The Total Transformation of Egypt

Barry Rubin, one of the brightest MidEast experts, provides this incisive analysis and makes a few predictions

A short history of democracy in Egypt -Barry Rubin

In February 2011 the Mubarak regime fell. There was going to be a parliament elected in Egypt. The parliament was elected. Its election was invalidated. Today there is no parliament in Egypt.

The Muslim Brotherhood said it would want to run one-third of the candidates for seats. Then they ran one-half. Then they ran all. Then they said they would not run a president. Then they did and elected a president. And they and the Salafists elected 70 percent of the parliament. But now there is no parliament.

The Parliament was going to...write a Constitution. But now there is no Constitution. There are no restrictions on presidential powers.

And then there was a Supreme Council of the Armed Forces but that was supposed to restrain the Muslim Brotherhood president. And it was supposed to be restrained by the Egypt-Israel peace treaty and by the hope of getting U.S. military aid. But the president got rid of it and fired the two top people and put in his own generals. And there is no restraint.

The Egyptian regime did more economic damage to Israel by violating its contract on natural gas shipments than any other Arab regime in the history of the country because Israel had to spend billions of dollars replacing that lost fuel. That is why Israeli taxes are going up and social spending must decline. The U.S. government did not lift a finger to help.

The entire Israeli strategic plan has had to be altered to add an entire new defensive front along the border with Egypt. New units will be organized; new fences built; new equipment ordered and paid for.

Saaed Eddin Ibrahim, arguably the Arab world’s leading sociologist [is] warning that the Islamists want to hijack power and establish [a] dictatorship. He pleads for Westerners to wake up.

Egyptian President al-Mursi has now named the heads of the main Egyptian newspapers, radio stations, and television networks. The first round-ups have begun of reporters who are to bold and honest in their investigations. The walls are closing in.

Soon the generals will be replaced; soon the judges will be replaced, and so too will the diplomats. In other words, the internal and external bureaucracy of Egypt’s government will become transformed.

The next stop is the court system where plans are being made already to eliminate judges.

An upcoming conference of pro-Islamist judges will recommend massive retirements; the new constitution, written by Islamists, will weaken the courts against Sharia as interpreted by Islamic clerics.

The Brotherhood will take over al-Azhar University and appoint one of its men as chief qadi, Muslim judicial official. They will get into control of the wealth religious endowments.

Within a year, Egypt will be fundamentally transformed. Irretrievably transformed.
[The Rubin Report]
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A Call for Obama to Visit Israel on Iran Threat

5 ways to avert an Israeli strike on Iran
-Amos Yadlin [pictured]

This fall, all the boxes will be checked for an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities.

The U.S. president should visit Israel and tell its leadership -- and, more important, its people -- that preventing a nuclear Iran is a U.S. interest, and if we have to resort to military action, we will.

This message, delivered by the president of the United States to the Israeli Knesset, would be far more effective than U.S. officials' attempts to convey the same sentiment behind closed doors.

The administration should also take five immediate steps to convince allies and adversaries alike that military action is real, imminent and doable - which are key to making it less likely.

First, Obama should notify the U.S. Congress in writing that he reserves the right to use military force to prevent Iran's acquisition of a military nuclear capability.

Second, Washington should signal its intentions via a heightened U.S. military presence in the gulf, military exercises with Middle East allies and missile defense deployment in the region.

Third, Washington should provide advanced military technology and intelligence to strengthen Israel's military capabilities and extend the window in which Israel can mortally wound Iran's program.

Fourth, U.S. officials should speak publicly about the dangers of possible Iranian nuclear reconstitution in the wake of a military strike.

Fifth, Obama should publicly commit to the security of U.S. allies in the gulf. This would reassure jittery friends in the region and credibly anchor the U.S. last-resort military option to three powerful interests: U.S. national security, Israeli security and the security of allied states.

