Netanyahu is Making the Case for Trump to Leave the Iranian Nuclear Deal

Below is just one American show Prime Minister Netanyahu joined to press his case for the USA to leave the heavily flawed Iranian nuclear agreement, officially known as the JCPOA.

Will this work?  Most likely President Trump has already decided to leave the deal and is actually coordinating with Netanyahu.  The Prime Minister has a far more positive profile than Trump does and can make the case succinctly.  Of course no one knows what Trump will decide on May 12th, but it increasingly appears to be likely he will leave it.

Israel Must Brace for Impact

The “smart” missiles have now been fired into Syria and according to the Pentagon they were successful.  For all of Trump’s bellicose rhetoric, the operation to degrade Syria’s chemical weapons capabilities took a few short hours on Saturday.  On the surface of it, Trump accomplished his goal of destroying Assad’s ability to harm civilians using chemical weapons while not getting involved enough to draw Russia into a direct confrontation.

Of course, on the ground things are far different.  Within a few hours of the missile barrage, unidentified aircraft struck an Iranian base in Aleppo, Syria.  Most sources suggest this was an Israeli attack. Iran and Russia have already pledged to respond to the US attack, which will most likely take the form of attacking an American proxy rather than the US itself.  Stability was never an adjective to describe Syria, but whatever semblance of order there was it had not completely vanished until now.

Despite Bibi Netanyahu’s public support for the US attack on Syria, Israel has little need or desire for an American attack which will end up causing the Jewish state serous damage. Russia’s response will be calculating and not come right away. Putin has held Iran and Hezbollah back from attacking Israel. This has seemingly changed after Trump’s attack on Syria.

Although Israel has the free reign to do what is necessary, Russian involvement may neutralize some of its capabilities when dealing with an Iranian/Hezbollah advance into the Golan or the Galilee. While Russia is no America and Iran’s traditional military has taken a backseat to its ballistic missile program, both would be a formidable force for the Israeli military to defend against.

Trump’s attack on Syria, while forceful was merely a quick carrying out of a hit and run strategy that may have unknown consequences on geopolitical structures in the Middle East and the broader region.

Trump’s day of reckoning for Syria has come and gone, but Israel’s standing in relation to Russia has now deteriorated placing its populace in direct danger.

Israel must now brace for full impact as it is the number one target for Russia and Iran’s retaliation against America.

 

Gaza Bloodshed and the Return of the Intifada

Just before Passover in Israel, the Hamas leadership in a premeditated manner attempted push nearly 20,000 angry Gazans spread out over six camps through the Israeli border fence. The resulting clash resulted in more than 15 Gazan deaths and over 1,000 wounded. The IDF was ordered to shoot those protestors that posed a direct threat to them or civilians.

Already there is a serious outcry over the “needless” deaths from across the world.  This is to be expected.  The world has been wantonly silent on Turkish genocide and ethnic cleansing of the Kurds in Afrin.

Up until now Israel has held strong against Hamas’ aim at deligitimzing the Jewish State, but with reports that footage shows the IDF shooting unarmed civilians, the question remains on exacly how long Bibi and his cabinet can continue shutting down these sorts of protests.

Hamas was able to get the IDF to play according to their rules knowing that any death would appear “unwarranted.”  Now they have the spark to potentially set the Palestinian areas in Judea and Samaria ablaze, starting a new Intifada.

John Bolton and the Death of the Two-State Solution

Hamas has also given the new head of the NSC John Bolton enough ammunition to convince Trump to kill the two-state solution once and for all. Bolton has made it clear in the past he does not believe the Two-State solution is workable. The question really is whether this is or not Bolton prioritizes Israel and the surrounding area.

Hamas was able to use the march on the Gazan border by allowing the group to become chaotic and driven by an anger over their roll in the “Nakba.” The results are already starting to flow with the Secretary-General of the UN calling for an independent council over the protests.

