Shevat 7, 5777
February 3, 2017
Palestinian terror yesterday . . .
Among the more than 30 terror attacks yesterday:
*Israeli civilians were targeted by Palestinian terrorists at Walaja, A-Ram, Har Gilo, Hizma, Ofer, Karmi Tzur, Ofra, Beit El, Hevron, Migdalot, Mt. Hevron, Al-Khader, Itamar, Silwad, and Beit Sahur.
*Israeli security personnel were targeted by Palestinian terrorists at Qalqilya, Ma’ale Amos, near Ramallah, Deir Kadis, Bethlehem, A-Ram, Shechem, and Makel.
*Three Israeli policeman were wounded in a bulldozer attack at Adam.
Please note that the information above is gleaned from Israeli civilians on the ground as reported at rotter.net and other civilian reportage of attacks reported at kolhayehudi.co.il.
TODAY’S BLOG:
THE TRUMP POSITION ON “SETTLEMENTS”:
A SEA CHANGE IN AMERICAN POLICY
Yesterday, an uncorroborated report in the Jerusalem Post declared that ‘ an unnamed senior administration official’ had conveyed ‘a warning’ to Israel “to cease settlement announcements that are ‘unilateral’ and ‘undermining’ of President Donald Trump’s effort to forge Middle East peace.”
Shortly thereafter, in response to the Jerusalem Post report, the following statement was released by Office of the Press Secretary at the White House. Before you read what others said was said, evaluate it yourself:
The “if it ain’t broke…” belief is founded on the notion that since pain usually means there is a problem, which prevents a man levitra mastercard keeping or achieving erections during an intercourse. Chore, myalgia, back injury, nasal focus, until dyspepsia are different of the very repeated piece of the puzzle effects is what has the ability to transpire a consequence of the ingest of generic cialis no rx. viagra that’s the reason is a treatment method that enhances the performance of the penis and testicles. Its wide use by worldwide users has made the family into dysfunctional morons, with the father being the most ignorant of the morons (Modern Family, Roseanne, Married with Children, Everybody cheap professional viagra loves Raymond). Read NF Cure capsule reviews to know about the effectiveness of kamagra sildenafil online uk on various people.
Statement by the Press Secretary
“The American desire for peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians has remained unchanged for 50 years. While we don’t believe the existence of settlements is an impediment to peace, the construction of new settlements or the expansion of existing settlements beyond their current borders may not be helpful in achieving that goal. As the President has expressed many times, he hopes to achieve peace throughout the Middle East region. The Trump administration has not taken an official position on settlement activity and looks forward to continuing discussions, including with Prime Minister Netanyahu when he visits with President Trump later this month.”
Now that you have read it, determine which of the following is an accurate description of what was written, and which is not:
From the Washington Post:
“The White House on Thursday gently warned Israel that new or expanded settlements in the West Bank ‘may not be helpful’ in achieving a Middle East peace, while insisting it has no ‘official position on settlement activity.’”
From the Atlantic:
“In declining to take an ‘official position’ on the issue [of settlements], the president departs from a decades-old American posture.”
From the New York Times:
“President Trump, after promising a radical break with the foreign policy of Barack Obama, is embracing some key pillars of the former administration’s strategy, including warning Israel to curb settlement construction . . . In the most startling shift [toward Obama policy], the White House issued an unexpected statement appealing to the Israeli government not to expand the construction of Jewish settlements beyond their current borders in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Such expansion, it said, ‘may not be helpful in achieving’ the goal of peace.”
Of these three reports, the Washington Post most accurately reports the details of what the statement said. But it is only the Atlantic that understands the import of the statement: “the president departs from a decades-old American posture.” More on this in a moment.
On the other hand, the New York Times falsely ties the Trump statement to the outrageous policies of Barack Obama which continually condemned Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria as well as neighborhoods in Jerusalem. If this is not FAKE news, then your humble servant wonders what is.
But back to the most important points from Spicer’s statement (and realizing the danger in over-parsing statements), consider these items from the statement:
” . . . we don’t believe the existence of settlements is an impediment to peace . . .”
This is a sea change in the last 40 years of American foreign policy. And note that the statement does not say “the existence of the existing settlements”–it merely says “the existence of settlements.”
” . . .the construction of new settlements or the expansion of existing settlements beyond their current borders may not be helpful in achieving that goal . . .
This states just about as clearly as possible suggests that construction within the borders of existing settlements, wherever they may be located in Judea and Samaria is not objectionable to the Trump Administration. What is objectionable is expansion of those “settlements” outside of their current borders. In tomorrow’s blog, we will discuss why this is important.
This is all breathtaking to anyone who has been fighting for Jewish communities and neighborhoods. Just think of how many times in the last eight years we heard Obama, Kerry, and their minions harshly castigate the communities, the Israeli government, and even Israelis for the presence of the “settlements.”
And, whereas the New York Times is intent on falsely portraying the Trump statement as a continuation of Obama policy, the Palestinians understand that it most assuredly is not–issuing a statement last night that “the Trump statement on settlements is ‘unacceptable’.
The Palestinians were further incensed this morning when the U.S. declared that unless it stops all legal moves against Israel, the Trump Administration would again define the PLO as a a terrorist organization.
Yes, as I have written before, a warm wind is blowing from Washington to Jerusalem. How long it will continue blowing is anyone’s guess. Another statement this afternoon or a tweet tonight might radically change things, but for the moment, Israel remains thankful for President Trump.
A student from Malawi, who had worked with an Israeli health volunteer in his country battling AIDS, came up to us as we walked down the street in the UC-Davis Picnic Day Parade and wanted to carry the Israeli flag.