Fighting back against BDS. Yascher Koach to Western Washington University

Today, the Associated Students of Western Washington University  became the first North American student government to pass a proactive resolution against the anti-Israel BDS movement. The resolution outlawing boycotts based on national origin  passed unanimously 7-0.  It is the first time a student government has taken  proactive steps to protect itself from the bitter divisiveness of a campus BDS campaign.

From Arutz Sheva:

The student government at Western Washington University (Associated Students WWU) voted unanimously Wednesday that it will not consider boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS) based on national origin, according to Israel advocacy organization StandWithUs.

The 7-0 vote represents the first time ever that a North American university’s student government took pro-active legislative steps to protect students from discriminatory BDS campaigns, such as the ones that have targeted Israel at a number of campuses in recent years.

According to the resolution, the ASWWU will not support BDS campaigns because, “tensions between students related to foreign conflicts should be managed in a healthy and collaborative manner rather than be exacerbated.”

It also expressed concern that BDS campaigns, “can cause students to be targeted on the basis of nationality” and lead to “disrespectful bias, hostility, hate, or harassment.” 

WWU Student Alysa Kipersztok, a StandWithUs Emerson Fellow, brought the anti-BDS resolution to the ASWWU.

“I’ve seen how divisive anti-Israel BDS campaigns have been on campuses across the country," she stated. "Western is a warm, respectful, inclusive community. Our mission statement states that WWU ‘brings together individuals of diverse backgrounds and perspectives in an inclusive, student-centered university."

Yascher Koach to Alysa Kipersztok and to the student government of Western Washington University, for standing tall against hatred on campus.

A copy of the resolution appears below.  May this prove to be a successful model as we fight back against the ugliness and divisiveness of BDS on campus.

Anti-Semitic Slight in Bay Area Yearbook

Its not a harmless prank.

A Bay Area family is reeling from a slur printed in their son's high school yearbook.

In a team photo in the Monta Vista High School yearbook, a student intentionally changed the last three letters of classmate's name to "Jew". It was unnoticed by the yearbook adviser and ultimately was published and distributed  in 1,600 copies of the yearbook.

The boy's family are Israeli.

Via the  San Jose Mercury News:

The victim's parents, who speak Hebrew at home, are stunned by the stain on their son's name in the yearbook. The boy's mother said it brought to mind signs posted in Eastern Europe before the Holocaust era that read, "No Jews or dogs." Jews were also labeled during World War II by the Nazis, who forced them to wear yellow badges announcing their religion.

"It always starts out little by little," she said. "It's better to stop this now when it's little."

School officials said the offender will face "consequences.",  and will not be permitted to attend graduation.

Dr. Martin Luther King's pro-Israel Legacy

Dr.Martin Luther King's pro-Israel Legacy, presented by Dumisani Washington of the  IBSI - Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel

Former Hamas Spokesman: Abbas Is Lying to Americans

Did anyone ever doubt this?

Via Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik of Palestinian Media Watch

Former Hamas government spokesman Ihab al-Ghussein announced on his Facebook page on June 8 that in private meetings with Hamas, Mahmoud Abbas insists that he is lying in his public statements in order to "trick the Americans." 

 "You know what Mahmoud Abbas says behind closed doors? He says: Guys, let me [continue] saying what I say to the media. Those words are meant for the Americans and the occupation (i.e., Israel), not for you [Hamas]."

  "What's important is what we agree on among ourselves. In other words, when I go out [publicly] and say that the government is my [Abbas] government and it recognizes 'Israel' and so on, fine - these words are meant to trick the Americans."

Read it all here

Medea Benjamin ignores inquiries on her Caterpillar Investments

Medea Benjamin, BDS doyenne of Code Pink and Global Exchange is in deep denial.

After the BDS -defying  investments of her 12 million dollar "Benjamin Foundation" in Caterpillar, General Electric and Intel were daylighted , Medea's been laying low, hoping that people would forget.

Its not just the "Zionist" inquiries regarding her investments she is ignoring.

Her own supporters are questioning her, and are asking for explanations. Yesterday,  Burkely Hermann, a self described "occupy activist'" asked her directly.

And was met with nothing but silence.

Burkely Hermann is correct. Not only is the BDS hypocritical, its claim that it speaks for the Palestinian people has been  disproven

From the award winning Arab journalist, Khaled Abu Toameh

For some PA officials, BDS is a movement that acts against the true interests of the Palestinians. They say that the actions of those promoting BDS make the Palestinians appear as if they are not interested in peace and coexistence with Israel. BDS activists in Ramallah have succeeded in preventing several planned meetings between Israelis and Palestinians in Ramallah and east Jerusalem.

The Palestinian Authority is also worried that BDS is harming the Palestinians' relations with other countries. The most recent example of BDS efforts to damage Palestinians' relations with friendly countries occurred a few weeks ago, when the "anti-normalization" activists tried to disrupt a performance by an Indian dance troupe in Ramallah.

A PA official in Ramallah explained that BDS and its followers make the Palestinians appear as if they are all radicals who are only interested in boycotting and delegitimizing Israel. "This goes against the PLO's official policy, which is to seek a peace agreement with Israel based on the two-state solution," he said.

