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Diaspora homecomings can backfire | Khaled Diab by Khaled Diab (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 12:59:32 AM
A return to an ancestral homeland is a dream that’s long inspired diasporas – often with troubling results The Zionist vision of a “return” to the promised land has been both a dream come true and a nightmare. But Jews are not the only scattered and oppressed group of people who have entertained sentimental dreams of a triumphant return to their ancestral homelands. For instance, a similar situation once existed for Greeks. Like the Jews, Greeks had not possessed an independent homeland since Roman times and counted a sizeable diaspora across the Roman empire and its successors, right up to Ottoman times. This diaspora played a central role in the creation of the modern Greek state by raising funds and awareness abroad – for example, through the Filiki Eteria(“Society of Friends”), a secret society set up in Odessa (Ukraine) in 1814. However, unlike in Palestine where Jews represented a tiny minority of the population, historic Greece was still largely populated by Greek speakers (albeit of bastardised regional dialects) who were able, with the support of the diaspora and European sympathisers ( Philhellenics like Lord Byron), to throw off the yoke of Ottoman rule rapidly. Just as Zionism sought to unite all the Jewish peoples in a single homeland, the Megali Idea(the “Great Idea”) aimed to unite the “unredeemed” Greeks of the Ottoman empire in a single country. This culminated, after the first world war, in the modern world’s first largescale compulsory“population exchange” which ethnically cleansed Turkey of its Greek Orthodox population and Greece of its Muslim population, robbing two million people of their homes and livelihoods and bringing to an end centuries of cultural and religious diversity.
But it’s not just Greeks and Jews who have dreamed of turning back the clock and returning to Zion or Olympia. Across the Atlantic, the idea of a “return to Africa” has a long pedigree among descendants of African slaves in the Americas, although few of them could say with any confidence precisely where “home” for them is. So, Africa as a whole has become their “Zion”. This is quite literally so for Rastafarians who believe that they will one day escape their Babylonian captivity (western society) and return to Zion (Africa) and its capital, New Jerusalem ( Lalibela, with its beautiful churches hewn out of the rock, in Ethiopia). In the 19th century, some wealthy African Americans, like Paul Cuffee, became convinced – as Theodor Herzl later would regarding European Jews – that the only way for blacks in America to gain salvation and overcome the burden of racism and the legacy of their enslavement was to “return” to their ancestral homelands. Just as Zionism would later be supported by both European antisemites who saw the creation of a homeland for the Jews as the optimal solution to the “Jewish problem” and European Judeophiles who were inspired by the romantic redemptive power of a return to ancestral lands, many racists supported the “Back to Africa” ideal as a solution to the “black problem”, or as a way of emancipating and empowering poverty-stricken and marginalised African diasporas. Both currents can be seen at play in the creation of Sierra Leone (created by British philanthropists to resettle London’s black poor) and Liberia (created by American slaveholders and philanthropists). Although they may have shared similar skin tones, these western implants pitted black colonists against the indigenous populations, who felt discriminated against and marginalised on their native lands. So, why does the dream of
“returning” to an ancestral homeland carry such appeal across such diverse cultural and geographical boundaries? I imagine that the draw is partly nostalgic, the kind of romanticising of an idyllic past that so many of us humans are prone to. As someone who has spent three-fifths of his life outside his native land, I don’t feel a particular nostalgia or sentimentality towards my homeland. As I grow to feel more and more like a global citizen, I find the notion of nationalism increasingly mystifying and narrow-minded. However, I have the advantage of not being stateless or the member of a an oppressed or persecuted group, and I speak from the comfortable vantage point of having a fairly clear-cut core national identity, and a clear home base to which I can flee if ever the need arises. All the examples above, despite their diversity, share certain features in common. One is the inferior status of these groups in the societies in which they lived or live – which not only made them vulnerable to persecution but also lowered their self-esteem. Another factor is utopian thinking: made to feel somehow sub-human by their host cultures and excluded from many areas of power and polite society, diaspora groups often entertain the belief that if they ran their own country they would be better off and could even surpass the society which puts them down or persecutes them. So, is this kind of “return” a good solution to the problems faced by marginalised diasporas? The trouble with attempts like these to turn back the clock is that time moves on, rendering the distance between dream and reality very significant. Most modern projects to “return” to an ancestral homeland or to create a homeland for a particular group, such as Pakistan for Indian Muslims, have resulted in enormous human dislocation, suffering and death. This is not to question the right of any of these states to exist today (and
those that reject this right, as say some Arabs do vis-à-vis Israel, are also futilely trying to turn back the clock to a past that no longer exists) but merely to highlight that, when local populations are not taken into account, efforts to “return home” can bear a striking resemblance to colonialism, with the once-oppressed playing the role of oppressors. And it is the contemporary remnants of this colonial legacy that need to be dismantled if a more just future is to be created. • Middle East • Israel • Greece • Judaism • Islam • Turkey • Palestinian territories Khaled Diab guardian.co.uk© Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions| More Feeds Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Israel’s gay propaganda war | Jasbir Puar In portraying itself as the only gay-friendly country in a homophobic region the Israeli state reveals its own desperationIsrael's recent attack on a flotilla delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza, kill... • Lessons from Camp David | Ben White Ten years after Bill Clinton guided failed Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, the idea of a negotiation on equal terms is now defunctTen years ago this month, Israelis and Palestinians gathered at Camp ... • Canada: Israel’s new defender | Jesse Rosenfeld Muted support for Palestine, funding cuts for Arab groups, now a ban on the phrase 'Israeli apartheid': what's going on in Canada?At a time when many countries are becoming more critical of Israel's p... Original post source
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Jerusalem, my new home by Harriet Sherwood (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/1/2010 11:59:32 PM
The Guardian’s new Jerusalem correspondent gives her first impressions of the bitterly divided yet beautiful city There is a point on a hill looking out over Jerusalem, right on the 1948 armistice line, known as the Promenade, where both Jewish and Arab families can be found picnicking in the warmth of the late afternoon sun. It’s a good spot. Straight ahead is the Old City, the honey stones of its walls absorbing and reflecting the sun’s rays. The golden Dome of the Rock, the revered and iconic Muslim site from where the Prophet Mohammed began his ascent to heaven, gleams high above the Wailing (or Western) Wall, the equally revered and iconic Jewish site where the devout bury prayers in the cracks between stones and mourn the destruction of their ancient temple. To the left is modern West Jerusalem, green with trees and parks, whose towering cranes indicate the development of another luxury hotel or smart shopping mall. To the right is parched and dusty East Jerusalem, the Arab part of the city that is now dotted with Jewish settlements. Here and there you can glimpse sections of the bleak 8m-high concrete wall – slicing through Arab neighbourhoods, cutting roads down the middle, dividing neighbour from neighbour – which has become a symbol of the division and conflict that characterises Jerusalem. Spread out before me is the city that will be my home for the next few years: the most divided city in the world, the epicentre of the IsraeliPalestinian conflict, a city claimed by both sides as their capital and their historic right. It is also the most aweinspiring and beautiful city I have ever been to, central to the three great monotheistic religions of Islam, Judaism and Christianity and where the centuries of history, sacredness and violent discord still weigh in the air. Up here on the Promenade, a few weeks into my new life as the Guardian’s Jerusalem correspondent, I try to untangle the medley of impressions that have crowded into my head. Making sense of this place won’t be easy – I know from previous visits that it’s contentious, confusing, exhilarating and exhausting; that just when you think you understand it a little better, something happens that makes you realise you understand it less than ever. As I leave the Promenade I’m surprised to come across a “monument to tolerance” – a quality that does not seem to be in abundant supply in this city. The sculpture, depicting two halves of a broken
