Middle East Press on: Israel-PKK, Human Rights Hypocrisy, Gaza, Iran: New Age Islam's Selection, 21 November 2024
By New Age Islam Edit Desk
21 November 2024
Dark And Dangerous Israel-PKK Relationship In The Middle East
Israel Must Start Saying 'No' To Most Invidious Issues That Seek To Delegitimize Identity
Human Rights Hypocrisy: 'Forced Displacement' In, Hamas Out
Trump Is Taking Cue From Nixon’s Madman Theory In His Iran Approach
Should Israel Loosen Immigration Rules Amid Rising Antisemitism?
Post-War Gaza: Can Hamas Maintain Its Grip Amid Destruction?
Saudi Reforms: The Show Must Go On
Jordan, Egypt At Forefront Of Resistance To Israel’s Annexation Plans
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Dark And Dangerous Israel-PKK Relationship In The Middle East
By Bilgay Duman
Nov 21, 2024
The increasingly tangible links between the PKK terrorist organization and Israel have become more visible. Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely, during a special session on Syria in the Israeli parliament in 2019, explicitly stated: "We are assisting the Kurds in areas where Türkiye is conducting operations in Syria in various ways. Israel is capable of helping the Kurds, and I am confident we will reap the benefits of this in the future." This statement clearly revealed Israel’s connection to the PKK and its Syrian wing YPG. Additionally, it was uncovered in recent months that Jewish units exist within the PKK, and Israeli currency was found during operations conducted by the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MIT) against a PKK cell. However, these connections are not confined to the present day. It is well-known that the relationship between regional Kurds and Israel has historical roots.
Israel, aiming to secure its safety and expand its borders to achieve the "Greater Israel" vision, supports separatist and divisive groups in the region. This strategy enables Israel to align opposing forces and maintain control over regional balances. The primary supporter of this plan is, of course, the United States. The inclusion of Turkish territory within the areas described as "promised lands" fosters a climate of mistrust between Türkiye and Israel, even though their alignment as Western allies prevents direct and overt confrontation. Türkiye's stance on the Palestinian issue further exacerbates this mistrust.
Following the events of Oct. 7, Israel’s massacres in Palestine have escalated global opposition to Israel to unprecedented levels, making the country even more aggressive. This aggression manifests not only in direct interventions but also in bolstering separatist structures that align with Israeli interests. One of the most convenient tools for this is the PKK structure in Syria. Considering Türkiye’s firm stance on Gaza and the Palestinian issue more broadly, the PKK emerges as a strategic instrument for Israel. It is clear, however, that Israel is not genuinely concerned with aiding the Kurds – it is focused on establishing "Greater Israel." At this point, aligning with the PKK becomes a matter of convenience since the PKK’s true objective is not advocating for Kurdish interests, but facilitating the division of Türkiye and serving the agendas of its supporters.
PKK as a U.S./Israeli agent
The efforts of the U.S. and Israel to create a new order in the Middle East, particularly through Kurdish entities in the region, are not new. A notable example is the establishment of a no-fly zone in northern Iraq in 1991, effectively creating a de facto region for Iraqi Kurds. However, the internal discord among Iraqi Kurds and the migration of the Marxist-Leninist PKK terrorist organization to northern Iraq after the collapse of the Soviet Union, along with Türkiye's involvement in the region, prevented the desired structure from fully forming.
Later, in 1998, the Adana Agreement between Türkiye and Syria thwarted another attempt to use the PKK to establish a foothold in Syria. The capture of PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan after the agreement marked the beginning of a decline for the group. However, the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 allowed the PKK to establish a safe haven in northern Iraq, operating freely within the borders of the officially declared Kurdistan Regional Government. Türkiye’s limited influence over the newly established structure in Iraq further facilitated the PKK's resurgence, leading to an increase in attacks against Türkiye.
The outbreak of uprisings in Syria in 2011 introduced a new phase in the Middle East. During this period, the PKK became a central actor in U.S. policy in Syria. The U.S. attempted to establish a new structure in Syria through wings linked to the PKK, which Israel supported. Israeli media outlets praised the role of the PKK/YPG in combating Daesh. While official support from Israel was never confirmed, the groups’ coordination with the U.S. and the West indirectly served Israeli interests. Several Israeli officials made statements supporting Kurdish autonomy efforts, although they did not formally recognize the PKK/YPG's claims of a autonomous administration in northern and eastern Syria.
