Israeli Supreme Court reverses election ban on Arab Knesset member Zoabi
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) The Israeli Supreme Court on Tuesday reversed the Central Elections Committee’s decision to disqualify MK Hanin Zoabi (Joint Arab List) and far-right activist Baruch Marzel (Yahad Haam Itanu) from next month’s Knesset election.
In an 8-1 decision, the court said Zoabi and Marzel would be eligible to run in the election despite their alleged incitement and racism. The court said that due to the close proximity of the March 17 election, the rationale for its decision would be made public at a later date. In 2012, the Supreme Court issued a similar ruling after the Central Elections Committee disqualified Zoabi.
Under Israeli law, the Central Elections Committee has the right to ban Knesset candidates if they reject Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, or if they incite racism and armed conflict against Israel. Last summer, Zoabi said the Hamas perpetuators who kidnapped and murdered three Jewish teens were “not terrorists,” in addition to comparing Israeli soldiers to Islamic State terrorists during Operation Protective Edge. Those who sought to disqualify Zoabi noted her outspoken support for an armed struggle against Israel. Representatives of the Coalition against Racism in Israel, meanwhile, argued that Marzel was a known sympathizer of the outlawed radical right-wing Kach Party and that he had never publicly denounced Kach’s platform.
Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman MK Yariv Levin (Likud) said regarding the reinstatement of Zoabi, “The Supreme Court justices have once again cleared a path for terrorism. … It is time to overhaul the judicial nomination process in order to ensure that those on the bench are committed to the state of Israel and to the Zionist idea.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, head of Yisrael Beiteinu party, said that “allowing Hanin Zoabi to serve another term in the Israeli Knesset is a black stain on Israel’s democracy, which has failed to show it can defend itself in times of need.”
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Princeton University gets first 6 printed editions of bible, including Gutenberg
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Princeton University received the largest gift in its history, a $300 million collection of rare books from philanthropist William Scheide that includes the first six printed editions of the bible.
The collection includes the famed 1455 Gutenberg Bible as well as first the printing of the works of William Shakespeare, called the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Folios. In addition, there is an original printing of the Declaration of Independence, Paul Revere’s print engraving of the Boston Massacre, and autographed music sketchbooks of Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, and Wagner.
“I cannot imagine a more marvelous collection to serve as the heart of our library,” Princeton President Christopher Eisgruber said in a statement.
Princeton is designing a new space for the collection as part of its Firestone Library. It is also digitizing some of the materials, such as the Gutenberg Bible, for availability on its website.
Scheide, who died last November at the age of 100, has housed his library at the school since 1959.
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White House, State Dept. confirm withholding information on Iran from Israel
(JNS.org) Both the White House and State Department on Wednesday confirmed that the U.S. has been withholding information from Israel concerning the nuclear talks with Iran, while also accusing Israel of “cherry-picking” to “distort” the public’s perception of the negotiations.
“The United States is not going to be in a position of negotiating this agreement in public, particularly when we see that there is a continued practice of cherry-picking specific pieces of information and using them out of context to distort the negotiating position of the United States,” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters on Wednesday when asked about a report that the U.S. was withholding information from Israel on the Iran talks.
The statement by the White House essentially confirms an earlier report by Israel’s Channel 2 network that the U.S. was withholding information on the Iran talks in order to “punish” Israel. U.S.-Israel relations have seen increased tension of late over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to address Congress next month, despite objections from the White House.
Earnest further criticized Israel in relation to the P5+1 (U.S., U.K., France, Russia, China, and Germany) talks with the Iranians, saying, “There’s no question that some of the things that the Israelis have said in characterizing our negotiating position have not been accurate.”
“There’s no question about that,” he added.
The New York Times reported that the Obama administration had warned U.S. allies involved in the Iran talks to not be too open with Israel “because whatever we say may be used in a selective way.” The report added that the U.S. is angry that Israel has leaked specific details of the negotiations such as the number of centrifuges that the Iranians would be permitted to operate, while also omitting key facts about how quickly the centrifuges could produce fuel needed for a nuclear bomb.
Meanwhile, State Department spokeswomen Jen Psaki confirmed that the Obama administration is withholding information from Israel to ensure that “classified negotiating details stay behind closed doors.” Psaki also accused Israel of distortion.
“It’s safe to say that not everything you’re hearing from the Israeli government is an accurate reflection of the details of the talks,” Psaki said.
Netanyahu meets U.S. Sen. David Perdue, focuses on Islamic State and Iran threats
(JNS.org) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu honed in on the threats posed by the Islamic State terror group and a nuclear Iran during a meeting with U.S. Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) on Wednesday in Jerusalem.
“Today, the forces of militant Islam are on the march throughout the Middle East,” Netanyahu said at the start of the meeting. “Islamic State just barbarically massacred 21 Egyptian civilians in Libya. Our hearts go out to the families and to the people of Egypt facing this horrible savagery. And Israel will continue to stand side-by-side with Egypt in the battle against terrorism, which threatens us all.”
Netanyahu said that while Islamic State “butchers the innocent,” the Islamic Republic of Iran “is relentlessly pursuing nuclear weapons with the express purpose of destroying the State of Israel.”