column linked and shaded by an olive tree, is dedicated to a peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Not for the first time, I feel a sense of unreality. Just past the sculpture, a huge roadside hoarding advertises the new Jewish settlement of Nof Zion, built illegally on territory that Israel occupied and annexed in 1967. The smart apartments, largely complete though far from fully occupied, have sensational views across to the Old City. Pleasant landscaping marks out the settlement: newly planted saplings, decorative iron railings, a children’s playground. As I continue down the hill, something curious happens. The pavement abruptly ends, the road becomes potholed, the street lighting sporadic, the rubbish uncollected. It’s like going from a first world country to a developing country in the space of a few metres and without any formal demarcation. Goodbye, planet Israel; welcome to Arab East Jerusalem. That fundamental divide is the defining characteristic of this place. But, as I am soon discovering, Jerusalem is not just divided into two, but into multiple, complex layers. In my first week, I get lost in my car trying to find a downtown cafe where I am to meet a man about – prosaically – my worldly goods, stuck on the dock in Ashdod. In impossibly narrow backstreets, where nervously and repeatedly I’m forced to reverse and perform multiple-point turns, I encounter visibly poor Jewish children whose parents yell and gesticulate admonitions, the precise details of which I can’t understand but whose universality is clear. A few days later I meet a charming and sophisticated middle-aged Palestinian woman who shows me round her neighbourhood, dressed in white jeans and jewelled sandals, offering asides in flawless English on her latest divorce and recent trip to Paris. Impoverished Israelis and affluent Palestinians challenge stereotypical expectations, but they don’t mask the city’s central breach. While the nationalistic, political and religious divide seems as unbridgeable as ever, the geographical separation is blurring, to the detriment of the Palestinians. They are bitter about what they describe as the “Judaisation” of East Jerusalem. Ever since the six day war in 1967, when Israel forcibly took control of the Arab sector, successive governments have pursued a policy of building settlements in the east, creating a Jewish ring around the city, cutting off Palestinians in the West Bank from Jerusalem and making an East Jerusalem capital an unrealisable dream. Some of the settlements are huge. Ma’ale Adumim, home to almost 40,000 Israelis, is a mini-city in its
own right. It feels like an enormous American gated community transported to the Middle East. Lavish municipal flowerbeds are tended and watered by Palestinian gardeners; there are 40 synagogues and seven high schools; huge areas of nearby land spreading towards the Palestinian city of Jericho are earmarked for expansion. Like most settlements, it’s built on a hill with commanding views and dominance over Palestinian villages in the valleys. But some of the most recent settlements are tiny – for now. Rather than new towns complete with service infrastructure, they are the first toe-holds of what these fundamentalist settlers hope will grow into a permanent presence – and they are right in the heart of Jerusalem, as opposed to on its outlying hills. In Sheikh Jarrah– a historic Palestinian neighbourhood where many of the spacious stone villas, draped with gorgeous bougainvillea, have been leased to foreign consulates and NGOs – a number of families have been evicted from modest homes assigned to them by the UN in 1948. Settler groups wanting to establish a presence there have brought legal challenges – through the Israeli courts, of course – to the ownership rights and turfed the families out. Among a jumble of homes, I find a few proudly – and provocatively – flying Israeli flags. New paving stones have been laid outside the front door; wall-mounted cameras monitor passersby; security men sit in booths, refusing to answer questions about who pays their wages. These are now Jewish homes, but the occupants, glimpsed through the windows, are reluctant to engage in conversation about their presence in an Arab neighbourhood. The evicted families, who spend their days on a battered sofa and cracked plastic chairs in the shade of a tree on Sheikh Jarrah street, have no such reticence. Pouring glasses of chilled water for their hot and thirsty visitors, their voluble bitterness at their sudden homelessness does not eclipse their charm and hospitality. These unwilling neighbours eye each other with mutual hostility and incomprehension. A short distance away is the Old City, 800 square metres of packed winding alleys just on the eastern side of the Green Line, where young Palestinian men barrel their way through the crowds delivering goods on handcarts to shops outside which an older generation sits on stools sipping tiny porcelain cups of strong sludgy Arabic coffee or glasses of sweet mint tea. Thirty-seven thousand people live in the Old City, making it one of the most densely populated places on earth. Thousands more come to work,
worship and wonder. The sound of the muezzin – the Muslim call to prayer – mixes with church bells, chants and song. Greek orthodox clerics brush past Catholic nuns; Jews stride through the souks on their way to pray at the Western Wall; Muslims flock to the magnificent mosques at Haram al-Sharif in the south-eastern corner, known to Jews as the Temple Mount. Here, too, Israeli flags are increasingly hung in the Muslim quarter as Jewish families take over Palestinian homes. The tension is often palpable, and the presence of young Israeli border police with rifles slung over their shoulders on almost every corner only adds to the uneasy mix. It’s hard to see how Jerusalem can be unscrambled; how the Palestinians can ever regain a definable half of the city as the capital of any future state. That, of course, is Israel’s intention in building and encouraging settlements both big and small in the eastern sector; it claims Jerusalem as its “indivisible and eternal capital” and is creating facts on the ground to make its claim a reality. Forty-five per cent of the population of the eastern half of the city is now Jewish, I’m told by the Jerusalem Institute. But the city is changing in other ways, too. In a separate dimension from the Arab-Israeli, Muslim-Jew divide is an increasing gulf between Jew and Jew – the religious and the secular. The ultra-orthodox – or Haredim– community is growing, both absolutely and in proportion to secular Jews, many of whom are packing up and heading off to the more relaxed and liberal coastal towns and cities. The ultra-orthodox made up about 10% of Jerusalem’s population in the 1960s; now they are around a third. A political scientist from Jerusalem’s Hebrew University told me that the secular-religious divide was the new “culture war”. The ultra-orthodox were seen as “parasites”, he said, for their refusal to do paid work, devoting themselves to biblical study. These people have six, seven, eight children, another Israeli analyst told me. They have changed the atmosphere in Jerusalem, he went on; people are afraid they are taking over. I was taken aback at the enmity with which both men spoke. Traditionally the ultra-orthodox have been based around Mea Shearim, an area of the city centre redolent of preHolocaust eastern Europe. Whole families walk together beneath washing hanging from the balconies of dilapidated buildings: women with hair covered by scarves or wigs, wearing thick dark stockings despite the June heat; men in their monotone ultra-orthodox uniform; children dressed as miniature versions of their parents clinging to adult hands or JERUSALEM, page 4
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More about Fenton the lefty PR firm doing a new anti Israel campaign by NoahDavidSimon (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 12:00:00 AM
more info about Fenton “Reading about MoveOn.org’s huge discount on their New York Times ad makes me wonder if Shellenberger had access to that kind of discount… According to Abbe Serphos, director of public relations for the Times, “the open rate for an ad of that size and type is $181,692.” A spokesman for MoveOn.org confirmed to The Post that the liberal activist group had paid only $65,000 for the ad – a reduction of more than $116,000 from the stated rate.” From watch paul “ • Foremost public relations firm of the political left • Past clients have included Marxist dictatorships in Central America • Represents environmentalist groups, pro-Democratic political action committees, labor unions, and the anti-war movement • Launched misleading media campaigns against Alar and silicone breast implants Founded in 1982 by activist and public relations veteran David Fenton, Fenton Communications (FC) is the leading advertising and public relations firm for advocacy groups on the political left, with locations in Washington DC, New York, and San Francisco. FC serves as an “umbrella” for “ three independent nonprofit organizations” which it co-founded. These include: Environmental Media Services, which manages publicity efforts for environmental groups; New Economy Communications, a social justice group; and the Death Penalty Information Center, an antideath penalty lobby. FC expressly refuses to represent “clients and projects that we don’t believe in ourselves.” Among the clients and projects that FC has worked for are Marxist-Leninist regimes in Central America and Africa, environmental groups, labor unions, and anti-war organizations. In addition, FC has offered its services to pro- Democrat political action committees and law firms, as well as to political campaigns against the death penalty and gun-ownership rights. Throughout the 1980s, FC represented a number of Marxist governments and their supporters. Most prominent among these was the Sandinista regime in Nicaragua, which the firm defended against foreign criticism while casting its internal opponents — the Contra guerrillas — as “death squads.” David Fenton acknowledged earning
$100,000 annually for three years from contracts with Sandinista authorities. FC also conducted publicity campaigns on behalf of Grenada’s Marxist dictator Maurice Bishop and El Salvador’s Marxist-Leninist guerrilla organization, the FMLN. Another FC client was Jennifer Harbury, a far-left attorney and activist who charged that her husband, a Marxist guerrilla in Guatemala, had been killed with the complicity of the CIA. In Africa, FC signed on to represent Angola’s MPLA regime, a Soviet puppet state. When anti-MPLA rebel leader Jonas Savimibi visited the United States in mid-1980s, FC, working for the Angolan government, placed ads in the New York Times and other leading newspapers denouncing him as “South Africa’s secret agent.” Equally noteworthy has been FC’s business partnership with environmental groups. In 1988 and 1989, FC helped one such organization, the Natural Resources Defense Council(NRDC), promote misleading claims about the dangers of Alar, a pesticide then in use by the apple industry. On the basis of
