Jewish Russian Telegraph

Palestinian Children Punished For Playing for Holocaust Survivors

How sad. Palestinian children are punished for straying from the destiny determined for them by the PLO -- hating the Jews. Children played for Holocaust survivors! Imagine this. What a scandal! What a crime!

Jerusalem Post:

Palestinian authorities disbanded a youth orchestra from a West Bank refugee camp after it played for a group of Holocaust survivors in Israel, a local official said on Sunday.

Palestinian children from the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank play for Holocaust survivors at a center in Holon, last Wednesday.
Photo: AP

Adnan Hindi of the Jenin camp called the Holocaust a "political issue" and accused conductor Wafa Younis of unknowingly dragging the children into a political dispute.

He added that Younis has been barred from the camp and the apartment where she taught the 13-member Strings of Freedom orchestra has been boarded up.

On Saturday, The Jerusalem Post found that leaders and representatives of the Jenin refugee camp condemned the participation of Palestinian teenagers from the camp in a concert honoring Holocaust survivors in Holon last week [link]

posted by: jrtelegraph

Dovid Margolin: The Fire Inside

Dovid Margolin:

In this weeks portion, Tzav, the Torah discusses the sacrifices that were brought upon the altar in the Mishkan [the Mishkan was the movable predecessor of the Temple], and the Kohanims', the priests', duties with regards to the services. The Torah states that an “Aish Tamid”, a continuous fire, should burn upon the altar, and at no time should it burn out. The Talmud Yerushalmi explains that a continuous fire means that it should burn even on Shabbos, and even during times of impurity.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe explains that when we speak of the Mishkan and the altar and the sacrifices, we do not only speak of the physical altar etc., but we also speak of the spiritual sanctuary, the Mishkan within each and every Jew.

The spiritual altar is the heart of the man. The same way that the physical Mishkan had an outer altar and an inner altar, so too does man have the external factors of his heart and the deeper, inner parts of his heart. The altar that we are commanded to keep an everlasting flame upon is the outer altar. The same applies to a Jew's heart; while the inner soul obviously feels connected to G-dliness, Torah explains to us that a fire must be lit upon the outer altar, our striving for G-dliness should not just be buried deep inside us (as it undoubtedly is), rather, it should be something that is open and revealed.

The Rebbe now explains why the Torah singled out that the fire should burn on Shabbos and that it should burn during times of impurity. Shabbos is a day of rest, a day when we separate ourselves from the busy world around us, it is therefore forbidden to do work on Shabbos. With regards to the soul of a man, Shabbos is a time when man perceives a greater G-dly light, and at that point he finds himself completely removed from the world. A man may then think to himself, I am at this level where I have a real understanding, I can perceive this greater light, why do I need feeling and emotion, why do I need to have this fire? To this the Torah says, no, this fire of emotion and passion must burn even on Shabbos, even when you are on a spiritual high.

While the above may occur when a person is on a high spiritual level, the Torah goes to the second side, the side of impurity. When a person thinks, G-d forbid, that he has no connection to G-d or His Torah, that is when the Torah warns him too, “even in times of impurity” man must work hard to make sure that the fire that burns within his soul continues uninterrupted, and that this G-dly flame should never flicker or fade away.

It is important to add that this Sunday will also be the eleventh day of Nissan, the Rebbe's 107^th birthday. The birthday of a person is considered to be a like a personal New Year, the Rebbe's birthday, as the leader of the Jewish people, is a birthday that affects us all. Therefore this Sunday, all of us should sit down and take a moment to think of one more mitzva that we can take upon ourselves to help and to further the cause that the Rebbe continues to lead. With our continued Mitzvos, we should finally make the last push towards redemption, and bring Moshiach now.

posted by: jrtelegraph

NYC Judge to PA: Post $120 Million Bond

New York Times:

By BENJAMIN WEISER

Citing an economic crisis in the Palestinian territories, a federal magistrate judge has recommended reducing a $192.7 million bond that the Palestinian Authority was ordered to post in order to defend a terrorism lawsuit in New York City.

