+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Turkey's Erdogan is becoming the next hypocrite dictator threatening the West's security and alliance. (See 1 below.)
================================
Trump's effect is often behind the scene for which he gets little notice and credit. (See 2 and 2a below.)
=================================
I believe it is only a matter of time before Tillerson is asked to resign. He may know a lot of world leaders but he has been ineffective, has forgotten he represents Trump's view of the world and our role in it and remains a captive of Obama's State Department. What do you think?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Watching Arthur Blank lock arms with his Falcons will cost him both respect and attendance.
I wonder what Bernie Marcus, his former partner , is thinking.
++++++++++++++++++++
Dick
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
1) The Case for Kurdish Independence
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tried to extort Israel to withdraw its support, and threatened to end the process of normalization unless it does so. It is worth noting that Turkey strongly supports statehood for the Palestinians but not for their own Kurdish population. Hypocrisy abounds in the international community, but that should surprise no one.
- Iraqi Kurds were a key partner for the U.S. coalition that toppled Saddam Hussein's regime and has staved off further sectarian tensions in that country. One thing is clear: if the United States continues to neglect its "friends" and allies in the region -- those on the front line in the fight against ISIS -- the damage to its credibility will only increase.
- Nor are there any limits to the hypocrisy of those university students and faculty who demonstrate so loudly for Palestinian statehood, but ignore or oppose the Kurds. When is the last time you read about a demonstration in favor of the Kurds on a university campus? The answer is never.
- No one who supports statehood for the Palestinians can morally oppose Kurdish independence. But they do, because it is double-standard hypocrisy, and not morality, that frames the debate over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
More than 90% of Iraq's Kurdish population have now voted for independence from Iraq. While the referendum is not binding, it reflects the will of a minority group that has a long history of persecution and statelessness.
The independence referendum is an important step toward remedying a historic injustice inflicted on the Kurdish population in the aftermath of the First World War. Yet, while millions took to the streets to celebrate, it is clear that the challenges of moving forward toward establishing an independent Kurdistan are only just beginning. Already, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, has said: "we will impose the rule of Iraq in all of the areas of the KRG, with the strength of the constitution." Meanwhile, other Iraqi lawmakers have called for the prosecution of Kurdish representatives who organized the referendum -- singling out Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) President Masoud Barzani, specifically.
While Israel immediately supported the Kurdish bid for independence, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tried to extort Israel to withdraw its support, and threatened to end the process of normalization unless it does so. It is worth noting that Turkey strongly supports statehood for the Palestinians but not for their own Kurdish population. The Palestinian leadership, which is seeking statehood for its people, also opposes statehood for the Kurds. Hypocrisy abounds in the international community, but that should surprise no one.
The case for Palestinian statehood is at least as compelling as the case for Kurdish statehood, but you would not know that by the way so many countries support Palestinian statehood but not Kurdish statehood. The reason for this disparity has little to do with the merits of their respective cases and much to do with the countries from which they seek independence. The reason, then, for this double standard is that few countries want to oppose Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria; many of these same countries are perfectly willing to demonize the nation-state of the Jewish people. Here is the comparative case for the Kurds and the Palestinians.
First, some historical context. In the aftermath of WWI, the allied forces signed a treaty to reshape the Middle East from the remnants of the fallen Ottoman Empire. The 1920 Treaty of Sevres set out parameters for a unified Kurdish state, albeit under British control. However, the Kurdish state was never implemented, owing to Turkish opposition and its victory in the Turkish War of Independence, whereby swaths of land intended for the Kurds became part of the modern Turkish state. As a result, the Kurdish region was split between Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran, and the Kurds were dispersed around northern Iraq, southeast Turkey and parts of Iran and Syria. Although today no one knows its exact population size, it is estimated that there are around 30 million Kurds living in these areas.
In contrast to the Palestinian people, who adhere to the same traditions and practices as their Arab neighbors, and speak the same language, Kurds have their own language (although different groups speak different dialects) and subscribe to their own culture, dress code and holidays. While the history and genealogy of Palestinians is intertwined with that of their Arab neighbors (Jordan's population is approximately 50% Palestinian), the Kurds have largely kept separate from their host-states, constantly aspiring for political and national autonomy.