NRDC’s study of Alar, itself based on exaggerated probabilities rather than concrete empirical data, FC launched a media campaign that stoked consumers’ fears and captured the interest of television news programs, daily newspapers and daytime talk shows, fueling a backlash against apple growers. By some estimates, the apple industry suffered $200 million in lost revenue as a result of the FC campaign. By contrast, FC and its client prospered. David Fenton subsequently boasted that his firm had “designed” the media campaign “so that revenue would flow back to NRDC from the public,” noting that FC had gained “$700,000 in net revenues from it.” Fenton Communications today cites the Alar campaign as a significant contribution to the “national debate” on pesticides. Such fear-mongering has also worked for ice cream producers Ben & Jerry’s, another client of FC. Starting with a series of press conferences in the late 1990s, the FCfounded Environmental Media Services promoted claims that a hormone given to dairy cows to produce milk could cause cancer, though the FDA had found the
hormone to be safe. Ben & Jerry’s ice cream manufacturers stood to gain from the bad press aimed at the dairy industry because their ice cream was made with hormone-free milk. Joining forces with the Environmental Working Group, FC has also engineered media campaigns exaggerating the dangers posed by pesticides in tap water and baby food. In 2003 FC created an ad campaign targeting the automotive industry for the Evangelical Environmental Network. The controversial ads alleged that consumers who bought sport utility vehicles were, in effect, supporting terrorism by using large amounts of fuel imported from the Middle East. FC partnered with the Command Trust Network, a support group of activists and personal injury lawyers that opposes silicone breast implants. In a 2003 press release, FC misrepresented the findings of a scientific study by suggesting that such implants posed proven health risks. The campaign was damaging to implant manufacturers; the following year a federal court concluded that scientific evidence did not support Fenton’s claims. In 2004 Wangari Maathai, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and environmental activist, retained Fenton’s services during a speaking tour of the U.S. During the 2004 U.S. presidential election season, FC helped the proDemocrat activist group MoveOn.org stage its “ Vote for Change” tour. This initiative combined musical acts (such as Bruce Springsteen, R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, John Mellencamp, and the Dixie Chicks) with leftist advocacy groups like MoveOn and America Coming Together, and opposed the reelection of George W. Bush. (Trevor S. Fitzgibbon, FC’s Director of Media Relations, assists in public relations strategy for MoveOn.org, the MoveOn.org Voter Fund, and Win Without War. According to FC, ”Fitzgibbon’s messaging and PR efforts on behalf of MoveOn.org have helped position the online advocacy group as a national political force in American life.”) In 2004 FC coordinated the efforts of its then-newest client, the anti-war group September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, to oppose President Bush’s bid for re-election. That same year, FC became a leading public-relations conduit for Cindy Sheehan, who founded the anti-war group Gold Star Families for Peace. In 2005 FC did some work for Win Without War. And in an effort to influence the 2006 midterm elections in favor of Democrats, the firm MORE page 5
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Methodists vote for settlements boycott | Karen Burke by Karen Burke (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 2:30:36 AM
The Methodist conference has voted for a boycott on good produced in illegal Israeli settlements The Methodist Church voted on Wednesday to boycott products from Israeli settlements recognised as illegal under international law at its annual Conference in Portsmouth. It took the decision following a call from a group of Palestinian Christians, a number of Jewish organisations, both within Israel and worldwide, and the World Council of Churches. In December, the Department for Environment food and Rural Affairs introduced new advice on food labelling, recommending that the packaging of products imported from the West Bank should distinguish between Palestinian areas and Israeli settlements. The former President of the Methodist Church, Revd David Gamble, wrote to major supermarket chains earlier this year to ask how they labelled their food. Many of the responses he received explained that processes were already in place to label products accurately or that processes were being put in place. The European Court of Justice has ruled that imports from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank should not benefit from a trade
agreement between Israel and the European Union. Methodists in favour of boycotting Israeli goods from what the General Assembly of the United Nations voted were “illegal settlements” in 2004 believe that disinvestment from those settlements is one measure among many that will help to highlight injustice suffered in the region and, by highlighting it, take a step towards a just peace for Israelis and Palestinians. It is a decision that has caused pain. Christine Elliott, Secretary for External Relationships at the Methodist Church, addressed the Conference to express the distress felt by senior representatives of the British Jewish community whom she met once the Methodist report became a public document. One of their profound concerns was with the historical account of Israel and Palestine presented in the report that was written to resource yesterday’s debate. The Revd Graham Carter, chair of the working party that compiled the report, acknowledged the history was not complete and that, given the time constraints for the compilation of the report, the working group had to present what it believed was a fair selection from a variety of narratives. The report’s historical account is not Methodist Church doctrine. The conflict in Israel and Palestine is not a one-sided conflict. The Israeli
settlements internationally recognised as illegal are not the only barrier to peace. Arab terrorist organisations and states intent on destroying Israel are also a barrier to peace. Any debate genuine about peace in the region should take as its starting point Israel’s right to exist and its right to defend itself. Israel should not be singled out above all other countries for opprobrium and international sanction. The report received by the Methodist Conference stated in its introduction: “We continue to affirm the right of the State of Israel to exist and that all the inhabitants of Israel/Palestine are entitled to their full human rights, including the right to live in peace and security and without the threat of violence.” The Methodist Church has a long history of interfaith relationships; it greatly values the relationship it shares with its Jewish brothers and sisters and hopes that that relationship will continue to flourish. The Methodist Conference also passed a resolution commending all people of the region to the loving care of Almighty God and urged the Methodist people to engage in regular, informed prayer for the needs of the Land of the Holy One. The President of Conference, Revd Alison Tomlin, asked Conference to pass this particular resolution as a standing vote and, from where I was watching, everyone on the floor rose to their
feet. • Religion • Christianity • Judaism • Israel • Palestinian territories
sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday: shops are shuttered, cafes closed, relatively few cars appear on the normally clogged road. Secular businesses have apparently succumbed to pressure from the religious lobby. The lighter traffic on Shabat is, however, a boon for me: it gives me the chance to try to find my way round this city without being tailgated, honked at and shouted at by fellow motorists. Jerusalem’s baffling one-way systems, indecipherable road markings and minuscule street signs are currently exacerbated by a massive project to build a light railway through the city. Once complete – allegedly by next year, though nobody here believes that for a moment – it should relieve the burden of traffic thundering past fragile historic sites. But this, too, has a political dimension. The city authorities say the railway will be open to all, except when “security considerations” require the stations in Arab parts of the city to be closed. We shall have to wait to see just how often that happens. At least the stop-start nature of the traffic gives me the opportunity to
stare in wonder at the sights and views; from the beautiful golden stone of the Old City ramparts to the ugly dull grey concrete of the imposing separation wall. At some point, I assume, all this will become the routine backdrop to my life, but I hope I never take Jerusalem’s extraordinariness for granted. And the people? Each side is passionate about their unassailable right to the land. Each side has suffered terrible injustices and inhumanity over their history. Each side is exhausted by conflict. And each side wants to welcome me to their country. “Baruch haba, shalom,” say the Israelis. “Marhaban, salam,” say the Palestinians. And, they all add: “Good luck.” • Israel • Palestinian territories • Judaism • Islam
• Diaspora homecomings can backfire | Khaled Diab A return to an ancestral homeland is a dream that's long inspired diasporas – often with troubling resultsThe Zionist vision of a "return" to the promised land has been both a dream come true and a ni... • Israel will free 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Gilad Shalit Binyamin Netanyahu draws the line at paying 'any price' for freedom of soldier, who was abducted in 2006Israel's prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, tonight confirmed he was prepared to release 1,000 ... • Gaza convoy activists claim Israeli soldiers using debit cards stolen in raid Boarding party troops in deadly flotilla raid confiscated cards and spent on them, claim campaigners who were on boardIsraeli troops have been accused of stealing from activists arrested in the assaul...