 BDS: Hypocritical and anti-peace. Is there anything else you need to know?

This weeks BDS fails. Great and Small

*  A resolution condemning Israel is defeated by the MLA

The MLA, the Modern language Association failed to  mobilize even 10% of their members to pass a measure condemning Israel Via  Peggy Shapiro, member, Modern LanguageAssociation and StandWithUs-Midwest Director

A coterie of anti-Israel MLA activists had introduced the resolution which was based on such shoddy research and factual errors that it had to be changed twice before it was submitted to the membership for a vote. The original resolution, presented to delegates at the MLA's annual conference in January 2014, claimed that Israel had “arbitrarily denied academics of Palestinian background entry into the West Bank and Gaza.” The reference to Gaza had to be deleted because Egypt, not Israel, controls the entry of academics into Gaza, a fact overlooked or unknown by the resolution's authors.  Then the word “arbitrarily” had to be removed because there was incontrovertible evidence that Israel's visa requirements are not arbitrary.  They are consistent with the standards of other liberal democracies, and even the U.S. Department of State reports “no overt threat to academic freedom exists in Israel.”  In short, Israel's alleged violations could not be substantiated.

 Like other anti-Israel resolutions, the MLA resolution also erased all context to manipulate voters.  It omitted information about the significant academic and research exchanges between Israelis and Palestinians, and it never encouraged peaceful coexistence. It had only one purpose: to defame Israel.  This resolution was discriminatory, singling out Israel for unfair and dishonest attacks. 

Campuses and academic associations have become an epicenter of anti-Israel activity in the U.S., but the movement is facing defeats.  For example, when the American Studies Association [ASA] passed an academic boycott of Israel last December, over 250 university presidents and leading academic associations denounced the decision.

* The Rolling Stones Rock Tel Aviv

Ignoring a huge pressure campaign mounted by anti-Israel activists the Rolling Stones played to 50,000 of their fans in Israel Wednesday night, delaying the start of their concert until after the conclusion of the Jewish holiday of Shavuout .  Afterwards, legendary singer Mick Jagger  tweeted in Hebrew "Thanks to everyone in Israel for the wonderful reception.  It was a great concert and we will always remember it."  Nice.

*South Carolina gives its residents a tangible way to express their solidarity with Israel

 A bill creating "South Carolina Stands With Israel" license plates was approved by approved by the South Carolina House on April 3, 2014 in a vote 57 to 1. The bill was later approved unanimously by the Senate and was signed into law by South Carolina’s governor, on June 2. Watch for the new plates on South Carolina roads in the near future. Read the backstory at the Jewish press

*Dreaded Israeli-Water-washing

United Utilities, the UK’s largest listed water company, is the latest water utility to sign a contract with Israel’s Mapal Green Energy for wastewater treatment. United Utilities is now the third UK water provider to purchase Mapal’s bubble aeration water purification system for use in municipal and regional water supply systems. Seven million homes in England will be serviced.  Water utilities  can save between 40 percent and 70% of the energy used with other diffusion systems and 80% of maintenance costs using Mapal technology.

Cleveland Unites over Anti-Semitic murals

The Cleveland community is mobilizing over vile anti-Semitic murals that have appeared on the walls of Biggie's FoodMart and gas station at East 55th Street and Cedar Avenue. Lead by the Anti-Defamation League , a broad inter-faith coalition has formed in opposition to the murals, including Rabbi Stephen Weiss, senior rabbi of B'nai Jeshurun Congregation in Pepper Pike.,  Rev. Kenneth Chalker, senior pastor of University Circle United Methodist Church in Cleveland, Cleveland Councilwoman Phyllis Cleveland,  Rev. Joseph Hilinski, director of the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland's Interfaith Commission and pastor of St. Barbara Catholic Church in Cleveland, Rev. Tracey Lind, dean of Trinity Cathedral in Cleveland, Bishop Tony Minor, senior pastor of Community of Faith Assembly in Cleveland,  the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the American Jewish Committee, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, and Rabbi Richard Block, senior rabbi of The Temple-Tifereth Israel in Beachwood and Cleveland.

Anita Gray, regional director of the ADL has  described the paintings as "highly offensive and anti-Semitic." adding "We are appalled by the intolerance and bigotry these signs convey...The owner of this establishment has the right to have it decorated as he chooses, but we urge fellow members of the community to join us in saying, loudly and clearly, that such hate is not welcome here, and we categorically reject it."

The owner of the gas station/grocery store Brahim "Abe" Ayad was born in the United States but is of Palestinian descent. Expect JVP to express its outrage at the Zionist lobby attempting to stiffle Palestinian activism in 3, 2, 1..... 

Offensive Mural in Cleveland at Biggie's Food Mart and gas station

From the Cleveland Jewish news

In one image, the words "Talmudic Priests in Church" and "$ex with Minors Permitted" appear above a drawing of what Gray described as "a stereotypical Orthodox Jew" with his lips apparently on the private parts of a naked baby. The other mural, labeled "The Faces of Jesus," includes the statement, "To Jews he's a bastard who's in hell."

 Gray said her office in Cleveland received a call May 28 from a neighborhood resident who was "mortified" by the images. The following morning, Gray notified Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson's office and Blaine Griffin, executive director of the city's Community Relations Board, about them.

