Operation Protective Edge

So many times have I written about rockets indiscriminately shoot at Israeli territory by Hamas. But apart from this problem (and really, try to imagine your country - whichever it is - to not react to such a danger to its residents - it is not the only danger brought about by terrorists from Hamas, not by far. From Gaza into both Egypt and Israel leads a network of tunnels. Those leading from Egypt are used to smuggle in weaponry into Gaza, those leading into Israel, and there are many, have been prepared for the purpose of infiltrating Israel to murder or kidnap her inhabitants. The danger is so prevailing that despite the peace between Israel and Egypt being for years a cold one both countries cooperate in preventing building and destroying existing tunnels. The problem is - in most cases this can't be done without putting soldiers on ground in Gaza and as the situation regarding tunnels has evolved to an alarming level the action had to be taken (the openings of tunnels have been found in kibbutzim near Gaza evidently prepared for terrorist activities). Additionally it has to be realized that Hamas was using children to dig them and in this process   many of them had died.

Media have been informed about rocket fire that has damaged UN school (or rather UNRWA one). Not so many reported that there have been weaponry placed by Hamas in the school. UNRWA has apologized on its official site  which did not prevent some of its officials to condemn Israel for attacking school. The question is: is the school (closed for vacation anyway) that serves as ammunition compound and from the vicinity of which the aggressive fire is being shoot still a school or a military installation? What would you feel about it?

The hospital in Gaza has been damaged - but NOT by Israeli troops but by a misfired rocket fired by Hamas towards Israel that didn't make it to the Israeli territory. It has been confirmed but the reporters who did it received death threads from terrorists. Same goes for hitting the refugee camp.

Inhabitants of Gaza have been sent early warnings by IDF to be able to leave targeted territories but in many cases they have been physically forced by  Hamas terrorists to stay in place and act as a human shield. Tragic as it is Hamas is totalitarian power with as much regard towards its subjects as - say - Stalin in purges period when tens of thousands have been killed just to install terror in the remaining population. Yesterday Hamas has shoot 30 Palestinians under the assumption of spying for Israel. As this is absurd accusation in the situation we are dealing with they have been shot most probably for opposing Hamas (residents of Eastern Europe are familiar with practice of accusation for "spying for the USA" in early 50s - usually used to destroy potential political opponents).

Hamas has called upon Hezbollah to join in fighting against "this formation" (Israel).

The former President of Israel Simon Peres has declared that the best option would be reinstalling Fatah as the ruler in Gaza. As Abbas and his Fatah are anything but moderate as I have written here time and time again (although he is named so for an unknown reason). Therefore this shows all the murderous rage of Hamas's rule in Gaza.

Certainly there are more victims on Palestinian side (although it is hard to say how many exactly, internet users have already spotted the family perished in Syria some two years ago whose pictures are now shown as the pictures of Palestinian victims in Gaza). Still, what else is to be expected if one side to the conflict tries to protect her citizens as best as possible with the use of shelters and Iron Dome and constant preparedness whilst at the same time the other side uses its  people as human shields and propaganda weapon to show in the pictures?

I feel deep regret for victims of this conflict on BOTH sides, still it is unacceptable to blame Israel for defending herself. Israel does not fire rockets constantly and indiscriminately into Gaza. She does not kidnap or murder Arab civilians, neither does she wish them to perish - on the contrary, even at this very moment the power and water supplies are delivered although as I have written here they are not paid for. The blame for the victims of the current situation  and their suffering lies exclusively at Hamas's door.

How can one compare???!!!!

Do the synagogues in 1930s Germany

remind you the mosques in Israel?

Do the fate of Jews in pre - Holocaust years

remind you Israeli citizens who are Arabs?

Do Gaza in your eyes (with all its problems)

reminds you ghettos? (only in Warsaw one and during first 3 years over 100,000 people died of hunger)

Do Palestinian Authority (so often visited by tourists)

reminds you Holocaust?

If not how DARE you compare or let others compare one with the other on the very continent where it happened when people who have been through it are still alive?

Shooting in Brussels

It just happened. We still don't know many things. But tell me, if on Sabbath, in big European city, in the place important for Jews 3 get killed and one wounded in an antisemitic attack what time do you have in mind? Isn't it Germany between Hitler's coming into power and Kristallnacht or even beginning of war?
Not only! On 24th of May 2014, on the weekend of elections into European Parliament, in Brussels, in European Union which is supposed to be so tolerant and multicultural (but where the hatred towards vanishing Jewish minority reached the level not noted for the last 50 years) 3 people outside the Jewish Museum were shot, another one severely wounded and12 treated for shock.
In an antisemitic attack reminding the one in French school or the ones in Nazi Germany people were killed because they were (or were presumed to be, as the names of the victims are not known at the moment) Jewish!!!!! Th oldest hatred coming back to Europe with applause of some far-left politicians is here.
And, for everyone of us, decent people, it is absolutely necessary to fight it as we can, everywhere we can. Otherwise we are like those turning their eyes from burning synagogues in 1930s!

