Photo Credit: Tazpit News Agency

Tazpit News agency reports:

Hundreds of residents of South Mount Hebron, Kiryat Arba – Hebron and Gush Etzion, who were driving to Jerusalem on Monday morning, spotted to their utter surprise a swastika flag perched up on the outskirts of the Arab settlement of Beit Ummar. The flag had been up there since the early morning hours. Residents reported the offensive flag to the IDF, but as of 11:15 AM Israel time, the flag is still up there.

The IDF has confirmed the flag was hung on an electrical line in the village and will be removed.

via Avi Mayer

Not all those protesting the Women of Wall wanted to be identified,

and certainly not everyone was laughing, kissing, loving the moment or dancing, but

the crowd was overwhelming and the blog comments are full of seldom-seen passion.

Wow, What a Rosh Chodesh! 

But with all the photos and media and passionate blog posts and comments,

did you see see one photo like this one?

On that wild Friday morning, an Arab woman and her children were walking in the Old City.

Certainly not exciting like the Nakba photos of this week,

but another incident of Israeli Apartheid going unreported, as they turned to enter the Christian Quarter.

Here’s but one example.

Delivery workers tramp through tunnels under Gaza — carrying bags and buckets of Kentucky Fried Chicken.

The famous fast food has gone underground as Palestinians order the takeaways from Egypt.

Boxes and bags emblazoned with Colonel Sanders famous red and white logo move swiftly through the smuggling tunnels that run beneath the border.

The fried food has to make its subterranean journey across as there is no KFC restaurant in the Palestinian region.
Israeli restrictions on Gaza crossings make it difficult to open an international fast food branch in the area.

But now ordering fast food from one of the world’s most popular restaurants has been made easy after delivery company Al-Yamama started to bring the food from the Egyptian North Sinai, which borders Gaza.

Mohammed Al-Madani, an accountant at Al-Yamama company, revealed they started their new business by chance.
He said: “We ordered and arranged to bring some meals for us and they arrive after four hours.”

He added that they followed up by posting a picture for the fast food on their company’s website and soon got more orders from people in Gaza.

And since late last month, they have made four deliveries of KFC food to Palestinians, with every delivery including dozens of combos.

However, there is a price to pay.

The price of a KFC family meal is about 80 Egyptian pounds, which is just under £8, at the at el-Arish restaurant.

But getting it in Gaza bumps up the cost to as much as 100 Israeli Shekels — around £18.12.

The delivery company said the higher price was due to transportation and smuggling fees.

Al-Madani said that although they did not face a lot of obstacles while bringing the food to Gaza, the delivery could be delayed due to various reasons.

He said: “Sometimes Hamas checks the meal boxes and sometimes the taxi that picks up the orders from Sinai is late.”

But it’s all worth it as student Aboud Fares, 22, declared as he bit into a chicken breast: “It’s delicious even as it’s not hot.”

Here’s the company’s Facebook page.

While some are using this story to illustrate the hardships caused by the so-called Israeli “siege” of Gaza – those poor palestinians can’t even get their fast food “fast” and cheap – I want you to consider another angle.

Palestinians are willing to pay £18 for a KFC family meal!

I can’t remember the last time my family ate KFC, and we don’t eat takeout food much at all. We certainly would think twice about spending that much for a meal, and we are not considered to be impoverished like many portray the palestinians of Gaza.

One has to consider that if many palestinians are willing to spend that much on one meal, those palestinians are not struggling to keep afloat.

But I guess this just reinforces what we already suspected.

Update: A telling section from another report of this story.

With Israel relaxing the embargo and allowing more goods to reach Gaza cheaply, the premium that smugglers could once charge for some goods has gone down, according to Abu Iyad.

“Bringing some meals like these would cost $200 or more three years ago, but now they don’t even cost $20. The Egyptian and Hamas police are not giving us the chance to work freely and the business may shut down if things continue to be this bad.”

At the Gaza side of the tunnel opening, a Hamas policeman was waiting to check if the buckets contain any forbidden materials. Apparently greasy chicken is not on his list. Abu Iyad is given a green light to deliver the food to the Al-Yamama delivery guy who will take the meals to customers.