Over the years, there have been countless protests and uprisings by Kurdish populations against their host-states. Some rulers have used brute force to crack down on dissent. Consider Turkey, for example, where the "Kurdish issue" influences domestic and foreign policy more than any other matter. Suffering from what some historians refer to as "the Sevres Syndrome" -- paranoia stemming from the allies' attempt to carve up parts of the former Ottoman Empire for a Kurdish state – President Erdogan has subjected the country's Kurdish population to terror and tyranny, and arrested Kurds who are caught speaking their native language.
But perhaps no group has had it worse than the Kurds of Iraq, who now total 5 million -- approximately 10-15% of Iraq's total population. Under the Baathist regime in the 1970s, the Kurds were subject to 'ethnic cleansing." Under the rule of Saddam Hussein, they were sent to concentration camps, exposed to chemical weapons and many were summarily executed. It is estimated that approximately 100,000 Kurds were killed at the hands of the Baathist regime. So "restitution" is an entirely appropriate factor to consider -- although certainly not the only one -- in supporting the establishment of an independent Kurdistan in northern Iraq.
In contrast, the Palestinians have suffered far fewer deaths at the hands of Israel (and Jordan), yet many within the international community cite Palestinian deaths as a justification for Palestinian statehood. Why the double standard?
There are many other compelling reasons for why the Kurds should have their own state. First, the Iraqi Kurds have their own identity, practices, language and culture. They are a coherent nation with profound historical ties to their territory. They have their own national institutions that separate them from their neighbors, their own army (the Peshmerga) and their own oil and energy strategy. International law stipulated in Article 1 of the Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, lays the foundation for the recognition of state sovereignty. The edict states:
Moreover, the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq -- the closest it has come to having its own state -- has thrived and maintained relative peace and order against the backdrop of a weak, ineffectual Iraqi government and a brutal civil war. As such, it represents a semblance of stability in a region comprised of bloody violence, destruction and failed states.
Why then did the United States -- along with Russia, the EU, China and the UN -- come out against independence for one of the largest ethnic groups without a state, when they push so hard for Palestinian statehood? The U.S. State Department said it was "deeply disappointed" with the action taken, while the White House issued a statement calling it "provocative and destabilizing." Essentially, the international community cites the following two factors for its broad rejection:
Israel is the only Western democracy to come out in support of Kurdish independence in northern Iraq. One would expect that the state-seeking Palestinian Authority (PA) -- which has cynically used international forums to push for Palestinian self-determination -- would back Kurdish efforts for independence. However, while seeking recognition for its own right to statehood, the PA instead subscribed to the Arab League's opposing position. This is what Hasan Khreisheh of the Palestinian Legislative Council said about the referendum:
Nor are there any limits to the hypocrisy of those university students and faculty who demonstrate so loudly for Palestinian statehood, but ignore or oppose the Kurds. When is the last time you read about a demonstration in favor of the Kurds on a university campus? The answer is never. No one who supports statehood for the Palestinians can morally oppose Kurdish independence. But they do, because it is double-standard hypocrisy, and not morality, that frames the debate over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
2) The Big Middle East Lie
By Bassam Tawil
Nimer Mahmoud Jamal, the 37-year-old Palestinian terrorist who on September 25 murdered three Israelis at the entrance to Har Adar near Jerusalem, had a permit from the Israeli authorities to work in Israel.
The independence referendum is an important step toward remedying a historic injustice inflicted on the Kurdish population in the aftermath of the First World War. Yet, while millions took to the streets to celebrate, it is clear that the challenges of moving forward toward establishing an independent Kurdistan are only just beginning. Already, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, has said: "we will impose the rule of Iraq in all of the areas of the KRG, with the strength of the constitution." Meanwhile, other Iraqi lawmakers have called for the prosecution of Kurdish representatives who organized the referendum -- singling out Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) President Masoud Barzani, specifically.
