Catherine Parker Is Coming For Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s Congressional Seat

Posted on July 8, 2022 by First.One.Through

Catherine Parker, a resident of Rye, NY, is running for Congress in New York’s newly redrawn 16th district, one of the most Jewish districts in the country. She has much to say about the district’s current representative, Jamaal Bowman, and it’s and not pretty.

Parker agreed to be interviewed about issues of concern to the Jewish community, as she gets her message out to her constituents.

*Catherine Parker, active in politics in lower Westchester for 15 years, is running for Congress to unseat Rep. Jamaal Bowman*

On Israel and United Nations

Among the three people running for the seat in the Democratic primary, Parker is the only one who put Israel on her website as part of her agenda. Her website specifies:

“Israel is an important ally to the United States, and in Washington, Catherine will be a steadfast ally of the Middle East’s only democracy. Unlike her opponent who has consistently opposed U.S. policy supportive of Israel, Catherine would have voted in support of Israel’s right to defend itself and protect its citizens and she would have voted for funding of the Iron Dome.

“Catherine opposes the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement which aims to end international support for Israel. She believes wholeheartedly in a two state solution. When it comes to a deal with Iran regarding nuclear – a new Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action – we need to see that it will be more protective and longer, stronger and broader than what was negotiated by President Obama in 2015. And unlike her opponent, Catherine supports strengthening the Abraham Accords and would have voted in support for the Israel Relations Normalization Act of 2021.“

These very supportive statements about the Jewish State served as a basis for our conversation.

On BDS, Parker said that it’s “just a version of anti-Semitism.” She believes that it should have no standing or support in our government.

She said that aid to Israel should not be conditional, much as President Biden has stated. She offered that Israel’s security has enhanced America’s security, and with “Israel being attacked all the time from terrorist groups like Hamas, it [Israel] deserves our support.”

Parker added that she supported the Taylor Force Act which limited funds to the Palestinian Authority as long as it pays the families of terrorists. “If the PA is going to be paying stipends to terrorists, then as a country, we shouldn’t be providing economic aid [to the PA].”

Parker added that she doesn’t think that the United Nations is fair in regards to Israel. In particular, she pointed to the UN Human Rights Council which continues to target Israel, a theme the State Department discussed a few weeks ago. She had no comment about the unique perpetual agency devoted to the descendants of Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, and said she would look into it.

Parker has never been to Israel but aligns herself with the Jewish State. While she has no position on Israelis living east of the Green Line in “settlements,” she is eager to visit the country and to learn more.

Iran’s Nuclear Program

Parker called the Islamic Republic of Iran “bad actors.” She was disappointed that Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s attempt at diplomacy had seemingly broken down, and said she is “open to listening” to alternatives to deal with the menace, including military action.

Anti-Semitism

Parker supports the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of anti-Semitism. She discussed her family’s long connection to former Rep. Nita Lowey and supports having Holocaust education in every school in the country. Parker views this as important to combat anti-Semitism and to benefit all of society.

Why She’s Running: Bowman

Parker went through a lengthy list of reasons why she’s running for Congress and it centers around Rep. Jamaal Bowman.

She said that she believes that Bowman’s advocacy for “Defund the Police is absolutely ridiculous.” The country has “many wonderful people serving us” and the key to combating some rogue officers is to have “implicit bias training” for active police officers.

Parker thinks that Bowman has made terrible policy decisions for the lower Westchester district and for the country, including voting against the infrastructure bill, against aid to Ukraine, and against supporting Israel.

She contrasted her style with Bowman who has a terrible working relationship with fellow Democrats in Westchester (writer’s note: I have repeatedly heard the same criticism). Parker commented about how she strives for bipartisanship in her dealings with Republicans and Democrats in passing laws that benefit the community, and wants to bring that kind of care to Washington, DC. She pondered that Bowman seems to be driven by personal motivation or his ties to the socialist fringe of the party, and clearly not to his constituents.

Summary

Catherine Parker is a seasoned local politician who is learning about the larger national and international issues that concern her Westchester constituents, including Jews. Her instincts seem good and she avoided wading into unfamiliar topics until learning more. I would not be surprised to see her win endorsements for her positions on anti-Semitism and Israel from a variety of groups including Democratic Majority For Israel (DMFI) which normally doesn’t fight incumbents, AIPAC, America’s Pro-Israel lobby, as well as other pro-Israel Democrats like Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15), just to the south of her district.

By way of comparison, Bowman is supported as part of the extremist “squad” endorsed by the Sunrise Movement and the Working Families Party, which also support Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush, all of whom have cast votes and made comments deeply hurtful to the Jewish community. Consider that the DC Chapter of the Sunrise Movement actually banned progressive Jewish groups from an event, including the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC), the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) and the Jewish Council on Public Affairs (JCPA). Even far left groups like Americans for Peace Now were appalled at the Sunrise Movement’s action, as the president and CEO said “This is boycotting groups because they are Jewish and state a general … support of Israel,” even though it’s not a core component of their mission, making the action blatantly anti-Semitic.

The differences between Bowman and Parker are dramatic.

The Democratic primary will be held on August 23^rd with early voting beginning on August 13.

*Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MN), Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), members of the far-left “squad.” (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)*

Rep. Ritchie Torres Doesn’t Want To Be the Only Progressive Pro-Israel Unicorn

Vedat Gashi, Running To Unseat Jamaal Bowman in Congress, Talks to The Jewish Community

The Disgraceful Promotion of Refugee-Washing ‘Nakba’ In The U.S. Congress

Politicians In Their Own Words: Why We Don’t Support Defending Jews

The Right Number of Anti-Semites in Congress

Biden Enables Anti-Semitism On College Campuses

Posted on July 7, 2022 by First.One.Through

The terrible news seems to come out daily: anti-Semitism on the rise in cities and towns across the country. One of the worst locations is college campuses, where the government has the power to reduce the scourge, and refuses to do so.

Beyond The US And Beyond This Year

To be clear, the problem is not just local and not only recent.

In March 2022, United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson said “I think that our universities, for far too long, have been tolerant of casual or indeed systemic anti-Semitism… it’s important that we have an anti-Semitism task force devoted to rooting out anti-Semitism in education,” calling out the Jew hatred in universities.

US President Donald Trump issued Executive Order 13899—Combating Anti-Semitism in December 2019 to address the problem, stating “my Administration is committed to combating the rise of anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic incidents in the United States and around the world. Anti-Semitic incidents have increased since 2013, and students, in particular, continue to face anti-Semitic harassment in schools and on university and college campuses.”

