The UN..when it comes to Israel, business as usual

One of the officially produced handouts for the NGO forum at the the 2001 UN World Conference Against Racism, Durban, South Africa.
(courtesy of Eye on the UN)


Yep..same stuff, different day when it comes to Israel, the Jew among nations.

The new UN Human Rights Council voted to target Israel by making a review of alleged human rights abuses by Israel a permanent feature of every council session.

The resolution, which was sponsored by Islamic countries, was passed by a vote of 29-12, with five abstentions and revives the same nonsense the UN's dissolved Human Rights Commission was guilty of, which also made a fetish of reviewing alleged Israeli abuses every time it met.

Even more illuminating are the countries that voted for it: besides Arab and other Muslim countries, "yes" votes were cast by the African nations, Brazil, China, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, India, Mexico, the Philippines, Russia and Sri Lanka.

Some of these countries are interested in Arab oil and commerce, but others are merely practicing officially sanctioned racism and Jew hatred.

Canada and the EU nations voted against this travesty. The US and Israel are not on the commission, and don't vote.

As time goes on, the dividing line between the West and dar Islam and its enablers gets clearer and clearer. As for the UN, I can't believe the USA can't find a better use for all that prime New York City real estate.

Israel's `invitation'

Once again Yaacov from the one and only Dry Bones Blog gets it exactly right!

American Protestant Pogroms

Dymphna has an impressive post at Gates of Vienna, in which she examines anti-Semitism on the Left, concealed behind `anti-Zionism' and so-called `liberation theology.

Here's an excerpt:

"...Don’t kid yourself: rabid anti-Semitism is alive and well in the higher reaches of American society. It has always been there, but only lately has it learned to cloak itself as something else.

One of the most appalling features of our cultural disaster is this anti-Semitism as it is currently practiced in mainline Christian churches in this country. The edicts, committee reports, and resolutions pouring out in the name of the poorpalestinians — for that is now one word among these leaders — all have the same goal. Their stated purpose is to alleviate the suffering of the poorpals, and their committees all seem to have anachronistically Marxist-sounding names with words like “Justice” and “Peace” and “Concern” in the titles. Just like the good old fronted Communist groups in the fifties, the ones aimed at labor groups and later at civil rights organizations. Let’s face it, the Communists stole all the good titles and now the churches must steal them in turn. They might as well, given that their goals are often similar, and equally malign.

Let’s call this posturing by the churches at least one of the things it is: willful blindness to the reality on the ground. A visiting Martian would ask what these Methodists and Lutherans and Presbyterians have been smoking to bring on this stone-blind demonstration of Jew-hatred disguised as Palestinian love. And the alien’s question might explain it all. That is, all the drugs ingested by these people in their youth (and now risen to positions of power) have left a residual brain damage. Instead of the cognitive deficits some substance abusers exhibit, church leaders seem to suffer from a sort of drug-induced cortical inability to parse moral differences. This deficit leaves them with an overweening need to find victims to whom they can show tolerance, while also searching for villains on whom to project the world’s problems. Enter the Jews, those eternal scapegoats that all the righteous Christians love to loathe.

Done with the iron fist in the velvet glove, as only Dymphna can..read it all here.

The Israelis continue airstrikes in Gaza, but halt their offensive on the ground...for now

The Israelis continue to pound Gaza, but appear to have temporarily halted their ground assault. Read on, and I'll tell you what I think might be behind that....



The IDF launched airstrikes at over 30 targets in the Gaza Strip overnight, including the Hamas-controlled Interior Ministry in Gaza City.

Six other offices belonging to Hamas and the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, roads, arms warehouses and training camps were also hit.

The Israelis also took out an Islamic Jihad terrorist, Abdel Ghael, and injured another who tried to launch an anti-tank missile at troops stationed in south Gaza.

Two jihadis from the al-Aqsa brigade were also killed in a shoot-out with Israeli soldiers in the city of Nablus, in Samaria (on the Northern West Bank).The IDF arrested eight other Palestinian terrorists in Nablus, Ramallah and Beit Likiya.








Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh surfaced today at a mosque in Gaza and vowed that his government would not be destroyed by the Israeli campaign.

The arrests of Hamas leaders and destruction of its offices 'will not break down government and will not affect the functioning of the government chosen by the people,' he said during Friday prayers in Gaza City.

Haniyeh accused Israel of using the kidnapped soldier to implement a 'multi-purpose, premeditated plan, meant to force the Palestinian people to kneel, to break it and to humiliate it.'

Gee, maybe the Palestinian Government shouldn't have attacked a military base in Israel and kidnapped a soldier for ransom in the first place..yah think? That kind of behavior usually leads to hostilities among us infidels here in the West.

More than half the Gaza Strip is without power after Israel destroyed Gaza City's main electricity station early Wednesday, but the Israeli army vehemently denied it hit another station further south, saying it was in fact damaged by a Palestinian-launched Qassam rocket.

The Israelis, however, have halted a ground assault scheduled to hit the Northern Gaza Strip today.

There are a couple of reasons for this.

The first one, according to some of my sources, is a major disagreement between Israeli PM Ehud Olmert and his defence minister, Amir Peretz.

Peretz is apparently blocking the quick offensive that Olmert and the IDF high command want to rescue Gilead Shalit, the Israeli corporal kidnapped by Hamas Sunday, June 25, and eradicate the Qassam missile infrastructure.

Peretz is still attempting to use the `diplomacy' formulae in view of supposed talks between Egypt's President Mubarek, Syria's Basher Assad, and Hamas leaders Khaled Mashaal amd Ismail Haniyeh. Mubarek claims that Hamas is willing to release Shalit..for a price, the release of terrorists in Israeli custody and provided Israel halts the offensive in Gaza. The Israeli government has reiterated that they want Shalit freed, without preconditions, and in any event they have not been made aware of any concrete proposals by Hamas.

Peretz has been under heavy criticism anyway because of his complete lack of military experience and his Leftist views, which many feel (with justification) led to the current crisis. The IDF's command and even many politicians with more military expertise are furious with Peretz, and are saying openly that the delay minimizes the small chance Shalit has left for rescue.

But Olmet is apparently reluctant to assert himself or ask for Peretz's resignation because of the tenuous nature of the Kadima/Labor coalition...so there it sits, for now.

Peretz cannot delay things to much longer, and if Shalit is not released soon, I think that common sense will prevail and the IDF will be ordered force the issue and go in after him.

Peretz apparently has not made the mental leap yet to realize that this is war. Perhaps Israel would be better off with a defence minister who has more experience and understanding of these issues.

Osama surfaces with a new item for jihad TV

Osama bin-Laden crawled out of the woodwork last night with a new audiotape which aired on -where else?- Jihad TV, AKA al-Jazeera.

In it, bin Laden warned President Bush not to celebrate over the killing of Abu Musab al- Zarqawi, and demanded that the body of al-Qaeda's Iraq chief be returned to Jordan....not withstanding that the Jordanians refused to allow the corpse to enter Jordan!

Osama said the usual stuff about how al-Qaeda will continue its jihad in Iraq,yadda yadda. The tape also included a demand for Jordan's King Abdullah II, directing him to allow al-Zarqawi to be buried in his homeland, and to put on a funeral that would show support for al-Qaeda.

"I tell Bush, you have to hand over the body of the hero to his family," Osama said. "And don't rejoice excessively, because the banner has not fallen, thank Allah. It only went from a lion to another lion among the lions of Islam, and we'll continue fighting you and your allies everywhere, in Iraq, in Afghanistan, Somalia and Sudan."

I have a thought on this that could make everybody happy. Why not return Zarqawi's corpse to Jordan for burial...wrapped in a pigskin shroud? That way King Abdullah could admit it, ensured that Zarqawi would be buried with all the respect and esteem he deserves.

According to Osama, al-Qaeda will continue its attacks, "wearing down your money, killing your men, so that you go back defeated to your country, just like we defeated you before in Somalia, Allah willing... We're sad that Abu Musab and his companions have left us, but we're delighted that they have sacrificed their souls in these great epics, while defending the law of Islam."

Sharia-licious.

The Council has spoken. Complete results can be seen here.

Two of my personal picks wound up finishing in the money this week.

In first place for Council posts was ShrinkWrapped: The Dance of Escalation and Reaction Shrinkwrapped's usual excellence applied to analyzing the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.

In second place, was The Glittering Eye: How Do You Solve a Problem Like…Korea? Dave's analysis of the North Korea situation.

For non-council posts the winner was again my personal pick,Townhall.com :: Columns :: It's an Islamic jihad, stupid by Diana West


Second place honors went to an old BlogPal, Florida Cracker: Peter, Paul, And Ingrate for her scathing put down of aging leftie Mary Travers insulting the bone marrow donor who made her survival possible..because she was *gasp* a REPUBLICAN!

