Jewish American Heritage Month

Bank of the West in Bellevue WA 98004 – Banks, FDIC Banking

Posted By admin on November 3, 2015

Address (for main office) 10806 Northeast Avenue & 8th Street Bellevue, Washington 98004 Classification Commercial bank, state charter and Fed nonmember, supervised by the FDIC Assets - The sum of all assets owned by this bank including cash, loans, securities, bank premises and other assets. This total does not include off-balance-sheet accounts. $125,342,000 Deposits - The sum of all deposits including demand deposits, money market deposits, other savings deposits, time deposits and deposits in foreign offices. $106,908,000 Net Income - Net interest income plus total non-interest income plus realized gains (losses) on securities and extraordinary items, less total non-interest expense, loan loss provisions and income taxes. n/a Equity capital - Total equity capital (includes preferred and common stock, surplus and undivided profits). n/a Return on assets (ROA) - Net income after taxes and extraordinary items (annualized) as a percent of average total assets n/a Pretax return on assets (Year to Date) - Annualized pre-tax net income as a percent of average assets. Note: Includes extraordinary items and other adjustments, net of taxes. n/a Return on Equity - Annualized net income as a percent of average equity on a consolidated basis. Note: If retained earnings are negative, the ratio is shown as. n/a Asset Concentration Hierarchy - A category that identifies an institutions primary specialization in terms of asset concentration n/a Bank of the West has only a main office location as listed above and no branch offices on record.

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Jewish American Heritage Month – Wikipedia, the free …

Posted By richards on November 2, 2015

Jewish American Heritage Month

President Obama welcomes guests to 2010 JAHM White House reception.

Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM) is an annual recognition and celebration of Jewish American achievements in and contributions to the United States of America. It is observed annually in the U.S. during the month of May.[1]

JAHM was set into law by President George W. Bush in 2006, according to the Jewish American Heritage Month Coalition. This is the achievement of Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) and Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA), as well as the Jewish Museum of Florida and the South Florida Jewish Community.[2] A similar month exists in Florida as Florida Jewish History Month but it occurs in January.[3]

President George W. Bush announced that May would be Jewish American Heritage Month in April 2006. The announcement was an achievement in the effort of the Jewish Museum of Florida and South Florida Jewish Community leaders for a celebration of Jewish Americans and Jewish American Heritage.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) and Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) urged the president to proclaim a month that would recognize the more than 350-year history of Jewish contributions to America and the American culture. The resolutions were passed unanimously, first in the United States House of Representatives in December 2005 and later in the United States Senate in February 2006.[4]

The Jewish American Heritage Month Coalition states that, "JAHM also enables the exploration of the meaning of religious pluralism, cultural diversity, and participation in American civic culture."[5]

According to Library of Congress hosted website, JewishHeritageMonth.gov, May was chosen as the month of Jewish American Heritage Month because of the successful 350th Anniversary Celebration of Jews in America.[6]

Celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month is encouraged on a national level. In some schools, assemblies have been held in celebration.

JAHM has been recognized in Madison Square Garden in New York City. It has also been recognized in some Jewish museums. Additionally, some institutions, including the Library of Congress, have included shorter periods within the month for special lectures, programs, or displays, such as the Library of Congress "Jewish Heritage Week" lecture series.

On May 10, 2010, the White House issued a press release noting that on Thursday, May 27, 2010,

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will host the first ever White House reception in honor of Jewish American Heritage Month. The reception serves as an opportunity to highlight and celebrate the range and depth of Jewish American heritage and contributions to American culture, with guests representing the many walks of life that have helped weave the fabric of American history. Invitees include a range of community leaders and prominent Jewish Americans from Olympians and professional athletes to members of Congress, business leaders, scholars, military veterans, and astronauts.

At the May 27, 2010, reception, President Obama welcomed the invited guests, which included "members of the House and Senate, two justices of the Supreme Court, Olympic athletes, entrepreneurs, Rabbinical scholars", and he made special mention of Sandy Koufax, famous in the Jewish community for refusing to play baseball on Yom Kippur. He praised "the diversity of talents and accomplishments" that the Jewish community had brought to the United States since pre-Revolutionary times, saying that, "Even before we were a nation, we were a sanctuary for Jews seeking to live without the specter of violence or exile," from the time "a band of 23 Jewish refugees to a place called New Amsterdam more than 350 years ago."[7][8]

President Obama scheduled a second White House reception in honor of JAHM for May 17, 2011.[9] The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) reported that it was "less formal than the inaugural one last year, with brief remarks and a small Marine Corps band playing klezmer music."[10] The President noted the presence, among others, of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Elie Wiesel, and Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz, newly appointed as Chair of the Democratic National Committee.[10]

In his remarks, President Obama noted that Jewish Americans "persevered despite unspeakable discrimination and adversity at times."[11] Despite the challenges these American Jews faced, the President noted their achievements in "the arts, science, the military, business and industry, and in public and community service."[11] In his remarks, he said:

"This month is a chance for Americans of every faith to appreciate the contributions of the Jewish people throughout our history - often in the face of unspeakable discrimination and adversity. For hundreds of years, Jewish Americans have fought heroically in battle and inspired us to pursue peace. Theyve built our cities, cured our sick. Theyve paved the way in the sciences and the law, in our politics and in the arts. They remain our leaders, our teachers, our neighbors and our friends. Not bad for a band of believers who have been tested from the moment that they came together and professed their faith. The Jewish people have always persevered. And thats why today is about celebrating the people in this room, the thousands who came before, the generations who will shape the future of our country and the future of the world."[12]

In addition, a Marine Corps band playing klezmer music, and the "Maccabeats," a Yeshiva University a cappella group, provided entertainment.[10]

In addition to signing the proclamation marking May 2015 as the annual Jewish American Heritage Month, the White House shared plans for an address by President Obama on May 22, 2015 at Adas Israel Congregation, a large Washington, D.C. synagogue.[13] The date of the visit coincides with Solidarity Sabbath, a Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice initiative asking world leaders to show support for the fight against anti-semitism.[13]

Since 2006, JAHM programs have taken place across the country, but in March 2007 the JAHM Coalition was formed and convened by United Jewish Communities (now The Jewish Federations of North America), The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives, the Jewish Women's Archive (JWA), (AJA) and the American Jewish Historical Society (AJHS), to encourage and support future programs. The JAHM Coalition is composed of the directors of major national Jewish historical and cultural organizations including the AJA, AJHS, JWA, the National Museum of American Jewish History, the Council of American Jewish Museums (CAJM), Jewish Museum of Florida, and the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington. In 2009, the Coalition named a national coordinator.[14]

(federal) = federal holidays, (state) = state holidays, (religious) = religious holidays, (week) = weeklong holidays, (month) = monthlong holidays, (36) = Title 36 Observances and Ceremonies Bolded text indicates major holidays that are commonly celebrated by Americans, which often represent the major celebrations of the month.[1][2]

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Egypt: An Overview of the West Bank at Luxor (Ancient Thebes)

Posted By simmons on November 2, 2015

The west bank at Luxor is one of the most important archaeological sites in the world. It is much more than what we refer to as the Valley of the Kings, though many have called the whole of the area by that name. In fact, many good books on the west bank at Luxor (ancient Thebes) are titled, "Valley of the Kings", even though they cover the entire area. It can be a bit confusing for the novice, particularly considering the actual conceptual scope of the religious concept. If one looks at just the Valley of the Kings, one only sees tombs, but the tombs were an integral part of larger mortuary complexes. Indeed, the whole west bank is honeycombed with tombs, not just of the ancient Egyptian Kings, but of their families and the noblemen who served them.

Layout of the West Bank

As the Valley was in Egypt's Dynastic Period

The west bank necropolis can be divided into a number of zones and sub-zones, of which the Valley of the Kings is only one zone. The northern sector of the west bank closest to the Nile River is often referred to as the Tombs of the Nobles, but it can be divided into about five different sub-zones. Farthermost north is an area known as el-Tarif, where large, row tombs were dug during the late Second Intermediate Period and early Middle Kingdom.

Just south of el-Tarif is Dra Abu el-Naga, which is a hillside with about 80 numbered tombs most belonging to priests and officials of the 17th through 20th dynasty, including some rulers of the 17th dynasty. Just southwest of Dra Abu el-Naga is an area called El-Assasif, where there are 40 tombs, mostly from the New Kingdom and later. Just south of El-Assasif is El-Khokha, a hill with five Old Kingdom tombs and 53 numbered tombs from the 18th and 19th dynasty.

Directly west of El-Khokha is Sheikh Abd el-Qurna. This hill was named for a mythical Muslim sheikh, and has 146 numbered tombs, most of which are from the 18th Dynasty. Here one finds some of the most beautiful private tombs on the West Bank.