But the magistrate judge said the Palestinians should still post a $120 million bond, payable on an installment plan — $20 million down, and the rest in $5 million monthly increments.

The recommendation, which now goes to a federal district judge, is the latest twist in a case filed under a law that allows American victims of international terrorism to sue for triple damages in the United States courts.

The lawsuit was filed by the family of Aharon Ellis, the sole American killed when a Palestinian gunman burst into a bat mitzvah celebration in 2002 in northern Israel, killing 6 people and wounding more than 30.

The suit charged that the Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization had orchestrated the attack, and when the Palestinians refused to defend the suit on the merits, a judge, Victor Marrero of Federal District Court in Manhattan, ordered a default judgment, and the family was awarded $192.7 million in damages.

Later, the defendants, saying they had changed leadership, had new lawyers and were committed to defending the suit in good faith, asked for a second chance. They argued that the gunman acted alone, without their direction or assistance. Judge Marrero agreed to set aside the verdict on the condition that the defendants post a $192.7 million bond.

When the Palestinians, saying they were “teetering on the verge of bankruptcy,” proposed a smaller bond of $15 million, a new legal battle erupted.

A lawyer for the family, David J. Strachman, opposed reducing the bond, arguing that the defendants owned valuable tracts of land and had hidden bank accounts that were once controlled by the P.L.O. chairman Yasir Arafat, who died in 2004.

A magistrate judge, Theodore H. Katz, who was assigned the matter, wrote on Thursday that the plaintiffs’ lawyers, with “some justification,” viewed the defendants’ representations about their assets “with great skepticism.”

But, he said, contrary to the plaintiffs’ contention, “there is no evidence that the P.A. and P.L.O. have concealed millions of dollars, or ‘have huge and vast reserves of assets’ that are readily available.”

Judge Katz added that “the economic situation in the Palestinian territories is dire” and that ordering the defendants to post $192.7 million “could disrupt the provision of essential services to millions of citizens.”

A bond of $120 million, he said, would still provide the plaintiffs “with an identifiable and readily obtainable source of recovery that they would otherwise be required to spend enormous time and expense tracking down, with questionable likelihood of success.”

The family’s lawyer, Mr. Strachman, said he was still reviewing the ruling, but said the court recognized that his clients “have an overwhelming need for security from these belligerent and recalcitrant defendants.” Defense lawyers were not available for comment. [link]

posted by: jrtelegraph

Daniel Pipes: Palestinians Who Helped Create Israel

Daniel Pipes:

Palestinians have so loudly and for so long (nearly a century) rejected Zionism that Mufti Haj Amin al-Husseini, Yasir Arafat, and Hamas may appear to command unanimous Palestinian support.

But no: polling research finds that a substantial minority of Palestinians, about 20 percent, is ready to live side-by-side with a sovereign Jewish state. Although this minority has never been in charge and its voice has always been buried under rejectionist bluster, Hillel Cohen of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has uncovered its surprisingly crucial role in history.

He explores this subject in the pre-state period in Army of Shadows: Palestinian Collaboration with Zionism, 1917–1948 (translated by Haim Watzman, University of California Press); then, the same author, translator, and press are currently preparing a sequel, Good Arabs: The Israeli Security Agencies and the Israeli Arabs, 1948–1967, for publication in 2010.

In Army of Shadows, Cohen demonstrates the many roles that accommodating Palestinians played for the Yishuv, the pre-state Jewish community in the Holy Land. They provided labor, engaged in commerce, sold land, sold arms, handed over state assets, provided intelligence about enemy forces, spread rumors and dissension, convinced fellow Palestinians to surrender, fought the Yishuv's enemies, and even operated behind enemy lines. So great was their cumulative assistance, one wonders if the State of Israel could have come into existence without their contribution.

