Israpundit

by Omri Ceren

Maybe “makes them” is a little strong. But there’s certainly something in the way of an intriguing correlation:

Barak consented to ease the near-complete closure imposed on the Hamas-controlled territory, authorizing the entry of humanitarian aid and a one-time shipment of diesel fuel to power Gaza’s electricity station less than a day after it was shut down. Shortly after Barak’s pronouncements the relative respite in rocket attacks on southern Israel seemed over, with nine Qassam rockets and 13 mortar shells landing in and around communities in the western Negev.

On the day before the lockdown - which involved a less than staggering 30 percent energy cut and no fresh fruits or vegetables - the Palestinians launched forty rockets at Israeli schools and hospitals. Immediately after the lockdown, the number of Qassams dropped to one because Hamas got the message that the Israelis were serious about protecting Sderot. Then Barak lifted the closure ever so slightly, and the Palestinians immediately launched over 20 more Qassams and mortars. This is surreal. These people are lunatics. And the UN is set to condemn Israel. Of course they are.

[Cross-posted to Mere Rhetoric]

by Omri Ceren

Last October we wrote that “the UN is preparing to blame Israel” as the Palestinians laid the groundwork for a manufactured humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Turns out, that was true:

Gaza’s only electrical plant shut down most of its turbines Sunday after an Israeli border closure blocked the entry of fuel that powers them, Palestinian officials said. But Shlomo Dror, a spokesman for Israel’s defense ministry, said Gaza has enough fuel and accused Palestinian officials of trying to create the impression of a crisis that did not exist. The fuel shortage was a result of Defense Minister Ehud Barak’s decision on Thursday to halt all shipments to the Strip… after Hamas renewed Kassam rocket fire last week, resulting in unusually heavy barrages on Sderot… In addition to the fuel it receives from Israel to power its electrical plant, Gaza gets about two-thirds of its electricity directly from Israel. Israeli officials said that supply would not be affected.

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Cairo “Working Against Israel For Years”

by Omri Ceren

Sure glad that Carter facilitated the transfer of the Sinai Peninsula in exchange for normalization between Israel and Egypt:

Egypt has worked to thwart Israel diplomatically in various international forums for years, so Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit’s recent threat to turn up the diplomatic heat on Israel is nothing new, Israeli officials said Tuesday. Egypt’s foreign minister warned in a television interview earlier this week that Cairo would “retaliate” diplomatically against Israel if its complaints against Egyptian inaction on arms smuggling into Gaza hurt US-Egyptian ties. “If they [Israelis] continue to push and affect US-Egyptian relations and harm Egyptian interests, Egypt will certainly retaliate and will harm their interests,” Gheit said. “We have claws capable of retaliating in all directions and through diplomacy.” He did not elaborate.

That’s how international assurances work in the Middle East - Israel gives away something tangible in exchange for empty promises, those promises are never fulfilled, and then Israel is attacked for pointing out that the other side is in violation of signed agreements. This is how it always happens. Egypt itself has been in explicit violation of its treaty obligations for years. But at least Cairo isn’t normalizing ties with the genocidal regime in Tehran while sitting on three decades of cutting edge US weaponry, effectively putting them a disgruntled general away from being the most dangerous country in the Middle East. Except they are.

[Cross-posted to Mere Rhetoric]

by Omri Ceren

Here’s how this game gets played: First Israel accuses UNIFIL of allowing Hezbollah to operate in south Lebanon. Then UNIFIL says “well we obviously don’t see any of that - give us proof”. Then Israel provides UNIFIL with details about all of the Hezbollah bases and operations that UNIFIL claims don’t exist. Then UNIFIL passes that information to Hezbollah, which then moves those bases and operations so Israel can’t monitor or target them any more, in the process getting relatively precise information about the scope of Israel’s intelligence gathering capabilities. We’re so glad that the international community has shown up to bring peace to the region:
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The UN: 160 Cannibals and 17 Civilized People taking a majority vote on what to have for dinner
by Bill Levinson

Thanks to Gates of Vienna for posting the latest trash to come from the United Nazis Nations General Assembly. First, however, it is instructive to look at the composition of the Commission on Human Rights that created this resolution.

In favour (29): Argentina, Bahrain, Bhutan, Brazil, Burkina Faso, China, Congo, Costa Rica, Cuba, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Honduras, Indonesia, Mauritania, Nigeria, Pakistan, Paraguay, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Togo, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Against (16): Australia, Austria, Croatia, Dominican Republic, France, Germany, Guatemala, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden, Ukraine, United Kingdom and United States.

Abstentions (7): Armenia, Chile, India, Mexico, Nepal, Peru and Republic of Korea.

Now let’s take a look at the human rights records of these countries according to Freedom House. (more…)