 "We immediately started putting together a coalition of people and organizations who were outraged about the virulent, hateful displays on this gas station," Gray said.

 Cheryl Davis, chair of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland's Community Relations Committee, released this statement on behalf of the Federation May 30:

  "We, as a community, need to stand firm against this kind of hatred. This outrageous and deeply offensive anti-Semitic mural has no place in our city, (which) embraces ethnic, cultural and religious diversity. We implore all members of the Cleveland community to stand against hatred and intolerance."

 Also on May 30, Jackson issued a statement in which he said "the graphic painting" is "totally unacceptable and is offensive to the city of Cleveland and its residents."

Referring in particular to the mural with the heading, "Talmudic Priests in Church," Jackson said many residents, commuters and visitors have expressed outrage over the image and that the city shares in that outrage.

"There is no place in Cleveland for this inappropriate image, and I am urging the owners of this establishment to remove it immediately," he said, adding the city will "explore all legal avenues" to have it removed . 

Offensive Mural in Cleveland at Biggie's Food Mart and Gas Station

Apparently, Brahim “Abe” Ayad  has been using his gas station to spread his special brand of hate for years, with complete impunity

The Three Stages of a BDS Campaign

Via Hen Mazzig, a pro-Israel activist and a former commander in the Israel Defense Forces, who has spoken on dozens of college campuses. He has seen first hand how anti-Israel activists manipulate minority student groups, and poison the campus climate for all.

a YouTube video of anti-Israeli activists at Galway University shows the real face of BDS. - See more at: http://www.mindingthecampus.com/originals/2014/05/the_bds_bullies_take_over.html#sthash.2VTRkzeK.dpuf

Originally published at "Minding the Campus"
The Three Stages of a BDS Campaign.

The BDS campaign is a new front in the Arab-Israeli conflict, directed at Israel. Its tactics are simple.

Stage 1: Start a student group and build relationships with other minorities' student groups. Get them to like you. After convincing them that you are an ally, get them to support your anti-Israel narrative. Tell them that you're not against Jews, only against the Jewish state. If you have Jewish students in your anti-Israel group, bring them along to the meeting and have them speak about how Israel's existence conflicts with Jewish values. Portray the Palestinians as the underdog.

 Stage 2: Arrange displays on your campus--the bigger the better. Put up an eight-foot high cardboard "Wall" that you claim is a smaller version of the separation fence that Israel built to protect against suicide bombers. Include a mock checkpoint. Bring anti-Israel speakers. Use language that will resonate with the other student groups. Do all of this preparation to make your campus receptive to your anti-Israel message. Remember, most people are naÃ?ve and uniformed. If your message is highly emotional and uses the language of the political left, many students will side with you wanting to learn more.

 At the same time, start lobbying members of student government. Meet with them often as you can. Get them to know and like you. Start "educating" them with biased and misleading information. Get them to believe that Israel is a "criminal state." You may even want to run for the student senate to become a senator yourself, a tactic just recently used at Loyola University, where nine student senators who voted for a BDS divestment resolution were BDS leaders at the school.

 Stage 3: Bring a Boycott and Divestment resolution to the student government. Last year, BDS supporters at over 20 colleges introduced anti-Israel divestment resolutions in their student senates and demanded that the senators bring their resolutions to a vote. In recent weeks, we've seen anti-Israel resolutions introduced at several more campuses. Some were defeated. Some passed.

Read Hen's article, The BDS Bullies take over in its entirety,   here

New York City celebrates Israel

Today was the 50th annual Celebrate Israel Parade in New York city. Over 35,000 participants, dozens of floats, and hundreds of thousands watched the festivities as the parade made it way up 5th Avenue.


Participating dignitaries included New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and city comptroller Scott Stringer, along with Israel’s consul-general in New York, Ido Aharoni; and   New York City council speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito; Queens borough president Melinda Katz; Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations Ron Prosor; Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon; Knesset members Hilik Bar  Yitzhak Cohen, Tzachi Hanegbi , Zvulun Kalfa, Elazar Stern  and Yitzhak Vaknin and Dov Lipman.

Check out Samuel L. Jackson's tweet to his 3.73 million followers.

Even the Empire State Building was decked out in blue and white to celebrate the day

Nice.

American Friends Service Committee hiring Israel-Haters

Notice to Bay Area Haters: you can turn your disdain for Israeli democracy, diversity and innovation into a career.

The American Friends Service Committee is now hiring seasoned haters to demonize and isolate the only democracy in the Middle East, giving local anti-Israel activists an opportunity to transform their animus into a fun and profitable career.

The BDS movement is not and has never been "grassroots"- there is big money supporting this,  and it is led by paid activists. Remember that.

California taxpayers foot the bill for extremist junket

Via the San Francisco Examiner

California taxpayers, especially Jewish-Americans, were shocked to discover that San Francisco State University (SFSU), which recently increased its students' tuition, paid more than $7.000 for a trip to the Middle East for two of the university's professors to meet with convicted terrorists, according to a number of sources on Friday, including police counterterrorism expert, Jennifer Sackman. 

The details of the trip surfaced when Jewish-American organizations obtained funding documents using the state's California Public Records Act.