[T]ime is running out to make this commitment credible to the people of the United States, Israel and Iran. As the adage goes, if you want peace, prepare (credibly) for war.
Amos Yadlin, a former chief of Israeli military intelligence, is director of Israel's Institute for National Security Studies
[The Washington Post]
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The Unsung Hero in the Bin Laden Hit

Dr. Shakil Afridi, has been in a Pakistani jail since the bin Laden hit

Go straight to jail in Pakistan -Senator Rand Paul

In the weeks leading up to th[e] attack on Osama bin Laden’s compound by SEAL Team 6, there was a doctor in Pakistan who helped us determine bin Laden’s exact location. Doctors are not soldiers. We’re taught to heal and to help.

Dr. Shakil Afridi [pictured] helped the only way he knew how — through the use of his medical practice.

Dr. Afridi is a Pakistani doctor who risked his life to provide us with information that confirmed the location of the compound that housed bin Laden and his family. Dr. Afridi set up what ostensibly was a vaccination clinic near the bin Laden home and urged the children of the house to come and be vaccinated. While they were there, he took DNA swabs from their mouths and was able to confirm that they were direct relatives of Osama bin Laden.

This was what our military and civilian leaders needed to order the raid. The information provided by Dr. Afridi directly led to bin Laden’s death. He should be rewarded or, at the very least, congratulated. Instead, Dr. Afridi is in prison in Pakistan for the alleged crime of treason for his cooperation with American intelligence agencies.

This man, who is a hero and should be praised, congratulated and rewarded, has been put in prison for 33 years for helping America catch the mass murderer Osama bin Laden. This is shameful. It is not what we should expect or tolerate from a supposed ally of the United States. I think this is a tragedy and Congress should take decisive action.

Reports from the information minister in the province where Dr. Afridi is being held claim the doctor’s life has been threatened. My concern is that Dr. Afridi may well be killed before he comes to trial.
[Washington Times]
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Egypt Becomes An Islamic State

This man has a reason to be smiling...he just outflanked the entire military brass of Egypt, becoming a more powerful dictator than Mubarek

Egyptian fiasco -Caroline Glick

Egypt is now an Islamic state.

Its leaders drink from the same well as al Qaida, Hamas and all the rest.
Egypt, with its US armed military has reemerged after 30 years as the greatest military threat that Israel has ever faced.
[CarolineGlick.com]
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UPDATE:

Global Jihadi Networks in Sinai -Lt. Col. Jonathan D. Halevi 

Egypt's supreme interest is to alter the terms of the Camp David agreement and enable full Egyptian sovereignty over all of Sinai, including in the military domain. In the government's view, terror activity from the Egyptian border that does not stamp Egypt as directly responsible, helps exert pressure in Sinai, compelling Israel to agree to a permanent military deployment in the territory and making the demand for a change in the agreement an Israeli interest without Egypt paying any political price for it.
(Institute for Contemporary Affairs-Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs)
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Brotherhood coup d'état in Egypt

In a brilliant coup, Muslim Brotherhood's Morsi [right] fired head of the Egyptian military Tantawi [left]

The Israel Border Attack's Unintended Consequences -Zvi Mazel

President Morsi capitalized on the massacre of 16 Egyptian soldiers near the Kerem Shalom border crossing, by firing a number of high-ranking defense personalities from the old regime. Newcomers will be chosen for their sympathy to the Brotherhood, the first step toward doing away with the old army guard by pensioning them off and appointing officers closer to the new regime in their stead.

The Muslim Brothers have no wish to go on sharing power with the army. 
(Jerusalem Post)

Egypt's Morsi Replaces Military, Consolidates Power -Ernesto Londono

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi forced out Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi - the defense minister and top military chief - and his deputy, army chief of staff Sami Anan, suggesting that the Muslim Brotherhood is willing to act more quickly and assertively in taking control of key institutions than analysts had predicted.

The president also announced that he had suspended a constitutional amendment the generals passed on the eve of Morsi's election giving themselves vast powers and weakening the presidency.