“The P5+1’s latest proposal [in the nuclear talks] won’t stop [Iran],” said the prime minister. “The Iranians of course know the details of that proposal, and Israel does too. So when we say that the current proposal would lead to a bad deal, a dangerous deal, we know what we’re talking about, Senator [Perdue]. I’m open to hearing the positions and arguments of those who think differently and I would hope that they would be open to hear the arguments of Israel as well.”
Netanyahu told Perdue that the senator’s visit to Israel “demonstrates your friendship and your commitment to the strong American-Israeli alliance.”
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Denmark buries Jewish victim of terror Dan Uzan
(JNS.org) Denmark held a funeral on Wednesday for Dan Uzan, the Jewish security guard killed by a terrorist outside of a Copenhagen synagogue last Sunday. Uzan, 37, was a volunteer guard protecting the synagogue during a bar mitzvah ceremony at the time of the attack.
Uzan’s funeral was held at a Jewish cemetery in Copenhagen and was attended by hundreds of people, all of whom were guarded by police, sniffer dogs, and snipers during the ceremony.
Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt, who had said earlier this week that “an attack on the Jews of Denmark is an attack on Denmark,” was at the funeral.
“Everybody in our community knew Dan,” said Dan Rosenberg, head of the Danish Jewish community, AFP reported. “He was always ready to do his part, he was a very fine example for the whole community.”
On Sunday, terrorist Omar El-Hussein first fired shots outside a cultural center that was holding a debate about free speech and Islam, killing 55-year-old Danish documentary film director Finn Noergaard and wounding several others. He then opened fire outside the synagogue, klling Uzan and injuring two police officers. El-Hussein, who was of Palestinian origin, was later killed in a shootout with Danish police.
Israel’s Moshe Ya’alon makes ‘historic’ trip to India to deepen defense ties
(JNS.org) Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon arrived in India on Wednesday to help promote the deepening of defense ties between the two countries.
Ya’alon met with his Indian counterpart, Manohar Parrikar, at the Aero India air show in Bengaluru. He also spoke with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Speaking to Parrikar, Ya’alon said that his visit was “historic” and stressed the huge potential growth between the two countries in areas such as defense.
The visit by Ya’alon comes amid reports that Israel and India are close to inking several defense deals amounting to a total of $1.5 billion, the Times of India reported. The deals reportedly include two Phalcon AWACS (airborne warning and control systems) aircraft and four aerostat radars.
Last fall, India inked a $525 million deal to buy “Spike” anti-tank missiles from Israel. India is currently the Jewish state’s largest purchaser of defense equipment, and Israel is India’s second-largest supplier of such equipment, behind Russia.
Indian ties with Israel have increased under the leadership of Modi, as the two countries seek common ground on issues like security, technology, and the environment. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Modi met for the first time on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly last September.
Jerusalem hosts LGBT drag queen race
(JNS.org) The LGBT community in Jerusalem held a first-of-its-kind drag queen race this week, in which all the 40 participants needed to run in high heals without falling. The city’s LGBT student organization organized the race, with partial funding from the Jerusalem municipality.
“This is what’s so exciting about this, that the municipality supports this concept for the first time, it really gives the feeling of a home, and finally we’ve moved centuries and we’re going towards a better future,” said Lady Chocolate, an Israeli soldier by day and drag queen by night.
“[I am] very excited, very happy. I’m a native. I was born in Jerusalem. I still live in Jerusalem and it’s so much fun to see this happening in this city. It’s about time,” drag queen Bella To Die For, who works in the city’s Mahane Yehuda open-air food market during the day, said.
Event organizers held the race, which also included musical performances by the drag queen participants, despite opposition from religious groups in Jerusalem.
“I think it’s very important that the event is happening, especially here. Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. Our congress, the Knesset, is here. It’s important for the people of this city that they realize there is a massive mature gay community as well. It is not an ultra-Orthodox city. We have gay people in the city as well,” said Leshem Brosh, one of the race’s organizers, Reuters reported.
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Stanford University student senate passes Israel divestment measure in re-vote
(JNS.org) The student senate at Stanford University passed an Israel divestment resolution on Tuesday, 10-4 with one abstention, in a re-vote on a measure that had been defeated last week.
The resolution, put forward by the student group Stanford Out Of Occupied Palestine, calls for the university trustees to divest from companies that “violate international humanitarian law by: maintaining illegal infrastructure of the Israeli occupation… facilitating Israel and Egypt’s collective punishment of Palestinian civilians… [and] facilitating state repression against Palestinians by Israeli, Egyptian or Palestinian Authority security forces.”
One Feb. 11, the Stanford student senate struck down the resolution in a highly contentious debate that was attended by more than 400 students. At the time, the measure narrowly failed to gain the necessary two-thirds support it needed to pass. The motion to re-vote was initiated by student senate chairperson Ana Ordonez, who said she was unable to focus during the first vote because much of her energy was spent maintaining the highly contentious atmosphere.
“Now that the noise has subsided, I know that I voted incorrectly,” Ordoñez said, the Stanford Daily reported.
Ordonez, who said she was brought to tears during her closing remarks on Feb. 11, changed her vote from abstaining to voting in favor of the divestment resolution.
For the second vote, an amendment to the resolution claimed that the measure was not connected to the larger Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel, and that the bill “affirms both Palestinian and Israeli right to life, security, and self-determination.”
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