Having covered domestic issues [and the GOPs split on Foreign Policy between a neoisolationist and

muscular approach @ the end of the last Blast e-mail], it is vital to provide an update regarding Israel;
the headline on Drudge says-it-all: BIBI TELLS WHITE HOUSE: 'NEVER SECOND-GUESS ME AGAIN!' [This
is eerily reminiscent of the classic-quote from Rush, Dont doubt me!] Highlighted are articles focused
on Kurdistan and Caroline Glicks suggestion [slowly demilitarize Gaza] and my effort to discredit the
smooth-operator who almost destroyed Israel [Dennis Rosswho will be on FNC tomorrow-a.m.]. In the
process, a greater appreciation of the pathophysiology of the tunnels is emerging, a definable-task.

First is a letter-to-the-editor of the Inqy, which continues to publish Trudy Rubins trash; her narrative is
so devoid of truth, that its difficult to discern what Dr. Cohn would be targeting [and, as usual, he does
quite well]. Just like it was vital to read the Cato-essay on why we shouldnt facilitate NATO membership
for the Ukraine [I disagreed with every syllable], so too is it desirable to scrutinize all the deviations from
obvious-truth exuded by this experienced columnist. [One recalls the phrase Have you no shame?]
Indeed, the obvious question that arises is whether one can negotiate anything with someone who only
wants you dead ASAP; deftly, she avoids dealing with such an uncomfortable skewering of her views.

To the editor,
In Trudy Rubins world, the problem between Israel and the Palestinians is that
Gazans are rarely seen as individuals. To the contrary, in the real world, it is Jews and
especially Israels Jews who face a rising tide of anti-Semitic hatred.
Gazans were welcomed at Israeli medical facilities and at jobs throughout Israel, until
they started strapping on bombs or pulling out knives and guns, to murder Israelis,
including at the very healthcare facilities where treatment was provided.
In the real world tunnel building is one of the few new sources of jobs in Gaza,
because that is how Hamas chooses to use its billions of aid dollars and other
resources. Israel has transferred vast amounts of aid to Gaza. Despite import
restrictions, Hamas accumulated and has used thousands of increasingly sophisticated
rockets, turning Gaza into a fortress, building miles of concrete reinforced bunkers and
attack tunnels, rather than schools, businesses, hospitals, homes or civilian shelters.
In the real world, Palestinians are supported by their own special UN relief
agency. Israelis and Jews are vilified and often targeted for random violence across the
globe, while casualties and persecution in bloodier and far more lethal conflicts in Syria,
Darfur, Chechenia, Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, has well as years of rockets fired
from Gaza into Israel are largely ignored.
It is not Israelis dehumanization of Palestinians, but ceaseless hatred and the
dehumanization of Israels Jews that drives this conflagration.
John R. Cohn
1015 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
215-923-7685