Just north of Sheikh Abd el-Qurna is Deir el-Bahari, well known for the northernmost temples in the Valley, including that of Hatshepsut and Mentuhotep.

Finally, south of Sheikh Abd el-Qurna and near the Temple of Merenptah is Qurnet Murai, a hill with 17 numbered tombs mostly dating to the Ramesside period. Where there are probably thousands of tombs in these areas, Egyptologists have only explored and numbered a total of about 800 of them.

Further west is the highest of the peaks in the Theban range of hills. This is Qurn, which can be translated in Arabic to mean "horn", or "forehead". At this mountains northern base, fairly well separate from the other burials in the West Bank, is the Valley of the Kings. Along with a number of unfinished tombs, 62 numbered tombs are known to Egyptologists. This was the final resting place of many of the New Kingdom rulers.

South of the Valley of the Kings, and closer to the Nile lies the Valley of the Queens. This area is inappropriately named, because it houses family members of the kings, including both males and females, and even some high officials. There are about 80 numbered tombs in this area, probably the most famous of which is that of Queen Nefertari.

Just southeast of the Valley of the Queens is Deir el-Medina, the ruins of a village that housed the craftsmen and workers who dug and decorated the tombs and other Theban monuments. It is a very important area to Egyptology, because it has revealed many of the facets of ordinary life in Egypt, and there are some wonderful tombs in its necropolis. All along the border between the fertile section of the Valley and the hills we find Temples and one palace. The southern most temple is that of Ramesses III located at Medinet Habu. The palace, one of the southernmost monuments in the Valley, is at Malkata, just south of Deir el-Medina, and belonged to Amenhotep III, but was probably also inhabited by a few of his successors. At one time, it was a huge complex. The northernmost temple is that of Seti I, which at one time also probably served as an administrative center on the West Bank.

Religious significance and the Temples of Millions of Years

The temples within the Valley, each built by individual kings or queens, were collectively known by the Egyptians as the "Temples of Millions of Years". Early Egyptologists referred to them as funerary or mortuary temples, but in fact they were temples built for the worship of the deceased kings, and were even used for his worship while he lived. There were originally many more temples then one finds today, and those that remain are in much ruin.

Amun was the principle deity worshiped at Thebes, and the Pharaoh was considered his son. Celebrating this union, each year a celebration was held called the Beautiful Feast of the Valley, where the royal power was renewed and strengthened. Also, on the 30th year of the pharaoh's reign, the sed-festival took place in order to renew the king's strength, as well as the vitality of all Egypt. These celebrations took place in the Temples of Millions of Years, and so activity on the Theban West Bank was centered around the Temples, while the tombs themselves were for the most part off limits.

The temples were meant to honor the dead king, perhaps through eternity. In fact, they might more resemble a modern foundation or trust. They were intended to keep the king's cult alive, guaranteeing him eternal deification, and not simply through festivals.

For example, the storerooms of the Ramesseum were capable of storing enough grain for 15 to 20 thousand people. In effect, the temples were endowed with property and assets by the king before his death, so that after his death, the temple could continue to fund exploits and building projects in his name.

The Big Picture

Typically, tourists to the West Bank will spend a day there, or even a half day. They are shown a few tombs, including several in the Valley of the Kings, and perhaps one in the Valley of the Queens, and they visit several of the temples, most notably those of Deir el-Bahri. To an extent, this provides something of an overall picture of the West Bank, but its complexity and size are often not realized.

West Bank – Middle East: MidEastWeb

Posted By simmons on November 2, 2015

The West Bank (Arabic: , al-diff l-arby, Hebrew: , Hagadah Hamaaravit) is the area west of the Jordan river that was occupied by Transjordan since 1949. The name "West Bank" was devised by Transjordanian and British diplomats following World War II, when Jordan contemplated annexing a portion of the Palestinian Arab state that was to be created when the British vacated Palestine, and later envisioned by the UN when it partitioned the Palestine Mandate into Jewish and Arab states (See Partition Resolution). Following Israeli territorial gains during the 1948 Arab-Israel war, about 2,200 square miles were left in the territory of the West Bank. Currently about 2.4 million Arab Palestinians, including a significant number of refugees of the 1948 Arab Israel War, live in the West Bank, along with about 250,000 Israeli settlers.

The area is currently officially under Israeli occupation or "administration" with partially autonomous government of the Palestinian National Authority. It incorporates part of the areas known since ancient times as Judea and Samaria. "Judea and Samaria" as a unit is the name officially given to the West Bank in Israel, but the ancient areas of Judea and Samaria in fact overlapped into current portions of Israel. The name is used by the Israeligovernment and military communiques, and by media outlets and politicians associated with Jewish settlers in the West Bank.

To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the mainland Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, it shares a border with Jordan. The West Bank also includes a significant coast line along the western bank of the Dead Sea and part of the Dead Sea may be included in its territory. Since 1967, the West Bank has been under Israeli military occupation.

Prior to the First World War, all of the area known to Europeans as Palestine was part of the Ottoman Empire. In the 1920 San Remo conference, the victorious Allies allocated the area to the British Mandate of Palestine. The 1948 Arab-Israeli War saw the establishment of Israel in parts of the former Mandate, while the West Bank was captured and annexed by Jordan, which destroyed any existing Jewish villages. The 1949 Armistice Agreements defined its interim boundary. From 1948 until 1967, the area was under Jordanian rule, and Jordan did not officially relinquish its claim to the area until 1988. Jordan's claim was not recognized by most other countries. The West Bank was captured by Israel during the Six-Day War. Most of the residents are Arabs, although large numbers of Israeli settlements have been built in the region. Most of the Arab portions of the West Bank are administered by the Palestinian National Authority.

The West Bank has an anomalous international status, since Jordan's occupation was never recognized as legitimate by most countries, and Jordan relinquished its territorial claims. The area is not occupied under the strict definition of international law, since it is not territory of another sovereign, but most countries consider that Israeli rule there constitutes occupation. Israeli courts apply most aspects of international law regarding occupation to cases where it is relevant. The West Bank is legally distinct from the area of Jerusalem, which the UN declared to be an internationalized Corpus Separatum in 1947.

Synonyms and alternate spellings:

Further Information: History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Palestine

Map of Palestine History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

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Westbank Louisiana-Gretna, Algiers, Marrero, Louisiana

Posted By simmons on November 2, 2015

Welcome to the Westbank which is the area on the west bank of the Mississippi River from New Orleans. There are three bridges and three ferries which connect the Westbank to the Greater New Orleans area. The main bridge is the Crescent City Connection which goes to the Downtown area and the Super Dome. You also have the Huey P Long Bridge which goes from Bridge City to Elmwood. The third bridge is in St Charles Parish and is called the Hail Boggs Bridge which is the newest bridge.

The Huey P Long Bridge is going thru a widening project which will make many people very happy. It is known for its narrow lanes which for the 1st time ride over it can be a little nerve racking.

The three ferries run from one side of the river to the other. The Gretna and Algiers ferry cross the river and go to the same landing area near the foot of Canal Street in Downtown New Orleans. If you are visiting the city I highly recommend you take the ride and see New Orleans on the Mississippi River.

The links below go to an encyclopedia with census and other types of information. The Westbank is a suburban area of New Orleans that is on the west bank of the Mississippi River from New Orleans and is composed of parts of three Parishes. The Westbank includes part of Jefferson Parish including the cities and towns of Waggaman, Avondale, Bridge City, Nine Mile Point, Westwego, Marrero, Harvey, Gretna, Terrytown, Jean Lafitte, Lafitte, Crown Point, Barataria, Estelle, Timberlane, and Woodmere that lies on the western bank of the river. A portion of Orleans Parish is also on the Westbank which includes the area cities and communities of Algiers and English Turn. Further down the Mississippi River is the city of Belle Chasse which has a large Navy Base that makes up for a large part of the population. The West Bank of Plaquemines Parish will also be included on this website. Plaquemines Parish both encompasses and is bisected by the final leg of the Mississippi River before it enters the Gulf of Mexico. Down river from Belle Chasse is an area of Plaquemines Parish that has numerous rural communities scattered along both banks of the river, but none of these communities have a population greater than 5,000. The terms "Eastbank" and "Westbank" are spelled as one word in the local official terminology when being applied to the Greater New Orleans area.

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A Synopsis of the Israel/Palestine Conflict

Posted By simmons on November 2, 2015

The following is a very short synopsis of the history of this conflict. We recommend that you also read the much more detailed account, "The Origin of the Palestine-Israel Conflict."

