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The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil,    but because of the people who don't do anything about it    
Commentary

TitleDescriptionDate
Sharansky’s guide to the region’s human rights dilemmasDavid Horovitz - Times of Israel "“And the only good thing that’s happening is happening in spite of all this: Civil society for Palestinians was much better before 1993 than when Yasser Arafat came and started destroying it” and it’s improving again now, in the post-Arafat era." ca 31/1/2014
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Obama and Kerry Jeopardize Peace with IranSheldon Richman - ICH "Ideally, the Obama administration would simply exit the Middle East, taking all its military and economic aid with it. The U.S. government cannot micromanage events there, especially when it is no honest, neutral broker. Shamefully, it is firmly in the Israeli camp against the Palestinians (who, let us remember, are the occupied, not the occupiers), and generally in the Sunni Muslim camp against the Shi’ites, led by Iran. (Iraq is the anomaly.)" ca31/1/2014
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What Shulamit Aloni missedAssaf Ronel - Haaretz - Shulamit Aloni `believed that the Israeli original sin was the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1967. Along with the entire Zionist Left, she did not understand what the Right for its part understood very well: that the source of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict was in 1948 and even before; not "the Occupation".`30/1/2014
Netanyahu reveals no intention of settler withdrawalAkiva Eldar - Al Monitor - "Al-Monitor has learned that despite the vehement opposition of all his aides and associates, Abbas is refusing to say “no” to US Secretary of State John Kerry and is even willing to swallow the hard-to-digest pill of recognizing Israel as a Jewish state." - id for rh30/1/2014
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Goodbye Gaza: our correspondent reflects on her time in the Middle EastHarriet Sherwood--Hazem Balousha was uncharacteristically despondent when he greeted me recently at the end of my long walk through the open-air caged passageway that separates the modern hi-tech state of Israelfrom the tiny, impoverished, overcrowded GazaStrip. dn26/1/2014
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`Auschwitz, we have returned!’Uri Misgav--The journey to Auschwitz-Birkenau amounts to the Jewish people’s defeat. It is a depressing tale about a nation that has managed to survive - only to run back to the still-smoking crematoria.dn26/1/2014
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Cracks in the Alliance: Is There Finally Daylight between Israel and the US? Jonathan Cook--Things have come to a strange state of affairs when Washington regards Avigdor Lieberman, Israel’s far-right foreign minister, as the voice of moderation in the Israeli cabinet.dn26/1/2014
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The places a regular Birthright tour doesn’t take you Gideon Levy and Alex Levac--Gideon Levy spends a day in the company of young Jewish-Americans who came on the Birthright program and stayed on a few days to see the West Bank. dn 26/1/2014
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Himmler`s letters revealed: `I`m going to Auschwitz. Kisses`Yehuda Shohat and Elad Zeret--Private correspondence of architect of Final Solution shows how top Nazi was willing to shoot his own mother if Hitler asked, but despite mass murder surrounding him family life was indispensable. dn26/1/2014
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Shin Bet in danger of playing politicsAmir Oren--Israel`s security service is the secret, most dangerous card Benjamin Netanyahu keeps in his pocket as John Kerry advances his framework agreement.dn26/1/2014
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The return of De Gaulle?Adam Keller - Crazy Country - "It is clear that the possibility of Israel reaching peace with the Palestinians and they ceasing to be `The Enemy" does not appear on the mental horizon of Danon and of the other heads of the nationalist Right, competing with each other in verbal outrage." - id 29/1/2014
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Emotion drives Palestinian rejection of peace with IsraelRay Hanania - Columns - "It’s true that Israel has the upper hand in the current peace talks pushed aggressively by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. But Palestinians put too little faith in the power that peace gives Palestine once it becomes a sovereign nation recognized by the United Nations, and, more importantly, by the United States." - id 29/1/2014
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Analysis: Israelis talking to one another and not with the PalestiniansHerb Keinon - Jerusalem Post - The less substantive the document [Kerry is preparing], the less gravitas it has, the “lighter” it is, the better for Netanyahu, because that way he may not have to take it to the cabinet for its approval; or if he does, he can say the document will only form the basis of negotiations, and while Bennett may vote against it, the meagerness of the document might enable him to remain in the government. bz28/1/2014
