Passage from Iraq

“I am Jewish, I want to go to Israel,” she said in fluent Arabic and with great excitement. The embassy found it hard to believe her story; but when she named her relatives in Israel, the embassy officials realized the truly incredible nature of the story unfolding before their very eyes and quickly contacted the Ministry of Interior’s population administration.

David Hazony (h/t) wonders:

The story is shocking and moving — and one wonders how many more stories there are like this one coming out of the new Iraq.

Crossposted on Soccer Dad.

Astonishing. The AP managed to write an article that utterly contradicts its lead. Here’s the lead:

Israeli students slam American ‘Israel Lobby’ authors
Two prominent American professors, who have recently been causing an uproar with their best-selling book critical of the powerful pro-Israel lobby in Washington, faced a raucous reception Thursday at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

About 200 students and faculty members crammed into a stuffy lecture hall and grilled John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt for more than two hours about the harsh findings in their book, “The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy,” published last year.

Makes you think there are going to be some hard-hitting questions by Israeli students to the W-M team, doesn’t it? That opening makes you think you’re going to get some really nasty responses from the students at the lecture. Were W-M shouted down? Booed? Did anyone throw a pie in their faces?

I wouldn’t know. The AP didn’t inform me of anything other than that W-M spoke at Hebrew University, that they’re martyrs of the “Israel Lobby,” and that a lot of people disagree with them but some people don’t.

You won’t find a single question in the paragraphs that follow. Not one. You’ll get a statement by a student sympathetic to the W-M smear. You’ll get a very long explanation by the AP writer on how W-M have been attacked by people who disagree with their thesis. And you’ll get a quote at the very end of the article by someone from the ADL who, I think, is critical of them. It’s hard to tell in context. But most of the article is like this:

Since Mearsheimer, a University of Chicago professor, and Walt, of Harvard University, published their working paper of the same title in 2006, they have drawn the wrath of Jewish American groups and US Administration officials.

“If you bring up the Israel lobby, you are asking for trouble,” Walt said as he opened his lecture. He said he knew he was “playing with fire” when he wrote the book, but said he would not be deterred by personal attacks against him.

There is not a single quote of a question from the “raucous reception”. There is nothing but this description:

They said AIPAC wields disproportionate power because of deep financial resources and heavy-handed tactics. They were then showered with questions, as the classroom erupted in excited conversation. The exchange was mostly cordial, with the American professors eliciting some laughs from the crowd, but at times it got testy.

Gee. It got “testy.” But “the exchange was mostly cordial.” And yet, the scary lead talks about the “raucous reception” W-M got. You know, like this one:

Not all in the audience were hostile. Korina Kagan, a political science lecturer, said she essentially agreed with their thesis and was appalled by the attacks against them, especially from academic circles.

“The smear campaign against them is worse than anything they have ever written,” she said, adding that many of their positions are shared by commentators in the Israeli media. “We need to have a free academic exchange.”

Hm. That’s awfully raucous, Korina. You want to control yourself. You may suffer an aneurism if you’re not careful.

Here’s my question to the AP: Was this article written entirely from the Walt-Mearsheimer press release, or did you actually have someone in the audience for the student quote above?

The Chronicle of Higher Education managed to find a completely different angle for the same lecture:

‘Israel Lobby’ Professors Get Hospitable Greeting in Israel
Jerusalem — The first appearance in Israel by Stephen M. Walt and John J. Mearsheimer since the publication of their controversial book, The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, impressed a largely student audience at the Hebrew University, but left some faculty members wondering about their honesty.

A threatened boycott failed to have any effect, and the talk passed off with nothing more dramatic than some lively debate and repeated declarations from the pair that they are neither anti-Semitic nor Israel-haters.

So, gee, the AP is what, lying?

Yeah, I’m thinking.

The daily bombardment of Israel continues.

A 59-year-old Israeli woman was lightly-to-moderately wounded in the Yad Mordechai area on Thursday afternoon as Palestinian terror groups launched a barrage of mortar shells and Qassam rockets against Israeli communities near the Gaza border.

At least 10 mortars and eight Qassams landed in Israel, primarily in the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council. No further injuries have been reported, though a number of fired have broken out as a result. A member of Kibbutz Nahal Oz told Ynet that residents have currently been instructed to remain in bomb shelters and fortified rooms.

Hamas blames their own work accident for the bombardment. In Bizarro Arab World, when Hamas bombmakers blow up themselves and their families and neighbors, Hamas must “retaliate” by blowing up Israelis.

Hamas threatened it would respond to the explosion that occurred in Beit Lahiya earlier in the day, in which three people were killed and over 40 were wounded. However Israel continues to maintain its forces did not launch the alleged airstrike and military officials estimated the explosion was likely the result of a Palestinian ‘work accident.’

As usual, the work accident is being blamed on Israel.

The incident occurred in the home of Ahmed Hamouda, a member of the Izz al-Din al Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas. Witnesses reported the explosion was caused by an Israeli airstrike, though the IDF made clear no forces had launched an attack in the area.

And of course, the AP spin is completely anti-Israel. Look at the lead to this story, where the AP describes the Gaza explosion and the resulting barrage of rockets and mortars as “spiraling violence.” Hamas is responsible for both, and yet this is “spiraling violence” that will prevent the “truce.”

A blast flattened the house of a militant commander in the Gaza Strip Thursday, killing four people, wounding 40 and burying an unknown number of others, Palestinian officials said.

