Kayla Mueller, an American woman who was allegedly killed last week in a coalition bombing of an Islamic State encampment, had a Syrian boyfriend who is a prominent member of the Syrian revolutionary groups. But the boyfriend, Omar al-Khani, has a story that doesn't quite add up.
Something also doesn’t ring true about his account of how he met
Mueller. He claims she answered an ad for a roommate in Cairo, where
he’d moved after spending several years in Sudan working as “events
marketing” executive, and where she’d traveled on a short vacation. (Who
knew there was a market for event planning in Sudan?) The Sudan
connection jumps out, because at home in Arizona Mueller had been
actively engaged in Darfur-related protests. Maybe the story in the Mail
is accurate, but it is also plausible that they had been in contact
online regarding Sudan before, and that’s why she went to visit him in
Cairo.
Al Khani was in Cairo when the Arab Spring broke out. Soon the
ferment spread to Syria, and he went back there to participate in the
anti-Assad movement. He
soon became a “coordinator” of a “Facebook battalion of
revolutionaries” that facilitated communications among anti-Assad forces.
He claims the title of “Secretary General of the Syrian Revolution
Coordinators.” Before long, he was a go-to guy for western media, being
quoted about Syrian events in the Telegraph, Financial Times, Die Welt, Public Radio International,
and other publications. He also worked as a photographer for Reuters,
and his photos were run by Vanity Fair, AFP, and other media. He was
regularly traveling to rebel-held areas of Syria as a photographer.
In other words, al Khani was pretty much a celebrity in Syrian
revolutionary circles, with considerable familiarity with ISIS. It is
almost inconceivable that ISIS did not know who he was. But in the Daily Mail
interview he presents himself as just some Syrian guy, and plays down
his activism: indeed, that isn’t mentioned at all. Why so shy all of a
sudden about describing his work? He was General Secretary, after all,
and had been quite assiduous in promoting his role as an activist in
print and film. Now all of a sudden he hides his light under a bushel
basket.
And of course Syrian revolutionary circles are rife with Islamists of
all stripes, from the Muslim Brotherhood to numerous varieties of
Salafists. Al Khani navigated in those circles for years. He did not
mention much about religion from what I’ve seen, though an
acknowledgement of receiving funds from Muslim Brotherhood members
and an expression of gratitude to people in Turkey for help are
tantalizing clues.
That all raises questions about his relationship with ISIS, and their
treatment of him. He obviously had deep connections in the Syrian
opposition. That had to have mattered.
Again, his word is the sole basis for reports that ISIS held him
captive and tortured him, and then freed him. Twice. Maybe it happened,
but maybe it didn’t.
The story of the reason for his fateful trip with Mueller in August,
2013 also strains credulity. He supposedly made the trip to one of the
most dangerous cities on earth to fix the wifi at the Medicins Sans Frontiers office
in Aleppo. Events marketing executive, photographer, activist,
filmmaker, and . . . wifi repairman? Quite the Renaissance Man.
The Daily Mail story also suggests that Mueller insisted
that al Khani take her to Syria with him on this trip, and insinuates
she hadn’t been there before. But she posted pictures from “Souria” (a
tell that she had been radicalized) she had taken earlier, so why the
suggestion that she had to pester al Khani to take her along?
Finally, I don’t find the story of Mueller ruining her chance at
freedom by refusing to acknowledge that she was his wife to be credible.
Stockholm Syndrome? Maybe. But it sounds like a convenient tale to
explain why he could not bring her out. Again, we have only his word
that he tried.
Abdullah Abu Rahma, coordinator of the popular committee in the village
of Bil’in where Kayla joined the protests, told ISM: “Kayla came to
Palestine to stand in solidarity with us. She marched with us and faced
the military that occupies our land side by side with us. For this,
Kayla will always live in our hearts. We send all our support to her
family and will continue, like Kayla, to work against injustice wherever
it is.”
...
With the ISM, Kayla worked with Palestinians nonviolently resisting the
confiscation and demolitions of their homes and lands. In the Sheikh
Jarrah neighborhood of Occupied East Jerusalem, she stayed with the Al
Kurd family to try and prevent the takeover of their home by Israeli
settlers.
