Middle East

The ‘Right’ of Palestinian Return Is a Myth

An unending intifada against the Jewish state has been the central mission of Hamas since its inception, and part of that war against Israel includes what Palestinians claim is their legal “right of return;” that is, the right of those Arabs who fled or were expelled from what became Israel to now return, en masse, to the Jewish state—together with all of the original refugee’s descendants, now numbering in the millions. [Richard L. Cravatts, Ph.D]

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Middle East, Richard L. Cravatts

Jewish Trivia Quiz: Gal Gadot

Israeli actress Gal Gadot tweeted about the current military crisis between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, “My heart breaks. My country is at war. I worry for my family, my friends. I worry for my people. This is a vicious cycle that has been going on for far too long. Israel deserves to live as a free and safe nation, Our neighbors deserve the same. I pray for the victims and their families, I pray for this unimaginable hostility to end, I pray for our leaders to find the solution so we could live side by side in peace. I pray for better days.” In response, Yair Netanyahu, son of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, criticized her for her comments. What did he say? [Mark D. Zimmerman]

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Mark D. Zimmerman, Middle East, Trivia, Humor & Satire

Analysis: Biden sticks to Israel-Gaza playbook, irking progressives and allies

Published by Reuters By Matt Spetalnick, Steve Holland and Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) – With his muted response to the Gaza conflict, President Joe Biden is largely sticking to a time-worn U.S. playbook despite pressure from progressive Democrats for a tougher line toward Israel and from America’s allies for a more active role to end

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Middle East

US condemns Erdogan ‘anti-Semitic’ remarks

Published by AFP Washington (AFP) – The United States on Tuesday sharply criticized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for what it called “anti-Semitic” remarks amid his denunciations of Israel’s strikes in Gaza. “The United States strongly condemns President Erdogan’s recent anti-Semitic comments regarding the Jewish people and finds them reprehensible,” State Department spokesman Ned Price

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Middle East

Responding to the ‘Proportionality’ Argument Against Israel’s Actions in Gaza

Israel’s battle with Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza exceeds one week. It may not end soon. The citizens of Israel most impacted by the daily rocket attacks (3300 and rising) are those who live in the “Gaza envelope,” very close to the Gaza borders, but towns across Israel have also been hit, some many times. Are Israelis physically exhausted, psychologically exhausted, and scared? Yes. Do they want Israel to sign a ceasefire today or tomorrow? No. What Israelis want is a different paradigm in their country, which will lead to a better, more peaceful relationship with the Gazan Arabs.  [Steve Kramer]

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Middle East, Steve Kramer, USA

‘Proof of Life,’ though a memoir, reads like a suspense novel

I jumped into this book without reading the introduction and believed right through the end that I was reading a well-crafted, highly believable suspense novel.   In fact, Daniel Levin had written a memoir about his efforts to find out what had happened to a young man who had disappeared in Syria.  He didn’t know the young man, but as a favor to a friend, he had promised to make inquiries. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Middle East

Wartime Chaos and Speculation

Lots of missiles coming from Gaza to Israel. Lots of damage in Gaza. And something close to civil war within Israel, with Arab mobs attacking Jews and their property in what had been peaceful settings with two communities; plus Jewish mobs doing the same to Arabs and their property.Overall, leaving aside the actions of the security forces in Gaza, it’s not too different from occasional bursts of racial violence in the US and some European cities. [Ira Sharkansky, Ph.D]

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Ira Sharkansky, Middle East

A Jewish Odyssey from Ethiopia to Israel and Back

“From Africa to Zion” is a remarkable memoir that takes us from the author’s childhood in a rural Ethiopian village without electricity or running water through his perilous journey to a crowded, multi-ethnic refugee camp in the Sudan, where disease and crime were rampant, and onto his arrival to the modern world of Israel, in which his family were initially mystified by such conveniences as toilets and refrigerators. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East

Good News from Israel (May 16, 2021)

NETANYA, Israel — In the May 16, 2021 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
–US doctors use an Israeli device to remove blood clots from stroke patients.
–Israel has sent tons of coronavirus aid to India.
–4 top multinationals are expanding Israeli hi-tech operations.
–Israeli innovators are turning CO2 emissions into an energy source.
–Israel’s economy continues to improve.
–An Israeli has won France’s top literary prize.
–The festival of Shavuot is uniting Israelis, just as it did 3,333 years ago
[Michael Ordman]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Business & Finance, Jewish Religion, Michael Ordman, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, Sports & Competitions, USA

Ethnoreligious War in Gaza and Israel

Here is my latest update about Operation Guardian of the Wall. Luckily, our city, Kfar Saba, has been spared any damage. But because (3,000) rockets are still being launched  into Israel from Gaza, Israelis of all types have had to contend with ethnoreligious rioting in mixed Arab-Jewish towns, even to an actual pogrom in Lod, a city near Ben Gurion Airport, where synagogues, houses, stores, and cars were torched and residents attacked. [Steve Kramer]

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Middle East, Steve Kramer