Israel at the Crossroads

Sweden’s new government is set to recognize the State of Palestine, in a move that will make it the first member of the European Union to do so.

“The two-state solution requires mutual recognition and a will to co-exist peacefully. Sweden will therefore recognize the state of Palestine,” he added.

He didn’t say when or how that would happen.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is set to ask the UN Security Council to vote on a resolution that would seek an Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 lines in a timeframe of two years.

Sweden to be first EU country to recognize Palestine Read more: Sweden to be first EU country to recognize Palestine

Some Israeli politicians see in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s stirring speech before the UN General Assembly the final nail in the coffin of the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In his speech, Netanyahu made clear that the current “template” for peace has failed, and that Israel is not prepared to repeat the mistakes of the Lebanon and Gaza withdrawals in Judea and Samaria (the so-called “West Bank”).

Did Netanyahu Bury the Two-State Solution?

Israel may consider the use of force against Iran if world powers accept a nuclear agreement that Jerusalem finds unacceptable, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu suggested on Wednesday.

All I’ll say is, Israel always reserves the right to defend itself,” Netanyahu said, asked what his government would do if a bad deal was signed and sealed.

Pressed on whether that might lead to the use of preemptive force, Netanyahu said: “I’m the only Israeli who doesn’t talk about military operations.”

Netanyahu suggests force on the table if US agrees to ‘bad deal’ with Iran

 

 

 

Hamas attempt of PA Coup uncovered

 

Remember there are 2 Muslim factions that make up the Palestinian community. Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank.

Israel’s security services revealed Monday that “the most dangerous Hamas network since the 80s” had been uncovered, plotting the violent overthrow of Palestinian Authority institutions in Ramallah and seizure of the West Bank. This coup was to be coupled with large-scale terrorist attacks in Israel. No date was attached to the revelation. Hamas terrorist cells were to converge on the PA seat from Jerusalem, Hebron, Nablus, Jericho and 37 Palestinian villages. . The Shin Bet (Israeli Intelligence) reported making 93 arrests in the plot that was allegedly orchestrated by Saleh al-Arouri from Istanbul, who has maintained a base of operation labeled “Hamas-West Bank,” with the knowledge of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, since his deportation in 2010.
Al-Arari took care of recruiting activists and transferring of funds for terrorist operations assisted by a forward command in Jordan. Hamas political leader Khaled Meshaal was alleged by the Israeli security services as in on the conspiracy. DEBKAfile finds the timing of this disclosure suggestive. It coincides with a meeting ion Qatar Monday between PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas and Meshaal, and may have been a reminder of Meshaal’s murky history – even though Egyptian President Abdel-Fatteh El-Sisi and Abbas must know all about the Hamas leader with whom they hope to conclude a deal for a long-term truce in Gaza.

http://www.debka.com/newsupdatepopup/9459/

http://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-says-it-foiled-hamas-plan-for-coup-against-pa-in-west-bank/

Cease-fire complexity update

I had posted the news below in the previous post.

Mashaal made one more interesting point that relates to the US. He claimed that Secretary of State John Kerry called his friends in Qatar and Turkey at the start of the conflict and asked them to broker a ceasefire. If this is true, it’s nothing less than a scandal because it would mean Kerry had cut out the ground from beneath the Egyptian ceasefire proposal.

It turns out this was a true statement by Mashaal concerning the latest, absurd cease-fire proposal from Secretary of State John Kerry.

The Palestinian Authority is fuming at US Secretary of State John Kerry, accusing him of trying to undermine the Egyptian ceasefire initiative endorsed by Israel and the PA last week and rejected by Hamas, an Arab daily reported on Sunday.

Palestinian sources told the London-based A-Sharq Al-Awsat that Kerry had initially agreed to an Egyptian proposal for an immediate ceasefire followed by five days of negotiations between Israel and the PA, with American assurances to address some of Hamas’s demands. But on Friday evening Kerry produced a new plan based on consultations with Qatar and Turkey and conducted between “the State of Israel” and “the Palestinian factions,” excluding the PA. The Israeli cabinet unanimously rejected Kerry’s plan.

