Gaza Freedom Flotilla Intercepted at Sea

Who said doing the same thing over and over again was a sign of mental illness?

We can’t blame you if you haven’t heard about the latest blockade runners to Gaza.

We’re bored of them, too.

The latest ship, the Swedish "Marianne" was intersected at sea today.  Its "essential humanitarian aid" consisted of one solar panel.  The following statement was issued from Israel Prime Ministers Netanyahu's  following the Navy Action.

Read the full announcement here.

29/06/2015

 "I would like to commend the sailors and commanders of the Israel Navy for their determined and efficient action in detaining the passengers on the ship that tried to reach the Gaza coast in contravention of the law. This flotilla is nothing but a demonstration of hypocrisy and lies that is only assisting the Hamas terrorist organization and ignores all of the horrors in our region. Preventing entry by sea was done in accordance with international law and even received backing from a committee of the UN Secretary General.

 Israel is a democracy that defends itself in accordance with international law. We are not prepared to accept the entry of war materiel to the terrorist organizations in Gaza as has been done by sea in the past. Just last year we foiled an attempt to smuggle by sea hundreds of weapons that were destined for use in attacks against Israel's citizens.

 There is no siege on Gaza. Israel assists in transferring goods and humanitarian equipment to Gaza – approximately 800 trucks a day that have recently brought into Gaza more than 1.6 million tons of goods. Moreover, Israel assists in hundreds of humanitarian projects, through international organizations, including the building of clinics and hospitals.

 Israel is a state that seeks peace and acts in accordance with international law so that its people can live in safety and its children grow up in peace and quiet."

 The following is a copy of the letter that was issued last night:

 "Welcome to Israel,

 You seem to have gotten lost. Perhaps you meant to sail to a place not far from here – Syria, where Assad's army is slaughtering its people every day, and is supported by the murderous Iranian regime.

 Here in Israel we face a reality in which terrorist organizations like Hamas try to kill innocent civilians.  We defend our citizens against these attempts in accordance with international law. Despite this, Israel transports goods and humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip – up to 800 trucks a day. In the past year we enabled the entry of over 1.6 million tons of products, an average of one ton per person in the Gaza Strip. By the way, these supplies are equivalent to 500,000 boats like the one you came in on today.

 Israel provides assistance to hundreds of humanitarian projects through international organizations, including the building of clinics and hospitals.

 However, we will not allow the terrorist organizations to transfer weapons into the Gaza Strip by sea. Only one year ago, we thwarted an attempt to smuggle hundreds of weapons into the Gaza Strip by ship. These weapons were meant to target innocent Israeli civilians.

 There is no siege on the Gaza Strip, and you are welcome to transfer any humanitarian supplies for the Gaza Strip through Israel.

 Barring the entrance of boats and ships into the Gaza Strip is in accordance with international law, and was even backed by a committee commissioned by the United Nations Secretary General.

 If you were truly concerned about human rights, you would not be sailing in support of a terrorist regime which summarily executes citizens in the Gaza Strip, and uses children as human shields.


 If you were to travel around in Israel, you would see for yourself that the only stable democracy in the Middle East guarantees equality for all its citizens and freedom of worship for members of all religions; it is a country that upholds international law so that its people can live in safety and its children grow up in peace and quiet."

UPDATE: A list of Flotilla Participants has been released:

Protest anti-Semitic speaker Max Blumenthal

Via Dr. Mike Harris and our friends at San Francisco Voice for Israel

ACTION ALERT:

WHERE: First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way, Berkeley
WHEN: Wednesday July 1 7:00-8:00 PM

Next week, on Wednesday July 1, the First Congregational Church in Berkeley will be hosting a talk by Max Blumenthal. Blumenthal will be promoting his latest book, "The 51 Day War" about Operation Protective Edge in Gaza last summer. If it's anything like his last book, "Goliath", it will be filled with outright lies, cherrypicked facts, and support for Hamas. "Goliath" was described as the "I Hate Israel Handbook" by Eric Alterman in the left wing magazine The Nation; Alterman famously stated "It is no exaggeration to say that this book could have been published by the Hamas Book-of-the-Month Club (if it existed)".