"Now, officially, it is a Brotherhood state," said Zeinab Abul-Magd, a history professor at the American University in Cairo. "Now it is official they are in full control of state institutions."

Tantawi's removal sidelines a longtime U.S. interlocutor in a country that has received tens of billions of dollars in military aid in exchange for maintaining peace with Israel.
(Washington Post)

New Egyptian Defense Minister -David Ignatius

What's indisputable is that the Muslim Brotherhood has now tightened its grip on Egypt, controlling the military as well as the presidency and the parliament.
(Washington Post)
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UPDATE:

Morsi's Velvet Revolution -Zvi Mazel

Without firing a single shot, President Mohamed Morsi managed to neutralize the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces and complete his takeover of Egypt.

Morsi now holds dictatorial powers surpassing by far those of President Hosni Mubarak.

Though Egypt will strive to maintain good relations with the U.S. in order to continue receiving impressive sums in military and other aid, it is turning more and more to Arab countries for help.
The writer is a former ambassador to Egypt. 
(Jerusalem Post)
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Will Israel Strike Iran in October?

Will Israel Help Re-Elect Obama? -Lauri B. Regan

Obama may actually be handed a gift in October, and depending upon what he does with that opportunity, it may provide him with a guaranteed win on November 6.

The Washington Free Beacon is reporting that according to U.S. intelligence experts, Israel is gearing up for an October attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. And while Obama has done everything in his power to prevent Israel from conducting a military strike, including leaking various national security secrets pertaining to such an attack, affording Iran time to further its goals through prolonged and ineffectual diplomatic games, and withholding sophisticated weaponry that would increase the chances of a successful Israeli strike, Israel may not have a choice but to proceed without a nod or assistance from Washington. But why October?

And as the clock ticks, Obama is calculating that the faux promises and behind-the-scenes pressure from the leader of the free world, and only proven friend of the tiny country that causes him angst, will ultimately result in the Israelis tabling a strike and working on his timetable. And to that end, Obama has likely miscalculated. For Israelis no longer trust the United States under the present administration. If they believe that come October, Obama has a solid chance of a second term, it is probable that they will endeavor upon a military intervention to prevent Iran's nuclear capability.

Israel cannot take a chance that Obama wins, for if that occurs, Israel knows that Obama will most assuredly not provide humanitarian aid in the face of retaliatory strikes, military aid to help resupply the IDF with equipment and arms it may need to complete what it was forced to start on its own, and diplomatic cover at the U.N. as the world condemns the attack, as it most certainly will. The world may breathe a sigh of relief that once again the Israelis accomplished what no other country had the nerve to do, but those thoughts will remain the stuff of off-mike whispers never intended as a defense of the Jewish state.

Barack Obama is no fool, either. He also wants to win a second term. If Israel is forced to strike, Obama and his advisers understand that the majority of Americans support Israel and will expect the administration to do everything in its power to ensure Israel's success. In such a case, even if Obama does the bare minimum to help Israel -- vetoing a resolution against her at the U.N., ensuring safe airspace over Iraq and perhaps refueling at U.S. military bases in the region, ensuring that the Strait of Hormuz remain open and safe for oil tanker passage, and otherwise publicly supporting her in the face of international condemnation -- he will likely claim full credit for the success of the mission, claim that he gave the green light and was always in favor of the plan, and lie once again to the American people in a speech full of "I"s and "me"s.

And therein lies the irony of Obama forcing Israel to put its citizens and soldiers at risk to do something that he should be authorizing the U.S. military to do. Israel may clinch Obama's second term while ensuring its own short-term survival. 
[American Thinker]
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Report: Israel Will Have to Tackle Iran Alone -Michal Shmulovich

A day after White House spokesman Jay Carney claimed the U.S. would know if Tehran is close to obtaining a nuclear weapon, Israel's Channel 2 news quoted "sources in Jerusalem" saying the Americans "didn't see 9/11 coming."
    