For centuries there was no such conflict. In the 19th century the land of Palestine was inhabited by a multicultural population approximately 86 percent Muslim, 10 percent Christian, and 4 percent Jewish living in peace.[1]

In the late 1800s a group in Europe decided to colonize this land. Known as Zionists, they represented an extremist minority of the Jewish population. Their goal was to create a Jewish homeland, and they considered locations in Africa and the Americas, before settling on Palestine.[2]

At first, this immigration created no problems. However, as more and more Zionists immigrated to Palestine many with the express wish of taking over the land for a Jewish state the indigenous population became increasingly alarmed. Eventually, fighting broke out, with escalating waves of violence. Hitlers rise to power, combined with Zionist activities to sabotage efforts to place Jewish refugees in western countries[3], led to increased Jewish immigration to Palestine, and conflict grew.

Finally, in 1947 the United Nations decided to intervene. However, rather than adhering to the principle of self-determination of peoples, in which the people themselves create their own state and system of government, the UN chose to revert to the medieval strategy whereby an outside power divides up other peoples land.

Under considerable Zionist pressure, the UN recommended giving away 55% of Palestine to a Jewish state despite the fact that this group represented only about 30% of the total population, and owned under 7% of the land.

While it is widely reported that the resulting war eventually included five Arab armies, less well known is the fact that throughout this war Zionist forces outnumbered all Arab and Palestinian combatants combined often by a factor of two to three. Moreover, Arab armies did not invade Israel virtually all battles were fought on land that was to have been the Palestinian state.

Finally, it is significant to note that Arab armies entered the conflict only after Zionist forces had committed 16 massacres, including the grisly massacre of over 100 men, women, and children at Deir Yassin. Future Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, head of one of the Jewish terrorist groups, described this as splendid, and stated: As in Deir Yassin, so everywhere, we will attack and smite the enemy. God, God, Thou has chosen us for conquest. Zionist forces committed 33 massacres altogether.[4]

By the end of the war, Israel had conquered 78 percent of Palestine; three-quarters of a million Palestinians had been made refugees; over 500 towns and villages had been obliterated; and a new map was drawn up, in which every city, river and hillock received a new, Hebrew name, as all vestiges of the Palestinian culture were to be erased. For decades Israel denied the existence of this population, former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir once saying: There were no such thing as Palestinians.[5]

In 1967, Israel conquered still more land. Following the Six Day War, in which Israeli forces launched a highly successful surprise attack on Egypt, Israel occupied the final 22% of Palestine that had eluded it in 1948 the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Since, according to international law it is inadmissible to acquire territory by war, these are occupied territories and do not belong to Israel. It also occupied parts of Egypt (since returned) and Syria (which remain under occupation).

Also during the Six Day War, Israel attacked a US Navy ship, the USS Liberty, killing and injuring over 200 American servicemen. President Lyndon Johnson recalled rescue flights, saying that he did not want to embarrass an ally. (In 2004 a high-level commission chaired by Admiral Thomas Moorer, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, found this attack to be an act of war against the United States, a fact few news media have reported.)[6]

There are two primary issues at the core of this continuing conflict. First, there is the inevitably destabilizing effect of trying to maintain an ethnically preferential state, particularly when it is largely of foreign origin.[7] The original population of what is now Israel was 96 percent Muslim and Christian, yet, these refugees are prohibited from returning to their homes in the self-described Jewish state (and those within Israel are subjected to systematic discrimination).[8]

Second, Israels continued military occupation and confiscation of privately owned land in the West Bank, and control over Gaza, are extremely oppressive, with Palestinians having minimal control over their lives.[9] Thousands of Palestinian men, women, and children are held in Israeli prisons.[10] Few of them have had a legitimate trial; Physical abuse and torture are frequent.[11] Palestinian borders (even internal ones) are controlled by Israeli forces.[12] Periodically men, women, and children are strip searched[13]; people are beaten; women in labor are prevented from reaching hospitals (at times resulting in death)[14]; food and medicine are blocked from entering Gaza, producing an escalating humanitarian crisis. Israeli forces invade almost daily, injuring, kidnapping, and sometimes killing inhabitants.[15]

According to the Oslo peace accords of 1993, these territories were supposed to finally become a Palestinian state. However, after years of Israel continuing to confiscate land and conditions steadily worsening, the Palestinian population rebelled. (The Barak offer, widely reputed to be generous, was anything but.[16]) This uprising, called the Intifada (Arabic for shaking off) began at the end of September 2000.

Largely due to special-interest lobbying, U.S. taxpayers give Israel an average of $8 million per day, and since its creation have given more U.S. funds to Israel than to any other nation.[17] As Americans learn about how Israel is using our tax dollars, many are calling for an end to this expenditure.

[1] John W. Mulhall, CSP, America and the Founding of Israel: an Investigation of the Morality of Americas Role (Los Angeles: Deshon, 1995), 48; Mike Berry and Greg Philo, Israel and Palestine (Pluto Press, 2006) p. 1; Mazin Qumsiyeh, PhD, author of Sharing the Land of Canaan: Human Rights and the Israeli-Palestinian Struggle, includes a number of population tables in this book, which are available in his booklet, Palestinian Refugees Right to Return and Repatriation (http://ifamericansknew.org/history/ref-qumsiyeh.html); Justin McCarthy, author of The Population of Palestine: Population History and Statistics of the Late Ottoman Period and the Mandate, provides detailed information on population in the excerpt Palestines Population During The Ottoman And The British Mandate Periods. (http://www.palestineremembered.com/Acre/Palestine-Remembered/Story559.html)

[2] John W. Mulhall, CSP, America and the Founding of Israel: an Investigation of the Morality of Americas Role (Los Angeles: Deshon, 1995), 47-52.

[3] In many places Zionists manipulated local Jewish populations into going to Palestine/Israel, in some cases using subterfuge and terrorism.

Sami Hadawi, Bitter Harvest, p. 37: Commenting, author Erskine H. Childers, wrote, one of the most massively important features of the entire Palestine struggle was that Zionism deliberately arranged that the plight of the wretched survivors of Hitlerism should be a moral argument which the West had to accept. This was done by seeing to it that Western countries did not open their doors, widely and immediately, to the inmates of the DP. (displaced persons) camps. It is incredible, that so grave and grim a campaign has received so little attention in accounts of the Palestine struggle it was a campaign that literally shaped all subsequent history. It was done by sabotaging specific Western schemes to admit Jewish DPs.

A number of authors have discuss Zionist connections with Nazis; for example:

He describes this in greater detail in his book: Ben-Gurions Scandals: How the Haganah and the Mossad Eliminated Jews:

I write this book to tell the American people, and especially the American Jews, that Jews from Islamic lands did not emigrate willingly to Israel; that, to force them to leave, Jews killed Jews; and that, to buy time to confiscate ever more Arab lands, Jews on numerous occasions rejected genuine peace initiatives from their Arab neighbors. I write about what the first prime minister of Israel called cruel Zionism. I write about it because I was a part of it.

[4] Qumsiyeh, Palestinian Refugees Right to Return and Repatriation (http://ifamericansknew.org/history/ref-qumsiyeh.html)

Norman Finkelstein, Image and Reality of the Israel-Palestine Conflict; George W. Ball & Douglas B. Ball, The Passionate Attachment, on p. 29: quotes a message from future prime minister Menachem Begin, head of the Irgun Zionist terrorist group, commending them on the grisly massacre of women, children, and old men at the village of Deir Yassin: Accept my congratulations on this splendid act of conquest. Convey my regards to all the commanders and soldiers. We shake your hands. We are all proud of the excellent leadership and the fighting spirit in this great attack. We stand to attention in memory of the slain. We lovingly shake the hands of the wounded. Tell the soldiers: you have made history in Israel with your attack and your conquest. Continue thus until victory. As in Deir Yassin, so everywhere, we will attack and smite the enemy. God, God, Thou has chosen us for conquest.

[5] Sunday Times, June 15, 1969, quoted widely.

[6] Donald Neff, The Six Days War, Simon & Schuster

During the Six-Day War, Israel also attacked a US Navy ship, the USS Liberty, killing and injuring over 200 American servicemen. Many analysts believe that the fact that there were no consequences for this attack led Israeli leaders to conclude that they could commit any act of aggression without US complaint. While this attack has largely been covered up in the US media (see American Media Miss the Boat: For USA Today, Freedom of the Press Means the Right to Report It Wrong http://ifamericansknew.org/media/misslib.html, Alison Weir, CounterPunch, June 23/24, 2007), it is discussed in a number of books, including James Ennes, The Assault on the Liberty; William Gerhard, Attack on the USS Liberty; Dr. John Borne, The USS Liberty, Dissenting History vs. Official History; Stephen Green , Taking Sides: Americas Secret Relations with a Militant Israel; James Bamford, Body of Secrets; and in a recent article: New revelations in attack on American spy ship Veterans, documents suggest U.S., Israel didnt tell full story of deadly 67 incident, John Crewdson, Tribune senior correspondent, Chicago Tribune, October 2, 2007 (http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-liberty_tuesoct02,0,66005.story?coll=chi_tab01_layout).