Blumenthal's relentless promotion of anti-Semitic stereotypes and his recurrent comparisons of Israel to Nazi Germany has led his writing to be endorsed by David Duke and by neo-Nazi sites such as Stormfront and Rense. Blumenthal has openly welcomed reviews of his book based on that comparison. Justifiably, Blumenthal has been condemned by the Simon Wiesenthal Center and the Louis D Brandeis Center for Human Rights.

None of this will be news to KPFA-FM, which is presenting this talk (the church is not sponsoring the talk, but is renting the space so does share some responsibility for giving Blumenthal a stage). Yet they will eagerly give Blumenthal, who spoke at a pro-Hamas rally in San Francisco during Operation Protective Edge last summer, another arena in which he will present his twisted viewpoint that meets Sharansky's "3D" criteria of anti-Semitism: delegitimization of Israel, demonization of Israel, and double standards applied to Israel.

StandWithUs/SF Voice for Israel will be gathering to stand against this purveyor of hatred and those who are bringing him into our community. KPFA has every right to provide him a platform; the church has every right to allow their sacred space to be used for such profane speech. And we have just as much a right to bear witness to their action, to call them out for enabling this, and to stand up against what the Louis D Brandeis Center described as "the mainstreaming of anti-Semitism".

We will gather from 7 PM to 8 PM outside the church which is at 2345 Channing Way in Berkeley, between Dana and Ellsworth. We will have flags and signs available; please feel free to bring your own signs and Israeli and American flags. No signs may be displayed that condemn all Arabs or all Muslims as an entire group, as we do not stoop to the level of Blumenthal's supporters. Many good signs about Hamas and Gaza are on the StandWithUs website here and here

We will not be attempting to stop anyone from entering the event. Nor will we engage in arguments with Hamas supporters who will be attending the event, though if any of the attendees has an open mind and wants to engage in a civil dialogue, we will be happy to provide them with the facts that Blumenthal doesn't want them to hear.

For more information on Blumenthal:
http://avimayer.tumblr.com/…/max-blumenthal-and-the-gargant…
http://warped-mirror.com/…/free-speech-and-antisemitism-ma…/
http://warped-mirror.com/…/09/max-blumenthals-jew-hating-f…/
http://brandeiscenter.com/…

UPDATE: Max tweeted about the upcoming protest last week,  calling the organizers "right wing fanatics" and derided them for including anti-racist guidelines 
see https://twitter.com/MaxBlumenthal/status/614162202736496640/photo/1 

Of course, the other side not only tolerates blatant anti-Semitic hate at their events, they feature it on their signs. See  http://www.zombietime.com/stop_the_us_israeli_war_8_12_2006/ for examples  

Noad Lahat: Fighting back

This is what my kid calls Karma. @Neo_MMA winning in Berlin, Germany. Not lying down, but fighting, Am Yisroel Chai pic.twitter.com/z20lBuOj6d

— Dan Hamburger (@DanielHamburger) June 21, 2015

From the Times of Israel

Draped in an Israeli flag with a Star of David on his hat and a cut underneath his right eye, Israeli mixed martial arts fighter Noad "Neo" Lahat didn't take his Saturday night win against Sweden's Niklas Backstrom in Berlin lightly.

Addressing his fans in Hebrew, the fighter said he took to the ring with more than just the 8,155-member audience watching him.

"Thank you to everyone who came," he said. "Here in Berlin, I know that 6 million are watching me. There was no chance I would lose."

Thanks Noad. Your words are evocative of this:

Our partners for peace.

A young Israeli policeman is fighting for his life after being stabbed in the neck.  His assailant is being treated in an Israeli hospital.

Over social media, these sorts of attacks have been encouraged, praised and promoted.