Channel 2 News' diplomatic correspondent Udi Segal said Israel does not believe the U.S. will take military action as Iran closes in on the bomb. The U.S. has not provided Israel with details of an attack plan. President Obama has not promised to attack Iran if all else fails. Conditions cited by Defense Secretary Leon Panetta for an American attack do not calm Israeli concerns. And Obama has a record of seeking UN and Arab League approval before action. All these factors underline the growing conviction that Israel will have to tackle Iran alone, the TV report said.
    
Netanyahu "is convinced that thwarting Iran amounts to thwarting a plan to destroy the Jewish people," Segal said. 
(Times of Israel)
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Hummus Ice Cream? Oh my!

The video above features some unusual Israeli flavors...I'm not sure if hummus ice cream would be any good, but i'm willing to try it.

The Failure of the Palestinian Endeavor

The West has pumped billions into the Palestinian economy

Palestine's Biggest Obstacle -Lee Smith

Palestinians in the diaspora are thriving, so what exactly is preventing success in the West Bank and Gaza? Instead of building a bustling economy, the Palestinians have devoted their energies to waging war against Israel for more than 60 years.

The absence of a Palestinian state is proof that this war has been unsuccessful, wasting almost three generations of Palestinian talent.
(Tablet)
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Sinai Attack Brings Egypt - Israel Cooperation

Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi (C) shakes hand with an Egyptian soldier, whom was injured when gunmen attacked a border station between Egypt and Israel, at a hospital in Cairo

The Short-Lived Morsi-Hamas Honeymoon -Khaled Abu Toameh

Sunday's terror attack in Sinai which killed 16 Egyptian border guards took place just when it seemed that Hamas and Egypt were about to embark on a honeymoon. Just last week, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi received Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh in his palace in Cairo and agreed to ease restrictions on residents of Gaza, despite opposition from Egypt's Supreme Military Council. In interviews with Arab TV stations and comments on social media sites, many Egyptians blamed their president for the "massacre" in Sinai and demanded the closure of the Rafah border crossing with Gaza.

Apart from the political damage, the terror attack has also dealt a severe economic blow to Hamas. Immediately after the attack, the Egyptians forced the Hamas government to close down all underground tunnels that are used to smuggle not only weapons but also various goods and fuel.
(Jerusalem Post)

Egyptian Air Strike Kills 20 Militants in Sinai -Yusri Mohamed

Egypt launched air strikes around the town of Sheikh Zuwaid, 10 km. from Gaza, following clashes overnight between armed men and security forces at several checkpoints in northern Sinai. More than 20 suspected Islamic militants were killed in the crackdown on jihadists blamed for a deadly attack on Egyptian border police.
   
Israel says it has agreed in the past to Egyptian requests to bring more troops into Sinai and the terms of the peace treaty are no obstacle to combating militants threatening both countries. "What we see in Egypt is a strong fury, a determination of the regime and the army to take care of it and impose order in Sinai," senior Israeli defense official Amos Gilad told Israel Radio. 
(Reuters)

Egypt: We Have Detailed Information on Sinai Attack -Manar Ammar    

Morad Mowafi, head of Egypt's intelligence agency, told Turkey's Anadulo news agency that they had information about the deadly attack in Rafah and those who were involved in it. He said that the "terrorist group" behind the attack is spread between Egypt's Sinai and Gaza.
   
Mowafi said, "Yes, we had detailed information about the attack, but we never imagined that a Muslim would kill a Muslim on the hour of breaking the fasting in Ramadan."
    
Moussa Abu Hamed of Hamas said that Israeli intelligence handed its Egyptian counterpart a list of 9 terrorists who are suspects in the attack.
(Bikya Masr-Egypt)

Egyptian Officials Fired Over Soldiers' Killings in Sinai -Kareem Fahim

President Mohamed Morsi fired his intelligence chief, the head of the military police, the governor of North Sinai, and the head of the presidential guard in a sweeping response to the killing of 16 soldiers in the Sinai Peninsula.
(New York Times)

Israel-Egypt Security Cooperation Strong -Amos Harel & Avi Issacharoff 

The current security coordination between Israel and Egypt has undergone a significant upgrade.
     
