This week I had the opportunity to attend a presentation on the making of a terrorist by Itamar Marcus of Palestinian Media Watch (PMW). I’ve often sited their reports in these posts. You can find out more at www.palwatch.org. Here’s what I learned:
-Hamas, Fatah, and the Palestinian Authority (PA) are all terrorist organizations.
-The Palestinians (over 90% of those both in Gaza and the West Bank) are deeply religious people.
-The PA has used: its messaging to motivate (create the belief that the Palestinians and Islam are in danger, i.e. the false narrative about the Temple Mt being under attack); religious obligation; and incentives to entice its people to kill Israelis and Jews specifically.
-A disturbing fact documented by PMW is that beginning in pre-k, children are indoctrinated into a world of hate. They are taught (and it is reinforced throughout their lives) that salvation can only happen once the Jews are dead. They are taught that the Jews are Satan’s minions and the cause of every disaster (including Shia fighting Sunni). Those who die in this pursuit receive numerous honors from having summer camps, trophies, and schools named after them to pensions and monetary awards to their families. And when someone commits suicide in this pursuit, the community does not go to a funeral, but rather is proud to attend their wedding!
-Unfortunately the same false threats and religious teaching are happening throughout most of the Muslim world. Many of the vile children’s cartoons and poems that are memorized originate in Egypt.
-Read The Making of a Terrorist by Rikki Hollander (CAMERA)
It sounds a lot like what ISIS has done. I don’t know how the world can reprogram these people to seek peace instead of death and more violence.
Amnesty International calls on Hamas to free Israeli hostages (Times of Israel) In a first, human rights organization publicly criticizes terror group, and campaigns for release of Avraham Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed
Australia Plane Terror Plot Linked to ISIS Fighters in Syria - Siobhan Kenna and Lara Pearce (Huffington Post-Australia)
Canadian Tax Dollars Shouldn't Subsidize Palestinian Terrorists - Casey Babb (National Post-Canada)
China seeks support for Israel-Palestinian peace plan (South China Morning Post)
Iran and Turkey Fueled Temple Mount Crisis - Eyal Zisser (Israel Hayom)
Fatah summer camp named after terrorist murderer Dalal Mughrabi - Nan Jacques Zilberdik (PMW) Dalal Mughrabi led most lethal terror attack in Israel's history, murdering 37 civilians, 12 of them children, and wounding over 70
Russia's Army in Syria: Testing a New Concept of Warfare - Sarah Fainberg and Viktor Eichner (Institute for National Security Studies-Tel Aviv University) Russia's ground personnel in Syria help portray Russia as a provider of efficient military support in hotspots across the Middle East. Speculation about the deployment of Russian special operations forces and military advisors at an air base in western Egypt near Libya in March 2017 may be another manifestation of this phenomenon.
Senate Panel Approves Bill to Cut Off Funds to Palestinians over Terrorism - Sumner Park (The Hill) The Taylor Force Act, which passed the committee in a 16-5 vote, is named after American West Point graduate Taylor Force, 28, who was stabbed to death by a Palestinian last year in Tel Aviv. The Palestinian Authority spends as much as $300 million a year on financial compensation to the families of terrorists.
