Editor's Picks From The MEMRI TV Archives: Arab Media Reactions To Donald Trump (MEMRI)

 

UN Resolution Unleashes Wave of Anti-Israel Bias in New Zealand Media (Honest Reporting)  Public debate brings out of the woodwork self-appointed ‘experts’ with a tenuous grasp of the Mideast.

 

Abbas Poses with Photo of Palestinian Terrorist Who Massacred 38 Israelis, Including 13 Kids (The Tower)

 

Islamic State Steps Up Oil and Gas Sales to Assad Regime - Benoit Faucon and Ahmed Al Omran  (Wall Street Journal) Oil and gas sales to Assad's regime are now Islamic State's largest source of funds, the officials said. Islamic State's "revenue and energy generation is being supported by the Syrian regime," said Amos Hochstein, a U.S. State Department official.

Russia, Turkey Join in Airstrikes on ISIS in Northern Syria (AP-Military Times)

Iran Repopulates Syria with Shia Muslims to Help Tighten Regime's Control - Martin Chulov (Guardian-UK)  "Iran and the [Syrian] regime don't want any Sunnis between Damascus and Homs and the Lebanese border," said one senior Lebanese leader. "This represents a historic shift in populations."

 

Reuters and Israel: Do Ethics Matter? - Daniel Pomerantz  (Honest Reporting- Video)

 

Do you also think about Jonathon Pollard when you read or hear about President Obama commuting Chelsea Manning's sentence and pardoning retired general James E. Cartwright?

U.S. Refusing to Intervene as Ex-CIA Agent Faces Extradition, Prison, in Italy - John Rossomando (IPT News)

It's Monday morning and I just don't get these headlines. I'm sure you've heard something along the lines of New York magazine's Former Iranian President Rafsanjani Has Died, a Blow to Iran’s Reformists or  Iran Loses a Moderate Voice on the front page of The Wall Street Journal. Yet on page A15 in the WSJ there's another headline: Rafsanjani Was Iran's Mythical 'Moderate' by Sohrab Ahmari. As the WSJ is sometimes difficult to access without a password, try this instead: The Myth of Rafsanji in The Weekly Standard.

French Ambassadors Declare War on Israel - Yves Mamou (Gatestone Institute) These men are retired French ambassadors often writing or written about in Le Monde.

French Follies - Editorial (New York Jewish Week) With 500,000 Syrians killed in a civil war that rages on, the EU in turmoil after the Brexit vote, and terrorism markedly on the rise in Europe, diplomats from 70 countries are expected in Paris on Sunday to focus their attention on creating a Palestinian state - five days before a new administration takes over in Washington.

Iranian Activists, Academics Apologize For Iran's Syria Policy (MEMRI)

When you read about "besieged Gaza" or flotillas, think of this:

Booming Business at the Israel-Gaza Border - Danielle Berrin  (Los Angeles Jewish Journal) Since 2006, Israel has consistently and judiciously provided for Gaza's needs, facing the unique predicament of providing for an enemy that launches rockets into Israel. Israel provides Gaza's civilians with water, gas, electricity, medical supplies, building materials, even butter, with tons of goods passing through the Kerem Shalom border crossing.

Israel Foils Smuggling of Illicit Materials to Gaza - Anna Ahronheim (Jerusalem Post) The smuggled goods, including cameras, drones and communications cables, were hidden inside televisions, washing machines and refrigerators. 

PA-Hamas Dispute Leads to Electricity Shortage in Gaza - Avi Issacharoff (Times of Israel)

Interesting Tweet:

Israel Protects the Palestinian Authority from the Islamist Wave - Reuel Marc Gerecht (Weekly Standard)

PA to Pay Monthly Stipend to Wife of "Martyr" Who Killed 4 Israelis on Sunday - Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik  (Palestinian Media Watch) According to its policy of supporting all Palestinian terror, the PA will reward the wife of this murderer with a lifetime monthly allowance of 2,900 shekels ($760), in addition to a one-time grant of 6,000 shekels ($1,580). PA President Mahmoud Abbas did not condemn the terror attack.

Qatar mediating prisoner exchange deal between Israel and Hamas - Elior Levy (Ynet News)

US adds 2 senior Hezbollah members to terrorism list - David Daoud (Long War Journal)

14 U.S. Troops Wounded in Iraq and Syria since October - Andrew deGrandpre (Military Times) More than 5,500 U.S. troops are now deployed in both theaters. 

Venezuela's New Vice President Has Ties to Iran, Hizbullah - Linette Lopez  (Business Insider)  El Aissami participated in a clandestine program to provide Venezuelan passports to terrorists in Damascus.     Joseph Humire, coauthor of Iran's Strategic Penetration in Latin America, testified before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs last year: "El Aissami developed a sophisticated, multi-layered financial network that functions as a criminal-terrorist pipeline bringing militant Islamists into Venezuela and surrounding countries, and sending illicit funds and drugs from Latin America to the Middle East." 