Hearty kudos to all the winners!

Some of those prisoners the Palestinians want released.

A lot of the MSM has fallen into the trap of referring to some of the prisoners the Palestinians want released in exchange for Corporal Shalit as `women and children.'




Elder of Ziyon at the Infidel Blogger's alliace has a great post on the backgrounds and crimes some of these prisoners are in jail for.

They include a woman who attempted to blow up an Israeli hospital where she was being treated, another who lured a love struck 16 year old Israeli boy to his kidnapping and death and the lovely woman who participated in the Sbarro's restaurant attack in Jerusalem, which killed 15 people, including 11 children.

They barely qualify as human beings, and any civilized society would want them locked up for life....but then again, we're talking about the Palestinians, aren't we?

Read the whole thing here:

Infidel Bloggers Alliance: Some of those female prisoners

Some common sense on Israel and the Palestinians from Europe

The English edition of the German `Der Spiegel' has an outstanding piece by Henryk M. Broder that sets out the basics of the Palestinian Israeli conflict in a nutshell, simply and honestly. It's appropriately called The Ongoing War against Reality .

Thanks and a hat tip to Joshua's Army member Chana, in Jerusalem.

Here's the piece, in it's entirety:

" Many are treating the apparent recognition of Israel by Hamas as a sign of hope. It's not. Indeed, the Palestinians have no such intention -- and have left Israel with only military options.

Once again the Palestinians are in the process of shattering the Israeli dream of peace. The building of a tunnel under the border, the attack on an army post and the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier haven't just served to stir things up in the stagnating Middle East war. The attack also served to bring the Israelis face to face with the limits of their power. And to provide the Palestinians with a short-lived though uplifting feeling of superiority. It's difficult, after all, to categorize an assault on an army unit as an act of terrorism.

Recent history has seen the Palestinians firing homemade, short-range Kassam rockets from Gaza into Israel and Israel responding with "targeted assassinations" -- which have often resulted in civilian deaths. That was, though it may sound cynical, Middle East business as usual -- and also mirrored the situation in the north where Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon has hardly resulted in instant peace there.

All or nothing

Now, however, the conflict has reached a new level. The Israeli withdrawal from Gaza last summer has more than anything motivated militant Palestinians to demonstrate to Israel that the conflict is not primarily about territory, the end of the occupation and the return to the 1967 borders. Rather, it's about all or nothing. It's about the control, not the division, of the region between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. Were the Palestinians to invest only a tiny percentage of the energy they consume in internal conflict and resistance against Israelis into the reconstruction of the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and Gaza would be much better off.

And the Israelis? Those who believed that unilateral action and the construction of a fence would result in the security that negotiations have been unable to provide are now being confronted with the bitter reality. Fences and walls cannot provide absolute security -- and no matter how high such barriers are, they can still be dug under. The question they are asking themselves is this: "What is cheaper: ending or continuing the occupation?" What's the point of military withdrawal when those Palestinians who want a peaceful resolution are unable to assert themselves -- and those Palestinians who want to continue fighting merely feel vindicated and encouraged?

As usual in such moments -- with the tunnel at the end of the light coming ever closer -- those who have a stake begin to clutch at whatever straw they can. The Europeans are once again trying to whitewash things. One hears a lot these days about the so-called "prisoners' document" -- that mysterious paper in which representatives from Hamas and Fatah have agreed on a common position on Israel. It is said to be nothing less than an "indirect recognition" of Israel.

Ignoring the rules of democracy

Leaving aside for a moment what exactly an "indirect recognition" means in practice -- no attacks within the 1967 Green Line? No attacks on Saturdays and holidays? No attacks on women and children? -- one salient fact is being forgotten. Israel and the PLO have already long since recognized each other in the Oslo Accords and all the agreements that have come since.

One of the basic rules in any democracy is that a new government accepts the treaties made by the old. Germany's Christian Democrats, for example, didn't annul the agreements struck by Social Democrat Chancellor Willy Brandt with East Bloc countries in the 1960s even if, when in opposition, they did everything in their power to torpedo the policy.

For Hamas, however, such rules don't seem to apply. The "prisoners' document" is a paper that is supposed to re-establish and solidify the "national unity" of the Palestinians. Inferring therein a recognition of Israel -- no matter how indirect or implicit it may be -- merely shows a tendency toward self-delusion. Nobody has yet seen the entire paper, but those bits that have been released are just as incoherent as they are explicit. And everything is discussed. Indeed, the only thing that doesn't appear is any mention of a recognition of Israel -- neither in pre nor in post 1967 borders. Only one conclusion can be drawn: Even after 40 years of occupation, the Palestinians have still not accepted reality and still dream of a return to the way things used to be.

Indeed, if there is a clear message provided by the paper, it is this: The Palestinians do indeed want a two-state solution. One in those regions -- the Gaza Strip and the West Bank -- occupied in 1967. And one in that region that is today known as Israel. One shouldn't forget that the PLO was founded in 1964 with the goal of freeing Palestine from the Zionists -- three years prior to the Six Day War when Gaza was still under Egyptian control and the West Bank was a part of Jordan.

Either complete victory or utter defeat

Back then, talking about the "Occupied Territories" meant Haifa, Tel Aviv and Beer-Sheva. And in this respect nothing has really changed to this day. The only difference between Hamas and Fatah -- which is overlooked by "the document" -- is the question of how Israel should be defeated: either militarily or through the implementation of a "right of return" policy. Israel therefore has the choice as to whether it is wiped from the map either in battle, or by peaceful means. Whoever hopes Israel will embrace these two alternatives is kidding themselves: there is no third possibility.

Israel has no other choice but to stand tough because every climb down and withdrawal is interpreted as weakness. Furthermore the word "compromise" is a foreign word in the Arab world. You either prevail or go down in a blaze of glory.

For this reason a "ceasefire" is the most Hamas is prepared to offer Israel, which the Europeans insist on misinterpreting as the first step towards recognition. Rather, it's merely a tactical pause in the war against Israel.

News about the new confrontation on the border between Gaza and Israel has largely displaced reports of the looming "humanitarian catastrophe" in Gaza. It's also important to find out how a government that can't even provide for its own people is getting the means to assemble, clothe and arm a new 3,000 man force. And who is arming and paying the salaries of these masked, hyper-agile young men who are storming the streets wielding bazookas? Is that what a "humanitarian catastrophe" looks like?

Hamas, though a problem for Israel, is a catastrophe for the Palestinians. It's a difference that no document can set aside.

I would only add that Fatah is just as much a catastrophe. Not that it matters, This is a war to the finish, and the sooner Israel decides to act decisively and win it, the better for them.

Iran's response to the G-8: don't call us, we'll call you, infidel.

The G-8 meeting on June 29th was supposed to be a deadline for Iran to respond to the generous incentives package handed to them on a silver platter by the West. This was later amended to July 5th.

Iran's response:no answer until they're damn good and ready!

Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said Iran had `questions about the proposal' and that they plan to discuss them with EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana next month before Iran can respond.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is seriously and carefully reviewing the proposed package," he said. "Questions and ambiguities on the Iranian side are pending. Therefore, we welcome the discussions and negotiations for clarification of those ambiguities."

Mottaki said something a leetle bit different just yesterday in an interview with the German weekly magazine Stern, which quoted him as saying his country may respond before the Group of Eight summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, which starts July 15th.

Whoopsie.

The ministers from the US, Russia, Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada said they expected to hear "a clear and substantive Iranian response to these proposals" at a meeting on July 5 between Solana and Iran's chief negotiator Ali Larijani.

Considering the way the West continues accepting this nonsense from the mullahs, I wouldn't count on it.

At any event, supreme leader Khameini has already said thumbs down on the agreement.

And it's obvious that no matter what the Iranians `agree' to, they will continue working ontheir nuclear weapons program.

Look for more god cop/bad cop chess moves from the people who invented the game.

Israelis continue to put the heat on Hamas..by arresting cabinet ministers and legislators; 2nd Jewish hostage murdered by Hamas

Ooooh the fur is flying now.

The Israelis swooped in and arrested 64 Hamas officials, including the deputy prime minister Nasser Shaer and Parliamentary Speaker Abdel Aziz Duaik, in an early-morning raid in Judea (the West Bank). In all, eight of Hamas' 23 Cabinet ministers and 20 of its 72 lawmakers were rounded up.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said the officials were not taken as bargaining chips for Shalit's release, but because Israel holds Hamas responsible for attacks against it.

And why not?

Hamas controls the government, and ordered an attack on an Israeli position. This was an act of war, not terrorism...as opposed to the kidnapping and murder of Israeli teenage civilian Eliyahu Asheri.