Karen Burke guardian.co.uk© Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions| More Feeds Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Diaspora homecomings can backfire | Khaled Diab A return to an ancestral homeland is a dream that's long inspired diasporas – often with troubling resultsThe Zionist vision of a "return" to the promised land has been both a dream come true and a ni... • Israel’s gay propaganda war | Jasbir Puar In portraying itself as the only gay-friendly country in a homophobic region the Israeli state reveals its own desperationIsrael's recent attack on a flotilla delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza, kill... • Lessons from Camp David | Ben White Ten years after Bill Clinton guided failed Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, the idea of a negotiation on equal terms is now defunctTen years ago this month, Israelis and Palestinians gathered at Camp ... Original post source
JERUSALEM, continued from page 2
hanging on to a younger sibling’s pushchair. Anyone foolish enough to drive through there on Shabat – the Jewish Sabbath – will be at best vigorously berated; more likely their car will be pelted. Pasted on the stone walls are countless religious tracts. A huge billboard in English reads: “To women and girls. We beg you with all our hearts: Please do not pass through our neighbourhood in immodest clothes.” Specific instructions follow regarding length of sleeves and tightfitted garments. Non-Jews and secular Jews are not made to feel welcome. In recent months there have been regular evening disturbances involving young men setting fire to rubbish bins and stoning police officers in protest at infringements of religious observance. But the influence of ultra-orthodox spreads beyond Mea Shearim. The area of west Jerusalem in which I live has a prosperous main street lined with cafes and eclectic small shops. The previous tenant of my apartment told me that when he moved in four years ago, Shabat was barely different to any other day of the week. Now the place is eerily deserted from
Harriet Sherwood guardian.co.uk© Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions| More Feeds Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel
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UK: Muslim pupils pulled out of music class by Esther (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 3:06:00 AM
UK: Muslim pupils pulled out of music class The problem with this article is that it doesn’t really differentiate between Muslims who have a problem with music, and Muslims who have a problem with certain music (Christmas musicals) or at certain times (Ramadan). ———– A number of schools are allowing Muslim parents to pull their children out of classes, even though the subject is a formal part of the national curriculum. Dr Diana Harris, a lecturer at the Open University, said she had visited schools where half of pupils were withdrawn from music during Ramadan. By law, children are supposed to take part in all subjects and parents can only remove children from sex and religious education. This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com But Dr Harris claimed Ofsted inspectors sometimes turned “a blind eye” to the issue. In one London primary school, 20 pupils were removed from rehearsals for a Christmas musical and one fiveyear-old girl has been permanently withdrawn from all classes. The details emerged in a BBC London News investigation. Eileen Ross, head of Herbert Morrison Primary in Lambeth, where almost a third of children come from mainly Somalian Muslim families, said some parents “don’t want children to play musical instruments
and they don’t have music in their homes”. “There’s been about 18 or 22 children withdrawn from certain sessions, out of music class, but at the moment I just have one child who is withdrawn continually from the music curriculum,” she said. “It’s not part of their belief, they feel it detracts from their faith.” There has been a debate in the Muslim community about music and singing, with some followers claiming that they are forbidden. Dr Harris, author of the book “Music Education and Muslims”, told the BBC: “Most of them really didn’t know why they were withdrawing their children.
“The majority of them were doing it because they had just learned that it wasn’t acceptable and one of the sources giving out that feeling was the Imams particularly Imams who had come over from Pakistan, didn’t really speak English and felt threatened. “I think they were adhering to very strict lines about what was acceptable. “At secondary level parents who really object to music will be withdrawing then and going to a Muslim school. At primary schools in some areas one or two permanently withdrawn but at Ramadan I’ve been to schools were 50 per cent of the Muslim student population have been
the TransAfrica, the magazine In These Times, the National Urban League, the World Wildlife Fund, the American Friends Service Committee, Rock the Vote, School of the Americas Watch, the Nature Conservancy, Greenpeace, the Ford Foundation, the Heinz Family Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Turner Foundation, Ben and Jerry’s Foundation, the Tides Foundation, the Energy Foundation, the Columbia Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Joyce Foundation and the Iraq Policy Information Project, among many others. FC also counts among its clients a number of pro-Democrat law firms such as Milberg, Weiss, Bershad, Hynes & Lerach. Arlie Schardt, a senior consultant at Fenton Communications and
Chairman of Environmental Media Services, served as Al Gore’s national press secretary during his first presidential campaign. Fenton Communications has received financial support from the Ford Foundation, the James Irvine Foundation, the Joyce Foundation, and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. ” From Discover the Networks Fenton is really bad news. Have anymore dirt or info on them please leave it as a comment. They need to be stopped in there attempt to destroy Israel. via avideditor.wordpress.com Quoted by email using noahdavidsimon’s posterous Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • The lefty jihadi alliance is reveled. Fenton the PR firm of the Left is now hired by Dubia to smear Israel so it could be destroyed by the jihadis
removed from music class for the month.” ( more) Matthew Wilkinson, a spokesman for the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) said: “At a guesstimate I say it will involve about 10% of the Muslim community.” Asked if this involved hundreds of pupils, he said: “Yes, you might be looking at that sort of figure.” “The MCB wants Muslim children to take benefit of the full range of educational possibilities, including music.” ( more) Sources: Telegraph, BBC Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • London: “We will never give up … until you are subdued to the law of Sharia” London: "We will never give up ... until you are subdued to the law of Sharia"Sharia4Belgium/Muslim Rise were not allowed to protest in Brussels as planned, but their friends in the UK and Ireland sho... • UK: ‘Islam Channel’ accused of encouraging marital rape and intolerance UK: 'Islam Channel' accused of encouraging marital rape and intoleranceBritain's leading Muslim TV channel was accused of encouraging “marital rape” and promoting other intolerant views of women in a... • UK: Fears over non-Muslim’s use of Islamic law to resolve disputes UK: Fears over non-Muslim's use of Islamic law to resolve disputesNobody would accuse the Muslim Arbitration Council (MAT) of being Islamophobic, and yet I can't really understand why it runs to the p... Original post source
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teamed up with the anti-war entity Appeal for Redress, whose members include active-duty and reserve soldiers. Emphasizing the group’s military background, the resulting campaign urged “political leaders in Congress to support the prompt withdrawal of all American military forces and bases from Iraq.” Other clients of Fenton Communications have included the AFL-CIO, America Coming Together, Amnesty International, Air America Radio, the Association of Trial Lawyers of America (renamed the American Association for Justice in 2006), the NAACP, the Rainforest Action Network, the Sierra Club, Global Exchange, the Open Society Institute, and Pew Charitable Trusts, the Institute for Policy Studies, Ralph Nader’s Public Citizen, People for the American Way, Service Employees International Union, Working Assets,
What is Arianna Huffington Telling David Fenton?Know Fenton? They are the left wing PR group that promoted and made Cindy Sehan famous. Bacaily they are the biggest lefty PR company. Guess who there n... • The Perfect Pitch with PR Icon Howard J. Rubenstein Today's blog comes from Rachel Weiss, our development colleague, who is the Assistant Director of Development for Young Leadership & Donor Relations.Wednesday night the Young Friends Division of t... Original post source