#خربشتي #نخبة_القدس pic.twitter.com/4E3TB68oCI

— Mohammad alaa (@mohager241) April 27, 2015

One day after the ambush and murder of  a 25 year old Israeli,  Danny Gonen, an Israeli policeman was stabbed from behind, near the bustling Damasucus gate in Jerusalem.  Before collapsing, the officer was able to shot the terrorist, identified as 18 year old Yasser Tawra from Hebron.  They are both being treated in Israeli hospitals.

A spokesman for Hamas praised the attack as "heroic" .

Welcome to the new Blue Beach Resort in Gaza

Gaza rebuilds.
A brand new resort has opened up in Gaza this month
The Blue beach resort boasts 2 swimming pools, a Jacuzzi, and a computer and video game hall for the kids

From their facebook page

Blue Beach Resort overlooks the Mediterranean Sea from the west and Al-Rasheed Street from the east, located on the other side of Al-Mashtal Hotel.

Blue Beach Resort is one of PRICO’s (Palestine Real Estate Investment Company) investments, which has been established in 1994 as a public limited shareholding company. Blue Beach is a luxurious resort and one of the finest of its kind in Palestine. The resort has been specifically designed to be the ideal escape for family vacations and for recreational and relaxation purposes, away from the daily life hustle and bustle.

The total area of the resort is 21,000 square meters, within which 15,000 square meters are built areas consisting of four buildings for chalets and one for leisure services and facilities, whereas the remaining 6,000 square meters are green areas, consisting of two swimming pools, a Jacuzzi and family sitting areas. The entrance has been designed to be accessed from the fifth floor, as the land -where the Resort are built- are higher from the sea level.

The Chalets are designed in a unique and elegant manner, featuring a distinctive architectural form and luxurious interior spaces, available in various areas; as it consists of 52 single chalets and 80 double chalets.

Blue Beach resort in Gaza

Blue Beach resort in Gaza

Blue Beach resort in Gaza

Blue Beach resort in Gaza

More heart rendering scenes from Gaza, "the world's largest open air prison".

The moral inversion of the Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC)

 Shattered glass. Blood. Carcasses of bombed out buses. Broken bodies. Broken families and broken lives.  This is the legacy of the Intifada.

Since the start of the second Intifada, through 2013 1,227 people have been killed by Palestinian terrorism . 8,549 more have been wounded.  Each of these people has a name. And a story. And a family that loved them.

To "Support the Intifada" is to support the deaths of innocents.

The San Francisco based  Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC) proudly supports the Intifada and the deaths of innocents.

From an AROC event-  Stickers: "Support the Intifada"

AROC, incidentally was one of the sponsors of a now notorious event at San Francisco State University where attendees were encouraged to make placards declaring  "My heroes have always killed colonizers"

Lara Kiswani is the current  Executive Director of the Arab Resource and Organizing Center. At a BDS panel at UC Berkeley several months ago, Lara was quoted as saying, "Bringing down Israel really will benefit everyone in the world, and everyone in society." To a supporter of Israel who issued a tearful plea for co-existence, she snarled  "As long as you continue to be on that side, I'm going to continue to hate you." 

Lara's hateful rhetoric surprises no one. Hate speech, glorification of terror and genocide are commonplace at AROC sponsored events and rallies.

AROC  and its allied organizations now have the Jewish Community Relations Council in their crosshairs accusing the group of "attacking " Arab, Palestinian and Muslim organizations, and calling the JCRC a 'narrow-minded, special interest group".

A brief glance at the JCRC website shows, in complete contrast to the extremist and hateful rhetoric of the AROC, a community organization deeply committed to justice for all.

JCRC Stands With Community Under Siege

June 18th, 2015

JCRC today mourns the victims of last night’s horrific shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Church in Charleston, South Carolina. We share our condolences with their families and stand in solidarity with the African American community and AME churches across the nati

JCRC Expresses Deep Concern About Racism in Law Enforcement

May 18th, 2015

JCRC is greatly dismayed by the recent tragedies and the continued racial divide within our society. We stand with the African American community, as we have for generations, in calling for an end to racial prejudice and discrimination.on.