Additional information can be found at:

http://www.ussliberty.org/

http://ifamericansknew.org/us_ints/ussliberty.html

[11] See, for example, BTselem The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, Absolute Prohibition: The torture and Ill-Treatment of Palestinian Detainees, May 2007, http://www.btselem.org/publications/summaries/200705_utterly_forbidden

Defence for Children International/Palestine Section, http://www.dci-palestine.org/theme/detention

Addameer, Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, http://www.addameer.org/index.php

Samidoun, Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, http://samidoun.ca/

Alison Weir's new book Against Our Better Judgement: How the U.S. was used to create Israel brings together meticulously sourced evidence to outline the largely unknown history of U.S.-Israel relations.

Buy the book on Amazon.com.

Visit the book website for reviews, more ordering options, and upcoming author events.

Ethnic Cleansing: How Palestine Became Israel In the late 1800s a small, fanatic movement called political Zionism began in Europe. Its goal was to create a Jewish state somewhere in the world. Its leaders settled on the ancient and long-inhabited land of Palestine for the location of this state. READ MORE | FOOTNOTES

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Hamas – Haaretz | Israel News

Posted By admin on November 2, 2015

Hamas is a militant and political Islamist group operating in the West Bank and Gaza. Hamas is designated as a terrorist organization by much of the international community, but enjoys wide support from Palestinians as a legitimate force against Israels occupation.

The movement was founded as an offshoot of Egypts Islamic Brotherhood, and in 1987 Hamas spiritual leader and founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin established the movements military wing, which became known as Hamas. In 1988, in the wake of the outbreak of the First Intifada, Hamas published its official charter, in which it announced its departure from nonviolence in its struggle against Israel.

Hamas popularity among Palestinians comes partly from its tradition of providing welfare programs, such as schools and hospitals. The militant wing of Hamas adheres to the movements 1988 charter which calls for the liberation of all of historic Palestine, and views all lands under Israels domain as part of an Islamic Waqf, of which every inch must be liberated.

The signature of the 1993 Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was viewed by the Hamas leadership inside the territories and in exile as a violation of Palestinian rights, and in 1993 Hamas launched its first suicide attack inside Israel, a practice that it would uphold from then on, causing massive Israeli civilian casualties.

Hamas leaders have long been the target of Israeli assassinations. Yassin was killed in 2004 in a missile strike as he left a mosque in Gaza. His Hamas co-founder, Abdel Rantisi, was killed weeks later in an Israeli air strike. In 1997, Hamas political leader Khaled Meshal was the target of a botched assassination attempt by agents from Israels Mossad espionage agency operating covertly in Jordan. Meshals life was saved when Israel agreed to hand over the antidote to the toxin used on him, in return for the release of the two Mossad agents caught and held in Jordan during the assassination attempt. Yassin, who was in an Israeli jail at the time, was released under the terms of the agreement.

Long-standing tensions between Hamas and the secular Fatah came to a head following the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections, which gave Hamas a decisive victory and put it in charge of the political regime in the Palestinian territories. Hamas Gaza chief, Ismail Haniyeh, was named Palestinian prime minister, but Hamas status as a terror group resulted in immediate sanctions from Israel and other Western countries. The group rejected demands to adhere to previously signed peace agreements, renounce violence and accept Israels right to exist, and the sanctions were upheld.

Meanwhile, tensions with Fatah grew as the two factions attempted to cooperate with the framework of a unity government, but when the attempt failed and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas dissolved the government, bloody clashes erupted between Hamas and Fatah in Gaza, resulting in the seizure of the area by Hamas in June 2007.

There have been numerous attempts by neighboring Arab countries to end the Hamas-Fatah rift, and form a unified Palestinian leadership. The failure of the two groups to come together has perpetuated the continuing division within the Palestinian Authority, with Fatah as de facto rulers in the West Bank, and Hamas firmly in control in Gaza.

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Hamas – ADL

Posted By admin on November 2, 2015

Israel & the Middle East

Hamas is a Palestinian Islamic extremist terrorist organization based in the Gaza Strip and West Bank that calls for the eradication of the State of Israel. Both theUnited Statesand the European Union have designated Hamas as a terrorist organization. Following internecine fighting between Hamas and Fatah in June 2007, Hamas controls the Gaza Strip.

Hamas (the Arabic acronym for Harakat Al-Muqawama Islamiya fi Filistin, or the Islamic Resistance Movement in Palestine) was established in 1988 by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, then a preacher with the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood in Gaza. Its ultimate goal is the establishment of an Islamic Palestinian state ruled by Islamic theocratic law in place of the State of Israel.

The Hamas covenant, issued in 1988, is replete with anti-Semitism, and echoes the notorious Protocols of the Elders of Zion charging Jews with an international conspiracy to gain control of the world. In Hamas world-view, Islamic precepts forbid a Jewish state in the area known as Palestine, and they assert the Jewish people have no legitimate connection to the land of Israel. As its covenant proclaims, Theland ofPalestine is an Islamic trust... It is forbidden to anyone to yield or concede any part of it...Israel will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it... To this end, the leaders of Hamas have denounced compromise withIsrael as a betrayal of the Palestinian cause.

Funding and support for the group has traditionally come from Muslim charities around the world, sympathetic sources in the Gulf and Saudi Arabia, and most importantly from Syria and Iran, although in recent years, both have stepped back somewhat due to Hamas support for the rebels in the Syrian civil war.

Hamas is both a terrorist organization and a mass social, political and religious movement. It operates schools, medical clinics and youth groups. The division of Hamas into military and political/social wings has led some observers to erroneously assume that the social wing of Hamas is completely separate from its military wing. To the contrary, funds raised for the social programs of Hamas free up other funds for the military wing. Moreover, Hamas military wing utilizes the organizations social wing for indoctrination and recruitment. The social, cultural, religious and educational institutions of Hamas, including youth groups and summer camps are well-known venues for anti-Israel and anti-Jewish hatred and have served as recruitment centers for suicide bombers.

Since 1994, Hamas has been the main organization perpetrating terrorist attacks in major Israeli cities with targets including shopping malls, cafes, buses and hotels. Its most deadly attacks include the March 2002 suicide bombing of the Park Hotel in Netanya, killing 30 and injuring 140 during their Passover seder; the August 2001 suicide bombing of the Sbarro pizzeria in Jerusalem killing 15 and injuring 130; and the June 2001 suicide bombing at the Dolphinarium nightclub in Tel Aviv, killing 21 and injuring 120, most of them youths. Following the Israeli disengagement from the Gaza Strip, Hamas has been behind the thousands of rocket attacks that have targeted Israels population centers.

Hamas entered the Palestinian political arena and secured nearly half of the municipal seats up for grabs in the January 2005 Palestinian elections. In the January 2006 parliamentary elections, Hamas had tremendous success and won 74 seats in the 132-seat legislature, with Fatah earning a disappointing 45 seats.

Following the 2006 election, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh became Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority while Mahmoud Abbas remained President, creating a so-called unity government. The international community established a policy of isolating Hamas, and suspended financial aid to the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority until it met three conditions: recognizeIsraels right to exist, renounce the use of violence and terrorism and accept previously negotiated Israeli-Palestinian agreements. Hamas continues to refuse to comply with these conditions.

In June 2007, tensions between Hamas and Fatah reached a boiling point and violence broke out between the two groups in Gaza. Within a few days, Hamas prevailed. Palestinian Authority President Abbas dissolved the Hamas-led government and declared he would govern based on emergency powers. As a result, Gaza is administered by Hamas, and continues to be isolated by the international community. TheWest Bankis under the sole administration of the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority, which enjoys international support.

Over the years there have been a number of efforts to reconcile Hamas and the Palestinian Authority. In April 2014, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas announced a surprise reconciliation deal which included the formation of a Palestinian unity government. This Palestinian Authoritys decision effectively put an end to the nine-months of US-led negotiations between the Palestinian Authority and Israel, and soured relations with Israel. To date, however, the reconciliation agreement has not progressed and has had little impact on the ground.