The United States government was trying to tackle the issue in November 2017 when it held a hearing to consider interpreting Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect Jewish students and other religious minorities from discrimination. At that time, Rabbi Cooper, Associate Dean, Director Global Social Action Agenda, Simon Wiesenthal Center called out for the government to help combat the hatred, arguing that “The failure of schools and Federal Government to protect Jewish students on campus from harassment is one of the most pressing issues for the American Jewish Community.”

But educational institutions and the government are backing away from providing protections to Jewish students on campus.

Failure of Leadership

The City University of New York (CUNY) has seen an enormous spike in anti-Semitic incidents. To combat the menace, over 100 non-profit institutions wrote a letter on June 28, 2022 to the NYC Council Committee on Higher Education to address “the alarming rise of antisemitism on campuses across the country, and at CUNY in particular.” After being postponed once, the committee finally met to address this serious issue, but CUNY Chancellor Felix Matos Rodriguez did not attend. Brooklyn Councilwoman Inna Vernikov was angered at the chancellor’s absence and said “last night, in a very cowardly fashion, the chancellor said he won’t appear. Instead he sent a lawyer to represent him. What a sham, what an insult to the Jewish community of New York.“

President Biden is similarly aware of the scourge of anti-Semitism on campuses and opted to delay action until after mid-term elections.

President Biden is aware of the scourge of anti-Semitism on campuses and opted to delay action until after mid-term elections.
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Shortly after Biden took office in February 2021, Kara McDonald, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, embraced the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism. She said “we must educate ourselves and our communities to recognize antisemitism in its many forms, so that we can call hate by its proper name and take effective action. That is why the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, with its real-world examples, is such an invaluable tool.”

It was the logical and appropriate time for Biden to follow-through on Trump’s EO 13899 and the federal government’s efforts to apply the IHRA definition to Title VI. Title VI “prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in any program or activity that receives Federal funds or other Federal financial assistance.” As most colleges receive federal funds and would collapse without them, and the fact that Jews do not fall neatly into “race, color or national origin,” Jews were counting on inclusion in the Title VI clause together with the working definition of anti-Semitism.

But Biden decided to postpone a decision on the Title VI matter until December 2022, after mid-term elections.

Biden Fears the Far-Left Anti-Zionists

While Biden was willing to champion the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism, he fears members of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) within his party, and the threat that they will primary incumbent party centrists out of office. The IHRA definition has several references to Israel including “Accusing Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel“, “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” and “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.” These anti-Zionist and anti-Semitic statements often come from the mouths of Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Cori Bush (D-MO), members of the DSA. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-NY), a leading shrill voice of the DSA, has stated plainly that her squad will come after centrists if the Democratic leadership doesn’t bend to their extremist policy demands, including lambasting Israel. Biden doesn’t want to anger the squad and risk his party’s slim majority.

*President Biden with Rep. Rashida Tlaib (left) and Rep. Debbie Dingell, May 2021. (photo: Evan Vucci/AP*)

While studies have shown that “much of the antisemitic activity [on college campuses] was perpetrated by anti-Zionist students and student groups” at schools with “faculty academic boycotters,” and the federal government has a clear pathway to clamp down on the Jew hatred, President Biden has chosen to place party politics ahead of the safety of the young adults of the most persecuted minority in America.

Hamas And Harvard Proudly Declare Their Anti-Semitism And Anti-Zionism

Courageous Jews On Hostile Campuses

Hamas’s Willing Executioners

The Joy of Lecturing Jews

The Holocaust Will Not Be Colorized. The Holocaust Will Be Live.

Please Don’t Vote for a Democratic Socialist

Rashida Tlaib’s Modern ‘Mein Kampf’

Biden To Push Coexistence Agenda To Palestinian Arabs Not Interested

Posted on July 1, 2022 by First.One.Through

The White House announced that President Biden “will visit the Middle East region from July 13th to July 16th with stops in Israel, the West Bank, and Saudi Arabia.” The release added that Biden would meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas “reaffirming his lifelong commitment to a two-state solution.“

The stampede of elephants in the room is that the Abbas has no authority, no mandate, no control and no abilities, and that Palestinian Arabs have no interest in a two state solution, preferring war.

*Then U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden (L) shakes hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah March 9, 2016. (photo: REUTERS/Debbie Hill/Pool*)

Mahmoud Abbas – The Straw Man

No Authority. Abbas won presidential election in January 2005. That four-year term ended in January 2009, over 13 years ago. Abbas continues to suspend elections as he knows he would lose. According to a June 2022 Palestinian poll, if elections were held now, Abbas would lose to Ismail Haniyeh of the political-terrorist group HAMAS by 55% to 33%.

No Mandate. That same poll shows that Palestinian Arabs in both the “West Bank” and Gaza despise Abbas, noting that “demand for Abbas’ resignation stands at 72% in the West Bank and 84% in the Gaza Strip.” Further, “perception of corruption in PA institutions stands at 86%.“

No Control. The PA only controls Areas A and B in the West Bank. It has no control over Gaza after getting routed from the territory by HAMAS in 2007. Abbas has no control over a significant percent of his land and people, and cannot deliver anything to Palestinian Arabs or Israelis.

No Ability To Negotiate. Since 2007, Abbas has been unable to negotiate even a unity government between his Fatah party and the rival HAMAS. How could anyone imagine he has the skill or ability to negotiate with Israelis?

Why would anyone negotiate with such a person on the most fundamental principles that the person has no ability to deliver? Because it supplies multiple fig leaves: that the Palestinian Arabs have set up a government and are capable of ruling themselves to ultimately become an independent state to show the world on one hand; and on the other, to make the Palestinian Arabs feel like the world cares.

Mahmoud Abbas – Against Basic U.S. Principles and Human Rights

The United States – and the civilized world – have basic principles regarding human rights which Abbas tramples upon.

Funding terrorism. The US Congress passed the Taylor Force Act which “condition[ed] assistance to the West Bank and Gaza on steps by the Palestinian Authority to end violence and terrorism against Israeli citizens.” Abbas doesn’t care, and told the world at the United Nations that he celebrated martyrs and was commited to pay Palestinian terrorist families “even if it costs PA its last penny.”

Inciting terrorism. Abbas fans the flames of a violent jihad against Jews. He frequently lies that the Al Aqsa Mosque is in danger of being attacked by Jews to foment violence by any means.