Read more: Abbas fumes at Kerry over alternative ceasefire bid | The Times of Israel http://www.timesofisrael.com/abbas-fumes-at-kerry-over-alternative-ceasefire-bid/#ixzz38i1vKPdw

“confidential draft” of the American ceasefire proposal leaked to the press appears to confirm what The Times of Israel reported Friday — that Washington was willing to generously accede to many of Hamas’s demands, while all but ignoring Israel’s security requirements.
The published text of the proposal, obtained by Haaretz, also shows that Qatar and Turkey – Hamas’s main sponsors in the region — were given prominent roles in the mediation, while the Palestinian Authority and Egypt were entirely marginalized.

According to the text, “the Palestinian factions” and the State of Israel would make three commitments:

a)……

b)……..

c) Convene in Cairo, at the invitation of Egypt, within 48 hours to negotiate resolution of all issues necessary to achieve a sustainable cease-fire and enduring solution to the crisis in Gaza, including arrangements to secure the opening of crossings, allow the entry of goods and people and ensure the social and economic livelihood of the Palestinian people living in Gaza, transfer funds to Gaza for the payment of salaries for public employees, and address all security issues.

…..as it basically accepts all of Hamas’s demands but addresses Israeli worries only tangentially.

Read more: Leaked document confirms US ceasefire bid generous to Hamas | The Times of Israel http://www.timesofisrael.com/leaked-document-confirms-us-ceasefire-bid-generous-to-hamas/#ixzz38i5aSH6x

Betrayal?

As Ha’aretz correspondent Barak Ravid, one of Israel’s premier left-wingreporters, put it:

“The document recognized Hamas’ position in the Gaza Strip… [and it] placed Israel and Hamas on the same level, as if the first is not a primary US ally and as if the second isn’t a terror group which overtook part of the Palestinian Authority in a military coup and fired thousands of rockets at Israel.”

 

http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/24786/Default.aspx?utm_source=news&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=No-sidebar-news-1&utm_content=1308

Interesting words, a hint of something to come?

In the legitimacy stakes, Netanyahu has three solid allies for crushing Hamas: Saudi King Abdullah, Egyptian President Abdel-Fatteh El-Sisi and the UAE ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Sunday, Mahmoud Abbas attached a Palestinian voice to this group.

This regional coalition has enormous clout, derived, on the one hand, from the Israeli military and its fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the Egyptian army’s containment of Hamas efforts to break out into Sinai for strategic depth; and, on the other, from the financial might of Saudi Arabia and the oil emirates and the world prestige they enjoy.

So why is the Obama administration shoving this powerful coalition out of his way and building a rival alliance to counter it?

 

http://www.debka.com/article/24135/Netanyahu%E2%80%99s-dilemma-Back-Obama%E2%80%99s-save-Hamas-policy-or-fight-for-its-downfall-with-Egypt-and-Saudis-

Meanwhile Egypt continues to guard Israel’s back.

An official in Cairo reports that 14 Al Qaeda militants were killed and 47 other terrorists were arrested in Egyptian army raids in northern Sinai. Friday, 12 jihadists were killed and 11 others detained, said a spokesperson of the Egyptian Armed Forces, Mohamed Samir Abdel Aziz Saturday night.

 

The majority of Evangelical Christians are still in favor of Israel, but as I stated before, this White House Administration is not. So now the complexity increases with a new twist. With all of the consulting and counseling going on, is it starting to look more like Psalms 83?? Just a thought for now…..

Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God.

For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head.

They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones.

They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.

For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:Psalms 83

 

 

 

 

 

Al Quds Day

Violent riots were staged in different parts of Jerusalem Thursday night in protest against the IDF counter-terror operation in the Gaza Strip. A man was killed in a rally of some 10,000 at the Kalandia crossing into the West Bank. Some 90 people were injured. Three Jerusalem police officers were injured in another outbreak on Temple Mount. Hamas has called on West Bank and Jerusalem Palestinians to launch an intifada against Israel.

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Al Quds Day begins tomorrow, Friday the 25th.

Muslims across the world will be taking to the streets on Friday to protest against the atrocities and crimes committed by the Zionist regime of Israel against the innocent people of Gaza. 

International Quds Day is an annual event held on the last Friday of Ramadan that was initiated by the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979 to express solidarity with the Palestinian people and to oppose Zionism and Israel’s control of Jerusalem. 

http://www.tehrantimes.com/component/content/article/94-headline/117240-muslim-world-to-stand-up-to-israel-on-quds-day

 

 

         
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