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It’s a Festivus miracle!

Muhammad al-Harrani, a father of six from Gaza diagnosed with cancer who reportedly died while waiting for a permit to enter Israel, miraculously “came back to life.” This was not the result of a miracle, but rather, just part of the tactics used by al-Harrani’s family in a bid to secure a permit for him.

Al-Harrani is currently awaiting an entry permit into Israel, so that he can undergo head surgery at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center and receive radiation and chemotherapy treatment. At the end of April he was summoned to a questioning session at the Erez Crossing as part of the permit process, but the session was postponed by a week.

On the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day, al-Harrani’s story was published. His family reported to the “Physicians for Human Rights” organization that he died. “The sick man could not withstand the wait for the permit,” claimed Ran Yaron, Director of the Occupied Territories Department who blamed the Shin Bet for adopting cruel policies against cancer patients.

However, the next day, the organization discovered that al-Harrani was still alive. Members of group estimated that his brother, who reported the death, “killed” him so he does not report to the questioning session.

“This is a rare case where a family member knowingly provided false information to the organization,” Physicians for Human Rights said. “Usually, the organization receives information from the families and from the hospitals, but in this case the information was received from the family and was not confirmed by the hospital.”

Meanwhile, the Shin Bet sent the organization an angry response: “We view these harsh accusations on your part with great severity; not even a minimal inquiry into the facts was conducted.” The Shin Bet noted that due to the suspicion of his involvement in terror activities, al-Harrani was indeed called in for a security check, and it was indeed postponed by a week.

Since al-Harrani did not arrive at the questioning session, “he will have to bear the consequences or future damage that may be caused to him, in line with his refusal to cooperate in the procedure,” the Shin Bet said.

Notice the defiance of Physicians for Human Rights, who claim palestinian family members knowingly providing false information is a “rare occurrence.” They also seem to place much stock in confirmation from palestinian hospitals, despite the fact that they are also known to lie.

In contrast, Physicians for Human Rights give no such benefit of the doubt to the Shin Bet, whose policies, they claim, are cruel, despite the very valid reasons behind them. And it could very well be that in this case, al-Harrani was involved in terrorist activities, given the suspicions about him and the ruse that may have been intended to prevent him from being questioned.

Of course, this is not the first miraculous resurrection of a dead palestinian and probably won’t be the last.

See also: Snapped Shot

During the Arab League conference discussing the latest turmoil in Lebanon, the Saudi Foreign Minister could not resist dragging Israel into the discussion.

“(Hizbullah leader Hassan) Nasrallah is like (former Israeli Prime Minister) Ariel Sharon * – they both invaded Beirut,” Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal said during a recent Arab League conference in Cairo on the sectarian violence in Lebanon.

Leaving aside the fact that Israel captured Beirut to drive out the PLO (which had been launching terrorist attacks from Lebanon) while Hizbullah’s agenda is very different, Al-Faisal’s statement once again shows the Arab fixation with Israel, even when Israel is not involved.

By the way, in case you were wondering:

The Arab League eventually decided that it would try to mediate between the rival factions in Lebanon but did not condemn Hizbullah.

* There is no similarity between Nasrallah and Sharon, although I really wish there was in one respect.

Yesterday evening, the life of 70-year-old grandmother Shuli Katz (pictured left) was snuffed out by palestinian terrorists, who took credit for her death, referring to her as a “settlement.” (hat tip: Elder of Ziyon)

Ironically, Shuli and her son were on their way to visit her sister-in-law on Moshav Yesha - where the rocket struck - because her sister-in-law was afraid to visit Shuli at her home near Ashkelon, after the two rockets that struck Ashkelon earlier in the day.

Here’s more on this Zionist “settlement” killed by the brave warriors of the Islamic Jihad :

Gvaram secretariat chairman, Shauli Rabid, said Katz was born and raised on the kibbutz and had four children, including two daughters who are married and living in England.

Her two sons are in Israel. Ravid said that Katz’s husband died of cancer in December 2003.

“She worked as a nurse in the kibbutz until she retired. She was well known and loved because of her long public service. She and her husband grew a lovely garden around her house, she loved flowers and art,” Ravid said.