People cast their referendum vote on September 25, 2017 in Kirkuk, Iraqi Kurdistan. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
|
While Israel immediately supported the Kurdish bid for independence, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tried to extort Israel to withdraw its support, and threatened to end the process of normalization unless it does so. It is worth noting that Turkey strongly supports statehood for the Palestinians but not for their own Kurdish population. The Palestinian leadership, which is seeking statehood for its people, also opposes statehood for the Kurds. Hypocrisy abounds in the international community, but that should surprise no one.
The case for Palestinian statehood is at least as compelling as the case for Kurdish statehood, but you would not know that by the way so many countries support Palestinian statehood but not Kurdish statehood. The reason for this disparity has little to do with the merits of their respective cases and much to do with the countries from which they seek independence. The reason, then, for this double standard is that few countries want to oppose Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria; many of these same countries are perfectly willing to demonize the nation-state of the Jewish people. Here is the comparative case for the Kurds and the Palestinians.
First, some historical context. In the aftermath of WWI, the allied forces signed a treaty to reshape the Middle East from the remnants of the fallen Ottoman Empire. The 1920 Treaty of Sevres set out parameters for a unified Kurdish state, albeit under British control. However, the Kurdish state was never implemented, owing to Turkish opposition and its victory in the Turkish War of Independence, whereby swaths of land intended for the Kurds became part of the modern Turkish state. As a result, the Kurdish region was split between Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran, and the Kurds were dispersed around northern Iraq, southeast Turkey and parts of Iran and Syria. Although today no one knows its exact population size, it is estimated that there are around 30 million Kurds living in these areas.
In contrast to the Palestinian people, who adhere to the same traditions and practices as their Arab neighbors, and speak the same language, Kurds have their own language (although different groups speak different dialects) and subscribe to their own culture, dress code and holidays. While the history and genealogy of Palestinians is intertwined with that of their Arab neighbors (Jordan's population is approximately 50% Palestinian), the Kurds have largely kept separate from their host-states, constantly aspiring for political and national autonomy.
Over the years, there have been countless protests and uprisings by Kurdish populations against their host-states. Some rulers have used brute force to crack down on dissent. Consider Turkey, for example, where the "Kurdish issue" influences domestic and foreign policy more than any other matter. Suffering from what some historians refer to as "the Sevres Syndrome" -- paranoia stemming from the allies' attempt to carve up parts of the former Ottoman Empire for a Kurdish state – President Erdogan has subjected the country's Kurdish population to terror and tyranny, and arrested Kurds who are caught speaking their native language.
But perhaps no group has had it worse than the Kurds of Iraq, who now total 5 million -- approximately 10-15% of Iraq's total population. Under the Baathist regime in the 1970s, the Kurds were subject to 'ethnic cleansing." Under the rule of Saddam Hussein, they were sent to concentration camps, exposed to chemical weapons and many were summarily executed. It is estimated that approximately 100,000 Kurds were killed at the hands of the Baathist regime. So "restitution" is an entirely appropriate factor to consider -- although certainly not the only one -- in supporting the establishment of an independent Kurdistan in northern Iraq.
In contrast, the Palestinians have suffered far fewer deaths at the hands of Israel (and Jordan), yet many within the international community cite Palestinian deaths as a justification for Palestinian statehood. Why the double standard?
There are many other compelling reasons for why the Kurds should have their own state. First, the Iraqi Kurds have their own identity, practices, language and culture. They are a coherent nation with profound historical ties to their territory. They have their own national institutions that separate them from their neighbors, their own army (the Peshmerga) and their own oil and energy strategy. International law stipulated in Article 1 of the Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, lays the foundation for the recognition of state sovereignty. The edict states:
"the state as a person of international law should possess the following qualifications: (a) a permanent population; (b) a defined territory; (c) government; and (d) capacity to enter into relations with the other states."The KRG meets these criteria, as least as well as do the Palestinians.
Moreover, the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq -- the closest it has come to having its own state -- has thrived and maintained relative peace and order against the backdrop of a weak, ineffectual Iraqi government and a brutal civil war. As such, it represents a semblance of stability in a region comprised of bloody violence, destruction and failed states.
