From One Jerusalem :

Gilder Answers His Critics

The Israel Test In Ten Questions

By George Gilder

1) What does it mean to pass the Israel Test?

You must admire and emulate those who surpass you in achievement and excellence rather than envying them and resenting them and trying to tear them down.

2) This is a moralism applying to everyone. Why do you focus on the Jews?

Throughout the 20th century, the world's tiny minority of Jews has led the world in excellence and achievement, whether measured in Nobel Prizes, fundamental inventions, or wealth creation. Thus they arouse the envy and resentment of anti-Semites, who fail what I call their Israel test.

Source: http://www.danielpipes.org/blog/2009/08/calls-to-settle-the-palestinians-in-arab-countries

Arab state treatment of the Palestinians, with the partial exception of Jordan, has been the silent disgrace of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

The bulk of the refugees fled in 1948-49 and the great majority of them are now dead; what are called "Palestinian refugees" are nothing of the sort, but the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of refugees. Year after year, they are born into "refugee camps" or are otherwise kept apart from the mainstream society (I document some of the disabilities they suffer in one country at "Restrictions on Palestinians in Lebanon ") – all for the purported reason of keeping them ready for "return" to a hoped-for Palestine and to keep them handy as a dagger poised against Israel's very existence.

This maltreatment has gone virtually unremarked for decades. Must yet more generations be born before Arabs conclude these people need to allowed to live normal lives in the places they were born?

In reverse chronological order, this weblog entry follows calls made for settlement of Palestinians.

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Ein Beit el Ma refugee camp in Nablus.

Al-Hayat four-part series:

Daoud Al-Shiryan, a columnist for Al-Hayat newspaper has published articles, as explained by MEMRI (which translated the articles) "criticizing how the Palestinian refugees have been treated by the Arab countries in which they live. He called on these countries to integrate the refugees into their societies and to resettle them before they are forced to do so by the international community." (August 11, 2009)

 by Melanie Phillips, The Spectator

Reaction to the evictions of Arab families from where they were living in the Sheikh Jarrah district of east Jerusalem has universally given the impression that the Israelis threw out Palestinian families from their homes in order to colonise a traditionally Arab area for further 'illegal' Jewish 'settlement' (see for example reports by the BBC and the Times ).

The response by the British government was particularly aggressive. The British consulate said:

We are appalled by the evictions in East Jerusalem. Israel's claim that the imposition of extremist Jewish settlers into this ancient Arab neighbourhood is a matter for the courts or the municipality is unacceptable. Their actions are incompatible with Israel’s desire for peace. We urge Israel not to allow extremists to set the agenda.

The US and the UN also condemned the evictions:

State Department spokeswoman Megan Mattson said such actions in east Jerusalem constitute violations of Israel's obligations under US-backed 'road map' peace plan. ...Robert Serry, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, called Sunday's evictions 'totally unacceptable.'

The hysteria has unleashed yet more vile anti-Israel bigotry -- and not just on the left. On Conservative Home's Centre Right blog, this post featuring video coverage of the evictions provoked vicious attacks on Israel in the readers' thread, including calls for Israel to be 'dismantled', suggestions that Israelis were less than human and comparing their treatment of the Palestinians to the Nazis.

Yet the belief that Israel has turfed out the rightful Arab inhabitants of Sheikh Jarrah could not be further from the truth.

Read more »

From the Jerusalem Post:

Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Wednesday responded to a new report which accused the IDF of committing war crimes during Operation Cast Lead against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.

"Any criticism of IDF operations should be directed to me, as the Israeli defense minister," Barak said.

"Criticism directed at the IDF by one group or another is inappropriate, and misdirected," he went on, stressing, "The IDF is one of the most ethical armies in the world, and acts according to the highest moral code."

The defense minister also noted that the IDF operation had "restored calm to southern communities."

Read the full article »

From Palestinian Media Watch :

Fatah boasts about lynch murder of two Israeli soldiers in 2000
by Itamar Marcus and Barbara Crook

As PMW reported earlier this week, PA (Fatah) TV marked the second anniversary of the Hamas takeover of Gaza by broadcasting a public Fatah event that focuses on vilifying Hamas. One part of this performance features a graphic video of Hamas members brutally beating a Fatah member in Gaza.

Another part criticizes and mocks Hamas for the decrease in its terror operations against Israel, glorifies Fatah terror, and ends with Fatah boasting that they "arrested two soldiers in Ramallah," a reference to the October 2000 lynching of two Israeli reservists.