Denying Jews The Right To Buy Property and Live. Abbas’ PA has a law that makes selling land to Jews a capital offense. Abbas makes his goal clear, that “In a final resolution, we would not see the presence of a single Israeli [Jew] – civilian or soldier – on our lands.”

Denying Jewish History. Abbas wrote his doctoral thesis on Holocaust denial, pretty abhorrent on its face. He further denies over 3,000 years of Jewish history in the Jewish holy land, calling Jews “colonial invaders.” He denies that the Jewish temples stood on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and mocks Jews that they are trying to “Judaize” Jerusalem.

The world pretends that this anti-Semitic extremist is a moderate. The sad reality is that he is a moderate, solely by Palestinian Arab standards.

Palestinian Arabs Don’t Want Two States, They Want ’48

Jews Have No Rights Whatsoever In The Land. The average Palestinian Arab in the Palestinian territories believes that the land is 100% Arab and that Jews have no rights to be there. Their position is plain that they do not want to share the land. It is founded on a national narrative that Jews are “colonial invaders” who came to the land as a function of “European imperialism.” That is why pro-Palestinian supporters shout “we don’t want two states, we want ’48,” and “from the river to the sea,” that the entirety of the region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River will be Arab.

No Interest In A Two State Solution. Not surprisingly believing that Jews have no history or rights, Palestinian Arabs have no interest in a two state solution. They’ve rejected it from the 1947 Partition Plan until the latest June 2022 poll, when only 28% of respondents favored the idea, with 69% opposed.

Preference For War. Rejecting coexistence, Palestinian Arabs want either the global community to pressure Israel out of existence or to wage war for Israel’s destruction. In June 2022, 56% want the PA to join more international organizations (counter to the parameters of the Oslo Accords signed between the PA and Israel to advance peace), and 55% want to start another armed “initifada,” meaning jihadist terrorism. Currently, 56% of Palestinian Arabs favor attacking Jewish civilians inside of Israel, with 59% believing the terrorism “contributes to the national interest.“

Deeply Embedded Anti-Semitism. The Anti-Defamation League conducted a poll in 2014 about anti-Semitic attitudes around the world. Palestinian Arabs were by far the most anti-Semitic, with almost every single person – a sickening 93% – hating Jews.

It is no wonder that there are so many Palestinian terrorist groups and that the Palestinians intend on voting for one should elections ever be held again.

The US President Honors Anti-Semitism And Wastes Political Capital

Despite the plain facts that Abbas is a straw man who leads anti-Semites not interested in making peace with Israel, President Biden is going to travel to meet him. In doing so, Biden will be giving honor to this despised leader and upsetting 65% of Palestinian Arabs who don’t want the PA to engage with Biden. Even worse, decent Americans will be forced to watch their president listen to the rants and demands of an anti-Semite who supports terrorism, knowing that Biden will just smile and hand Abbas millions of dollars.

The United States invested billions of dollars in Israel and got a strong reliable ally in the Middle East with a vibrant democracy, economy and record of human rights. The US also invested billions of dollars into the Palestinian Arabs, which remains corrupt, inept and hostile to peace and decency. When will people pause to reflect on the return on investments from human and monetary capital?

Abbas Declares All of Israel is a “Painful Settlement”

Abbas Failed To Capitalize on Trump’s Gift

Abbas’s Speech and the Window into Antisemitism and Anti-Zionism

Welcoming the Unpopular Non-President (Abbas) of a Non-Country (Palestine)

Snapshot Of J Street’s Friends and Foes

Posted on June 30, 2022 by First.One.Through

The end of June 2022 encapsulated the far-left and anti-Israel sentiments of J Street. While it is not news that the group is slightly more centrist than anti-Israel groups like Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow, it is interesting to see how the group is relishing defeating moderate Democrats, much like the left-wing anti-Zionist extremists from the Democratic Socialists of America.

On June 29, J Street posted about its elation that its alt-left candidate for Congress in Illinois defeated the primary challenger favored by the centrist group Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI). J Street led its press release with “Following principled progressive Delia Ramirez’s landslide victory over DMFI-endorsed Gilbert Villegas in the Democratic primary for Illinois’ 3rd congressional district,…” The group just could have led that it’s happy its preferred candidate won, but it opted to focus on the defeat of DMFI’s preferred candidate.

J Street said that its PAC spent $140,000 on supporting the Working Families’ Party candidate, to combat funds from “the AIPAC-aligned Democratic Majority For Israel (DMFI) and other right-leaning groups.” Note that AIPAC and DMFI are not “right-leaning groups” but centrist; it’s J Street that’s far-left, making those groups appear right-leaning from their perspective.

J Street then doubled down on mischaracterizing the centrist pro-Israel groups stating “In an election cycle that has seen the ultra-hawkish right-wing group AIPAC and its allies like DMFI… (emphasis is J Street’s)” These are inflammatory and blatantly untrue statements that DMFI – a purely Democratic group! – is “ultra-hawkish” and “right-wing.”

J Street is completely untethered from reality.

J Street is continuing on its far-left, Arab-centered mission on June 30th.

Jeremy Ben Ami, the president of J Street, is going to speak with Jim Zogby of the Arab American Institute. Their topic is rebuking the United States for the alleged crimes of the Jewish State. It will continue Zogby’s assertion that “Sanctions [against Israel] and accountability become absolutely essential to this discussion. We’re beyond dialogue, we’ve been beyond dialogue for decades now. We are now at the point where there must be a price paid.“

*June 30 event with President of J Street urging the United States to punish Israel*

Ben-Ami is featured with Zogby, who came after the Anti-Defamation League in May 2022, because it correctly pointed out the anti-Semitic comments from the head of CAIR in San Francisco who said that Zionist synagogues are enemies. Zogby added that Israel has “brutal and aggressive hardline apartheid policies” and decries “settler colonialism.“

Sounds like the right company for J Street’s president.

J Street is the home for left-wing pro-Palestinians who seek to market themselves as pro-Israel centrists to mislead the public that their extremist views are in line with the government of Israel and Zionists around the world. The group is slowly revealing its true alt-left bent, stating that its opponents are not limited to the Republican Jewish Coalition, but centrist Democrats like DMFI which it falsely labels as “ultra-hawkish” and “right-wing,” as it simultaneously joins forces with leading Arab critics of Israel.

Students For Justice in Palestine Says J Street Is The Gateway For Jewish Anti-Zionists

J Street Proves Again It’s Progressive, Not Pro-Israel

J Street is Only Considered “Pro-Israel” in Progressive Circles

Will You Finally Show J Street and Its Backers the Door?