The mufti's absolute rejection of Zionism was intended to solidify the Palestinian population but had the opposite effect. The Husseini clique's selfishness, extremism and brutality undermined solidarity: using venomous language and murderous tactics, declaring jihad against anyone who disobeyed the mufti, and deeming more than half the Palestinian population "traitors" pushed many fence-sitters and whole communities (notably the Druse) over to the Zionist side.

Consequently, Cohen writes, "As time passed, a growing number of Arabs were willing to turn their backs on the [rejectionists] and offer direct assistance to the British or Zionists." He calls collaboration with Zionism "not only common but a central feature of Palestinian society and politics." No one before Cohen has understood the historical record this way. [Read the rest]

posted by: jrtelegraph

HBO Deprives Dmitry Salita Of His Chance to Fight

 Liberal self-hating Jewish TV execs at HBO want to deprive Russian Jewish boxer of his well-deserved chance to fight. What a shame! HBO, time to shape up, when we go after the named above execs and the channel it won't be pretty, and we will, unless Dmitry gets his fight. Protect your brand, let Dmitry fight!

Proboxing.com:

Dmitriy Salita – measured by another standart

Let’s call it the Ethnic Divide. Latin fans generally root for Latin fighters, Irish fans for Irish fighters, Italian fans for Italian fighters, African-Americans for African-American fighters and Jewish fans for Jewish fighters. It’s the way things are and there is nothing wrong with it as long as it remains in the arena of fair competition. It is not prejudice, at least not in the accepted sense of the word. In fact, it is one of the backbone elements in matchmaking – the crowd coming out and rooting for the local kid. “Local” is defined by more than just the neighborhood. But it can tailspin into the ultimate in ultra-poor sportsmanship when a fighter’s winning efforts and recognition of accomplishments are not merely consistently minimized, but are mocked because of it. Anytime a fighter goes to the well thirty times and comes back without a defeat he deserves praise, cheers and admiration – unless he comes from a place other than the Planet Earth. Dmitriy Salita is not an extra-terestrial. 

There are fighters who have fought the equivalents of their grandmothers in compiling a “looking good on paper” record. Despite the hoots and put-downs of his growing legion of detractors – the silent hecklers are now emboldened and stepping forward as the ranks of vocal detractors grow – the quality of Dmitriy’s opposition is better than most of his contemporaries and even most of the list of sacred “golden age” greats. His opponents have won 369 of 590 fights for a 625 percentage. In comparison, Ricky Hatton, in his first 30 bouts, fought opponents with a 570 percentage, Andreas Kotelnik’s opposition 554, and Junior Witter’s, a still respectable 510. We then come to former WBA titleholder, Gavin Rees, who in his 26 bouts prior to fighting for – and winning – the WBA light-welterweight crown, came in on the back of opponents that won only 305 bouts out of 1,040 – a 290 percentage. And rather than denigrate or belittle his accomplishments, they sang his cheers and accorded him a champion’s veneration. Cinderella never had it so good!

Yet, Dmitriy Salita, who has fought a more imposing list of opponents than any of those mentioned - and we can comb a list of fighters past and present and come to what may be a startling and even disturbing fact to the naysayers – Salita did not build his record on humpty-dumpties or tomato cans. 

Okay, let’s look at some of our “legends.” No one can deny Willie Pep his well-earned legacy as one of the greatest featherweights ever to lace on the gloves. But the “Will o’ the Wisp” started his career with each fight being an education until his baby steps were able to evolve into big time giant steps. Pep’s first 30 opponents had a combined total of 396 fights of which they won only 163, a percentage of only .411! Of his first 10 opponents, 9 had never won a single fight! This is not to demean the career of a truly great fighter. It is simply a measuring rod to put things in an historical perspective. Rocky Graziano, another guy who earned the right to have his fists cast in bronze, went out to win at any cost, with the crowd cheering him on with his late-round desperation rallies. He fought most of the great ones but his early career was not exactly star-studded. His first 30 opponents had a combined total of 630 fights, losing 386 against only 244 wins for a won-loss percentage of .387.