The evidence includes passing along warnings of possible attacks, talks between senior officers in the field, and the continuous discussions between the Egyptian Ministry of Defense and General Intelligence Service and the Israeli security establishment.
    
The appointment of a new Egyptian intelligence minister should only strengthen ties. 
(Ha'aretz)
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Top Hamas Relative Gets Medical Care in Israel

Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas' Prime Minister, doesn't seem to mind his brother-in-law receiving medical treatment in Israel

Hamas PM's Brother-in-Law Treated at Israeli Hospital -Elior Levy

Four months ago the husband of Suhila Abd el-Salam Ahmed Haniyeh - the sister of Hamas Prime Minister in Gaza Ismail Haniyeh [pictured] - suffered a serious cardiac episode which could not be treated at any hospital in Gaza. He and his wife were taken to the Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva where he received urgent treatment. After being hospitalized in Israel for a week, his condition stabilized and the couple returned to Gaza.

Ismail Haniyeh attacks Israel at every opportunity, and the terror group he heads does not recognize Israel's right to exist.
(Ynet News)
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Matisyahu's Robo Rabbi

Rabbi Zalman Schachter's voice appears on Matisyahu's latest CD "Spark Seeker."
He appears on two tracks and is credited on the CD as "Robo Rabbi"

Matisyahu in Israel, newly beardless

 



The Mysterious Voice of Matisyahu's "Robo Rabbi" -Bruce

Imagine my surprise to be listening to Matisyahu's newly released CD and, behold, the absolutely unmistakable voice of my dear Rabbi Zalman Schachter. And a few tracks later, his voice appears again, this time lecturing on the Bal Shem Tov.

I guess I shouldn't have been surprised, but I was. Both Rebbe Zalman and Matisyahu are "graduates" of Chabad and both are exceedingly talented at their respective crafts.  I have no idea if Rabbi Schachter and Matisyahu have met, but his voice appearing on two tracks would seem to indicate admiration of Rebbe Zalman's wisdom.  I can attest to the same. 

Reb Zalman's voice appears on Track 3 [Searchin] and Track 6 [Bal Shem Tov].  His voice is clearly discernable on both tracks [click on track links in the prior sentence to listen]. 
[Bruce's MidEast Soundbites]

Note: This post has absolutely nothing to do with the MidEast.  It is only the second time I have posted on another topic. 
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Christian Antisemitism



The Notra Dame Church in Paris France, sports these two statues: Ecclesia and Synagoga. 
Ecclesia, left, represents the Church, with head up, holding the tablets. 
Synagoga, represents the Jewish people: her head is down, her crown lies on the ground near her broken staff, a snake circles her head and the broken tablets of the law are in her right hand. 


The "They-of-All-People" Argument -Chas Newkey-Burden

There is still one anti-Israel argument that makes my jaw drop.

And it is one made with unfortunate frequency. It is the "they-of-all-people" argument: the suggestion that the Jews, having faced extraordinary persecution, should know better than anyone not to be oppressors.

I contend that, as a result of the Holocaust and what preceded it, it is we gentiles who should know better. The Holocaust followed centuries of slander, persecution, violence and murder committed by gentiles against Jews. So it is not the Jews who have an increased responsibility to behave morally, but us.

The world's ceremonies and gestures of regret over the Holocaust would carry an increased weight of sincerity were they to be matched with robust support for Israel as the countdown to a nuclear-armed Iran, whose leader denies the Holocaust while promising to commit a second one by wiping out the Jewish state, continues.