“The Secretary-General calls for an independent and transparent investigation into these incidents,” said a statement by Guterres’ deputy spokesman Farhan Haq, which also reaffirmed “the readiness” of the world body to revitalize peace efforts.

If the Palestinians continue their protets and gain noterietry Israel’s typically weak PR may find itself overwhelmed, creating a wave of international attacks on the tiny Jewish state.

 

Liberman: “Iran won’t be allowed to get nuclear weapons”

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman spoke out againt Iran’s growing presence in Syria and southern Lebanon. He stated e.mphatically that “Iran won’t have nuclear weapons. The State of Israel is determined not to allow nuclear weapons for Iran.”

In terms of the situation to Israel’s north, Liberman said “It is bad,” referring to the missile threat from Hezbollah and the growing Iranian control on the Syrian-Israeli border.

With the Russia back Shiite axis clearly coming out ahead in the Syrian civil war, the threat from Iran has grown significantly. Although Russia has promised not to let Iran become a danger to Israel, the opposite has occurred and the fanatical Shiite regime has assumed an ever more threatening position.

Last month Iran sent its first UAV into Israel, which sparked a reaction from Israel destroying many of the forward bases it had built in Syria.  Despite the strong stance taken by the IDF, Iran contiues to expand seemingly realizing that Israel is increasingly on its own.

Options for Israel

Israel has little options for dealing with the growing Iranian presence.  With hundreds of thousands of missiles pointed at it by Hezbollah and a joint Syrian-Iranian threat of invasion into the Golan, Israel has to make sure its moves are considered very carefully.  The Syrian-Iranian alliance is fully backed by Putin, which creates a serious strategic challenge to Israel.

 

JERUSALEM TERROR: Adiel Kolman, Father of Four Was Murdered Last Night in Jerusalem’s Old City

Adiel Kolman, 32 year old father of four from Kochav Hashachar was murdered last night by 28 year old Abed al-Rahman Bani Fa’adal, a resident of the Palestinian Authority-controlled town of Aqraba, near Shechem in the Shomron.  Fa’adal succeeded in using his entry permit to evade security checkpoints into Jerusalem and even into the Old City. He was shot by the police at the site of the murder.

Kolman was on his way home for the evening.  He was a security guard in the Old City of Jerusalem and as well as contributing greatly to the City of David’s archeological excavations.

The victim spent hours at Shaare Tzedek hospital only to succumb to his wounds.

President Reuven Rivlin said the following about the murder: ““Four more children lost their father last night. For the bereaved the pain is unbearable. Thirty-two year old Adiel Kolman, who worked with dedication in the City of David excavations, was murdered yesterday in the Old City, in a brutal and abhorrent stabbing terror attack. The terror on the streets of Jerusalem, our capital, where Jews and Arabs have lived together for hundreds of years, is a great disaster for all its inhabitants, and we will not allow it to become an existing reality. We will fight against terror and we will overcome.”

With tensions still high after the murder of two soldiers just before Shabbat, Daniel Luria, Executive Director of Ateret Cohanim offered a different approach. “Ateret Cohanim calls on the Israeli Government to act like a true supporting Governemnt and stop sitting on the fence, by pretending to be moral or ethical. We are at war. And so there is one way to treat an enemy during wartime. Destroying one petty small  bedroom in a building hasn’t and wont stop these terrorists,” Luria said.

Luria continued: “Destroying the family home (all rooms) will have more of a chance of being a deterrant. Evicting the whole immediate family and banishing them out of Israel to say Gaza  is a possible deterrant. Cutting any and all social security payments will also help if relevant. Lets stop playing games. Lets remember that the family and many friends of the terrorist knows about and  supports his actions. They are not innocent bystanders.”
“So I call upon  the Israeli Government to act like the head of the family, whose own child has been murdered and act like the true owner of the Land of Israel.”
Our answer. Our response. Our revenge – is to buy, build, redeem, reclaim, add Jewish life and secure Jerusalem.”