Worldview: In Gaza, time to stop the blame and recognize the humanity

By Trudy Rubin, Inquirer Opinion Columnist
Posted: Sunday, July 27, 2014, 1:09 AM
On my refrigerator door I keep a photo of an exceptional Palestinian woman who ran
kindergartens in Gaza in the 1990s for the Philly-based American Friends Service
Committee. Mary Khaas, who died more than a decade ago, would drag her teachers
from their refugee-camp homes to visit her Jewish friends at a kibbutz just across the
Gaza border. She believed in two states, and wanted each side to stop demonizing the
other.
Attitudes have hardened in Gaza over the last decade, and I don't know how Mary
would feel now. But as U.S. efforts to produce a lasting cease-fire falter, and temporary
cease-fires run down, the photo reminds me that many Americans can't conceptualize
the humanity of the civilians who are dying there. Unless the world starts paying more
attention to the people behind the statistics, the battles between Israel and Hamas will
never end.
Few Americans, except for aid workers, have ever visited Gaza, a 25-by-5-mile spit of
sand crammed with 1.7 million Palestinians, many them descendants of refugees who
fled Jaffa or the Beersheba area during Israel's war of independence.
No one wants the Gaza Strip. The Israelis captured it in 1967 from Egypt and regard it
with disdain. In Hebrew, "Go to Gaza" is the local variant of "Go to hell."
The Egyptians feel the same way. They occupied the strip in 1948 during the Arab war
with Israel, when Gaza was part of mandate Palestine. Given the high unemployment
and sinking economy in Egypt, the last thing its rulers want is to take the strip back.
So Gaza's men, women, and children remain locked up in a virtual prison. Since Hamas
took control in 2007, Israel has kept the strip under a punishing economic blockade; the
Israelis control its sea space, airspace, and borders, except for the Rafah crossing with
Egypt. Gazans are rarely allowed to exit for medical treatment or to study.
Tens of thousands of Gazans who once worked as laborers inside Israel were locked out
of Israeli jobs nearly two decades ago for security reasons. Unemployment is sky high,
and local businesses, such as flower, fruit, and juice exporters, have been crippled by
the blockade, or by previous battles between Israel and Hamas. Gaza lives off the
international dole.
One reason for the amazing extent of Hamas' underground tunnel network - which
Israel is trying to destroy - is that digging tunnels is one of the few new sources of jobs.
The awful realities of Gazans' lives get lost in the blame game between Israel and Hamas
over their deaths.
Israel portrays the civilian victims, including children, as "human shields" forced by
Hamas to stay in harm's way despite advance Israeli warnings. Hamas says the
responsibility for their deaths lies totally with Israel. Each side accuses the other of war
crimes.
Both narratives are simplistic.
Hamas has indeed exposed Gazans to peril - by firing rockets that indiscriminately target
Israeli civilians; this fits the definition of a war crime. By firing from built-up areas,
Hamas puts its own population at risk, since it knows Israel will try to eliminate the
rocket threat.
So Hamas is culpable for Gazan casualties, but the story doesn't end there. There is no
evidence Hamas is forcibly preventing Gazans from seeking shelter. Some Gazans stay
put to protect their modest homes - which represent their entire life savings - or
because it is simply too difficult to flee with huge extended families, or because they
believed they were safe as they ate their post-fast meal during Ramadan.
As for prior warning, anyone who has been to Gaza (I have been there many times,
though not recently) knows the tiny strip is so densely populated that civilians are hard
pressed to escape the shelling and bombing. We've seen the videos of frantic families,
children in tow, desperately trying to figure out which street is safe. We've seen them
get blasted in a U.N. school shelter, in a hospital, and - in the case of four young boys -
while playing on a quiet beach.
The satirical publication the Onion caught the reality brilliantly in a July 23 headline:
"Israel: Palestinians Given Ample Time to Evacuate to Nearby Bombing Sites."
One reason the bombing has gone on so long, and aroused a limited international
outcry, is that Gazans are rarely seen as individuals, but as a lumpen mass that is to
blame for its own troubles. That view is especially prevalent inside Israel. Amira Hass, a
courageous Israeli journalist who covers Gaza and the West Bank for Haaretz, and
whose moving book Drinking the Sea at Gaza details ordinary life inside the strip, is
often excoriated. Israeli artists who have expressed sorrow over deaths on both sides
have been pilloried on social networks.
Mary Khaas' photo brings back many memories of Gazans I knew whose stories would
surprise Americans. There were Hatem Abu Ghazaleh, an eminent Western-trained
surgeon who returned home to help handicapped children, and Eyad El-Sarraj, a
psychiatrist, who fought for Palestinian human rights.
There were the Fatah members I met in the 1990s who had spent years in Israeli
prisons, learned Hebrew, and had come to believe the only way forward was two states.
More recently, there was an impressive group of young academics and Ph.D. candidates
I met in Philadelphia, who encouraged young Gazans to channel their anger into writing
short stories, collected into a volume called Gaza Writes Back. And there is the majority
of ordinary Gazans who just want to get on with living.
The bottom line: It's time to stop playing the blame game for civilian deaths in Gaza, or
citing statistics and focus on this: Too many innocent people are dying. The bombing
can't continue.
There is no way to eliminate Hamas' tunnels and rockets by military means alone -
unless Israel flattens Gaza and disregards the death toll and the damage to its
reputation. Absent a negotiated solution that gives ordinary Gazans some hope for the
future, this problem won't end.
U.S. Betrays Syria's Opposition
The World from Here: Kurds, Jews and a new Mideast
Kurdish-Canadians Call on World to End Silence and Help Syrian Kurds
The World According to Syrian Kurdistan
Sherkoh Abbas, a veteran Kurdish dissident, calls for dismantling Syria into ethnicity based areas.
American alliance with the Kurds
Syria After Assad: Interview with Sherkoh Abbas, the leader of the Kurdnas
Syrian Kurdish leader Dr. Sherkoh Abbas on looming US attack and its consequences
Europe is Breeding Jihadists, Warns Syrian Kurdish Leader
Syria jihadists fight Kurds, Sunni tribe
Iraqi Kurds battling ISIS press US for arms
Dr. Sherkoh Abbas on the Kurdish Engine of Middle Eastern Democracy
Quest for an Independent (Israel-friendly?) Kurdistan - Part I

Below-the-surface coordination between the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Hamas,
Hezbollah, the Iranian regime and the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Syria, Tunisia, Libya and Jordan.
Into the fray: Far too little, much too late

Israel Should End Hamas Rule in Gaza

Israels Endgame in Gaza [By Caroline Glick] is disarmament by attrition.
Caroline Glick's Capitol Hill briefing
Caroline Glick: Israel, Hamas and Obamas Foreign Policy
Caroline Glick: How to win in Gaza - Israel doesnt have to reconquer Gaza to destroy Hamas. We just
have to humiliate Hamas and knock out capabilities like the tunnel networks that immediately threaten
us. And then let the Gazans fight it out.