Al Qaeda linked to more than 250 West African attacks in 2016 - Caleb Weiss (FDD's Long War Journal)

Pakistan, China, Russia warn of increased IS threat in Afghanistan (Dawn)

Report: Disguised as Refugees, ISIS General Is in Europe with 400 Soldiers - Julian Robinson (Daily Mail-UK) The Italian intelligence services report that an ISIS general once pictured decapitating a prisoner is back in Europe with 400 of his soldiers after fleeing Syria, Italy'sL'Espresso reported.

Partners for Peace?

Since September 2015, Palestinian attackers have killed 40 Israelis and two visiting Americans. Yes, more Palestinians have died in the same period, but the majority were trying to murder Israelis.

Not allowed to call the Temple Mount "The Temple Mount"  Islamic guards try to boot guide for saying ‘Temple Mount’ on Temple Mount - Ilan Ben Zion (Times of Israel)

In Palestinian Eyes, All of Israel Is a "Settlement" - Alan Joseph Bauer (Jerusalem Post)

Seeking a Trade, Israel to Withhold Bodies of Hamas Militants (Reuters) Israel's security cabinet decided on Sunday to withhold the bodies of Palestinian Hamas militants killed in attacks against Israeli citizens as it seeks to pressure the Islamist movement in Gaza to return the remains of Israeli soldiers and hand back missing Israeli civilians. 

 

U.S., Russian Militaries Sharing More Information on Syria - Lolita C. Baldor and Bradley Klapper (AP-Military Times)

Iran in Syria: Russia Took Over – Heshmat Alevi (Gatestone Institute)

Iran's Pivotal Role in Aleppo Massacres(Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

 

NPR Covers Up the Ethnic Cleansing of Jews - Daniel Pomerantz (Honest Reporting) “7 Things To Know About Israeli Settlements," began as follows: “When Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Six-Day War, no Israeli citizens lived in the territory.” The misleading nature of this one sentence is striking. The reason that no Jews – Israeli or otherwise – lived in the West Bank when Israel captured it in its defensive war against Jordan is that in 1947-48, Jordan killed or expelled all the Jews living there at the time.

We never know what the future will bring; I just hope 2017 is less surreal than 2016.

Wishing you a happy and healthy New Year, une bonne et heureuse année, and un feliz Año Nuevo!

Regarding UN Resolution 2334

*It is now illegal for Jews to pray at the Western Wall or live in certain Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem. These actions require Israelis to enter areas that were captured from Jordan during Israel's defensive war of 1967. According to the Security Council resolution that the U.S. did not veto, any area that was not part of Israel before June of 1967 is now illegally occupied. Alan M. Dershowitz (New York Daily News)

 

*The resolution fails to distinguish between construction in the so-called blocs - that is, settlements west of Israel's security barrier in which about 80% of settlers live - and construction east of the barrier. Building in the major blocs is relatively uncontroversial in Israel and rarely the subject of Palestinian protests. President George W. Bush sought to move peace talks forward in 2004 by asserting that there could be no return to the 1967 lines in light of the blocs' existence, and that any negotiated border would have to reflect this reality. Obama refused to confirm Bush's position. Elliott Abrams and Michael Singh (Washington Post)

*The Palestinian Authority under Mahmoud Abbas proved unwilling to negotiate seriously even during a settlement freeze for 10 months in 2009 and 2010 at Mr. Obama's behest, and it refused to accept a framework for negotiations painstakingly drawn up by Secretary of State John F. Kerry in 2014. Whatever the motivation for the U.S. abstention, Mr. Obama's gesture is likely to do more harm than good. (Washington Post)

*The ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), said on Friday, "This resolution is one-sided and unfairly calls out Israel without assigning any blame for the Palestinian role in the current impasse." Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) warned on Thursday that the "resolution would undermine, if not undo, the chances for productive discussions between the two sides." Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) called the resolution "unconstructive." Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) stressed on Friday that "any lasting peace must be negotiated between Israelis and Palestinians, not imposed by the international community." "Today's passage of an ill-conceived resolution on Israeli settlements marks another shameful chapter in the bizarre anti-Israel history of the United Nations," Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Friday. "The abstention of the United States has made us complicit in this outrageous attack, and marks a troubling departure from our nation's long, bipartisan history of defending our ally Israel in the United Nations." (The Tower)

 

*According to officials in Israel,  Ukrainian Prime Minister Groysman is thought of as one of Israel's main supporters. However, Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko decided to vote in favor of the resolution following a telephone conversation with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, demonstrating the extent to which President Obama was behind Ukraine's decision. (Ynet News)

Partners for Peace?