Speaking Out in Support of the Yezidis

April 15th, 2015

Tragically, the Yezidi community now lives under precarious threat from ISIS. The Yezidis are a little known community, and it is all too easy to forget, to turn the page, to move on. But today we pause, on the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day, to reaffirm the importance of memory and of action.

The moral inversion of AROC and their arrogant assault on a Jewish community institution proves what we've long suspected. Their vision of "Justice'  is "Just us", and they are not a partner in building a more inclusive Bay Area.

J Street. Betraying both Palestinian and Israeli children

Congressional Representative Betty McCollum has drafted a letter to John Kerry, condemning Israel's treatment of Palestinian children. The letter ignores the glorification of violence in Palestinian society, and the role it plays in perpetuating conflict. It ignores the indoctrination of Palestinian youth by the state run media.  It ignores the culture of hatred that is created when streets, city squares and youth sports leagues are named after the murderers of Jews.  This letter infantilizes the Palestinian people by absolving them of responsibility and doing so, makes  peace even more elusive.

As of today, only 12 of our Congressional representatives have signed this biased and one-sided document. Of those, 10 have been endorsed by J Street (names bolded)

Rep Betty McCollum           

Rep Jim McDermott           
Rep Keith Ellison                
Rep Bobby Rush
Rep Danny Davis                
Rep Raúl M. Grijalva          
Rep André Carson
Rep Anna G. Eshoo            
Rep Peter DeFazio               
Rep Earl Blumenauer        
Rep John Conyers               
Rep Chellie Pingree           
Rep Barbara Lee  

Copy of Rep McCollum's letter:
              

Kosher foods in Florida vandalized

What do 2 years olds and Northern California “peace” activists have in common?

For starters, they both are prone to grocery store temper tantrums

For our local “peace” activists, the trigger is anything made in Israel, or reminds them of something made in Israel. Oh, hell. Random kosher food will do in a pinch.

Its all about expressing themselves.

Good old Northern California has had more than its share of vandalism directed towards kosher foods, foods from Israel, and the stores that sell them.

A local Mid-Eastern grocery store  has been repeatedly vandalized for selling Israeli products, and for refusing to give in to the BDS bullies.

This label was affixed to Israeli wines in a local food coop. (Yep, Maggie. We know it was you, and not just because of the low production value.)

There were these jokers, in a Berkeley Safeway.  Its the BDS version of the Wal-martians

And of course, who can forget Kate Raphael, Hassan Fouda, Henry Norr and friends vandalizing Israeli products in Trader Joes?  



This particular stunt backfired so badly, that Trader Joes nationwide sold out of their Israeli products.

The ugliness of this particularly flavor of BDS has apparently spread to Florida, according to Algemeiner:

A Miami supermarket chain said it was investigating reports that Israeli products at a Miami store were vandalized on its shelves.

“Please note that our store manager has been notified [of the damaged products] and they are investigating into this situation,” the Publix supermarket chain tweeted on Tuesday.

The supermarket’s announcement came after a photo of a Kedem product apparently from a North Miami Beach store was posted to Twitter, with a mock-up “Occupation Facts” sticker pasted on the front.

The label featured a call to “boycott this product,” and among the “ingredients” listed were “collective punishments, massacres of innocent civilians, mass arrests.”

Incidentally, in the United States, the Product Packaging Protection Act of 2002  made it a crime to add any writing to a food product prior to its purchase. "Whoever, without the consent of the manufacturer, retailer or distributor, intentionally tampers with a consumer product that is sold in interstate or foreign commerce by knowingly placing or inserting any writing in the consumer product, or in the container for the consumer product, before the sale of the consumer product to any consumer shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 3 years, or both."

Just so you know.