Türkiye as a game-changer
In 2017, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed support for Iraqi Kurds’ independence efforts, a position that indirectly encouraged the PKK/YPG's regional aspirations. However, Türkiye's military operations in northern Syria and the control it established in these areas have thwarted separatist and partitionist scenarios in the region. Currently, Türkiye appears to be pursuing a counter-strategy, with initiatives like the Development Road Project involving Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) serving as evidence of these efforts. While Israel supports fragmentation in the region, Türkiye is promoting connectivity and integration. Cooperation among regional countries poses a challenge for Israel. Reports of Türkiye’s direct talks with Syrian regime leader Bashar Assad have reportedly displeased the U.S. and Israel.
That said, after the start of Donald Trump's second term in the U.S. presidency, Israel could adopt an even more aggressive and reckless stance in the region. Trump’s first term was marked by strong support for Israel and its cooperation with PKK-linked structures in Syria. If similar policies resume, an even closer relationship between Israel and the PKK structure is plausible. Given Türkiye's designation of Israel as a “terror state” for its actions in Gaza, open Israeli support for groups like the PKK could escalate. Israel's actions in Palestine, combined with its military operations, have isolated the country globally – except for U.S. backing. This isolation has increased the importance of local partners for Israel, especially as it claims to be fighting on seven fronts.
The PKK/YPG undermines the central authority of the Assad regime, preventing the re-establishment of a unified, Iran-backed Syrian state. The PKK/YPG's control over northern Syria disrupts Iran's efforts to establish a land corridor stretching from Tehran to the Mediterranean. Given Israel’s attempts to counter Iran’s presence in Syria, the PKK could emerge as a natural ally for Israel. It is well known that Israeli intelligence uses PKK-affiliated structures to monitor Iran and Hezbollah movements. This dynamic could lead to an organic relationship between Israel and the PKK in the near future.
Meanwhile, Türkiye’s firm stance against Israel’s actions in Palestine and its operations against the PKK/YPG strategically constrain Israel. This dynamic could bring Türkiye and Israel into more direct confrontation in the near future.
https://www.dailysabah.com/opinion/op-ed/dark-and-dangerous-israel-pkk-relationship-in-the-middle-east
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Israel Must Start Saying 'No' To Most Invidious Issues That Seek To Delegitimize Identity
By Yisrael Medad
November 21, 2024
Back on September 1, 1967, in the wake of Israel’s June victory, an Arab League summit, convened in Khartoum, Sudan, adopted a resolution. Contained in the third paragraph of that summary resolution were what became known as the “Three Noes.”
In order “to consolidate all efforts to eliminate the effects of [Israel’s] aggression,” to achieve “the rights of the Palestinian people in their own country” and to regain “these lands” that Israel now possessed, they agreed their efforts would be based on three principles: three “noes.” The three were
“no peace” with Israel,
“no recognition” of Israel, and
“no negotiations” with Israel – while insisting “on the rights of the Palestinian people in their own country.”
Ever since then – in fact, since two and a half months prior to that on June 19 – Israel has based its diplomatic efforts on what have been its own “Three Yeses”:
Israel seeks peace with an ethnic community that does not want peace with it,
Israel grants that community recognition while the goal of that community has always been eliminating Israel and Zionism altogether, and
Israel seeks to negotiate a territorial compromise while the other side either rejects all plans and proposals or violates what has been agreed to.
FOR MORE than 57 years, this non-equation has been the bane of Israel’s ability to assure not only security for its citizens – as well as advancing its economic, social and cultural needs – but also its international standing in forums and institutions from the United Nations to courts of justice, universities, and human rights groups.
Of course, those three noes were not always upheld in practice. Since then, peace treaties have been negotiated and signed with Egypt and Jordan. With the PLO, however, it was different.
Yet a “no” does not necessarily carry a negative connotation. It can be saying something protective as when an unwanted advance is rebuffed. It can be morally affirming when one, at times, is offered an illegal substance. It can be positive when denying a falsehood.
Playing by the rules
Israel’s official bodies have for too long tried to play by the rules but those rules were continuously altered – to our detriment. The diplomatic discourse became corrosive and debates turned into battles using woke terminology describing nonsensical contradictions.
At public forums, debating halls and studios of media circuses, the language started out at the level of Orwellian 1984 and shifted to a jargon that is intended to confuse and mislead. When one begins to make a good point, the other side convulses from perceived micro aggressions and complains about being the subject of too critical an argument.
The time has come, I suggest, to declare – in as straightforward a manner as possible – Israel’s fundamental positions that are at the core of the conflict that Arabs have with Zionism. The time has come to start saying “no” to the most invidious issues that seek to delegitimize the national identity and rights of the Jewish people.
