CIA: Pollard received life sentence for giving unauthorized interview to Blitzer
(JNS.org) Jonathan Pollard, the only person in U.S. history to receive a life sentence for spying for an American ally, received a sentence of that magnitude because of an unauthorized interview he gave Wolf Blitzer of the Jerusalem Post in 1986, according to a newly declassified CIA document.
Pollard, who on Nov. 21 entered his 28th year in federal prison following a conviction of spying for Israel without intent to harm the U.S., cooperated with prosecutors in 1987 return for an assurance that he would not receive a life sentence. But according to the CIA, Pollard’s interview with Blitzer—now a veteran television news anchor for CNN—violated that deal, the Jerusalem Post reported Monday.
In the interview on Nov. 20, 1986, Pollard provided “extensive information on his motives and objectives in conducting espionage for Israel” and also gave Blitzer “a general account with important examples of intelligence he passed to the Israelis, and emphasized that the Israeli government must have been aware of and approved of his activities,” the declassified CIA document said.
The fact that Pollard gave the interview with Blitzer “without obtaining advance approval of the resulting text from the Justice Department,” the document said, represented a violation of his plea bargain.
Additionally, the document said Pollard’s wife at the time, Anne, also gave an unauthorized interview—with the CBS “60 Minutes” program, three days before Pollard’s sentencing.
Esther Pollard, Jonathan’s current wife, told the Jerusalem Post that the U.S. government “did something highly suspicious by forgetting to send anyone to monitor these interviews.”
“Later, at sentencing, the prosecutor successfully inflamed the judge against Jonathan by falsely claiming that not only had the interviews been secretly arranged behind their backs, but that Jonathan had also disclosed highly classified material to Blitzer that compromised the intelligence community’s sources and methods,” she said.
Pollard’s advocates in Congress and elsewhere have long said that his life sentence is disproportionate to his crime. When he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom last June, Israeli President Shimon Peres reportedly asked President Barack Obama in a private meeting to grant Pollard clemency. But the White House, at the time, said it would not change its position on Pollard.
PA’s Fayyad calls for boycott of Israeli products
(JNS.org) Representing the latest move in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict’s economic phase, Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on Sunday called for a boycott of Israeli products, Reuters reported.
“Today, I call upon citizens to boycott Israeli products as an answer to the aggression directed against us, to defend our right to survive,” Fayyad said in Ramallah. “We will take the necessary steps to implement that.”
By unilaterally seeking and obtaining nonmember observer state at the United Nations Nov. 29, the Palestinians’ violated their contractual obligation of reaching a final status agreement with Israel through negotiations, according to the 1993 Oslo Accords. In response, Israel last week said it would stop transferring tax revenues collected on behalf of the PA until at least March.
Additionally, the Israeli Finance Ministry said 435 million shekels ($115 million) that were to be transferred to the Palestinian Authority (PA) in December would be used to compensate the Israel Electric Corporation for the more than 600 million shekels ($160 million) it is owed by the Palestinians.
Terrorists in West Bank declare start of third Intifada
Tensions continued to run high in the West Bank over the weekend as more than 10,000 Palestinians rallied in Hebron to celebrate Hamas’ 25th anniversary. Additional protests were held in Nabi Salih, Bil’in, Qalandia and Beitunia.
The commander of the Israel Defense Forces’ Judea and Samaria Division, Maj. Gen. Hagai Mordechai, arrived on scene for the Hebron protest.
Last week, a clash between an IDF patrol and a stone-throwing mob in the West Bank ended in the soldiers’ retreat, and video footage of the event was circulated rapidly throughout Palestinian social media outlets.
Meanwhile, a Palestinian terrorist group comprised of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and PLO members in Hebron posted a video declaring the beginning of the third Intifada. The group threatened to kidnap IDF soldiers and carry out attacks on Israelis in response to IDF activity.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday commented on the Hamas protests over the weekend, saying, “With the approval of [Palestinian Authority President] Abu Mazen, [Hamas] called for the destruction of Israel and the expulsion of Jews from Jerusalem and from every point in the State of Israel.”
‘Friend a Soldier’ connects IDF troops with Internet users around the world
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) An online initiative meant to enable dialogue between former Israel Defense Forces soldiers and Internet users from around the world has relaunched a newly designed website.