Hamas kidnapped Israeli soldier and killed 2 others 90 minutes into US-UN ceasefire
Israel: Truce is Over As Israeli Soldier Captured
US and UN: Israel and Hamas agree on a 72-hour truce from Friday, immediate talks in Cairo
Hamas says missing Israeli soldier is likely dead - Group claims it has lost touch with the cell that took
part in the Friday ambush that scuttled a planned cease-fire.
Hamas Accepted the Truce Specifically to Kidnap a Soldier
White House: Hamas Attack 'Barbaric' Violation of Gaza Ceasefire
US seeks Qatari, Turkish help to free reportedly abducted IDF soldier
Tory Support For Israel Wanes As Senior Conservatives Object To Gaza Action
Netanyahu to Kerry: Hamas bears responsibility for consequences of its actions
Israeli soldier feared kidnapped as IDF names 2 others killed
CEASEFIRE EXPLODES
Diplomatic Contretemps in the Israel US Cease Fire Negotiations
Phillips: As I see it: Iran is the real threat, and the US is on its side - The US is simultaneously supporting
both the Sunni and Shia wings of the Islamic jihad against the West
the media bear moral responsibility for the Gaza civilian casualties
Free GazaFrom Hamas
Journalists receive death threats after reporting Hamas uses human shields
Israel Does Not Violate the Laws of War in Gaza
Security cabinet directed IDF to continue operation, complete destruction of terror tunnels
General: Operation in Gaza A Few Days from Completion
The operation is broader that just the tunnels and missile launchers
Arab Leaders, Viewing Hamas as Worse Than Israel, Stay Silent
THE SATANIC EVIL OF JEW HATRED
Spanish Anti-Semitism is Alive and Well
An Obama administration-endorsed champion of change lashed out at an African American pro-Israel
activist, accusing her of forgetting where she came from and implying that she is being manipulated
by the pro-Israel community.
Israel fights with one hand tied behind her back
Allen West: Allow Israel To Crush Hamas
The Washington Post Took on Obama Over Gaza War - one day Obama was against disarmament and
the next day he embraced it
Senate blocked aid to Israel transiently
Hamas committed war crime, Obama responds with Hamas talking point
Qatars Cyberwarfare Support of Hamas in the War with Israel
Congress to UN: Hamas Arsenal Must Be Removed
CNN to Hamas: Thank You for Joining Us!
Joe Scarborough Responds to Israel 'Asinine' Comment
Congress Acts to Replenish Israels Iron Dome
Mega-Terror Attack Predicted in American Shopping Malls

How to Think About the New Middle East - Dennis Ross
{The reader is advised to read everything here with a suspension of disbelief for reasons that
cannot now be detailed; I have personal, validated knowledge [corroborated during a trip to
Israel a decade ago and then employed when confronting Ross @ a Cheltenham High School
Five Star Forum event] as to his culpability for ALMOST selling-out Israel @ Camp David II.
Therefore, this guy is always angling for approval from the greatest number of people and, thus,
he eschews articulating policies forthrightly; he also failed miserably to predict 9-11, unlike
people such as Daniel Pipes and Stephen Emerson. Nevertheless, in the spirit of full-disclosure,
note this prcis of his advice, c/o the Daily Alert and then ponder my annotation.}
President Obama instructed Secretary of State Kerry "to push for an immediate cessation of
hostilities based on a return to the November 2012 cease-fire agreement between Israel and
Hamas." However, first, the 2012 agreement had done nothing to prevent Hamas from building
up an elaborate network of tunnels to launch rockets and infiltrate Israel - and Israel is not about
to live with tunnels that penetrate the country and constitute, in the words of one Israeli, "a
loaded gun at our heads."
{Ross starts reasonably well, although a glaring-omission is any effort to probe WHY Kerry/BHO
are pursuing a flawed approach; thus, he avoids confronting the ideological slant that these two
scoundrels have imposed upon American (Middle-East) foreign Policy to the USAs detriment.}
Second, this is a different Egypt today, under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and it views Hamas
as a threat rather than a potential ally. It has no interest in saving Hamas or allowing it to gain
from the current conflict. Third, the Saudis, Emiratis and Jordanians see the Muslim Brotherhood,
the Islamist group from which Hamas sprang, as just as threatening as Iran. These moderate
Arab states want to see Hamas lose and not win.
{Ross fails to recognize how BHO slanted towards Morsi and then away from al-Sisi, and the
implications of these choices regarding not just Hamas (as American influence has waned); also,
he fails to discuss Qatar, the most prominently-active of all the states on the Saudi peninsula.}
Kerry, to his credit, envisioned the cease-fire he was trying to arrange as one in which fighting
would stop but Israel could finish destroying the tunnels. It has not worked yet, but if the U.S.
works exclusively through the Egyptians, it may yet happen.
{Ross sinks further into the world of saccharine obeisance when praising Kerry for ANYTHING he
has either intended to do or actually did, particularly because the idea he ascribes to Kerry was
not in the Qatar-plan he espoused a week ago (for it was announced by BB a few days ago);
again, he fails to address how much all Egyptians despise BHOs paradigm of regional policy.}
The administration needs to approach the Middle East with the broader goal of how it can ensure
that U.S. friends in the region are stronger and their adversaries (and ours) are weaker.
Ultimately, President Obama and Secretary Kerry would be wise to approach the current conflict,
and its end, with that objective in mind. The writer served as special assistant to President
Barack Obama from 2009-11. (Politico)
{His coda is as nondescript as was the rest of this think-piece; there is no coherent theme.}