On that little issue, Israelig government spokesman Asaf Shariv said Asheri's killers would be arrested, and Israel would bring them to trial. "Their days as free people are numbered."

(UPDATE: Apparently Hamas has also murdered 62 year old Noach Moskowitz, who's body was found hours after the remains of 18-year-old Eliyahu Asheri were retrieved from a site near the Palestinian capital of Ramallah.)


The Palestinians of course, and their EU and Arab allies were outraged by the arrests.

"We have no government, we have nothing. They have all been taken," said Saeb Erekat, the right half of Yasir Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas' forked tongues. "This is absolutely unacceptable and we demand their release immediately."

Hamas declared the Israeli moves an "act of war against the Palestinian people" as well as "a grave precedent (and) an international crime", and warned of dire consequences .

I guess they were just kidding before!

"This goes against all human moral and democratic values and hurts the will of our people," spokesman Mushir al-Masri said. "The international community must have its say."

"Today, tomorrow or after that, there will be no option but to give in, and admit to the right of our prisoners to freedom, and our people's right to an honorable living. Wasting time is not in their interests and for sure, they are the losers," said Abu Mujahid, a spokesman for Hamas.

The EU press,of course is ambivilent for the most part, is ignoring the murder of the two Israeli civilians and yammering about `subverting a democratically elected government'.

I agree...but one of the consequences of a democratically elected government is that it has to behave like a government, and not a terrorist organization...and it's accountable for it's actions,including attacks on another sovereign state. The Palestinians also need to understand that an election gives choices..and choices have consequences.

Palestinians execute teenage hostage

The IDF has confirmed that the Palestinians have executed hostage Eliyahu Asheri, 18, of Itamar, who was kidnapped earlier this week in the West Bank.




IDF combat engineers on patrol late Wednesday night in Ramallah found Asheri's body in an abandoned car in an open field. The teenager appeared to have been shot to death, and initial findings indicated that he may have been killed as early as Sunday. Israel Radio reported.

Asheri's family has been notified.

After the Palestinians produced an authentic copy of missing teenager Asheri's identity card and confirmed that he had been kidnapped, the Israeli police's elite counterterrorist squad raided a home in Ramallah in the afternoon and arrested a fugitive...who probably told them where to find Asheri's body.

Yesterday, a spokesman for the Hamas-affiliated PRC told jihad TV, AKA Al-Jazeera that Asheri would be "butchered in front of TV cameras" if the IDF operation in Gaza did not stop. I'm certain a jihadi snuff video will be forthcoming.


Rabbi Haim Druckman, Asheri's grandfather, described Asheri as "a great kid, very responsible, very serious and sensitive... He was at his greatest, blossoming and very happy."

Eliahu was the eldest of five children, and his parents have been living in Itamar since 1991. His father immigrated from Melbourne, Australia.

May his blood be avenged by the G-d of Israel who sees all. Z"l

The latest on Gaza....

Israeli tanks began shelling Palestinian positons in the northern Gaza Strip in Beit Hanoun after dropping leaflets warning Palestinians to leave ahead of next stage of IDF ground offensive.





Beit Hanoun, by the way, is a center of terrorist bases and Qassam missile launchings against Israel.

As I said, this is about more than just rescuing Corporal Gilead Shalit.

The IDF also took out a Hamas training camp near Rafah, but have not gone into Rafah itself, and Israeli jets are `buzzing' Gaza city and causing some fairly disturbing sonic booms. My guess is that they want to try to force Hamas to release Shalit by making things as uncomfortable as possible. I don't see Hamas releasing Shalit voluntarily, frankly. He will have to be rescued and that will mean going into Rafah. The Palestinians will try to kill as many Jews as they can and hope for the usual sob stories from the media on any Palestinian casualties. Pallywood is undoubtedly set to go into full production mode.

Fatah's al Aqsa Brigades (you know, the terrorists commanded by `moderate' President Abbas sent out a couple of warnings. First they threatened to target an already marked Israeli embassy overseas. They also threatened to kill two Israeli civilians, a teenager and a 62 year old man from Rishon Lezion they claimed to be holding as hostages.

Definitely look for some action in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank)before this is all over.

For his part, Olmert appears to be hanging tough so far. He's rejected negotiations with any terrorist organization for the release of the abducted Israeli soldier. If he is not returned, “we will not shrink from extreme action,” said Olmert.

In a seperate move, the IDF buzzed the Latakia resort home of Syrian President Basher Assad. Latakia is a seaside resort on the Syrian coast. Assad was `in residence' as they say, and was definitely NOT pleased. This was a subtle hint from the Israelis that they disapprove of Syria sheltering terrorists like Hamas leader Khalid Meshaal...who the Israelis suspect actually gave the orders to start abducting Israelis.

To Bill Keller, Pinch Sultzberger and the New York Times (not that they care)

Good News from Iraq

Omar from IRAQ THE MODEL writes that the creeps behind the bombing of the Samarra Golden Mosque have been caught.

In a press conference today Iraq's national security advisor Muwaffak al-Rubaie said Iraqi security forces arrested Abu Qudama al-Tunisi in a raid in the suburb of al-Dhuloiya north of Baghdad. 15 other jihadis were killed and several more arrested.

Muwaffak al-Rubaie said the security forces are still searching for Haitham al-Badri, the al Qaeda field commander under whom Abu Qudama was operating.

According to Qudama's confession, the cell consisted of 4 Saudis, two Iraqis and one Tunisian...some `insurgency' huh? Some `Civil war' eh, Murtha?

The terrorists entered the mosque at night, took out the guards in a room and then planted bombs all around the mosque. Next day they kidnapped and murdered reporter Atwar Bahjat while she was trying to cover the story on the bombing.

This bit of good news is part of the harvest of intel gathered at the site of Zarqawi's Extreme Makeover...may it continue.

A third Palestinian kidnapping?

A third Israeli has reportedly taken hostage by Palestinians today.

This time it's the al Aqsa Brigades of Abu Mazen’s Fatah who claim to have snatched a 62-year old Israeli civilian from Rishon Lezion. The Israeli police are checking to see if he is Noah Moskovitch who disappeared from this home in that town two days ago.

As I write an Israeli commando force has surrounded four buildings, including Fatah HQ, in the al Bireh district of Ramallah. They arrested a Fatah `activist' suspected of involvement in or knowledge of the kidnap of 18-year old Israeli civilian Eliahu Asheri from Itamar, who has been missing since Sunday.

I really wonder what it will take for Israel to bite the bullet and admit they're at war...with Fatah, Hamas and the other asorted flavors of Palestinian terrorists. There is no way a civilized society can live next to these barbarians.

And that includes `Mr. Moderate', Mahmoud Abbas.

Walking with the King

President Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi are meeting today in Washington...but both of them are probably in `can't wait' mode as they dispose of official biz and get to the important stuff.

Mr Bush and Mr Koizumi are going to Memphis to pay homage to the King.

They will tour Graceland, where the two men will become the first sitting heads of state to tour Elvis Presley's home and shrine.

Koizumi is known both at home and abroad as a huge Elvis fan. He has sung his songs to world leaders (!), sung duets with celebrities and even released a CD of his favourite classics.

Koizumi and the King both share the same January 8th birthday.

"I love Elvis," he told the 5,000 strong Elvis Presley Fan Club in Tokyo in 2001. "I never get tired of listening to his songs no matter how many times I hear them."

Me too, Mr. Prime Minister. I knew there was something I liked about you...just never put my finger on it.

Maybe Koizumi and Dubbya will do a duet on `Heartbreak Hotel' ala `Spinal Tap'.Heck I would join in that harmony if I was there!

Elvis, by the way, is huge in Japan.



Every Sunday, a group of Elvis look-alikes gather in Tokyo's Yoyogi Park to dance along to classic hits blasting from a loud-speaker.

It's a rare karaoke bar hasn't got a selection of Elvis classics for patrons to sing along with, and Japan is the second biggest market in Asia after Australia for sales of Elvis music.

As a matter of fact Koizumi is supposed to have done an Elvis duet with Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer at an official dinner Down Under!

"Everybody knows who Elvis is," says Takuya Matsuyama of BMG Japan. "There are a lot of fans who are over 40, but the number of younger fans is increasing too. Lots of musicians say they like Elvis, so young people want to check him out."

"Elvis sang rock, ballads, gospel - he has all kinds of styles, so he can have all kinds of fans."

Amen, Matsuyama...the King will never die.

Non-Negotiation

Israelis consolidate positions in Gaza, continue operation `Summer Rain'

The IDF continues to advance and consolidate its positions in Gaza as part of operation `Summer Rain', splitting off and isolating the various pockets of the Gaza Strip.