The “Friend a Soldier” website was originally established in 2010. Since then, recently released IDF soldiers, in addition to reservists, have answered thousands of e-mails from 159 countries.
The group that runs the website says that its members are willing to engage in a dialogue with anyone on any topic, especially regarding the Middle East and the Israeli-Arab conflict.
Friend-a-Soldier was founded in 2010 by IDF veterans Daniel Nisman, Yagil Beinglass and Joshua Mintz, immigrants to Israel from the U.S. and Britain who wanted to fight against the vilification of Israel online. They decided to create an online forum where former IDF soldiers could answer questions about the army and life in Israel.
“Forging these personal connections is the only way to break the misconceptions about us,” Beinglass said.
Nisman said that the group’s goal “is to reach the point where we have IDF veterans from all parts of Israeli society volunteering to answer questions in many languages, to personally influence hundreds of people a month, and to become the address for the world to engage in an open and honest dialogue.”
Netanyahu to serve as Israeli foreign minister, replacing Lieberman
(JNS.org) Officials in the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Netanyahu will serve as the country’s foreign minister himself until the next government is formed, replacing resigned foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman, Israel Hayom reported.
Lieberman said Dec. 14 that he would resign following his indictment on fraud and breach of trust for allegedly promoting a diplomat who provided him with sensitive information about the police investigation against him.
Thursday’s indictment of the foreign minister, announced by Israeli Attorney-General Yehuda Weinstein, had ended a 12-year investigation.
“I have committed no offense but I wish to put behind me this issue, which is what remains of many years of investigation,” Lieberman said in a statement Friday, according to reports.
Lieberman said he is stepping down “because I believe the citizens of Israel deserve to go to the ballot box with this thing already settled, so I can resume serving the state of Israel and its citizens.”
The attorney-general’s draft indictment of Lieberman, issued in April of last year, was much more damning than Thursday’s final announcement, involving allegations of money laundering through shell companies, harassment of a witness and more severe charges of fraud and breach of trust.
Weinstein decided to forego prosecution on most charges due to a lack of sufficient evidence. The watered-down indictment is limited to Lieberman’s alleged actions in 2009, when he allegedly had the government promote then ambassador to Belarus, Ze’ev Ben-Aryeh, and have him appointed as Israel’s chief diplomat in Latvia. Lieberman is faulted for not disclosing that the latter had provided the minister with unauthorized information on the police investigation into his corruption case.
U.S. lawmakers petition Obama to close PLO’s Washington office
(JNS.org) A bipartisan group of lawmakers is urging President Barack Obama to close the Palestine Liberation Organization’s (PLO) office in Washington, DC, in response to the unilateral Palestinian action to upgrade its status at the UN last month, Israel National News reported.
The group of lawmakers, which included Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Howard Berman (D-CA), Edward Royce (R-CA), and Eliot Engel (D-NY), circulated a letter expressing their anger at the Palestinian UN moves and urged a strong American response, such as closing the PLO’s office.
“We are deeply disappointed and upset that the Palestinian leadership rebuffed the entreaties of your Administration and the Congress and insisted on pursuing this distinctly unhelpful initiative,” the letter states.
“One important way of expressing U.S. disapproval would be to send the message that such actions are not cost-free and that, at a minimum, they result in setbacks to U.S.-Palestinian relations,” the letter adds.
Several prominent pro-Israel groups such as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) support the move. However, left-leaning groups such as J Street and Peace Now oppose it.
While short of full member status, the upgraded status may allow the Palestinians to join several UN agencies and treaties, such as the International Criminal Court (ICC), where the Palestinians could bring criminal charges against Israel. Recently, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to pursue Israel in the ICC in response to Israel’s plan to build Jewish homes in the controversial E1 area.
Swedish Christian aid worker murdered in Pakistan
(JNS.org) Police continue to deny that Swedish Christian aid worker Birgitta Almby—who was fatally shot by two assailants outside of her Lahore, Pakistan home this month and later died in her native Sweden—was killed by the Taliban.
Friends and colleagues suspect Islamic extremists were behind the Dec. 3 attack, but the police currently have no suspects, Morning Star News reported.