Grumpy Cat Trumps BDS, JVP

The  Palestinian BDS National Committee Facebook page now has 100,000 “likes.”  This is being heralded as the triumphant mainstreaming of BDS.
  
Er, no.

Fallacy: Appeal to popularity

Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) tried this a few months back in perhaps their lamest marketing campaign ever. Only in the fantasy world of BDS, is a "Like" a significant measure of ...anything.

From Jonathan Marks, writing in Commentary
Grumpy Cat Trumps BDS on Facebook

...there is something to Mitchell Bard’s contention that the actual success of the movement, especially in the United States has been underwhelming.

One hundred thousand sounds like a big number. But it sounds less big when you consider that the BDS movement, including its Facebook page, has been around since 2005, is allegedly on a roll, yet has fewer likes over the course of the history of its page than National Geographic Magazine garnered in the past 30 days (270, 405, according to Quintly, a social media analytics site). Over a similar period, the Facebook page of “The Official Grumpy Cat” the spokescat for Friskies, has added over 136,000 new likes to its 7 million. This startling development has, as far as I can tell, had no impact on the international cat community.

Perhaps you will have the patience to scroll all the way through the Quintly rankings to reach BDS. I gave up at the page ranked 6860 (bear in mind that Quintly does not list every page), “I Will Go Slightly Out of My Way to Step on a Crunchy Looking Leaf,” which has over 1,680,000 likes. Now that’s a movement.

We are Not Canary Mission.

The team operating the website Canary Mission is compiling information on anti-Israel activists, and presenting them in an accessible easy to use website.

From their mission statement:

Canary Mission is run by students and concerned citizens galvanized and motivated by our mission to protect the universal values of freedom and democracy. We pursue our mission by presenting the actions of hate-fomenting individuals and organizations - clearing up the ambiguity that surrounds their activities on campus and beyond. Our hope is that by shining a bright light on radicals and their activities, the public can clarify for themselves the nature of such affiliations.

Its an interesting idea. The information at Canary Mission is certainly more professionally presented and meticulously sourced than other "Rogues Galleries"  that have come and gone on the web.

But no, Sylvia, its not us.

Incidentally, a little bird tells me that the Twitter account Betty Blogs is (one of many) sock puppet accounts belonging to the obsessed cyber-stalker from down under, Sylvia Postadas.

We're not taking it personally. Just a few days earlier, Betty Blogs lay the blame on Israel advocacy group, StandWithUs. Perhaps she's just throwing her filth against the wall to see what sticks

Anti-Israel activists seem to be growing increasingly unhinged and  paranoid now that the Jews are fighting back.  

I wouldn't be surprised if Sylvia starts seeing Zionists in her tea leaves and in her vegemite sandwiches real soon.  I suspect she's already begun to count her shoes.

State of the art hospital completed in Gaza

Courtesy of various Indonesian NGO's, a brand new hospital has been completed in Gaza. The Indonesia Hospital, Rumah Sakit Indonesia in  Bayt Layiha is preparing for its grand-opening. 

According to Shadi Abu Herbein, the deputy director of the hospital, the building is over 3000 square meters and has 100 beds, eight in an intensive care unit, and four rooms for surgeries. 

Over 1 million tons of construction material has entered Gaza since October, 2014

Asghar Bukhari: Mossad Stole My Shoe

Asghar Bukhari is one of the founders of the Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK). No stranger to controversy, Bukhari was taken to task for his donations to Holocaust denier David Irving. During the Gaza War, Bukhari wrote "Muslims who fight against the occupation of their lands are 'Mujahadeen' and are blessed by Allah. And any Muslim who fights and dies against Israel and dies is a martyr and will be granted paradise ... There is no greater oppressor on this earth than the Zionists, who murder little children for sport." .

Ok, then.

Yet there may not be a better window into Asghar Bukhari sole, er, soul than his weekends facebook entry, where he claims that "Zionists" (who else would do such a dastardly act?) broke into his home and stole a shoe.

Really.