In this scene actors portray a Hamas teacher and student supporters of Fatah and Hamas, debating which movement is greater. Significantly, the competition between Fatah and Hamas supporters is based not on who has built more Palestinian infrastructures, nor on who has promoted peace, but rather on who can take credit for more terror.

The debate ends when a Fatah student trumps Hamas's boast of having kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit by mentioning the "arrest of two Israeli soldiers in Ramallah" by the PA-Fatah. This alludes to the lynching and gruesome murder of two Israeli reservist soldiers who accidentally entered the Palestinian Authority-controlled city in October 2000. While the picture of a Palestinian celebrating the killing by waving his bloody hands to the mob horrified the world, the murder remains a source of pride for Fatah.

[Note: Seated in the front row at the event are Fatah leaders, including Muhammad Dahlan, former head of PA security; Kadura Faras, head of the PA Prisoners' Association; Nasser Al-Qidwa, former PA Minister of Foreign Affairs;  Samir Al-Mashharawi, senior Fatah official; and others.]

Click here to view the "terror competition" between Fatah and Hamas

The following is a transcript of the act:

Fatah student taunts Hamas:  "Since Hamas seized power, we haven't heard of any Martyrdom operation [suicide-bombing]."
Hamas teacher:  "It's called 'fighter's rest'."
Fatah student:    "A Hamas fighter needs rest, but a Fatah fighter doesn't need rest?!"
Hamas teacher:   "Every fighter has the right to rest."
Fatah student:      "Why is it that when Fatah stops fighting, you [Hamas] say they're cowards, but when Hamas stops fighting, you say it's 'fighters' rest'?"
Hamas teacher: "I don't know much about resistance [terror] and fighters..."
Fatah student:   "The first shot was fired by the PLO; the first Jihad was carried out by the PLO [audience applauds], with all the other factions - but Hamas always opposed.
Hamas student:   "What do you say about Hamas having kidnapped the [Israeli] soldier Shalit [still held hostage - Ed.]?"
Hamas teacher: "Ahaaa!"
Student: "By Allah, it's good."
Hamas student: "Did Fatah ever capture a soldier?!"
Fatah student: "It was the [other] brigades who captured him [Shalit] and sold him to you [Hamas]. It's a deal that you [Hamas] made for your own benefit, not for the [Palestinian] people's benefit.   [Applause]
Fatah student:    Remember, in Ramallah the [PA-Fatah] police arrested two soldiers - have you forgotten, teacher?!" [A reference to the lynching in Ramallah in October 2000- Ed.]

From the Hudson Institute website, Hudson New York :

Christian families have long been complaining of intimidation and land theft by Muslims, especially those working for the Palestinian Authority.

Many Christians in Bethlehem and the nearby [Christian] towns of Bet Sahour and Bet Jalla have repeatedly complained that Muslims have been seizing their lands either by force or through forged documents.

In recent years, not only has the number of Christians continued to dwindle, but Bethlehem and its surroundings also became hotbeds for Hamas and Islamic Jihad supporters and members.

Moreover, several Christian women living in these areas have complained about verbal and sexual assaults by Muslim men.

Over the past few years, a number of Christian businessmen told me that they were forced to shut down their businesses because they could no longer afford to pay "protection" money to local Muslim gangs.

While it is true that the Palestinian Authority does not have an official policy of persecution against Christians, it is also true that this authority has not done enough to provide the Christian population with a sense of security and stability.

In addition, Christians continue to complain about discrimination when it comes to employment in the public sector. Since the establishment of the Palestinian Authority 15 years ago, for example, not a single Christian was ever appointed to a senior security post. Although Bethlehem has a Christian mayor, the governor, who is more senior than him, remains a Muslim.

As a Muslim journalist, I am always disgusted and ashamed when I hear from Christians living in the West Bank and Jerusalem about the challenges, threats and assaults that many of them have long been facing.

The reason why I feel like this is because those behind the assaults and threats are almost always Muslims.

For decades, the delicate and complicated issue of relations between Muslims and Christians in the Holy Land was treated by Palestinians as a taboo. Most Palestinians chose to live in denial, ignoring the fact that relations between the Muslim majority and the tiny Christian minority [about 10%] have been witnessing a setback, particularly over the past 15 years.

On the eve of Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the Holy Land, a Christian merchant told me jokingly: "The next time a pope comes to visit the Holy Land, he will have to bring his own priest with him pray in a church because most Christians would have left by then."

Indeed, the number of Christians leaving Bethlehem and other towns and cities appears to be on the rise, according to representatives of the Christian community in Jerusalem.

Today, Christians in Bethlehem constitute less than 15% of the population. Five or six decades ago, the Christians living in the birthplace of Jesus made up more than 70% of the population.