According to the U.S. State Department and human rights NGOs, Hamas has restricted freedom of speech and press inGaza. The Hamas security apparatus attacks, tortures and detains those who publicly criticize its authority. Hamas affiliates have attacked journalists and other individuals, who publicly criticize their authority. Since 2007, only pro-Hamas broadcast media and PFLP-affiliated radio outlet Voice of the People have operated in Gaza. Hamas television broadcasts childrens shows which glorify suicide bombings and defame Jews, spreading anti-Semitism and hatred. Hamas also imposes its religious extremism on its people, with a morality police force, which monitors womens dress. Gender segregation is also strictly enforced couples walking together are often stopped and asked to prove that they are married, men are not allowed to work in womens hair salons and women are discouraged frompatronizing certain cafes.

Since 2000, Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups, have launched thousands of rocket and mortar attacks. In early years, Hamas rockets reached vulnerable southern Israeli cities such as Sderot, Ashkelon, Netivot and nearby environs, landing in or near private homes, schools and day care and recreation centers. In recent years, Hamas rockets have reached well beyond the south, reaching Tel-Aviv, Jerusalem, Beer Sheva, and even as far north as Haifa, a distance of over 85 miles from Gaza. Two-thirds of Israels civilian population (equivalent to over 200 million Americans) Jews, Muslims, Christians and others have been directly threatened by missiles from Gaza.

Hamas has constructed hundreds of smuggling tunnels underneath the border with Egypt and stockpiled an enormous cache of weapons and associated supplies. In June 2006, Palestinian terrorists, including members of the military wing of Hamas, tunneled under the border fence in the southern Gaza Strip and attacked an Israeli military installation inside Israeli borders, killing 2 Israel soldiers, and kidnapped Cpl. Gilad Shalit, age 19. Shalit was eventually released in October 2011 after over five years of Hamas captivity in exchange for over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. In addition, in 2014 it was revealed that Hamas has constructed dozens of terror tunnels which enabled its operatives to reach inside Israel to carry out terrorist attacks and kidnappings.

On December 27, 2008, following the lapse of an agreed six month Israel-Hamas period of calm, and in response to renewed rocket attacks, Israel initiated a military operation in Gaza, entitled Operation Cast Lead. The three-week air and ground operation was intended to stop the rocket attacks on southern Israel and end Hamas smuggling of arms and related supplies.

Four years later, on November 14, 2012, Israel initiated Operation Pillar of Defense in response to intensifying rocket attacks from Gaza. The aerial military operation targeted Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorist leadership and rocket launching and storage sites. During the 8 day operation, Hamas launched 1,506 rockets at Israeli targets. The Iranian-made and supplied Fajr-5 rockets reached as far as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

On July 7, 2014, following weeks of unceasing missile, rocket and mortar fire from Gaza on civilian centers in Israel, the IDF launched Operation Protective Edge targeting Hamas facilities, tunnels, weapons and leadership. The conflict lasted 50 days, with a series of short-lived cease fires breached by Hamas. Israel initially attacked Hamas targets by air, however, on July 17, Israel sent ground forces into Gaza for a period of just over two weeks in order to destroy Hamass infrastructure, including rocket storage sites and infiltration tunnels which Israel was unable to destroy by aerial attacks.

During the conflict, 4,700 missiles, rockets and mortars were fired by Hamas into Israeli cities and towns, including Sderot, Ashkelon, Tel-Aviv, Jerusalem, and even as far north as Haifa, a distance of over 85 miles from Gaza.The Syrian made M-302 missile, modeled after the Chinese WS-2, which has a range of almost 100 miles, was fired at Tel-Aviv and Jerusalem. Two-thirds of Israels civilian population (equivalent to over 200 million Americans) Jews, Muslims, Christians and others were directly threatened by missiles from Gaza. An open-ended cease fire was reached on August 26.

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Hamas - ADL

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Background & Overview of Hamas | Jewish Virtual Library

Posted By admin on November 2, 2015

Hamas is the Arabic acronym for "The Islamic Resistance Movement" (Harakat al-Muqawamah al-Islamiyya). Since 2007, Hamas has controlled the Gaza Strip.

Hamas grew out of the ideology and practice of the Islamic fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood movement that arose in Egypt in the 1920s and it was legally registered in Israel in 1978 by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the movement's spiritual leader, as an Islamic Association by the name Al-Mujamma Al Islami. Initially, the organization followed the Muslim Brotherhood's model of acting primarily as a social welfare agency that catered especially to the Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip and, over time, developed a good reputation for improving the lives of Palestinians. Hamas also exerted its influence through the mosques. Today, Hamas is intimitately tied to the Islamic regimes in Syria and Iran.

In August 1988, Hamas published the Islamic Covenant, which makes clear the organization is opposed to Israel's existence in any form. It states that "there is no solution for the Palestinian question except through jihad (holy war)." The group warns that any Muslim who leaves "the circle of struggle with Zionism" is guilty of "high treason." Hamas' platform calls for the creation of an Islamic republic in Palestine that would replace Israel. Muslims should "raise the banner of Allah over every inch of Palestine," it says.

Hamas stresses jihad as the sole and immediate means to solve the problem of Palestine. Hamas aims to create an Islamic state in all of Palestine. The immediate means to achieve this goal is the escalation of the armed struggle, and ultimately jihad, with the participation not only of Palestinian Muslims but of the entire Islamic world.

Hamas' violent activities are run by two central departments, which were established before the intifada. One is Hamas' military arm, created in 1982 in Gaza by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. In the early 1980's, the group began amassing arms for use against Israel. After it was uncovered in 1984, Yassin was imprisoned. He was freed as part of a 1985 prisoner exchange between Israel and PFLP-GC leader Ahmed Jibril.

A second Hamas arm called the Majd was created by Yassin in 1986 to monitor Arabs deemed to be "collaborating" with Israel or failing to follow Islamic doctrine. In 1988, a similar Hamas operation began in the West Bank.

The military apparatus of Hamas underwent several changes in the course of the intifada, as a result of preventive measures and exposure by the Israeli forces following major terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas operatives. The last form which this apparatus has taken is the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Squads, which is responsible for most of the serious attacks carried out by Hamas since January 1, 1992.

Hamas perpetrates terrorist attacks in a variety of forms: firing rockets toward Israeli communities, infiltrations into Israeli communities to murder Israeli civilians, explosive charges against IDF tanks and vehicles, shooting toward civilian vehicles in the Gaza Strip, ambushes of IDF soldiers, dispatching booby-trapped boats towards Israeli ships, kidapping and attempted kidnappings of IDF soldiers and of course suicide bombings. In addition, Hamas operatives smuggle weapons and terrorists from Egypt into Gaza using underground tunnels. Amazingly, some of this activity is directed by Hamas prisoners in Israeli prisons, though most of it is done by the Hamas headquarters in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas tries to present a separation between the political leadership and the military wing, as if the military activity serves no political aim. In practice, the formal "military leadership" of the Hamas is subordinate to what is known as the "political leadership." However, it is this "political echelon" of the terrorist organizations, which directs, instructs and determines policy, including terrorist activity. Interrogation of Hamas operatives point to Rantissi as directing Hamas terrorist policy. His public statements serve as instructions for terrorists to carry out attacks.

With the start of the Palestinian uprising known as the Second Intifada in 2000, Hamas used its power in Gaza to repeatedly fire rockets at both Israeli settlements within the Strip as well as Israeli cities outside of it. Hamas also stepped up its suicide bombings inside Israel. The IDF answered by leading a missions of targeted assassinations against the Hamas leadership in an attempt to destroy the organizaton by cutting off its head. On March 22, 2004, Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin was assassinated, and the subsequently named successor, Abdul Aziz al-Rantisi, was killed for the IDF on April 17, 2004.

In 2005, after much debate, the government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon decided to unilaterally withdraw all Israeli presence from Gaza in an overt attempt to appease Hamas and get it to stop firing rockets and terrorizing Israel.

In 2011, it is obvious that Sharon's plan failed miserably. Hamas rockets continue to rain down on Israel and the Israeli Defense Forces has been forced to invade the area twice in attempts to destroy Hamas's fighting capability.

The IDF first reentered Gaza in June 2006 after Hamas operatives infiltrated Israel, attacked an army post and kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit. Then-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert ordered the army to invade, rescue Shalit and destory Hamas's weapons stores. Known in Israel as Operation Summer Rains and Operation Autumn Clouds, the missions failed to achieve any of the major goals set forth by Olmert. Though Hamas was weakened by the IDF, it was not destroyed and Shalit was not rescued.

In 2007, following Hamas' victory in the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections, Hamas violently siezed control on the Gaza Strip and forced out all remnants of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party.

When Hamas rocket fire against Israel escalated to a point that the government could no longer sit idly by, Prime Minister Olmert ordered a second invasion of Gaza in December 2008, code-named Operation Cast Lead. With much of the same stated goals as the previous operations, the IDF was tasked with destroying Hamas's rocket infrastructure and, if possible, rescuing still captive soldier Gilad Shalit. Operation Cast Lead lasted into late January 2009 before a cease-fire was implemented by Israel. Hamas claimed yet another victory in this round of fighting, but statistics showed that the IDF has managed to kill nearly 1,000 Hamas operaties during the few weeks of battle.

