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International Migrants Day by Judith Bergman

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15514/international-migrants-day

The project of multiculturalism in Europe, including the integration of people from the Middle East and Africa, has fared extremely poorly until now and no amount of denial from the UN or the World Economic Forum, including leveling accusations of “hate speech” and “fake news” at its critics can alter that fact.

Many migrants have made it clear that they have no wish either to contribute to, or become part of, the European societies into which they have migrated. Parallel societies… have sprung up all over Western Europe.

In Germany, authorities believe that it will take decades to get rid of the Middle Eastern family crime clans that have spread their criminal activities throughout the country. Sweden also is reeling from the many shootings and explosions that migrant crime gangs are responsible for throughout the country.

None of these grave issues was even hinted at by the UN’s and the World Economic Forum’s “experts” on migration in their statements on International Migrants Day. Instead, they encouraged states to clamp down on critics in the name of “hate speech”. What are they afraid of?

When the UN marked International Migrants Day on December 18, 2019, the theme was “social cohesion.” António Vitorino, director general of the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) wrote in an op-ed entitled “Social Cohesion: Recognizing Migration is a Benefit that Works for All”:

“This year on International Migrants Day, the IOM has chosen to focus on social cohesion, in recognition not just of migrants, but of the communities in which they can and do flourish…

“Too often, when we speak of migration, we debate whether it is good or bad, costs too much or pays out too little… But to view migration as an accounting practice is to reduce it… It is an evolving…yet integral part of our societies, enriching them in multiple, intangible ways…

“Today’s political climate is challenging; oftentimes migrants make for an easy scapegoat for all the ills of society, rather than one element of a cure…we need to constantly remind the international community of the reality – both historic and contemporary – that when well managed migration works, closed societies can become open, and political tensions fade away.”

Are Turkish Cypriots Done with Ankara? by Burak Bekdil

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15631/turkish-cypriots-turkey

For the Turks, Turkey is the homeland and Cyprus is the “baby homeland.”
In January 2018, several thousand Turkish Cypriots marched against what they said was Turkey’s unwanted influence that has emboldened hard-right groups to try to silence opposing views.
Erdoğan’s government has been generously sending Turkish taxpayers’ money to religious foundations, associations, NGOs and Quranic schools in Turkish Cyprus via the Turkish Aid Delegation. Turkey also built a (Sunni Muslim) theology academy at the same time as it ignored local criticism against it.
“There have been mosque constructions in all areas in northern Cyprus, including former Greek Orthodox churches. All that effort has upset Turkish Cypriots.” — Yusuf Kanlı, a prominent Turkish Cypriot columnist, to Gatestone Institute, February 18, 2020.

A famous tweet by an unknown Turk and shows how pathetically crazy some Turks can get in their never-ending wars with the rest of the world:

“We should bomb Turkish Cyprus to show the world what a psychopathic nation we are. The world should ponder what the crazy Turks would do to the others if they did this to their ‘baby'” — @spleenistanbul

“Turkish Cyprus” here is the breakaway statelet of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), recognized only by Turkey — also known among the Turks as the “baby homeland.” Since Turkey invaded the northern third of the island in 1974 in response to a coup by Greek Cypriots that aimed to annex Cyprus to Greece, the “Cyprus cause” has been emblematic in reflecting Turkey’s militarist and nationalist sentiment.

In the UK, it now spells a product’s death if conservatives boast about liking it By Andrea Widburg

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/02/in_the_uk_it_now_spells_a_products_death_if_conservatives_boast_about_liking_it.html

Once upon a time, manufacturers marketed their product based upon the product’s merits. In recent years, companies have been selling, not their products, but their politics. So, what’s a company to do when a disfavored buyer purchases the product in the free market? According to Britain’s social justice warriors (“SJWs”), the company is still responsible and must be punished.

Yorkshire Tea is just what it says it is: a company that sells tea. Its roots go back to 1886 and it is the most popular traditional black tea brand in Britain. In 1962, the current owners took over the company, rebranded the tea from “Taylors” to “Yorkshire Tea,” and have been selling the tea ever since. The company is still family-owned and has been holding its own against teas from Unilever, Tata (Tesco), Twinings, and Typhoo.