Two Soldiers Murdered by Arab Terrorists in Northern Samaria

Just before Shabbat on Friday, an Arab terrorist rammed his car into four soldiers killing two and injuring the other two.  Captain Ziv Deus, 21 and Sergeant Netanal Kahalani, 20 were said to have no time to respond to the uncomming Arab attack that killed them.  The scene of the attack was near the Israeli community of Mevo Dotan and Arab village of Ya’bad.

“From the depths of my heart, I send condolences to the families of the IDF officer and soldier who were murdered yesterday by a reprehensible terrorist and my best wishes for a quick recovery to the wounded. We will work to demolish the home of the terrorist and will deal with him to the fullest extent of the law.”




The Arab terrorist initially fled the scene but was later caught.

“We need the death penalty,” he said. “It does not help to destroy homes, and it does not help to feed them on the State’s bill. We need to throw his family into the sea. If no decision is made, this will continue. It’s time to put and end to this. I don’t know if I should send my youngest son to the army, or if he should stay home with me.”

 

BIBI NETANYAHU: “If you press them, they will crack.”

(Communicated by the Prime Minister’s Media Adviser)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara, last night (Wednesday, 7 March 2018, Eastern Daylight Time), in New York, attended a Jewish Agency event to honor Natan Sharansky. Former US President George Bush was also in attendance.

Prime Minister Netanyahu:

“I believed that strong and sustained leadership in the West could win the Cold War few thought could be won. And in fact, that’s what we proceeded to do. Avital remembers this. We spoke with the administration of President Regan. I have to mention Secretary Schultz. He was magnificent, magnificent, Ambassador Jeanne Kirkpatrick and many others. And I said to them, as did others: If you press hard enough, they will crack. Not everyone believed this. I remember Yelena Bonner, the wife of Andrei Sakharov, the great Sakharov. She said to me, Sakharov will die in prison.” I said, “No, he won’t. If you press them, they will crack and they will let out Sharansky and they will let out Sakharov and they will let out 400,000 Jews.” That’s the number I said. I’m glad my prediction proved wrong, because we got more than that, twice that.

If you press them, they will crack. That same faith should guide us today, because there’s another would-be empire in the Middle East. It too oppresses its people. It too terrorizes its neighbors. But it too has a hollow core. If you press them, they will crack. They will succumb to strong pressure from the free world. And that country is Iran, and Iran’s aggression must be stopped and can be stopped. If you want to honor Natan’s legacy, then support the brave men and women of Iran who are fighting for freedom, yearning for freedom, praying for freedom and praying for our support for their struggle. That’s the best way to honor Natan’s legacy.

Natan, thank you for your service to the Jewish state and thank you for your service for the cause of freedom.”




BIBI NETANYAHU: “All of us are created in the image of God.”




(Communicated by the Prime Minister’s Media Adviser)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today (Tuesday, 6 March 2018), in Washington, addressed the AIPAC Policy Conference. Following are his remarks:

“Good morning, AIPAC. It’s always great to be here.

But as I told President Trump yesterday, it’s especially great to be in America’s capital now that he has recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Thank you, President Trump for that historic decision. Thank you for announcing another decision—to move the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem this Independence Day. And the first ambassador to have the honor of working from that embassy in Jerusalem is a great American ambassador, David Friedman.

David, thank you for that terrific job that you’re doing. And you know who else is doing a fantastic job? Israel’s ambassador to Washington – Ron Dermer. Thank you for the terrific job you’re doing.

I want to thank Mort Freidman, Lillian Pinkus – Lillian, you don’t have to remind them how far back we go together – Howard Kohr, AIPAC’s nuclear core, everyone at AIPAC. I want to thank all of you for the work you are doing to strengthen the remarkable alliance between our two countries. Thank you.

I want to acknowledge the Israeli ministers, Israel’s representatives here in the United States, in the United Nations, the Mayor of Jerusalem, the many Members of Congress and the former leaders of countries who are here. In particular, I want to acknowledge my friend, a great champion of Israel, the former Prime Minister of Canada Stephen Harper. Stephen, stand up, please. Stephen, we never forget our friends, and you were a tremendous friend and still are.