Media Watchdog Asks Why WSJ Reporters Deleted Twitter Photos Implicating Hamas in War Crimes
Feds to Give Company $84M for Destroyed Gaza Power Plant despite the fact that it was destroyed by
Hamas [a point not explicitly made in the article]
Israel is focused on eradicating the terrorist group Hamas, while the Palestinian group's prime concern is
waging a successful public relations campaign to the world
Why Netanyahu doesnt want to go all the way [This was written prior to the abduction.]
Stand with Israel [Rick Perry] America's reaction to the Israeli-Gaza conflict is being watched and
gauged by nations like Iran, and our failure to stand firmly beside our ally will only embolden the Islamic
Republic to continue its criminal efforts to develop and build a nuclear device.
Even MSNBC's Chris Hayes called Israeli-Nazi comparison 'disgusting nonsense,' faces blowback
Defund UNRWA
Saudi King Condemns Gaza Conflict, But Not Israel
Former Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott has called Israels destruction of Gaza a war crime which
is brutally disproportionate and so grossly indiscriminate; Labour politician Lord Prescott censured
Israel for acting as judge, jury and executioner in its quest to mute Hamas terrorists, turning Gaza
into what he says is a concentrate camp.

Many mysteries are solved in these excerpts from the Daily Alert.

Col. Kemp: Israel Is Standing Against the Onslaught of International Jihad - Col. (ret.)
Richard Kemp in the former commander of British forces in Afghanistan. {This says it all.}
Hamas' use of human shields is possibly the key element of their strategy. So you see images of
dead babies, women screaming about their children, and no reality can overcome those images.
It is heart-wrenching. The problem is that there's no reference, no open-mindedness to the fact
that the only reason that these children have been killed is because of Hamas' aggression
towards Israel.
Israel is at a disadvantage too because while Israel might understand the need to come ou
with a rapid message of the truth of what's happening in the conflict, it still has to be utterly
faithful to facts and cannot afford to get it wrong, or to exaggerate. Hamas, on the other hand,
can say whatever they want and it doesn't get challenged, and if it does get challenged it doesn't
matter for them because they're not accountable to anyone.
A few days ago I spoke to an Israeli pilot that told me that the same morning he had aborted
an enemy target a total of 17 times because there were civilians in the target zone, and
eventually he abandoned the operation. That to me, is one of the best things about the Israel Air
Force - that the very last thing they want to do is bomb a target and have that on their
conscience for the rest of their lives. And it was the same thing with infantry soldiers. In fact, in
terms of civilian casualties, the attitude of IDF solders is the exact mirror image of the way
they're portrayed to the world.
British soldiers lives have also been saved by Israeli battlefield medical technology and also by
Israeli counter-bomb technology, that is, technological equipment that stops or detects
improvised explosive devices like roadside bombs. British soldiers' lives in Afghanistan have been
saved and are being saved by that technology. Beyond that, British and Israeli intelligence
cooperation is extremely tight and that has saved the lives not just of soldiers but of British
civilians as well.
The Jewish people should be extremely proud of the State of Israel. They should try their best
to disregard the terrible anti-Israeli propaganda that is designed solely to contribute to the
conspiracy to exterminate the State of Israel. Israel is the one country in the Western world
today that is standing up for its morality and for its values against the onslaught of international
jihad.
The Cheap Cement Goes to Building Gaza Homes, the Good Cement to Build the Tunnels
Where did Hamas get the cement to produce its concrete-lined attack tunnels, especially in light
of the Israeli blockade and an overall shortage of cement? While the civilian sector in Gaza
suffered from a lack of building materials, Hamas had no problem obtaining thousands of tons of
cement. Unfortunately, part of the cement that Israel allowed to enter Gaza for humanitarian
needs ended up in Hamas' hands.
In addition, cement was brought in through smuggling tunnels from Egypt for years, especially
during the period when the Muslim Brotherhood ruled Egypt (June 2012 to June 2013). During
that time, an average of between 400 and 3,000 tons of cement, iron, an building stone entered
Gaza daily via the tunnels. High-quality cement came from Turkey to the port at El-Arish in Sinai.
The Egyptian authorities at the time were aware of the flow but did nothing to stop it.
Beginning in 2011, complaints by Gaza contractors about the quality of the cement coming
through the tunnels started appearing in the Palestinian press, with concerns voiced that newly
built homes would one day collapse. It appears that in the private sector, cheaper Egyptian
cement was often switched for what was labeled as high quality cement. One cement merchant in
Gaza explained that suppliers would deliver a truckload of cement sacks. The outer ones were
Turkish cement, while those beneath were Egyptian. Anyone who complained or tried to return
the cement quickly found himself threatened by the military arm of Hamas, and dropped his
complaint.
Two years ago, Israel approved Qatari financing of reconstruction projects in Gaza at a cost o
$400 million. A large amount of Egyptian military grade cement was allowed into Gaza through
the Rafah crossing. The moment the cement entered Gaza, Hamas took control of it. The Qataris
didn't really care what happened to the cement and the other building materials they paid for.
When the Egyptian army closed the smuggling tunnels, a serious delay in Qatar's building
projects in Gaza was announced. The local reaction was surprise, since Egypt had sent to Gaza all
the materials that were needed for the Qatari projects.