In October 2011, after more than five years holding Shalit in captivity, Hamas negotiated with Israel (though Egyptian and German intermediaries) for his release in exchange for the release of more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. Israel agreed to the prisoner swap, and on October 18, 2011, Shalit was returned to Israel.

In December 2011, Hamas celebrated in 24th anniversary with huge celebrations across the Gaza Strip. In a press release sent out by the organization through its Twitter account, Hamas claims to have fired more than 11,000 rockets at Israel between 2000 and 2011, to have killed more than 1,360 Israeli's and to have injured more than 6,400 others.

In 2012 Hamas fired 1,697 rockets at Israel.

On April 24, 2014, the two main Palestinian political factions -HamasandFatah- signed a reconciliation agreement to unite their disparate parts of thePalestinian Authority. The two rivals split seven years ago followingHamas' violent coup that wrested control of theGaza StripfromFatahand the PA. To read the full article on the Fatah-Hamas reconcilliation, click here.

As a response to the kidnapping of three Israeli teens as well as dramatically increasing fire coming from Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Israel launched Operation Protective Edge on July 8, 2014.Over the following 50 days Israel fought to destroy the terror capabilities of Hamas by carrying out air strikes against Hamas leaders, locating and destroying attack tunnels dug by Hamas to infiltrate Israel, and using the Iron Dome to defend it's citizens. Over 2,000 Palestinians died as Hamas used their standard tactics of firing from densely populated urban areas and provoking Israeli responses that decimated the Gaza Strip.Throughout the conflict Egypt acted as a mediator in desperate attempts to end the violence, which resulted in multiple cease-fires being agreed to. Hamas violated these cease-fires by firing rockets and mortars into Israeli territory on eleven occasions.During Operation Protective Edge the international community chastised Israel and saw them as being unfair to Hamas, laying out strikes against the organization in Gaza that international actors deemed to be a gross and unnecessary display of force. By violating the agreed-to ceasefires, Hamas showed that they have no regard for the Palestinian citizens, and showed that their vision is clouded by pure hatred for the Israeli "occupying force". They deliberately put their citizens in danger in order to gain international sympathy for the Palestinian people when Israel is forced to retaliate.

Israel's stated goal at the begining of the conflict was to destroy the attack tunnels dug by Hamas into Israel, stop the endless rocket fire coming from the Gaza Strip, and bring to justice the individuals responsible for the abduction and murder of three Israeli teens. When the abduction first occured on June 12, 2014 Hamas officials denied involvement, but then three months later accepted responsibility and announced that the abduction and murder of Eyal, Gilad, and Naftali was of their orchestration.Over the course of Operation Protective Edge 3,356 rockets were fired at Israel by Hamas, and the Iron Dome intercepted 578 of them. The Israeli forces destroyed 32 terror tunnels dug by Hamas, and carried out air strikes which resulted in the deaths of multiple Hamas leaders and their family members.

On Tuesday August 26 the Palestinian terror organizations and Israel came to an agreement for an extended ceasefire to take effect immediately. Hamas members declared a glorious victory, and citizens celebrated by firing guns into the air, injuring and killing multiple people. The plan that Hamas accepted was almost identical to the first one that Egypt had proposed two months prior, and Hamas was forced to abandon their demands of a sea port, an air port, and an end to the Israeli blockade in order to reach an agreement. Although over 2,000 Palestinians died and it is estimated that reconstruction will cost $7.8 billion, Hamas sees the outcome of Operation Protective Edge as beneficial for them because they stood their ground in the face of Israel and were successful in garnering international sympathy for the plight of the Palestinian people.

On September 25, 2014, Hamas spokesperson Mahmoud Al-Zahar stated that "we don't want to establish an Islamic emirate in Gaza; we want an Islamic state in all Palestine". The ultimate goal of Hamas is to destroy the Jewish people and the Jewish homeland, and in this quote Al-Zahar makes it clear that Hamas is in no way interested in peace, and is only interested in the destruction and suffering of the people of Israel.

Following Operation Protective Edge, Hamas returned immediately to weapons production and propaganda. Although the organization is hurting for funds, they have managed to begin to revive their weapons industry, carrying out multiple rocket tests in the Mediterannean and begining the reconstruction of terror tunnels into Israel. The Izz al-Din al-Qassam brigades, Hamas's military wing, staged a military parade through the streets of Gaza on Thursday October 9, the same day that the newly formed Palestinian Unity government met for the first time in Gaza. This parade was part of a recruitment drive by Hamas, in an attempt to drum up more support for the military units.

Hamas carried out multiple rocket tests on October 23, firing rockets toward the Mediterranean Sea. This was the sixth incident of Hamas carrying out rocket firing tests since the end of Operation Protective Edge.

For the first time in months, on October 1 2014 many employees of the former Hamas government in the Gaza Strip recieved their salaries of $1,200 each.In total 24,000 public workers who had not been paid since October 2013 were paid out in this way. The money for the salaries was donated by Qatar, who gave the unity government $30 million to pay the workers.

The European Union removed Hamas from a designated terror organization blacklist on December 17, 2014. The ruling, handed down by General Court of the European Union, stated that Hamas's designation as a terrorist organization by the EU in 2001 was " not [based] on acts examined and confirmed in decisions of competent authorities," but instead based on "factual imputations derived from the press and the internet." This ruling wss brought about after Hamas officials contested their designation on the list of terrorist organizations. Despite this ruling removing the designation the court ruled that the effects of this designation would stay in place for at least 3 months, including the freezing of funds.

On January 19, 2015, the European Union announced that it would appeal this ruling by the European Union court, in a move that was welcomed by Israeli officials. The European Union must provide evidence that Hamas remains a terrorist group and cannot use third party sources from the internet to do so, according to court documents.

On December 24, 2014, it was reported by local news agencies that Hamas had begun building new fighting positions and fortifying their bases of operations. Residents of the Gaza Strip reported seeing dirt mounts, ramps, and other fortifications being built and moved by members dressed in Hamas military garb. Hamas members then raised flags over their new positions.

Although groups like Hamas and Fatah have continued to deny it, the Islamic State has begun to take a foothold in the Palestinian territories.Israeli security sources claim that in late 2014 and early 2015 hundreds of Hamas and Fatah supporters have defected to the Islamic State. Following the attack on the satirical French news magazine Charlie Hebdo in January 2015, thousands of supporters of the Islamic State crowded the streets of Gaza in protest of the publishing of images of Mohammed by the magazine, and in support of the violent attack that left twelve people dead. Similar demonstrations took place in Ramallah and Hebron. These protestors attempted to storm the the office of the French Cultural Center in Gaza, and burned French flags while chanting calls for the slaughter of French nationals.Palestinian security forces were dispatched to the protest area, where they arrested seven Islamic State supporters.It was revealed on January 18, 2015, that a number of would-be jihadists "training" to join the Islamic State had been arrested in November and December in Galilee, Northern Israel. The seven Arab Israeli citizens were apprehended by Israeli security forces after apparently participating in "training" sessions during which they slaughtered sheep, practiced riding horses, learned how to properly make and hurl a molotov cocktail, and participated in target shooting activities.The individuals arrested included Adnan Ala al-Din, a 40 year old prominent lawyer from Nazareth, and brothers who had had issues with Israeli security forces in the past.Ala al-Din presented himself to the security forces as the Senior Commander of the Islamic State in Palestine at the time of his arrest.

After carrying out multiple attacks inside of Egypt in late 2014 and early 2015, an Egyptian court designated Hamas' military wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassam brigades as a terrorist organization in February 2015. The group was accused of the financing, planning, and execution of terrorist attacks that have killed hundreds of Egyptian citizens, including security personnel. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri issued a public statement in which he rejected the ruling passed down by the Cairo Court of Urgent Matters, calling the designation "dangerous."The following month an Egyptian court ruled that the Hamas organization as a whole is a terrorist movement, not just their military factions.Hamas took to twitter to issue an immediate response, posting that designating Hamas as a terrorist organization was a great shame disgracing the reputation of Egypt. Five days later however, Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh wrote an email in which he stated that the Hamas organization wished to air out their grievances and establish further ties with Egypt. Haniyeh wrote that the Hamas organization was ready for any proposals that would remove obstacles between the Palestinian and the Egyptian brothers.