Comparing Dmitriy’s .625 percentage to all of the above-mentioned does not take into account all possible variables but no matter how you choose to slice it, it certainly opens up the door to a respectable argument. The cry that Dmitriy is being protected, that his opposition is hand-picked is the same quality criticism, but from the other end of the field, to the clamoring of a kid being “thrown to the wolves” when an up-and-coming fighter suffers a loss. Sit back and join the Monday morning quarterbacks, the easiest job around.

In this situation there are more serious overtones. When a fan – someone on the sidelines – is the one making such disparaging accusations it will gather a listening audience of varying numbers, there will be some nods of agreement or disagreement until a new topic replaces it on center stage but when the villifiers, the maligners are the promoters, or those who pull the promoters’ strings there is just cause for the fighter and his management to be concerned. Dmitriy was told by a pay TV executive that he doesn’t have the fan base of a Latin fighter. Does this smack of some sort of unfair, somewhat biased criteria in weighing a fighter’s qualifications for a title match. Should a TV/Promotional giant such as HBO have the power to bypass a #1 ranked challenger for someone lower on the list to satisfy its personal and/or perceived financial motivations. By being ranked #1 a fighter has earned his right to climb through the ropes as the rightful challenger. To be deprived of this , no matter the reason, is depriving the fighter of his livelihood, displacing him from a position he has earned with blood and sweat, not by sitting behind a mahogany desk dreaming up some out-of-left-field rationale of why number 7 should come before number 1.

by Ron Ross [link]

posted by: jrtelegraph

Jackie Mason, The Ultimate Jew: Third-world Chicanery in U.S. Congress

WorldNetDaily:

View the Video

Posted by: jrtelegraph

Wafa Sultan: Unbearable Tragedy of Muslim Women

JRT news:

Watch this video of Wafa Sultan, talking about the plight of women in Muslim countries,

posted by: jrtelegraph

Brandeis To Get $10.8m for Russian Jews

Boston Globe:

A charitable group has pledged up to $10.8 million to Brandeis University to fund dozens of scholarships and create an institute dedicated to Russian-speaking Jews.

The donation, from the Genesis Philanthropy Group, will provide scholarships for as many as 60 undergraduates and 20 graduate students and for 132 high school students to attend Brandeis summer programs over the next five years.

The Brandeis Genesis Institute will work to support Russian-speaking students and to preserve Jewish culture among Russian-speaking Jews. [link]

posted by: jrtelegraph

Khaled Abu Toameh: American Campus Are More Pro-Hamas Than Ramallah

Hudson New York via Power Line Blog:

March 24, 2009 6:45 AM | Khaled Abu Toameh
Journalist

On Campus: The Pro-Palestinians' Real Agenda

During a recent visit to several university campuses in the U.S., I discovered that there is more sympathy for Hamas there than there is in Ramallah.

Listening to some students and professors on these campuses, for a moment I thought I was sitting opposite a Hamas spokesman or a would-be-suicide bomber.

I was told, for instance, that Israel has no right to exist, that Israel’s “apartheid system” is worse than the one that existed in South Africa and that Operation Cast Lead was launched only because Hamas was beginning to show signs that it was interested in making peace and not because of the rockets that the Islamic movement was launching at Israeli communities.

I was also told that top Fatah operative Marwan Barghouti, who is serving five life terms in prison for masterminding terror attacks against Israeli civilians, was thrown behind bars simply because he was trying to promote peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

Furthermore, I was told that all the talk about financial corruption in the Palestinian Authority was “Zionist propaganda” and that Yasser Arafat had done wonderful things for his people, including the establishment of schools, hospitals and universities.

The good news is that these remarks were made only by a minority of people on the campuses who describe themselves as “pro-Palestinian,” although the overwhelming majority of them are not Palestinians or even Arabs or Muslims.

The bad news is that these groups of hard-line activists/thugs are trying to intimidate anyone who dares to say something that they don’t like to hear.