Vedat Gashi, Running To Unseat Jamaal Bowman in Congress, Talks to The Jewish Community

Posted on June 22, 2022 by First.One.Through

New York’s 16^th Congressional district has been reshaped by the latest census, and now includes more of Westchester than it had earlier, and drops sections of the Bronx which are now in NY-15 held by Rep. Ritchie Torres. The current congressman for NY-16 is Rep. Jamaal Bowman, who is facing a number of challengers in the Democratic primaries to be held on August 23^rd (early voting begins August 13).

According to the non-partisan website fivethirtyeight, the newly redrawn NY-16 leans heavily towards the Democratic Party, voting for Joe Biden over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election by a margin of +40. That means that the Democratic primary is truly the election for this congressional seat.

One of the Democratic contenders, Vedat Gashi, spoke with me about issues of particular concern to the Jewish community.

General Background

Gashi describes himself as a “common sense” Democrat who has nothing in common with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) which has backed Bowman. Gashi grew up in Kosovo and came to the United States at age four. He later returned to Kosovo as an adult to work for the United Nations as the country gained its independence in the dissolution of Yugoslavia. His memories of Israel’s involvement with Kosovo – even before it became independent – left a positive mark on him.

Gashi is appreciative of the Jewish community as well. As a secular Muslim, he said he was appalled at President Trump’s so-called “Muslim ban” which would have restricted people like him from coming to the US (writer’s note: Trump did not ban all Muslims, but people from seven Muslim-majority countries, which did not include Kosovo). When Gashi went to JFK Airport to protest the ban, the first people he saw protesting were Jewish groups. These incidents gave Gashi a sense of warmth toward the Jewish community.

A full background of Gashi’s background can be found on his website. Unfortunately, there is little else on the site, such as his positions on important issues.

*Vedat Gashi, running for congress in 2022 to represent NY-16*

On Israel

Gashi is instinctively pro-Israel but not very well versed on specific topics.

As it relates to Bowman’s vote against supporting the Abraham Accords in April 2021, Gashi said he was “disappointed” in Bowman’s vote because the Accords clearly advanced US’s foreign policy interests. He assumed that Bowman did so because of pressure from the DSA, and Gashi used that point to highlight that he would not abide by any party orthodoxy but consider each issue as it impacted the people in his district. He added that the DSA’s comments which blamed American and NATO policies for causing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as indicative of the far-left group’s “tenuous grasp of reality.”

Gashi said that the people behind the Boycott, Divest and Sanction (BDS) of Israel are anti-Semitic. He believes that people who call Israel an “apartheid state”, such as Bowman’s senior policy advisor Rajiv Sicora, “don’t want Israel to even exist”. In contrast, Gashi believes that Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East and is a strong American ally.

Bowman is tied to other DSA-backed politicians like Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN), as he votes alongside them 98% of the time. Gashi thinks that Tlaib and Omar have made many anti-Semitic comments, such as Tlaib’s screed that Jews and Zionists profit from racism “from Gaza to Detroit,” and Omar’s comments about Jews buying control of Congress and hypnotizing the world. He finds their comments “deeply racist” and offensive.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), three members of the ‘Squad’ of Democratic Socialists on November 30, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Regarding Bowman co-sponsoring the May 2022 Tlaib-led legislation that called the founding of Israel a ‘Nakba’ (catastrophe), Gashi said that sponsors of such legislation do not believe Israel has the right to exist. He said he arrived at such a conclusion from being informed about how Serbs treated Kosovo. Serbs believed Kosovo to be “nothing more than a parking lot,” an empty vessel without meaning or ownership, much the way some anti-Israel people continue to look at the Jewish State today. He noted that the founding of many countries included wars and displacements but that doesn’t mean the new country shouldn’t exist.

Gashi did not have a strong opinion about “settlements.” He noted that he saw some when he visited friends in Israel several years ago, with many being fully established towns which are a far cry from what the name implies, which is a couple of shacks. He offered no opinion about whether they are legal or whether UN Resolution 2334 was appropriate.

Gashi seemed surprised to learn that Palestinian Arabs favor the terrorist group Hamas, and said he felt bad that they were being fed “lying propaganda by their leaders.”

As it relates to a number of other regional issues such as the Taylor Force Act and the Palestinian Authority’s desire for a consulate in Jerusalem, Gashi knew little about the topics.

United Nations / Iran

Gashi worked for the United Nations in Kosovo for a number of years and believes that the organization is an “unwieldy animal” with many difficult actors like Russia, however, Gashi believes that there is opportunity for the United Nations to be a positive force. During our interview, Gashi noted he was not familiar with the many resolutions and committees within the United Nations that attack the Jewish State but seemed interested to learn more.

Regarding the Iranian nuclear deal, Gashi said that “Iran achieving nuclear capacity would be a terrible outcome and needs to be opposed every which way we can, if not diplomatically, then by other means”. He added that “it is an existential problem”.

Anti-Semitism / Religion

Gashi was not familiar with the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism but stressed that “words are important.” Drawing on his experience in Kosovo, he shared that politicians were reluctant to use the term “genocide” because it would compel certain actions, even though avoiding its usage “led to more ethnic cleansing” in his home country. He did not know why President Biden agreed to the IHRA definition and then refused to enact it for Title VI to protect Jewish and Zionist students on campuses, until December 2022, which is after mid-term elections.

Gashi was also unfamiliar with Senator Diane Feinstein grilling of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett saying “the dogma lives loudly within you and that’s of concern,” as it related to ACB’s Catholic beliefs, suggesting it would possibly disqualify her for office. He said that “all manners of good and bad deeds have been attributed to religiosity. Religiosity in and of itself, is neither good nor bad. Faith, in general, is a good thing.” He did say that Feinstein’s comment was inappropriate.

Schools / Police

Gashi would not engage in a discussion about charter schools or monies for parochial schools. He seemed more concerned about upsetting teacher unions and keeping funding inside of the public school system. Whether he would tackle the issue of prioritizing educating children rather than winning support of powerful unions remains to be seen, as he would not voice an opinion going into a Democratic primary where he is competing against a radical socialist who was formerly a teacher.

Gashi did come after Bowman about his stance to “Defund the Police.” He felt that Bowman’s endorsement of the socialist platform was dangerous for the district and country. He added that Bowman continues to lie about his comments and vote on the manner, much as Bowman clearly lied to his constituents about supporting the infrastructure bill when he voted against it.