Kayla accompanied Palestinian children to school in the neighborhood of
Tel Ruimeda in Al-Khalil (Hebron) where the children face frequent
attacks by the Israeli settlers and military. She stayed with villagers
in Izbat Al Tabib in a protest tent to try to prevent the demolition of
homes in the village. She joined weekly Friday protests in Palestinian
villages against the confiscation of their lands due to Israel’s illegal
annexation wall and settlements.
Guy Bechor explains who Kayla Mueller was (original in Hebrew - I improved on the Bing translation).
"For the wise person,
a hint is sufficient enough, and but a fool needs a stick on the head:" A young American girl, Kayla
Mueller (Jewish?), taken by ISIS, was killed this week in a Jordanian air force bombing. She was a familiar figure in our area. She was hostile to Israel and supported the 'Palestinians,' demonstrating against us in Bil'in, Sheikh Jarrah, and at checkpoints. She slandered Israel worldwide, and was a member of anti-Israel organizations like the International Solidarity Movement. She was like many other fools who collect illusions and didn't
understand how much she was being used. Incidentally, before she was killed, she was not kept
as a hostage, but was given as booty to an ISIS commander to be his private maidservant.
Please share this. The mainstream media will not publish the truth.
Indeed. I heard that the White House already has 'noted' Mueller's 'work in Israel and the Palestinian territories.'
IDF realizes it made a mistake with Lt. Col. Shalom Eisner
I'm sure many of you recall Shalom Eisner, the IDF Lieutenant Colonel who was caught on camera slamming his rifle butt into the face of a Danish 'peace activist'member of the terror-supporting International Solidarity Movement who was part of an illegal 'bike ride' in the Jordan Valley. Eisner has been sued in a civil action by one of the terror supporters who was hurt in the incident. And the State of Israel is taking the unusual step of defending him.
A military court in December convicted Lt. Col. Shalom Eisner, in a
plea bargain, of beating five Palestinians and foreign activists with
both his rifle and fists during a demonstration in April 2012. Some of
the demonstrators, including Naim Shakir, 36, of Al-Sawiya, needed
medical treatment. Al-Shakir filed a suit in June seeking 16,000 shekels
($4,620) in medical costs, plus 60,000 shekels ($17,320) to cover his
lost earnings.
Eisner – then a deputy brigade commander – hit
Shakir in the back with the butt of his rifle, according to the military
court verdict, during a confrontation between demonstrators protesting
Israel's presence in the West Bank and soldiers. As a result, Shakir
said in his suit, he needed physiotherapy. He also still suffers pain
that affects his functioning and has impaired his ability to work in
construction.
At his sentencing hearing last December, Eisner
acknowledged he had “made mistakes” during the confrontation, but noted
that the demonstrators had injured him as well: He suffered a broken
hand.
The state denies Shakir's right to compensation. "The
claimant's injuries, if they occurred at all, are exaggerated and not
related at all to the actions of the defendant," the state asserts. If
the plaintiff receives any financial compensation, the defense statement
reads, "The defendants have the right to deduct for damages caused to
them, including damages to Defendant 1 (Eisner) … including pain,
suffering and emotional distress."
The state asserts that Shakir
was an integral part of the rioters, "who violated law and order
maliciously and intentionally in a violent way." The defense counter
concludes that therefore Shakir should not only be held accountable for
his own injuries but also for "much greater bodily damage" caused to Lt.
Col. Eisner.
...
The state took an unusual step in defending an officer convicted of
beating demonstrators in a civil suit. When policeman Salman Abu Asla
was convicted of beating two demonstrators at an illegal settlement
outpost in 2007, the state refused to represent him in a damages suit
filed over the same incident. Similarly, it refused to defend a border
policeman convicted of beating an ultra-Orthodox demonstrator in Beit
Shemesh in another civil suit.
Maybe because the State finally recognizes that it made a mistake in dismissing, and in not defending Lieutenant Colonel Eisner. Most Israelis believe it was wrong to dismiss him. Much more on Eisner here.
On Thursday, Eisner was sentenced to two months of community service, after which he will be discharged from the army. This is called a 'plea bargain.'
The sentence came as part of a plea deal that Eisner struck with the Military Advocate General in September.