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Red Rag weekly column: Sharon: a cruel genius, or just cruel? Gideon Spiro - Death of Ariel Sharon - John Kerry: peddler of illusions? Israeli concentration camp - Haim Gouri and me26/1/2014
Five minutes to twelve, and no Plan B Adam Keller - Crazy Country "Netanyahu himself also flew to Davos , where among other things he had a new meeting scheduled with Secretary of State Kerry. In his speech he tried to display confidence and optimism, stating that there will not be a boycott of Israel - and even if there were, Israel will overcome it, “it would only encourage our inventiveness and entrepreneurship”. Reporter Gideon Kutz, who covered the event, wrote "Netanyahu was not at his best in this speech. His appearance was not, for example, like the successful performances at AIPAC. There he was speaking to a King Bibi audience. In Davos he is wary of a hostile response.” ca25/1/2014
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Michael Oren: If Peace Talks Fail, Israel Should Withdraw from West BankYair Rosenberg - Tablet "Now that he is no longer tasked with representing the Israeli government’s positions, it appears Oren has begun voicing his own views–including those to the left of his former boss. Whether Netanyahu is inclined to follow Oren’s advice should the peace talks collapse remains to be seen..." ca24/1/2014
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Palestinians will not agree to Israeli presence in Jordan ValleyAbdullah H. Erakat - The Media Line - "Netanyahu says control over Valley acts as buffer to prevent attacks on Israel, senior Palestinian security expert says `only peace deal will stop terrorist attacks (on Israel)`." - id for rh 23/1/2014
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The Contradictions of Israeli ExceptionalismABBA A. SOLOMON and NORMAN SOLOMON - Counterpunch - "The Blind Alley of J Street and Liberal American Zionism." - id for rh 23/1/2014
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After glorification of Sharon, only boycott can reveal Israel’s truthRichard Irvine - EI - "Avi Shlaim was one of the few dissident voices to recognize that the legacy of Sharon’s criminality “has been to empower and embolden some of the most racist, xenophobic, expansionist and intransigent elements in Israel’s dysfunctional political system.”" - id for rh 23/1/2014
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Palestinian `incitement`: Israel’s usual last resortAkiva Eldar - Al Monitor - "Incitement in the Palestinian Authority has not been measured to date by any valid research tool, and yet Israeli officials keep raising this claim whenever they run out of propaganda ammunition to justify their occupation and settlement activities." - id for rh 23/1/2014
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Stop looking for traitors in every cornerAvi Dabush - Ynet - "Why is almost everything taking place in Israel seen as a New Israel Fund conspiracy?" - id for rh 23/1/2014
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Bibi knows where Ya`alon stands on peace talksAkiva Eldar - Al Monitor - "Shimon Shiffer, the commentator of Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, did us a big favor on Jan. 14 by publishing the “off the record” slanderous words leveled at US Secretary of State John Kerry by Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon." - id22/1/2014
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`Leftist` teacher must not be firedNitzan Horowitz - Ynet - "Today it`s a leftist, tomorrow a rightist. Today a secular, tomorrow a religious person. Today a teacher, tomorrow a journalist. There is no limit, and it`s a very slippery slope." - id22/1/2014
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Approaching the Peace Intersection (with a new link)Adam Keller - Crazy Country - "Throughout Israel car drivers were confronted with the nearly taboo word "peace."" - id 22/1/2014
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Americans denied fair debate on IsraelRay Hanania - Columns - "Members of Congress are hysterical. They spend more time defending Israel than representing the interests of American taxpayers because they are rewarded generously by Israel’s powerful Political Action Committees (PACs) to keep Americans in the dark." - id 22/1/2014
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Why Benjamin Netanyahu May Look at the Math — and Cut a Deal J.J. Goldberg - The Forward - Bibi ran for PM in 2009, intending to roll back the concessions Ehud Olmert had offered the Palestinians in 2008. Five years later, he’s hit a wall: The Palestinians aren’t backing down nearly as far as he’d hoped. And in the meanwhile, the rest of the world — even including the Americans — is running out of patience.(...) Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, usually considered one of the most hawkish figures in the cabinet, has been singing Kerry’s praises of late, declaring that Israel won’t get a better deal than the one Kerry is preparing. Wildly out of character? Not neccesarily. Before ideology, Lieberman is first of all a canny survivor, unmatched in his skill at sensing where the wind is blowing. Right now he feels the wind blowing from Washington. ak21/1/2014