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"Fayyad is not building a state" – Nathan Brown vs. Thomas Friedman by Elder of Ziyon (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 3:38:00 AM
Right on the heels of my post about how the vaunted Palestinian Arab state building is really an illusion comes a much more authoritative article saying the same thing. Nathan Brown, writing in Foreign Policy magazine a shortened version of a paper he wrote for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, shows in detail what is happening on the ground in the PA. He analyzes both the successes and failures of the PA in building a state – and the failures outnumber the successes. To be sure, most of the failures are due to the difficult political environment in which Fayyad is working – often against Fatah. A quote from the paper: A dispassionate analysis reveals that rather than building institutions, Fayyad’s cabinet is reviving some of them and attempting to inject elements of greater competence and efficiency in selected bureaucratic locations. This is then a program of improved public administration rather
than a statebuilding effort. But is there any harm in the boosterism about “Fayyadism?” Yes. The international infatuation with the effort obscures two extremely unhealthy developments, both of them tied to the schism in Palestinian politics—the effort is predicated on the denial of democracy and human rights, and it is bypassing (and perhaps even enabling) the further deterioration in Palestinian institutions that lie outside of the realm of government. The Palestinian political system is deeply troubled; Fayyadism does not address the crisis. At best it manages administration in the face of crisis; at worst it allows international and domestic actors to ignore it—for now. His conclusion from the FP article: Fayyad is not building a state, he’s holding down the fort until the next crisis. And when that crisis comes, Fayyad’s cabinet has no democratic legitimacy or even an organized constituency to fall back on. What he does have — contrary to those who laud him for not relying on outsiders — is an irreplaceable reservoir of international respectability. The message of “Fayyadism” is clear, and
it is personal: if Salam Fayyad is prime minister, wealthy international donors will keep the PA solvent, pay salaries to its employees, fund its infrastructural development, and even put gentle pressure on Israel to ease up its tight restrictions on movement and access. Fayyad may be a good person, but finding a good person is not a policy. If he is making mild administrative and fiscal improvements in some areas, this cannot obscure the deeper problem that most Palestinian political institutions are actually in deep trouble and the most important ones are in a state of advanced decay. This is real research, of someone spending significant time on the ground in the West Bank and talking to a wide variety of people about the details of the PA’s performance. This is in stark contrast to the the facile cheerleading of NYT’s Thomas Friedman who wrote this week: Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, the former World Bank economist … has unleashed a real Palestinian “revolution.” It is a revolution based on building Palestinian capacity and institutions not just resisting Israeli occupation, on the theory that if the
Palestinians can build a real economy, a professional security force and an effective, transparent government bureaucracy it will eventually become impossible for Israel to deny the Palestinians a state in the West Bank and Arab neighborhoods of East Jerusalem. Brown’s analysis is methodical, Friedman’s is wishful. It is a shame that so many in the West rely on Friedman for their facts – oblivious to the danger of making policy decisions on the basis of his vaunted expertise. Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Messianic Rabbi shares how he accepted Yeshua as Messiah After a dramatic vision, a Jewish man studied the Bible for many years as great literature, then finally accepted that Yeshua (Jesus) really is the Messiah of Israel. H... • A sign on Main Street... • wjhc1969-020-ar1-001: Portrait of Rabbi Jacob Voorsanger (San Francisco, n.d.) Image taken on 200908-01 00:00:00 by MagnesMuseum.... Original post source
U.K.: Muslims withdrawing children from music classes because they’re "un-Islamic" by Marisol (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 12:03:12 AM
U.K.: Muslims withdrawing children from music classes because they’re “un-Islamic”“Some Muslims believe that playing musical instruments and singing is forbidden according to Islam.” And where would they have gotten that idea? What kind of repressed killjoy would spread that sort of thinking around? Why, Muhammad: “The Prophet said that Allah commanded him to destroy all the musical instruments, idols, crosses and all the trappings of ignorance” (Hadith Qudsi 19:5). As the hadith indicates, the ban on music, as distasteful as it is by itself, is part of a much broader agenda, and thus a symptom of a much broader problem regarding the widespread unwillingness of Muslim immigrants in Europe to assimilate as equals in society, rather than as a privileged class whose every whim and hangup must be accommodated — or else. And as is the case with the general
issue of Islamic supremacism (as well as jihad doctrine), few will want to acknowledge that this display of hostility toward music education has anything to do with Islam. “Muslim pupils taken out of music lessons ‘because Islam forbids playing an instrument’,” by Laura Clark for the Daily Mail, July 1 (thanks to all who sent this in): Muslim pupils are being withdrawn from music lessons because some families believe learning an instrument is anti-Islamic, it emerged today. An investigation has discovered that Muslim pupils are being taken out of school music classes even though the subject is a compulsory part of the national curriculum. While parents have legal rights to withdraw children from religious and sex education classes, no automatic right exists to pull them out of subjects such as music. One education expert said that up to half of Muslim pupils were withdrawn from music lessons during Ramadan. And The Muslim Council of Britain said music lessons were likely to be
unacceptable to around 10 per cent of the Muslim population in Britain. However, in certain branches of Islam – such as Sufism, which is dominant in Pakistan and India – devotional music and singing is actually central to the religion. A BBC investigation found that in one London primary school, 20 pupils were removed from rehearsals for a Christmas musical and one five-yearold girl remains permanently withdrawn from mainstream music classes. Some Muslims believe that playing musical instruments and singing is forbidden according to Islam. At Herbert Morrison Primary in Lambeth, 29 per cent of children come from mainly Somalian Muslim families. Headmistress Eileen Ross said some parents ‘don’t want children to play musical instruments and they don’t have music in their homes’. … Posted by Marisol on July 2, 2010 12:03 AM | 1 Comment Print this entry | Email this entry | Digg this
| del.icio.us | Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Israel’s Gaza blockade targets Hamas while citizens suffer Blockade was imposed in June 2007 to hold Hamas accountable for rocket attacks, and has crippled Gazan economyThe aid flotilla attacked by Israeli troops today was trying to break the naval blockade o... • U.S. military unit in Afghanistan ordered to patrol with unloaded weapons U.S. military unit in Afghanistan ordered to patrol with u n l o a d e d w e a p o n s . . . • The Jewish View on Capital Punishment Learn about Judaism's stance on capital punishment. Our sites Cyber synagogue www.esynagogue.org www.jewishconversionchicago.com www.neshamah.org Gail site w w w . g a n s k o k i e . www.jonathanginsburg.net BLO... Original post source
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Fayyadism isn’t state building by Carl in Jerusalem (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 2:27:00 AM
Fayyadism isn’t state building Foreign Policy, which is generally deferential and supportive of the ‘Palestinians,’ has a scathing review of Salam Fayyad’s ’state building’ in Judea and Samaria. The review – by Nathan Brown of the University of Chicago – argues that Fayyad is maintaining existing institutions rather than building new ones, that his ‘reforms’ are only possible of the current lack of democracy in the ‘Palestinian Authority’ (a democracy that Brown asserts existed between 1996 and 2006), and that no one in the ‘Palestinian Authority’ believes that Fayyad is building the institutions of a future ’state.’ Here’s his bottom line. Fayyad is not building a state, he’s holding down the fort until the next crisis. And when that crisis comes, Fayyad’s cabinet has no democratic legitimacy or even an organized constituency to fall back on. What he does have — contrary to those who laud him for not relying on outsiders — is an irreplaceable reservoir of international respectability. The message of “Fayyadism” is clear, and it is personal: if Salam Fayyad is prime minister, wealthy international donors will keep the PA solvent, pay salaries to its employees, fund its infrastructural development, and even put gentle pressure on Israel to ease up its tight restrictions on movement