In my estimation, the three most elemental noes to promote start with:
Today’s anti-Zionism is predicated on the fiction that European Jews, suffering antisemitism, enlisted the help of Europeans powers to colonize a land called Palestine. The Jews were not indigenous, continues the fabrication, and even if Jews did live in the area, it was 2,000 years previously and therefore does not count.
Our “No Colonialism” means that we have always, throughout our history, maintained our national identity and our links, on multiple levels, to our national homeland. Even antisemites knew that when they yelled at us to “go back to Palestine.” In fact, the very name “Palestine” was awarded to the land of Judea by a white European imperial colonialist: Emperor Hadrian of Rome.
THE SECOND “no” follows from the first one: that there is:
The territory supposedly “occupied” is the same territory originally to have been part of the Jewish national home, decided by international law in 1920-1922. In fact, all the area east of the Jordan River was separated then from the Jewish national home and was intended as the Arab state in historic Palestine.
Israel is administering the area as the result of a defensive war forced upon her in 1967 when Arab states and the PLO engaged in an act of aggression. Throughout history, aggressors who lose cannot demand the total return of lost territory. Without a peace treaty, Israel legally is the “belligerent occupier” by law of Judea and Samaria. Israel has more rights to the area than any other ethnic community, especially the group termed “Palestinians,” as Arabs themselves conquered and occupied Judea in 638 CE.
THE LAST is more of a current status: that there is:
No Genocide.
Despite being fairly recent in the vernacular of anti-Zionism, at its root is the assertion that we Jews are immoral in realizing our national goals. We stole, uprooted, killed and massacred, it is claimed, from the very beginning of our Return to Zion and throughout the Mandate years and early years of our statehood.
The charge that we are engaged in a “genocide” of Gaza’s population is but another variation on the theme of Deir Yassin. Despite the refutation and the casting of serious doubts on the figures of casualties being promoted, and despite Israel’s policy of warnings, evacuations and entry of humanitarian aid – which Germany’s population never merited, for example – the cries of “genocide” continue. Gaza has blinded the haters of Zion. The charge of genocide is but a regurgitated revival of Jews “poisoning wells” and performing “ritual murders” from the medieval ages.
These three noes, among others, should form – especially on the backdrop of the incoming American administration – the hard core messaging on the diplomatic and public policy fronts that Israel faces.
They are noes that assert a positive and truthful message: that Israel is here to stay.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-830066
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Human Rights Hypocrisy: 'Forced Displacement' In, Hamas Out
By Gerald M. Steinberg
November 21, 2024
Powerful NGOs claiming to promote universal human rights have long been major sources of false claims and hate propaganda targeting Israel. The violent antisemitic attacks that took place in Amsterdam were another manifestation of these campaigns.
For three decades, the US-based HRW has been among the leaders of this insidious warfare, once again displayed in a new publication cynically headlined “‘Hopeless, Starving, and Besieged: Israel’s Forced Displacement of Palestinians in Gaza.” This form of agit-prop falsely portrays Israel as cruelly, arbitrarily, and needlessly evicting 90% of the Gazan population from their homes, bombing them as they evacuate and depriving them of food, water, and sanitation.
With an annual budget of about $100 million, HRW claims to advance human rights for all, while disproportionately and brazenly peddling false accusations based on the claims of Hamas. As in all its statements and “reports” on Israel and Palestinians, the HRW staff erases the reality of 17 years of the Hamas reign of terror in Gaza, as well as the mountains of obvious evidence depicting Palestinian war crimes.
This is not merely another biased and inaccurate report that gets a few “cut and paste” headlines from wire services and some posts on social media.
Like similar publications from the network of anti-Israel advocacy NGOs, the invented headlines drive policy that rewards terror and demonizes Israel and are used to justify antisemitic attacks. In the propaganda marketing strategy perfected by long-time HRW leader Kenneth Roth, the NGOs surround themselves with a halo effect based on false images of altruistic, benevolent, and apolitical neutral actors on the world stage.
This description has not been true for a long time, especially when it comes to Israel, and the consequences are dire.
For example, HRW’s “forced displacement” disinformation campaign again erases the role of the Hamas terror army and its massive infrastructure of excavated tunnels and weapons manufacturing factories in and below houses, schools, hospitals, and mosques.
Hamas exploiting civilians
The single mention of how Hamas exploits civilians is the ritual assurance that “Human Rights Watch understands and has criticized Hamas and other Palestinian groups for firing rockets from populated areas.” In fact, the very few such criticisms are largely invisible and used as tokens like this one to shift the focus away from Palestinian terror and war crimes.