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Operation Cast Lead five years on: `We are still demanding justice` Raji Sourani--ICC should take concrete steps to ensure justice is served for the victims of Israel`s aggression in Gaza in 2008-2009.dn19/1/2014
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The life-threatening obsession with the Jewish stateGideon Levy--Israel is exhibiting classic signs of obsessive-compulsive behavior with its incessant demands to be recognized as the `Jewish state` by Palestinians. dn19/1/2014
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A refugee in Israel hangs between a brutal past and a hopeless future Gideon Levy and Alex Levac--Most of Ahmed’s extended family lives in migrant camps in Sudan and Chad, where he actually received official refugee status. However, he was forced to flee and ended up in Israel, where he still holds out meager hope of receiving asylum. dn19/1/2014
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Academy drops ‘territories’ in Palestine referenceAssociated Press--Thursday’s Oscar nominations had some new language in the foreign language category: Nominee “Omar” was described as being from “Palestine,” a reference the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has carefully avoided in the past. dn18/1/2014
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Infiltrators all, whether from Sudetenland in 1939 or Sudan in 2014Gideon Levy--My father was an infiltrator during the British Mandate; his fate is not so different from that of Ahmed from Darfur today. dn18/1/2014
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The Palestinians should thank Ya`alonLarry Derfner - +972 "With his gruff, stereotypically military manner, his harsh rhetoric, his arrogance and his pro-settlement, anti-Arab politics, Ya’alon is a poster boy for the occupation. Just when the world was ready to forget the bad old Sharon, he’s been reincarnated." ca17/1/2014
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The problem is Netanyahu, not Ya’alonNoam Sheizaf - +972 "People like Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. Ron Dermer and Netanyahu’s new policy adviser Dore Gold have spent their entire professional careers arguing against a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders, land swaps or not, and none of their recent statements show any change of heart – neither has Netanyahu, for that matter. The nearly nine-year guessing game about Netanyahu’s “true” intentions says more about those doing the guessing than the man himself." ca17/1/2014
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Lieberman a firestarter with land swap proposalAkiva Eldar - Al Monitor - "Lieberman does not care about political correctness. He makes a living stirring up sentiments against the left wing and has made a career out of setting fires in the Arab sector." - id for rh 16/1/2014
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The Man on the WallThomas L. Friedman - NYT - "Indeed, I don’t know what, if any, epitaph the Sharon family will etch on his gravestone one day, but an adaptation of the most memorable line from Clint Eastwood’s classic “Magnum Force” would certainly be appropriate: “A country’s got to know its limitations.”" - id for rh 16/1/2014
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When Kerry fell in love with LiebermanYacov Ben Efrat - Challenge - "To sell the illusion that a normal life can be lived with the occupation, the Israeli rightwing needs the PA. Without it, and without funding from the EU and the US, Israel would not be able to lead a “normal” life while maintaining the occupation." - id for rh 16/1/2014
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Israel in search of a leaderBen Caspit - Al Monitor - "Ya’alon wants to be Sharon. The problem, however, is that he wants to be the former Sharon rather than the latter-day one. He wants to be Sharon — the man of war, the intransigent and unstoppable politician." - id 15/1/2014
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Israel’s propaganda targets ChristiansRay Hanania - Saudi Gazette - "Yes, Christians are discriminated against in Israel. And wouldn’t it be nice if the AJC were to put out a press release that not only condemned the destruction of a Christian library in Lebanon, but also condemned Israel’s destruction of Christian sites, Christian property and Christian livelihood in Palestine?" - id 15/1/2014
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Sharon and me Adam Keller - Crazy Country - "In the summer of 1970...the leaflets specified the name of the military commander who had ordered the acts of repression in Gaza: Ariel “Arik” Sharon , General in Command South.." - id15/1/2014
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Why Do They Love Him? SharonAharon Shabtai - CounterPunch - "Why do they love Sharon? Because he is heavy he is wide he is stuffed, has invisible edges, but he is whole, continuous, and he rises, and rises again, always rolling. And when he sits it all comes to him, meat, money, real estate" [ry]14/1/2014