The IDF pulled into the old former airport of Dahaniya northwest of Rafah, where they came under Palestinian anti-tank and small arms fire. The IDF sent them packing with after killing several Palestinian fighters and occupied the area, setting up a command post there.

This is the area where the Israelis believes Gilead Shalit is being held.

Israeli troops have also recaptured the Philadelphi border strip between Gaza and Egypt and now are directly facing the 2,500 Egyptian troops on the opposite side of the border. They have also taken the village of Shuka east of Rafah.

The Tzahal hasn't gone into Rafah proper -yet. The Palestinians have planted mines, booby traps and IED's and hundreds of gunmen are dug in. This is a Jenin or Falujah-type situation, where house to house fighting is likely.The Palestinian fighters tried to make Rafah's population stay in the city as human shield, but they were unsuccessful and most of the civilian population has left Rafah and the refugee camps, heading for the sea shore.

By the way, if the Israelis were truly out to maximize civilian casualties and actually commit what Abbas is already calling ` a crime against humanity' they could have easily bombed and strafed the fleeing civilians from the air...but unlike the Palestinians, the IDF doesn't deliberately target civilians.

The Israeli artillery fire continues to pound Palestinian positions, while the Palestinians launched another four Qassam missiles at Israel’s western Negev.

The Israelis are also starting to go into Northern Gaza , creating a buffer zone and `security perimeter' designed to distance Qassam launching cells from the northern Gaza Strip and to limit the movement from parts of the Strip, along with reducing the risk of transferring abducted soldier Gilad Shalit from one place to another inside Gaza.

While the rescue of Israeli hostage Gilead Shalit comes first, the Qassam threat and the threat of attacks by the Palestinians on southern Israel is also targeted for elimination.

Every week, the Watcher's Council nominate two posts each, one from the Council members and one from outside for consideration by the whole Council. The complete list of this week’s Council nominations is here.

1.Dr. Sanity: SANCTION OF THE VICTIM
In which Doctor Sanity examines an interesting phenomenon...public scorn for the US positions to defend the West by European elites who are privately willing to accept the fruits of those efforts.

2. J O S H U A P U N D I T: Wanted For Murder
My take on the treasonous leaking of classified information by elements of the Main Stream Media...frankly, I'm sick of this restless disregard for America's security and the self-appointed elitists who were never elected to anything, but feel thatthey have the right tomake those decisions for the rest of us..without suffering any consequences.

3.Done With Mirrors- Callimachus reposts an interesting piece that uses the Olympics to focus on the Western tradition of dynamic individualism as opposed to Islam's passive communal stance. Well done, Callimachus!

4. The Education Wonks: The Darwin Award In Education: Ben Clevenger EdWonk gives it's Darwin Award to a teacher who took a group of underage students to Europe and allowed them to `animal house', causing his forced resignation.

5. The Strata-Sphere:How Exposure Destroys National Security
AJ examines how leaking classified information hurts national security.

6. Except : New World Man Matt continues his discussion of the Constitution, and has some chilly things to say about an amendment banning flag burning. Fair enough Matt, but I hope nobody ever burns an American flag in front of me...there could be consequences of a very painful kind. Sometimes common decency has to be legislated.

7. Gates of Vienna: American Protestant Pogroms Sweetness, light and an iron fist in a velvet glove...that's Dymphna! I missed this superb post, and will have to give it a seperate link and commentary. It discusses the anti-Semitism and Jew hatred disguised as `anti-Zionism' as practiced by some elements of the christian faith involved with so-called `liberation theology'. As if Jesus would countenance supporting the murderers of his own people!

8. ShrinkWrapped: The Dance of Escalation and Reaction In another great post,Shrinkwrapped talks about the relationship between Israel and the Palestinians and the raid and kidnapping of Corporal Shalit in particular. As I wrote on my own site, this was an act of war, not terrorism and the Israelis should react appropriately.

9. Rhymes With Right: Troops Charged --A Proper Decision Greg examines the marines charged with murdering an Iraqi civilian in Hamdaniyeh.

10.Right Wing Nut House: “WHAT I DID ON MY SUMMER VACATION” BY BILL KELLER Rick's contribution is a wicked satire on a supposed letter from NYT creep-in-charge Bill Keller. Great, nasty stuff..good job, Rick!

11. The Glittering Eye: How Do You Solve a Problem Like…Korea?
Dave examines North Korea and its threat to security.

12. The Sundries Shack: Answering a dumb question Jimmie Bise takes on the MSM and security leaks...well done.

Well, it's on...Israelis move into Gaza.

According to al-Reuters, The IDF pushed into the Gaza Strip a short while ago. The Israelis have dubbed this offensive `Summer Rain'.

It looks like my sources were fairly correct as far as the deployment went...the IDF looks like splitting the Strip into threes and isolating the pockets. The Tzahal has been reported moving armored columns into the area around Rahaf through the Kerem Shalom crossing.

The IAF has taken out three bridges on key roads, and a heliocopter strike knocked out a power plant. It looks like the IDF plans to 'punish' the Palestinians and not just try to get Gilad Shalit back. The army could have cut off electricity by shutting off the power, which Israel supplies. But by bombing the plant, the IDF is leaving a damaged facility for the Palestinians to rebuild.

Israeli artillery also opened up from the tank emplacements at Nahalf Oz, Kisufim and Sufa to prevent the Palestinians shooting Qassam missiles.

In other news, the Palestinians claim to have executed the teenager they reportedly claimed to have abducted, Eliyahu Asheri. There have been reports of the Palestinians holding on to a body in Ramallah and units of the IDF and the Shin Bet are now searching the area, according to the Jerusalem Post.

More on this later.

The IDF begins Gaza assault

According to Israel Army Radio, the IDF blew up a strategic bridge between Gaza City and Khan Yunis in an effort to prevent the transport of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit within Gaza. Israel Army Radio also said that IDF has started troop movements into northern Gaza and that air strikes have begun.....my sources also tell me that third party negotiations with the Palestinian kidnappers of Israel soldier Gilead Shalit broke off contact with foreign diplomatic mediators a few hours before...

Stay tuned.

Major `honor killing' verdict in Denmark; Honor Killing Family Guilty

In a major development, the High Court of Eastern Denmark delivered a ‘guilty’ verdict on Tuesday to all nine defendants in the most far-reaching honor killing ever tried in Europe.

For those who don't know, an `honor killing' is the Religion of Peace officially Qu'ran sanctioned way of dealing with uppity females who don't toe the line and kowtow to their male superiors.

Ghazala Khan’s brother shot her dead in the streets in September 2005, outside Slagelse train station, west of Copenhagen. This was the ninth honor killing known to have taken place in Denmark over the last decade. You can bet there have been others, before people started taking notice.

The victim’s husband, whom she had secretly wed, almost died in the attack,
which was carried out in the belief that her marriage had `tarnished the family’s honor' partly because the victim refused to go along with an arranged marriage.

As well as the brother who actually fired the lethal shots, the court found Ghazala’s father and seven others guilty of conspiracy in theo murder the young Pakistani woman and her husband. Jurors found that a group of uncles, aunts and acquaintances apparently plotted to lure the couple to the train station where the brother waited in ambush.

The verdict is considered a landmark finding, since not only the brother who fired the gun that killed Ghazala Khan was found guilty, but the entire family. This is the first time accomplices have been found guilty in an honor killing.

hat tip to Charles at lgf

Fish Joke...

Especially for the newest member of Joshua's Army, Arcticman in Homer, Alaska!
Check out his fine blog at Arcticman Speaks!

Hamas and Fatah agree on non-recognition of Israel

Contrary to the swill being doled out by some of the MSM, the new accord between Hamas and Fatah, is neither a peace offer or recognition of Israel.

Palestinian Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and Fatah's Mahmoud Abbas had a sitdown and have apparently reached an agreement on a common political strategy to try to end the turf wars between them....but Hamas spokesmen themselves said that MSM reports on Hamas `implicitly recognizing Israel' are 100% B O G U S.

Palestinian minister Abdel Rahman Zeidan told the BBC the Hamas-Fatah document did not in any way recognise the state of Israel.

"There is no agreement between the Palestinians on specifically this phrase. You will not find one word in the document clearly stating the recognition of Israel as a state. Nobody has agreed to this. This was not on the table. This was not in the dialogue," he said.

Zeidan and other Hamas spokespeople, according to the BBC, said that according to them, the entire state of Israel has been built on occupied Palestinian land and that a second Palestinian Arab State in the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem is a first step, for now.

Future generations of Palestinians will reclaim all their historic homeland. And that, in the end, there will be no room for what is now the Jewish state of Israel.

Arafat said it best, on Jordanian TV right after the Oslo Accords `"Either the Jews will push us into the sea or we will push the Jews into the sea."

Nothing's changed.