Summary

Gashi presents as a left-leaning politician, yet far to the right and much more honest than Bowman. He is not well-versed in various issues of concern to the Jewish people in his district but seems eager to learn and approach the issues thoughtfully.

Rep. Ritchie Torres Doesn’t Want To Be the Only Progressive Pro-Israel Unicorn

The Disgraceful Promotion of Refugee-Washing ‘Nakba’ In The U.S. Congress

Politicians In Their Own Words: Why We Don’t Support Defending Jews

The Right Number of Anti-Semites in Congress

Republican and Democratic Politicians Discuss Israel’s Latest Fight

Rashida Tlaib’s Modern ‘Mein Kampf’

Omar and Tlaib’s Antisemitic B.D.S.

The Opposite Reaction To The Killing Of Schoolchildren

Posted on June 2, 2022 by First.One.Through

There is perhaps nothing as shocking and horrible as the murder of young children at school.

The United States has seen and mourned the tragedy too often, most recently at Uvalde, TX where an 18-year old killed 19 students and two teachers. Ten people were killed and 13 wounded in 2018 when a 17-year old shot people in a high school in Santa Fe, TX. In February of that year, a 19-year old killed 17 and injured the same number at a high school in Parkland, FL, and a month earlier, a 15-year old killed two students and injured 18 others in Marshall County, KY.

Not all of the shooters in the school attacks are teenagers. Almost all are male and every attack was committed by “lone wolves” acting out of hatred or mental distress.

Society has uniformly mourned the innocent victims, even while debating how to deal with the terrible violence. The loss of young lives is a shocking amputation for the families, a scar on society.

*Flowers at Robb Elementary School, Uvalde, TX on May 28, 2022 (photo: AP/ Jae C. Hong)*

Civil society is appalled at the senseless violence. It ponders how to treat mental sickness and retard the hatred of killers and would-be murderers, methods to keep armaments out of those hands, and ways to better protect vulnerable schools. The media and public officials even consider not mentioning killers’ names or publishing any ‘manifestos’, in the hopes that it will dissuade other killers.

At least in the United States. That’s not the tactic the world applies to slaughtered children in Israel.

Palestinian Arab terrorists have long targeted Jewish children for murder. Palestinian society celebrates the slaughter and the world excuses those murderers.

Consider the May 1974 attack in Ma’alot, in northern Israel. Several Palestinian men coordinated an attack (not a lone person with mental illness) which took 115 people, including 105 children, hostage at the Netiv Meir Elementary School. The two-day rampage left 31 Israelis dead (including 22 children) and 70 injured.

The three armed Palestinian terrorists were members of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP). The leader of the DFLP, Nayef Hawatmeh, was awarded the “Star of Honor” for his contribution to Palestinian society by Mahmoud Abbas, the acting president of the Palestinian Authority (PA).

The PA’s official news channel described the award to Hawatmeh as follows:

“By the authority vested in us, and for the public good, we have decreed the following: ‘Brother Nayef Hawatmeh is decorated with the highest order of the Star of Honor in recognition of his important national role in service of the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian people, and in recognition of his efforts to raise the flag of Palestine since the launch of the Palestinian revolution, through the stages of the ongoing struggle. [Signed by] Mahmoud Abbas, President of the State of Palestine.“

*PA President Abbas awarding terrorist Hawatmeh the ‘Star of Honor’ on May 28, 2013*

Another Palestinian terrorist group, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) also attacked a school in northern Israel in April 1974. The Kiryat Shmona massacre killed 18 Israelis, including 8 children. The three Palestinian Arab murderers were killed at that time.

Marking the 42nd anniversary of the massacre, the official PA newspaper celebrated the attack and called out the terrorists heroes: “The heroes [of the operation] were the Martyrs Munir Mughrabi ‘Abu Shaker’, a Palestinian born in 1954, Ahmad Mahmoud ‘Abu Shaker’, a Syrian born in Halab in 1954, and Yassin Al-Hourani ‘Abu Hadi’, who was born in southern Iraq in 1954.“

Palestinian Arabs have also targeted school buses carrying Jewish children. In May 1970, Arabs fired rocket-propelled grenades at a bus which killed twelve people, including nine schoolchildren. In April 2011, the political-terrorist group Hamas fired a laser-guided anti-tank missile at a school bus, killing a young child.

Hamas has killed hundreds of Israeli civilians, including bombing the Hebrew University cafeteria in 2002, killing nine people, including 5 Americans. The attack was celebrated with hundreds of Palestinians pouring into the streets of Gaza City, vowing more attacks. The Palestinians love and support Hamas, with over half supporting the terrorist group and likely to elect the Hamas leader president of the PA, should elections ever be held.

*Cafeteria of Hebrew University bombed by Hamas July 2002 (AP Photo/David Guttenfelder)*

In 2015, a United States court found the PA liable for supporting the terrorist attacks and ordered to pay $218 million to the victims, which was tripled due to its being related to terrorism. The courts ultimately threw out the ruling because Americans weren’t specifically targeted and the attacks did not happen on US soil.

While the fines were deemed inappropriate to enforce, the judgment which concluded that the PA was behind attacks on schools and civilians remains valid. Yet President Biden plans on meeting with PA President Abbas next month in any event. A representative of the European Union said yesterday that Israelis are to blame for Palestinian terrorism, as young Palestinians see homes being demolished, as he ignored the glorification of murderers at Palestinian schools.

How can the world mourn the killing of young American children at school by lone gunmen, while simultaneously excusing the slaughter of Jewish children by organized Palestinian political and terrorist groups?

‘Critical Race Theory’ in Palestinian Schools Calls For The Murder of Israeli Jews

The New Salman Abedi High School for Boys in England and the Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel Soccer Tournament in France

What do you Recognize in the Palestinians?

Collective Guilt / Collective Punishment

Eyal Gilad Naftali Klinghoffer. The new Blood Libel.

Apartheid In Palestinian Authority, Not Israel

Posted on May 26, 2022 by First.One.Through

The current smear against Israel being popularized by anti-Zionist organizations and people is that the country practices a form of apartheid. Specifically, they consider that Israel discriminates against and segregates its non-Jewish population.

Not only is the charge absurd, but it is a deliberate attempt to deflect the anti-Semitism and xenophobia of the Palestinian Arab population.