Let us strip the "they-of-all-people" argument down to its very basics: gentiles telling Jews that we killed six million of your people and that as a result it is you, not us, who have lessons to learn.
(Jewish Chronicle-UK)
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Romney Accused of Racism by Palestinians

Mitt Romney pissed off Palestinian "negotiator" Saeb Erekat by pointing out that Israel has the healthiest economic culture in the MidEast.  If Romney pissed off the Palestinians, you know he hit the nail on the head.

Romney Lays It Out -Barry Rubin

There are some broad and important political issues raised by a minor flap concerning presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s visit to Israel. The controversy began when Romney said at a meeting with donors:

"And as you come here and you see the GDP per capita for instance in Israel which is about 21,000 dollars and you compare that with the GDP per capita just across the areas managed by the Palestinian Authority which is more like 10,000 dollars per capita you notice a dramatic, stark difference in economic vitality. And that is also between other countries that are near or next to each other. Chile and Ecuador, Mexico and the United States. ... there was a book written by a former Harvard professor [David Landes] named ‘The Wealth and Poverty of Nations.’ ...and he’s in his early 70s at this point, he says this, he says, if you could learn anything from the economic history of the world it’s this: culture makes all the difference. Culture makes all the difference. And as I come here and I look out over this city and consider the accomplishments of the people of this nation, I recognize the power of at least culture and a few other things."

Palestinian leaders [then] complained, saying that this showed Romney was racist and out of touch with the realities of the Middle East.

But, here’s one out of thousands of examples: Recently, at a cultural performance whose audience included the PA minister of culture, the songs and poetry spoke of how the main priority of raising children is to make sure they were ready to use guns — not computers — against you-know-who. And Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, holds summer camps where thousands of young people are encouraged to grow up to be suicide bombers and terrorists.

A large number of mainstream media outlets and columnists have attacked Romney for his statement mainly because he didn’t talk about the negative effects of Israeli policy on the Palestinian economy. Because, you see, nobody can be successful and prosperous unless they stole it from others.

To my knowledge not a single one pointed out:
1. Statistics showing major advances during the period of Israeli occupation;
2. Palestinian violence has been the main cause of Israeli roadblocks and interventions;
3. A comparison to non-oil rich Arab countries showing that the Palestinian Authority has not done at all badly in comparison to those where Israel had no effect;
4. The massive corruption and incompetence of the PA;
5. The massive inflow of international aid to the Palestinians; and
6. The large transfer of funds from Israel to the PA regarding refunds on customs duties and workers’ fringe benefits.

This is how shameless the coverage is on these issues. It’s funny to think that only a couple of months ago, the same media outlets were talking about a big economic boom on the West Bank.
[PJ Media]


Whose Fault Is Palestinian Poverty? -John Podhoretz

One reason Palestinian economic growth has been so disastrously slow is the terror war that Yasser Arafat launched against Israel in 2000 - the Second Intifada. It shattered Israeli hopes for peaceful concert with a new neighboring country, and led to an economic estrangement that proved horribly costly to Palestinians. Israelis stopped employing Palestinian workers and stopped buying Palestinian goods. Transit and trade between the two became difficult and painful.

And whose fault was it? Israel, which agreed in principle to a deal at Camp David in 2000 granting Palestinians a state with sovereign dominion over nearly 94% of the West Bank? No, it was exclusively the doing of Arafat, who served as a reverse George Washington - rejecting nationhood for violence.

Saeb Erekat blames "occupation" for Palestinian poverty. But the PA has dominion over almost all of the West Bank and Hamas has control over all of Gaza, so the word "occupation" is all but meaningless.
(New York Post)
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UPDATE:

Romney is no racist -Jeffrey T. Kuhner

CNN, the New York Times, ABC News, MSNBC, CBS News — all of them claimed Mr. Romney’s comments were ignorant, racist or both. Yet, there is only one problem: He is right. Culture matters.

Israel is a First World country because it adheres to Western values, such as free-market capitalism, property rights, constitutional democracy and the rule of law. Palestinians (like all Arab nations) reject these principles. They — and the U.S. media — can complain about Israeli blockades and “occupation.” But the fact is, Palestinian culture places jihad and anti-Semitic hatred above peaceful economic development.

