a UN-sponsored conference in Tehran in which he blamed “Zionists and Jews” for controlling the international drug trade, orchestrating the Russian Revolution and ordering the killing of black babies. Rahimi also claimed that the Talmud teaches to “destroy everyone who opposes the Jews.” (Jerusalem Post, June 27.)

 

“We live in a real state of war from all angles. When we are in a war, all policies…and all sectors need to be directed at winning this war.”—Syrian President Bashar Assad, describing Syria as being in state of civil war, and ordering loyalists to direct all their efforts towards vanquishing the uprising against his regime. (Reuters, June 26.)

 

“Up to 1.5 million people now need humanitarian assistance in Syria.”—Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), announcing that the number of Syrians requiring humanitarian aid has risen to 1.5 million. (Reuters, June 22.)

 

“We believe that nobody has the right to decide for other nations who should be brought to power, who should be removed from power.”—Russian President Vladimir Putin, reiterating Russian opposition to any foreign intervention in Syria. US President Barack Obama thereafter confirmed that both Russia and China have not “signed on at this point” to any plan for the removal of Syrian President Bashar Assad. (Reuters, June 20.)

 

“Everybody should know that Turkey’s wrath is strong and devastating. Every military element approaching Turkey from the Syrian border and representing a security risk…will be treated as a military target.”—Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, following last week’s shooting down by Syria of a Turkish F-4 Phantom jet in international airspace, warning Syrian President Bashar Assad that the incident “would not go unpunished” and that the Turkish army’s rules of engagement along the Syrian border have now changed. Turkey has demanded backing from its NATO allies and called a meeting in Brussels under Article 4 of the alliance’s charter, which provides for consultations when a member state feels its security is threatened. (Reuters & Wall Street Journal, June 26.)

 

“It’s another example of the Syrian authorities’ disregard for international norms, peace and security, and human life. NATO allies have expressed strong condemnation of this completely unacceptable act and we have expressed strong support for a solidarity with Turkey.”—NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, denouncing Syria’s downing of a Turkish jet and for the first time describing the Assad regime as a threat to international security. Rasmussen pledged to respond to further Syrian provocations and said NATO would “discuss what else could be done.” (Wall Street Journal, June 26.)

 

“I believe that there is an opportunity to restart negotiations. I have a firm basis for believing this will happen in the near future.”—Israeli Vice Premier and Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz, following a meeting with US President Barack Obama in Washington, predicting Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations will soon be renewed without preconditions. (Jerusalem Post, June 21.)

 

“I discussed with Clinton the Palestinian stance.… How can we negotiate while Israel is continuing to build settlements?… Israel must choose between peace and settlements.”—Chief PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat, following a meeting with US Secretary of State Hillary in Washington, reiterating the Palestinians’ refusal to return to peace talks unless Israel freezes all construction in “settlements” and releases 123 Palestinian security prisoners. Last week, PA President Mahmoud Abbas declared the peace process “clinically dead.” (Jerusalem Post, June 21.)

 

“The lives of about a million Israelis are paralyzed.… As long as Israel’s southern communities will not know quiet, it will not be quiet in Gaza.”—Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Ron Prosor, lodging an official complaint with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon over last week’s firing of more than 130 rockets into Israel from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. (Jerusalem Post, June 22.)

 

Short Takes

 

EU CONFIRMS FULL IRAN OIL EMBARGO TO START SUNDAY—(Luxembourg) European Union foreign ministers have confirmed that a full embargo of Iranian oil exports will enter into force July 1 as initially planned. The ban is the centerpiece of a stricter EU approach to Iran over its nuclear program, which also includes sweeping financial sanctions and an asset freeze and travel ban on scores of senior officials and Iranian companies. The confirmation of the embargo had been widely expected after last week’s nuclear talks in Moscow between international powers and Iran ended in failure. EU foreign-policy chief Catherine Ashton has since reiterated that the gap between the two sides remains “extremely wide.” (Wall Street Journal, June 25.)

 

REPORT: SENIOR SYRIA REGIME FIGURES TRYING TO DEFECT—(Jerusalem) According to the Daily Telegraph, citing unnamed US sources, members of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s inner circle are covertly planning to defect and join the opposition in the event the Syrian regime becomes critically threatened by the uprising. The report claims that senior Syrian military commanders have outlined “exit strategies” and are making direct contact with rebel forces to ensure that they will be welcomed and not persecuted. The news follows the key desertion last week of a Syrian air force colonel, who defected to Jordan by aircraft after abandoning a mission to attack the city of Dera’a. The Syrian regime so far has headed off mass diplomatic defections as occurred in the fall of former Libyan dictator Col Muammar Gaddafi. Syrian opposition groups confirmed they are actively courting American help to encourage more defections. (Jerusalem Post, June 22.)