True, Israel's security measures in the West Bank have made living conditions more difficult for all Palestinians, Christians and Muslims alike. But to say that these measures are the main and sole reason for the Christian exodus from the Holy Land is misleading.

If the security fence and the occupation were the main reason, the Palestinian territories should by have been empty of both Muslims and Christians. These measures, after all, do not distinguish between Christians and Muslims.

On the other hand, it is also incorrect to assume that the Christians are leaving only because they are afraid of their Muslim neighbors. Christians are leaving because of the poor economy, and because they no longer feel secure in their homes. But they are also leaving because most of them, if not all, find it easier to merge into Christian-dominated societies in the US, Canada, EU and Latin America, where many of them already have relatives and friends.

In fact, Christians began leaving the Holy Land long before Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1967. But the number of those moving to the US and Canada has sharply increased ever since the Palestinian Authority took control over Bethlehem and other Palestinian villages and cities. When the second intifada erupted in September 2000, Christian leaders said they were "terrified" by the large number of Christians who were leaving the country.

Ironically, leaders of the Palestinian Christians are also to blame for the ongoing plight of their people because they refuse to see the reality as it is. And the reality is that many Christians feel insecure and intimidated because of what we Muslims are doing to them and not only because of the bad economy.

When they go on the record, these leaders always insist that Israel and the occupation are the only reason behind the plight of their constituents. They stubbornly refuse to admit that many Christians are being targeted by Muslims. By not talking openly about the problem, the Christian leaders are encouraging the perpetrators to continue their harassment and assaults against Christian families.

This article was published on the Cranmer blog site recently and generated quite a response.  It includes a critique by AFI of Christian Aid's 'virtual pilgrimage' through the Holy Land during Lent.

Cranmer has been asked by the Anglican Friends of Israel to bring this matter to the attention of his readers and communicants, and he is delighted to do so. There is perhaps no more subtle manifestation of anti-Semitism than Replacement Theology, and for a Christian charity to propagate it, whilst no surprise, constitutes the perpetuation of a religio-political deception which goes back almost 2000 years. The Church, both Roman Catholic and Protestant strands, has historically maintained that due to the fact the Jews rejected Jesus as their Messiah, God saw fit to pour out his wrath upon them in AD70, destroying their temple and extinguishing their nation, leaving them to exile and oblivion. St Augustine was so persuaded, as was Origen, Tertullian, Eusebius, Ignatius of Antioch, Jerome, John Chrysostom - the Council of Nicea in 325AD purposely changed the celebration of the Resurrection from the Jewish Feast of First Fruits to Easter in an attempt to disassociate it from Jewish feasts. The Council stated: 'For it is unbecoming beyond measure that on this holiest of festivals we should follow the customs of the Jews. Henceforth let us have nothing in common with this odious people...'

Replacement Theology is therefore seen to have an enduring heritage. But it is insidiously anti-Semitic. And it is concerning that the otherwise laudable charitable efforts of Christian Aid should be tarnished with the belief that, because of their rebellion against God in their rejection of Jesus, God has replaced Israel with the Church, and so the Church now inherits all of the blessings promised to Israel. The Anglican Friends of Israel respond:

The poor have much cause to be very grateful for Christian Aid.

It has transformed the lives of millions of needy people in desperate situations by helping them to help themselves. It is renowned for partnering with organisations in the developing world and for its campaigns which raise awareness of injustice and oppression.

This year, over Lent, Christian Aid drew attention to Palestinian suffering much as it has during past Christian festivals. Many people support the work of Christian Aid, but this campaign was explicitly aimed at Christians, taking the form of a ‘virtual pilgrimage’ through the Holy Land and unfolding daily throughout Lent.

Each daily reflection upon a location or subject concluded with Christian prayers and several Christian clergy contributed, including Tom Wright, Bishop of Durham and Canon Naim Ateek of Sabeel. It was expedited expertly, and professionally.

But many of the messages conveyed during the journey were jarringly at odds with Christian notions of justice and with the Scriptures upon which they were ostensibly based.

Pilgrims’ met Palestinians both Muslim and Christian as well as Israelis both Jewish and Arab. As Christian Aid told their story it gradually materialised into the version of events that has become known as the ‘Palestinian Narrative’.

In this version of the conflict, the Israelis, far from wanting to live in peace with their Arab neighbours, are hungry only for Palestinian land: Palestinians are miserable victims of sufferings caused solely by Israel; heroic Palestinian ‘Davids’ resist the Israeli ‘Goliath’ armed with video cameras and ‘accompaniers’, only resorting in extremis to weapons and suicide bombings; and Christian Palestinians emigrate solely because of Israeli (rather than Islamist) oppression.