As I reported here before, the so-called Palestinian `prisoner's document' drawn up by convicted murderer Marwan Barghouti among others is just the Saudi `peace plan' , warmed over and rephrased a bit.

It says that the Palestinian people have a right to `resistance' (read 'terrorism'),
a right to ethnically cleanse the Jews from Jerusalem and have the right to flood Israel with millions of `refugees' from all over the Arab world.

In addition, the `prisoner's document' calls for the freeing of all the convicted terrorist murderers no rotting inIsraeli jails.

Of course.

So, with Israel reduced to the indefensible pre 1967 borders Abba Eban referred to as `The Auschwitz lines' and living as a minority in their own country and at the mercy of the Arabs inside what was left of Israel, the Arab world will grant `normal relations' ..at least for as long as Israel was around!

Some deal, eh?

The good news is that the new Fatah/Hamas accord doesn't meet the standards the US , Israel or the EU set out for resuming aid and normal relations with the Palestinian Authority.

Anticipating this, Hamas agreed to give Abbas a major concession...that the PLO, which Abbas heads, would be the Palestinian representative in charge of negotiang with Israel rather than the Hamas controlled Palestinian Authority.

Stay tuned....

Hey man..it's homegrown!

Israel readies major Gaza offensive...

Israel is preparing a major offensive against Palestinian positions in Gaza in an effort to free Israeli hostage Gilead Shalit.

The IDF has massed hundreds of tanks, armored infantry and commandos on the border of Israel and the Gaza Strip as of last night from three strong points: the Nahal Oz base opposite Gaza City, Kissufim opposite Deir al Balah and Khan Younes in the south and Sufa opposite Rafah. Along for the party are some of Israel's finest... the Golani and Givaty armored brigades and special ops units including the elite Sayeret Matkal.

My guess is that if they go in, their first mission would be to split the Strip into three parts; sending one task force west past Gaza City's southern end to the former Jewish community of Netzarim on the Mediterranean coast to cut off Gaza City and the North from the rest of the Strip, and a second force, say, from Kisufim west up to what used to be the Katif and Kfar Darom junctions to split Gaza City off from Rafah. That would split the Strip into three sections and isolate the Palestinian refugee camps of Nuseirat, Al Bureij and Al Muazi, all major bases for Palestinian terrorists.

The Israelis could then move out from Sufa and reach the coast at what used to be Peat Hasadeh, then move South to secure the Philadelphi enclave on the Israel-Egyptian border, which isolates Rafah and the outlying refugee camps, which is where Shalit is probably being held. The Israelis could then conduct a house to house search for the hostage.

I would also expect numerous arrests and heavy air strikes against terrorist strongholds, and targeted strikes against their leaders.

At this point, of course, it's about more than just Shalit.

Olmert has to rebuild the Israel armed forces’ faded deterrent strength in the eyes of the Palestinians and the Israeli people. It has been severely eroded by years of Israeli restraint in the face of non-stop Palestinian terrorist attacks. The Israeli populace in places like Sderot has been under siege since the Palestinians took over Gaza.

Most Israeli military sources now admit that the `withdrawal' from Gaza was a major error. The Philadelphi border zone between Gaza and Egyptian Sinai used to be an enclave controlled by Israeli forces..now it's a supply line for for replenishing Palestinian terrorist groups with weapons and fighters. And what used to be prosperous Jewish farming communities like Neve Dekalim, Netzarim and Gush Katif are now terrorist training bases and missile launching sites.

You see, the Olmert government told the Israeli people that the IDF was in Gaza to `protect the settlers'...but it turns out they were there to protect Israel!

By making such an obvious display, Olmert is obviously hoping to scare the Palestinians with what's in store for them if they refuse to give up the Israeli corporal and instead insist on haggling.

It's a pretty forlorn hope, in my opinion. It looks like Shalit's captors are unlikely to release him and are lookingto extort as much military, diplomatic and propaganda capital from the kidnapping as they can get.

The spokesman for the Palestinian terrorist group the Popular Resistance Committees, Abdullah al-Al, claimed today that Gilead Shalit had been moved to a place "where the Zionists would never reach him."

The Palestinians themselves are overwhelmingly in favor of using Shalit to extort the release of imprisoned terrorists. A recent poll showed that 80% of them favor using Shalit as leverage for this.

The Palestinian attack on the Israeli Telem army post has been sold to the Palestinians as their greatest victory in six years of fighting Israel. They see it as a historic turning-point that will wipe out all their previous defeats.

Egypt, meanwhile, has deployed 2,500 police and security officers on its Sinai border with Gaza to keep out any movement of Palestinian refugees that might be caused by an Israeli military operation. Y'see, the Egyptians love their Palestinian `brothers' so much that they don't want a single one of them in Egypt.

If things proceed the way they appear to be proceeding, the real crunch for Israel will be after the initial offensive, when Israel has to create a new reality on the ground, and perhaps even go into populated areas like Gaza City or the `refugee' camps. Look for more phoney Pallywood cries of `massacre' at that point.

Israel will also have to consider the possiblity of attacks from Judea and Samaria (the West Bank)by Fatah forces like the al Aqsa brigades.

Israel will have to figure out something to replace the failed security strategy in Gaza...and probably Judea and Samaria as well.

That ultimately won't work unless Israelis prepared to go full out and destroy
Hamas, Fatah and the Palestinian Authority and win this war...something they should have done four years ago. With Iran preparing to deploy against Israel onthe Syrian border, Israel cannot afford hostile forces surrounding it on the East and South. Hopefully, even Olmert is starting to realize this.

Iran's Supreme Leader `Negotiations withthe US not needed'

Iran state television reported today that Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has rejected the prospect of talks with the United States on Iran's nukes, saying there was no reason to discuss it with the Americans.

"Negotiations with the United States would have no benefit for us, and we do not need them," the television quoted Khamenei as telling Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade.

Nice to have things so eloquently put...verbally and physically.

Palestinians claim to have kidnapped an Israeli teenager

Israel may have a second hostage crisis on its hands.


Members of Joshua's Army who read the site regularly may recall the Palestinian attempt to kidnap a couple of teenage girls in Ariel 2 weeks ago (June 15th). I opined then that it might be the start of a new Palestinian terorist tactic.

18-year old Eliyahu Asheri of Itamar has been missing since Sunday night when he left Beitar in the Gush Etzion bloc to return to his Yeshiva in Neve Tsuf. The 'Palestinians' claim to have kidnapped a `teenaged settler', and they may have Eliyahu.

Asheri was reportedly last seen near Beitar, attempting to hitchhike from Beitar to Itamar.

Ma'an, a 'Palestinian' news agency, reported that Abu Abeer, the spokesman of the An Nasser Saladin Brigades, said that they had kidnapped an Israeli 'settler' in the 'West Bank'. The spokesman threatened the Israeli forces saying, "The battle of kidnapping soldiers has begun." "Resistance", he said, "will not release those captured unless the occupation 'kneels' and accepts the conditions."

Asheri is the oldest of six children. His father is an immigrant from Australia.

Redefining failure...

Connecting some more dots on Iraq

Here are a couple of interesting photos that do a great job of spelling out what may be in store for Iraq.
This one appeared in my article Iran to respond to the incentives package...oh, end of July, mid-August...who knows? and shows Ahamadinejad pressing the flesh with Mullah Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, the head of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq at their meeting last week, one of the major Shiite parties..which should give you some food for thought when you think about Iraq and its future..

Below, we see another shot of the same Mullah, this time with Rumsfeld and Iraqi Defense Minister Gen. Abdul-Qadir Mohammed Jassim.

I got this from Zeb Gardner, a member of Joshua's Army. He saw my picture of Mullah Abdul Aziz al-Hakim shaking hands with Iran's president Ahmadinejad and sent this with the following comments:

"It is interesting to note that the same Mullah Abdul Aziz al-Hakim shown in picture with Ahmadinejad is possibly the same person Omar mentions in Iraq the Model, "Rumor" article. Omar's spelling is Abdul Aziz al-Hakeem, leader of the Badr organization. Doesn't mention he is a mullah. Picture with Rumsfeld is attached.

Name spelling is somewhat loose as in the example of the new Minister of Defense, Gen. Abdul-Qadir Mohammed Jassim. Omar spells his name as Abdul Aziz Mohammed."

Mullah Abdul Aziz al-Hakeem appears to get around...and the fact that as leader of the Iraqi Shiite Militia the Badr Force, armed and trained by Iran explains his coziness with Ahmadinejad.

Connecting the dots indeed....thanks Zeb. Put yourself in for a commendation!

More Qassams strike Sderot; 4 Israelis injured by shrapnel- But for Olmert, the `disengagement' beat goes on.