Behind Hamas' Guns, a Serious Problem of Funding
Until 2011 Iran was Hamas' "sugar daddy," with an estimated 80% of the aid from Tehran going
directly to the military wing of Hamas. Syria, another source of funds, cut off Hamas after it
backed the Sunni forces fighting the Assad regime in that country's civil war, as did Iran for the
same reason. Qatar has taken up some of the slack, as has Turkey, which has spent $350 million
on projects in Gaza. In contrast to the money from Qatar, it is clear the Turkish funds actually
reached their intended recipients.
In its early years, before it was designated a terrorist organization and banned from receiving
funds, Hamas raised most of its funding openly, from wealthy Muslims in Europe and the U.S.
Tha route has been closed, but money continues to enter Gaza in cash-filled suitcases, through
the tunnels from Egypt. (Ha'aretz)

Israel Is Fighting on Behalf of the Free World
"Israel in the Middle East is fighting on behalf of the free world," declared Mosab Hassan Yousef,
the outspoken son of Hamas leader Hassan Yousef. "Hamas does not care about the lives of
Palestinians, or the lives of Israelis, or Americans; they don't care about their own lives," Yousef
told CNN. "They consider dying for their ideology a way of worship."
"Their goal is to conquer the globe and build an Islamic state on every inch of the
globe....[Hamas] is willing to sacrifice as many Palestinian lives as it takes."
"Hamas is not seeking co-existence and compromise. Hamas is seeking conquest and taking
over. And by the way, th destruction of the State of Israel is not Hamas' final destination.
Hamas's final destination is building the Islamic caliphate, which means an Islamic state over the
rubble of every other civilization." (New York Post)

The "Gaza Generation" Seems Worried about Arab Deaths Only When Jews Are
Involved
If one were primarily concerned about Palestinian children - whose deaths are indeed an
abomination - one would demand that Hamas operatives leave the hospital basements where
they have buried their command centers, move the rocket launchers that they have installed in
the doorways of UN schools, and stop threatening parents who wish to evacuate their homes
when an Israeli leaflet informs them that a strike is imminent.
Bluntly anti-Semitic slogans have marred most European demonstrations "in support of the
people of Gaza." Residents of Frankfurt and Dortmund were horrified in mid-July to see neo-Nazi
groups join hands with Islamists in a grim chant: "Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the gas." The center
of London was blocked on July 19 by thousands who gathered in front of the Israeli embassy in
Kensington to shout their hatred for Jews.

No Better Friend in the World: The U.S. and Israel Have Each Other's Back {Yeah, tell this
to BHO.}
Israel plays a role in advancing just about every vital American interest. It's an unsinkable
aircraft carrier in the Eastern Mediterranean at a time when our Pentagon is cutting back on
actual ships. The Israelis have built defensive technologies like Iron Dome, which is now co-
produced in the U.S. and will make its way to our other allies.
Most immediately, and daily - we and the Israelis share the same terrorist enemies and the
same core values. Iran's leaders decry Israel as the Little Satan, but in their marches and
speeches they still refer to the U.S. as the Big Satan. Israel's work undermining the Iranian
nuclear program also protect the U.S. Jihadists throughout the region seek to destroy Israel as a
way-station to attacking the American homeland. When Israel launches counter-terror operations
against those terrorists, they remove the threat posed to us as well.

Khamenei Mends Relations with Hamas
Arm Hamas. That was the main message of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's speech on the
occasion of Eid al-Fitr, the feast marking the end of the month of Ramadan. The support for
Hamas marked a shift in rhetoric for the Iranian leader. Ties suffered because of Iran's support
for Bashar al-Assad. The Hamas external leadership left Damascus in 2012.
"A rabid dog, and a predatory wolf has attacked innocent people," Khamenei said, referring to
Israel and its current war against Hamas in Gaza. He accused "the usurping and infidel Zionist
regime" of committing "genocide," and demanded "punishment" for the "perpetrators of these
crimes and their backers."
Finally, Khamenei said: "The entire world, and in particular the world of Islam, is obliged to do
everything in its ability to arm the people of Palestine." The renewed partnership should serve as
a warning to those who believe a negotiated solution to the nuclear crisis would lead to changes
in the regime's policy of supporting violent non-state actors. The writer is a senior fellow at the
FDD. (Foundation for the Defense of Democracies.)