 

AHMED SHAFIQ FLEES EGYPT FOLLOWING ISLAMIST ELECTION VICTORY—(Cairo) Ahmed Shafiq, Hosni Mubarak’s last prime minister and loser of Egypt’s presidential runoff, has fled the country for the United Arab Emirates. Shafiq’s campaign claims that he left for a short visit and will return after making a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia; however, the move came only hours after Egypt’s prosecutor-general opened an investigation into allegations Shafiq wasted public funds during his 8-year term as a civil aviation minister in the ousted regime. The Egyptian daily Al Shorouk reported that at least 24 lawsuits have been filed against Shafiq and that a judge was planning to summon him for questioning. (Times of Israel, June 26.)

 

RIVLIN MUST EXPLAIN REJECTION OF TIBI ‘NAKBA’ BILL—(Jerusalem) Israel’s High Court of Justice has issued an interim order demanding that Knesset Speaker Reuben Rivlin justify his refusal to allow MK Ahmed Tibi (United Arab List-Ta’al) propose a bill relating to the “Nakba,” or Catastrophe, a term used by Palestinians to describe the founding of the State of Israel. Tibi’s Nakba Bill would empower Israel’s Finance Minister to cut state funding to organizations that “deny publicly that Nakba Day was a historical, real event that constitutes a disaster for the Palestinian people.” In preventing Tibi’s bill from being tabled, Rivlin explained that he had the power to deny any audience for it because the legislation rejected Israel as a Jewish state. (Jerusalem Post, June 20.)

 

WAKF TO UK STUDENT: NO KIPPOT ON TEMPLE MT.—(Jerusalem) An official from the Islamic trust—Wafk—that administers the Temple Mount in Israel has denied entry to a visiting orthodox student because he was adorning a kippah. The 20-year-old from London, who attends the University of Leeds, was told that Jewish ritual head coverings were not allowed in what the official called “an [Islamic] holy place.” The Wakf restricts non-Muslims from entering the site outside specific visiting hours, and no form of non-Muslim worship is tolerated. However, religious clothing such as kippot and tzitzit have in the past been permitted. Accordingly, Rabbi Chaim Richman of The Temple Institute described the incident as “the opening of a new front of anti-Semitism at the hands of the Islamic Wakf committed to eradicating all Jewish connection to the site.” The student chose not to enter the Temple Mount instead of removing his kippah. (Jerusalem Post, June 21.)

 

DUTCH SENATE RATIFIES DEAL ALLOWING SHECHITAH—(The Hague) The Dutch senate has approved a deal to continue allowing ritual slaughter, shechitah, in the Netherlands. The agreement represents a compromise between Jewish and Muslim leaders and the Dutch Animal Rights Party, which withdrew a bill that had passed the lower house of parliament in June 2011 that would have made mandatory the stunning of all animals before slaughter, thereby rendering them unkosher. According to he compromise, ritual slaughter will be permitted so long as the animals lose consciousness within 40 seconds. (JTA, June 13.)

 

NORWEGIAN PARTY SEEKS TO OUTLAW CIRCUMCISION—(New York) A member of Norway’s governing coalition, the Centre Party, has announced it will seek to outlaw circumcision in the country. Ervin Kohn, president of the Jewish Community in Oslo, described the issue as “an existential matter,” as “banning circumcision would send a loud message that the Jewish minority is not wanted.” The ruling Labor Party has yet to formulate a stance on the issue. Norway is among a handful of European countries where the kosher slaughter of animals is prohibited. (JTA, June 25.)

 

U.S. CONGRESSMEN URGE HUNGARIAN PM TO OPPOSE ANTI-SEMITISM—(The Hague) Fifty U.S. congressmen have written a letter to Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban urging him to “use [his] authority to speak out against anti-Semitism.” The letter focuses on the “anti-Semitic…positions espoused by members of the Jobbik Party”—an extreme-right nationalist movement and the Hungary’s third largest political party—whose presidential candidate, Krisztina Morvai, has called Israelis “lice-infested, dirty murderers.” Earlier this month, Elie Wiesel renounced Hungary’s highest honor, the Order of Merit, Grand Cross, awarded to him in 2004, after several Hungarian lawmakers participated in a memorial ceremony for Jozsef Nyiro, a WWII member of Hungary’s parliament who supported Hitler. Following the participation of Hungarian National Assembly Speaker László Kövér in the ceremony, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin retracted his invitation to Kover to visit Israel’s parliament for an event honoring the 100th birthday of Raoul Wallenberg, who was based in Hungary during the Holocaust. Last week, the president of Hungary’s Jewish community declared that Hungarian Jews “feel increasing danger.” (JTA, June 24 & Jerusalem Post, June 25.)

 

NEW $1 MILLION ‘JEWISH NOBEL PRIZE’ ESTABLISHED—(Jerusalem) The establishment of a new $1-million “Jewish Nobel Prize,” the Genesis Prize, has been announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in conjunction with Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky and Genesis Philanthropy Group founder Mikhail Fridman. According to Fridman, “The Genesis Prize emphasizes the contribution of the Jews to world history. Far-reaching achievements in science, the arts, business, medicine, diplomacy and other fields of human endeavor have been realized thanks to the Jewish people’s natural aspiration to improve the world, and to its desire to pass its moral values on to coming generations.” (JTA, June 26.)