The company is still old-fashioned enough to advertise its product’s virtues and ties to lovely Yorkshire, often quite humorously:

Promising News (We Hope) from Britain Is the tide of reflexive silencing and appeasement about to turn? Bruce Bawer

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/02/promising-news-we-hope-britain-bruce-bawer/

Not to put too fine a point on it, but Britain is a basket case. In many jurisdictions, the police appear to be less interested in solving murders than in intimidating – and even arresting – law-abiding citizens who have criticized Islam on Twitter. Meanwhile new Pakistani “grooming gangs” are still being uncovered, and the numbers – the number of non-Muslim girls who turn out to have been raped, the number of men who have raped them, and the number of years this has been going on without anyone doing anything about it – are staggering. Yet given the scale and horror of these crimes, the public reaction to them has been bafflingly muted. One observer recently commented that if the British had any cojones, the grooming-gang scandals would have sent them out into the streets en masse, demanding the arrest and incarceration of every politician, journalist, social worker, and police officer who knew about the gangs for years and did nothing.

Yes, the Brits voted for Brexit. But they continue to let their media get away with using the word “Asians” to obscure the specifically Islamic roots of honor killings, forced marriages and the rape of infidels. Yes, supporters of Tommy Robinson, who played a key role in bringing the grooming gangs to light, have turned out in large numbers to cheer him on more than one occasion, but when he ran for a seat in the European Parliament he was trounced, suggesting that his popularity is not as widespread as one might have hoped. Indeed, for “respectable” figures in Britain, Robinson remains an untouchable: MPs such as Jacob Rees-Mogg may be estimable in certain ways, but not a single member of the House of Commons has ever dared publicly to praise Robinson, and only one of the 794 members of the House of Lords – that would be Lord Pearson – has stood up for him. I keep running across, and being initially impressed by, British YouTubers who present themselves as bold, outspoken enemies of political correctness, only to see them go out of their way, at the first opportunity, to distance themselves from Robinson, whom they reflexively smear as a racist and Islamophobe.

First Israeli rabbi received as guest of Saudi king at royal palace

Rabbi David Rosen arrived in Riyadh to participate in an interfaith meeting in Saudi Arabia.

By World Israel News Staff

A rabbi named David Rosen became the first Jewish clergyman from Israel to be hosted by the king of Saudi Arabia in his Riyadh royal palace.

The meeting happened last week, Times of Israel reported, as part of a gathering held by the King Abdullah International Center for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID). Rosen is a member of KAICIID’s board of directors.

The Times quoted Rosen as saying that the meeting represented the first-ever interfaith group hosted by King Salman.

Rosen also serves as director of interreligious affairs for the American Jewish Committee and was the only Jewish member on the nine-person KAICIID board that met with King Salman last week.

Islam, Buddhism, Christianity, and Hinduism rounded out the faiths with representation on the KAICIID board in Riyadh.

A British-born immigrant to Israel, Rosen also sits on the Israeli Chief Rabbinate’s Commission for Interreligious Dialogue.

Can Macron halt the rise of Islamic extremism? Gavin Mortimer

https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2020/02/can-macron-halt-the-rise-of-islamic-extremism/

Emmanuel Macron has unveiled his plan to combat the rise of Islamic extremism in France. Stressing that his fight was not against the religion but political Islam, ‘which has no place’ in the Republic, the president outlined a series of measures in a speech last week. Notably, his plans involve an end to the hosting of imams from countries such as Turkey and Algeria, and more rigorous control on foreign financing of mosques from the likes of Qatar.

Macron stopped short of introducing an ‘Islam of France’, which had been mooted two years ago, but his intention is to eliminate the malevolent influence of outsiders.