Another innocent life deliberately ended. But according to the AP, that’s not the real tragedy here. That would be the fact the “truce” talks between Hamas and Israel are now jeopardized, given Israel’s proclivity to kill palestinians in retaliation for fatal rocket attacks:

Gaza rocket kills Israeli, burdening truce effort

A rocket fired by Palestinian militants killed a 75-year-old Israeli woman Monday, just as an Egyptian mediator was winding up truce talks in Israel — underlining both the urgency and complexity of working out a cease-fire between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers.

The rocket hit a house in the village of Yesha, about four miles from the Gaza Strip. As recently as Friday, a fatal rocket attack drew reprisal Israeli airstrikes that killed five Palestinians in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev has made a telling Freudian slip:

Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev denounced the latest attack but did not say it would halt the Gaza truce talks. “The rocket fire into Israel will end. It will end either because calm will be achieved, or Israel will act to protect its people,” he said.

Yes, it is indeed an “either/or.” Agreeing to a temporary truce with terrorists, knowing full well it is a tactic to replenish supplies and plan the next round of murderous attacks, is mutually exclusive with Israel protecting her citizens.

Shuli Katz deserved better than this.

All Israeli citizens deserve better than this.

Victoria’s Liberal party campaign director has been outed as an anti-Semite for calling a Liberal candidate a “greedy f***ing jew.”

And as a complete dumbass for invoking the “some of my best friends are Jewish” defense.

The Victorian Liberal campaign director who sent an anti-Semitic email to a colleague has quit her job and apologised for her remark.

State president David Kemp said Susan Chandler was given the option of quitting or being sacked.

Chandler had described a candidate in an email as a “greedy f***ing jew”.

In the latest shot fired in an internal party war that has the Liberals reeling, an email, forwarded from campaign officer John Osborn, shows Ms Chandler making the reference to Liberal Party candidate Adam Held.

In a statement, Ms Chandler said she has many Jewish friends and is not anti-Semitic.

She said her comments were completely out of character, and made on the spur of the moment during a difficult period of the election campaign.

The anti-Semitic remark follows a request from Mr Held for more election campaign pamphlets in October last year.

You can see the email exchange that led to her “completely out of character”, “spur of the moment” comment made “during a difficult period of the election campaign” below.

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“Even the Israeli enemy never dared to do to Beirut what Hizbullah has done.”

- Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora

Yeah, who’d have thought a terrorist organization that targets civilians and uses its own people as human shields would prove to be crueler than a State that goes out of its way to limit civilian casualties, at great peril to its own soldiers and civilians?

UNRWA have sprung into action, calling for an investigation into the death of one of their palestinian teachers.

No, not that one.

A United Nations agency called on Israel on Sunday to investigate the death of a Palestinian teacher employed by the agency who was killed in her home during an Israeli raid last week in the Gaza Strip.

“We’re calling on the Israelis for an impartial investigation,” said Christopher Gunness, spokesman for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), for which Wafa al-Daghma worked as a teacher at an elementary school for refugee children.

‘We want to see accountability’

A spokesman for the Israeli armed forces said they were looking into the matter. Dozens of civilians have been killed in Gaza this year in air and ground attacks that Israel says are directed against militants who fire rockets into its territory.

Immediately after the violence near Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday, the army said troops attacked militants. Islamic Jihad said one of its fighters was killed and six were wounded in an Israeli air strike in the area.

Palestinian medics and relatives at Abassan, a village east of Khan Younis, said Daghma, 32, was at home with three of her children when Israeli troops with tanks approached.

Gunness said inquiries by UNRWA suggested Daghma was killed when troops blasted open the door of her home in order to take the building as an observation post.

Meanwhile, it begs to be asked why haven’t we heard any more about UNRWA’s promised investigation into their terrorist teacher?

You may recall the appalling Independent op-ed by excrement-loving “journalist” Johann Hari, which was nicely picked apart by Honest Reporting.

Well, the factually (and horizontally) challenged Hari has responded by accusing critics of launching a smear campaign against him to make him look like an anti-Jewish bigot (hat tip: Honest Reporting). As Melanie Phillips writes:

But the most remarkable and revealing comment of all by Hari is this:

Alan Dershowitz and Melanie Phillips are two of the most prominent figures sent in to attack anyone who disagrees with the Israeli right.