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How Ariel Sharon Shaped Israel’s DestinyMax Blumenthal - The Nation - In a bloody career that spanned decades, he destroyed entire cities and presided over the killing of countless civilians [ry]14/1/2014
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No Tears for Sharon at Site of Sabra and Shatila MassacreReuters/New York Times - Perhaps unsurprisingly, survivors of the 1982 massacres at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps showed little sympathy when they heard of the Israeli commander-cum-politician`s passing after eight years in a coma. 70- year-old Milany Boutrous Alha Bourje recalled how her husband and son were shot dead that day by militiamen closely allied to Israel, and said bitterly: `Sharon should have suffered longer before he died, he should have suffered like we suffered`. The survivors` bitterness is exacerbated by the fact that they still live in misery and poverty, harassed by the Lebanese authorities and seeing little or no chance that the ongoing peace negotiations with Israel would give them anything. ak 13/1/2014
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He was always firstHanna Kim - Ben-Gurion called him a liar. He started his career by founding a cross-border liquidation/assassinations unit, a bunch of weirdoes bordering on madness, with knives between their teeth. He got a farm and a home as a present from a US millionaire, and his wife called herself "his geisha". And yes, he had a sense of humor. He was fascinating, corrupt, a dangerous person who did not stop at red traffic lights, didn`t bother too much with the pros and cons, but to his last conscious moment sought revenge on his various enemies. In my journalistic experience, Sharon`s faction within Likud was always the most fascinating and paranoid as well as the craziest. Arik was the first King of Israel. Shalom. 13/1/2014
Occupation 101: The high school principal with a different agenda Ayelett Shani--Empathy is a quality that needs to be developed in children, says Ram Cohen of Tichonet high school in Tel Aviv. dn12/1/2014
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Book review: The year Palestine became a zero-sum game - 1929Ran Greenstein--After 1929, Arabic-speaking Jews who had lived in peace and cultural affinity with fellow residents, and orthodox Jews who had shunned Zionism, could no longer feel safe among their erstwhile neighbors and friends. They had to rely on the new Yishuv to protect them from then on, and they never looked back. Introducing new information and highlighting forgotten facts, a new book by Hillel Cohen brings fresh context to the 1929 massacres in Mandate Palestine.dn12/1/2014
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Between Kerry`s visits, Israel announces more settlement constructionBatsheva Sobelman--JERUSALEM -- Israel announced plans Friday to build an additional 1,400 housing units in West Bank settlements and eastern Jerusalem, drawing fierce criticism and warnings of destroying the ongoing peace process.dn12/1/2014
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Hebron dig: Annexation in the guise of archaeologyHaaretz Editorial--The right’s political exploitation of archaeology threatens to turn the discipline into a mouthpiece for propaganda.dn12/1/2014
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Sharon: The architect of terror Ahmed Moor--Ariel Sharon`s visit to the al-Aqsa mosque prompted the second intifada dn12/1/2014
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Ariel Sharon: Peacemaker, hero... and butcher Robert Fisk--He was respected in his eight years of near-death, with no sacrilegious cartoons to damage his reputation; and he will, be assured, receive the funeral of a hero and a peacemaker. Thus do we remake history. dn12/1/2014
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Who incites more Palestinian hatred: Abbas or Netanyahu?Peter Beinart - Haaretz - I’ve met many Palestinians who hate Israel. But I’ve never met one who attributes that hatred to street signs or textbooks. Instead, they talk about parents evicted from their homes, cousins jailed, lands taken, travel permits denied. One Palestinian friend, born inside the green line, told me about being unable to live with his West Bank-born wife inside Israel. Another told me that her husband, born near Bethlehem, has five brothers, all of whom have been shot by Israeli soldiers. I’ve lost count of the number of Palestinian, Arab and Muslim acquaintances who have recounted humiliating experiences at Ben Gurion Airport. In my experience, at least, Palestinians explain their anger toward Israelis ... as the product of bitter, personal experience. bz11/1/2014
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Ben-Gurion didn`t recognize Israel as the nation state of the entire Jewish peopleChemi Shalev--And why Lieberman’s proposals on ceding 300,000 Israeli Arabs only strengthen Palestinian suspicions of the demand to recognize Israel as a `Jewish State.`dn11/1/2014