According to the indictment filed against him, Eisner attacked five
foreign and Palestinian activists with his weapon and his hands who
were taking part in an unauthorized protest bicycle ride in the Jordan
Valley in April 2012.
Eisner maintained that his actions against the protesters were
warranted but that he chose to "swallow" the plea bargain despite the
fact that he would "pay a public price for it," Channel 2 reported.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres condemned his actions at the time of the incident.
And here's what the media would like you to forget about this incident from 20 months ago.
1. Eisner was attacked before the incident (and broke his hand), but that's not recorded because the IDF's camera battery ran out.
2. A longer video of the incident - not what was shown on television - shows that the protesters were far from peaceful.
4. The way Eisner was treated - he was immediately suspended and his promotion was barred for two years - caused prominent columnist Ben Dror Yemini to ask whether we have gone mad.
5. Most Israelis were at least sympathetic toward Eisner, saying that he should not have been suspended, that the harsh reaction against him was caused by the media, and that they identified with him.
Former IDF Chief Rabbi Avichai Ronski strongly criticized the sentencing, telling Arutz Sheva "it's
a disgrace for a colonel to do community service." He added that the
incident should be learned from, so that "a situation in which a
commander is held on trial for professional mistakes won't happen
again."
You might recall that Ronski himself left the army after Leftist politicians objected to him handing out the Jewish laws of war to IDF troops entering Gaza.
Eisner was a hero of the Second Lebanon War. In this country, war heroes go to business or to politics. Which political party will take Eisner in? It's a shame that Moshe Feiglin isn't the chairman of the Likud, because he is probably the only Knesset member in the current Knesset who would have the guts to take Eisner into his party.
This was sent to me by email as a press release. It's not clear to me who put it out. From the picture of ISM members above, which is several years old, it should be clear that this is not the first time the ISM has supported violence.
International Solidarity Movement activists in Hebron on Monday caught deliberately distorting and hiding facts and openly supporting violence
On September 24, 2013, a day after an Israeli soldier was killed in Hebron ISM activists were caught staging a Palestinian boy's injury in Hebron.
ISM activists posted a story online http://palsolidarity.org/2013/09/vicious-settler-attack-leaves-15-year-old-in-need-of-hospitalisation/ about a vicious settler assault on a Palestinian boy that left him unconscious and provided an edited video to support the story. Unfortunately for them, some Jewish tourists that were in Hebron for the holiday of Sukkot were also filming and uploaded a video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0q5udL8XoO4 that exposed the ISM and the Palestinians staging the boys injuries and unconsciousness.
In the video, the boy is seen trying to get up and is repeatedly pushed down by the Palestinians around him, afterwards, he appears lying lifeless on a different pavement. Furthermore that same boy is seen earlier lying to the Tourists' camera repeatedly (obviously) pretending that he does not know what Hamas is.
When some pointed to the Tourists' video in the comments on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXi3Z3Szn5I, ISM responded by disabling comments for that video.
Another video taken by the Tourists show one of the activists, responding to a question if she supports "Arabs killing Jews", saying that she supports their right to "violently resist". This is despite the ISM purportedly being against violence . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4qhBzZcuwU&src_vid=0q5udL8XoO4&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_2469772933
In Berkeley (where else?), they held Helen Thomas Day on Sunday.
And some unconfirmed facts about the sponsor, the 'Middle East Children's Alliance' (from a friend in the area):
While
Middle East Children’s Alliance is marginal, it is Jewish led (of
course!) by one Barbara Lubin. It raises some $4 million per year to
disburse to “children’s charities” in the Middle East, meaning mostly
Gaza. None of the money goes to Middle Eastern children who happen to
be Jewish and live in the Jewish state. MECA (an apt acronym) is one of
the Bay Area’s most active anti-Israel NGOs, having served as the
fiscal sponsor for the ISM, and I believe also the JVP.
I'd like to introduce you to Anna Baltzer, who heads an organization called US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation (USCEIO) in Washington, DC. According to Lee Kaplan, Baltzer, who is participating in a debate at Oxford on Thursday night, is a fraud, and her organization is nothing more than Huweida Araf's International Solidarity Movement renamed to make it more palatable for Jews to hate Israel.