Following 20 years of systematic malpractice, HRW only mentions the word “tunnel” four times – and only when quoting or referring to Israeli-provided information. The combination of falsely accusing Israel of war crimes and ignoring the 1949 Geneva Convention’s prohibition on using civilians and civilian infrastructure for war – which is the core of the Gaza terror strategy – highlights HRW’s hypocrisy.
Only by falsifying everything about the Gaza conflict, including the IDF’s emphasis on evacuating civilians in order to fight Hamas and destroy the massive underground infrastructure is HRW able to accuse Israel of war crimes.
Notably, the staffers who wrote this document admit that “it is impossible for Human Rights Watch to fully interrogate the military strategy of the Israeli military.” In fact, HRW clearly has no clue nor interest in understanding the IDF strategy against the brutal war machine constructed under Gaza. Without this information and expertise, there is no foundation for any accusations based on the laws of war, which require evaluating actual battlefield conditions.
As in other numerous previous reports, the researchers at HRW have demonstrated that they are totally unqualified to write such reports.
In the absence of facts and evidence, HRW substitutes large-scale disinformation and distortion. In “‘Hopeless, Starving, and Besieged: Israel’s Forced Displacement of Palestinians in Gaza,” they cite explicit statements from Israeli officials that demonstrate the legality and necessity of the Gaza strategy: “Israel justified the mass evacuation order as being for the safety of the civilian population and stated military reason... was centered on the presence of Hamas fighters and military infrastructure, including Hamas’ extensive tunnel infrastructure…”
But then, HRW devotes numerous pages to manipulating distorted and cherry-picked quotes in order to falsely claim that the initial IDF actions following the October 7 atrocities were actually designed to punish and displace civilians, with no military necessity.
Through this entirely false narrative, HRW asserts its central propaganda claim, that “there is no plausible imperative military reason to justify Israel’s mass displacement of nearly all of Gaza’s population, often multiple times.” For anyone who reads the text (and not merely the press release) with anything like an open mind, the distortion is painfully obvious.
This is another example of the systematic bias and immorality that permeates HRW, as verified by Danielle Haas, a senior editor at the NGO for 13 years.
Haas has referred to the “years of politicization” in singling out Israel, violating “basic editorial standards related to rigor, balance, and... the principles of accuracy and fairness.” Recalling this history, Haas observed that HRW staff know that the “unverified accusations would be widely cited as incontrovertible evidence.”
The clear objective of HRW’s reports, including this one, is to promote the soft-power war based on arms embargoes, boycotts, and demonization that reinforce the hard war led by Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran.
These bogus reports are cited blindly (or consciously) by UN demagogues, biased academics, journalists, and policymakers to prevent Israel from blocking genocidal terror and defending its civilians. By giving credibility to the propaganda produced by HRW and other NGOs, the international law and human rights community, created in the shadow of the Holocaust, has totally betrayed its mission to protect civilian lives.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-830044
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Trump Is Taking Cue From Nixon’s Madman Theory In His Iran Approach
By Douglas Bloomfield
November 21, 2024
Donald Trump has borrowed a page from Richard Nixon’s foreign policy playbook – and it just might be working.
Nixon’s Madman Theory was designed to make foes think twice about provoking the United States because its leader was irrational, volatile and unpredictable. At least that’s what he wanted the Soviet Union and China to think.
In reality, he was very smart, experienced and had a clear understanding of history and foreign affairs. History will judge him harshly for his scandals, the Watergate affair, and his resignation from the presidency. But he was not a foreign policy lightweight.
Trump appears to be emulating the madman approach with Iran. It can be very risky because he lacks Nixon’s mental tools, and he has no Henry Kissinger or anyone even close.
Nixon was “strategic and calculated,” while Trump can be “impulsive, ad hoc and incompetent,” said Prof. Natasha Lindstaedt of Essex University, an expert on authoritarian regimes.
Trump is often guided by grievances and retribution for personal slights rather than broad policy goals. While Lindstaedt thinks madman theory is “just idiotic,” it may be enough to give Tehran’s rulers pause.
The FBI uncovered an Iranian plot to assassinate Trump this fall, apparently in revenge for his ordering the killing of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in 2020. Whether it was exposure of the plot or the election results, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, appears to have changed his mind. He secretly informed Washington after the Biden administration said any attempt on Trump’s life would be considered an act of war, and that his country has no plans to kill the president-elect and will take its grievances to courts, according to The Wall Street Journal.
ELON MUSK, Trump’s billionaire buddy who seems to think he’s some kind of co-president, met last week in New York with Iran’s UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani, who reportedly said Tehran wants to defuse tensions between the two governments.