Ban on citizenship

At inception, Israel granted all of the people who lived in the land citizenship, and as the country annexed additional territory such as the eastern section of Jerusalem, it afforded all residents there to apply for citizenship as well, regardless of religion. Today, roughly 74% of the country is Jewish, with over one quarter belonging to other faiths. It stands as a uniquely diverse country in the entire Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

This is in sharp contrast to the Palestinian Authority (PA). The president of the PA, Mahmoud Abbas, declared that “we will not see the presence of a single Israeli (read Jew) – civilian or soldier -on our land.” Indeed, in the lands administered by the PA – Gaza and Areas A and B – the demographics is 100% Arab. Not a single Jew can be found, per the PA’s anti-Semitic stated mission.

Ban minorities buying land

Israel allows everyone to purchase homes or apartments. In Jerusalem, the Israeli government greatly expanded the number of homes for non-Jews which resulted in a +188% growth in units for Arabs between 1990 and 2019, compared to only +64% for Jews.

This is in sharp contrast to the PA which has kept in place a Jordanian law which bans the sale of land to non-Jews. The penalty for doing so can be hard labor or even death. It has produced a terrible scheme where Arabs who want to sell land to Jews are forced to use middlemen and shell companies to avoid being killed by either the government of fellow Arabs’ vigilante anti-Semitic violence.

Ban minorities voting and being in parliament

All Israeli citizens can vote and run for the parliament. There are a few Israeli Arab parties in the country’s multi-party system. In 2022, an Arab party sits in the governing coalition and can collapse the government should it decide to do so.

As the Palestinian Authority has no Jews, it is not surprising that there are no Jews in parliament.

Ban minorities being prime minister

Israel has no religion litmus test as to who can become prime minister. That is compared to surrounding Arab countries like Syria where the PM must be a Muslim.

Ban minorities being judges

Israel allows all of its citizens to be part of the legal system including being lawyers, judges and using the courts. The Jewish State has an Arab sitting on its Supreme Court.

The PA has no place for Jews. Anywhere.

Ban minorities being in army

Israel has a draft system which calls on its citizens to serve in the army at age 18. However, the country does not enforce the law for Arabs and Ultra-Orthodox Jews, but it welcomes them joining.

The PA has no place for Jews.

Ban on religious houses of worship

Israel allows all of the various religions to practice their faiths openly. There is no ban on minarets on mosques (as exists in Switzerland), no ban on halal meat (as exists in Iceland), no ban on burkas or hijabs (as exists in Turkey). The Bahai faith has major houses of worship and the Israeli government actually helped Mormons build their church in Jerusalem.

The PA is only oriented around Arab Muslims and Christians. In Jordan – which is majority Palestinian – the Bahai faith is outlawed and Jews carrying religious articles are turned away at the border.

Ban minorities visiting holy places

Israel allows people of all religions to access their holy places. The Israeli government reversed the Muslim ban on Jews visiting the Old City of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount, as well as the Cave of the Jewish Matriarchs and Patriarchs in Hebron when it took the city back from Jordanian Arabs in 1967.

Palestinian Arabs (who were Jordanians from 1954 to 1967) had banned Jews from their holy sites. The PA and Jordan continue to try to limit Jews from visiting Judaism’s holiest site to this day. Palestinian Arabs have also ransacked Jewish holy sites under their control, such as the Tomb of Joseph in Nablus.

Ban minorities praying at holy places

When Israel reunified Jerusalem in 1967 after Jordan attacked it, it nevertheless allowed the Jordanian waqf to administer the Jewish Temple Mount. That decision has caused Jews to continue to be banned from praying at its site while hundreds of thousands of Muslims are able to do so multiple times a day.

When Jews visit their holy sites in or adjacent to PA-ruled territories, they must have security details or be lynched by Arabs.

Ban minorities from universities

Israel’s leading universities such as Hebrew University and Tel Aviv University have large populations of non-Jews. In sharp contrast, no Jews attend Palestinian universities, and some have a history of banning Jews – even anti-Zionist ones – from even stepping foot on campus.

Ban or limit free speech and assembly for minorities

All Israeli citizens have freedom of speech, assembly and press. Israeli Arabs often launch demonstrations against the government, as do other minorities. In Gaza, only one opinion is allowed to be expressed – that sanctioned by the Islamist regime of Hamas.

Denial of minority history and culture

The Israeli government acknowledges the backgrounds, cultures and history of its diverse citizens. It teaches various histories in its schools and posts official signs in Hebrew, Arabic and English. Meanwhile the PA only uses Arabic in all official communications and actively denies the history of Jews in their holy land, including that their holy temples were in Jerusalem.

Government inciting violence against minorities

Israel is a pluralistic society with Jews and non-Jews participating in each part of society. However, the PA is effectively at war with Jews and the Jewish State and calls on Arabs to attack Jews.

Government reward murderers of minorities

Israel prosecutes criminals that commit crimes – past presidents and prime ministers have gone to jail.

The PA actually rewards criminal activity, especially violence committed against Jews. It calls the terrorists “martyrs” and names schools and squares after them, while paying their families thousands of dollars.

Major political parties’ xenophobia

The Israeli declaration of independence welcomed all people and to this day. The major Israeli political parties including Likud, Yesh Atid, and Blue and White all have charters and position papers that advance a just society for all citizens.

The Palestinian constitution is written for Arabs, with Islam as the official religion. Hamas, a designated terrorist organization by many countries, has a charter full of anti-Semitic smears and conspiracy theories. It calls for a war between Jews and Muslims.

Xenophobia and racism of population

Palestinian Arabs voted the anti-Semitic Hamas political-terrorist party to 58% of the parliament the last time elections were held, and polls show that Hamas would win presidential elections, if held today. The Anti-Defamation League did a poll in 2014 that showed that Palestinian Arabs were the most anti-Semitic in the world, with 93% holding anti-Semitic beliefs.

Israel has created a liberal democracy in the heart of the xenophobic and anti-Semitic Middle East. Those calling the country an apartheid state are not merely engaging in anti-Semitic lies, but doing so in the hope of drawing attention away from the deeply anti-Semitic and xenophobic beliefs of Palestinian Arabs.

Ending Apartheid in Jerusalem

Arabs in Jerusalem

Regime Reactions to Israel’s “Apartheid” and “Genocide”

Palestineism is Toxic Racism

Israel, the Liberal Country of the Middle East

Paying to Murder Jews: From Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Iran to the Palestinian Authority

Rep. Ilhan Omar and The 2001 Durban Racism Conference

Despite Palestinians Committing More Acts of Terror, UN Lambasts ‘Settlers’

Posted on May 15, 2022 by First.One.Through

The United Nations has a particular narrative about the Arab-Israeli Conflict which plays out in various fora.