Sweden once again

And unfortunately again on antisemitism :(
This Monday 90-years-old president of Israel Shimon Peres was flying on official visit to Norway.
While on his route the plane's crew was informed that they are not allowed to enter Swedish air space. The formerly given permission was revoked without giving reasons.
The flight was rerouted via Denmark and arrived in Norway with delay.

President Peres is known for his seeking peaceful solutions for problems. He is Nobel Prize Winner and has opinion of willing to go into great efforts to give peace between Israel and PA. Yet obviously his plane couldn't pollute the pristine (and antisemitic) air of Sweden.

Chinese PM or Putin were recently warmly welcome in Sweden.

And just a reminder: in 2011, when even European countries joined Israel and the United States in a walk-out of the odious remarks at the U.N. by then-President of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Sweden and Norway kept their seats.

Yom Hashoah

Tomorrow is Yom Hashoah. At 10 am in Israel siren will sound, everybody will stp, cars will sop at roads and highways and drivers will stand by them to show remembrance. Six million people have perished. Six millions!
In Poland the March of the Living will take place at the site of former death camp in Auschwitz.
Please, let us NEVER FORGET

Breaking of the 'peace' talks

Many times it seemed like peace talks between Israel and Palestinian Authority were approaching a point when something will develop, something leading to peace or at least some stabilization.
It was never so, and, sadly, it never could be so, and I will try to show you why I think so.

As I have written few times before, for example here, the goal of the Palestinian authorities has never been peace.

PLO was created BEFORE 6-days war, when Judea and Samaria were in Jordanian borders, but it was NOT directed against Jordan, no, from the very beginning its aim was the destruction of Israel. In later years when 'peace talks' with Palestinians seemed to approach some stage when decision making was expected they were invariably broken and invariably by the Palestinian side (either directly or by expressing "preconditions" that could never be met). True peace talks took part with Jordan (and peace was achieved) and with Egypt (with the same result). So why is it impossible with PA?
Let me remind you that the first war aimed at Israel's destruction, not even 24 hours after her birth, was staged by 7 Arab armies but the plot behind it was by one side (not that the others were not involved but they just went in a way along) - it was this man.  And his Arab Legion was the most viscous and cruel fighter in that war. And he is one of ascendants of both Arafat and Abbas. PA is in a way a family thing and its creator is a Nazi criminal.

Also, the whole way the power is executed in the Palestinian Territory is based on being against Israel. It is not about creating the independent and able to survive economically state, it is not about creating workforce able to give people stability, work, and taxes (in place of international help it lives on now) for the state to fulfill its mission. It is not about freedom for its future citizens (as it is Arabs living in Israel enjoy infinitely more freedom than those under Palestinian authority and they never move away). Neither their rights. It is all about destruction of Israel. They teach in (UN sponsored) schools that the whole body of Israel should be Palestine, they never show Israel on maps, they name the streets and squares after terrorists and suicide bombers, they pay rents (with EU money) to the families of suicide terrorists, their whole building of power is based on being against Israel, and never, even as an addition, on what positive they want for their people. Do you really believe they are prepared to give it up? Together with power and money? After saying plainly that they won't even grant citizenship to Palestinian refugees because it would corrupt the preached like prophecy "right of return" (of all descendents of people who left Israel during 1948 war) to "their"homes". Nobody wanting to remember the facts about all refugees of that war. No - there is no way of the PA authorities, corrupted, authoritarian to keep power on the basis of what they want for their people, there is only - sadly - the hate against Israel and Jews, the only glue they kept and cherished with the Palestinian population throughout the years.

And as they can't afford peace with Israel without risking loose of power and accusations for treason (after all those years of propaganda they have built their power upon) they have to keep "peace talks" ineffectual. And they do!