The response on social media was priceless

Dear @AsgharBukhari, we might have gone a bit overboard with the shoe-snatching last night. Which one is yours? pic.twitter.com/JoleMSpSMl

— Zionist Federation (@ZionistFed) June 13, 2015

Just outside headquarters. #MossadStoleMyShoe pic.twitter.com/nFDAMstOoA

— Teresa DiVicenzo (@Tdivicenzo) June 13, 2015

.@MaajidNawaz asghar's shoe looks like this pic.twitter.com/8YU9VZTWER

— Nick Jode (@nickjode73) June 13, 2015

More evidence of those damn Zionists bugging my shoe. #MossadStoleMyShoe pic.twitter.com/EULc5G2GET

— פטריק פולוק (@redbrasco) June 13, 2015

Quit it now Zionist conspirators! #MossadStoleMyShoe @MaajidNawaz @jeremyr1 @HarasRafiq @Iram_Ramzan @portraitinflesh pic.twitter.com/OQ1mW6dkjD

— John Sargeant (@JPSargeant78) June 13, 2015

#MossadStoleMyShoe @ashgarBukhari has come up with a cunning plan to defeat the evil Zionists... pic.twitter.com/0GxkjurhoW

— SussexFriendsIsrael (@SussexFriends) June 13, 2015

Follow the laughs here

True to form, Asghar Bukhari responds with all the humorlessness and self righteous indignation we've come to expect from the haters:

Funny thing is the zionists now trying to desperately hide their game of intimidation on my Twitter feed. Bit late the horse has bolted

— Asghar Bukhari (@AsgharBukhari) June 13, 2015

UPDATE
Ambassador Lenk comes clean (proving again, that we are the ones with a sense of humor)

We have your shoe, @AsgharBukhari. Call me. #MossadStoleMyShoe http://t.co/4VeVeWD12t

— Arthur Lenk (@ambassadorlenk) June 13, 2015

What we are reading this weekend

What we are reading this weekend:

*   Dan Pine writes in the J weekly; the Jewish News weekly of Northern California  "having covered BDS for a while, I am convinced that many BDS activists don’t want Israel to change. They want it to disappear."
Read about what Dan calls the "malice-in-Wonderland hypocrisies of BDS"

BDS activists playing by unprincipled rules

*   Marianne, the latest ship in the so-called "Freedom Flotilla" is now sailing the Mediterranean, en route to Gaza. Their claims of carrying essential humanitarian supplies for the besieged people of Gaza have been daylighted by the Ma'an News Agency, which has revealed they carry one, yes one, solar panel as cargo.
Freedom Flotilla vows to break siege: 'This time we will reach Gaza'
*Via UNWatch

A report on the Gaza Conflict 2014,  authored by General Klaus Naumann and 10 other former chiefs of staff, generals, senior officers, political leaders and officials from the United States, the United Kingdom, Holland, Spain, Italy, Australia and Colombia.has concluded

“Our overall findings are that during Operation Protective Edge last summer, in the air, on the ground and at sea, Israel not only met a reasonable international standard of observance of the laws of armed conflict, but in many cases significantly exceeded that standard.”

Ahead of UN Report on 2014 Gaza War, Multinational Mission of Generals Find: "Israel not only met but significantly exceeded international legal standards" 

The full report is available here:

Key Preliminary Findings of the High Level International Military Group on the Gaza Conflict

Antisemitic article from Janet Lahr Lewis draws rebuke from the Methodist Bishop of Iowa

"Antisemitism cannot be used as a political tool. It cannot legitimately be used to advance an argument. "

Statement from the Jewish Federation of Greater Des Moines June 2, 2015 

Antisemitism draws rebuke from the Methodist Bishop of Iowa

When presented with an example of blatant antisemitism authored by a United Methodist staff member, Iowa United Methodist Bishop Julius C. Trimble responded quickly and authoritatively. As a bridge-builder for peace, the bishop acknowledged and denounced the antisemitism as evidenced.