Even as the IDF masses on the Gaza border and the international comunity blathers about `easing the tension' between Israel and the Palestinians, the siege of Sderot, Israel continues.

The Palestinians fired four rockets into the city from what used to be a Jewish community in Gaza,injuring four people with shrapnel wounds.

The rocket hit caused an electrical blackout in a large section of the city.

Five Israelis have died in these rocket attacks, and property damage has been extensive.

The rocket fire comes as Islamic Jihad claimed to have developed a new longer-range rocket to be used against Israeli targets, and Fatah's al Aksa brigade is threatening to use chemical weapons against Israel. Islamic Jihad said the new "Quds 4" projectile, based on the Russian/Iranian Grad has a range of 20 kilometers, three times longer then the crude Kassam rockets..and a lot more explosive power.

In the midst of this, you have to wonder what Olmert can be thinking as he continues to push `disengagement' and talk about ethnically cleansing 70,000 or so Jews from their homes in Judea and Samaria.

To listen to him, you would almost think that Gaza was a resounding sucess!

Olmert had a meeting with British Conservative Leader David Cameron which reveals a gret deal about Olmert's mindset.

Cameron asked a question that - in light of everything happening in Sderot and Gaza - weighs onn the minds of most Israelis: How will Israel be able to prevent similar Kassam attacks from the West Bank if Olmert's plans materialize?

According to reports on that meeting, Olmert didn't answer directly. Rather, he admitted that the realignment plan was not ideal, but that considering the overall situation it was `the most realistic option available'.

Huhhh???

When Gaza is an enemy armed camp with a real danger of all out war breaking out and Sderot is under siege, Olmert is still peddling a plan that sounds as if he is simply utilizing the `successful' Gaza model of `disengagement' to the West Bank!

Talk about a death wish...

Hopefully, Olmert will wake up out of his fog. If he doesn't Israel had better find a leader who will if they wish to survive as a nation and avoid genocide...which is exactly where Olmert's plan is leading.

The Keystone Kops..British style!

First, stopping surveillance on the 7/7 bombers just before the attack...then a shoot-em-up at the wrong house...and now, losing a bag containing anti-terror files and evidence in the street!

The Guardian:

"Anti-terrorist police have been ordered to revamp security procedures after a bag containing details of bomb plots and suspects identified for surveillance was lost in the street.

The Metropolitan police commissioner, Sir Ian Blair, has imposed strict new rules on the carrying of sensitive material after files were accidentally lost in a rucksack in south-east London. Sources yesterday told the Guardian the files held important information and that anti-terrorist officers were desperate to get them back before they fell into the wrong hands.

The Home Office and the home secretary, John Reid, are being kept informed. The officer responsible for the mistake has been moved to other duties.

Scotland Yard said: "An internal inquiry has been carried out to ascertain the full circumstances around the loss of documents. We take incidents of this nature very seriously. We have also carried out an urgent review of how sensitive information is handled by officers. A number of changes have been made to ensure we minimise the risk of such incidents in future."

Get serious, cousins. Really.

First gambit by Palestinians to ransom Shalit

The Palestinians have issued their first demand. They want every male under 18 and every female prisoner convicted of terrorism released just for information on kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit, not his release.


"The occupation will not get any information about its missing soldier until it commits to the following: First, the immediate release of all women in prison. Second, the immediate release of all children in prison younger than 18," is how the faxed statement read....sent, by the way, via a Palestinian government fax.

The statement was signed by Hamas' military wing, the Saladdin Brigade, and the Army of Islam. The last two groups are part of the small Popular Resistance Committees, which is a Hamas group.

Just so we know whom we're talking about, the prisoners would include Palestinian teenagers convicted of terrorism in Israeli courts who were stopped while trying to commit suicide attacks on Israeli civilians. It would also include the young Palestinian woman who lured an Israeli teenager to a horrendous death by torture via an online romance two years ago.

I recommend that Israel return one of these terrorists every hour to the Palestinians until Shalit is released unharmed...from a heliocopter flying above Gaza City at a height of about 2,000 feet or so.

For his part, Olmert has instructed the IDF to mass troops along the Gaza border and has ruled out negotiations over Shalit. Entry and exit of the Gaza Strip are closed off `by land and by sea', he said in a tough speech in Jerusalem today.

Olmert said Israel’s response would reach every terrorist, every terrorist group where they are, however far away and wherever they hide. "We will act to restore our soldier safe and well to his family,” he said.

Olmert stressed that time is running out for the Palestinians. Israel will not be the object of "Hamas terrorist extortion...."No negotiations are taking place on the release of prisoners – nor will they be. Israel does not intend to put up with what Olmert called .."bloodthirsty, terrorist fundamentalist, fanaticism."

High time.

The main reason for the blockade is to prevent Shalit from being sold to terrorists elsewhere, which is what happened to Ron Arad, kidnapped by Hezbollah and reportedly sold to Iran.

Wanted For Murder

NYT publisher Pinch Sulzberger has a long history of anti-Americanism and borderline treason.

Now, he and NYT editor Bill Keller have stepped over that line, joined by their colleagues at the LA Times..

Twice in a week, the Paper of Refuse has published details of classified programs used to the war on Islamic jihad. First, it revealed details of the totally legal program that is instrumental in choking off the flow of money that funds jihad, even after the Bush Administration, citing its importance in keeping America safe, begged it not to do so.

Now the Times has published details of a highly classified briefing detailing possible troop reductions in Iraq.

Who needs spies when you have the New York Times? The enemy can now plan accordingly.

It used to be that politics stopped at the water's edge when our troops were under fire. No more.

This is aid and comfort to the enemy, the classic definition of treason.

I doubt they have the courage, but the Bush Administration needs to prosecute the New York Times and the LA Times' publishers and the reporters involved under the Espionage Act and force them to reveal their sources, who can then be likewise prosecuted and jailed.

I guarantee that this kind of action would resonate well with the vast majority of Americans. As a matter of fact, it's necessary..because each time the MSM gets away with this kind of nonsense, the bar gets lowered.

Hint: since these were confidential Congressional briefings, I pretty much expect that the source would end up being a congressman with a small `d' after their names.

No one elected the Paper of Refuse and its minions to be in charge of our national security, and they have NO RIGHT to endanger the lives of our troops and the lives of their fellow citizens.

There was no reason at all for these reporters not to hold this story on a program the NYT itself admits is totally legal when the men charged with the security of our nation asked them to..none whatsoever, no matter how much they try to hide behind freedom of the press.

I'm getting increasingly tired of some of the Main Stream Media's willingness to be propagandists for jihadis on the one hand and to do everything they can to hamper our war effort on the other.

The enemy within is much more dangerous to us than the enemy without.

Life in an Islamist US

Jeff Jacoby at the Boston Globe has a superb piece on that question that as he puts it, gets ignored by the elites in the media, academia and government: what would Life in an Islamist US be like?




Here's a partial excerpt:

"In truth, though, most Americans have never thought about what it would mean if the terrorists really did win -- if militant Islamists were to succeed in their quest for political control of the United States. It isn't something that elites in academia, government, or the media generally like to talk about, for fear of being branded racist or ``Islamophobic." American Islamists themselves are careful not to speak too candidly about their supremacist goals.

Life in an Islamist United States would be largely unfree and intolerant, if the experience of countries where radical Muslims have achieved power -- Saudi Arabia, Iran, Sudan, and Afghanistan -- is any guide. What would that mean in American terms?


A must read...

CAIR now to be funded by our pals in the UAE - no joke.

FrontPage magazine has a great piece by reknowned author Paul Sperry, author of "Infiltration: How Muslim Spies and Subversives Have Penetrated Washington."FrontPage magazine.com :: The CAIR-U.A.E. Connection by Paul Sperry

Apparently the UAE has decided to join their Saudi brethren in funding jihad here in America...while the Bush Administration does N O T H I N G.

Apparently the UAE announced on its official government website that it is creating an endowment for CAIR. The amount of the funding is undisclosed, but sources say it will be enough to help CAIR finance the construction of its new new $24 million office building and a planned $50 million PR campaign aimed at improving Islam's-and the UAE's - image in America!

Let that sink in for a moment...our government is allowing a foreign entity to fund a group with numerous, documented ties to terrorism in an attempt to lull Americans back to sleep and put a happy face on jihad.

And also, by the way, to fund CAIR's stable of lawyers, who have been sniffing around the blogosphere in an effort to shut down and intimidate anyone who disagrees, according to Charles at Little Green Footballs.

I'm sick and tired of this nonsense. The Constitution was never intended as a suicide pact, and it's ridiculous for our government to allow these people to use our freedoms to subvert our society and conquer our country.

Have we forgotten so quickly?

Update on the Palestinian attack...one Israeli soldier taken hostage in raid.