And finally, I want to thank the 4,000 students who are here with us today. Four thousand students. Thank you for cutting class to be here. So, if any of you needs a note, you can see me later. There’s a line forming outside.

Now, what I can see is this. Well, it’s dark, but I can see something. I can see that the audience in this hall each year is getting bigger and bigger and bigger, 18,000 strong. I want to see all of you, and I can’t. I don’t want to stand behind this podium. Is it okay? What the heck—I’m the Prime Minister. Thank you, yeah, great, good to see you. Thank you. I’ll get there too. Don’t worry. Great to see you.

So today I want to ask you. You remember that great Clint Eastwood movie, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly? Well, I want to talk about the good, the bad and beautiful.

The good are all the good things that we are doing in Israel that are helping make the world a better place. The bad are all the bad things that malevolent forces are trying to do to Israel and to the world – and specifically, I’m talking about Iran.

And the beautiful – well, that I’ll leave to the last.

So first the good news: Israel has never been stronger militarily. Tremendously strong.

That’s an F35 fighter plane, the most advanced in the world. That’s an Iron Dome interceptor, and many other systems that we developed with the help of America. Thank you America; thank you successive American presidents; thank you Congress, Republicans and Democrats alike; thank you AIPAC for helping bring this about. You’re terrific. And this incredible military is buttressed by superb intelligence, unmatched in the world. Can you see me? I can hardly see you. I have to get closer. Yeah, I see you. That’s good. Superb intelligence. You know, in the last few years, Israel’s incredible intelligence services have foiled dozens, dozens of terrorist attacks across the world in dozens of countries. That plane, a plane like that could have been blown out of the sky if it weren’t for Israeli intelligence, a plane heading from Australia to the Persian Gulf. You’re boarding planes when you leave this place. You are safer because of Israeli intelligence. It not only protects Israeli lives, it protects innocent lives around the world.

And we’re able to do all this because of the extraordinary soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces, men and women—just look at them—men and women, black and white, religious and secular, gay and straight, Jews, Muslims, Christians, Druze, Circassians. They come from different backgrounds, but they’re united with a common mission: to protect the State of Israel. They keep us safe. They make us proud.

Now, I know there are quite a few veterans of the Israeli army here. So I want you to stand up. I want you to be recognized. Stand up please.




But the good news doesn’t stop merely with Israel’s strong military. It continues with Israel’s strong economy. It’s a tremendously strong economy, and I’ll tell you, we made it stronger by moving Israel to free market principles, which unleashed the spark of genius embedded in our people, into innovation, entrepreneurship. And there is a revolution taking place. This couldn’t happen at the better time. Look at the ten leading companies in 2006: five energy companies, one IT company, Microsoft. And a mere 10 years later, 2016, a blink of an eye in historical terms, it’s completely reversed. Five IT companies, one energy company left. The true wealth is in innovation. You know these companies: Apple, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook. Guess what? They all have research centers in Israel. All of them, major research centers. And they’re not alone. There are hundreds more. And there’s a reason, something is going on. It’s a great change. It’s—you want to hear jargon? It’s one sentence. This is a terrible sentence, but I have no other way to say it. It’s the confluence of big data, connectivity and artificial intelligence, okay? Do you get that? You know what that does? It revolutionizes old industries and it creates entirely new industries.

So here’s an old industry that Israel was always great in: agriculture. We were always good in agriculture. But now we have precision agriculture. You know what that is? See that drone in the sky? He’s connected to a big database. And there are sensors in the field, and in the field there’s drip irrigation and drip fertilization. And now we can target, with this technology, the water that we give, the fertilizer that we give down to the individual plant that needs it. That’s precision agriculture. That’s Israel. Unbelievable.