and access. Fayyad may be a good person, but finding a good person is not a policy. If he is making mild administrative and fiscal improvements in some areas, this cannot obscure the deeper problem that most Palestinian political institutions are actually in deep trouble and the most important ones are in a state of advanced decay. I would take it a step further. There is no sense in pursuing ‘proximity talks’ or any other kind of talks with Israel until the ‘Palestinians’ get their act together and choose leaders. Suppose a ‘Palestinian state’ were formed tomorrow. Who would lead it? Abu Mazen has no legitimacy. Fayyad’s legitimacy comes from the quartet and not from the ‘Palestinians.’ If the ‘Palestinians’ were to hold elections, whom would they elect? And would the party they elect be trustworthy to abide by whatever security guarantees Israel manages to negotiate, and to perpetuate those security guarantees to a successor to whom power is handed peacefully once they are no longer in power? Obviously, we cannot answer the last two questions until we have answers to the previous questions. But until
the last two questions can be answered affirmatively, Israel would be suicidal to agree to the establishment of a ‘Palestinian state.’ Right now, those last two questions cannot be answered at all. So why are we involved in ‘proximity talks’? They are a waste of time and raise expectations that don’t deserve to be held and that endanger our (Israel’s) security in the long run. posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:27 PM Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Violent anti-Semitic acts DOUBLE in 2009 While the World worries itself about an imaginary phenomenon called 'Islamophobia,' violent acts against Jews more than doubled in 2009 as compared with 2008. And while there is an effort afoot... • Israel soldiers kill protesters trying to break Gaza blockade – lat… Israeli soldiers kill at least 10 protesters on boat carrying supplies to Gaza Israel defends the raid, saying troops had been ambushed. Organizers of the floti...... • Israel loosens chokehold on Gaza Strip, Gaza blockade eased slightly Israel's decision to ease its Gaza Strip blockade could spell the beginning of the end of the chokehold that has hurt ordinary Gazans far more than their milita... ... Original post source
Muslim pupils taken out of music lessons ‘because Islam forbids playing an instrument’ by NoahDavidSimon (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 12:30:00 AM
Muslim pupils are being withdrawn from music lessons because some families believe learning an instrument is anti-Islamic. The move comes despite the subject being a compulsory part of the national curriculum. While parents have legal rights to withdraw children from religious and sex education classes, no automatic right exists to pull them out of lessons such as music. Pupils in a music class at a primary school: Some Muslim families have withdrawn children for religious reasons One education expert said up to half of Muslim pupils were withdrawn from music lessons during Ramadan. And The Muslim Council of Britain said music lessons were likely to be MUSLIM page 8
Netanyahu calls for direct negotiations with the ‘Palestinians’ by Carl in Jerusalem (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 3:39:00 AM
Netanyahu calls for direct negotiations with the ‘Palestinians’ Prime Minister Netanyahu used a speech at the US embassy’s July 4 celebration in Tel Aviv to call yet again for direct negotiations between himself and‘moderate’ ‘ Palestinian’ President Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen. After mentioning an upcoming meeting with US President Barack Obama next week and the pending round of sanctions against Iran, Netanyahu spoke about his willingness to pursue peace with the Palestinians. “The only way to complete peace negotiations are to begin them. And the only way to begin them are to have the two parties sit across from one another and directly negotiate these complex issues together. “Let’s not wait 15 months before we sit down together. This is a great hope, and a great challenge.”
In closing, Netanyahu wished a “Hag Sameach” on behalf of citizens of Israel to the American people for the fourth of July. I would hope (and believe) that Netanyahu realizes that direct negotiations with the ‘Palestinians’ will not go any further than the ‘proximity talks’ have gone. After all, Abu Mazen cannot accept any less
than what both he (in 2008) and Yasser Arafat (in 2000 and 2001) turned down, and Netanyahu cannot offer anywhere near that much because there is no support for it in Israel. But by repeating the call for direct talks, Netanyahu is pushing the ball into Abu Mazen’s court. Therefore, the call for direct talks should be repeated over and over
again and at every opportunity. posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:39 PM Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Martin Amis Christopher Hitchens a conversation about Antisemitism and Saul bellow Part 3 Martin Amis in conversation with Christopher Hitchens Martin Amis talks to Christopher Hitchens about Saul Bellow with whom he developed an intimate friendship, about t... • sarah_bryan_san_francisco_wedding7 Image taken on 2009-11-08 14:34:27 by Allegro Photography.... • Shin Bet Abuses Secret Gag Order in Yet Another Arrest of Palestinian Activist Haaretz and other Israeli sites announced that a 20 year-old Israeli Palestinian, Mohhamad Namarna, was arrested under suspicion of membership in a banned organization. Given that he’s from nor... Original post source
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Europe’s Nazi obsession by Carl in Jerusalem (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 12:02:00 AM
Europe’s Nazi obsession Europe is condemning Israel at every turn because it is seeking absolution for its actions during the Holocaust argues Benjamin Weinthal. The widespread condemnation Europeans have expressed toward Israel after its commandos boarded the so-called peace flotilla on May 31 – and used force only when threatened with death – signals a desire to turn every Israeli action of self-defense into absolution for the crimes of the Holocaust. … The Europeans’ vicious attacks on Israel are animated less by the Jewish state’s foreign policy than by Europe’s ongoing fixation on the Holocaust. What else could explain the presence of posters equating Israel with Nazi Germany at proHamas demonstrations in Vienna? According to one recent German university study, 45.7 percent of the European respondents supported the contention that “Israel is conducting a war of extermination against the Palestinians.” In their eyes, apparently, maintaining a naval blockade against a government sworn to destroy you – while providing the unfortunate people living under that government with tens of thousands of tons of supplies and humanitarian aid – now equates to looting and butchering six million people. Wolfgang Benz, the controversial director of the Berlin Center for the study of anti-Semitism, neatly summed up this incongruity on German television when he insisted that “anti-Semitism is different from
Mavi Marmara: the Massacre That Will Not Die by Richard Silverstein (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 1:42:46 AM
anti-Zionism.” Benz embraces the European wish to alleviate guilt by denying the weight of the Holocaust. (As the head of a center for the study of anti-Semitism, he’s a particularly strange case; the German political scientist Clemens Heni discovered that Benz’s beloved academic mentor was the nowdeceased Karl Bosl, an outspoken Nazi who contributed enormously to spreading Hitler’s ideology.) Of course, nothing Israel has ever done can even begin to compare to the crimes of the Shoah. But to help alleviate their feelings of guilt, Europeans delegitimize Israel, ignore modern anti-Semitism, and portray Muslims – who number over one billion and whom no one seeks to eradicate from the earth – as the new persecuted Jews of Europe. It gets worse. Read the whole thing. Someone in the comments earlier this week objected to my new European Union flag (pictured). This article shows that the flag is even closer to reality than I thought it was. Europe is obsessed with finding a way to blame the Jews for Auschwitz.
