U.S. Rep. Brian Mast’s, R-Fla., bill sanctioning Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and their supporters passed the U.S. House this week. Back in March, Mast paired up with the two leaders of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee–chairman U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-NY, and top Republican U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Tex.–and U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-NJ, to introduce the “Palestinian International Terrorism Support Prevention Act” which “imposes sanctions on foreign persons, agencies and governments that assist Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad or their affiliates.” READ MORE
Sayyaf Sharif Daoud, a captured Israeli-Arab ISIS fighter who holds Israeli citizenship, said in a July 16, 2019 interview on BBC Arabic (U.K.) with correspondent Feras Kilani that he had joined ISIS instead of the Palestinian resistance because his experience of having lived through the Second Intifada and of having lived in the West Bank and in Israel had taught him that Israel “has not done one percent of what Bashar Al-Assad has done.” He explained that despite the fighting, Israel has never raped women or brutally killed people like the Assad regime has. Daoud also said that his father had warned him against joining Hamas and Fatah, and he expressed regret at having joined ISIS…READ MORE
Hours after Israel began demolishing illegally built homes in east Jerusalem [in the Sur Baher neighborhood] on Monday, the EU issued a harsh statement denouncing the measure…The demolitions capped a years long legal battle over the buildings, built along the seam line straddling the city and Judea and Samaria. Israel maintains the buildings were erected too close to the security fence built in the area, but the residents claim the buildings are in Area A, which is under the full control of the Palestinian Authority, and which they say gave them construction permits. READ MORE
Posted inIsrael & Middle East|TaggedEast Jerusalem|Comments Off on Sur Baher: “Despite High Court of Justice giving green light, EU says demolition of illegally built homes in east Jerusalem is against international law”
When Saudi blogger Mohamed Saud arrived at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on July 22, he apparently thought he would peacefully pray at the site before proceeding to tour the markets of the Old City of Jerusalem. Moreover, Saud apparently believed that as an Arab Muslim, he would be warmly welcomed by his Palestinian brothers. He was wrong…Videos that surfaced on social media showed a number of Palestinians hurling insults and spitting at Saud. READ MORE
The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a resolution on Tuesday evening condemning the anti-Israel BDS movement. The final tally was 398 in favor, 17 against and 5 present. It was introduced by Reps. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.), Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.), Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) and Ann Wagner (R-Mo.). It had 349 co-sponsors: 175 Republicans and 174 Democrats. Among those who voted against it, 16 of them were Democrats while the lone Republican was Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie. The Democrats were Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (Mich.), Earl Blumenauer (Ore.), Andre Carson (Ind.), Debbie Dingell (Mich.), Chuy Garcia (Ill.) Raúl Grijalva (Ariz.), Pramila Jayapal (Wash.), Barbara Lee (Calif.), Betty McCollum (Minn.), Gwen Moore (Wis.), Chellie Pingree (Maine), Mark Pocan (Wis.), Bobby Rush (Ill.) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (N.J.). READ MORE
DAILY CALLER Rep Brad Schneider: Boycotting Israel Is Anti-Semitic, Won’t Condemn Omar, Tlaib For Supporting ItIllinois Rep. Brad Schneider said boycotting Israel is anti-Semitic on CNN Tuesday, but the Democrat would not condemn Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota or Rashida Tlaib of Michigan for supporting divestment of the Jewish state…[Schneider] fumbled for an explanation when journalist Dana Bash asked him if he would condemn his Democratic colleagues Omar and Tlaib for supporting such measures.
U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), a veteran Democratic lawmaker and icon of the civil-rights movement, is currently co-sponsoring a resolution for and against the anti-Israel BDS movement, leading to questions as to whether or not he supports boycotting the Jewish state. Last week, Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-Minn.) introduced a bill that affirming the right to boycott countries. It was widely seen as bid by Omar, who openly supports the BDS movement, to push back against U.S. laws banning the boycott of Israel. READ MORE
The people behind the documentary Kids: Chasing Paradise say the epidemic of terrorist organizations and radicalized parents training young children to commit murder and suicide is largely ignored. They hope to change that. Last week, a producer of the film and some others involved with the project spearheaded by the Clarion Project came to Capitol Hill for a world premiere screening of the documentary and to share efforts to educate people and provide tools to prevent the phenomenon. READ MORE
Mikhail (not his real name), who immigrated to Israel with his parents during a wave of migration from the countries of the former Soviet Union, recently was engaged. He went to the Chief Rabbinate to register his upcoming wedding — couples must prove their Jewish identity — and like many “Russian” Israelis was asked to return with documents proving his Jewishness. Mikhail was asked to present seven different documents that included things like his grandparent’s Jewish marriage contract and his mother’s birth certificate. READ MORE
This article in The Daily Beast by Robert Silverman is truly remarkable in how much it tries – and fails – to tar the greatest relief pitcher of all time as a bigoted, far-right racist. “Over the past three years, [Rivera’s] served at the pleasure of a racist president, taken part in thinly veiled propaganda on behalf of an apartheid government in Israel, and gotten chummy with outright bigots and apocalyptic loons. None of this will be inscribed on his Hall of Fame plaque. It should, even if much of the sports world would very much like to pretend none of it exists.” READ MORE
WASHINGTON EXAMINER Yankees legend Mariano Rivera explains why he’s a strong supporter of Israel“Every time that I go to Israel, it blows my mind,” he said. “I wanted to see more, I wanted to understand more. I wanted to learn more. The Bible comes to life when you’re there.” He said he was particularly moved by visits to the Sea of Galilee and what is believed to be the site of the Sermon on the Mount.
Senator Kamala Harris, who lives with her white husband in one of the most segregated neighborhoods in Los Angeles, has come out with a call for busing children to distant schools to fight “segregation”. That’s great for Kamala, who has no children. Her stepson, Cole, who works at the William Morris Agency, which is about as diverse as his dad and S-Mamala’s Brentwood hood, won’t be bussed to work at more diverse talent agencies, and Ella, won’t be bused from her studies at Parsons School of Design (4% black) to a more diverse design college. Like most politicians, Harris wants to penalize other people.READ MORE
ArchitectGuy on Israel 