Government files leaked in February 2015 showed that the CIA had tried to make contact with and gain access to Hamas through back channels, despite an official ban on contact with the terrorist organization. The leaked documents disclosed how in 2012 a CIA agent contacted a South African intelligence agent about the possibility of gaining access to Hamas, in order to recruit an informant. Also included in the reports are call transcripts from a call between President Obama and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, in which Obama threatens Abbas in no uncertain terms if he were to go forward with the Palestinians 2012 statehood bid.

Three Israeli citizens were arrested on March 2, 2015, charged with suspicion of supplying raw materials to Hamas militants during Operation Protective Edge. The suspected smuggling ring also included multiple Palestinian businessmen and a Palestinian merchant named Osama Zuaroub. Zuaroub was the Israeli's main contact point on the other side. The accused apparently stored the materials in a warehouse in Mivtachim and used the Kerem border crossing to tramsfer truckfulls of materials to Hamas militants. The charges detailed that the payment for the materials, storage in the warehouse, and transfer to Hamas, amounted to about $375,000 per month. Hamas allegedly purchased more than $30 million worth of goods from the three Isrealis through Zuaroub. Files charged against the Israeli individuals include contact with a foreign agent, providing aid to the enemy in it's war against Israel, and fraud.

Hamas representatives rejected a peace agreement presented by the UN Special Coordinator for Middle East Peace, Robert Serry, on March 12, 2015. The proposal was drafted by Palestinian, Israeli, US, and international representatives, and would have seen an end to Israel's blockade of Gaza as well as the allowable construction of an airport and seaport. The peace agreement was for a proposed five year cease-fire. Hamas spokesperson Mousa Abu Marzouk explained their rejection the next day on social media, claiming that "Israel made the proposal with the aim of separating the enclave from the West Bank so it can swallow it with the settlements. We are paying a steep price for our stance by the continued blockade and economic pressure over the Strip, but we reject any idea that would lead to the separation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank." This trip was Serry's last to the Gaza Strip.

For the first time since Hamas took over Gaza eight years prior, in March 2015 a large shipment of vegetables was exported to the Israeli territory. Prior to Hamas taking control of the area, Palestinian merchants used to export hundreds of tons of produce to Israel daily. Since the takeover however it has been too risky for Israel to leave the border crossings open regularly, and the blockade on Gaza has been enforced. This shipment in March 2015 included 27 tons of tomatoes and five tons of eggplants, to be sold in Israel for about $770 per ton. In the months following the end of Operation Protective Edge, Israel officials increased the amount of border permits for Gaza merchants to sell their products in Israel. The Israeli military agency that oversees Gaza civilian affairs, COGAT, said that shipments totaling 1,500 tons are expected monthly in the future. This produce will be shipped in a box stamped with the name of the farmer, and a sticker that reads product of Gaza.

New video surfaced on March 12, 2015, showing Hamas militants digging tunnels and setting up training facilities near the Israel border. The video was shot by civilian residents near the border, who said that the men bore arms and wore masks while they worked.

The Hamas organization put extra effort into revamping their naval commando units following Operation Protective Edge during Summer 2014, according to the Egyptian newspaper Al-Akhbar. Since Operation Pillar of Defense, Hamas has been working to set up a large, professional underwater force, capable of launching stealth attacks against Israeli power plants, coal terminals, gas rigs, etc.

Dirar Abu Sisi, Hamas engineer and tactician, was convicted in March 2015 of opening and operating a "war college" where Hamas commanders trained, multiple counts of attempted murder, belonging to a terrorist organization, conspiracy to commit a crime, and unauthorized manufacture of arms. Abu Sisi plead guilty to all charges levyed against him. He was directly involved in the development of missiles and rockets used by Hamas, including developing ways to make them shoot farther. Because he plead guilty in court, the prosecution agreed to drop some of the many attempted murder charges.

A report published by the Wall Street Journal on April 21, 2015, detailed that Iran had been funneling millions of dollars to the Hamas military wing the Al-Qassam Brigades, to help them rebuild their network of terror tunnels that were destroyed during Operation Protective Edge. These funds were transfered under direct orders of Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the IRGC Quds force. In addition to rebuilding their network of tunnels, Hamas members used the funds to replenish their rocket supplies.

Foreign Policy magazine reported in April 2015 that Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups were hard at work training for the next armed conflict with Israel. Women were being used more frequently by the groups according to the report: one female Hamas member was quoted saying We fit the training around our domestic chores. We also watch the roads, protecting the men as they move. Since the end of Operation Protective Edge, more and more women in Gaza have been training to fight hand-to-hand, use firearms, disarm opponents, drive vehicles through battle-zones, and kidnap Israeli soldiers. Abu Mujahid, a Nasser Salahuddin Brigade commander, said that the war could start any minute. All the fighting groups evacuated the bases, weve postponed training sessions, and many of the men have moved underground... There are people right now under your feet.

Hamas militants began using heavy machinery and engineering tools to build their underground attack tunnels into Israel in the begining of 2015. Witnesses from the Israeli side of the border said that they could clearly see large tractors digging and moving dirt, while underground the Hamas members used small bulldozers to maneuver in the tunnel's tight spaces. While Hamas funnels millions of dollars meant for humanitarian aid into terrorist projects, the situation of the civilians living in the Palestinian territory worsens by the day.

Khalil al-Haya, a senior Hamas official, encouraged Hamas members to engage in the abduction of Israeli soldiers in April 2015, stating we tell the Zionist enemy: you are all a target for us and the resistance, we will fight you until we finally get rid of you and take as many captives as possible to free our heroes. Our men, our women, our children all envision kidnapping your soldiers and settlers, wherever they are. And it is our right because we have no other way to free our heroes, and it is the Zionist enemy responsible for this state of affairs. He said firmly that captive Palestinian prisoners should rest assured that they will be released, and encouraged members of Palestinian resistance forces to abduct Israelis so they may be used in prisoner exchanges.

Palestinian Authority ministers and officials visiting the Gaza Strip were detained in their hotel by Hamas during the second week of April 2015. The group of 10 ministers and 30 government officials were sent to the Gaza Strip in order to solve the issue of Palestinian Authority employees not having been paid for months, but they were barred from leaving their hotel by Hamas militants. The Palestinian Authority members were not able to attend their important meetings scheduled during that week, and were also not able to speak to any Palestinian civilians.

During the weekend of April 18, senior Hamas members passed the National Solidarity Tax law on non-basic goods being imported into the Gaza Strip. This tax will be levied on goods such as meats, fruits, electronics, and clothing, while necessary goods like flour and medicine are to be exempt from the tax. Senior Hamas officials revealed that most of the revenue from this new tax would go towards paying the salaries of the over 40,000 Hamas employees who had not been paid in over a year. This tax angered Gaza merchants, who were worried that they would not be able to sell as many products if the taxes increase. The increased import tax also meant that some merchants will not be able to afford their wholesale products anymore, forcing them out of business. According to Hamas Parliament member Abu Halbiya, the tax could pile on an extra 10% in certain cases.

Hamas commander Mohammed Deif, a long-time target of the IDF for his key role in planning terrorist attacks, who had been wounded in a prior assassination attempt, was thought killed during Operation Protective Edge. He resurfaced, however, months later in April 2015, reportedly overseeing a crew of approximately 1,000 workers constructing new attack tunnels with materials provided to Palestinian people for reconstruction, but sold on the black market to Hamas. Deif is also believed to be heavily involved in plans to advance Hamas's rocket capabilities.

The military wing of Hamas, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, released a video in August 2015 showing off their new tunnels which they had rebuilt following the destruction of Operation Protective Edge. Hamas managed to rebuild many of the terror tunnels that were destroyed by Israeli troops during the last conflict.

Palestinian leaders stoked the flames of violence during September and October 2015, spreading false information about Israel's actions surrounding the Temple Mount. Mahmoud Abbas stated that Israelis were desecrating Muslim holy sites the al-Aksa Mosque and Church of the Holy Sepulchre with their filthy feet, and encouraged Palestinians to carry out acts of violence against Jewish Israelis. The wave of violence experienced during late 2015 was due mostly to a Palestinian perception that the Israelis were going to somehow change the rules of who could access the Temple Mount, undermining Muslim supremacy at the holy site. The Israeli government issued official statements clarifying that there was no intention of changing the status-quo at the Temple Mount, but Palestinian leaders continued to incite violence against Israeli Jews through speeches and posts on social media. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh declared Friday, October 9, to be a day of rage... a day that will represent that start of a new Intifada in all the land of Palestine. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon travelled to Israel and met with various leaders in attempts to quell the violence on October 20. Nine Israelis were killed by random stabbing and ramming terror attacks between September 13 and October 21.