Here is the Washington Post story from today about breaking the "peace talks" (by now I presume you know why quotation mark, if one side has to be determined not to achieve the pronounce goal it has to be theater not talks). Fatah (that is negotiating) has announced its reconciliation with Hamas. They tried few times but it is just few times less possible than Republicans and Democrats 're-conciliating' into one political party. So no story will follow these  announcements. The Only goal of these talks of Fatah and Hamas is to break the negotiations with Israel. Israel receives on nearly daily basis rockets from Gaza launched by Hamas. Truly, they rarely cause injuries or loss of life but not because, as want some BDS activists, because they are incapable of it and just a bit more dangerous than fireworks. They are deadly! Yet the communities in Israel bordering with Gaza have pillboxes for everyone, good drill, early warning systems and Iron Dome. Yet children of those communities are suffering from nervous breakdowns and sometimes shall-shock from the early stages of life :( . Hamas is considered (and for a good reason) terrorist organization by Israel, the USA, Canada and the EU. It never ever concealed its goal to bring about new Holocaust.
Is it possible to negotiate with it? No. Is it possible to negotiate with Fatah on its (declared) way to 're-reconcile' with Hamas? NO!

So, Fatah, needing one more time excuse for breaking talks (and optimally possible to blame on Israel, yes, technically it was Israel who walked out of negotiations) decided to announce its 're-conciliation' with Hamas. Few weeks down the road we will hear that 'unfortunately' the results are not what was expected.

Apartheid weeks

Unfortunately all across the West we see the resurgence of the oldest hatred - antisemitism.
I was writing about it more than once. You probably have heard (or maybe even witnessed) what the "apartheid week" at the university campuses are. If so, you will know what I am referring to but if you have not come across this shameful event so far read carefully please as this is something extremely blood-chilling for me.
For the last 10 years or so western universities in many cities organize what is called "Israel Apartheid Week". Here is what wikipedia says about the event.
It makes no mystery that it is sponsored and organized by BDS, it makes no claim to being any kind of portraying truth or inviting discussion. Although it claims it is just expression of the free speech at the same time its organizers not only intimidated and bullied counter-protesters to keep silent but also sought legal measures to prohibit supporters of Israel from expressing their views.
What takes part during rallies at such event?
For example they portrait the wall between Israel and West Bank that I was writing about here as a signature of apartheid (in this instance Greece with its wall dividing it from Turkey, the USA with its wall on border with Mexico and Korea with its security wall are as apartheid as Israel from BDS's dreams.
They shutter the memory of real apartheid (system of legal segregation of different citizens according to their race or ethnicity) victims as was correctly stated by 16 African-American students who published in the campus press during IAW in 2011 that “The Students for Justice in Palestine’s labeling of Israel, an extremely diverse and vibrant country, as an apartheid state is not only false, but offensive”. Indeed when you compare the systems  that historically and contemporary divided legal standpoint of their citizens on the base of ethnicity (like former South Africa), religion (contemporary majority of Islamic countries), social background (all former communist regimes in their birth phase, some of them for the whole time of existence) and alike calling Israel apartheid country is clearly shown for what it is - pure antisemitism.
But it gets worse. Some of the events, like bullying Jewish students are common, you may come across cans with labels "Palestinian children meat made by Israel" (happened on San Francisco campus few years ago) - here's the picture:

It has lead to threats of violence and violence itself.
Like this year at Galway, Ireland university campus. Apparently the freedom of speech according to those bullies is theirs and theirs only.

Who organizes it beside the BDS? Well, here's part of the answer.

What does it revel? Sadly, that the oldest hatred in the world is very much alive today.

It is not about those who misinformed try to do as they feel they should being at the worst useful idiots. It is easy enough to find facts and verify them after all. And anyway there's a huge gap between criticizing Israel policy (justified if you feel like that, just try not to conquer with Israeli media, they are pros at that :) and demonizing Israel. And even greater gap between turning against Israel (on whatever ground presumably linked to her policy) and bullying Jewish students around you. And as those gaps were crossed as if non-existing there is only ONE answer. It is pure antisemitic hatred. (After all, just for comparison, you may not like the policy of Chinese authorities but it does not - hopefully - cause you to throw your fellow Chinese student out of campus activity in - say - Birmingham, does it?)

It is not about freedom of speech. After all the same people - as you could watch in videos - try to ban, by any measure possible, those with other views from expressing their freedom of speech.

No, as correctly stated here, just calling a spade a spade, it is about destruction of Israel as the only Jewish state, it is about venting hatred on Jews, maybe it is about preparing ground for the next Holocaust (God forbid) as this type of hate speech as the introduction to Nurnberg laws and subsequent atrocities in the 30s. It hasn't started with camps, it started with hate. And hate (not debate, not expressing opinion, not showing one's views) is very much what one can see during Israeli Apartheid Week. No room here for counterarguments, it is not debate, it is calling for violence, craving to humiliate, drive to destroy.

So, in my opinion any decent man should not let it continue unchallenged (in whatever way we feel we may react, every little bit counts).