A keynote speaker at an upcoming program of the Iowa Chapter of the Methodist Federation for Social Action, United Methodist staff member Janet Lahr Lewis recently called for a boycott of Holocaust museums in protest of an alleged Palestinian holocaust by Israel.

In a column posted by Ms. Lewis to The United Methodist’s General Board of Church & Society website, she wrote: “ Don’t visit a Holocaust museum until there is one built to remember the other holocausts in the world: the on-going Palestinian holocaust, the Rwandan, the Native American, the Cambodian, the Armenian…You could be waiting a long time.” Ms. Lewis serves as the Peace and Justice Program Associate at the General Board of Church & Society, and is a missionary with the Board of Global Ministries of The United Methodist Church.

As analyzed by the Jewish Federation, the problems of Ms. Lewis’ statement are as follows:

1. Ms. Lewis implies that it is solely up to the Jews to memorialize the genocides of history – and that the Jews are somehow blocking the memorialization of other genocides. Outside of the fact that Holocaust museums, especially the major ones, do in fact recognize, study, memorialize and call for action against genocides worldwide, the questions arise: Why are the Jews uniquely responsible for this, and how are Jews blocking others from doing so? Singling out Jews in this manner is antisemitism.

2. Contending, as Ms. Lewis does, that Israel is committing genocide or a holocaust against the Palestinian people is not only inaccurate in analogy, but is also defamatory. It is a charge that demonizes Israel by insinuating that the intention of Israel is to annihilate the Palestinian people and casts Israelis as Nazis. Demonizing Israel is antisemitism.

3. Finally, by advocating that Methodists boycott Holocaust museums, Ms. Lewis is targeting Jews and not Israel. When people take out their anger at Israel by targeting Jews in general, that is antisemitism.

When presented with what a staff member was advocating, Bishop Julius C. Trimble issued a message of assurance in response to our concerns. In his letter, which is now available online in order that he not be taken out of context, the bishop reaffirmed that his denomination denounces all acts and expressions of anti-Semitism, along with all forms and expressions of hatred, racism.

The bishop implicitly advised that it is unwise to promote the boycotting of Holocaust museums. “I have visited the Holocaust Museum in Israel and Beachwood, Ohio on several occasions. I have found them to be deeply moving, education and painful experiences. Knowing the history of the Jews, and many others who were killed and their lives before the Holocaust, serves to deepen my own desire for peace.”

Bishop Trimble asserted, quite rightfully, we believe, that “we cannot build bridges between communities by comparing atrocities…but we can denounce hatred, racism and anti-Semitism wherever it surfaces.”

In accordance with his stated guideline, Bishop Trimble then proceeded to note: “Accusing Israel of committing genocide against the Palestinian people is anti-Semitism; that is wrong, because it is defamatory.”

We thank Bishop Trimble for his forthright evaluation of the hurtful sentiments expressed by Janet Lahr Lewis, and we call upon Ms. Lewis to desist from using such defamatory means to promote her agenda.

We moreover request the Iowa Chapter of the Methodist Federation for Social Action to publicly repudiate their keynote speaker’s use of antisemitism.

Antisemitism cannot be used as a political tool. It cannot legitimately be used to advance an argument. 

Another Terror Tunnel Work Accident in Gaza

Work accident.  

Essam Ketnana , a 23 year old member of the Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas was killed on Friday when a terror tunnel he was working in collapsed.

Hamas continues to squander international aid rebuilding its network of terror tunnels, while hundreds of families remain homeless.

From the Palestine Information Center:

Member of Hamas's political bureau Khalil al-Hayya said his Movement would never stop making military preparations and digging more tunnels to confront the Israeli occupation in any coming battle.

"The soldiers of al-Qassam Brigades will continue day and night to dig more tunnels, which have become the greatest weapon to vanquish the occupation," Hayya stated during his participation on Friday afternoon in the funeral of Isam Ketnani, who died earlier on the same day in a tunnel collapse.