‘Sent in’, eh? By whom, exactly? By the world-wide Jewish/Zionist/Likudnik conspiracy, of course. Yup, it’s those Protocols again. Whoops, what a giveaway. Case proved, I think.

Melanie also notes that Hari’s “comeback” mysteriously vanished, but is accessible here thanks to the wonders of Google cache.

It seems Hari is digging so deep, he must be trying to create a new underground sewerage system for the palestinians.

Forget Ambiguous Explosion, Mysterious Explosion and Vague Blast. Here’s the latest in palestinian work accident euphemisms.

The militant group Hamas said early Sunday morning that one of its members had been killed in an explosion along Gaza’s fence with Israel.

The Islamic group’s military wing said a man was killed, and another injured, during a holy mission. Such language is used when explosives meant for an attack on Israel explode prematurely.

The dead Hamas man was named as Osama al-Aftal.

The Israel Defense Forces issued a statement clarifying troops were not operating in the area at the time of the explosion early Sunday.

Call me religious, but here’s hoping to many more “holy missions.”

Meanwhile, despite the fact you’d think palestinian news agencies would be beaming with pride about such missions, blaming Israel seems to be an even holier mission, as evidenced by this Ma’an News account of the same incident.

Undercover Israeli forces killed a Palestinian fighter in the Gaza Strip on Sunday morning, witnesses and medical sources said.

The dead body of 23-year-old Usama Al-Astal, a fighter with Hamas’ armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, was taken to a hospital in the city of Khan Younis.

Eyewitnesses told Ma’an’s reporter that Al-Astal was on lookout duty east of the town of Al-Qarara, when he noticed Israeli special forces entering the area. He immediately hurled a grenade towards the Israelis, who fired back, killing him and wounding three other fighters.

Update: Elder points out that the Hamas website uses an even better euphemism.

As Al Aqsa Intifada against the occupation assault on the Gaza Strip continues, Ezzedeen Al-Qassam Brigades has its best men to be in the playground of death to defend their people from any attack by the enemy.

Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, on whose troops Hizbullah just opened a can of whoop ass, wants everyone to know he’s not intimidated by Hizbullah, despite the fact his government caved in to their demands.

He also wants everyone to know who the real enemy is.

Guess who.

“What Hizbullah did is a coup,” Siniora said Saturday. “Hizbullah has become the problem of all of Lebanon. We are not scared of its weapons.”

Later Saturday, an opposition statement said Hizbullah and its allies will end all armed presence in Beirut after the Lebanese army overturned government measures against the group. “”The Lebanese opposition will end all armed presence in Beirut so that the capital will be in the hands of the army,” the statement said. However, the opposition noted that “civil disobedience” will continue.

By Saturday evening, eyewitnesses reported that trucks carrying Hizbullah gunmen were leaving Beirut as Lebanese soldiers were deploying in the streets.

The reports came shortly after the Lebanese army announced that it will comply with Hizbullah’s demands, namely refraining from replacing the Beirut airport’s security chief and allowing Hizbullah to maintain his separate communication network.

—-

Siniora added that “we believed and we still do that the real danger to the country comes from the direction of Israel – our true enemy. However, the experience we are going through at this time shows that our democratic regime has fallen victims to our homeland brothers.”

“We did not underestimate the resistance against Israel, but what is Hizbullah doing in Lebanon?” Siniora said. “What is it doing on the roads to the airport? Is it controlling the road to Tel Aviv by controlling these roads? Syria is our sister and Israel is the enemy.”

This is the man supported by the Americans, and makes a further joke of UN Resolution 1701 which, among other things, provides that “there will be no weapons without the consent of the government of Lebanon.” Clearly, the government of Lebanon has until now consented to Hizbullah being in possession of its weapons against Israel. And here’s an even clearer indication:

In his first public reaction to Hezbollah’s takeover of west Beirut, Mr Siniora decried what he called a “poisonous sting” to democracy.

He said Hezbollah’s weapons could no longer be considered to be legitimately held because they had been turned on the Lebanese themselves.

In other words, they were legitimately held while being used to kill Israelis.