The Road to a Bad Nuclear Deal with Iran

The decision to extend nuclear negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 beyond the July 20
deadline, giving Iran access to an additional $2.8 billion of its restricted assets, sends a
problematic message that there are no negative consequences for not reaching a deal.
With absolutely no indication of any softening of Iran's steadfast intransigence on the nuclear
front - if anything, positions have hardened - what could have convinced the Secretary of State
that there was suddenly reason to believe that the next four months might see the significant
Iranian concessions that had proven elusive in the previous six? There is ample reason to believe
that an agreement wit Iran will be no more achievable in four months than it is now.
The international community cannot enable Iran to continue the interim situation indefinitely in
this manner, with a very short breakout time. It must clarify to Iran that this is not an option.
Israel's Doctrine of Proportionality in Gaza - Dore Gold (Los Angeles Times)
The images of destruction in Gaza have caused many to declare that the Israel Defense Forces
are behaving "disproportionately" and using excessive force in the Shajaiya neighborhood in
Gaza. These accusations have no merit.
Shajaiya was crisscrossed with an elaborate network of underground bunkers and tunnels
containing equipment for the manufacture of rockets, storage facilities for rockets and other
weapons, and launching sites from which the rockets were fired at Israeli towns.
Israel had three choices in how to deal with Shajaiya:
o First, it could have decided that it had every right to use overwhelming force to
neutralize the neighborhood with air power, ignoring the question of collateral damage
to civilians, much like the Allied bombing campaigns of World War II, or NATO's three-
month campaign against Yugoslavia in 1999, in which 40,000 homes were destroyed.
This option was not considered.
o Second, Israel could have decided there was nothing it could do, thus allowing Hamas to
strike at Israeli population centers with impunity. Such a decision would have granted
Hamas a license to kill Israelis, something no Israeli government - or, indeed, any
accountable democracy - could do.
o Finally, Israel decided to separate, as much as possible, the civilian population from the
Hamas fighters and arms in their midst. This required getting the Palestinian population
to evacuate potential target areas, by dropping leaflets with evacuation routes, breaking
into Hamas radio broadcasts with warnings about specific areas, Arabic-language
telephone calls to homes, and text messages to cellphones. An Israeli drone would hover
over the area to ensure that residents had left.
Against this Israeli effort, Hamas employed a counter-strategy of trying to prevent civilians from
heeding Israeli warnings. On July 8, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri called on Gazans to serve
as human shields against Israeli air attacks, and Hamas enforcers sought to dissuade civilians
from fleeing.
Anyone who complains about "disproportionality" must explain exactly what the IDF should have
done to neutralize the terrorist threat while causing less destruction than what occurred.
The Foundation for Defense of Democracies, in its weekly-report, contains myriad/excellent links.
Instead of Bombing Gazans, Pay them to Leave by Moshe Feiglin
The Self-Inflicted Hamas 'Massacre' Blamed By the Media on Israel
The Jews Refuse to Play the Victim
Israel's Tech Scene Continues to Thrive
Israeli Cyber StartUp Closes $10 Million Funding Round
Questions for the International Media in Gaza: How do you feel about the Spanish journalist who said
Hamas would kill any journalist if they filmed rocket fire? When Hamas Health Ministry statistics
contradict Hamas' own propaganda and reveal that mostly men of fighting age have died so far in Gaza,
does it give you pause? Were you aware that Hamas executed dozens of anti-war protesters in Gaza?

Human Rights Activists march along the streets, yelling Jews and Israelis are murderers,
war criminals, and baby killers; these are Leftist Liberal, Crying-for-the-poor-
children, Israel-hating, Hamas-forgiving, marcher, celebrity, news anchor,
journalist, writer, media star, politician, head of state anti-Semites. You think you are
telling us who we are. But actually, you are telling us who you are. You are telling us that
you are ignorant.

Ukrainians Get the Gaza Connection; Why Doesnt the West?

Evelyn Gordon

Much of the world appears to view the current fighting in eastern Ukraine as totally
unconnected to the fighting in Gaza. And since the Ukrainian government is desperately
seeking support from both Europe and the Obama administration, neither of which is
enamored of Israels Gaza operation, one could have forgiven Ukrainian officials for
seeking to nurture this illusion. Instead, they have repeatedly gone out of their way to
dispel it.

Three weeks ago, Andriy Parubiy, the head of Ukraines National Security and Defense
Council, compared eastern Ukraines situation to what Israel faces and warned that
terrorists would likely adopt similar tactics in other countries if the West didnt take a
firm stance against them.

We, of course, studied the experience of both Croatia and Israel, but here a lot of new
features are added, Parubiy said. And, if Russia sees that this experience is successful,
this experience can very easily be used in any Baltic countries, and even in Belarus and
Kazakhstan.

Yesterday, Ukrainian Ambassador to Israel Henadii Nadolenko made both the
comparison and the warning even more explicit in an op-ed in Haaretz. Unambiguously
titled Ukraine and Israel: Together in fighting terrorism, it declared, We, the
representatives of Ukraine, have, together with the people of the State of Israel,
personally felt the totality of the threat posed to civilians by the criminal activities of the
terrorists.