What could go wrong? posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 10:02 AM Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • The Torah in Haiku: Ki Tisa by Ed NickowTemple Chai, Long Grove, IL(Originally published in The Torah in Haiku) G-d does some hiringBetzalel, OholiabThe Mishkan builders But the work must stopEach week to observe ShabbatI... • Reporter Retires After Words About Israel By JEREMY W. PETERS To many in Washington, two sets of rules seemed to apply for journalists covering the president: those for regular White House correspondent... ... • Why America Needs Government Health Care Right Now(Since Daniel Greenfield/Sultan Knish could not post today, we instead present this article from noted health care reform expert Dr. Morder Krankenhaus) Why America Needs Government Health Care Right...
and they don’t have music in their homes’. One girl remains permanently withdrawn from the school’s music curriculum, which consists of a government-backed project to learn instruments such as the violin. ‘There’s been about 18 or 22 children withdrawn from certain sessions, out of music class, but at the moment I just have one child who is withdrawn continually from the music curriculum,’ Mrs Ross told the BBC. ‘It’s not part of their belief, they feel it detracts from their faith.’ Ofsted and education experts raised concerns over the findings. The Open University’s Dr Diana Harris, an expert on music education and Muslims, said she had visited schools where half of the pupils were withdrawn from music lessons by their parents during Ramadan.
‘Most of them really didn’t know why they were withdrawing their children,’ she told the BBC. ‘The majority of them were doing it because they had just learned that it wasn’t acceptable and one of the sources giving out that feeling was the Imams.’ A spokesman for Ofsted said: ‘Music is an important part of any child or young person’s education. Any examples of pupils being treated unequally would be a matter of significant concern.’ via dailymail.co.uk Quoted: Muslim pupils are being withdrawn from music lessons because some families believe learning an instrument is antiIslamic. The move comes despite the subject being a compulsory part of the national curriculum. While parents have legal rights to withdraw children from religious and sex
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Mavi Marmara in Haifa harbor A reader whose friend has a sweeping Mt. Carmel view of Haifa harbor from his/her home took this recent shot of the Mavi Marmara, which has been towed to Haifa from Ashdod, where it was originally brought after being captured by the Israeli navy. The flotilla attack is the disaster that keeps on giving in terms of the negative fallout it provides Israel. Haaretz reports that at the urging of Barack Obama Bibi secretly sent an Israeli minister to negotiate a resolution of the outstanding issues dividing Israel and Turkey over the massacre. The Turks are demanding an apology (that would be the second one, since Danny Ayalon made the Turkish ambassador sit in a baby chair in order to demean him), victim’s compensation, and an end to the Gaza siege. Turkey also seems to be ratcheting up the pressure by issuing a new threat to withdraw the right of commercial flights to pass through its MAVI page 9
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unacceptable to around ten per cent of the Muslim population in Britain. However, in certain branches of Islam – such as Sufism, which is dominant in Pakistan and India – devotional music and singing is actually central to the religion. A BBC investigation found that in one London primary school, 20 pupils were removed from rehearsals for a Christmas musical and one five -year-old girl remains permanently withdrawn from mainstream music classes. Some Muslims believe that playing musical instruments and singing is forbidden according to Islam. At Herbert Morrison Primary in Lambeth, 29 per cent of children come from mainly Somalian Muslim families. Headmistress Eileen Ross said some parents ‘don’t want children to play musical instruments
education … using noahdavidsimon’s posterous Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Zohar Convention 2010, Lesson 7 Lecturer: Rav Michael LaitmanDate: 2010-02-24Video: ENG 98.88MB Audio: ENG 17.62MB ... • Breaking and Entering Abortedby Noah David Simon... • Functional Light G-d did not give you light that you may hold it up in the middle of the day. When you are given light it is in order to accomplish something, Original post source
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airspace. This would be a very strong slap in Israel’s face as it would have practical repercussions for Israeli flights to Europe. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman found out about the meeting and had a monumental hissy-fit declaring for all the world to see that Bibi was not nice to him and that if he didn’t shape up he might, just might, take Yisrael Beiteinu’s marbles and play elsewhere. All just a technical error on his office’s part, explained the prime minister. It will all be cleared up in a private meeting between the two. However, a wounded Yvet is not taking Bibi’s calls just yet. Make the big guy stew a little seems to be the idea. Haaretz also reports that the IDF investigation of the attack headed by Maj. Gen. Giora Eiland may be more critical than expected. In an Israeli context, that seems to mean very little. But who knows, we might be surprised by the outcome. Even in
Biblical Sodom there was at least one honest man. Related posts: • IDF Executed Mavi Marmara Victims In my earlier posts about the killings aboard the Mavi… • Turkish Prosecutors Open Investigation into Israeli Attack on Mavi Marmara A Turkish prosecutor has open a case against the Israeli… • Dueling Gaza Investigations: Israeli -U.S. Attempt to Derail UN Probe of Mavi Marmara Attack Now, this is getting interesting. With the UN Secretary General… Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin. Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Israel’s Geriatric Gaza Flotilla Investigation: the Fix is In Dvorit Shargel has collected some damning information from the Israeli media about the biased views of the commission chair, 75 year-old Justice
Yaakov Tirkel and the lucidity of a 93 year-old member,... • IDF Executed Mavi Marmara Victims In my earlier posts about the killings aboard the Mavi Marmara, I used terms like “kill shot” and “execution-style” to describe these events. I based my judgment on the narrat... • Israel and the aid convoy: How to make enemies | Editorial Israel's defiant reaction to the raid on the Gaza aid convoy is almost as appalling as the attack itselfWhen sovereign states make mistakes, they promise impartial inquiries, they express remorse to t... Original post source
Catalonia: Parliament rejects burka ban by Esther (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/1/2010 11:56:00 PM
Catalonia: Parliament rejects burka ban Catalonia’s parliament rejected Thursday a move to ban the wearing of the Islamic burqa in public places across the Spanish region after reversing an initial vote. A resolution moved by conservatives and centre-right nationalists was passed, but opponents said there had been a technical error and some absentees at the moment of the vote. After the session was suspended, the parliamentary speaker ordered the vote to be put again, prompting a walk-out by the motion’s supporters and a victory for its left-wing opponents. This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog –
islamineurope.blogspot.com The motion would have called on the government of the northeastern region to ban the Islamic women’s garment which conceals all but the eyes, in the street as well as in public buildings. Right-wing deputy Rafael Lopez said it was a question of values, of voicing opposition to clothing which he said kept women in a “degrading prison.” Left-wingers said they did not approve the wearing of the burqa but called the motion politicallymotivated with regional elections coming up this year. Nine municipalities in Catalonia, including Barcelona, have banned the use of face-covering Islamic veils in public or are considering doing so. ( more) Source: AFP Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Spain: Gov’t favors burka ban
Spain: Gov't favors burka banSpain's justice minister says the government favors barring women from wearing burqas in government buildings.This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog -... • Bercelona: Plans to ban burka in public buildings Bercelona: Plans to ban burka in public buildingsBarcelona plans to be the first large city in Spain to ban the use of the full-face Islamic veil in public buildings, its mayor announced Monday. Jo... • Catalonia: More burka-ban proposals Catalonia: More burka-ban proposalsThe ban on the full veil specifically the burka and niqab - in public buildings in Lleida (Spain), has caused several municipalities in Catalonia to try and copy ...
