Pope Francis called for urgent steps to end Syria’s three-year-old civil war as he arrived in neighboring Jordan on Saturday, starting a Middle East trip aimed at bringing hope to the region’s dwindling Christian population.
Addressing Jordan’s King Abdullah at the start of his first visit as pope to the Holy Land, Francis praised the Western-backed kingdom for its efforts to “to seek lasting peace for the entire region.”
By Itamar Marcus & Nan Jacques Zilberdik
For Pope Francis’ visit to Israel and the Palestinian Authority next week, the PA has commissioned an art exhibit that includes works of art portraying Palestinians as Jesus.
The exhibit consists of visual displays merging classical paintings of biblical scenes with photos of Palestinians and have been “designed by the Palestinian Museum at the request of the Presidential Higher Committee for Church Affairs.” [Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, May 20, 2014]
As Palestinian Media Watch has documented, the PA has misrepresented Jesus for years, claiming he was not a Judean as in Christian tradition, but rather a “Palestinian,” thereby claiming a Palestinian history dating back to the time of Jesus. Continue Reading »
By Roi Kais
The top leader of an al-Qaeda-inspired group in Egypt’s restive Sinai and three of his associates were killed in a drive-by shooting in the peninsula on Thursday, senior Egyptian security officials said.
The development deals a heavy blow to the militant group, which has claimed scores of deadly attacks across Egypt and in Israel since the ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi last July. It is also a boost for Egypt’s military-backed authorities ahead of the country’s presidential elections next week. Continue Reading »
By Ryan Jones
Diplomats, media and peace activists apparently eager to paint Israel as the main obstacle to peace have been quick to publish and point to numerous reports that Hamas is being encouraged and has even agreed to recognize Israel as part of its unity agreement with the Palestinian Authority.
Hamas protesters – Israel Today
It would seem that those reports were either premature or purposely embellished, and that those who latched on to them should have first done some rudimentary fact-checking. Continue Reading »
By Ynet reporters
Two Israelis and a British national were arrested in Jordan on Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry confirmed on Thursday. According to some reports, the three were released on house arrest at a hotel in Amman, while other reports say they are still in custody.
Israeli tourist in Jordan – Photo: IsraelandStuff/PP
The three arrived to the Hashemite Kingdom on Monday to travel the country, relatives of one of them, a man in his 40s from the Sharon plain, told Ynet. Continue Reading »
A conservative paper supporting Turkey’s prime minister went on an anti-Semitic diatribe regarding the recent mine disaster that claimed the lives of 301 people, International Business Times reported Wednesday.
Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan – Photo: AFP
The article on the front page of Yeni Akit on Tuesday declared that the son-in-law of Alp Gurkan, the owner of the Soma mine where the disaster occurred, is a Jew. The paper was roundly condemned on social media.
By
If only there was some human rights organization fighting to protect Gaza… from Gaza.
2 Dead Arabs
Continue Reading »Three Palestinian men were killed and four others injured in an explosion in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, medical sources said.
A spokesman of the Hamas-run Gaza ministry of health told Ma’an that the circumstances behind the explosion were not clear.
Ashraf al-Qidra added that ambulances evacuated two dead men and one critically injured person.
By Roi Kais & Attila Somfalvi
Egyptian military chief turned presidential candidate Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has given Israel a clear reminder of the danger its faces from militants in the Sinai Peninsula, against which Egypt provides a vital defense.
Egyptian army deploys forces in El-Arish – Photo: AP
“Israel knows that if the lack of presence of the Egyptian military in Sinai poses a danger to it even more than it does to Egypt,” al-Sisi said in an interview aired Monday. Continue Reading »
The United Nations is scheduled on Monday to discuss revisions to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. The discussion will focus, among other things, on an initiative by the American Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists which calls for reforming the manner in which a Palestinian refugee is defined.
A Palestinian girl at an UNRWA school [Archive] – Photo: Reuters
The association’s goal is to fundamentally change the objectives of UNRWA’s activities.
Israel ruined the two-state solution, says Tawfik Tirawi, who headed the Palestinian General Intelligence Service for 14 years.
Tawfik Tirawi – Photo: AP
Tirawi does not miss being the head of the Palestinian General Intelligence Service in the West Bank (from 1994 until late 2008). He says he prefers not issuing orders and instructions. The only orders that bind him, he says, are the feelings and desires of the Palestinian people. Continue Reading »
Hamas officials say two men were wounded in separate clashes with the IDF Saturday.
Gaza’s healthy ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra claimed a 16-year-old youth was shot near the security barrier with Israel in Khan Yunis, according to AFP.
He also claimed a 36-year-old fisherman was shot while he was aboard his boat in the Mediterranean off Gaza City.
The IDF said it was not aware of the two incidents in question, but did say troops had opened fire at a Palestinian man who was approaching the security barrier on foot. Continue Reading »
By AFP
Hamas must recognize the existence of Israel if the Palestinians are to move forward with their hopes of establishing their own state, former Arab League chief and Egyptian foreign minister Amr Moussa said Wednesday.
Former Arab League chief and Egyptian foreign minister Amr Moussa – Photo: The Associated Press
“It is normal for the Palestinians to reconcile,” Moussa said of a recent unity deal struck between the Hamas militants who run the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Liberation Organization. Continue Reading »
Every year, and this year’s event in Copenhagen is no exception, geopolitics play out in some way at the Eurovision Song Contest. This time, it’s the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen, a member of the Danish parliament, attacked the organizers of the competition at the opening ceremony for not inviting the Palestinian Authority to participate even though Israel is, Turkish newspaper the Daily Sabah reported.
Suzy representing Portugal performs during the first semi-final at Eurovision, 2014.
By AP, The Media Line
A former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Wednesday Palestinians should proceed with caution as they consider pursuing war crimes against Israel.
The Hague, International Criminal Court. – Photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
Since winning upgraded status at the United Nations in 2012, the Palestinians have threatened to turn to the ICC to press charges against Israel at the world’s first permanent war crimes court if peace efforts fail. Continue Reading »
Authorities in Hamas-run Gaza on Thursday executed two Palestinian Arabs for allegedly collaborating with Israel, the territory’s interior ministry said in a statement.
Paraded – Palestinian gunmen ride motorcycles as they drag the body of a man, who was suspected of working for Israel 20 November 2012
“Two collaborators with the Israeli occupation, condemned to death for having given information leading to the martyrdom of two citizens, have been executed,” a spokesman told AFP.
He said one of the men, aged 40 and identified by the initials ZR, was shot and the other, AK, aged 30, was hanged in a different location. Continue Reading »
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