After enumerating the losses both countries have suffered, Nadolenko continued, I am
convinced that the huge loss of civilian and military life might have been avoided had
the activities of terrorist organizations had been condemned by the international
community. Then, citing the recent downing of a civilian airliner over eastern Ukraine,
he drove the point home:

I would like to emphasize once again that the crime, which killed
298 innocent civilians from around the world, is another confirmation of
the fact that todays terrorism is not constrained by borders

In this regard, once again I would like to appeal to the thinking
and caring people of the world to demonstrate their support for
these peoples, who came upon a fight with an evil that threatens the
security of everyone, regardless of nationality or place of residence.

I believe that the countries that are faced with terrorism and who try
to fight this evil should support each other, and should join their efforts
in order to draw the worlds attention to our cause. We must begin
to receive real help and support from international organizations in
order to combat this threat.

Clearly, Nadolenko understands what too many European and American officials seem
to have missed: The Wests fine shades of distinctionunder which some terrorist
groups, like al-Qaeda, are utterly shunned; others, like Hamas, are denounced but
deemed to have legitimate grievances that must be addressed; while still others are
positively feted, like Mahmoud Abbass Fatah, whose Gaza branch boasts of its
contribution to the rocket fire at Israelare meaningless. All terrorists are equally
enemies of the civilized world, and all of them learn from each others tactics. Thus if
the West rewards a given tactic in one location, terrorists in other countries will
soon replicate it.

For Hamas, launching rockets at Israel has so far paid handsome dividends: No less a
personage than U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has pledged that if it ceases its fire, he
will personally see to it that all its economic demands are metincluding opening the
border crossings, paying Hamas employees salaries, ensuring the social and economic
livelihood of Gaza residents and providing major humanitarian assistancewhile not
insisting that it forfeit any of its military capabilities (all Kerry offered Israel was a vague
promise to address all security issues).

Kerry clearly hasnt grasped that if targeting Israeli civilians with rockets pays economic
and diplomatic dividends for Hamas, this will encourage other terrorists worldwide to
adopt similar tactics. Nadolenko and his fellow Ukrainians, in contrast, understand this
very well. The question is whether anyone in the West is listening to them.

Pamela Gellers Insights:

o Higher . on an open thread
o Sweden: Police lured into ambush in Muslim area, stoned by hundreds
o Video: American Muslim Suicide Bomber Warns Obama, Other Leaders We Are
Coming For You
o War Theater: Hamass Self-Inflicted Massacre at Shijaiyah and the Ensuing Blood Libel
against Israel
o VIDEO: Muslims Call for Genocide at Death March in Canada: Yell Heil Hitler at Jews,
Police Do Nothing
o U.N. condemns Israel, U.S. for not sharing Iron Dome with Hamas
o VIDEO: The Return of Islamic Spain: Muslim Jew-Hatred Demo and their dhimm-witted
celebrities
o The Fallen
o Hamas Breaks Ceasefire, Kills Two Israeli Soldiers, Kidnaps One
o UKs largest supermarket chain banning Israeli products
o Hamas: We love death for Allah We love death like Israelis love life
o UK: Families barred from cinema for not being Muslim
o Israeli Discount Bank on NYs 5th Ave Vandalized, Defaced with Fake Blood by Pro-
Hamas Jew Haters
o NYU Professors Blame Jews for Stereotyping Muslims
o American Muslim suicide bomber spent months back in US before returning to Syria to
self-detonate in the cause of Allah
o Turkish Humanitarian Aid to Gaza: Ball-Bearings, Cement Mixers
o Crowdfunding an Iron Dome!
o Adolf Hitler: How, as a socialist, can you not be an anti-Semite?
o It must be so awkward having to check whether the dead child is from Gaza or Syria
before deciding whether to be morally outraged
o Terrorist Hamas Urges Human Sacrifice, New Campaign Reveals
o Cursed for Being Jewish, Dutch Woman Severely Beaten For Displaying Israel Flag on
Her Balcony. Well Cut Your Throat!
o Obama Attacks Israel for Indefensible Deaths
o Nuts!
o UN Clinic in Gaza booby-trapped with bombs built into walls, 3 Israelis dead
o Chicago Imam Calls for Jihad against Israel Cites Quran Chapter and Verse
o Newsmax Headline Gets It Wrong
o Somalia: Muslima Shot Dead for Refusing to Wear a Veil
o Why are Western liberals always more offended by Israeli militarism than by any other
kind of militarism?
o IDF Forces Find & Destroy Terror Tunnel In Gaza Mosque
o U.S. troops told not eat or drink in front of Muslims, and learn more about Islam

Arlene Kushner depicted the days events

August 1, 2014

Written with Great Weariness

Our whole nation is weary strong, determined, clear about who we are, but
weary. How could it be otherwise? We are contending with both an evil enemy and an
insane world.

Shabbat is coming within hours for which I thank Heaven. I had thought perhaps a
brief post today, one that simply provided background. No way...