The anti-Zionist organization has elevated the discussion of ‘settler attacks’ in an effort to paint the Zionists as not only illegal but dangerous, thereby clear obstacles to peace.

A UN press release by the poorly-named Human Rights Council noted the following in November 2021:

“Settler violence has always been an extremely disturbing feature of the Israeli occupation, but in 2021, we are witnessing the highest recorded levels of violence in recent years and more severe incidents…. This precipitous rise in settler violence is not simply the result of a few ‘bad apples’ among the settler population. The deep state support provided by Israel to the illegal settlement enterprise, including to the more than 140 settlement outposts established throughout the West Bank in defiance of even Israel’s own laws, has fueled this coercive environment and encouraged violence.“

Tor Wennesland, the UN’s Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, has adopted this line of reasoning. Wennesland gives a monthly report to the UN Security Council where he reports on his perception of Israel’s violations and treatment of Palestinians rather than on Middle East Peace.

Consider Wennesland’s comments in his March 22, 2022 report to the UN Security Council when he went detailed specific events of Israeli settler violence but glossed over Arab terrorism. Wennesland essentially blamed all attacks on the Israeli government, parroting the UN Human Rights Group talking points:

“The announcement of Tel Aviv’s [*note the dis of stating Israel’s government being in Tel Aviv and not Jerusalem*] plans to expand settlement activity in the West Bank and East Jerusalem is deeply disturbing. The continuation of settlement construction and the intention to double the number of Israelis living in the Jordan Valley and the Syrian Golan Heights by 2026 can be seen as the de facto annexation of most of the occupied Palestinian territory. Against that background, there has been a sharp increase in settler attacks, as well as the disproportionate use of force by the Israeli military against Palestinians resulting in civilian deaths and injuries.” The statement suggests that the Israeli government’s actions promoting further development in Area C and the Golan Heights encouraged “settler attacks.” All he offered about Hamas, the political-terrorist group that runs Gaza was that “Hamas also called for increased clashes with the Israeli forces throughout the occupied West Bank,” when in fact, Hamas calls for attacks against all Israeli Jews, including civilians.

After even more Arab attacks against Israelis over the following weeks, Wennesland continued to emphasize attacks by Israelis. In his April 25 report, he mentioned “settlers” five time to only twice for Hamas. He again reiterated that settler violence was principally because the Israeli government supports Jews living throughout Israel and its territories, but at least added a caveat about Arab terrorism: “Against the backdrop of continued settlement activities and ongoing pressure on Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank, as well as heightened tensions, settler-related violence remained high, particularly following the terrorist attacks in Israel.“

To be clear – according to Wennesland’s own reports – the number of Arab attacks dwarves attacks by Israelis. The monthly total for Palestinian Arabs attacking Jews ranged from 80 to 108 for the first four months of 2022, but only between 28 and 66 for “settler” attacks. Overall, there were 381 attacks by Palestinians to 210 by Israelis, or 81% more.

Israeli attacks were roughly half the number of Palestinian Arab attacks in the first four months of 2022. Israeli attacks were less than one-third the number of Arab attacks at the beginning of the year, before a wave of lethal Arab attacks prompted a response from Jews.

Wennesland remains blind to Arab incitement including naming schools and squares after murderers, governmental stipends to Palestinians who attack Jews, as well as straight out calls for violence. His jaundiced reports are fed to the waiting biased audience at the UN, with recommendation of more monies for Palestinians and fewer homes for Jews:

“Reducing violence and halting settlement activity, while shoring up the Palestinian Authority’s fiscal stability and strengthening Palestinian institutions are crucial. Steps to improve economic conditions must be implemented in a way that lays the foundations for a return to a meaningful political process.“

On one side, there is ongoing incitement to violence by Palestinian leadership which encouraged nearly 100 attacks against Jews every month. On the other, is an Israeli government which encourages Jews to coexist among Arabs, where Israelis commit roughly half the number of attacks a month, mostly in response to waves of Arab terrorism. Yet while those facts are admitted (in passing) by the United Nations, it directs blame solely on Israel, as it pushes another fund-raising appeal for the Arab government supporting terrorism.

Fortunately, the work of groups like IMPACT-SE which showcase the incitement against Israel at UN agencies, has led the European Union to dramatically cut its funding to UNRWA. However, the US has not curtailed its funding despite being fully aware of the incitement (see USAID Samantha Power testimony to Appropriations Committee mark 1.05), despite comments to cut funding to bad governments.

Send emails on thoughts for future articles to firstonethrough@gmail.com

Amid The Terror, The United Nations Elevates Hamas

Amid The Terror, The United Nations Once Again Protects Palestinians

The United Nations Must Take Its Own Medicine Re the Palestinian Authority

The Nerve of ‘Judaizing’ Neighborhoods

The UN Coordinator For Palestinian Appeals

Jews In Jerusalem Still Fighting For ‘Social Justice’

Posted on May 12, 2022 by First.One.Through

Social justice is a concept that has been advanced by left-wing Americans into mainstream conversation. The idea covers a number of principles:

Access
Human rights
Participation
Equity
Diversity

The Jews in Jerusalem are slowly advancing in their movement on each of these principles, however, systemic anti-Semitism at the United Nations and for many Arab Muslim nations, has slowed progress.

Access

Despite the facts that only Jews consider Jerusalem as its holiest location and uniquely made the city its capital, Arab Muslim nations ethnically-cleansed the Old City of Jerusalem of its Jews in the 1948-9 Arab-Israeli war. Transjordan illegally annexed the eastern part of the city including the Old City and the west bank of the Jordan River, and subsequently denied any Jew the ability to visit their holiest sites.

Jordan attacked Israel again in 1967 but lost the ‘West Bank’ and eastern Jerusalem to Israel. While Israel once again allowed Jews to live and visit their holiest city, the Jordanian Waqf was given permission by Israel to administer the Jewish Temple Mount, and limits the time and number of Jews who can visit.

Human Rights

Not long after Jordan annexed lands west of the Jordan River in a move not recognized by almost every country in the world, it passed a citizenship law specifically excluding Jews in article 3. Now under Israeli rule, the Jews of Jerusalem – as well as Arabs – are afforded citizenship in a reversal to Jordan’s anti-Semitic law.

Jordan still enforces its ban on Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount, a flagrant violation of the basic human rights of Jews. Remarkably, the world stays mum on the subject, fearing radical Islamic violence.