You know, we were always good in water. I want you to see how good we are. So, we recycle almost 90% of our wastewater. The next country, with less than 20%, is Spain. You can see how Israel, what it does for water, what it does for the environment. So when you take these two things, agriculture and water, and the other technologies that we apply in both, we can change the world. We are. I just heard about an African woman in Africa, has to walk eight hours a day to give water to her children – four hours one way to a well, four hours back. And a young Israeli company brought in this technology that improves on Moses. You remember Moses? He brought water from a rock? They bring water from thin air. They bring water to Africa, to millions of people in Africa – Israeli technology!

And I was just recently in India. That’s my friend, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, great friend. I’m showing him cherry tomatoes. This is in Gujarat, India. This is Israeli technology. And what I heard there was fantastic. Famers came from the region. There’s an experimental farm there and a place where Israel gives technology knowhow to India famers. Sixty-five percent of India’s population are farmers. And one farmer after the other gets up and says: Because of Israeli technology, I’ve increased my crop yields and my income three times, four times, five times. Israel is changing the world in India, in Asia, in Africa, in Latin America, everywhere.

These are the old industries. Now, there are new industries. Israel is literally, how can I say this: Israel is literally driving the world. I’m talking about autonomous vehicles. Israel is a world leader in autonomous vehicles. Five hundred tech companies that sprang up almost instantaneously. And one of them, MobileEye up there on the left, was just sold to Intel for the paltry sum of 15 billion dollars. But the interesting thing is that Intel said to them, “Here are the keys to our 30 worldwide autonomous vehicle businesses. You run it.” Israeli technology is driving the world!

And one last industry – there are many more – but one more that you’re all familiar with. You have bank accounts? You should, okay? Well, you don’t want anyone hacking into them, right? Or into your cars, or into the planes you ride? You need cybersecurity. Everybody needs cyber. Israel has become a world leader in cybersecurity. Look at how much they invest in the hundreds of Israeli startup companies, tremendous companies. But here is another factor that you should now. Israel’s population is how much? Who knows? Class? Eight million? It’s closer to nine, but it’s about between eight and nine million, that’s correct. And what percentage of that is of the world’s population? Oh come on. It’s one-tenth of one percent. So, what percentage do we get of the world global investment in cybersecurity, in private investment in cybersecurity? We’re one-tenth of one percent of the world’s population, and we get a whopping 20% of global, private investment in cyber. We’re punching 200 times above our weight. Not two times, not ten times, not a hundred times – 200 times above our weight. That’s very strong.

Now here’s how the dots connect. Because we have this tremendous capacity for security and intelligence, and because we have this tremendous capacity for civilian technology, for making the lives of people richer, safer, more productive, many countries are coming to Israel because they want to share with us these benefits.

And that creates the third great change, which is a flourishing of Israel’s diplomatic relations around the world. You know, when I joined the Foreign Service 105 years ago, as the DCM to this city, Washington, the number two in our embassy, I think we had about 80 or 90 countries with whom we had diplomatic relations. Now the number is 160, and there are very few countries left. By the way, what are we doing with Greenland? We got to do something with Greenland. They must have some satellite needs or something that we could do there. But we are coloring the world blue. I’ve been to Africa three times in 18 months. I’ve been to South America, to Latin America. Can you imagine in the 70 years of the history of Israel a prime minister of Israel never went south of Texas? I mean, I love Texas, but we went to Argentina. We went to Argentina, to Colombia, to Mexico. And they say come back, come back. We want more. That is changing. All these countries are coming to us: India, China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, all of them, Azerbaijan, Muslim countries. First time I visited Australia – tremendous. Far away though. So we’re coloring the world blue. And you know what? The numbers… You remember people talked about Israel’s isolation? Pretty soon, the countries that don’t have relations with us, they’re going to be isolated.

There are those who talk about boycotting Israel? We’ll boycott them.