Lebanon has in the past been called the “Paris of the Middle East.” I would posit that it only similarity with Paris these days is its hatred of Jews Zionists.

If you were hoping I would post something on the unfolding, disturbing events in Lebanon, sorry to disappoint you but I just haven’t had the time to post something of value. What I can do is point you to some terrific blogging from my friend Charles, who is in the danger zone.

Tonight, I watched an episode of the British series Spooks, a show about British MI5 intelligent officers. A good friend of mine in Israel had raved about the series, going as far as saying it puts my favorite show 24 to shame. And as luck would have it, tonight’s episode happened to deal with the Middle East peace process, and efforts to derail it. Needless to say, I watched it.

I won’t recap the entire plot of the episode, but it can be found here. The bad guys are a neo-con, pro-Israel group called the November Committee, who murder those who stand in the way of their vision of a Greater Israel. The pro-palestinian group in the episode, similar to the ISM, are initially suspected of financing suicide bombings, but by episode end are cleared of any wrongdoing.

Besides the one dimensional pro-Israel=bad message of the episode, there were a number of other misleading points, including the notion that Israel’s “occupation” of lands during the Six Day War of 1967 are the root cause of the conflict and palestinian terrorism. As if palestinian terror groups were not formed before 1967, and as if palestinian terror groups to this day do not espouse the aim to drive all the Jews into the sea and take over the entire land of Israel - not just the so-called “occupied” territories of 1967.

And then there’s of course the fact that the show had to invent an extremist Israeli terror group as the bad guys and major obstacle to peace in the Middle East. I say invent, because such groups, if they exist, are not a factor (Israeli society and the police would not tolerate them). Never mind the fact that palestinian terror groups are all too real and enjoy the support of a majority of the palestinian population.

While television shows and movies continue to tiptoe around the issue of Islamic terrorism and go out of their way to show more nuanced depictions of Muslims, shows such as Spooks show no such sensitivity when depicting Israelis and Israel supporters.

In other words, it’s not just the mainstream media poisoning peoples’ minds and feeding them lies and half-truths about the Middle East conflict.

By the way, did I mention that Spooks is a BBC show?

Update: Here’s a synposis for a later Spooks episode:

Ros is taken hostage as part of a siege at the Saudi Trade Centre. The hostage-takers demand that Al-Qaeda prisoners are released.

MI5 realise that there’s an informant among them. The leak is traced to Neil, who commits suicide. But Adam is suspicious - why would Neil be helping an Arab terrorist group when his family were killed by Arab suicide bombers?

The team soon realise they’re actually dealing with an Israeli plot designed to discredit the Saudis and de-rail the nuclear deal.

The Security Services storm the Embassy. The true nature of the plot remains a secret and the world believes an Al-Qaeda plot has been foiled. The nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia goes ahead, with the Saudis lauded as a worthy ally who stand firm in the face of fundamentalism.

If I didn’t know any better, I’d say Spooks has an agenda. Which is very much aligned with that of the BBC.

Update: I just found this earlier post from Kesher Talk. So you see, it’s not just me.

Update: Yet another earlier blog post, this time on a subsequent anti-Israel Spooks episode. And a Telegraph piece on BBC bias, which mentions the show. It seems I am late to the party.

Iranian President Mahmoud “Gorilla Boy” Ahmadinejad continues to show that subtlety is not his specialty.

As for being a genocidal maniac, he’s real good.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Thursday that the state of Israel is a “stinking corpse” that is destined to disappear, the French news agency AFP reported.

“Those who think they can revive the stinking corpse of the usurping and fake Israeli regime by throwing a birthday party are seriously mistaken,” the official IRNA news agency quoted Ahmadinejad as having said.

“Today the reason for the Zionist regime’s existence is questioned, and this regime is on its way to annihilation.”

Ahmadinejad further stated that Israel “has reached the end like a dead rat after being slapped by the Lebanese” - referring to the Second Lebanon War in the summer of 2006.

I’m a bit confused. After all, I can understand how we can simultaneously be a “stinking corpse” and a “dead rat,” assuming the corpse is that of a rat. But how could we also be a “filthy germ” and “cancerous bacterium”?

Then again, us Zionists are mighty tricky.