"The occupation's blockade will only strengthen our resilience and steadfastness," the Hamas official stressed.

Essam's martyrdom photo.

Water Water Everywhere: Israel Doubles Gaza's water supply

Water issues are not unique to the Middle East. 145 countries share inter-river systems. 21 countries receive 50% or more of their freshwater from "upstream" nations. Nearly 2/3 of the world's population lives under water stress. Most shared water resources are not covered under treaties- it took the United States and Mexico 40 years of negotiation to  to agree to the 1944 Water Treaty for the "Utilization of Waters of
the Colorado and Tijuana Rivers and of the Rio Grande".

According to the World Resources Institute, Israel faces greater water stress than the Palestinian territories. 

Facing the facts on the ground, it makes this article even more remarkable.

From Haaretz: Israel doubles water supplies to Gaza

Israel's national water company Mekorot, in accordance with the Water Authority's guidelines, recently doubled its water supply to the Gaza Strip by 5 million cubic meters. The annual supply will now amount to 10 million cubic meters of water.

The new water supply of 5 million cubic meters to the Gaza Strip will come from two sources including the Nahal Oz pipeline in the south and an older line in the Kissufim area that provides water to the center of the Strip.

The article continues:

Over the years, the quantity of water supplied by Mekorot increased far beyond the amount agreed upon. Over the last five years, over 52 million cubic meters of water were annually supplied to the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and 5 million cubic meters of water were annually supplied to the Gaza Strip, nearly 2 twice the agreed-upon amount.

The amount of water provided to the Palestinian Authority from Israel's national water system and its quality are among the highest in the world, in accordance with international standards. Moreover, Israel transfers, via Mekorot, 55 million cubic meters of water annually to Jordan.

Unfortunately, in the strange and truth-option world of anti-Israel activism we can't count on the actual facts to put the water libel to rest.

Quenching California's Thirst. Lessons from Israel

Everyone is talking about the drought in California and wondering if our 4 years of  historic dryness are part of a larger future trend.  Emergency water restrictions are in place in many municipalities, with more on the way.

In an effort to quench California’s thirst, experts are looking across the ocean to tiny Israel, a country that is 60% desert.  After a seven-year drought beginning in  2005 depleted Israel’s main natural water sources — the Sea of Galilee and the mountain and coastal aquifers, Israel considered importing water from Turkey.   But now through a combination of conservation, recycling and innovation, Israel has temporarily solved its water issues.  Currently, the natural fresh water at Israel’s disposal in an average year does not cover its total use of roughly 525 billion gallons and over 50 percent of the water used in Israeli homes, agriculture and industry is artificially produced

Israel established a Water Authority  in 2007, which led the way to decrease demand and increase supply of this precious commodity.

Conservation.

A  tax was placed on excessive household water consumption, penalizing families with lawns, swimming pools and leaky pipes. Most families opted for water saving  

Recycling

Israel has  become the world leader in reusing wastewater for agriculture and landscaping. It treats 86 percent of its domestic wastewater is treated and reused- about 55 percent of the total water used for agriculture. Spain is second to Israel, recycling 17 percent of its wastewater. The United States lags behind, with only 1 percent of its water reused.

Innovation

Since 2005, Israel has built 5 desalination plants, with one-third of Israel's drinking-quality water now coming from desalination. By 2050, it is expected that 70% of Israel's drinking water will come from the sea.

For more information on what California can learn from water-thrifty Israel, see:

Israel to California: Here's How to save water

Israel Desalination Shows California Not to Fear Drought

Israel Gives California Some Advice On How To Deal With Drought

Could Israel's water technology ease drought conditions in California?

On June 11, a team of experts will be meeting in Sacramento to discuss what steps we can take to avert a water crisis, and what lessons we can learn from Israel's experiences.

And of course, there will be a protest, organized and promoted by Jewish Voice for Peace and other assorted haters.   Israel haters would rather succumb to thirst than take anything- even information- from Israel.

Water Libel