Why then did the United States -- along with Russia, the EU, China and the UN -- come out against independence for one of the largest ethnic groups without a state, when they push so hard for Palestinian statehood? The U.S. State Department said it was "deeply disappointed" with the action taken, while the White House issued a statement calling it "provocative and destabilizing." Essentially, the international community cites the following two factors for its broad rejection:
- That it will cause a destabilizing effect in an already fragile Iraq that may reverberate in neighboring states with Kurdish populations;
- That the bid for independence will distract from the broader effort to defeat ISIS – which is being fought largely by Kurdish Peshmerga forces.
Israel is the only Western democracy to come out in support of Kurdish independence in northern Iraq. One would expect that the state-seeking Palestinian Authority (PA) -- which has cynically used international forums to push for Palestinian self-determination -- would back Kurdish efforts for independence. However, while seeking recognition for its own right to statehood, the PA instead subscribed to the Arab League's opposing position. This is what Hasan Khreisheh of the Palestinian Legislative Council said about the referendum:
"The Kurds are a nation, same as Arabs, French and English. But this referendum is not an innocent step. The only country behind them is Israel. Once Israel is behind them, then from my point of view, we have to be careful."Clearly, there are no limits to the Palestinian Authority's hypocrisy.
Nor are there any limits to the hypocrisy of those university students and faculty who demonstrate so loudly for Palestinian statehood, but ignore or oppose the Kurds. When is the last time you read about a demonstration in favor of the Kurds on a university campus? The answer is never. No one who supports statehood for the Palestinians can morally oppose Kurdish independence. But they do, because it is double-standard hypocrisy, and not morality, that frames the debate over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Alan M. Dershowitz, Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law, Emeritus, at Harvard Law School and author of, "Trumped Up! How Criminalization of Political Differences Endangers Democracy," which is now available.+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
2) The Big Middle East Lie
By Bassam Tawil
Nimer Mahmoud Jamal, the 37-year-old Palestinian terrorist who on September 25 murdered three Israelis at the entrance to Har Adar near Jerusalem, had a permit from the Israeli authorities to work in Israel.
His family and friends say he also had a good life and was considered lucky to have been employed by Jews because he received a higher salary and was protected by Israeli labor laws. The night before Jamal set out in his murderous mission, he spent a few hours at the fitness gym in his village, located only a few miles away from Har Adar.
So, Jamal, the murderer of the three Israelis (two of the victims were Arab Israelis), was not poor. He was not unemployed. In fact, according his friends, Jamal earned much more than what a senior police officer or school teacher working for the Palestinian Authority or Hamas brings home every month.
What was it, then, that drove Jamal to his murderous scheme, gunning down three young men who were supposed to be facilitating his entry into Israel? Was it because he could not provide for his children? No. Was it because his landlord was pressuring him about the rent? No: Jamal lived in a nice place of his own, complete with furniture, appliances and bedrooms that any family in the West would be proud to own.
Jamal wanted to murder Jews because he believed this was a noble deed that would earn him the status of shaheed (martyr) and hero among his family, friends and society. In Palestinian culture in particular, and Arab culture in general, murderers of Jews are glorified on a daily basis.
They are touted as the lucky ones who are now in the company of Prophet Mohammed and the angels in Paradise. Male terrorists are also busy with the 72 virgins they were awarded as a prize for murdering Jews. The murderers — as Muslim clerics and leaders hammer into the heads of Palestinians — are also given access to rivers of honey and fine drinks once they set foot in their imaginary Paradise.
Jamal's friends and family are now convinced that he has been rewarded by Allah and Prophet Mohammed in Paradise for murdering three Israelis. They do not care about his children, whom he left behind, and certainly not about the families of the three Israelis he murdered.
In his village and on social media, Jamal is being hailed as a hero and martyr. Not a single Palestinian has come out against the cowardly terror attack by a man who took advantage of a permit from the Israeli authorities to commit a terror attack.