Investigative work by the AMCHA initiative shows that California taxpayers have footed the bill for San Francisco State Professor Rabab Abdulhadi’s junket to the West Bank, which she described as "political solidarity tour”. Abdulhadi, her husband and others proudly admitted meeting with convicted terrorists on the trip, subsidized by our tax dollars. Abdulhadi was originally scheduled to present a paper at a Jan. 11 - 14 Conference of the Center for American Studies and Research at the American University in Lebanon at the school's expense, but after receiving university funding to attend , Abdulhadi sent an email to the SFSU Risk Management Office advising that her "name was dropped from the Beirut conference."

San Francisco State University officials have responded saying  the school investigates "any allegations that a member of the University community misused state funds."

An open letter to California State University officials, and courtesy copied to California politicians signed by eight human rights organizations- the AMCHA Initiative, Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel , Proclaiming Justice to the Nations, Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, Simon Wiesenthal Center Campus Outreach, StandWithUs, Zionist Organization of America summarizes their findings and urges action:

SFSU Professor of Ethnic Studies Rabab Abdulhadi went on a "political solidarity tour" to Jordan, "1948 areas of Palestine" [i.e. Israel] and the West Bank, a trip whose primary purpose was to build relationships between Palestinian and North American anti-Israel political activists in order to promote antisemitic academic, cultural and economic boycotts of Israel.  Abdulhadi arranged for the delegation she led, which included SFSU Ethnic Studies Professor Joanne Barker and Abdulhadi's husband Jaime Veve, to meet with at least one known terrorist, Leila Khaled, as well as with a Muslim cleric who had been imprisoned by Israel because of his ties to Hamas and who was again incarcerated by Israel a few weeks after meeting with Abudlhadi's delegation, on charges of incitement to violence.

On at least 4 official University documents signed by several SFSU and CSU administrators, including SFSU President Wong and CSU Chancellor White or someone from his office, Abdulhadi concealed the fact that the true purpose of her trip was political activism to promote efforts to harm the Jewish state, as well as the fact that she had planned to meet with individuals affiliated with organizations on the U.S. State Department's list of Designated Terrorist Organizations.  Presumably by concealing these crucial facts, Abdulhadi was able to receive from the SFSU Office of Human Resources, Safety & Risk Management approval to travel to "high risk" countries and insurance coverage paid for by the University (and California taxpayers), and she was able to receive from the University (and California taxpayers) more than $7,000 dollars for her transportation, lodging and food during the 21 days of her "political solidarity tour."

We believe that there has been an egregious abuse of university and taxpayer funds as well as potential violations of California state law prohibiting the use of state resources for personal or political purposes. 

 Read more here

Why Israel still needs Checkpoints: Potential Suicide Bombing Thwarted

A Palestinian man wearing a device with 12 pipe bombs strung together was apprehended at the Tapuach Junction near Nablus on Friday morning. The man told the soldiers he had planned to commit a suicide bombing.

Alert Israeli troops manning the checkpoint  were suspicious by the man’s heavy coat, worn on a particularly hot day.  A subsequent search revealed the explosive device.

It is not yet known whether the suspect, , a Nablus resident in his 20s was acting alone. Security forces believe that the bomber originally intended to attack the soldiers at the check point.

Israeli Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch spoke with the officers who apprehended the suspect and congratulated them. “You prevented a terror attack and saved lives,” he said. “I am proud of you and your excellent work.”

Once again, checkpoints save lives.

Israel at 66: Happy and healthy

According to recent figures released by the World health Organization, life expectancy in Israel is ranked 4th highest in the world. Only Iceland, Switzerland and Australia rank higher.

Israel was the only Middle Eastern country on the top-ten list.

Remarkably, a previous study released  by Ben-Gurion University in 2010 showed the life expectancy of Israeli Arabs overall was higher than that of Americans.  Overall, Israeli Arabs live almost ten years longer than their Arab neighbors.

Israelis are not just healthy. They are happy, too.

From Haaretz

Over the past year, the OECD examined quality of life among its 34 member countries, which includes Israel, and two nonmembers, Brazil and Russia. Its Better Life Index is based on 11 criteria: housing, income, labor market, community, civil engagement, education, health, environment, personal safety, balance between work and leisure, and an overall life satisfaction index.

Despite not ranking high among OECD countries on many criteria, Israelis scored particularly well by two measures − health, where Israel came in fifth out of the 36 countries, and happiness, where it came in eighth.

Israel. Happy, healthy and thriving at 66. May she continue to go from strength to strength.

BDS Fail from Across the Pond. Remarks by Matthew Gould, British Ambassador to Israel

Last night the British Ambassador Matthew Gould hosted over 600 guests at the residence to celebrate the Queen's official birthday. Here's the speech he delivered. Count all the BDS fails.

Remarks by Matthew Gould, British Ambassador to Israel on the occasion of the Queen’s Birthday 2014

"It is a great pleasure to welcome you to our celebration of the birthday of Queen Elizabeth, the fourth such party that Celia and I have hosted in Israel. (It is the fifth that I have hosted altogether – I hosted one in Iran, though that was a very different sort of affair. No string quartet, less alcohol, and fewer Jews.).