Placing Anna Baltzer as the titular head of the Campaign was intended
to convince both Jews and non-Jews that opposition to Israel’s
existence is fine because even Jews such as her believe in the necessity
of destroying the Jewish state, especially through boycotts and
divestment. Anna Baltzer is a modern day Tokyo Rose for
the ISM against Israel: she speaks at anti-Israel events and promotes
boycott and divestment campaigns against Israel, in support of terrorist
groups such as Hamas in its plans to destroy Israel any way it can. She
has participated or helped at demonstations staged by Code Pink, Global
Exchange, the Gaza Flotilla, Viva Palestina and other anti-Israel
groups that make up the ISM.
USCEIO has been frantically sending out fundraising email blasts and announcing on its website that
Ms. Baltzer will appear in a debate about the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict to be presented by the distinguished Oxford Union in England on
January 31st. According to the Oxford Union’s website,
“The Union is the world’s most prestigious debating society, with an
unparalleled reputation for bringing international guests and speakers
to Oxford. It has been established for 189 years, aiming to promote
debate and discussion not just in Oxford University, but across the
globe.”
The Oxford Union has delivered these debates
by distinguished academic, religious and national leaders from
ex-President Ronald Reagan to the Dali Lama. The purpose of the debates
is the furtherance of education and knowledge. The subject of this debate will be: “This House Believes That Israel is a Force for Good in the Middle East.”
The announcement of the three debaters for the anti-Israel point of
view, however, disturbingly advertises propagandists and fabulists such
as Ilan Pappe, Ghada Karmi and most importantly, Anna Baltzer, who is
billed on the Oxford Union’s website as head of the USCEIO and who will
apparently speak in opposition to Israel’s right to exist.
Woman sues ISM'er before Judge Judy after being denied entry to Israel
This is rich.
A woman sued a former friend before television's Judge Judy (Sheindlin). The friend refused to pay the $900 cost of his ticket to Israel because the pair were denied entry into the country. They were denied entry because - you guessed it - they are pro-'Palestinian' 'activists.'
Invoking an exception for combatants, a court in Haifa found on Tuesday found that the State of Israel was not responsible for the death of ISM terrorist Rachel Corrie (and yes, that first sentence and the title of this post were quite blunt and inflammatory, and deservedly so). Corrie turned herself into a combatant.
In the verdict, Judge Oded Gershon invoked the principle of the combatant activities exception, noting that IDF forces had been attacked in the same area Corrie was killed just hours earlier.
Corrie, 23, from Olympia, Washington, died in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on March 16, 2003, when an IDF bulldozer struck her during a protest by pro-Palestinian group the International Solidarity Movement.
Reading a summary of his 62-page decision, the judge described Israel's investigation into the incident as appropriate and said it had no mistakes.
Asserting that Corrie could have avoided danger, he dismissed claims that the IDF was negligent in the incident and denied the family's suit for symbolic damages. The IDF did not violate Corrie's right to life, he continued, asserting that she inserted herself into a dangerous situation.
The state, he continued, was not responsible for any "damages caused" due to the combat situation but nonetheless called Corrie's death a "regrettable accident."
...
Rachel's mother Cindy said she was deeply saddened by the verdict.
"From the beginning it was clear that there is a system to protect soldiers and provide them with impunity at the cost of civilians," she told reporters outside the court. "Now we now that the protection for soldiers extends to the court."
No, Mrs. Corrie. We have a real court system in Israel, just like the United States. When our soldiers commit war crimes (which is rare) they pay a price. There was no war crime this time.
Saying that US diplomacy and the Israeli court system failed her family, Cindy Corrie added that there was never a credible investigation into her daughter's death.
However, she continued, "At least we have had access to a court system, which most Palestinians are denied."
'Palestinians' have access to a court system in Israel. They don't have access to one worth its name in the 'Palestinian Authority' or in Hamastan.
Is there a pancake party set for Tuesday? On Tuesday, the Haifa district court will render its decision in the case of Rachel Corrie, who threw herself under an IDF bulldozer in Rafah ten years ago. The case will attempt to determine whether the IDF was responsible for Corrie's death.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Jerusalem Post, [Rachel's mother] Cindy described herself as “naive” when the trial started two years ago about what it would look like and its ability to reveal more about what led to her daughter’s death and how the investigation was conducted.