“I wonder why people pay a lot of money to buy a small meal of chicken,” asks Abu Iyad wryly. “I can buy four chickens for the price of one meal.”

A leading Palestinian Authority said in an interview broadcast earlier this month that he supported violence against Israel, including a nuclear attack.

“I swear that if we had a nuke, we’d have used it this very morning,” said Jibril Rajoub, the deputy secretary of the Fatah Central Committee and the chairman of the PA Olympic Committee, as reported by Israel National News. He made the comments during a television interview with the Lebanese Al-Mayadeen television channel, which was then posted on his personal Facebook page.

Besides the obviously disturbing nature of the statement, it is so typical of the palestinian leadership. Nuking us would kill their own people in the process.

As Gold Meir said, “Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us

were there a lot of negative headlines and photos in the paper today?

For anyone born after WWII and the establishment of Israel in 1948,

doesn’t that time seem like ancient history?

So maybe those people calling for back to “1967 borders,”

do not have any idea of what that really means?

When Jerusalem was divided in 1948 and under Jordanian rule until 1967:

NO Jews were allowed in The Old City, this was as close as you could get,

and by the way, there was NO place called “Palestine” then.

Now The Old City is open and there is access to the Western Wall Plaza,

 just ask the Arab family in photo.

Well, as free access as those small alleyways will allow.

Today there is freedom for all religions.

 Especially on Friday, Muslim men come to pray in The Old City.

Only those who threaten, throw rocks, want to stab someone,

or plan to blow themselves and others up are not wanted and kept out.

 When the Jordanian Legion captured The Old City in 1948,

they forced out or killed all the Jewish residents.

Then they destroyed ALL the synagogues,

this wall is all that is left today as a reminder of that rampage and destruction.

Some of those destroyed houses of worship were centuries old,

the largest, the Hurva synagogue, has only recently been restored.

Also, after the war in 1948, for those 19 years, 

Jordan closed access to the centuries-old Mount of Olives Jewish cemetery.

Jews could not access their family plots and the graves of loved ones,

plus thousands of graves and their stones were desecrated and ruined.

Today it can still be dangerous to travel to the Mt of Olives cemetery,

but at least it is possible with a police security escort.

The Jewish neighborhood of Yemin Moshe was established 

outside the walls of the Old City in the mid-19th century and is now

one of  the most exclusive neighborhoods in the world.

But from 1948-1967, Yemin Moshe – Mishkenot Shananim was abandoned,

as it was in range of Jordanian sniper fire from the Old City walls.

Now an Arab couple can sit on a bench and talk in the parks of Yemin Moshe,

while hundreds of Israeli school children have a picnic nearby.

A deserted “No Man’s Land” and barbed wire divided Jerusalem, to protect

from those Jordanian snipers who would randomly shoot from The Old City.

This old and rundown shanty area has been renovated, and today part of it is

 Mamilla Mall, which is busy with thousands of shoppers and tourists,

both day and night, summer and winter.

Sadly school trips, not only to The Old City and Jerusalem,

but in all of Israel must have armed chaperons.

One might joke that those students had better behave themselves.

But no joking matter, especially on Jerusalem Day, is the

significance of the reunification of Jerusalem 46 years ago.

Time for everyone, not just the young and modern religious Jews to celebrate,

and to see some positive images of what is really happening!

Yom Yerushalayim Sameach!

Happy Jerusalem Day to all from Jerusalem, Israel!

Photo: AP

In his short life, Palestinian toddler Mohammed al-Farra has known just one home: the yellow-painted children’s ward in Israel’s Tel Hashomer hospital.

Born in Gaza with a rare genetic disease, Mohammed’s hands and feet were amputated because of complications from his condition, and the 3 1/2-year-old carts about in a tiny red wheelchair. His parents abandoned him, and the Palestinian government won’t pay for his care, so he lives at the hospital with his grandfather.