In response to these attacks Israeli officials ramped up security around the country, especially in Jerusalem and Hebron and at the Temple Mount. Israeli security forces also cracked down on Hamas leaders, detaining Hamas co-founder Hassan Yousef. Yousef was accused by Israel of encouraging, inciting, and praising the attacks that rocked the country during the previous month. Hamas leaders, including Yousef, called for a new uprising against Israel and encouraged attacks on Israelis via social media and news outlets.

In response to Palestinian leaders encouraging their constituents to carry out these attacks, the United States slashed aid to the Palestinian Authority by $80 million for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2016. This represents a 22% cut from the State Department's initial budget request earlier in the year. Florida Republican Ileana Ros-Lehtinen authored a Foreign Affairs Committee Resolution which was unanimously approved on October 22, 2015, calling for Abbas and other Palestinian leaders to be held accountable for the new wave of violence. Ros-Lehtinen issued a statement calling upon Abbas to [stop] inciting violence and promoting hatred, [and] to call for calm and work with the Israelis to restore the peace. To read the Foreign Affairs Committee Resolution, please click here.

Facebook shut down groups and pages associated with Hamas and similar organizations in late October 2015, in an effort to calm incitement being propagated through social media platforms. Hamas leaders issued a statement on October 21, confirming that, Facebook has closed, over the past two days, a large number of pages run by and close to the Hamas movements media in the occupied West Bank. Today and yesterday, [Hamas] pages [based] in Ramallah, Galilee, Nablus, Bethlehem, Qalqilya, Salfit, Tubas and Jenin were closed, as well as the page of Muslim Youth League in the West Bank. At the same time as the closure of these pages, Facebook has closed and frozen the accounts of dozens of publishers and administrators who run [them].

Sources: IDF, PASSIA, Kul al-Arab, (January 9, 1998); ICT, ADL; Wikipedia; Al-Qassam Information Office; IDF Spokesman (December 15, 2011); Hamas seeks to establish Islamic state on all Palestinian lands: Official, Xinhua (September 30, 2014); General Court of the European Union; Croft, Adrian. EU to appeal ruling that Hamas should be off terror list, Reuters (January 18 2015); Lubell, Mayaan. Thousands of Palestinians protest Charlie Hebdo Mohammad cartoon, Reuters (January 24, 2015); Ahram Online. Egyptian court declares Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades a 'terrorist group', Ahram (February 3, 2015); Milne, Seamus/McAskill, Ewen. CIA attempted to contact Hamas despite official US ban, spy cables reveal, The Gaurdian (February 23, 2015); IANS. Top Hamas leader says ready to resolve disputes with Egypt, Yahoo News (March 5, 2015); Kershner, Isabel. 3 Israelis charged with smuggling materials to Hamas, New York Times (March 3, 2015); Akram, Faras. Qatar offers cash to pay some staff in Gaza Strip, New York Times (October 29, 2014); Moore, Jack. Hamas rejects five-year Israel truce deal to end Gaza blockade, Newsweek (March 11, 2015); Akram, Faras. Gaza exports first produce to Israel since Hamas takeover, Salon Magazine (March 12, 2015); Levy, Elior. Gaza sources: Hamas test-fired rocket out to sea, Ynet News (October 24, 2014); Tzuri, Matan. Video: Hamas digging, building outposts not far from border fence, Ynet News (March 12, 2015); Fishman, Alex. Hamas' revamped naval commandos could pose a problem for Israel, Ynet News (March 15, 2015); Coughlin, Con. Iran is intensifying efforts to support Hamas in Gaza, The Telegraph (April 4, 2015); Trew, Bell. Gaza is a tomb, Foreign Policy (April 13, 2015); Issacharoff, Avi. Hamas accelerates it's tunnel building, using heavy machinery, Times of Israel (April 15, 2015); Miller, Elhannan. New Hamas import tax leaves Gaza merchants fuming, Times of Israel (April 21, 2015); AFP, Hamas official calls to abduct Israeli, swap for Palestinians, Al-Arabiya (April 17, 2015); Toameh, Khaled Abu. PA ministers leave Gaza after Hamas placed them on house arrest, Jerusalem Post (April 20, 2015); Coughlin, Con. Iran rekindles relations with Hamas, Wall Street Journal(April 21, 2015); Kais, Roi. New Hamas video boasts of reconstructed tunnels, YNet News (August 28, 2015); Lynfield, Ben. Gaza shootings: Hamas pledge new intifada as 'day of rage' sees Israeli soldiers kill six Palestinian protesters, Independent (October 9, 2015); Jones, Rory. Israel Detains Senior Hamas Official Accused of Inciting Violence, Wall Street Journal (October 21, 2015); Facebook moves against Hamas in West Bank, Now News (October 22, 2015)

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Dead Sea Scrolls prove the Bible unoriginal – Freethought …

Posted By admin on November 2, 2015

Over the years, news items have circulated about how hints and insights contained in the original texts among the famous Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in caves near the ancient site of Qumran can be found in the Bible. In other words, certain ideas in the scrolls also appear in the New Testament, meaning, of course, that the impression of Christianity as a divine revelation appearing whole cloth miraculously from the very finger of God is clearly erroneous.

Few scholars today claim that any of the Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS) date to the time after Christianity was allegedly founded by a historical Jesus in the first century of the common era. Indeed, it is agreed that most of the scrolls pre-date the turn of the era and that none of them show any knowledge of Jesus Christ or Christianity.

They speak of a Teacher of Righteousness and a pierced messiah, of cleansing through water and a battle of light against darkness.

But anyone looking to the Dead Sea Scrolls in search of proof, say, that Jesus of Nazareth was the messiah presaged by the prophets, or that John the Baptist lived among the scrolls authors, will be disappointed.

In my book The Christ Conspiracy, I demonstrate that Christianity is an amalgam of the many religions, sects, cults and brotherhood traditions of the Mediterranean and beyond. One of the major influences on Christianity is that of Jews, obviously, including those mentioned in the New Testament, i.e., the Pharisees and Sadducees. Ancient Jewish historian Josephus also mentions the sect of the Essenes, who are traditionally associated with Qumran, in a by default argument. However, scholar Solomon Schecter who discovered a scroll at Cairo that was later found at Qumran points to a heretical sect of Sadducees or Zadokites, as they are called in both the Bible and DSS. In The Christ Conspiracy, I discuss this Zadokite origin of the DSS and this groups obvious influence on the New Testament.

What this rumination all means, of course, is that Christianity is, as I contend in my books, largely unoriginal, representing not fresh and new divine revelation but, again, the amalgamation of not only the ideas of the Zadokite authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls but also influences from the Essenes, Jews, Samaritans and many others.

Hints of the Scrolls in Bible

To understand how the Dead Sea Scrolls influenced early Christianity, just turn to the New Testament.

Take, for example, the Great Isaiah Scroll, a facsimile of which is on display as part of the Milwaukee Public Museums Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit. Written around 125 B.C. and the only scroll to emerge virtually intact from the caves at Qumran, its messianic message is quoted in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, John and Luke, the earliest of which wasnt written until around A.D. 65.

The scrolls so-called Son of God text reads much like the story of the Annunciation in the Gospel of Luke. And the Scrolls Blessing of the Wise echoes the beatitudes of Matthews Sermon on the Mount.

This early dating of the gospels, it should be noted, is based only on the a priori assumption that the story they relate is at least partially true in recounting a historical Jesus who truly walked the earth at the time he is claimed in the gospels themselves. There is no external evidence whatsoever for the existence of any canonical gospel at this early a date. In fact, the canonical gospels as we have them do not show up clearly in the historical record until the end of the second century.

Moreover, the Sermon on the Mount supposedly the original monologue straight out of the mouth of the Son of God Himself can be shown to be a series of Old Testament scriptures strung together, along with, apparently, such texts from Qumran. No historical founder was necessary at all to speak these words, as they are a rehash of extant sayings. (Even in this patent literary device the gospels cannot agree, as Luke 6:17-49 depicts the Sermon as having taken place on a plain.)

It is easy to see why the Catholic Church would blanche upon the discovery of these scrolls, as it could be and has been argued that these texts erode the very foundation of Christianity. It appears that this news, however, when released slowly has little affect on the mind-numbing programming that accompanies Christian faith.

The bottom line is that the existence of the Old Testament and the intertestamental literature such as the Dead Sea Scrolls shows how Christianity is a cut-and-paste job a fact I also reveal in The Christ Conspiracy, in a chapter called The Making of a Myth, which contains a discussion of some of the texts obviously used in the creation of the new faith. These influential texts evidently included some of the original Dead Sea Scrolls, serving not as prophecy, prefiguring or presaging but as blueprints of pre-existing, older concepts cobbled together in the New Testament.

Theres insight but not proof in the Dead Sea Scrolls

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