Trump “has no interest in regime change,” according to Brian Hook, his first-term envoy for Iran. But he is still threatening to bring back a tougher version of his “maximum pressure” sanctions.
The Iranians take that seriously. They are much weaker today than when Trump left office. The Islamic Republic’s leadership is aging, its economy is down, executions and public unrest are up, and its national security is weaker and more vulnerable, thanks to another practitioner of the madman theory, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Decimating proxies
Israel has decimated Iran’s two leading proxies, Hamas and Hezbollah, plus some smaller ones, and decapitated their leadership. It even went inside Tehran to kill Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ political leader.
Iran’s twice-attempted retaliation against the Jewish state in April and October proved humiliating. The hundreds of missiles and drones it fired at its arch foe did little damage and were mostly shot down by Israel with the help of the United States and a few friends, including some Arab states. Jerusalem’s response took out Tehran’s air defenses, notably its Russian-made S-300 missile system, missile and drone factories, and a facility for building triggering devices for possible nuclear weapons. All Israeli planes returned safely.
Iran vowed a “crushing response” after Israel’s October 26 attack. Then came the American election, the foiled assassination plot and damage assessment. The regime downplayed the extent of damage, possibly to avoid public pressure to do more than it wanted. The US beefed up its deterrence in the region, including B52s and carrier battle groups, and President Biden warned Iran that if it attacks Israel again, the United States won’t step in to protect its oil and nuclear sites.
ONE OF the leading Iran hawks of Trump’s first administration, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, won’t be returning. There are several incoming hawks – Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) at State, John Ratcliffe at the CIA and Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon – but Trump made clear in the campaign that he is war-averse. He has called on Israel to do whatever it takes to end the war with Hamas, seemingly caring less about the outcome than the conclusion.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and a close Trump confidante, recently told Netanyahu “do what you have to do” about Iran’s nuclear programs, Axios reported. The PM said he spoke to Trump and “We see eye-to-eye on the Iranian threat in all its aspects and the danger it poses.”
Trump likes to boast he can stop wars with a single phone call. He craves accolades. He wants to end the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine – Not start new ones – and claim the Nobel Peace Prize.
Israel Hayom, the Adelson-owned newspaper supporting Trump and Netanyahu, quoted unnamed “high-level Israeli sources” saying the “Trump team” is “preparing plans to topple” the Tehran government. That sounds like wishful leaking coming out of the Prime Minister’s Office. And it runs counter to what Trump aide Brian Hook has said.
Iran wants sanction relief. Its ambassador dangled business opportunities in front of Musk during their meeting, The New York Times reported. And between terms, Trump and his sons have been drumming up business in the Gulf.
The president-elect also wants to add Saudi Arabia to the Abraham Accords, the premier foreign policy achievement of his first term, another milepost on his imagined road to Stockholm.
Trump abrogated the 2015 nuclear agreement negotiated by Obama, with a lot of pressure from Netanyahu, and boasted he could make a better deal. He never seriously tried.
He is unpredictable, often not even knowing himself what he’ll do next. His former national security advisor, John Bolton, said prior to the election that Trump is intrigued with the idea of “being the guy who went to Tehran” and if elected “he’ll end up” there in his first year. He likes drama and conflict, Bolton said.
Nixon went to China, Trump went to North Korea, and he’d like to go to Tehran and Moscow. And Stockholm.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-830050
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Should Israel Loosen Immigration Rules Amid Rising Antisemitism?
By Cookie Schweber-Issan
November 21, 2024
In his article titled “What kind of Jew are you?” Micah Avni, host of the Hebrew podcast The Leadership of Tomorrow, wonders why Europe’s Jews in the 1930s failed to heed the blatant signs of antisemitism and flee in order to save themselves.
He ends by challenging each one to ask, “What kind of Jew am I? The kind who runs, the kind who helps, the kind who fights, or the kind who turns a blind eye?” Then he says, “Your response will define not only your own fate but the future of the Jewish people for generations to come.”
Avni is, in effect, saying that all Jews are the masters of their fate, because they have the ability to leave, as he did nearly 40 years ago when he sensed danger, causing him to immigrate to Israel. But can Jews still do likewise?
Another recent article, “The goal: Another million olim,” spoke about 2025 as the year when a fresh batch of immigrants should flood Israel, a boon that would greatly help the ailing economy after a year of fighting an existential war. Those people could fill in the gaps of missing doctors, teachers, academics, and other needed professions.
The intersection of these two articles is found in their shared objective of encouraging Jews to leave their respective countries of origin, for the purpose of opportunity as well as rescuing themselves while they still can.