The Corries said that while they remained “optimistic” about the result, they also knew from the start that suing the Defense Ministry would be an “uphill battle.”
While they did not want to prejudge the outcome of the case, Craig appeared to make it clear that they were ready to go to the Supreme Court if the Defense Ministry was not found liable.
Cindy said that while she found various decisions the judge made about the admissibility of evidence troubling, she also felt that she had “bonded” on some level with the judge.
“We sat in court with him for two-and-a-half years,” she said, and he tried to convey messages to them turning in their direction and speaking to them through their lawyer (the Corries do not speak Hebrew). The family highlighted several of the points that have emerged in dispute over the course of the trial.
Sarah, Rachel’s sister, said that bilingual observers who attended the hearings disputed the translations made by the court translator relating to the testimony of some of the key eye witnesses’ who testified in English.
Bottom line: Trials like this one impede the IDF's fight against terrorism by making matters depend upon how a court may view them in the future. No other army in the world operates with this type of impediment.
The agent, suspecting Tamari was involved in pro-Palestinian activism, wanted to inspect her private email account for incriminating evidence. The 42-year-old American of Palestinian descent refused and was swiftly expelled from the country.
Tamari's experience is not unique. In a cyber-age twist on Israel's vaunted history of airport security, the country has begun to force incoming travelers deemed suspicious to open personal email accounts for inspection, visitors say.
Targeting mainly Muslims or Arabs, the practice appears to be aimed at rooting out visitors who have histories of pro-Palestinian activism, and in recent weeks, has led to the expulsion of at least three American women.
It remains unclear how widespread the practice is.
However, asked about Tamari's claims, the Shin Bet security agency confirmed she had been interrogated and said its agents acted in accordance with the law.
...
The security procedures appear to be getting stricter: Recent searches of journalists at official events have been invasive enough to create a series of mini-uproars and walkouts — a situation that has dovetailed with increasing concerns that the government is trying to stifle dissent.
It's got nothing to do with stifling dissent and everything to do with the country's security. How many other countries in the world need to be seriously concerned that people are arriving from abroad to attempt to undermine the country's existence?
Butto said she has led three tour groups to the region over the past year, and in each case, at least one member of the group was asked to open their email. She said Muslims, Arabs, and Indians were typically targeted, and in most cases, were denied entry.
Butto said agents typically want to see people's itineraries, articles they have written or Facebook status updates.
Indians? There's a non-Jewish Indian (from India - now lives in Europe) who reads this blog, and with whom I met while he was here, and he didn't say anything like this.
But in any event, when you travel to the US, they want all your details before you ever get on the plane, and I am sure that if they had serious concerns about someone that could be resolved by checking their Facebook status, they do it while you're flying across the Atlantic. Israel doesn't have the power to obtain information in advance about people arriving here like the US does, and yet our concerns about terrorism are at least as serious.
The article goes on to mention the story that appeared on Mondoweiss earlier this week, which I blogged here. But it innocuously refers to the organizations with which the women are involved as 'Palestinian activist groups' and makes it sound like their involvement was limited to when they were in college. If you read my post (linked in this paragraph), you will get a more complete picture.
Please note the following:
American Embassy spokesman Kurt Hoyer said the embassy does not comment on specific cases. But he said the embassy is "usually" contacted whenever an American citizen is not allowed to enter Israel, or any other country.
The embassy typically remains in contact with local authorities throughout the process until a decision on entry is made.
He said the U.S. stresses to all governments "to treat American passport holders as Americans, regardless of their ethnic origin ... At the same time, any sovereign nation has the right to decide who to let in, and not to let in."
...
Emanuel Gross, a law professor at Haifa University, said such a practice would seem to be illegal in Israel.
"In Israel, you need a search warrant to go into somebody's computer," he said. "I'm skeptical that the security guards asked a judge first for a warrant and I'm skeptical that a judge would give it."
Hoyer has it right. As to Gross' comments, I'm not sure how someone who is not a citizen of a country would get the rights of a citizen - at least unless and until they are allowed into the country. The US, for example, doesn't exactly give civil rights to the people who are imprisoned at Guantanamo (which is physically in Cuba, but which is US sovereign territory).