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Hatred of African migrants is Israel’s Stockholm SyndromeGideon Levy--Instead of developing a sense of justice based on their traditions, Israeli Jews have developed a strange sense of identity with their abusers of yesteryear.dn11/1/2014
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John Kerry’s attack on liberal democracyNoam Sheizaf - +972 "According to reports, the secretary of state has accepted Netanyahu’s demand that Israel be recognized as a ‘Jewish state.’" ca10/1/2014
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Palestinian nationhood: End the politics of compromise now Stuart Rees - Al Jazeera "If Palestine is to become a genuine nation state, Palestinians and their supporters must replace the politics of compliance and compromise with a politics of unity and assertiveness...Israel`s determination never to allow a viable Palestinian state is aided by the distractions of the Syrian civil war and by the Egyptian military government`s hostility to Palestinians. " ca10/1/2014
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Lieberman’s land swap proposal shakes up peace talksBen Caspit - Al Monitor - "According to Lieberman, Kerry “goes with the Israeli flow” on two key issues: the security arrangements and the demand to recognize Israel as the Jewish state." - id 8/1/2014
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Let`s swap Lieberman and keep Wadi AraYigal Sarna - Ynet - "His proposals are always aimed at inflaming tensions, as if they were rage, hatred and anxiety – the stuff A. Lieberman is fed in his eternal paradise." - id 8/1/2014
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In Middle East, Deep down, we all know that peace is bestRay Hanania - Saudi Gazette - "Everyone in the Middle East has paid a price for the endless Arab-Israeli conflict. Everyone is a victim. The only things that really separate us are politics, religion and our attitudes." - id 8/1/2014
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Suicidal governmentAdam Keller - Crazy Country - "Israeli control of the Jordan Valley means that it would be Israel which is in control of the borders of the State of Palestine, determining who will go and out and who will be banned, which goods may or may not be imported and exported. It would mean that Palestine will not be a truly independent state, but an enclave under a continued Israeli rule." - id8/1/2014
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Defending Geneva: Understanding Israel`s opposition to peace with IranReuven Kaminer - Ma`an - This must be rather difficult for many honest and sincere friends of Israel who could not dream of ending up as Netanyahu`s foot soldiers, who find it hard to believe that they are called up to sacrifice even life and liberty in order to allow the settler right and its fanatic vanguard to dominate Israel and to eliminate any chance for peace and moderation in the region. bz7/1/2014
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What about those who murdered innocent Palestinians?Anat Matar - Haaretz - Unlike the prisoners released this week, the Israeli soldiers and settlers who have blood on their hands never even served time in jail6/1/2014
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Neutral – in whose favor? Uri Avnery - Gush Shalom - "John Kerry is carrying with him a draft plan for the solution of the conflict. It was prepared meticulously by a staff of experts. And what a staff! One hundred and sixty dedicated individuals! I won’t ask how many of them are fellow Jews. The very question smacks of anti-Semitism. Jewish Americans are like any other Americans. Loyal to their country. Neutral in our conflict. Neutral for whom?"6/1/2014
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In 2014, American Jewish leaders might lose control of the Israel debatePeter Beinart--Washington’s failure to clinch two-state deal would shift Palestinian focus to international groups and college campuses where organized Jewry holds little sway. dn5/1/2014
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The manhunt against asylum seekersHaaretz Editorial--On Monday evening dozens of inspectors from the Population, Immigration and Border Authority raided Levinsky Park in south Tel Aviv, accompanied by police on horseback and Border Police. They caught about 100 African migrants who were put on buses, some by force.dn5/1/2014
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Former Mossad chief: Jordan Valley not a vital Israeli security assetHaaretz--Any political statement citing security reasons for retaining Israeli control of the Jordan Valley is mere manipulation, Maariv reports. dn5/1/2014
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Israeli nuclear ambiguity as an illusionAmir Oren--Recently revealed documents from the U.S. archive could be the trigger for Israel to change its policy on official recognition of a nuclear program. dn5/1/2014
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John Kerry works hard to broker an Israeli-Palestinian deal in the shadow of SharonHarriet Sherwood--John Kerry, the US secretary of state, is engaged in intense efforts this weekend to coax reluctant Israeli and Palestinian leaders towards an agreement to end their decades-old conflict. dn5/1/2014