Almby had served the beleaguered Pakistani Christian community for several decades through a Christian-run FGA Technical Training Institute and Bible School, as well as an orphanage.
“Almby will be missed dearly,” FGA Bible School Principal Liaqat Qaiser. “She spent a long time serving the poor and downtrodden Christians in Pakistan, and every Christian is very sad at her demise.”
Qaiser feels that she was the target of Islamic extremism, which has been a growing threat in Pakistan.
“Who else would want to murder someone as apolitical and harmless as Almby, who had dedicated her life to serving humanity?” he asked.
According to the local police superintendent, there are no witnesses to the murder. Police rejected claims that the al-Qaeda linked Punjabi Taliban was involved. However, the assailants did not take any valuables after they shot her.
JNS.org columnist Ben Cohen wrote for Commentary that the Pakistani police’s denial of Taliban involvement is typical for a case like this.
“Superintendent Dogar’s statements are yet more confirmation that, whether through fear or collusion or a combination of the two, every Pakistani security agency appears to crumble at the mere mention of the Taliban,” Cohen wrote.
Israeli leaders offer condolences for Connecticut school shooting
(JNS.org) In the wake of the worst school shooting in U.S. history on Dec. 14—which left 26 dead, most of them children—Israeli leaders wrote to U.S. President Barack Obama to express their shock, outrage and deepest sympathies, Israel Hayom reported.
“Dear President Obama, I was shocked and horrified by today’s savage massacre of innocent children and adults at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote in a letter to Obama immediately after the shooting.
“We in Israel have experienced such cruel acts of slaughter and we know the shock and agony they bring. I want to express my profound grief, and that of all the people in Israel, to the families that lost their loved ones. May you and the American people find the strength to overcome this unspeakable tragedy.”
Netanyahu reiterated his condolences at his weekly cabinet meeting on Dec 16.
Israeli President Shimon Peres also extended his sympathies.
“No experience with death can be likened to that of a parent’s loss of their child,” Peres said. “No crime is more heinous than the killing of a child. Our hearts are with the bereaved families of the victims, the mourning community in Newtown, Connecticut and the people of the United States of America. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.”
Six-year-old Jewish boy is youngest victim in massive Connecticut school shooting
(JNS.org) A 6-year-old Jewish boy, Noah Ponzer, was the youngest of 26 victims in the massive school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., on Dec. 14, NPR reported.
Rabbi Shaul Praver, leader of Temple Adath Israel in Newtown, spoke to the radio station about the tragedy on Saturday.
“I told [Noah Ponzer’s] mother that was grieving that I personally believe in the eternity of the soul and that I believe that she will see her son again someday,” Praver said. “And other than that theological comment, the rest of it was getting her to think about just taking a breath and not trying to plan the rest of her life out right now. You know, she goes, what am I going to do without my baby? And just trying to get her to literally survive the moment.”
Praver was also interviewed on Israel’s Army Radio.
“Today’s culture revolves around violence; we need to teach our children the path of peace. We need to change everything,” he said, according to Israel Hayom.
Potential defense secretary under fire for record on Israel
(JNS.org) One of President Barack Obama’s potential appointees for Secretary of Defense has come under fire for what critics call a record that is unsupportive of Israel.
The candidate, former U.S. senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE), currently chairs the Atlantic Council think tank, which on Dec. 11 published a column titled “Israel’s Apartheid Policy” (http://www.acus.org/new_atlanticist/israels-apartheid-policy).
Hagel is also co-chair of the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board and serves on the Secretary of Defense’s Policy Board, and while in the senate was part of the Intelligence and Foreign Relations committees. When Hagel was being considered for the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board appointment in 2009, Ira Forman—then executive director of the National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC), and in 2012 the Obama campaign’s Jewish Outreach Director—opposed the move.
“If [Hagel] was taking a policy role, we’d have real concerns,” Forman said at the time, according to the Washington Free Beacon.
Hagel has taken a “long list of actions” exhibiting his “failure to support Israel,” the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) said Dec. 14. Choosing him for Secretary of Defense would be “a slap in the face for every American who is concerned about the safety of Israel,” RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks said in a statement.