Why might Israel deport two young American women who landed at Ben Gurion Airport? (UPDATED with screen shot of Linked-In page)
The virulently anti-Israel Mondoweiss blog publishes an account from two young Arab women who were denied entry into Israel. There's a lot missing.
The account was written by Najwa Doughman and Sasha Al-Sarabi, two University of Virginia graduates from the New York City area, who are American citizens of Arab (I assume 'Palestinian,' although they don't say that) extraction. The account is about as unbiased as they get.
“Do you feel more Arab or more American?” she asked. I had answered the ten previous questions very calmly, but with this question I looked back at the security official confused and irritated. She couldn’t have been much older than me—her business attire and stern facial expressions did not mask her youth.
“I don’t know, I feel both. Why? Does this affect my ability to get in?”
She ignored my question. “Surely you must feel a little more Arab, you’ve lived in many Middle Eastern countries.”
I did not see the correlation. I have never felt the need to choose. “Yes I have but I also lived in the US for the past seven years, and was born there, so I feel both.” My response did nothing to convince her.
“Hm. Will you go to Al-Aqsa?”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“Will you go to Jewish sites as well?”
“Yes, why not? We want to see everything.”
“But you have been here two times already. Why are you coming now for the third time? You can go to Venezuela, to Mexico, to Canada. It is much closer to New York, and much less expensive!”
I realized the conversation was going nowhere. “Right, but I wanted to come back here again. Don’t you have tourists who come back more than once?”
“I’m asking the questions here,” she replied disgruntled.
“Okay, we are going to do something very interesting now!” Her face transformed from a harsh stare to a slight smirk. She proceeded to type “www.gmail.com” on her computer and then turned the keyboard toward me. “Log in,” she demanded.
“What? Really?” I was shocked.
“Log in.”
I typed in my username and password in complete disbelief. She began her invasive search: “Israel,” “Palestine,” “West Bank,” “International Solidarity Movement.”
...
She sifted through my inbox, reading every single email with those keywords. She read sentences out loud to her colleague, sarcastically reenacting and mocking old Google Chat conversations between Sasha and me about our future trip to Jerusalem. I squirmed in my seat.
The Israeli authorities have a notorious reputation for denying entry to Palestinians of all citizenships, and I had received all sorts of advice, solicited and unsolicited, on how to cope with the problem. The security officer opened an email from a friend living in Jerusalem who had advised me to remove myself from internet searches. “They are heavy on googling names at the airport recently,” he had written. “See if you can remove yourselves, not crucial but helpful.”
The security guard found this especially hilarious. With a laugh, she called her blonde colleague over and reread the sentence mockingly. “You can tell your friend, not only do we google you, we read your emails, too!”
Read the whole thing. Read the comments too - they're downright hostile to Israel. Look at the pictures of Najwa and Sasha. They look like they'd be stoned in Tehran or Gaza City. Perhaps they could take some fashion lessons from Catherine Ashton.
So why did Israel deny these two young New York professionals entry into the country? Here's what they're not telling you:
First, they don't discuss what those gmail searches produced but I'd bet there were a whole bunch of hits from the "International Solidarity Movement" search. I don't have to tell you all who the ISM is.
Second, a look at Najwa and Sasha's linked-in pages produces some interesting information (Thanks to Stephen L for the inspiration). Najwa worked for UNRWA in Tripoli, Lebanon [corrected, CiJ] from January 2010 through January 2011. I assume that was with a different passport than the one used in her two previous trips to Israel. You can't enter Lebanon with an Israeli stamp in your passport. At the University of Virginia, Najwa was also the President of 'Students for Peace and Justice in Palestine' (sometimes known as 'Students for Justice in Palestine').