But is it too late to stop what Macron described as the ‘Islamist separatism’ of France, a process that began in the 1980s when François Mitterrand’s Socialist government turned a blind eye to the ‘re-islamisation’ of the suburbs by men who took their inspiration from the Iranian revolution?

The alarm was first raised in 2002 with the publication of Les Territoires perdus de la République (The Lost Territories of the Republic) by Georges Bensoussan, in which he exposed the extent of this re-islamisation.

Iran Still Reeling Nearly Two Months After Suleimani Assassination By P. David Hornik

https://pjmedia.com/trending/iran-still-reeling-nearly-two-months-after-suleimani-assassination/

The U.S. assassination of Quds Force commander Qasem Suleimani on January 3 was a dramatic event—but how much did it really set Iran back? After all, he was only one official; couldn’t Iran just replace him and move on?

Almost two months later, a report in The Guardian says that’s not so, and that Iran—and the Revolutionary Guard of which Suleimani’s Quds Force was the spearhead—is still trying to recover.

“There were 11 bodies pulled from the wreckage,” said one [apparently Iraqi] official. “We are talking about the entire inner sanctum of the Quds Force. This wasn’t just Hajj Qassem [Suleimani] and Abu Mahdi [al-Muhandis]. This was everyone who mattered to them in Iraq and beyond.”

Another source, a western intelligence agency, was more circumspect, suggesting that those killed may have been less decisive in the Iranian nexus than the Iraqis believed.

But even if that Western intelligence agency is right, The Guardian goes on to say:

From the bunkers of south Beirut to the battlefields of northern Syria and the combustible streets of Iraq, the loss of Suleimani and his entourage has derailed much of Iran’s momentum in the region….

“Two senior sources in Beirut” told The Guardian that Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah “agreed to help fill the gaping hole left by the deaths of Suleimani and Muhandis. But there were limits to what he could do. He had lived a life even more in the shadows than the Iranian general for the past 14 years. And a drone strike from a night sky was unlikely to make him feel safer.”

Fiamma Nirenstein Anti-Semitism can’t be fought with lip service The EU’s message with regard to the settlements grants tacit permission to blame and hate Israel and, by extension, the Jews. To combat this, words are not enough; action is required.

https://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/anti-semitism-cant-be-fought-with-lip-service/

Anti-Semitism turns truly dangerous when it becomes the organizing principle of society. This occurred during the past century under Nazism and communism, and it is occurring again today.

Unrelenting bias against Israel, Zionism and thereby the Jewish people has become progressively interwoven with institutional power. It has penetrated the mindset of all those living under the “intersectionality” roof, i.e., those who feel oppressed and who harbor social frustration in various forms. Zionism and by extension the Jewish people are cast as oppressors, and this view has been granted political legitimacy by organizations such as the European Union and United Nations.

Ethnicity, gender, culture, etc. – are have become commingled. And all – feminists, university professors, members of the LGBT community, Hollywood directors, child-rights advocates – attack Israel, for reasons that can vary from “pinkwashing” to white supremacy to neo-colonialism. There are seemingly infinite themes available. This commingling not only animates but also strengthens bias. This stream of thought holds the State of Israel to be warmongering, colonial and racist in nature; Judaism, which generated Israel, is held responsible. The simple idea that Judaism includes the entire Jewish people then closes the circle of anti-Semitism.

The most important institutions in the world today push this line of thought, even if not explicitly. The parents of contemporary anti-Semitism are the same ones appearing in conferences, institutions, synagogues and even in Israel to proclaim their campaigns against anti-Semitism.

So what can be done? The generally accepted International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism is a positive step because it ties anti-Semitism and “Israelophobia” together. Yet it is not enough. Only policy action, not blame or promises to teach the history of the Shoah, can combat anti-Semitism. This is why US President Donald Trump’s Executive Order against anti-Semitism is so essential; it is composed of political steps that destroy the paradigm of political anti-Semitism.