However, these articles are somewhat misleading, because they cause the reader to believe that it is possible for any Jew to immigrate to the Jewish homeland, if that is one’s personal choice. Sadly, it is not quite that easy!
Jews attacked abroad
But it should be, especially at a time when Jews are finding themselves in perilous situations as they vacation, travel, study, and outwardly identify as Jews.
We’ve seen in recent days how Israeli tourists in Amsterdam, Belgium, and Berlin were attacked, how Jewish students have been viciously targeted on campuses, how wearing a kippah or Jewish star can be a source of danger, and, most recently, how one Italian hotelier in the Dolomites refused to accept Israelis as guests.
While these alarming signs point to Avni being correct about this being the right time to flee, it’s also, unfortunately, the time when Israel’s Interior Ministry has continued to have a partially open-door policy to those who wish to enter the Jewish state.
IF YOU are an assimilated Jew who intermarried or an unaffiliated Jew who chose to opt out of religious activity, meaning that you are unable to produce a letter from a local rabbi attesting to your being an active member of the community, or if you were born Jewish but have chosen to believe in another faith, you will not be considered an eligible candidate for immigration to the homeland, established as a refuge for those who are ethnically Jewish (an irreversible birthright despite personal preferences).
It’s no longer the 1930s but nearly 2025, and Diaspora Jews are a diverse tapestry of individuals who constitute many contrasting viewpoints, orientations, and beliefs, as a result of having had the freedom to be whomever they wanted.
Now, at a time when they are faced with the daunting reality of persecution, physical harm, and ethnic disenfranchisement, those who do not fit the “traditional” mold will find themselves persona non grata by the gatekeepers of their own homeland, who could choose to overlook whatever arbitrary conditions they tacked on to the Law of Return, by simply recognizing them as Jews from birth and asking no further questions.
This would be the merciful and generous thing to do, because it might spare hundreds of thousands of them from the worst that is yet to come. But it is not what is happening. The excessively stringent process, requesting obscure proof through paperwork that is unattainable, is demanded, often wearing them down as they realize the futility in trying to secure these documents.
This is unnecessary and burdensome, because most people have some way to prove that one of their parents or grandparents were Jewish – the sole requirement to gain citizenship. Yet, the mean-spiritedness and exclusivity, which has been operative for at least the last 20 years, has prevented countless Jewish people from being able to make the move, because a heartless bureaucracy felt that being born Jewish was not sufficient.
While this cruel practice has persisted, turning away talented and skilled prospective immigrants who had a lot to offer their ancestral homeland, no one in the government has done anything to change this disgraceful policy.
Now, more than ever, it is time to abandon this type of fanaticism based on discrimination toward those who think differently from today’s rabbinical leaders. Unlike clothing, Judaism is not a one-size-fits-all ideology. It is, however, an ethnicity by birth and irreversible, regardless of one’s personal belief system.
As the dark signs of Jew-hatred increase worldwide, it’s important to remember that persecutors do not stop to ask Jews who they are, nor are they interested in whether they have membership in a synagogue. It is enough for them that they are ethnically connected, and for those who are, they will not be spared.If the goal is truly to bring another million olim to Israel in the year 2025, the Interior Ministry must widely throw open its doors to all Jews, without reservation. If they do, they will get even more than a million. They will get millions, if they welcome them!
Facilitating the return of Jews to their homeland is a biblical, moral, and just charge, which the government of Israel should recognize, especially now, because 2025 may very well resemble the 1930s, with one exception – there is a Jewish homeland. Will all Jews, this time, be able to be the masters of their fate, because they have an escape hatch that is open to them?
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-830043
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Post-War Gaza: Can Hamas Maintain Its Grip Amid Destruction?
By Salem Alketbi
November 21, 2024
Many historical examples demonstrate that terror groups with specific ideological foundations undergo life cycles, often marked by critical turning points or crises. Examples include the disintegration of al-Qaeda and Daesh, which fractured into decentralized networks across multiple regions without unified command structures, though they retain their original names for various purposes.
A shared factor in the fragmentation of such groups is exposure to severe military setbacks or the loss of key leaders. This raises questions about the potential disintegration of the Hamas terror group following the ongoing war in Gaza.
Speculation about Hamas’s collapse intensified with the absence of unified leadership after the death of Yahya Sinwar and the movement’s reliance on a joint leadership council.
The war’s end is likely to trigger extensive reevaluation, as it may be difficult for Hamas to continue, either due to the destruction of its military and organizational infrastructure or due to regional and international plans to completely exclude it from governing Gaza.