The SJP fomented new radicalism about the Palestinian-Israel conflict and gave a new energy and visibility to Palestinian propaganda. Even the progressive Forward quoted activists who claimed that the SJP moved “far beyond legitimate criticism of the Israeli government and its policies into complete delegitimization of the Jewish state.”[3]
The SJP equates Israel’s treatment of Palestinians with apartheid South Africa and calls for divestment from Israel and an end to the ‘occupation.’ It organizes demonstrations and political theater to dramatize the plight of the Palestinians whom it sees only as innocent victims. SJP chapters have set up mock checkpoints, mock “concentration camps” with barbed wire to demonstrate how Palestinians suffer, mock “apartheid walls” and even fake re-enactments of IDF soldiers beating up pregnant Palestinian women.[4] Some chapters even organize Deir Yassin remembrance day to mark what Palestinians have claimed was a massacre of Palestinians in 1948. In 2002, the Berkeley SJP staged this event on Holocaust Remembrance Day and directly competed with the commemoration Jewish students had organized.[5]
SJP also agitates to prevent pro-Israel speakers from visiting their campuses. The De Paul University SJP captured media attention in April 2005 because it protested against a pro-Israel professor who had argued with SJP members at their campus table. The University deferred to SJP and fired the professor, Thomas Klocek. He has brought a legal suit against the school.[6]
SJP chapters are only loosely affiliated with one another, and some are more radical than others, but as a whole, the group will not even condemn terrorism.
Obviously, there's enough there to make Najwa an undesirable from Israel's perspective.
There's not quite as much out there on Sasha, but she does list 'Students for Peace and Justice in Palestine' among her UVa activities, and the fact that she was traveling with Najwa undoubtedly opened some eyes.
I want to go back to the very biased account for a minute. Here's how they describe their call from the American embassy.
At 6:15, a guard came and told us that the US embassy was phoning for us. My parents had called them from Virginia after our two-minute conversation to inform them of what was happening. Sasha answered the phone. “Oh, thank God, we’ve been trying to get in touch with you! This is Sasha. We’ve been through a lot the past few hours.”
“As I told your friend’s parents yesterday, there is really nothing we can do. I’m just glad that you’re going to be able to get on the next flight.” the woman said dispassionately.
“This is ridiculous. They went through my friend’s email. Is that legal?”
“Well, they can do whatever they want. There is nothing we can do. They are their own country, and they make their own rules.”
“If only you could see the conditions we are in. I just wish you could come and smell the room.”
“Oh, I’m really sorry, but at least you’ll be getting on the next flight,” her voice was annoyingly monotonous.
That's the bottom line. Every country - including Israel - has the right to control who enters. If you want to come here, you have to play by our rules. And if the authorities suspect you're here to help a radical terror group, you won't be allowed in. Just like the US has its 'no fly' lists and insists on having name, rank and serial number on every arrival in advance, Israel will bar anyone it believes is affiliated or assisting a 'Palestinian' or Islamist terror group. And Lebanon, Syria and a whole bunch of other Arab countries will bar anyone with an Israeli stamp on their passport. Deal with it and stop whining.
You can find the Google cache version here (and yes, Najwa, there's a screen cap of it available if you'd like me to post it). Thanks to David Appletree via Twitter.
UPDATE TUESDAY 10:35 AM
I understand that the Google cache version of Najwa Doughman's Linked-In profile has been removed. I am posting the screen cap as a ScribD embed below (Hat Tip: David A).
For those who missed this on Wednesday night, it was part of the LATMA update, but it bears posting again.
Here is a heartfelt apology to Andreas Ias, the Danish International Solidarity Movement activist who was assaulted by Lieutenant Colonel Shalom Eisner.
LATMA's tribal update featuring the Egyptian Minister of Conspiracy Theories celebrating Israel with felafel and the police's new crime
Here's this week's tribal update from LATMA (a day early due to Independence Day), featuring the Egyptian Minister of Conspiracy Theories celebrating Israel with felafel and the police's new crime.
I've been meaning to post this piece by Lee Kaplan about how the ISM works since Eli Tabori tweeted it to me last week.
I’ve spent the last eight years of my life as a journalist under cover and reporting on the inner workings of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), in the United States and abroad. I’ve been through their training orientations and I have their training manuals. I operate a website where it lists the history, tactics, and media manipulations of the ISM and their leadership. I’ve also been responsible for the deportation of over 200 ISM activists from Israel, including some of their North American leadership.
At their orientation sessions in the US and UK in which I posed as an ISM volunteer, we were instructed that our purpose was to harass the IDF in any way possible in order to frustrate their anti-terror operations. We were informed that the ISM coordinates with Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the PFLP, which were constantly apprised of our locations in the villages. If we encountered armed terrorists while in the West Bank or Gaza, we were told, simply say hello to them and move on, as they were keenly aware that we were there to assist them.
