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January 12, 2009
Gaza Flashback
Day 17 of The War.
Seraphic Secret will try and update regularly, so just keep scrolling down.
Before the State of Israel expelled 9,000 Jews from Gaza, creating yet another Judenrein Arab Muslim paradise—hey, twenty-two Judenrein Arab Muslim states are not enough!—the Israeli Knesset debated the expulsion and various politicians promised peace and security.
We, on the right, who opposed this infamous expulsion, were accused of being anti-peace, of not understanding geo-politics. We were told that expelling Jews from Gaza would improve Israel's security.
We insisted that the Palestinians would use Gaza as a forward base for terrorist operations. Further, we predicted that Iran would step into the vacuum and spread its hegemony.
I have yet to hear one pro-expulsion advocate admit that they were wrong, that their actions compromised Israel's security and set the stage for Israel's current strategic dilemma.
Worse, many of those who were dead wrong about Gaza are now agitating for a withdrawal from Judea and Samaria AKA The West Bank.
On can only conclude that wishful thinking too often masquerades as sophisticated political thought. H/T The Muqata.
Roll the videotape:
9:56 am PST Molotov cocktails burn French Synagogues. No doubt by, ahem, French Youths.
10:01 am PST Jack, the hard working Jack, presents Gaza War Update 14.5.
10:14 am PST Excellent sign from a pro-Israel rally in New York: H/T Weasel Zippers.
10:17 am PST Ralph Peters shreds Hamas and the leftists who enable them. Superb.
Israel hasn't killed a single civilian in the Gaza Strip. Over a hundred civilians have died, and Israeli bombs or shells may have ended their lives. But Israel didn't kill them.
Hamas did.
It's time to smash the lies. The lies of Hamas. The UN lies. And the save-the-terrorists lies of the global media.
To read the complete article, please click here.
10:47 am PST More Hamas war crimes. A booby-trapped school—and zoo. Somebody call PETA.
10: 51 am PST How many war crimes can Hamas commit? Lots and lots. The brave Hamas leadership is cowering in the basement of Shifa hospital, and that's where they are collecting their salaries. Hey, don't you think that these CEO's are kind of inept and should, y'know, get dead?
Asked why Israel was not acting against Shifa Hospital, Dichter answered that an attack on a hospital could not be carried out "for obvious reasons."
"Shifa is in the middle of a very crowded area in Gaza and you would have to get through half-a-million Gazans to get to the hospital and arrest Hamas people there. So that's not doable. Striking the hospital is out of the question for obvious reasons. So in this case we have to just bite our tongues," he said.
The former Shin Bet chief said that is was common knowledge in Gaza that Hamas holds meeting in the hospital. "Shifa Hospital, which is situated in the more wealthy western part of Gaza City, is a very big hospital, but you can hear from the Palestinians who visit there, it is somewhat of an open secret, that Hamas commanders walk around the hospital, in some instances wearing doctors' robes," he said. "In some cases, the Hamas commanders kick medical teams out of rooms so that they can hold meetings."
Full story, here.
11:31 AM PST Sounding the shofar to announce war.
The sun and the moon have blackened, and the stars have withdrawn their shine. And HaShem shall roar from Zion, and shall emit His voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall tremble, and HaShem shall be a shelter for His people and a fortification for the Children of Israel.
—Book of Joel
2:49 pm PST As always, the best way of keeping up with the information flow about the war is through live-bloggers The Muqata and Aussie Dave.
3:03 pm PST Israeli reservists have been called up and they are heading into Gaza to crush Hamas. H/T The Muqata.
Announce this among the nations; prepare for war; arouse the mighty; let all the men of war approach and ascend. Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears; the weak shall say, “I am strong.”
—Book of Joel
3:33 pm PST This is a great service—from Chabad—send a package, to an IDF soldier or to an Israeli family under missile attack. Do it and Seraphic Secret will be your bestest friend!
4:27 pm PST More war crimes from guess who?
Hamas are not content to just hide behind human shields, they are stealing humanitarian supplies and reselling them. We're waiting for the, ahem international community to object. I'll bet the good citizens of Gaza are just thrilled that they voted these barbarians into power.
Hamas on Monday raided some 100 aid trucks that Israel had allowed into Gaza, stole their contents and sold them to the highest bidders.
Full story, here.
5:24 pm PST Shameless plug:
Silent star Madge Bellamy.
A few years ago, I was up in Toronto, on location for Within These Walls, a film the Academy Award winning actress Ellen Burstyn, acting as producer and star, asked me to write. Ellen, one of the great Hollywood actresses—past and present—discovered the true story and immediately realized its potential as a powerful and entertaining film. The challenge of playing a hardened murderess—redeemed by training dogs for the disabled—greatly appealed to Ms. Burstyn.
Click on over to Big Hollywood and read my full article: The Madge Bellamy Acting Workshop.
Posted by Robert J. Avrech at January 12, 2009 08:37 AM
Comments
Seraphic Secret is private property, that's right, it's an extension of our home, and as such, Karen and I have instituted two Seraphic Rules and we ask commentors to act respectfully.
1. No profanity.2. No Israel bashing. We debate, we discuss, we are respectful. You know what Israel bashing is. The world is full of it. Seraphic Secret is one of the few places in the world that will not tolerate this form of anti-Semitism. That's it. Break either of these rules and you will be banned.
It was all so obvious.