Palestinian schoolchildren — in Gaza and the West Bank — regularly are taught the virtues of strapping on suicide bombs and killing Jews. Palestinian textbooks depict Christians and Jews as descendants from monkeys and pigs. An Arab Switzerland cannot emerge in such a swamp of hate.

Far from being “racist,” Mr. Romney simply stated the obvious.
[Washington Times]
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The Documentary that PBS Refused to Air

"Islam vs. Islamists" was produced with Corporation for Public Broadcasting funds.  However PBS crushed it before it reached the viewing public.  The full documentary, which champions moderate Muslims, is now available online and above.

The Documentary that PBS Refused to Air: Islam Vs. Islamists

This full-length documentary was produced by ABG Films with funds from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. It was originally slated to run as part of PBS' "America at a Crossroads" series. However, after viewing the film, PBS executives told the filmmakers that it was "alarmist" and "overreaching" and that PBS would not run it.
[Clarion Fund]
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As Syria Crumbles, Remember Who Prevented Assad From Going Nuclear

Thank Israel that Syria's Assad Doesn't Have Nukes -Alan Elsner

The danger presented today by the presence of Syrian chemical and biological weapons is bad enough. Just think how much more dangerous the situation would have been if there were loose nukes lying around. The world should be thankful that the Assad regime never succeeded in developing nuclear weapons - which almost happened in 2007.

Syria was building a nuclear reactor similar to North Korea's Yongbyon reactor which was used to build nuclear bombs. The Mossad assessment was that the reactor would become "hot" within a few months and would produce enough plutonium for a nuclear bomb within a year. Once it went online, the reactor could not have been attacked without the danger of spreading deadly radiation throughout the region.

After U.S. President George W. Bush refused an Israeli request in June 2007 to bomb the facility, Israel did so in a two-minute air raid on Sept. 6, 2007. The International Atomic Energy Agency said in June 2011 that the destroyed building "was very likely" a nuclear reactor.

As the Syrian situation proves today, Israel did the entire world a huge favor.
(Huffington Post)
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Obama's Mixed Record on Israel

The video above documents the mistakes Obama has made on Israel and the MidEast.
The article below highlights Obama's recent enhancement of the US - Israel relationship.

Obama Signs U.S.-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act

President Obama signed the bipartisan U.S.-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act. The legislation provides additional support for various defense systems as well as the extension of loan guarantees for Israel and encouragement of an expanded role for Israel within NATO. The president also announced an additional $70 million in spending for the Iron Dome anti-missile project.
(JTA)
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Romney in Jerusalem

Mitt Romney Captures Jerusalem -Barry Rubin

Speaking to an often-cheering group of about 400 people in Jerusalem, Governor Mitt Romney gave a speech less notable for what he said than for the fact that the audience believed he was sincere in saying it.
[PJ Media]
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Romney's Remarkable Speech in Jerusalem -Daniel Pipes, PhD

Mitt Romney delivered a speech to the Jerusalem Foundation today, packing emotional support with frank policy statements. The contrast with Obama could hardly be more dramatic. Indeed, one could go through the speech and note the many refutations of Obama. For example, the opening comment that "To step foot into Israel is to step foot into a nation that began with an ancient promise made in this land" directly contrasts with Obama's crabbed statement in Cairo about "the aspiration for a Jewish homeland [being] rooted in a tragic history."

Also, in contrast to the nonsensical Obama administration stance on Jerusalem...Romney came out and plainly called Jerusalem "the capital of Israel."