We have been in Israel almost four years. Four happy, fulfilling, challenging years. We are glad to call Israel our home. And we are grateful that Her Majesty, whose birthday we are celebrating today, was gracious enough to let us have a fifth year here. We are already sad at the thought of packing our bags, although it is more than a year away.

It is traditional at national days for the Ambassador to explain how the previous year has been a great one for relations between their country and Israel. I am a fan of tradition. And the truth is, it has indeed been a very good year. The Jewish Chronicle of London, which as many of you will know, is the fount of all wisdom, said that had never been a better time for relations between the two countries.

Just a few weeks ago, David Cameron came and established beyond doubt his friendship for Israel, his belief in Israel, and his ambitions for the partnership between Britain and Israel. He celebrated our links in tech and science. He saw the Knesset at its most democratic, and understood the meaning of ‘balagan’. He set out to the Knesset a powerful vision for a future of peace with a Palestinian state sitting alongside Israel. He didn’t hide our differences, which are well known, but made clear that our relations are so much more than total of those differences.

Just a few weeks after David Cameron was here, the Leader of the Opposition came to Israel. Ed Miliband made clear that Britain’s commitment to a security partnership, to building links in tech and science, to our friendship with Israel, had cross-party support.

And in the past year those links have continued to grow. British Governments have long said that Britain understood Israel’s security needs, and is a true security partner for Israel. I am confident that this rhetoric is now a reality, underpinned by an unprecedented level of cooperation between the two countries.

In science, we are building the vision of partnership that William Hague set out when he first visited Israel as Foreign Secretary, and enshrined in an agreement with Israel on his second visit. In March over 250 British and Israeli scientists gathered at the Technion at our second UK/Israel Regenerative Medicine Conference. Through the year, we have seen a host of conferences and delegations in neuro, nano and water science. And we will soon announce exciting schemes for post-doc Fellowships and cooperation between our scientific communities.

On the economic front, the partnership has never been stronger. Britain became Israel’s biggest export market in the world after the US. David Cameron described Britain’s links with Israel in technology as ‘the best tech partnership in the world’. And he announced the Tech Hub model developed at our Embassy in Israel was going to be rolled out to other markets around the world.

This year, we have given this event a universities theme. I hope you saw the picture of famous Israelis –along with our own royals - when they were studying at British universities. Just as Israel is rightly proud of its universities, so we in the UK are very proud of ours – depending on which survey you use, we have either 3 or 4 of the world’s top ten universities in Britain.

In the past year we have seen a proliferation of links and partnerships between British and Israeli universities. Soon after David Cameron was here we had our Minister for universities, bringing a delegation of University Presidents with him (or as we quaintly call them in Britain, Vice-Chancellors). Last week we had the Vice-Chancellor of Oxford in Israel. Next month we have the Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge here. It is an extraordinary partnership being formed based on mutual respect and excellence.

Which makes it all the more sad that the popular perception in Israel of Britain’s universities has been so warped by a few loud voices on the fringe, calling for an academic boycott of Israel. There are over 130 universities in the UK; not one has an official boycott of Israel in place. I have spoken at numerous university Jewish societies up and down the UK; almost all tell me that their campus experience has been hugely positive and free from tension or intimidation. The recent global ADL study showed Britain had one of the lowest rates of anti-semitism in the world. But we cannot ever be complacent, as the horrific and evil attack in Brussels this weekend reminded us.

Part of the job of my team here is to ensure that this positive message is heard, and the voice of those calling for boycotts is not the only voice that is heard. If we end up accidentally amplifying their voice, then we have ended up doing their job for them, dissuading Israeli students from studying in the UK and ensuring the next generation of British leaders heard first-hand about the Israeli experience.

The past year has had downs as well as ups. The negotiations led with extraordinary determination by John Kerry did not result in the progress towards peace based on two states that so many friends of Israel wanted to see. I know Israel, along with the Palestinians, wanted to see progress. Prime Minister Netanyahu himself has spoken of the urgent need for two nation-states to stop Israel becoming a bi-national state. And David Cameron spoke to the Knesset about the immense benefits for Israel - security, economic and political - that would be unleashed by a lasting peace.

On Iran, the close cooperation between Britain and Israel continued, but Israel made clear its doubts about the interim deal and the negotiations now going on. We have heard those concerns clearly. We talk often and closely to Israel about the way forward. But we are determined to test – with the clock on Iran’s programme effectively stopped - whether there is a negotiated solution to Iran’s nuclear programme. Because we are all agreed that a diplomatic solution is vastly better than a military one.

This event is my chance to review the year, and to say thank you. To all my wonderful team, who have been working far too hard on all the various things I’ve mentioned, and many others besides.

To our many partners here – in the MFA, the NSC, and across the Israeli government;
in other embassies in the Knesset; the media; companies and universities; in Israel’s Arab community; and in the Haredi community, which I have had the privilege of getting to know in the past year.

To our wonderful sponsors including Rolls Royce, our gold sponsor,

To our Israeli friends, who have turned this country from our posting into our home.

To my wonderful wife, who is an inspiration and my best friend, and our sabra daughters, who have given us unbelievable joy and little sleep.