RJC pointed to a number of letters signed by most other senators, but not Hagel: an August 2006 letter asking the European Union to declare Hezbollah a terrorist organization (12 senators did not sign), a November 2001 letter asking President George W. Bush not to meet Yasser Arafat until Arafat took steps to end violence against Israel (11 senators did not sign), and an October 2000 letter in support of Israel (four senators did not sign).
A letter Hagel did sign in March 2009 urged Obama to directly negotiate with Hamas, RJC added.
U.S. Sen. Jack Reed (R-RI), however, defended the former Nebraska senator’s appointment on the basis of his time as a Vietnam veteran.
“Chuck Hagel has the experience as a combat veteran with two purple hearts and an understanding that the decisions that are made in Washington ultimately are carried out by young men and women across the globe,” Reed told Politico. “That is a very important intellectual, emotional asset.”
Additionally, a Hagel appointment “should be welcomed by anyone frustrated by years of war and foreign meddling, and out-of-control spending at the Pentagon,” Christopher Preble—vice president of the Cato Institute think tank—wrote in a Dec. 13 online post. Hagel “understands war, and doesn’t take it lightly,” according to Preble.
Survey: Only 28.2 percent of Israelis say Palestinian peace partner exists
(JNS.org) Following the Palestinians’ unilateral move to obtain nonmember observer state status at the United Nations last month, a new survey says just 28.2 percent of Israelis believe their country has a partner for peace in negotiations with the Palestinians.
According to the Gal Hadash survey, conducted for Israel Hayom, 62.4 percent of Israelis say they have no Palestinian peace partner.
Only 28.2% of Israelis believe that Israel has a partner for peace in negotiations with the Palestinians, according to a new survey conducted by Gal Hadash for Yisrael Hayom. 62.4% say there is no partner for peace.
Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas on Dec. 13 publicly supported a two-state solution and said, “I do not agree with [exiled Hamas chief [Khaled] Mashaal about not recognizing Israel,” Israel National News reported.
But on Dec. 10, the PA’s Al-Hayat Al-Jadida newspaper published a logo for Fatah’s 48th anniversary featuring a map of all of Israel marked as “Palestine,” according to Palestinian Media Watch (PMW). The logo also includes a dove breaking to symbolize the “freeing of all Palestinian prisoners,” a golden dome to represent “both Islam and the Palestinian claim to Jerusalem,” and a rifle for “the Palestinian claim of ownership to houses within Israel,” PMW said.
Report: Hamas ‘thoroughly daunted’ by Israel following Gaza conflict
(JNS.org) Don’t be fooled by Hamas’s ongoing celebrations in the aftermath of its conflict with Israel in Gaza, according to one senior Israeli military officer.
Hamas and other Palestinian terrorists are ‘thoroughly daunted’ following Israel’s Operation Pillar of Defense offensive, the anonymous officer told Reuters.
“Their jubilation was not from victory, it was from their relief at being able to emerge from shelters,” the officer said of Hamas.
The officer’s assessment comes despite Palestinian “victory” celebrations in Gaza and the West Bank, where Hamas held its first rally since 2007 on Dec. 13, drawing 5,000 supporters in Nablus. Demonstrators chanted “Hamas—you are the guns; we are the bullets,” and, “Hamas, fire more rockets on Tel Aviv,” the Associated Press reported.
Additionally, while visiting Gaza for Hamas’s 25th anniversary, exiled Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal said, “We are not giving up any inch of Palestine. It will remain Islamic and Arab for us and nobody else. Jihad and armed resistance is the only way.”
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday said he does not agree with exiled Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal “about not recognizing Israel,” but added that Mashaal “stands behind” agreements between Hamas and Fatah that “talk about the two-state solution.”
Jordanians slam prince for addressing Jewish fundraising event
(JNS.org) Jordanian Prince El Hassan bin Talal, the uncle of King Abdullah II, has come under fire in his country for addressing a Board of Deputies of British Jews fundraising event last month.