Yesterday, JoshuaPundit reported on a Palestinian attack inside Israel at the Kerem Shalom crossing between Gaza and Israel. Apparently,the Palestinians got an added bonus: a hostage.

Corporal Gilead Shalit from Mitzpe Hila was taken hostage, apparently after being wounded in the attack. The Palestinian faction holding him claims he is `safe and has received medical treatment'.

The Israeli military incursion into Gaza has been halted immediately.

At least one of my sources faults the Israeli commanders on the spot- Major General Yoav Galant and Brigadeer General Aviv Cochavi for slow reactions to the raid, and for not heeding what apparently was the Shin Bet's warning of tunneling in Gaza.

I don't think that's entirely fair, as Israeli military responses to Palestinian attacks are hampered by ridiculous rules of engagement and political handcuffs dictated by the Olmert government. The IDF is understandably reluctant to act independently without deferring to the politicians in Jerusalem masters...to a greater extent then ever before in its proud history.

That's why the IDF didn't immediately set out full bore after the terrorists and kidnappers. If they had, chances are that Israel might have gained the initiative and been in a position to force the kidnapped soldier’s release by trapping the terrorists.

Instead, an Israeli helicopter was detailed to do recon and shoot at empty ground and the defense minister Amir Peretz, upon learning that an Israeli naval Dabur missile-ship had opened fire, ordered the vessel to cease and desist, in case of repercussions to the abducted soldier.

Needless to say, the Palestinians took all this as a sign of weakness. Look for more attempted kidnappings of Israeli civilians and military.

Israel has given the Hamas government 24 hours to release Shalit unharmed.

The Israelis have only two options: bargaining with Hamas for Shalit's release or hoping that the missing soldier can be located through its intel and rescued by the IDF.

One rumour floating through the ozone from JoshuaPundit's sources says that Shalit is being held in Rafah and will be freed shortly...at the price of an Israeli guarantee to halt its targeted attacks on Palestinian terrorists. I personally think the price will be much, much higher...release of impounded funds to Hamas and/or the release of Palestinian terrorists from Israeli custody.

(As a side note, I'm sure at least one idiot will e-mail me to try and draw an equivalence between, say, imprisoned terrorist Marwan Barghouti and Corporal Shalit... `hey they're both POW's, right?' W R O N G: Barghouti, like the vast majority of Palestinian terrorists was convicted of murdering civilians and had a trial. And the conditions the terrorists are imprisoned under are humane and open to scrutiny (too humane, if you ask me). Shalit is being held incognito, without trial and has not killed any civilians we know of.)

In another related story Abbas’ own Fatah group, the al Aksa Brigade, has threatened that if Israeli forces raid the Gaza Strip, they will release “20 kinds of chemical and bacteriological substances” which they have developed in the last three years.

This is just a day after Abbas was sitting down with Olmert at breakfast in Jordan, planning peace talks!. As the Qu'ran says, `War is deception.'

This is the same scenario we saw in the October 2000 kidnap by Hezbollah of three Israeli soldiers, Adi Avitan, Benny Avraham and Omar Sawad, on Israel’s northern border....right under th eeyes of the UN peacekeeping force. Prime minister Ehud Barak held back then from military retaliation. Four years later, Israel was forced to pay dearly for their remains.And the Lebanon border is now a Hezbollah stronghold, with missiles aimed at Israel.

Both Israeli Prime Ministers refused to order a strong military response to attacks on Israel's soldiers, admit that the `evacuations' were a major strategic mistake and send troops back into evacuated territory – South Lebanon then, the Gaza Strip now.

The results look like turning out the same as well...just substitute Hamas for Hezbollah.

I don't fault the Palestinians for this in the slightest, by the way. This was a military attack done in the context of a war. The Palestinians realize they're at war, even if the Olmert government doesn't.

Olmert is sitting on a ticking bomb, and is in the middle of a war for Israel's very existance.. I wonder how long it's going to take before he realizes it?

Watcher's Council Results, 6/23/06

The Council has spoken. Complete results can be seen here

In first place for Council posts was The Glittering Eye:The Iraqi insurgency has no Central Command Dave's take on the nature of the Iraqi `insurgency'. Congratulations, Dave!

In second place, my personal pick wound up winning, Gates of Vienna: Children in Danger From the UN, Dymphna's well written lashing of UN hypocrisy. Well done, Dymphna!

There was a three way tie for third, with my own piece J O S H U A P U N D I T: The heartbreak of Dhimmi-itis...Work for the cure. in which I examined the epidemic of non-Muslims in the non-Muslim world accepting Islam's worldview and urged people toi work for the cure ot this disease...the civilthe civilization you save could be your own.

Also tied for third was The Sundries Shack: We have guarded Iraq well In which our war in Iraq is explored in depth from a different point of view

And The Education Wonks: The Spellings Report: An Open Invitation For The Secretary
EdWonk's interesting examination of performance of the Department of Education and its Secretary.

For non-council posts the winner was The American Thinker: The jihadi network's fatal flaw, a fascinating examination of the implications of Zarqawi's death.

Second place honors went to ex-Council member New Sisyphus:Srebrenica, Kosovo, Unknown This is a superb piece contrasting the attitude of the MSM and the so-called `international community' towards the torture murder of the two American soldiers last week with the constant screeds against the nation they fought for. A must read.

Hearty kudos to all the winners!

Russian diplomatic personnel beheaded in Iraq by al Qaeda

al Qaeda claimed to have killed four Russian diplomtic employees today and posted video footage on the Internet showing the killing of three men it said were Russian hostages seized in Iraq earlier this month.

The images, posted on a Web site often used by militants, showed two masked militants beheading of a man and the "execution" of another by shooting. It also showed the beheaded body of a third.

No one knows anything about the fourth hostage yet.

"This is the video for carrying out God's ruling against the Russian diplomats which we present to heal the hearts of believers and in revenge for our brothers and sisters for the torture and killing they receive at the hands of the infidel Russian government," al Qaeda said in a statement posted on the site.

Before the killings, the video showed tht four men against a dark red backdrop speaking Russian in statements dated June 13.

In their statements, the bearded men identified themselves and described the nature of their jobs at the Russian mission in Iraq -- a third secretary, a cook, a driver and a guard.

The Mujahideen Shura Council defended the killings as an eye-for-an-eye measure, citing a verse of the Koran -- Islam's holy book -- which says: "Those who assault you, you shall assault with the same (form) of assault."

"Beggar scholars (affiliated with governments) will speak that slaughtering infidels is sacrilegious and so on. We tell them that this is the book of God, which will be the judge," its statement said.

I just love the Religion of Peace, don't you?

The Council, an umbrella group led by Iraq's al Qaeda wing, had demanded that Russia withdraw its troops from Chechnya and release all Muslim prisoners. They apparently decided to kill the men after their demands weren't met.

Palestinians attack Gaza border, killing two Israelis. And a large IDF column is headed back into Gaza.

Sending another message that all this `truce talk' between Abbas and Haniyeh is just a smokescreen, Palestinian terrorists used a tunnel to attack the Gaza/Israel border at the the Kerem Shalom crossing in force today. killing two Israelis and injuring four more before they were repulsed with heavy losses.

Residents in a nearby kibbutz said the Palestinians infiltrated the military post through a tunnel dug under the border fence. Significantly, this was a joint operation with participation from Hamas, the PRC, Fatah's al Aqsa Brigades and Islamic Jihad.

This merely underlines the strategic blunder the Israelis committed by giving up their forward strategic positions in Gaza for `peace'.

A large IDF armored column with special forces, bulldozers and tank and helicopter cover is driving into southern Gaza after the raid.

Unfortunately, it is probably just a show of force rather thenthe decisive offensive that's needed, and maybe designed to try and smoke out a few tunnels or missile sites.

The Israelis will eventually have to expel the Beast from Gaza and the Palestinian territories drive Hamas and Fatah over the border togeether with their leadership and essentially reverse Oslo and the so-called `road map' if they wish to live in peace..but I don't think the Olmert government has the stomache to admit it yet.

While Hamas and Abbas talk, Israel and the Palestinians exchange raids...

Some interesting developments over the weekend on the Israel/Palestinian front.

First off, the Beast appears to be working out some of its turf battles and difficulties, as Hamas PM Ismail Haniyeh had a sitdown with `moderate' Fatah boss and Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas today. After all, they both want the same things...the Jews out of Israel by whatever means. Their differences boil down to divvying up the spoils and patronage and quarrels over methods.

Simply put, Hamas needs Abbas to provide a legitimate cover for the West to start sending donor aid again. As the West's favorite terrorist, Abbas has access to donor aid plus the $1.4 billion Palestine Investment Fund. On the other hand, Abbas needs Hamas' street cred, contacts with Iran and popular support, particularly in Gaza.