Last week I was back in London for a conference of all Britain’s ambassadors. We share experiences and stories, and huge amounts of gossip. And each year I go, it reminds me that there is nowhere that I would rather be than Israel. It is not straightforward. And there is always “balagan”. But this country is very special, and we are glad to be here."

More Pallywood from the Middle East Monitor

Oh, those naughty Israelis, destroying a mosque in, wait, is that Angola?

Why yes, it is.

The Middle East Monitor is using a photo from a demolished mosque in Angola to illustrate the alleged demolition of a mosque in the Negev, claiming

Israeli bulldozers guarded by a large force of police started to demolish the mosque in Wadi Al-Niam in the Negev on Thursday amid residents' fears that authorities could also demolish homes in the village. A demolition order had been nailed to the mosque wall a few days earlier.

The Negev Foundation for Land and Man denounced the demolition, describing the Israeli act as a blatant assault on the sanctity of the mosque and on Arab rights to live in the Negev. It also noted that the demolition violates the right to freedom of worship as well as international laws and conventions.

The foundation also condemned the police attacks on the residents of Wadi Al-Niam, the demolition of their homes, the confiscation of their property and the destruction of their crops. It stressed that the indigenous people of the Negev Desert are determined to stay in their homes in the face of Israeli scheming and force. It appealed to Arabs in Israel and the Arabs of the Negev in particular to stand by the people of Wadi Al-Niam.

But if the Middle East Monitor can't tell the difference between a mosque in Angola and a mosque in Israel why would we believe anything they've written?

UPDATE
Seattle anti-Israel Blogger Richard Silverstein,  notorious for his failure to fact check has jumped on the bandwagon to spread this fraudulent misrepresentation far and wide.

Richard Silverstein perpetuates fraud 

Further Update
h/t Cara.

The Middle East Monitor has fully admitted this is not a photo of the alleged mosque in the Negev. (Neither, it appears, is it a mosque in Angola. Google is not always correct, apparently, and I apologize for posting incorrect info)

However, Middle East Monitor has not removed the misleading photo, which they readily admit is from 2009.

The rich fantasy life of BDS losers

From the Mike Report, a great new cartoon highlighting the rich fantasy life of the BDS cru

Mike writes:

2014 has unquestionably been the year of the BDS fail. Out of fifteen campus Divest from Israel resolutions in 2014, only three were passed and validated. But of all the BDS losses under their belt, the most decisive smack down came from the students of the University of Washington this past week.

Let us understand the magnitude of SUPER-UW‘s humiliating loss. From the first day of the Fall quarter, SUPER-UW and their allies, Jewish Voice for Peace in particular, saturated the UW campus with BDS trainings and anti-Israel info sessions.  First tier Israel haters, like Ali Abunimah, Max Blumenthal and the Corries as well as fifth tier radicals like Wael Elasady, Jesse Hagopian, and Maya Rotem were trotted out to tell their tales of Olive tree bulldozing, baby killing, wild-eyed Jewish settlers.

When the time seemed ripe for the kill, UW student senators Peter Brannan and Amira Mattar submitted the BDS Holy Grail; divestment resolution R-20-39.

But after nine months of lectures, lobbying and leaflets the resolution went down in flames. The final tally; 59 to 8 with 11 abstentions. What this means is that Brannan, Mattar and all of the minions at their command managed to persuade  a pathetic  six senators to join them out of 78 in attendance that night!

As of today,  however, there  were 16 campuses weighing in on divestment.  Today was the final day of a divestment vote at DePaul University, where the entire student body was given the opportunity to vote on the bill. Of the 25,000 plus  students at DePaul, the resolution was only able to  garner 1,575 votes. After months of  "actions", apartheid walls, sit-ins, op-eds, spamming social media, less the ten percent of the students were sufficiently engaged by this issue to even vote, and of those,  the resolution passed by only a narrow margin- with 1,333 opposed.

Expect the usual self-congratulatory  press releases on their "dramatic victory".

Was Israel "erased" from the Map at UCLA?

From Bruins For Israel

Bruins for Israel Requests Apology from Empowered Arab Sisterhood for Erasing Israel at World In-Sight Fair

On Tuesday May 21, at UCLA's World In-Sight fair, a festival meant to expose UCLA students to the globe's diverse cultures, the Empowered Arab Sisterhood (EAS) disseminated maps asking students to "Find All The Middle Eastern Countries" (see below).

 The EAS listed 17 countries among the list of Middle Eastern states to choose from (including Palestine) but conspicuously omitted the State of Israel. This glaring omission effectively eliminated the Jewish state from the Middle East. When confronted, EAS members chose to cross out "Middle Eastern" in the title and replace it with "Arab" instead (see below). BFI is concerned that, given the recent prevalence of anti-Zionist bigotry on campus, EAS' initial erasing of Israel was deliberate.

 

Whether deliberate or not, the omission of Israel from the Middle East in EAS' materials represents yet more disinformation that undermines the Jewish people's right to self-determination and alienates Jewish and pro-Israel students on campus. It is because such disinformation and hostility towards the Jewish and pro-Israel community have become so frequent at UCLA that we have put forth our statement asking the UCLA community to denounce anti-Zionist bigotry. By erasing Israel from the Middle East, EAS erased our families, our history and our collective rights. By erasing the State of Israel but including Palestine, EAS' omission also directly hinders efforts to reach peace based on a two state solution, a solution that BFI fully endorses.