Israelis also attended the Nov. 21 event. Jordanians saw the prince’s move as an insult, particularly since the event occurred only a short time after the end of the most recent escalation between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
“We condemn Prince Hassan’s participation as it represents free service to the Zionist enemy and harms national causes as well as the prince himself and the royal family,” Jordan’s National Anti-Normalization Committee, which condemns normalizing relations with Israel, said in a statement, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The same committee has also accused Jordanian brokers of selling Jordanian products to Israeli firms so they can be sold under Israeli labels. Jordanian exports to Israel were at around $48 million in the first eight months of 2012. Imports rose to about $69 million during the same period, according to the Jordanian Department of Statistics.
“The government did not find us new markets. The Syrian crisis was a disaster for us. Now we have to sell to anyone. The prince did what he had to do. He’s a politician and Jordan cannot survive if officials do not talk to all kinds of people, including Jews,” said Abu Emad, a 56-year-old produce broker.
| Peres: Mossad is the best spy agency in the world |
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) In celebration of Hanukkah, Israeli President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Benajmin Netanyahu and Mossad chief Tamir Pardo attended a candle lighting event at the president’s residence in Jerusalem on Thursday.
During the event, 12 outstanding Mossad employees were given certificates of appreciation, and Peres praised the Mossad for its outstanding achievements throughout the years.
“The Mossad is the best intelligence organization in the world,” Peres said. Peres also wished a speedy recovery to former Mossad chief Meir Dagan, who recently underwent an emergency liver transplant in Belarus. Peres praised Pardo for helping in the efforts to save Dagan’s life. “This was truly a Hanukkah miracle,” Peres said.
At Thursday’s event, Netanyahu said: “On Hanukkah we traditionally say ‘Who will sing the praises of Israel’s strength’ and I add to that ‘Who will carry out Israel’s covert operations’ as it is written: ‘By way of deception, thou shalt conduct war,’” a reference to the Mossad’s motto, which is derived from the biblical verse of Proverbs 24:6.
“This is the way the few defeat the many, and we have learned that from the days of our forefathers,” Netanyahu said. “We need a body that can operate on the international level using both ancient and modern methods. The Mossad does just that in the most outstanding way.”
IDF clarifications: soldiers ‘exercise discretion,’ but act on an ‘imminent threat’
(JNS.org) Following recent incidents involving the fleeing of Israel Defense Forces soldiers from Palestinian rioters, highlighting the complex challenge Israeli soldiers face in potentially hostile and volatile environments, the IDF has issued clarifications regarding its rules of engagement.
According to Yedioth Ahronoth, which obtained a copy of the new directives document, the IDF stated that while the new directives stressed the need for caution and discretion, they also clearly stated that soldiers are allowed to open fire in the event of an “imminent threat.”
More specifically, the document highlighted several scenarios such as when soldiers encounter stone throwing, Molotov cocktails, gunfire and vehicular attacks, and the clear appropriate response to each.
A senior IDF official told Yedioth Ahronoth that the IDF remains committed to using maximum restraint in order to prevent escalation.
“So far the containment and restrain policy has proven itself as preventing incidents from escalating. These orders all derive from battle ethics,” he said.
“We must exercise discretion and keep live fire as the last resort. We don’t want to shoot indiscriminately and harm innocent people and if something like that happens we immediately offer assistance.”
In Hamas’ first West Bank rally since 2007, supporters urge rockets on Tel Aviv
(JNS.org) In a sign of its increasing clout and popularity among Palestinians, Hamas held its first West Bank rally in five years in the city of Nablus on Dec. 13.
Hamas said that about 5,000 supporters took to the streets in Nablus. According to sources, the demonstrators chanted “Hamas—you are the guns; we are the bullets,” and, “Hamas, fire more rockets on Tel Aviv,” the Associated Press reported.
Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic terror group that controls Gaza, and Fatah, the Palestinian nationalist group that controls portions of the West Bank, have been at odds with each other since Hamas violently evicted the Fatah-run Palestinian Authority (PA) from Gaza in 2007.
Since then, Palestinian Authority security forces in cooperation with Israel have repeatedly cracked down and jailed Hamas members in the West Bank.
Despite the deep animosity between the Palestinian factions, recent attempts have been made towards reconciliation. With Hamas emboldened by support from Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood and Operation Pillar of Defense as well as the Palestinian UN upgrade championed by PA President Mahmoud Abbas, the two sides appear to be warming to each other.
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Preceding provided by JNS.org