Israel, which routinely accepts responsibility for attacks on military targets, denied involvement. But Hamas said the blast was caused by an Israeli airstrike and responded with a heavy barrage of rockets and mortar shells into southern Israel, wounding an Israeli woman.

The spiraling violence threatened to undermine last-ditch efforts to secure a truce between Israel and Hamas and stave off an Israeli invasion of Gaza.

Israel’s denial raised the possibility that the blast was caused by explosives meant for use against Israel that went off prematurely.

Note the words in bold, and see the subtle bias. Israel’s denial raises the possibility that it was a work accident, thus leading the reader to believe that Israel is lying. And what’s with the “went off prematurely” bit? It was a weapons lab. The terrorists making bombs effed up.

And then there’s the headline:

Blast flattens house of Hamas commander, killing 4

It’s a mystery blast. I suppose we should be grateful the AP doesn’t blame Israel in the headline, instead of waiting until the second graf in the lead.

Just another day in Israel news.

The Washington Post reports that Israel’s Olmert Clears Way for Party Primaries.

Under an ethics cloud and facing the possible collapse of his governing coalition, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday cleared the way for his party to hold early primaries that could end his political career.The move may temporarily ease dissension within his coalition. But it also could mean that Olmert’s Kadima party will choose a successor later this summer, which would effectively end his premiership.

However the Jerusalem Post reports that the maneuver may not delay elections as Olmert and Kadima hoped:

Olmert’s associates said that one of the goals of his decision was to try to prevent the passage of Likud MK Silvan Shalom’s bill that would disperse the Knesset and set a November 11 election date. But that goal appeared to have backfired, as both Labor and Shas officials said they would still vote for Shalom’s bill unless a date was set for the primary.

Hanegbi said there was no chance of a date being set by the time the bill was expected to be brought to a preliminary vote, on June 28. He said that due to the challenges of changing Kadima’s charter, it was also unlikely a primary date would be set before the cross-examination of American Jewish financier Morris Talansky, the main witness in the investigation that is undermining support for Olmert, on July 17.

Apparently Netanyahu saw this coming (via memeorandum)

Benjamin Netanyahu may hire former White House adviser Karl Rove.

Citing sources close to Netanyahu, Israel’s Channel 10 reported Thursday that Rove’s name has come up on a roster of strategic consultants that the Israeli opposition leader is thinking of hiring as he prepares for a possible leadership challenge against the embattled Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Well it wouldn’t exactly be a leadership challenge. It would be a general election. This suggests that in this case anyway, Shalom was doing Netanyahu’s bidding.

However the Washington Post also reports:

Israel’s political crisis comes as the government faces tough choices over how to handle daily rocket fire from the Gaza Strip, as well as apparently fruitless U.S.-backed negotiations with the Palestinian Authority over a possible peace deal.

On Wednesday, Israel’s security cabinet, a select group of ministers, announced it would continue to work with Egypt toward a cease-fire with Hamas but would also instruct the military to prepare for major operations if the talks break down.

“We are giving the Egyptian initiative every chance to succeed,” Regev said.

The NYT similarly reports:

Israel carries out frequent air and ground strikes and small-scale incursions into the small coastal territory to try to contain the rocket and mortar fire that has killed four Israeli civilians so far this year. Many here say they believe that a broad military offensive is inevitable; Mr. Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak threatened last week that one was close.

But for now, the preference is for the Egyptians to try to broker a cease-fire that fulfills Israeli conditions. Those include a cessation of all attacks from Gaza, an end to arms smuggling into the territory and some progress toward the release of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli corporal who was captured and taken to Gaza in June 2006.

Hamas has demanded an end to Israeli military operations in Gaza and an easing of the year-long economic blockade of the territory as part of any cease-fire deal. Israeli officials say that some sanctions could be lifted once there is calm.

Haaretz provides some more details:

To date, the Islamic group has agreed to a cease-fire with Israel but has refused to include in the deal the return of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit.

Israeli sources said Monday it was possible that Hamas’ decision to hand Israel a letter apparently written by Shalit was an expression of “goodwill,” in an effort to show that the group was willing to take some steps toward a truce deal.

In recent weeks Israel has demanded that any agreement for calm in the Gaza Strip, and the lifting of its blockade on the Strip, would also include progress on the question of Shalit, who has been held in Gaza since his abduction in June 2006.

Hamas has also rejected Israel’s demand it cease smuggling weapons into Gaza. Egypt has pledged to fight the arms smuggling, but Olmert and Livni have expressed their disapproval of reaching an agreement that would leave Hamas free to continue amassing a weapons stockpile.

Hamas is in a fine position to make demands on Israel as Elder of Ziyon found:

Sources in the Hamas movement say that the movement expects Israel to make a number of assassinations of prominent leaders of the movement at the last minute that precedes approval of the “calming” proposal from Egypt.

The Al-Hayat of London newspaper quoted sources as revealing that “a number of Hamas leaders finally vanished from sight for fear that Israel carried out its threats of military action in the sector before accepting the calm”, in a reference to the statements of Minister Ehud Barak, the Israeli army, which threatened to implement a military operation in the sector before the truce.

It would appear that the Israeli government is working harder to stay in power than it is in trying to remove the threat to the country’s south.

Crossposted on Soccer Dad.

More info here.

More info here.

I won’t tell you whether or not Mr Rogers was a sniper in the U.S. Army. Take the test and find out.

But she was a sniper! More here.

Crossposted on Soccer Dad.