So, the good news is very good, and it’s getting better. The bad news, and that’s the bad news, is that bad things are getting worse, and they’re very bad. And when I talk about that, we have to deal with this challenge. And I’m thinking specifically: What do we do about Iran? The force behind so much of what is bad is this radical tyranny in Tehran. If I have a message for you today, it’s a very simple one: We must stop Iran. We will stop Iran!

When I last spoke here, I warned, tried to warn the world about a nuclear deal that was a threat to the survival of Israel, the security of the region, the peace of the world. I warned that Iran’s regime had repeatedly lied to the international community, that it could not be trusted. I warned that the deal gives Iran a clear path towards developing a nuclear arsenal in little more than a decade. And I warned that by removing Iran’s sanctions, Iran’s regime would not become more moderate and peaceful, but more extreme and belligerent, much more dangerous.

And, ladies and gentlemen, that’s exactly what has happened.

Here is what Iran is doing today.

Darkness is descending on our region. Iran is building an aggressive empire: Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, Yemen, more to come. Now Iran is seeking to build permanent military bases in Syria, seeking to create a land bridge from Tartus, from Tehran to Tartus on the Mediterranean. And in addition to moving its army, its air force, its navy to Syria to be able to attack Israel from closer hand, it’s also seeking to develop, to build precision guided missile factories in Syria and Lebanon against Israel.




I will not let that happen. We will not let that happen. We must stop Iran. We will stop Iran.

Last week, we read in the Book of Esther about an earlier Persian attempt to exterminate our people. They failed then. They’ll fail now. We will never let Iran develop nuclear weapons – not now, not in ten years, not ever.

President Trump has made it clear that his administration will not accept Iran’s aggression in the region. He has made clear that he too will never accept a nuclear-armed Iran. That is the right policy. I salute President Trump on this. And the President has also made it clear that if the fatal flaws of the nuclear deal are not fixed, he will walk away from the deal and restore sanctions. Israel will be right there by America’s side. And let me tell you, so will other countries in the region.

As we counter Iran’s aggression, we should always remember, we should always remember the brave people of Iran: their suffering, their hopes, their courage. Women are jailed for removing their hijabs. Students are tortured, tortured and shot for advocating freedom. We stand with those in Iran who stand for freedom. Now I believe that a day will come when this horrible tyranny will disappear, will perish from the earth and at that point, the historic friendship between the people of Israel and the people of Persia will be reestablished. Today we have Haman. Tomorrow we’ll have Cyrus and friendship and peace.

My friends, as we work together to confront the bad, there is also potential to advance the good that paradoxically comes from the bad, because most of the states in our region know—they know very well, believe me—that Israel is not their enemy, but their indispensable ally in confronting our common challenges and seizing our common opportunities. That is true for Egypt and Jordan, Israel’s long-time peace partners, but it’s also true for many other Arab countries in the Middle East. Israel remains committed to achieving peace with all our neighbors, including the Palestinians. President Trump has made it clear that he is committed to peace. I have made it clear that I am committed to peace. We appreciate the efforts of President Trump’s superb team—Jared Kushner, Jason Greenblatt and Ambassador David Friedman. Thank you all. Thank you all for your hard work for peace.

But to get peace, to get peace President Abbas has to embrace peace and to stop supporting terror. Raise your hands high if you agree with me that President Abbas should stop paying terrorists who murder Jews. You know how much he pays? He pays about $350 million dollars a year to terrorists and their families, each year. That’s about a little less than 10% of the total Palestinian budget. That’s an incredible number. He pays Hakim Awad. Hakim Awad is the terrorist who murdered this beautiful family of Ehud and Ruth Fogel and their three children, including a 3 month-old baby girl, Hadas. So he pays Hakim Awad, this murderer, and over the lifetime of this killer, he will be receiving two million dollars.

I have a message for President Abbas: Stop paying terrorists. Because what message does this send to Palestinian children? It says murder Jews and get rich. And I believe President Abbas should find better use for this money—to build roads, schools, hospitals, factories. Build life, don’t pay death. Invest in life. Invest in peace.