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The bitter pill Israel must swallow if it wants peaceYehezkel Dror - Haaretz - ...Let me start with what is required from Israel. Hardest of all in this real-political necessity is relinquishing the vision of owning “all the Promised Land.” This does not involve negation of the moral right of the Jewish People to the Promised Land (which may be a good argument before a Cosmic Court). But in the real world, its ignoring of real-political constraints may result in devastation. Consequently, there is no way around the renunciation of the “Greater Israel” ideology. On an action level, Israel should, among other things, avoid setting up and enlarging settlements outside of the territories likely to be included in agreed exchanges of land (and clearly marked as such). Hate crimes against Palestinians – so-called “prize-tag” attacks – and other provocative actions are to be strictly controlled. It`s also necessary to change the way the conflict is taught in our schools, by presenting our rights together with the Arab narrative as a “fact” that we regard as incorrect but one that cannot be ignored. [Prof. Yehezkel Dror is the author of "Israeli Statecraft: National Security Challenges and Responses"-bz]4/1/2014
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Is Bibi Shedding His Peace-Seeker Pose? J.J. Goldberg - The Forward "Bibi just named a new political-diplomatic adviser, onetime U.N. ambassador Dore Gold. Gold heads the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, originally a centrist Jewish-affairs research center that under his tutelage has become a right-wing think tank specializing in pessimistic analyses..." ca 3/1/2014
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Fury and the Arab SpringMohamed El-Said Idris - Al Ahram "The Arab revolutions are in danger. Their gains are jeopardised by proliferating political violence and the chances of reversing the trend have been diminished by the cumulative effects of the mistakes of the new rulers. Developments in Egypt, Yemen, Libya and Tunisia testify to this." ca3/1/2014
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About goodies, baddies and two little girlsAdam Keller - Crazy Country - "Our fighters are heroic and humane soldiers, theirs are terrible monstrous terrorists. Our dead civilians were innocent victims of cruel murder, theirs are unfortunate mistakes, collateral damages . And even our children are sweeter and far more precious than theirs." - id 1/1/2014
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Christmas is a difficult time for true ChristiansRay Hanania - Saudi Gazette - "Do you care that Bethlehem is under oppressive siege by Israel? Are you concerned for Christians who live in the Holy Land, where Christianity first grew? Or, is Christmas just a time when you spend money on presents." - id1/1/2014
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Zionism is part of Canada’s political fabricYves Engler - The Electronic Intifada - "At the same time, the anti-racist sectors of Canada’s Jewish community have made major strides in recent years. Groups such as Independent Jewish Voices, Not In Our Name, Jewish Voice for Peace, the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network, Women in Solidarity with Palestine and Jews for a Just Peace, have undercut the notion that all Canadian Jews support Israeli policy or Zionism." - id for rh 9/1/2014
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Israeli Official Points to ‘Incitement’ by PalestiniansJODI RUDOREN - NYT - "Palestinian leaders dismiss the renewed focus on incitement as a ruse to distract from disagreements over issues including borders, the future of Jerusalem and the rights of refugees." - id for rh9/1/2014
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Lieberman is a man of his word - when it comes to population transferUzi Baram - Haaretz - [Upon Lieberman`s expressing support for the Kerry effort] there will arise new defenders who will celebrate Lieberman’s courage for daring to swim against the murky stream that prevails on the right. They’ll hide what he said about “land and population swaps,” his condition for any agreement, without asking the opinion of those who would be affected [who fear that from second class citizens, they would become citizens of a third-world, less than sovereign, impoverished Palestine, needing permits to continue working in Israel-bz].7/1/2014
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From the business point of view: no choice but to come to a fair compromise Munib al Masri - Haaretz - As a founder of Breaking the Impasse, a group of Palestinian and Israeli businesspeople who represent more than 30 percent of the gross domestic product of both countries, I can say unequivocally that the only way for Israelis to ensure a prosperous future for themselves is to help Palestinians build an open, free state of their own, and this starts with a political, and not economic, resolution of two states based on the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as a shared capital. bz 7/1/2014