What I wrote the other day about how I would really need to post every two hours to
keep my readers informed continues to be the case. I will send this out as late as
possible before Shabbat and post again after, as necessary.

~~~~~~~~~~

A brief chronological re-cap of todays events:

The US and the UN jointly announced a 72 hour unconditional ceasefire, consented to
by both sides, that would begin at 8 AM here. During those three days, it was said, there
were to be negotiations on extending the quiet more permanently.

What? Another ceasefire? Another attempt by our prime minister to show that we
were on the right side and had humanitarian concerns? I was deeply unsettled by the
involvement of both the US and the UN, but the fact that Egypt would mediate talks was
a good sign.

My first thought as the ceasefire began was with regard to work on taking out the
tunnels. Just yesterday, Netanyahu had said work on the tunnels would not stop even if
there were to be a ceasefire (and I have to assume he knew it might be coming when he
said that).

Via official channels it was hard to come by this information. Aaron Lerner pointedly
asked a question about whether continuing to work on the tunnels, meant just filling
them with sand, or using explosives to properly blow them up.

Unofficially, from a source with connections inside the government, I was told that we
would be continuing to blow them up and hoped that information was correct.

Following this, it then seemed important to monitor what would be happening with
regard to the teams going to Cairo for the negotiations and the issues of
demilitarization, which Netanyahu had spoken of yesterday. I saw that Egypt would not
entertain the participation of Hamas without a PA presence, and that the Israeli
delegation would include Shin Bet chief Yoram Cohen and the head of the Policy and
Political-Military Affairs department in the Defense Ministry Maj.-Gen. (Res.) Amos
Gilad.

~~~~~~~~~~

All of this became moot within two hours, however, when Hamas broke the ceasefire: in
the Rafah area of southern Gaza (near the Sinai) terrorists emerged from a tunnel and
began to shoot at IDF soldiers. Reports followed of a fierce battle there. Israel declared
the ceasefire formally at a end; from the prime ministers office came a statement about
how the UN and the US can now see how Hamas conducts itself. Hamas meanwhile
attempted to point a finger at Israel the occupier as the one who broke the
ceasefire.

Reports of a fierce battle in the Rafah area then followed a suicide bomber apparently
emerged from the tunnel with the others and blew himself up, killing two.

After this, came the chilling news that in the course of the fighting, an IDF soldier has
been kidnapped. He was grabbed during that battle, when the terrorists emerged from
the tunnel (in the course of a ceasefire). The IDF has identified him: Second
Lieutenant (Platoon Leader) in the Givati Brigade, Hadar Goldin, 23, from Kfar Saba.
There are enormous intelligence efforts and an intense search on-going in order to
locate Goldin; the period of time from when he was grabbed until it was known that he
was gone was short which increases the possibility that he may yet be found. A search
is being done house to house in the area. It is not known if he had been wounded.

~~~~~~~~~~

Hamass Moussa Abu Marzouk announced that Hamas had captured a soldier, but a
spokesman for the Hamas military wing has denied a kidnapping.

Netanyahu has informed Kerry that Hamas will bear the consequences for whatever
follows. Kerry termed the kidnapping during a ceasefire barbaric We are currently
hitting Gaza very hard.

~~~~~~~~~~

Miri Regev (Likud) released a statement on the question of Israels participation in
ceasefires today (emphasis added):

We call on the Prime Minister to return Israel her sovereignty. We
must stop these cease-fires - they give over a message of hesitancy.
"We must not accept a single condition in a cease-fire. We must either
demilitarize or retake Gaza; there is no middle ground. Now is the
time."

Im with Miri. After this kidnapping, I trust and pray that Netanyahu will be as well:
The apparent goal of the kidnapping is so that Hamas can go to Cairo to negotiate a
permanent truce from a strong bargaining position. In their dreams.

There must be there surely will be - no negotiations as long as they have one of our
boys only action to defeat them with finality.
~~~~~~~~~~
An excellent cartoon:




~~~~~~~~~~

I close here with links to diverse sources (compiled earlier) that will provide you with
further insight into how Hamas functions.

Shifa hospital in Gaza was hit recently, and there were furious accusations of Israel
having done it. It turns out that Hamas itself that had done it, as terrorists were careless
in the launching of rockets.

~~~~~~~~~~

This was hardly an exception it just made press more broadly because a hospital was
involved. In point of fact, Hamas rockets fall short about 25% of time and kill people in
Gaza.


~~~~~~~~~~

We know that Hamas cares not at all for the lives of its civilians, but not many know that
child labor is used in digging the tunnels, and it is estimated that at least 160 children
have died in the process.

~~~~~~~~~~

See a tunnel hidden in the bathroom of someones house:

~~~~~~~~~~

With the amount of cement Hamas used to build its tunnels, it could have built two
hospitals, 20 clinics, 20 schools, and 100 kindergartens.

Is your mind boggled yet? Getting the picture of the obscene neglect of the people
visited upon them by Hamas?





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