Such a narrative requires selective reporting to justify it, and, sadly, Christian Aid obliged. For example the ‘pilgrims’ were shown Palestinian homes destroyed by Israel, but told little about the destruction produced by the suicide bombers who had lived in them, and nothing at all about the thousands of dollars paid by Iran’s agents Hamas and Hezbollah to the bombers’ families in compensation for having a ‘shaheed’ (martyr) in the family.

Christian Aid showcased marvellous work being done for children traumatised by violence in Gaza. But Israeli actions alone were cited as the source of violence.

Why did Christian Aid not condemn Hamas’ reign of terror? And why was the indoctrination of Palestinian School children to hate and murder Jews not cited as a traumatic factor in the children’s mental development?

Heaping blame only upon Israel as the source of Palestinian suffering scarcely reflects the justice which Christian Aid champions so effectively. And can it really be right – especially given the dark history of Christianity in relation to Jews – to invite Christians worldwide to place the blame solely upon the world’s only Jewish state for a conflict in which there are many players?

Christian Aid’s skewed presentation of Israel’s security measures also made uncomfortable reading. Wrenched from the context of Arab terrorism, Israel’s actions were presented as malicious attempts to humiliate Palestinians. For example, Christian Aid criticised the inconvenience caused to Palestinians at checkpoints without mentioning that terrorist-bound weapons and explosives are regularly intercepted there.

The legitimate land disputes created by Israel’s security fence were highlighted, but the huge reduction in terror attacks against Israeli civilians since its construction was ignored. Apparently, Palestinian inconvenience and humiliation concern Christian Aid’s contributors more than threats to Israeli lives.

Even more troubling is Christian Aid’s account of recent Middle East history. Israel’s acceptance of the UN resolution 181 – which robbed her of half the land promised the Jews by the League of Nations mandate – is ignored, as is the Arab rejection of it and their subsequent attack on Israel in 1948 whilst the world looked on. Instead, Israel’s foundation is presented solely in terms of Palestinian dispossession.

We hear much from Palestinians who lost their homes when Israel became a nation, but not about the tragedy of many Palestinians who – duped by leaders who assured them that they could return after the Jews had been ethnically cleansed – abandoned homes in Israel only to find that they had lost everything when Israel won the war.

There was such a profound imbalance that only a few posts looked at the suffering of Israelis. A father mourning his child, killed in a suicide bombing, and the battered town of Sderot and its beleaguered inhabitants, merited just one entry. No mention of the tyranny of falling rockets that Israelis endure daily.

Christian Aid lets pilgrims down in this respect. Such omissions and imbalances subtly undermine Israel’s legitimacy, feeding the anti-Semitic discourse found in the Arab press, left-wing newspapers and chattering-class drawing rooms. Pilgrims were led into the mists of obfuscation. They deserve better than that.

Of course, Israel does not get everything right in respect of its Arab citizens or citizens of the Palestinian Territories. Christian Aid quite reasonably highlights some injustices and deplorable incidents. But in focusing solely upon Israel’s actions whilst resolutely ignoring key causes of Palestinian misery – for example, the systematic corruption of Palestinian leaders, the chaotic government, the billions of squandered aid dollars and Arab dedication to Israel’s destruction – Christian Aid betrays their Christian pilgrims – not to mention those Palestinians who need every friend they can get to speak honestly into their situation.

Crucially, in the short address which forms the climax to Christian Aid’s virtual pilgrimage, the Bishop of Durham tells ‘pilgrims’ that Jesus’ life, death and resurrection have nullified the covenant God made with Abraham and his descendants over the land we now call Israel – the Replacement Theology thinly cloaked throughout the pilgrimage now surfaces.

In Replacement Theology, the restoration of Israel becomes not a fulfilment of an overarching Scriptural discourse, but an irrelevance at best, and, at worst, a terrible mistake: the return of the Jews to their ancient land is not a sign of God keeping his promises but an illegal assault of colonial interlopers.

In the context of Christian Aid’s rejection of the scriptural discourse of the Covenant between Abraham and God, the reasons for their embrace of the Palestinian narrative become clear: it is the only one which fits their theology. But the distortions and imbalance necessary to sustain this narrative, together with the abandonment of a key scriptural theme – the faithfulness of God’s promises – demonstrate the shortcomings of Replacement Theology.

It is disappointing to see Christian Aid leading its Christian supporters down such a destructive and deceptive path. Indeed it makes the organisation part of the problem rather than the solution.