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Demand for Arab Recognition of Israel as Jewish State Makes No Sense Paul L. Scham - Partners for Progessive Israel - I have never understood the current Israeli demand that Arab states recognize Israel as a "Jewish state." Unless, that is, it is meant primarily as a roadblock to any successful peace settlement. Arabs understand the demand as trying to extract a barely disguised confession that they were wrong at every point in opposing Jewish immigration, Zionism, and the establishment of the state of Israel, and I can`t see what other purpose it has. But when, aside from total capitulation, has even a defeated enemy had to announce publicly that they were wrong from the beginning? And the only reason we have negotiations going on under the umbrella of a twenty year-old "peace process" is that both sides reluctantly recognized that total victory is not an option.ak7/1/2014
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In the land of sin and hatredNahum Barnea - Y-net - Yossi Kuperwasser, director-general of the Ministry of Strategic Affairs told the cabinet ministers what horrible things our Palestinian neighbors are saying about us, and illustrated it with an audio-visual presentation. Indeed, the statements quoted were ugly, and there is no way of justifying or morally defending them. What was missing was a review of the state of incitement right here. Instead of whining about someone in the Palestinian Authority comparing Jews to dogs, the cabinet should have asked how one of its own senior ministers likened the Palestinians to shrapnel in the backside. It could have opened up a thorough discussion on this issue: What is more contemptible, a dog or buttocks. ak7/1/2014
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Why Kerry Is ScaryThomas L. Friedman - NYT - "If the Palestinians and Israelis find a way to proceed with the Kerry plan, everything is still possible. Success is hardly assured, but it will prove that it’s not midnight yet." - id for rh30/1/2014
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No, Abe Foxman, America is not out to get the JewsLarry Derfner - +972 - "The idea that Pollard would be free if not for anti-Semitism in high American places is the wildest, stupidest, most paranoid notion that could be. It is also the most insulting to the United States. America has lots of bad points, but aggravated anti-Semitism at the top is not one of them." - id for rh30/1/2014
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Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Yadlin: Mideast conditions allow Israel to take risksGilad Morag - Ynet - In Institute for National Security Studies conference, head of institute addresses poiltical negotiations: "The price of avoiding decisions will be greater than the risk of making them," he stressed. "The improved regional conditions allow Israel to take risks. Going forward with the Palestinian issue will help us promote our interests in the Arab world and against Iran." bz28/1/2014
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Netanyahu steps up demands, wants settlers to remain in Palestinian stateNoam Sheizaf - +972 - The source didn’t explain what arrangement Netanyahu envisioned for the settlers: whether they would remain under Israeli control or accept Palestinian sovereignty. Sure enough, the settlers were quick to attack the prime minister for his latest “capitulation.” Netanyahu’s office later explains that the object of the new demand is to score points against the Palestinian Authority by ‘exposing its real face.’ bz28/1/2014
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Sticking Point in Peace Talks: Recognition of a Jewish StateJODI RUDOREN - International New York Times - Critics skeptical of Mr. Netanyahu’s commitment to a two-state solution to the long-running conflict say that recognition of a Jewish state is a poison pill that he is raising only to scuttle the talks. The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, has repeatedly said that the Palestinians will never agree to it, most recently in a letter to President Obama last month.-rh 2/1/2014
Obama should see peace process throughAkiva Eldar - Al-Monitor - What’s the point of Obama’s declaration in Cairo that the US “does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements" and "This construction violates previous agreements and undermines efforts to achieve peace”? US spy satellites can tell the president how many new houses have been built in the settlements since he declared in that same speech, “It is time for these settlements to stop.”-rh1/1/2014
Every person has a nameNeve Gordon - Loondon Review of Books - The judge overlooked an important lesson taught in every Israeli primary school: that the moral imperative that every person has a name is categorical and therefore universal.-rh 1/1/2014
The Latest Bizarre Demand - On the Jewish State of IsraelJOHN V. WHITBECK - Counterpunch - "No Palestinian leadership could accept this demand and survive. Israelis know that. That is why the demand is being made." - id 1/1/2014
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