But of the whole speech, it is the final words that most struck me: "May God bless America, and may He bless and protect the Nation of Israel." When last did a politician ask the Lord to protect another country and not his own?
[National Review Online]
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Romney Backs Israeli Stance on Threat of Nuclear Iran -Jodi Rudoren & Ashley Parker

Mitt Romney adopted the language of Israel's leaders, who say Tehran must not even obtain the capability to build a nuclear weapon, a harder position than the United States has taken.
[New York Times]
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Romney to Back Israel’s Right to Strike Iran -Ashley Parker

Mitt Romney plans to assert that he respects Israel’s right to take pre-emptive action to stop Iran from developing nuclear capabilities that could be used for a weapon.

Dan Senor, a senior Romney foreign policy adviser told reporters in a briefing before the speech that Mr. Romney would express — several times — that it was “unacceptable” for Iran to develop the capability to build nuclear weapons and his view that Israel does have the right to take action against Iran.
[New York Times]
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White House Press Secretary Refuses to Name Jerusalem as Israel's Capital

Like it or Not, Jerusalem Is Israel's Capital -Michael J. Totten

White House press secretary Jim Carney refused to publicly name the capital of Israel Wednesday. This is all really quite silly. It's a fact - not an opinion - that Jerusalem is Israel's capital. Anyone who insists otherwise is in denial.

You may wish Tel Aviv was its capital. You may even wish a united Al Quds was the capital of the Arab state of Palestine. But those things can only be true in an alternate universe or in the future. In this universe, in 2012, Israel exists and Jerusalem is its capital. Only one of Israel's national government buildings - the ministry of defense - is in Tel Aviv. All the others are in Jerusalem.

Carney doesn't want Arab governments to have a conniption fit. The problem is that he is enabling delusional rejectionists. Letting self-destructive beliefs and behavior go unchecked always makes the problem worse in the long run.
(World Affairs Journal)
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Hamas' Rising Star

Egyptian President Meets Hamas' Gaza Leader -Tom Perry & Nidal al-Mughrabi

Gaza Islamist leader Ismail Haniyeh met Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi in an official visit that signaled a big shift in Cairo's stance toward Hamas after the election of a Muslim Brotherhood head of state in Egypt. Mubarak never recognized the Hamas administration which has governed Gaza since 2007.
(Reuters)
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Hamas Rising -Jonathan Schanzer

Hamas is riding high on the beneficence of two of the Middle East's emerging Sunni powerhouses. In February, Hamas announced a $250 million deal with Qatar for reconstruction projects. Doha is also providing funds for sports and housing projects. And Qatar appears to be the new global headquarters of the Hamas politburo after Damascus.

Turkey's Islamist government has also embraced Hamas, both economically and diplomatically. Hamas has also enjoyed a red-carpet welcome in Tunisia, where the Islamist al-Nahda party has taken the reins of power.

The victory of the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi in Egypt's presidential elections has energized Hamas. Hamas, unlike the PA, has never needed Western handouts.
(Foreign Policy)


Arab Spring: A Blessing for Hamas -Khaled Abu Toameh

Thanks to the "Arab Spring," Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal [pictured] has, for the first time ever, entered the Presidential Palace in Cairo. Until recently, Mashaal and other Hamas leaders were considered personae non gratae in both Jordan and Egypt. The rising power of Hamas makes any talk about a peace process sound like a joke.
(Gatestone Institute)
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Palestinian Authority Loves Terrorists...Again

PA Thanks Olympic Committee for Refusing Munich Memorial -Khaled Abu Toameh

Jibril Rajoub, head of the Palestinian Football Federation, sent a letter to International Olympic Committee chairman Jacques Rogge thanking him for refusing to hold a minute of silence at Friday's opening ceremony in London to mark the 40th anniversary of the murder of 11 Israeli sportsmen at the 1972 Munich Games, the PA's official news agency, WAFA, reported.
(Jerusalem Post)
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Shameful: IOC Can't Spare a Minute -Bill Plaschke

Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee, reportedly told Ankie Spitzer, wife of slain fencing coach Andrei Spitzer, that in this matter, his hands were tied. "Your hands are tied?" Spitzer replied. "My husband's hands were tied. So were his feet."
(Los Angeles Times)
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