The Jewish families that once employed Jamal as a cleaner had trusted him. They had opened their homes and hearts, as well as their wallets, to him. The Israeli authorities wanted to trust him and see him as a normal person who just wanted a job with a decent income to support his family.
But Jamal, like many other Palestinians, betrayed the trust the Jews gave him. He chose to stab in the back the same people who had gone out of their way to help him.
Sadly, this terrorist also betrayed the cause of thousands of Palestinian workers who enter Israel for work every day. These workers stand to lose the most from Jamal's terror attack and treachery.
Luckily for them, the Israeli authorities are saying that the Har Adar murder will not affect Israel's policy of granting permits to Palestinians to work inside Israel, because the vast majority are not involved in violence.
The Har Adar murders ought to teach us at least one thing: that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not about the economy or improving the living conditions of the Palestinians. Jamal, who had a job and freedom of movement and a lovely apartment, surely proves this point, as do the murders or attempted murders by other well-to-do terrorists such as Mohammad Atta, Osama bin Laden, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, and many others.
Jamal's bloody lesson, however, apparently still needs to be learned by the West, which, despite all evidence, doggedly persists in drawing an unbroken line between Palestinian terrorism and poverty.
Jamal, however, is far from the first terrorist to convey this crucial lesson: most Palestinian terrorists over the past decades were educated and had jobs.
Some Palestinian suicide bombers were nurses, schoolteachers and lawyers. Some came from middle class and even wealthy families and clans. Money and education, however, did not stop them from committing atrocities against Israelis.
Terrorists like Jamal are motivated by deep hatred for Jews and Israel. They have been indoctrinated and brainwashed by their leaders and Muslim religious clerics into believing that Jews are evil and need to be eliminated by all available means.
Not a single terrorist has complained of carrying out an attack because he or she were starving, had no food for the children and were unable to buy ice cream from the local grocery store. The terrorists, in fact, spell it out as it is: they openly announce that they are motivated by their indoctrinated hatred for Israel and Jews. This is what the Palestinian, Arab and Islamic propaganda machine has done to generations of Arabs and Muslims. Officials and people in the West may deny what they hear as hard as they like; but the terrorists could not be more are honest about what their murderous motives are.
What, then, about those on the West who continue to talk about the conflict as if it were about creating new jobs and paving roads and improving infrastructure for the Palestinians? This seems to be the approach endorsed in the U.S. by Donald Trump's administration.
There is nothing wrong, of course, with boosting the economy and creating job opportunities. This might have a moderating effect on a few Palestinians. They will be happy to see a better economy and a drop in the unemployment rate.
Such measures, however, will never change the hearts and minds of Palestinians. Palestinians will never recognize Israel's right to exist because Americans and Europeans built them an industrial park somewhere in the West Bank.
Over the past 25 years, the Palestinians have received billions of dollars in aid from the international community. When they headed to the ballot boxes, they voted for Hamas because it told them it will destroy Israel. Palestinians are most likely to vote for Hamas once again if free and democratic elections were held tomorrow in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
We might remember this as Trump's Middle East envoy, Jason Greenblatt, returns to our region to discuss ways of reviving the so-called peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. The Trump administration and Jason Greenblatt seem to have bought the lie that “It's about money, stupid.”
No. The conflict is about an unbendable refusal to allow a Jewish Israel to exist in the Middle East. It is about the abiding interest in the Arab and Islamic world to obliterate Israel and murder Jews. It is about the ongoing, bloody Arab and Islamic incitement against Israel and Jews. Jobs are not the problem, and they are not the solution. Let us pay attention to reality for a change: Jamal and his fellow terrorists can teach us something — if only we would listen.
Bassam Tawil is a Muslim based in the Middle East.
2a) Pentagon gives green light to install Israeli defense system on US tanks
2a) Pentagon gives green light to install Israeli defense system on US tanks
By ANNA AHRONHEIM
|
The estimated cost per tank is $350,000. The US Army has approved the installation of Israel’s Trophy active-protection system on a number of its M1A2 Abrams tanks, making it the first army aside from the IDF to use the system.