Accordingly, Bruins for Israel requests that the Empowered Arab Sisterhood issue a statement of apology that recognizes the State of Israel as well as the right of Jewish people to self-determination in their ancestral homeland.
 
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In the interest of peace, justice and positive campus climate, this must be said.  Iran- a non-Arab country, is also omitted from the list.  Between the divestment resolution and the harassment of students attending educational trips to Israel, the Bruins for Israel are understandably sensitive about this map as yet another manifestation of the hostility they have experienced on campus.  I suspect that while innacurate, and inappropriate, the omission of Israel was not intended as a political or personal slight.

Lets choose our battles with care.

UCLA Judicial Board: Israel Trips are not a "Conflict of Interest"

Plans by extremist JVP,  SJP and other anti-Israel groups to intimidate and silence students at UCLA have failed.  The UCLA Judicial Board has ruled that students educational trips to Israel do not present a "conflict of interest"  for those in student government. Members of the student government who had been on trips to Israel sponsored by pro-Israel organizations did not need to abstain from voting on divestment.   The Judicial Board’s full opinion will be released by June 4.

Via The Jewish Journal

UCLA’s undergraduate judicial board — the student government’s equivalent of the Supreme Court — ruled Wednesday in a 4-0 vote that student government officers may take sponsored trips to Israel without it constituting a conflict of interest. Two of the judges abstained.

The ruling marks only the latest conflict between the UCLA chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and pro-Israel students on the campus. SJP filed a complaint in April against students Sunny Singh and Lauren Rogers, charging that they created a potential conflict of interest when they went on free trips to Israel, with the Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Committee, respectively.

The pro-Palestinian group asked the court to review the legitimacy of the votes cast by Singh and Rogers last February towards a SJP-sponsored resolution that called on UCLA’s administration to divest from companies that do business in the West Bank. That resolution failed 7-5. Although the ballot was secret, the going assumption is that both Singh and Rogers voted against the resolution.

On the evening of May 15, the Judicial Board heard about 4.5 hours of arguments, with both Singh and Rogers undergoing cross-examination by SJP’s student counsel, Dana Saifan, who questioned Singh about the contents of a liability clause ADL asked him to sign before his trip, asking why he didn’t submit into evidence his entire ADL trip application. 

Singh said that his application was filled out on an old laptop that he no longer had in his possession.

Singh’s and Rogers’ counsel called as witnesses ADL regional director Amanda Susskind and Robert Peckar, immediate past national board chair of Project Interchange, the name of the AJC-sponsored Israel trip. They both argued that their motivation to bring Singh and Rogers to Israel was not a quid pro quo. They had no expectation and made no request for either to vote against anti-Israel resolutions in the student government.

Read it all here

"Terror-enabling ISM scumbag" Abe Greenhouse. Now at JVP

International Solidarity Movement activist Abe Greenhouse is now working as the Technology director for Jewish Voice for Peace. 

It's a perfect example of just how detached JVP is from mainstream American morality, not to mention mainstream American Judaism.

Greenhouse has been described as a "terror-enabling ISM scumbag"  who  desecrated one of Judaism's most holy sites.  Greenhouse was also been arrested and charged with disorderly conduct after he assaulted former Soviet refusnik, author and human rights activist, Natan Sharansky at Rutgers University.

In another incident,  the clearly unhinged Abe Greenhouse was charged with criminal mischief, disorderly conduct, unlawful possession of a weapon and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose after the 2007  assault of a couple in New Jersey

From the Jersey paper :

In the incident involving the assault on Cleveland and Elm streets, a Belvidere couple in a black Ford pick-up truck was stopped in traffic when approximately 10 people surrounded the truck, police said. One of the 10 individuals, Abraham Greenhouse, 29, of Boonton, allegedly threw steel cylinders and shattered the rear window of the truck, police said.

The driver, a 35 year-old man, got out of the truck, attempted to dial 9-1-1 on his wife's mobile phone but it was slapped out of his hand.

One of the alleged assailants, Jonathan Harvey, 26, of Brooklyn, N.Y., allegedly kicked the driver in the groin and another man, Andrew Flowers, 37, of Connecticut, struck the man repeatedly with his fists.

The man's wife, also 35, was kicked and punched by several people during the attempt, while she was attempting to protect her husband.

A 64-year-old Morris Plains man tried to break up the fight, but he was also assaulted, police said.

In civilized company, desecration of holy sites along with arrests for assault and criminal mischief gets you ostracized at best, jailed or 5150'ed at worst.   At JVP, it gets you a job as director of technology.

Latest round-up of BDS Fails

Last night's abject failure of the University of Washington divestment vote by a resounding 59 against, 8 in favor and 11 abstentions isn't the only reason to be cheerful.
 
Its just one in an ever-increasing series of failures of the 13 year old BDS movement 

From the Stones to Lana Del Rey – a guide to the plethora of international musical artists headed to Israel this summer

Via the J Post:

WHO: Justin Timberlake WHEN: May 28
WHERE: Hayarkon Park, Tel Aviv
PRICE: NIS 370-1450
1-10 scale: 8 The dynamic multi-faceted singer/actor/ performer puts on a frothy showbiz performance with world class production. The closest we’ll get to a Madonna-like spectacle this year.