There has been some progress in Europe as well. Hungary and the Czech Republic made great strides against anti-Semitism by abstaining from the UN General Assembly’s 2017 vote condemning Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Six EU member states (including, once again, the Visegrád Four) also took a stand against anti-Semitism earlier this month by opposing a resolution by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell calling for a joint European condemnation of Trump’s “Peace to Prosperity” plan. By their action, they opened a real discussion about Israel’s security needs and the legality of the settlements.

How Should the West Respond to the Iranian Protesters? by Judith Bergman

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15513/iranian-protesters

“Right now people are mad, not just because of their own government… People are furious about the Western reaction, with the silence of the world. When they see that people are getting killed, but still the Western governments do not dare to openly support human rights and ask the United Nations to make an open investigation into the killings and about the 7,000 people in prison.” — Masih Alinejad, Iranian journalist,

The UN Secretary-General, who declared war on “hate-speech” six months ago, apparently could not bring himself to condemn hateful actions of actual state violence against unarmed, innocent citizens.

How should the West respond to the Iranian protests that erupted after the Iranian regime admitted to unintentionally downing the Ukrainian jetliner? US President Donald J. Trump publicly supported the protesters:

“To the leaders of Iran – DO NOT KILL YOUR PROTESTERS. Thousands have already been killed or imprisoned by you, and the World is watching. More importantly, the USA is watching. Turn your internet back on and let reporters roam free! Stop the killing of your great Iranian people!”

By contrast, on January 14, Democrats blocked a House resolution that supported the anti-regime protesters in Iran. On January 28, however, House Resolution 752, was passed, “Supporting the rights of the people of Iran to free expression, condemning the Iranian regime for its crackdown on legitimate protests, and for other purposes”. The resolution had already been introduced in December 2019 as a response to the protests in Iran in November.

The House Resolution further “urges the Administration to work to convene emergency sessions of the United Nations Security Council and the United Nations Human Rights Council to condemn the ongoing human rights violations perpetrated by the Iranian regime and establish a mechanism by which the Security Council can monitor such violations”.

‘Christians Face Hatred and Discrimination Even after Their Death!’ The Muslim persecution of Christians that occurred in just one month. Raymond Ibrahim 1

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/02/christians-face-hatred-and-discrimination-even-raymond-ibrahim/

The following are some of the abuses that Muslims inflicted on Christians throughout the month of November, 2019; they are categorized by theme:

Slaughter of Christians

Syria:  On November 11, Islamic gunmen opened fire on a vehicle known to be carrying Christian leaders.  Two Armenian priests, a father and son, were killed; a deacon was seriously wounded.  ISIS claimed the murders of Father Abrahim Petoyan and Father Hovsep Petoyan.  The Armenians were going to inspect repairs on an Armenian Catholic church that had been earlier damaged in Deir ez-Zor. “We continue to feel the presence of ISIS,” responded the Armenian Catholic Archbishop Boutros Marayati of Aleppo, adding that Deir ex-Zor “is a very important town for us, because it is there that many of our martyrs were killed as they fled the Turkish genocide of 1915. Today there are no Armenian Catholics left there. Undoubtedly, the Turks don’t want us to return, because our presence would be a reminder of the Armenian genocide.”

Turkey: On November 19, in the streets of the city of Diyarbakir, Korean evangelist Jinwook Kim, 41, was stabbed and later died from his injuries. A 16-year-old Muslim was later arrested.  According to the report,

Kim had arrived in Diyarbakir with his family earlier this year and was pastoring a small community of Christians. The assailant stabbed Kim three times: twice in the heart, once in the back. Officials, however, claim that the incident occurred in an effort to steal Kim’s phone. Local believers urge the authorities to investigate the incident as an assassination, rather than an attempt at extortion. Kim was married and had one child, although his second is expected to be born in the coming days….  He had lived in Turkey for five years.

“This wasn’t just a robbery; they came to kill him,” insists another local Christian, who received a death threat the day after this incident:

“We always get threats. A brother prophesied a few days ago that they (the government) are going to kick out these foreigners, and probably kill a few Turkish brothers. They are going to cause chaos. They know that I am trying to spread the Gospel, so they may target me too. This may be a sign.”