“There’s no care for this child in Gaza, there’s no home in Gaza where he can live,” said the grandfather, Hamouda al-Farra.

“He can’t open anything by himself, he can’t eat or take down his pants. His life is zero without help,” he said at the Edmond and Lily Safra Children’s Hospital, part of the Tel Hashomer complex in the Israeli city of Ramat Gan.

Mohammed’s plight is an extreme example of the harsh treatment some families mete to the disabled, particularly in the more tribal-dominated corners of the Gaza Strip, even as Palestinians make strides in combatting such attitudes.

It also demonstrates a costly legacy of Gaza’s strongly patriarchal culture that prods women into first-cousin marriages and allows polygamy, while rendering mothers powerless over their children’s fate.

Mohammed was rushed to Israel as a newborn for emergency treatment. His genetic disorder left him with a weakened immune system and crippled his bowels, doctors say, and an infection destroyed his hands and feet, requiring them to be amputated.

In the midst of his treatment, his mother abandoned Mohammed because her husband, ashamed of their son, threatened to take a second wife if she didn’t leave the baby and return to their home in the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis, al-Farra said. In Gaza, polygamy is permitted but isn’t common. But it’s a powerful threat to women fearful of competing against newer wives.

Now Mohammed spends his days undergoing treatment and learning how to use prosthetic limbs.

His 55-year-old grandfather cares for him. Mohammed’s Israeli doctors, who’ve grown attached to the boy, fundraise to cover his bills, allowing him and his grandfather to live in the sunny pediatric ward.

Read the whole thing.

Update: Curiously enough, the Times of Israel report does not obscure Mohammed’s face like this Ynet version.

As EoZ explains:

Select results from a new Pew survey of Muslims worldwide show that Palestinian Muslims are among the most religiously conservative and intolerant of all Muslim-majority countries.

Many of the questions showed that Palestinian Muslims rated behind only Afghanistan, Iraq and sometimes a handful of others in their levels of fanaticism.

Here are some of the survey questions with how Palestinian Muslims answered:

Please tell me if you completely agree, mostly agree, mostly disagree, or completely disagree with this statement: Members of your religion have a duty to try and convert others to your religious faith.
“Completely” or “mostly” agree 82%

Some people think that if a man engages in premarital sex or adultery it is justified for family members to end his life in order to protect the family honor. Do you personally feel that this practice is:
Often or sometimes justified: 33%

Some people think that if a woman engages in premarital sex or adultery it is justified for family members to end her life in order to protect the family honor. Do you personally feel that this practice is:
Often or sometimes justified: 37%

Which comes closer to your views? “Islam is the one true faith leading to eternal life in heaven” or “Many religions can lead to eternal life in heaven”?
Statement #1 89%

“Women should have the right to decide if they wear a veil” 53%
“Women should not have the right to decide whether to wear a veil” 35%

“Sharia law is the revealed word of God” 75%
“Sharia law is developed by men, based on the word of God” 16%

“Sharia law should be open to multiple interpretations” 42%
“There is only one, true understanding of sharia law?” 51%

Do you ever participate in inter-faith religious groups, classes, or meetings with Christians or not?
Yes 8% No 91%

“A wife should have the right to divorce her husband” 33%
“A wife should not have the right to divorce her husband” 57%

Agree or disagree? “A wife must always obey her husband”
87% ”completely” or “mostly” agree (46%, 41%)

“Do you favor or oppose making sharia law, or Islamic law, the official law of the land in our country?”
89% favor 8% oppose

For those who answered “favor” – should Sharia apply to non-Muslims?
39% yes 43% Muslims only

“Who should have a greater right to parents’ inheritance – sons or daughters, or should both have equal rights?”
Sons 51% Daughter 1% Equal 43%

Is polygamy morally acceptable?
Yes - 48% No – 20% Not a moral issue – 17%

Is drinking alcohol morally acceptable?
Yes – 1% No - 92%

Is homosexual behavior morally acceptable?
Yes – 1% No - 89% Not a moral issue – 5%