WHO: The Prodigy
WHEN: May 29
WHERE: Tel Aviv Trade Grounds Center
PRICE: Tickets NIS 324-454
1-10 scale : 7 1990s British electronic music pioneers still make a glorious noise, if you can stand the volume.

WHO: The Rolling Stones
WHEN: June 4
WHERE: Park Hayarkon, Tel Aviv
PRICE: Tickets NIS 700-2,800
1-10 scale: 10 If elderly bluesmen are revered for still playing into their senior years, why can’t a geriatric white rock & roll band, especially one that’s still playing at peak power? The biggest feather in Israel’s cap since Paul McCartney.

WHO: Passenger
WHEN: June 10
WHERE: Barbie Club, Tel Aviv
PRICE: SOLD OUT
1-10 scale: 8 The British folk-pop guitarist whose song “Let Her Go” has become a huge worldwide hit with over 200 million You- Tube views, is actually a star right now, not yesterday. And his real name is Michael David Rosenberg, so you gotta root for him.

WHO: Pixies/The Hives – Rocknroller Festival WHEN: June 17
WHERE: Bloomfield Stadium, Jaffa
PRICE: NIS 300-855
1-10 scale: 8 1990s American alternative favorites the Pixies make amends for their cancellation a few years ago. Despite Kim Deal’s absence, Frank Black and company still deliver the goods. Swedish garage rock revivalists The Hives only sweeten the pot.

WHO: Soundgarden/Gogol Bordello – Rocknroller Festival
WHEN: June 18
WHERE: Bloomfield Stadium, Jaffa
PRICE: NIS 300-855
1-10 scale: 7 The second day of the Rocknroller Festival offers another strong lineup with grunge veterans Soundgarden on the comeback trail, paired with the gypsy-punk mayhem of Gogol Bordello. Those that prefer a more intimate setting can catch the manic New York party animals on June 19 at the Barbie Club (NIS 150-180).

WHO: M. Ward
WHEN: June 25
WHERE: Gesher Theater, Jaffa
PRICE: NIS 169
1-10 scale: 10 Besides the Stones, the other “must see” of the summer. This understated American singer/songwriter is original and compelling, whether or not he’s performing with his sometime musical partner Zooey Deschanel. A staggering guitarist and storyteller – Americana personified.

WHO: Gong
WHEN: July 3
WHERE: Reading 3, Tel Aviv
PRICE: NIS 244
1-10 scale: 6 The 1960-era Franco-British space rockers provide an evening’s floating escape. They were a cult act back then, and probably more so today with their Floydian jams.

WHO: Brian Jonestown Massacre
WHEN: July 15
WHERE: Barbie Club, Tel Aviv
PRICE: NIS 160-190
1-10 scale: 7.5 The veteran psychedelic cult rockers led by eccentric front man Anton Newcombe impressed on their first visit to Israel in 2012, and this time should be no different.

WHO: Neil Young and Crazy Horse
WHEN: July 17
WHERE: Park Hayarkon, Tel Aviv
PRICE: NIS 400
1-10 scale: 9.5 If the Stones weren’t playing a month before, this show would be all that Israeli music fans would be talking about. Two legends – Young and Crazy Horse – for the reasonable price of one. Warning: If you go only for his “Heart of Gold” mellowness, beware of endless guitar solos.

WHO: Backstreet Boys
WHEN: July 29-30
WHERE: Ra’anana Amphipark
PRICE: SOLD OUT
1-10 scale: 6 These shows will undoubtedly be entertaining and highly professional in the Vegas vein, but isn’t the appeal of a boy band supposed to be that they’re boys? It might be a car-crash moment seeing middle-aged housewives in the crowed strutting retro MTV dance moves, but that hasn’t prevented 16,000 Israelis from buying tickets.

WHO: Kansas
WHEN: August 5
WHERE: Mann Auditorium, Tel Aviv
PRICE: NIS 279-449
1-10 scale: 6 The 1970s prog-rock veterans from the US heartland had their moments, “Carry on Wayward Son” being prime example. But the scene of all those lit cell phones waving in unison to “Dust in the Wind” just might be a little too precious to bear.

WHO: America
WHEN: August 7
WHERE: Ra’anana Amphipark
PRICE: NIS 190-280
1-10 scale: 8 Could be the crowd pleaser of the summer.Those harmonies, those lush acoustic guitars... admit that you nostalgically hum their songs and that “Sister Golden Hair” is pop perfection.

WHO: Kurt Vile and the Violators
WHEN: August 12
WHERE: Barbie Club, Tel Aviv
PRICE: NIS 169
1-10 scale: 8 Americana indie rocker channels the scruffy side of Springsteen, Petty and Young into a modern version of low-fi authenticity. Heartfelt from the heartland.

WHO: Lana Del Rey
WHEN: August 20
WHERE: Tel Aviv Trade Grounds Center
PRICE: NIS 400-1,000
1-10 scale: 9 The only artist coming to Israel who also performed at the Coachella Festival this year, Del Rey burst to stardom through the Internet in 2011, but has showed staying power with her quirky style. The next best thing to a performance by Lorde.