Greek Orthodox Patriarch under Fire from PLO for Praising Israel's Freedom of Religion (Times of Israel)

Hamas Condemns Muslims and Jews Dancing at Hanukkah Celebration in Bahrain - Gabriel Samuels (Independent-UK)

Fatah Official Abbas Zaki Participates in a Hamas Rally (MEMRI)

Wishing you happy holidays! Hope you enjoy: An Argentinean Rabbi & Bishop Just Recorded a Chrismukkah Hit ( Kveller)

Christmas Day Terror Plot Foiled in Australia (AFP)

  

Europe: Christmas Shoppers Jihadist Crosshairs - George Igler (Gatestone Institute)

Months of Prior Warnings Regarding Terror Attacks Using Trucks (MEMRI)

Iran Replaces Old IR1 Centrifuges with Advanced IR8 Centrifuges (Tasnim-Iran)

Iranian Commander Says After Aleppo It Is Bahrain and Yemen's Turn (Rudaw-Kurdistan)

Iran Is Changing Syria's Demographics - Martin Chulov (Observer-UK)

Iran Naval Bases in Syria and Yemen? - Ephraim Kam (Institute for National Security Studies)

Erbil hospitals overwhelmed by Mosul casualties, KRG urges Baghdad to step in (Rudaw)

Partners for Peace?

Video: Splitting Jerusalem (Video Activism) For the past decades, there have been many moves to split Jerusalem. But is this really best for all the Arabs, Jews and Christians living there today?

Nazareth municipality has school children honor murderer of 3 Israelis - Itamar Marcus (PMW) Ironically, the Palestinian daily Al-Quds described the chain of readers as an attempt to "acquire knowledge in a city that every day tries to stand firm against the violence, intolerance, and sectarianism." 

For the Second Time, ABC Corrects: US Does Not View Settlements as 'Illegal' (CAMERA)

U.S. Intended to Allow Passage of UN Resolution Critical of Israel - Michelle Nichols and Lesley Wroughton (Reuters) Resolution started/stopped by Egypt!

 

Afghanistan

US Military: 250 al Qaeda Operatives Killed or Captured in Afghanistan This Year – Thomas Joscelyn and Bill Roggio (Long War Journal) Officials finally conceded just this year that the number of al Qaeda operatives in Afghanistan exceeds the US government’s longstanding claim.

Lebanon

Women in Blood-stained Wedding Dresses Demonstrate Against Lebanese Law Exonerating Rapists Who Marry Their Victims (MEMRI)

Morocco

Don’t Teach Women to Hide the Abuse They Experience, Teach Men Not to Abuse – Kayleigh Bolingbroke (fbomb)

Moroccan Jihadist Group Merges with Local Syrian Faction – Caleb Weiss (Long War Journal)

Iran

Iran Breaks Nuclear Deal and UN Resolutions – Majid Rafizadeh (Gatestone Institute)

Iraq

Yanar Mohammed: Freeing Mosul Could be Death Sentence for Iraqi Women – Elspeth Dehnert (News Deeply) What does it mean for the woman who is pregnant due to an ISIS husband, the woman whose relatives might look at it as an honor issue and kill her because of it? The liberation of Mosul might mean a death sentence for a big number of women.

Pakistan

Taliban Demands for Cash Stir Fears of Swat Valley Comeback- Asad Hashim (Asia Times)

Partners for Peace?

Hamas: Ties with Iran Getting Better Every Day (ISNA-Iran)

Hamas Arrests Hundreds of Extremists in Gaza - Kifah Ziboun (Asharq Al-Awsat-UK)

Half of the Residents of Shuafat Refugee Camp Aren't Refugees (Elder of Ziyon) It has become a popular place of residence for non-refugee Palestinians who might not otherwise be able to afford the high cost of living in Jerusalem…. they would have to pay rent instead of getting free housing from UNRWA.

Palestinian Poll: 2/3 Demand Abbas' Resignation - Dr. Khalil Shikaki (Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research)  53% support a return to an armed intifada.  62% support abandoning the Oslo agreement. 73% believe that Abbas should reject the Israeli Prime Minister's invitation to speak in front of the Israeli Knesset. 50% think it was a wrong decision to send fire fighting vehicles and men to combat recent fires in Israel.

Fatah TV broadcasts terror promoting song 72 times – Itamar Marcus (PMW)

Syria

Israel Has Wary Eye on Iran after Syrian Rebels Lose Aleppo - Luke Baker  (Reuters)

The Lesson of Aleppo - Seth J. Frantzman . (Jerusalem Post) What Aleppo has proven is that in the 21st century a regime like Assad's can get away with any human rights abuse, even the scorched earth of most of its own country, while the world watches on YouTube and Twitter and does little.

United States of America

Video: Anti-Israel ActivistsManipulate U.S. Third-Graders into Hating Israel - William A. Jacobson (Legal Insurrection)

White House 'Champion' Blasts Muslims Who Work with Jews - Steven Emerson (Algemeiner)