In a recorded interview at the Ohio State national conference, Adam Shapiro, a co-founder of the ISM, personally told me there are plain-clothed Palestinian handlers at every ISM demonstration that direct the activities. I was also told about how ISM activists serve to draw sniper fire down on IDF soldiers when desired. Lisa Nessan, one of those ISM trainers, told me at an ISM Georgetown conference that standing as a human shield in front of an armed terrorist as he threw rocks or shot at an Israeli soldier was indeed considered “nonviolent.” Joseph Carr, a.k.a. Joseph Smith, another ISM trainer, told me in a recorded phone interview how he and Rachel Corrie retrieved the dead body of a Hamas terrorist in Gazafrom a combat zone only weeks before she was killed by an IDF bulldozer. When asked whether he feared arrest by the IDF back then he blithely replied ‘no’ because he knew that Arab snipers would be there to fire at them. Rachel Corrie, who was trained by the ISM and had read their manual, also knew that Arab snipers would shoot at the IDF soldiers driving that bulldozer had they exited it to remove her.
On Tuesday, I published the photo below and asked whether anyone thought that the International Solidarity Movement terror supporter in the picture was carrying a knife. Lee Kaplan has blown up the photo, and it's fairly obvious that is a knife in the guy's hand. There's much more about that video that you couldn't see in the edited version you were shown. Read all about it here.
Knesset member Danny Danon (Likud) has it right. Now, if only he could convince the Prime Minister.
Attempts to explain the rationality behind the Zionist dream of building a state in our historic homeland will simply not work with those who are attempting infiltrate Israel’s borders only to attack us from within.
It is time that we recognize the reality we are faced with. The State of Israel is at war. This war is being fought on a completely different battlefield than in the past, one in which the word de-legitimization has replaced bullets and provocative actions such as the flotilla have replaced tanks and fighter planes.
Nevertheless, we must not be confused by this new type of warfare. Just as we did not hesitate to confront to violent acts perpetuated by our enemies in the past, we cannot waver in our resolve against this new threat.
Would we allow a suicide bomber into our country so that we could attempt a “dialogue” with him? Of course not.
Here, too, we must not be naïve and bury our heads in the sand. While the “delegitimization battle” may be sometimes confusing and seem less dangerous then actual acts of war, the implications of capitulation will be just as dire for Israel’s future as a military loss would be.
TO COMBAT this new form of warfare we must be just as creative now as we have been in the past on the traditional battlefield.
We must immediately implement a three-pronged approach to keeping these terrorists out of Israel: prevent, arrest and deport.
...
The militant activist from Denmark who attacked the IDF officer should have never been in a position to do so. He never should have been allowed entry into Israel. Once he was allowed in, he should have been arrested and tried at the first sign of illegal activity. Even now, it is unacceptable that he is walking free in our country after violently attacking an officer. He must be arrested and deported immediately.
An interesting - if not surprising to those of us who understand how far Israel's media is to the left of its population - poll this morning regarding the handling of Lieutenant Colonel Shalom Eisner. Eisner, as you may recall, was caught on camera slugging a terror-supporting Swedish thug from the International Solidarity Movement with his rifle last Saturday. A Maagar Mochot poll indicates that a majority of Israelis both support Eisner and believe that he was railroaded by the media.
Telephone poll of a representative sample of 606 adult Israelis (including Israeli Arabs) carried out by Maagar Mohot Survey Institute (headed by Professor Yitzchak Katz) the week of 20 April 2012 for Makor Rishon and published on 20 April 2012.
Poll question relating to suspension of Lt.-Col. Shalom Eisner for the incident in the Jordan Valley.
Was the suspension justified? Yes 37% No 51% Other 12%
Was the decision caused by media pressure? Yes 70% No 16% Other 14%
How do you feel towards Lt.-Col. Shalom Eisner? Identify with him 41% Angry 21% Other 38%
Unless the IDF offers Eisner a reasonable position, I would look for Eisner to leave the army, go to a Right wing think tank for his cooling off period, and then enter politics with the Likud or with a party 'further to the Right.'
I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com