When the self-designated “pro-Palestinian” lobbyists are unable to challenge the facts presented by a speaker, they resort to verbal abuse.

On one campus, for example, I was condemned as an “idiot” because I said that a majority of Palestinians voted for Hamas in the January 2006 election because they were fed up with financial corruption in the Palestinian Authority.

On another campus, I was dubbed as a “mouthpiece for the Zionists” because I said that Israel has a free media. There was another campus where someone told me that I was a ‘liar” because I said that Barghouti was sentenced to five life terms because of his role in terrorism.

And then there was the campus (in Chicago) where I was “greeted” with swastikas that were painted over posters promoting my talk. The perpetrators, of course, never showed up at my event because they would not be able to challenge someone who has been working in the field for nearly 30 years.

What struck me more than anything else was the fact that many of the people I met on the campuses supported Hamas and believed that it had the right to “resist the occupation” even if that meant blowing up children and women on a bus in downtown Jerusalem.

I never imagined that I would need police protection while speaking at a university in the U.S. I have been on many Palestinian campuses in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and I cannot recall one case where I felt intimidated or where someone shouted abuse at me. [Read more]

posted by: jrtelegraph

Dishonest Reporting by Howard Schneider of Washington Post

JRT comments:

Here are the facts: on March 24th Israeli nationalists marched through Israeli town Umm Al-Fahm. The town is populated by Israeli Arabs. Israeli Supreme court supported the freedom of organizers to march.  Peaceful marchers, who were carrying Israeli flags, were attacked by a rock throwing mob.
Howard Schneider in Washington Post predictably supports the rock-throwing mob.
It all starts with the headline:

Protest by Far-Right Group Creates Unease in Israeli Arab
The headline is a lie -- it was not a "protest" -- it was a march in support of the organizer's freedom to march anywhere in the Land of Israel. Controversial marches are an accepted norm of expression in the free world.

The characterization of the reaction of the residents of Umm-Al-Fahm is a grotesque distortion.
 Only a delusional observer or an ideology-crazed liberal would qualify a reaction of rock-throwing mob, that required massive deployment of riot and mounted police force, as "unease". Talking about an understatement!

And of course when it comes to quoting parties Mr. Howard Schneider deems it sufficient to quote only the Arab side, without bothering ever to ask the marchers directly -- why did they decide to march in Umm Al-Fahm.

          We did this work for him. Here is what organizers of the march are saying:

(IsraelNN.com) Jewish National Front leader Baruch Marzel said on Tuesday morning that a march by 100 Jewish nationalists through side streets of the Arab city of Umm el-Fahm would run peacefully as planned. He spoke to Arutz 7 en route to the march.

Colleague Itamar Ben-Gvir called the trip an historic one and said, "We hope very much that the police won't cave in" to (threats of) Arab violence and would allow the nationalists to march as they had allowed other controversial marches to take place. Those marches included processions by Arabs and left-wing activists in Jewish parts of Hevron, a demonstration by the leftist Meretz party on predominantly hareidi-religious Bar-Ilan Street in Jerusalem and a homosexual pride parade in the capital. He also called it a test for the State and for the media covering the event.[link]

          Predictably the media failed the test.

Through the article Schneider points out the connection between the marchers and the late Meir Kahane, who, Schneider mentions, was killed in 1990 in NYC. The way Schneider states it, you would think that Meir Kahane was killed in a traffic accident. He was not. He was a victim of a targeted Jihad attack. His murderer, El-Sayyid Nosair, is serving life term prison for his participation in 1993 WTC attack. You would never know this if you read Washington Post reports of Howard Schneider and his colleagues. Perhaps if they did a better reporting at the time our country would be safer.

Main stream media daily sacrifices truth and accuracy on the altar of political correctness. If you want to see an example of liberal ideological propaganda, you should read Howard Schneider's reporting.

To find the facts you would need to look elsewhere.

posted by: jrtelegraph