Some people think that suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilian targets are justified in order to defend Islam from its enemies… Do you personally feel that this kind of violence is:
Often or somewhat justified 40% Rarely or never justified 49% (highest percentages justifying suicide attacks of all countries surveyed)

Do you favor or oppose the following: the death penalty for people who leave the Muslim religion?
Favor - 62% Oppose – 29%

Do you favor or oppose the following: punishments like whippings and cutting off of hands for crimes like theft and robbery?
Favor - 72% Oppose – 23% (behind only Pakistan, Afghanistan and Niger)

Do you favor or oppose the following: stoning people who commit adultery?
Favor - 81% Oppose – 14% (behind only Pakistan and Afghanistan)

 

EoZ has also created this handy, dandy infographic to illustrate the point.

As for me, I’ve decided to unleash my own brand of creativity to make a point.

This is apparently an Islamic Jihad music video, featuring a singing terrorist, and vivid scenes of Jihadi activity.

No doubt this will rocket to the top of the palestinian music charts. With a bullet.

Update: My friend Avi Mayer has some further observations.

One telling frame from what is apparently a #Gaza Islamic Jihad promotional music video (bit.ly/11psUIx): twitter.com/avimayer/statu…

— Avi Mayer (@avimayer) April 26, 2013

Note that this Islamic Jihad music video shows #Israel apartment buildings damaged by #Gaza rockets: bit.ly/11psUIx (0:41-0:42)

— Avi Mayer (@avimayer) April 26, 2013

Some things never change. Today a photo appeared on the internet, passed off as being an image of Maysara Abu Hamdiya, a Palestinian prisoner who died this week in an Israeli prison. Hamdiya suffered from cancer, and the allegation is that he did not receive the medical treatment he needed. The photo shows him handcuffed to a hospital bed and insinuates that he received cruel, inhumane treatment during his prison sentence.

The Israeli Prison Services spokeswoman, Sivan Weizman, explained that the prison had taken all the necessary precautions for Abu Hamdiya’s health, including transferring him to a prison closer to hospital facilities should he need them.

Hamdiya was arrested for his involvement in a terrorist acts in 2002 and passed away this week from effects of cancer.

Written on the image are the words “prisoner, commander and jihadist”, along with a profile picture of Maysara Abu Hamdiya.

The image implies that Abu Hamdiya handcuffed to a hospital bed. In reality, the arm pictured above is a cropped portion of a photo taken in Syria of a hospitalized rebel. The photo was originally published on December 8th, 2012.

Many photos and videos have been manipulated to show Israel in a negative light. This is just another example of the length to which people will go to discredit it.

The palestinians love faking it so much, just call them Sally.

But there is another prisoner in an Israeli jail, who is someone that I do know about.

Wa’al al-Araji sat in the defendant’s box in Ofer Military Prison on June 3, 2012.

His legal proceedings for the rock-throwing murder of Asher Palmer and his infant son Yonatan in September 2011, has schlepped out from months to years.

Michael Palmer, Asher’s father, and a small, but very loyal group of supporters have attended every trial session possible. Often they would travel to Ofer to find that instead of a scheduled session there was but another excuse for a delay.

Michael Palmer, in the red shirt, and his lawyer, Adv. Adrian Agassi,  met with US representatives outside the court room before the June 3 session.

The room that day was mostly empty of Arab spectators.  A co-defendant was meant to testify against Wa’al.

He was afraid of the al-Araji gang of Halhoul, not of the Israelis, and wanted no witnesses. In the end he was so scared that he chickened out and did not testify that day after all.

There were more defendants in the rock-throwing moving car, their fate is still unclear.

Palmer supporters could demonstrate their support only by holding this photo of Asher and Yonatan in some of the hearings.  Just to be allowed to hold a picture had to be approved by the court and was not always permitted. So slow, so careful, was Israeli military justice to protect the rights of the defendants.

Wa’al has finally been convicted and sentenced.  Throwing a large rock from a moving car was a new technique to kill innocent victims and it took this long to for the court to call it murder.

Now we can wait for a new protest against this verdict.  As I said before, what do the facts or the truth have to do with anything?