Israel hopes that the passage of the Taylor Force Act will make clear to President Abbas that America has zero tolerance for terror.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I’ve spoken about the good and the bad – there’s plenty of both. But I want to end with a few words about the beautiful – the beautiful alliance between Israel and the United States of America, the beautiful alliance that has brought all of you here to Washington, the beautiful alliance that you work day in and day out to make stronger and to make better.

What is this beautiful alliance made of? It’s made of our shared values. That’s the well-spring of the great alliance between our two countries. And all you have to do is leave this room, leave this hall, and you walk around a few blocks from here, and you see these majestic monuments , you can learn from them all about our common values. You know, they come from a certain book, a great book, a good book. It’s called the Bible. It said that all of us are created in the image of God. And those words inspired Jefferson when he declared in the Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal. All women too, by the way.

And that book inspired Abraham Lincoln in the darkest days of America’s Civil War. He found inspiration in the words of our greatest king, King David, when he said that the wounds of a divided America would heal and that the judgements of the Lord are true and righteous. Just as the stirring words of the Prophet Amos inspired the great Martin Luther King when he stood before the Lincoln Memorial and promised to carry on his struggle until justice runs down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.

They values are an inseparable part of America’s story. They’re an inseparable part of Israel’s story. And today, together, we are writing a new chapter in our common story, a story of freedom, of justice, of peace, of hope. And it is because we are inspired by the same ideas, because we are animated by the same values that America and Israel have forged an eternal bond that can never ever be broken.

Thank you, AIPAC. God bless Israel. God bless America. And God bless the Israel-America alliance.”

Why Does AIPAC Still Support Palestine?

Either AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) didn’t get the memo on the Trump administration’s shift in policy for Israel and the non-existant Palestine or it simply doesn’t care.




The above clip featuring AIPAC CEO Howard Kohr has him clearly stating his support for “Palestine.”

“We must all work toward that future: two states for two peoples,” said Kohr. “One Jewish with secure and defensible borders, and one Palestinian with its own flag and its own future. Today that dream seems remote. This is tragic.”

This sort of line would be understandable during the Obama administration, when Israel’s rightwing government had to pay lip service to the two-state solution, but now with Trump’s moves in the region, other alternatives have been acknowledged to be on the table.

So why is Howard Kohr stating this?  His statements appear to be in contradiction to the shift in both the US government and Israel? Afterall, AIPAC only came out in support for Sharon’s Gush Katif evacuation after tremendous pressure from Sharon himself.  AIPAC is only supposed to push for the stated interests of the people of Israel through its elected officials, not its own.

AIPAC has been headed by Howard Kohr since 1996.  He has navigated various administrations and has been known to standup to various Presidents. In 2012 he seemingly took on Obama as noted by the Washington Post here.

So why is he still toting the two-state line? Kohr himself is seemingly not the issue, but rather the outsized influence AIPAC’s board and delegates have.  These people found themselves part of AIPAC at a time when both Democrats and Republicans saw eye to eye on Israel.  The push for a two-state solution and rising support for “Palestine” among Jewish Democrats has in a sense forced Howard Kohr to somewhat moderate his positions.

Ultimately, AIPAC itself is not what it used to be.  More about tradition than anything else, AIPAC’s role has become secondary to the growing chemistry between Trump and Netanyahu as well as the direct influence of Christian Zionist leaders on individuals in congress.

AIPAC’s board and delegates have been so used to the two-state paradigm, their ability to recognize its collapse has been subsequently diminished.  What needs to happen now by nationalists in Israel is a serious reeducation process to help American supporters of Israel, especially Jewish Americans understand the alternative to the two-state solution before its inevitable collapse.

Jordanian Opposition Coalition: JORDAN’S QUEEN HAS ACTIVIST ARRESTED

QUEEN CAN’T STAND CRITICISM ATTACKING HER LAVISH LIFESTYLE – AND FRIENDSHIP WITH BONO

(London, England) – In an effort to support a lavish lifestyle and an out of control economy, Jordan’s Monarch has again increased the prices of basic staples of life ranging from Bread to Electricity, causing protests across the country.