The Pentagon said Thursday the decision was made following “an urgent material” request.
Designed to detect and neutralize incoming projectiles, the Trophy system has four radar antennae and fire-control radars to track incoming threats such as anti-tank guided missiles and rocket-propelled grenades. Once a projectile is detected, Trophy fires a shotgun-type blast to neutralize the threat.
Developed by Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aircraft Industries’ Elta Group, it is the only fully operational and combat-proven APS in the world.
Michigan-based General Dynamics Land Systems was contracted to add the system to an Armor Brigade Combat Team’s M1A2 SEPv2 at a cost of close to $10 million with an expected completion date by the end of March 2019.
The estimated cost per tank is $350,000.
With its troops operating in theaters such as Syria and Iraq, the US has understood that ground forces and armored vehicles are sitting ducks without active protection systems due to the proliferation of antitank weaponry in the hands of both state militaries and insurgent groups. Outside the Middle East, pro-Russian rebels in the Ukraine have been reported to be using Russian-made Kornet missiles, which can strike targets more than five kilometers away using a laser beam to direct the missile and which can pierce standard armor 1,000–1,200 millimeters thick.
Maj.-Gen. David Bassett, who is in charge of the US Army’s programs in the area of ground combat systems, was quoted by the DefenseTech website in August as ultimately envisioning “a brigade’s worth of capability of Trophy on the Abrams” – one of the most heavily armored vehicles in existence.
The Trophy has been installed on Israel’s Merkava tanks since 2009, and also has been installed on the IDF’s Namer heavy infantry fighting vehicle and new armored personnel carrier, the Eitan, which is set to enter operational use for infantry battalions in the coming year.
The Trophy System received its “baptism by fire” on March 1, 2011, when it neutralized an RPG antitank rocket fired from a short range toward an IDF Merkava Mark-IV tank close to the Gaza border.
The system has since proved its efficacy in several operations, especially during Operation Protective Edge when IDF tanks operated in the Gaza Strip without suffering any losses.
Rafael declined to comment on the report.
The Pentagon said Thursday the decision was made following “an urgent material” request.
Designed to detect and neutralize incoming projectiles, the Trophy system has four radar antennae and fire-control radars to track incoming threats such as anti-tank guided missiles and rocket-propelled grenades. Once a projectile is detected, Trophy fires a shotgun-type blast to neutralize the threat.
Developed by Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aircraft Industries’ Elta Group, it is the only fully operational and combat-proven APS in the world.
Michigan-based General Dynamics Land Systems was contracted to add the system to an Armor Brigade Combat Team’s M1A2 SEPv2 at a cost of close to $10 million with an expected completion date by the end of March 2019.
The estimated cost per tank is $350,000.
With its troops operating in theaters such as Syria and Iraq, the US has understood that ground forces and armored vehicles are sitting ducks without active protection systems due to the proliferation of antitank weaponry in the hands of both state militaries and insurgent groups. Outside the Middle East, pro-Russian rebels in the Ukraine have been reported to be using Russian-made Kornet missiles, which can strike targets more than five kilometers away using a laser beam to direct the missile and which can pierce standard armor 1,000–1,200 millimeters thick.
Maj.-Gen. David Bassett, who is in charge of the US Army’s programs in the area of ground combat systems, was quoted by the DefenseTech website in August as ultimately envisioning “a brigade’s worth of capability of Trophy on the Abrams” – one of the most heavily armored vehicles in existence.
The Trophy has been installed on Israel’s Merkava tanks since 2009, and also has been installed on the IDF’s Namer heavy infantry fighting vehicle and new armored personnel carrier, the Eitan, which is set to enter operational use for infantry battalions in the coming year.
The Trophy System received its “baptism by fire” on March 1, 2011, when it neutralized an RPG antitank rocket fired from a short range toward an IDF Merkava Mark-IV tank close to the Gaza border.
The system has since proved its efficacy in several operations, especially during Operation Protective Edge when IDF tanks operated in the Gaza Strip without suffering any losses.
Rafael declined to comment on the report.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
No comments:
Post a Comment