For the gullible Western press, Haniyeh and Abbas agreed to at least halt the rocket fire into Israel and concentrate on killing Jews in Judea, Samaria (the West Bank) and Jerusalem. The decision to halt the Qassam attacks doesn't square with the information Israel obtained when it sent naval commandos into Gaza yesterday and abducted two jihadis from the Muamar clan.

Mustafa and Osama Muamar are part of the long established Palestinian clan in charge of smuggling the Grad 122mm rockets landed into Sudan from Iran and their delivery into Hamas hands in the Gaza Strip. Apparently Osama just got back to Gaza from meeting Iranian Revolutionary Guards officers in Khartoum and asking them to speed up delivery.

It also doesn't square with statements by Hamas and Islamic Jihad spokesmen.Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said: "The military wing has not given a commitment in this regard. The problem is with the occupation, not the Palestinian people."

And al Aksa and Islamic Jihad also claim not to have signed on to any truce.

Another problem is Abbas insisting on a `unity government' and essentisally splitting the pie to get the foreign aid flowing again. Abbas also wants a clear rsolution in any deal that appoints the PLO as `the sole representative of the Palestinian people. Hamas, understandably is unwilling to cut a deal that significantly lessens its power.

Abbas and Haniyeh will meet tommorow to try to work out a `statehood manifesto', which envisages a Palestinian state in all of Gaza and the West Bank.

The 500 lb. gorilla in the roomis of course, Iran, which thanks to its defense agreement with Syria can now directly move Revolutionary Guard troops to face off against Israel's northern border with Syria...not to mention the Lebanese border with Israel controlled by Iran's proxy, Hezbollah.

The Main Stream Media commits treason..again

The scum are at it again.

One of the most potent weapons against Islamic terrorism is cutting off the money flow.

Regular readers of this site know how that weapon has been used against Hamas, al Qaeda and Iran.

Today, the New York Times and the LA Times declined a direct White House request not to publish a story about the government's inspection of monies flowing in and out of the country and released intimate details on a secret joint CIA and Treasury Department program to monitor suspect financial transfers in and out of the USA.

Needless to say, this kind of information helps our enemies in a big way. Or, as the old movie line went, `I don't hate you because you're stupid..I hate you because you may get me killed!'

Treasury Department officials spent 90 minutes yesterday meeting with the reporters and management at both papers, stressing the legality of the program and urging the paper to not publish a story on the program, according to Doyle McManus, the LA Times Washington Bureau Chief.

Listen to this smarmy little you-know-what:

"They were quite vigorous, they were quite energetic. They made a very strong case," he said.

(unspoken: `But I decided to screw the country anyway..hey,I love the attention and it hurts Bush, and that's more important anyway, right?) cue Elmer Fudd laugh.

And listen to the head creep in charge of the Paper of Refuse, Bill Keller, the New York Times' executive editor "We remain convinced that the administration's extraordinary access to this vast repository of international financial data, however carefully targeted use it may be, is a matter of public interest."

Al Qaeda interest too, moron.You and your pals have once again compromised national security by dropping a dime on an effective program designed to fight the country's enemies.

In December, Bush used part of his weekly radio address to criticize The New York Times' initial story on the NSA wiretaps as helping to inform our enemies, saying "the unauthorized disclosure of this effort damages our national security and puts our citizens at risk."

No kidding...not that it matters to people like Keller and McManus.

This is nothing less than aid and comfort to the enemy in wartime..the Constitutional definiton of treason. I remember a time when partisanpolitics used to end at the water's edge when we were at war and our troops were under fire.

There was no good reason for these reporters not to hold this story when the men charged with the security of our nation asked them to..none whatsoever, no matter how much they try to hide behind freedom of the press.

I'm getting increaingly tired of some of the Main Stream Media's willingness to be propagandists for jihadis on the one hand and to do everything they can to hamper our war effort on the other.

The enemy within is much more dangerous to us than the enemy without.

Operation Mountain Thrust continues in Afghanistan

Today, US, Canadian and Afghan forces continue confronting the Taliban on its home ground under mind boggling conditions.

Today,they raided a known Taliban base in Uruzgan province, southwest of Kabul and took out 8 Taliban fighters and captured 6 taking it. The fight took place in the village of Bagh-e Yosof, northwest of Tarin Kowt in Uruzgan's Shahidi district, the military said. The allied forces outmaneuvered enemy fighters in a cave complex...pretty impressive, when you consider that the enemey knew those caves so well.

A search of the compound resulted in the discovery of major weapons cache containing AK-47s, rocket propelled grenades and two machine guns. According to US sources, the compound had been used as a meeting place and workshop for Taliban improvised explosive device makers and facilitators to conduct terrorist operations against coalition forces.

Yesterday, four U.S. soldiers from the 3rd Squadron, 71st Calvary, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division were killed, and another was wounded, when the U.S.-led coalition yesterday attacked and drove off enemy forces in a remote area of Nuristan province's Kamdesh district. The wounded soldier was evacuated to a coalition hospital, and is in a stable condition, according to the military.

In a seperate battle, in the Sangin district of Helmand province, southern Afghanistan, six insurgents were killed in an operation yesterday near the village of Hydarabad on the east side of the Helmand River.

The success our guys have had is little short of miraculous.

By night, the troops dig in againstTaliban mortar attacks. Daytime hours are taken up by lugging heavy gear and weaponry over rocky ledges in scorching heat and in attacking the enemy on their home ground. This battle is taking place in one of the planet's harshest environments.

Taliban forces have controlled this area for a very long time. Only some small cacti survive in daytime temperatures hovering around 110 degrees in this rocky brown desert.

Too much sun and limited water have resulted in some troops giving each other IVs to prevent dehydration. An IV is the fastest way to rehydrate in this kind of environment.

Resupply is a major effort.

Yesterday, dozens of soldiers and one donkey, rented for $10, lugged more than 7,000 pounds of food and water from the Baghran valley floor to the mountaintop ridge where units of the Tenth Mountain division are dug in.The supplies had been air-dropped by coalition aircraft because no helicopters were available to deliver it closer.

The extra supplies meant that the troops get 12 bottles of water to drink per day, instead of getting by on five or six as they had been. They also now have two MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) per day, instead of the one they'd been limited to earlier.

Temperatures at night drop only to the 80s, too hot for tents, so the troops sleep under the stars.

Here are a few quotes from the troops caught by the imbedded AP reporters to give you the flavor of this campaign from the men who are fighting it....

"I am hungry, thirsty and dirty. Welcome to my world," said Sgt. 1st Class Gonzalo Lassally, 31, of Deltona, Florida.

Lassally had a friend administer an IV on Tuesday, leaving bloody trails on his arms. He said he felt "refreshed" afterward.

"As much as the Army sucks, I still love it," Lassally says. "When you get put into situations like these, you don't sweat the little stuff anymore."

Spc. David Valdiva of Altaloma, California is red in the face from exertion, soaked in sweat and looking near collapse as he lugs 90 pounds of gear, including a 30-pound machine gun. "It's an honor to carry the gun," he says. "I'm just not doing too good today because of the minimal food and water."

"I hate this place. You can drop the devil here and he'd hate it," said Staff Sgt. Brian Rice, 39, of Eugene, Ore.

Company commander Capt. Jared Wilson, 28, of Petaluma, California: "Does it suck carrying all that stuff? Roger that. They don't show that in Hollywood. They don't show you getting dehydrated."

According the AP reporters,in spite of the heat and the incredibly hard conditions, the troops are gratified to be taking the fight to the enemy and proud of their successes.

I'm pretty proud of them too.

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Al Qaeda and the Taliban, of course, are trying to win with propaganda what they can't win on the ground.

The number-two leader of al-Qaida, Ayman al Zawahiri, put out a three-minute videotape posted on the Internet yesterday aimed at inflaming Afghans agains the foreign military presence. The terrorist uberfuhrer said, "I direct my speech today to my Muslim brothers in Kabul who lived the bitter events yesterday and saw by their own eyes a new proof of the criminal acts of the American forces," Zawahiri declared. He urged Afghans to revolt against "the infidel forces that are invading Muslim lands."

Hopefully he didn't try to handle any machine guns in the video....

Afghan President Hamid Kharzai called Zawahiri `an enemy of Afghanistan and the world' after the video was posted in a press conference yesterday. He also said the coalition needs to find a better way to tackle terrorism in Afghanistan, or the West will "suffer again," according to Agence France-Presse. He said the international community needs to focus on disarming terrorists by cutting off sources of money.

"I strongly believe ...that we must engage strategically in disarming terrorism by stopping their sources of supply of money, training, equipment and motivation," Karzai said.

This is undoubtedly a reference to Pakistan...and probably Iran and others as well.