It makes me mad, like in nuts, to see how we've been treated like the only sane ones in the insane asylum.
Posted by: Batya at January 12, 2009 10:24 AM
That poster referencing 9/11 should be mass produced and brought to all pro-Israel rallies.
here's the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrM0dAFsZ8k
Posted by: YU91 at January 12, 2009 12:31 PM
I love the picture of the long shofar!
Thanks for posting it...Regards from the back of the war front.
--Jameel & Crew.
Posted by: Jameel @ The Muqata at January 12, 2009 01:41 PM
Don't you know your Marxism? Only the more powerful side can commit war crimes.
Posted by: ralphie at January 12, 2009 02:06 PM
Ralphie's right. I learned this past semester (in the specific context of the Bush v. Shoes incident) that Violence is always okay, as long as you call it "civil disobedience."
(Of course, my professor may have developed a different perspective if I had thrown my shoes at him, as I was sorely tempted.)
Posted by: Michal at January 12, 2009 03:39 PM
I am so thrilled that there is finally a crack in the wall that holds the truth back. God has a plan and it is a perfect plan but it is not clear how that plan will play out. Whatever way it plays I am so glad that the Israelis are pulling together and staying the course. I pray for victory and I pray without ceasing.
Posted by: gemma at January 12, 2009 06:11 PM
Bibi and the Likud voted for the disengagement plan--but they were duped.
Initially the plan was to implemented in stages over a 3 year period. After each stage the disengagemant was to be reevaluated based on assorted security arrangements. If the security was not up to speed then the disengagement would not continue. Bibi and the Likud voted for this plan.
So what happened to the 3 year plan and why did Bibi and the Likud leave the govt.?
Well, Sharon pulled a leagle maneuver with the help of Livni(Justice Minister at the time).
They claimed that they had the right to change the provisions of the disengagement plan and through a loophole they called for the immediate one stage disengagement of Gaza.
Upon this development Bibi/Likud left the govt.
Posted by: Gregg at January 13, 2009 05:23 AM
The occupation status quo is not only instable and violence-producing, but it makes it impossible for Israel to gain legitimacy approval for aggressive actions among anyone other than its patrons and underlings in Washington—and no amount of yammering about Arabs having full legal rights in Israel and the like is going to change this.
If Israel wants to rid itself of the colonial stigma, as well as guarantee its national security and preserve its identity as a Jewish state, then its options are fairly clear. Assuming a multicultural “one-state solution” (in which Jews would be demographically overwhelmed rather quickly) won’t be countenanced, Israel could choose to follow the advice of men like Martin van Creveld and draw a line in the sand—withdrawing completely from the territories, allowing the creation of an independent Palestine, and building a buffer zone between itself and the new state. The other option would be to pursue the grand, genocidal dreams of the Israeli far Right (and at one point, Ariel Sharon) and pursue “Greater Israel”—driving out all Arabs from the land bequeathed to the Jews in the Bible. (As option two is repulsive and unfeasible, I’d recommend option one. But who I am to tell Israel what to do?)
Posted by: Richard at January 13, 2009 06:07 AM
withdrawing completely from the territories, allowing the creation of an independent Palestine, and building a buffer zone between itself and the new state.
Richard, what a good idea! Have you noticed that this has been tried in Gaza? Have the results registered? Tell me, what good is a buffer zone against people who lob rockets over it?
Posted by: kishke at January 13, 2009 07:14 AM
Richard:
The Arab Israeli conflict has nothing to do with land, national boundaries, or so-called occupation. As far back as 1929 Arabs were slaughtering Jews in Israel. As in Hebron http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1929_Hebron_massacre because the presence of Jews is intolerable to Muslims. That's why the 22 Arab Muslim countries are Judenrein. Anti-Zionism is a fig-leaf for Jew hatred.
In 1948 the UN declared a partition plan which set up a Jewish State and a Palestinian state. The Palestinians rejected this compromise and five Arab armies immediately attacked Israel with the goal of "driving the Jews into the sea."
Thus the current "occupation" cannot be the cause of this Jew-hatred and rejectionism.
The covenant of Hamas and Fatah both call for the complete destruction of the state of Israel to be replaced by a Muslim state. Hamas favor an Islamic Republic ruled by Sharia. Fatah favor a Socialist/Marxist fusion of an Islamic State. But both groups agree that Jews have no place in this Muslim paradise and Israel must cease to exist. When both groups speak of occupation they are talking about the "entire" state of Israel. Abu Mazzan has a map of Israel over his desk that is labeled Palestine. There is no mention of Israel, no Jewish cities, no Jews. In his mind, Israel will not exist in the near future.
Fatah and Hamas agree on long range goals, they only disagree over tactics.
Further, the war against Israel and the Jewish people is part of the transnational Jihad against western civilization. Israel is the tip of the spear.
As for genocide, the Hamas covenant is frankly and proudly genocidal calling for the death of Jews everywhere. So when you speak of Israeli dreams of genocide—which do not exist in any political or religious party—you are spreading a blood libel, foisting the eliminationist plans of one people on their victims.
Posted by: Robert J. Avrech ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.seraphicpress.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at January 13, 2009 09:07 AM
Michal: Man I wish you had thrown your shoes.
Richard: Let me guess - the Gaza withdrawal was not a full/legitimate withdrawal.
Posted by: ralphie at January 13, 2009 01:22 PM