Hamas blames Netanyahu for killing Shalit deal by NoahDavidSimon (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 12:24:00 AM
A Hamas spokesman told the BBC’s Arabic service on Thursday night that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is responsible for ‘ killing‘ a deal to release kidnapped IDF corporal Gilad Shalit. via israelmatzav.blogspot.com Quoted: A Hamas spokesman told the BBC’s Arabic service on Thursday night that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is responsible for ‘killing’ a deal to release kidnapped IDF corporal Gilad Shalit. via israelmatzav.blogspot.com … using noahdavidsimon’s posterous Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Press Conference with Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon delivers a statement on Israel's seizure of the armada of hate and violence, and then proceeds to take questions from both Israeli and international press... • IDF to Barenboim: No to Gaza Concert If there’s a lyric to accompany this post it would be Elvis Costello’s What’s So Funny About Peace Love and Understanding? Except we’d have to adapt it a bit to today’s n... Original post source
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Ha-Dibbur Ha-Ivri / Hebrew Speech by paraisrael (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 4:20:19 AM
hebrew images: Ha-Dibbur Ha-Ivri / Hebrew Speech Image by Center for Jewish History, NYC Capitol City Hebrew School in St. Paul Image by Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest
Hebrew Calligraphy Image by Nir Tober Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Hebrew Clock by Jillery ~ Judaica Clock – judaica Hebrew Clock by Jillery ~ Judaica Clock Designed by New York artist Jill FaginSatin finish with colorful beads 3.5" square Satin finish clock with scroll design and Hebrew numbers This item is us... • Josef Hassid – Achron – Hebrew Melody Op.33 Josef Hassid (Dec. 28/
(piano) Recording Date 11/29/1940 Hassid was noted... • Tehillim Prek Aleph – Psalm Chapter. 1 in Hebrew Unfortunately, modern Christianity lost their own tradition. It is .. meditation. The Psalm is the result of meditation. Ancient Hebrew people magnified their spiritual... 1923 - 1950) - Achron - Hebrew Melody Op.33 Composer: Joseph Archron (1886 - 1943) Gerald Moore
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Dresden: City commemorates ‘veil martyr’ Kill A Jew Day On Facebook
by Esther (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 1:33:00 AM
Dresden: City commemorates ‘veil martyr’ The city of Dresden on Thursday paid its respects to a pregnant Egyptian woman who was stabbed to death in a courtroom one year ago in a racially motivated crime that outraged the Muslim world. Officials including Saxon Justice Minister Jürgen Martens honoured the memory of 31-year-old Marwa El -Sherbini, dubbed the “veil martyr,” with a plaque to serve as a warning against racism. This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com “One year ago all of us were forced to realise the deadly logic of the hatred of foreigners,” said Martens, adding that the murder had shaken “Dresden, Germany and the entire world.” WELT Members of the local Muslim community took part in the ceremony and a commemorative march was held later in the day. (…) The murder, as well as the slow reaction of Germany’s politicians and media, sparked outrage in Sherbini’s home country, as well as in the wider Muslim world. “This deed will not be forgotten,”
by NoahDavidSimon (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 12:18:00 AM
said Dresden Mayor Helma Orosz. ( more) Source: The Local Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Germany: ‘Immigrants making Germany dumber’ Germany: 'Immigrants making Germany dumber'A controversial board member of Bundesbank has come under fire for claiming immigrants are making Germany ‘dumber in a simple way’. Thilo Sarrazin told a bus... • Basel: Woman attacked for wearing headscarf Basel: Woman attacked for
wearing headscarfA woman attacked a Muslim woman in Basel (Switzerland). The Swiss had a racist motive for her act. She made it clear to the Muslim woman that she wasn't ha... • France: “Burqa Rage” France: "Burqa Rage"According to the French media (FR), the older woman and her daughter claim the women with the niqab (26) slapped one of them before the lawyer ripped off the veil. The veiled woma... Original post source
Global warming Armageddon postponed for 200 years by NoahDavidSimon (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 12:36:00 AM
The polar bears are saved! The polar bears are saved! You pretty much knew the global warming scare was petering out when Al Gore bought a beach front house near Santa Barbara. Now global warming scientists have confirmed that the oceans won’t be lapping at his front door anytime soon. The Independent UK has the hot news on global warming: The 14 scientists, all experts in their fields of climate research, were asked about the probability of a tipping point being reached some time before 2200 if global warming continued on the course of the worst-case scenarios predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Nine of the fourteen scientists said that the chances of a tipping point for the high scenario were greater than 90 per cent, with only one saying that the
chances were less than 50:50. At current rates of CO2 emissions, the world is on course for following the higher trajectory on global warming suggested by the IPCC. 2200? The global warming narrative has completely fallen apart. It used to be that they tried to scare us by saying our children would all die from global warming. Now it’s been delayed to our great, great, great, great, great grandchildren. (By the way, we love the last line of that story. Doesn’t matter that even
true global warming believers have indefinitely postponed Armageddon for 200 years, the Independent says things are even worse than the worst IPCC scare stories.) via ihatethemedia.com noahdavidsimon’s posterous Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Cow Farts are good not bad According to Mitloehner, the claim is inaccurate because the numbers for livestock were calculated differently from the costs of transportation figures that were factored in to the green house ga... • The Temperature at Which Global Warming Freezes Wednesday afternoon, the sky over New York City was a falling sheet of white. Temperatures had dropped sharply and the blizzard was underway. But nowhere in the city was the blizzard more pronounced t... Original post source
Among the comments: Lol this is so funny you guys are taking it so seriously. This is probably another racist joke which we encounter every day. However, if it is in fact serious, then it is just sad and horrible. Just a joke–just like “ Kick A Jew Day” was last year? via daledamos.blogspot.com I wasn’t invited Quoted by email using noahdavidsimon’s posterous Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Pakistan Petitions for Death of Mark Zuckerberg and other Facebook Staff – Jewish Internet Defense Force(The Register) Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is being investigated by Pakistani police under a section of the penal code that makes blasphemy against Muhammad punishable by death. of course fac... • Don’t Like an Israel Palestinian MK? Burn Him One of my Israeli readers brings word of a truly ghoulish Israeli right-wing Facebook group, I Too Want to Burn MK Talib A-Sana. It seems that A-Sana, the Israeli Palestinian elected representative o... • Success! Finding My Relatives with Skype, Google, Facebook and, of course, JewishGen About a year ago on this blog, I reported of my success using JewishGen to locate my TABAKIN family that was separated by the Holocaust. (You can read that article here). This encouraged me to continu... Original post source
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Ask AP: Turkey and Israel, Haiti’s slow progress by israel (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 3:11:00 AM
‘Kill a Jew day’ on Facebook by Carl in Jerusalem (Hija del Zion para Israel - Daughter of Zion for Israel) Submitted at 7/2/2010 1:13:00 AM
‘Kill a Jew day’ on Facebook July 9 – next Friday – has been declared ‘ Kill a Jew day’ on Facebook. This ‘event’ was set up by someone in Singapore – not an Arab, Muslim or even European country. Please report the event to Facebook in the hope that they will remove it. Anyone still think this is ‘just’ about Israel? posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:13 AM Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Israeli NGO’s may have to register
as foreign agents Israeli NGO's may have to register as foreign agents In the New York Times on Friday, Yossi Alpher raged against a bill pending in the Knesset th... • first night of Sukkot, main course… Il est très simple Image taken on 2007-09-26 06:22:03 by The Gifted Photographer.... • Paris: Pro-burqa supporters stop debate Paris: Pro-burqa supporters stop debateA debate organised by "Ni putes ni soumises", a French NGO, Tuesday night in Paris, on the question of the full Islamic veil ended in an exchange of insults and... Original post source
AP An enormous amount of money has been sent to Haiti to help the country recover from its devastating earthquake. So why has so little changed in Haiti – from … Hija del Zion para Israel Support Israel • Blogger Survey: The Media Battle Over Jerusalem, Part 3 Blogger Survey: The Media Battle Over Jerusalem, Part 3 I'm surveying bloggers on the question, "Is Israel winning the media battle over Jerusalem?" See parts one and two. And my take? The battle f... • Torah at Winter X, part 1 Follow Torah Bright’s mission for half pipe victory at the 2008 winter X-Games!
www.roxy.com... • TLC’s ‘Take Home Chef’, Curtis Stone, with Me and Zohar Image taken on 2007-01-02 01:31:26 by Monica D.... Original post source