Participation

The Jews in Jerusalem are marginalized by the United Nations and much of the world. The UN Security Council passed Resolution 2334 which stated that “Israelis” could not move to eastern Jerusalem. The anti-Zionists call Jews who live and visit ‘settlers’, even if they are not Israeli, and do not use the label for Israeli Arabs who do the same, clearly demonstrating the anti-Jewish nature of the smear.

The UN has set up distinct agencies, committees and inquiries uniquely for the Jewish State and does not afford Israel an opportunity to participate on the same basis as others in a forum stacked against it.

As noted above, the administration of the Temple Mount which holds the al Aqsa mosque is administered solely by Arab Muslims of the Jordanian waqf. Such formulation does not allow Jews to participate in the administration of their holiest site, and has led to their being completely marginalized.

Equity / Restorative Justice

There has been some measure of restorative justice for Jews, in facilitating the migration of Jews back to their ancestral homeland over the past hundred years. Germany has paid the state compensation for its actions in the Holocaust. The United States has invested in the fledgling state and facilitated its ascendency out of a third world emerging state to a thriving liberal democracy. The most persecuted people who faced a genocide have established a safe haven.

But evil still lurks. The Islamic Republic of Iran has stated its desire to destroy Israel. It has several terrorist proxies abutting the Jewish State including Hamas and Hezbollah which have thousands of missiles directed at it. The world is debating how to handle the leading state sponsor of terrorism’s quest for nuclear weapons, even though the answer is obvious to any toddler.

In relation to Jerusalem, the world has done the opposite of restorative justice. It did – and still does not – facilitate and recognize Jews in the Old City of Jerusalem. Israel had to reunite the city on its own in a defensive battle. It rebuilds the synagogues (like the Hurva) that Jordan destroyed in the face of global condemnation.

*The Hurva Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, shortly after its re-opening in March 2010 (photo: First One Through)*

Diversity

Israel’s neighbors like Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, UAE, Iraq and others, are each over 90% Muslim. In contrast, Israel is only 73.9% Jewish and has over 26% of the population from a variety of religions including Muslims, Christians, Druze, Baha’i, Samaritans and others.

Israel’s diversity is seen in its schools and hospitals. The signs in the country are written in Hebrew, Arabic and English. Its parliament and Supreme Court have people of different religions, ethnic backgrounds, genders and orientation. All of those dynamics are lacking in the other countries of the Middle East.

Many of those same countries that lack diversity attack Israel economically, politically and militarily. They deny the history of the Jews, their rights and any acceptance of the Jewish State. They have stood against ‘normalizing’ the Jewish State in any manner in an aggressive campaign of ‘three denials.‘ These efforts are most pronounced regarding Israel’s capital of Jerusalem, which they seek to revert back to the Arab-only, Jew-free situation they enforced in the eastern half from 1949 to 1967.

Regarding the principles of access, human rights, participation, equity and diversity, Israel stands as a beacon in the Middle East. However, the country still faces many obstacles, mostly from the biased United Nations and at the Jewish Temple Mount. Hopefully those committed to social justice will engage in the hard work to end the systemic anti-Semitism, xenophobia, Islamic privilege, religious persecution and isolation of the indigenous Jewish people in their ancient homeland and in their holy capital city of Jerusalem.

Israel, the Liberal Country of the Middle East

The Jews of Jerusalem In Situ

Zionism is Justice

Arabs in Jerusalem

Considering Israel’s Model for Arabs Applied to Jews in a Palestinian State

Israel’s Peers and Neighbors

Examining Ilhan Omar’s Point About Muslim Antisemitism

Mother’s Day And Ahlam Al-Tamimi

Posted on May 11, 2022 by First.One.Through

Summary: Pause the debate on abortions on Mother’s Day, and demand justice for a woman who smiles as she slaughters children eating ice cream.

Mother’s Day 2022 was a peculiar affair as the United States debated the legal case for abortion with renewed vigor, after the leak of the Supreme Court draft questioning the validity of Roe v. Wade. Americans focused again on the rights of women on one hand and the rights of the unborn on the other, just as they celebrated the mothers who had and raised children.

While Father’s Day is definitely special in celebrating the men who raise children, the bond is a degree removed from the tether between mother-and-child. Only women can give birth. Only women can nurse a baby. The umbilical cord may only last nine months but the connection between women and child seems to carry far into the future.

Yet there are women who despise children. Jewish children anyway.

Ahlam Al-Tamimi is a Palestinian Arab who is a member of Hamas. In 2001, she walked around Jerusalem looking for a place to kill as many religious Jews as possible, “because the base of the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians is a religious struggle.” She chose a Sbarro restaurant in the center of town, frequented by many Jewish women and children for pizza and ice cream. Years later she smiled when she learned that eight children were killed in the suicide bombing attack that she orchestrated.

*Ahlam al-Tamimi smiling when told she killed eight children, not three as she had thought.*

Al-Tamimi was released after serving several years in an Israeli jail, as part of the prisoner exchange for Israeli Gilad Shalit, and was transferred to Jordan. The FBI put her on the “Most Wanted List” and considers her armed and dangerous. As recently as October 2021, she said that she loves the “scent” of Palestine, the “scent of musk from the martyrs (who kill Jews)… this is a pleasant relaxing scent, as if it was coming from Paradise.” She considered her terrorist operations as “crowns on my head.”

That interview was posted on YouTube on the “Gathering4Youth” site based in Turkey. The site includes interviews with other terrorists from Hamas such as Khaled Mashaal. This site that features a terrorist group addressing youth with calls for violence is still operating openly.

Regarding Al-Tamimi, FBI’s most wanted terrorist similarly lives freely in Jordan.

Several Jewish groups have been pushing the U.S. to extradite this murderer for several years as two of the victims were American citizens, but Jordan has long refused to hand her over.

During his confirmation hearing, Henry Wooster, now U.S. ambassador to Jordan said he would “explore all options to bring Ahlam Aref Ahmad al-Tamimi to justice, secure her extradition and address the broader issues associated with the extradition treaty.” That remains to be seen.

On May 13, 2022, just a few days after Mother’s Day, U.S. President Joe Biden will host Jordanian King Abdullah II to “reinforce the close friendship and enduring partnership between the United States and Jordan.” If the relationship is indeed close, Biden should be able to get Abdullah to hand over the murderer of Jewish children and Americans who openly calls for the next generation of youth to continue to slaughter innocent people.

Click here to CONTACT THE WHITE HOUSE to demand Biden secure the extradition of Ahlam Al-Tamimi, and shut down the Gathering4Youth incitement to terrorism YouTube page.