Salem-News.com Israel articles Page 59

A Blanket of Fear (A Play in One Act)

There are no hard distinctions between what is real and what is unreal, nor between what is true and what is false. A thing is not necessarily either true or false; it can be both true and false. — Harold Pinter

(MANAMA, Bahrain) - Netanyahu (N) and Obama (O) are on the phone:

N: I want you to catch that schmuck Snowden, lock him up and silence him.

O: Why Ben? He's another whistle blower like Manning and Assange. How does he affect you?

Notes on Status of Our World

There is a game of occasionally supporting one faction over another as long as that faction leaves Israel and Western Corporate interests alone. This is the strategy of divide and conquer.

(BETHLEHEM) - Citizens of Western Countries must demand that their governments stop supporting this sick game of divide and conquer that also fosters Christian, Islamic and Jewish fanaticism.

Long-term, there will be separation of religion from state politics whether in Palestine (Israel as a “Jewish state”) or in Egypt or elsewhere. We will have our own renaissance.

And Now They Want The Temple Rebuilt

Jewish secularism is a bizarre concept. It is a racially driven tribal affiliation motivated by supremacist inclinations.

(LONDON) - Haaretz reported today that one third of Israeli Jews want the Temple rebuilt in Jerusalem.

Apparently dozens of movements in Israel are attempting to change the status quo at Haram Ash-Sharif, widely considered the third holiest site in Islam. They aim towards a resurrection of the Jewish Temple at the site.

Israel`s Indigenous Invaders

How Israel justifies the immanent relocation of thousands of Palestinian Bedouin by characterizing them as invaders.

(JERUSALEM) - On June 24th the “Prawer Plan for the Arrangement of Bedouin-Palestinian Settlement in the Negev” passed its first reading in the Israeli parliament.

If implemented, the Plan will constitute “the largest single act of forced displacement of Arab citizens of Israel since the 1950s,” expelling an estimated forty thousand Palestinian Bedouin from their current dwellings.

`Let`s Cut `Em Off at the Knees and Let Allah Sort It Out!`

AIPAC & OFAC Ratchet-Up US Sanctions Targeting Syria and Iran’s Populations.

(DAMASCUS) - The US Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Assets Control, since March of 2012, is directed by Mr. Adam J. Szubin who more than once has boasted on the sidelines of a Congressional Hearing on Iran and Syria and at last March’s AIPAC’s national conference, that he fancies himself a modern day Inspector Javert.

Choosing the Victor Hugo character, according to one Congressional source, as a kind of role model because of Javert’s focused and relentless obsession.

Alice in Holy-land

In this land of wonders, Alice saw... murderers get Nobel peace prizes, thieves are the guardians of peace and security, war criminals are the law,

(LONDON) - Alice was falling up, then rising down,
With a quantum leap, transcending
Into a parallel universe

Were every thing is upside down,
And nothing is what it seems to be;
In a forgotten land, once called Palestine.

12% of Israelis Admit Paying Bribes

Considering Israel being The Jewish State, we are entitled to assume that the above statistics tells us something about Jewish culture and politics.

(LONDON) - Israeli press reported today that 12% of Israelis paid a bribe in the past year, and political parties and religious organizations are perceived as Israel's most corrupt public institutions, according to the Global Corruption Barometer 2013 published today by Transparency International.

12% of the respondents said that they paid a bribe in the past year. Almost one in ten Israelis (9%) who came in contact with government real estate services said that they paid a bribe.

Rising Above

“To smile when confronted with the most severe oppression, is an act of Resistance rooted in unparalleled beauty.” ~ Jonathan Azaziah

(LONDON) - Soaked in humiliation
Standing in the corner
Of the security-check cubical
All alone

No mum to hold my hand
Or calm down my fear
No dad to hide my shame
And wipe my tears away

Egypt After the Coup... Is Obama Backing ElBaradei?

ElBaradei’s objective is to secure Barack Obama’s personal support during his jockeying for the expected forthcoming Egyptian presidential election.

(BEIRUT) - Washington sources say once it became evident that Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi might well be ousted, Mohamed Mustafa ElBaradei contacted the Washington, DC law firm of Patton Boggs.

ElBaradei’s representatives reportedly also made contact with the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations which claims to represent the 52 largest American Jewish groups.

`One Day Ramallah Will Rise Up`

We still do not know what progress John Kerry has made in his effort to negotiate Palestine and Israel into a semblance of peace.

(CHICAGO) - “One Day Ramallah Will Rise Up” is the title of a current column by the provocative Ha’aretz writer, Gideon Levy. During this same week, Uri Avnery, another Israeli provocateur, entitled his Gush Shalom column, “The Human Spring”.

He sees, and clearly feels, the presence of a “hidden mechanism” pushing the world forward in this post-Arab Spring period.