Jordan’s economy is running on a just under 100% debt ratio. This, along with a lavish lifestyle that includes Jets, Yachts, Mansions in multiple countries and gambling junkets to foreign lands allows the King and Queen to hob nob with the rich and famous (like Bono), while Jordanians starve.

To see the video of Jordanians protesting the king, his wife and his government, please click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDCXiDo2V2g&t=47s

“Jordan is engulfed in a life and death situation,” Mudar Zahran, Secretary General of the Jordanian Opposition Coalition (JOC)said. “Unlike previous protests, these ones call openly for toppling the regime, and is spreading across the nation”.

The importance of the events to the world can be summed up as follows: Not only is the Queen a prima donna, but more importantly, the king is no longer able to control his own state-run media, let alone the growing throng of hungry people. The renowned Brtish paper, The Times, reported on the protests last Sunday with a full-page story, titled: “Hungry Jordan vents anger at prodigal royals-An economic crisis, rising food prices and protests at the ruling family’s lavish lifestyle are stirring memories of the Arab Spring”

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/hungry-jordan-vents-anger-at-prodigal-royals-8s05rlqvl

“The king is losing control of the country department, by department, block by block and person by person,” Zahran continued. “In the past, this would never happen – to maintain control, the king would simply send in the military to put down the crowds, have the police or military arrest everyone, put them in jail, and then allow them to somehow disappear.”

“For some reason, the King is not arresting people,” Zahran added. “I believe its because putting them in jail is expensive, and as many of the chants heard during the demonstrations say, he is about to flee the country, and do so with billions of dollars in gold, jewelry, antiquities and cash.”

One of the most blatant example of their abuse of power and denial of rights occurred on 23 February 2017 when activist Seyaj AlMajali spoke at an anti-regime protests in Kerak, 100 Miles south of the Capital Amman. During his speech, he criticized the queen before the crowd, saying “The wives of Jordanians were from known families and respected themselves and did not appear on the cover of magazines with Bono”.

These words apparently were the “straw that broke the camel’s back”. Immediately upon hearing this, Queen Rania – in a rare exercise of her royal power – ordered AlMajali arrested. For the record, the “alleged” Bono-Rania connection has been a matter of controversy, mockery and rumors in Jordan for years, and it clearly bothers the queen. To show their disdain for her actions, and the actions of the king, the Jordanian public refers to her as “Marie Antoinette”, because of the lavish life style and multiple extra marital affairs. In fact, because of her actions and disdain for her subjects, many Jordanians are waiting for her to mimic Marie and say – “Let them eat cake”.

At the same time, the JOC, Jordan’s leading opposition group, is in the process of educating the US Congress about what the king is doing, and has notified them that the situation in Jordan is rapidly melting down, and the arrest of Siyaj Majali or Heba Melheim will push the peaceful protesters into violence.

According to Mudar, “The world needs to know that the regime’s actions will backfire on them and ignite a Syria like situation, undermining American interests in the region.”

Another example of how the Royal family is abusing their power is that of activist Heba Melheim who has been threatened with a Lobotomy for not wearing a ‘Hijab’.

According to the JOC’s Human Rights Secretary, Alaa Al Kofahi, “What the king and queen have done to Majali is evidence of a politically bankrupt regime, and it has to stop immediately.”

According to Zahran, “We demand that the UC Congress educate themselves about what the King is doing to his people, how he is working against American interest in the region and just exactly what other leaders in the region think of him.

“On behalf of the Jordanian people, the JOC demands that they release Majali and all other detainees immediately,” Zahran added. “If any activists who are exercising their right to free speech are harmed in any way, not only will every member of the US Congress and UK Parliament be educated about your actions, but we will pursue actions against you in the International Courts.