While some reports suggest Hamas has resumed activities in northern Gaza under local backing, this does not guarantee the movement’s sustainability. The current situation is developing and complex. With no viable governance alternative, Hamas’s presence may act as a refuge for residents – driven by fear or inability to resist.
Hamas needs an alternative to remain in power
The lack of a unified post-war governance framework could facilitate Hamas’s gradual reemergence. Ultimately, the movement’s survival hinges on the availability of an institutional alternative to manage Gaza, particularly to ensure law and order amid utter disorder.
Hamas’s cohesion or collapse will depend on how the current conflict with Israel concludes. If Israel does not deliver a decisive defeat, Hamas could remain cohesive, interpreting its survival as a symbolic victory, even from a propaganda angle.
Another important factor will be the stance of other Palestinian factions, particularly with pressures on the Palestinian Authority for reforms and anti-corruption measures. The Palestinian Authority’s persistence in its current state encourages the formation of parallel power structures or the emergence of new, extremist movements under different names.
Furthermore, local perspectives on recent events may not favor Hamas, given the widespread destruction across Gaza, which the movement cannot adequately address. Regional or international bodies are unlikely to engage in reconstruction efforts while Hamas holds power, either as the main ruler or a partner in governance.
Internal pressures could push toward the movement’s fragmentation or an attempt to avoid accountability, potentially giving rise to splinter groups with similar ideologies.
The situation could mirror the Afghan Taliban’s resilience against US forces, where the Taliban maintained cohesion due to the US military’s inability to secure a decisive defeat.
This contrasts with Daesh and al-Qaeda, which, following clear military defeats, dispersed across various regions. Unlike Osama bin Laden’s death, which had a profound impact on al-Qaeda, the loss of Sinwar – a figure in a chain of leaders targeted by Israel – has not led to Hamas’s collapse.
Hamas’s future appears tied to two critical factors: first, the outcomes of military operations and the movement’s human and material losses; and second, the nature of post-war governance and the existence of a competent alternative.
This replacement must manage security, discipline, and daily life in Gaza more effectively than Hamas, potentially forcing the group into retreat and possibly exposing internal conflicts previously overshadowed by the ongoing military crisis.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-830046
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Saudi Reforms: The Show Must Go On
Faisal J. Abbas
November 20, 2024
With the speed and magnitude of the accomplishments of the recent Saudi reforms, it is hardly surprising that many people may be overwhelmed. The metaphor I like to use is that they have not downloaded the latest software update: for them, Saudi Arabia is still a place where women are not permitted to drive, where cinemas are banned, and the ultra conservatives dominate society.
That is why an event such as the Elie Saab fashion show in Riyadh last week, marking the 45th anniversary of the Lebanese haute couture icon’s brand, was perhaps a little too much for some to comprehend.
Eight short years ago, even a fashion show on its own in the Kingdom would have been unthinkable: but a fashion show with live performances by A-List entertainers Jennifer Lopez, Camila Cabello and Celine Dion was up there with the largest and most glamorous in the world.
However, that is the new Saudi Arabia — a country on a mission to compete in almost every aspect on a global level. While entertainment is only a part of it, it tends to attract more attention given the very nature of celebrity and showbusiness. On that front, one cannot but acknowledge the achievements of Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority.
Alalshikh essentially took a non-existent sector and, in no time, put Saudi Arabia firmly on the map. The annual Riyadh Season dazzles visitors every year with world class events and attractions, and this year alone has already clocked in six million visitors. As for sports entertainment, in terms of boxing alone, Alalshikh is now being spoken of in the same breath as Don King, the legendary American titan of the fight game: whenever he is involved, it is “big time.”
Just to be clear, entertainment, like fashion, is a matter of personal taste. For example, while I would be unlikely to go to events on the MDLBEAST calendar of rave music festivals, I would happily attend a performance at AlUla by the Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. Others will have other musical interests, or none at all. That is absolutely fine: the beauty of the Vision 2030 reforms is, each to his own. A more profound example is what Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told CBS in a 2018 interview: “The decision is entirely left for women to decide what type of decent and respectful attire she chooses to wear” — this is why women across the kingdom today are free to be veiled, don a headscarf, or wear no abaya at all.
Of course, not everyone is happy with this new openness, or with the choices now available to Saudi citizens and expats in the Kingdom. For example, a YouGov poll for Arab News in October 2017 suggested that nearly eight in 10 Saudis were in favor of women driving: not a surprising outcome, since more than 60 percent of the population are under the age of 30. The problem is that for a long time it was the objecting minority who dominated public opinion. Now, not only do decisions such as permitting women to drive empower the majority, but they are democratic in the sense that women are not forced to drive if they don’t want to.
All of which is why it pains to me to witness the unjustifiable attacks on Turki Alalshikh personally, and on anything he does as distasteful — most recently the complaints that the cube-shaped backdrop to the Elie Saab show was somehow disrespectful to the Kaaba, Islam’s holy shrine. Such criticism is too ridiculous to dwell on: I very much doubt that the Star Trek set designers had the Kaaba in mind when they created the Borg’s cube space ships, or indeed Erno Rubik when he invented his eponymous 3-D puzzle cube.
Others say that with everything going on in the Middle East, the Kingdom ought not to be growing its tourism and entertainment sectors, but that argument is upside down. Far from these thriving industries taking anything away from the Kingdom’s religious responsibilities or the tireless efforts of its foreign minister to contain the alarming regional geopolitics that we have to live with, they are actually impressive in their own right. It is admirable that the Kingdom has welcomed 100 million tourists (a target set for 2030 and already achieved) and is opening world-class maritime resort destinations, all against a backdrop of everything the region is currently enduring.
People who have not downloaded the latest software and upgraded to Saudi Arabia 2.0 either seem blind, or are deliberately ignoring that all this is going on while the Kingdom successfully hosts millions of pilgrims every year during Hajj, and has given more than $185 million in humanitarian aid to Gaza alone this year, plus millions more to both Lebanon and Yemen. In parallel, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan toured the world to lobby for a ceasefire and formed a global coalition in support of a two-state solution and the recognition of Palestine.
I understand that this may be too much for many to grasp, or believe is achievable, but this is the reality. As for the criticism, reforms will continue ... and the show must go on!
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2580093
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Jordan, Egypt At Forefront Of Resistance To Israel’s Annexation Plans
Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib
November 20, 2024
With no signs that Israel’s onslaughts against Gaza and Lebanon will relent any time soon and members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s extremist coalition calling for the annexation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, countries in the Middle East should band together. Two of the most important countries in this fight are Egypt and Jordan.
The question is, what are Arabs and the countries in the region going to do?
When Netanyahu and his crowd of zealots mention annexation, they probably have eviction in mind. The eviction of Palestinians is a plan that Israel has regularly touted during its Gaza campaign. However, Egypt was firm and did not allow Palestinians to cross into Sinai. Egypt knows full well that, if the Gazans left for Egypt as refugees, they would never go back. Therefore, Israel’s plan to vacate the Palestinians from Gaza did not work, despite the massive bombardment, the genocide and the decapitation of the Hamas leadership.
Netanyahu is emboldened. He feels he is closer to achieving the dream of kicking the Palestinians out of Palestine and creating a “Greater Israel” from the river to the sea. In order to achieve that, he needs to evict the Palestinians of Gaza into Egypt and the Palestinians of the West Bank into Jordan. Hence, it is key that both these countries hold their ground. This is why the entire Arab and Muslim worlds should support them. They are the first line of defense against the extremist Zionist project that Netanyahu is leading.
There are glimpses of hope that the region will take a unified stand against this hideous expansionist project. Under the leadership of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh last week hosted an Arab and Muslim summit to discuss Gaza. The Kingdom condemned Israel for conducting a genocide against the Palestinian people. The summit reiterated the Palestinian people’s right to statehood and a dignified life.
This unified front should materialize in supporting both Jordan and Egypt. It is important to make sure they do not succumb to any pressure to open their borders and allow evictions from Gaza or the West Bank.
Recent history shows us that Palestinians who leave are never allowed to go back. Any eviction will mean more generations of refugees. Palestinians and the Arab states have learned the lessons of 1948 and 1967. The coming year should not be one of another mass eviction.
The countries that will bear the brunt of the pressure will be Jordan and Egypt. However, Arab and Islamic states should put their foot down. They should explain that another wave of Palestinian refugees will not be tolerated. They will not accept another wave of refugees in return for some perks from the US.
The silver lining is that President-elect Donald Trump is not afraid to take firm positions on issues. If he sees that Netanyahu’s approach will not work and might lead to a regional conflict, he will look for another way. Trump is more likely to pressure and be firm with Netanyahu than Joe Biden or Kamala Harris.
This is the time to give Egypt and Jordan maximum support to hold their ground, so that they can resist any pressure from Israel to accept refugees. Arab and Islamic states should realize that the decisions they make today will affect many generations to come. The region is at a junction. We either allow Israel unbridled expansionism or stand together and establish a framework for a sustainable peace.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2580066
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URL: https://www.newageislam.com/middle-east-press/israel-pkk-human-rights-hypocrisy-gaza-iran/d/133772
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