RUTHFULLY YOURS

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15318/persecuted-palestinian-christians

In short, Palestinian Christians are suffering from the same patterns of persecution — including church attacks, kidnappings and forced conversion — that their coreligionists suffer in other Muslim nations. The difference, however, is that the persecution of Palestinian Christians has “received no coverage in the Palestinian media.”

“The only thing that interests the PA [Palestinian Authority] is that events of this kind not be leaked to the media. Fatah regularly exerts heavy pressure on Christians not to report the acts of violence and vandalism from which they frequently suffer, as such publicity could damage the PA’s image….. Even less does the PA want to be depicted as a radical entity that persecutes religious minorities. That image could have negative repercussions for the massive international, and particularly European, aid the PA receives.” — Dr. Edy Cohen, “The Persecution of Christians in the Palestinian Authority”, Begin-Sadat Center, May 27, 2019.

The bread and butter of the PA and its supporters, particularly in the media, is to portray the Palestinians as victims of unjust aggression and discrimination from Israel. This narrative would be jeopardized if the international community learned that Palestinians are themselves persecuting fellow Palestinians — solely on account of religion.

“The systematic persecution of Christian Arabs living in Palestinian areas is being met with nearly total silence by the international community, human rights activists, the media and NGOs…” — Justus Reid Weiner, attorney, “Palestinian Christians: The plight of believers under Palestinian rule”, International Christian Embassy, Jerusalem.

“The moment they [Hamas] took control [of the Gaza Strip], they started persecuting us, ruining our churches and forcing Christians to convert to Islam.”

Such are the recollections, reported recently, of Kamal Tarazi, a 60-year-old Christian man from Gaza, now living in the streets of Nazareth. Before fleeing, he tried to resist the Islamist takeover, including by calling on Muslims and Christians to unite against Hamas. As a result, “I was jailed several times. Do you know what a Hamas prison is? It is pure torture.”

The report adds that “the Islamic group decided to keep him alive to avoid depicting themselves as persecutors of the local Christian population, something that could potentially anger the international community.” Tarazi was eventually released, fled the region, returned, got imprisoned again, and fled again, permanently. “I am sure there are no more than 500 Christians left in Gaza,” he offers, “and it is just part of the general trend.”

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15306/hamas-thirty-two-years-later

Now that Hamas has again – clearly – reminded the world that it has not changed and continues to seek the destruction of Israel, the question is: Why are some world leaders, governments and organizations continuing to embrace the leaders of the movement?

A further question that ought to be asked in light of the recent venomous anti-Israel statements by Hamas leaders in the past few days: Why is the United Nations trying to convince Hamas to participate in Palestinian presidential and parliamentary elections?

All that is needed is for Erdogan and the rest of the world to listen to the statements of Hamas leaders in the past few days to understand that the movement is more determined than ever to achieve its goals of driving Jews “out of all of Palestine” and replacing Israel with an Islamic state…. What is it that they do not understand about “DEATH TO ISRAEL”? … It makes one wonder what their real motive is.

The Palestinian Hamas movement this week celebrated its 32nd anniversary by reminding everyone of its main goal: the destruction of Israel. This message is proof that Hamas has not – and will not – change its charter, originally published in 1988. It is also a powerful message to those who may have deluded themselves into believing that Hamas has transformed into a non-violent Palestinian faction.

This charter, also known as the Covenant of the Islamic Resistance Movement, states that Hamas’s “struggle against the Jews is very great and very serious” and calls for replacing Israel with an Islamic state. “There is no solution for the Palestinian issue except through Jihad (holy war),” the charter says. “Initiatives, proposals and international conferences are all a waste of time and vain endeavors. Renouncing any part of Palestine means renouncing part of the religion [of Islam].”

Thirty-two years later, the leaders of Hamas have again shown that they remain more committed than ever to their covenant, particularly regarding the desire to replace Israel with an Islamic state.

In this regard, Hamas deserves credit for being straightforward about its true intention. In statements marking the anniversary of the founding of Hamas, the movement’s leaders again demonstrated that they do not mince their words.

https://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/The-EUs-proxy-war-against-Israel-611122

They don’t have to do the dirty, immoral work of opposing Israel’s existence directly; no messy concentration camps. The EU pays others to do it (for specifics, see the website of NGO-Monitor).

The most potent non-military threat to Israel’s existence is the opposition to Jewish communities in Judea, Samaria, Jerusalem and the Golan Heights by the international community, led by the European Union.

The EU is the largest single donor to the Palestinians – more than a half-billion euros annually. It funds over two dozen anti-Israel propaganda organizations (NGOs) dedicated to demonizing Israel – over €6 million annually. In addition, these NGOs also receive millions from individual European countries. The EU is the largest contributor to UNRWA, which is dedicated to Israel’s demise. The EU supported US president Barack Obama’s “deal” with Iran to produce weapons of mass destruction and supports “non-military” organizations run by or associated with Hezbollah in Lebanon and Syria. And the EU is one of the largest contributors to the Hamas regime in the Gaza Strip.

They don’t have to do the dirty, immoral work of opposing Israel’s existence directly; no messy concentration camps. The EU pays others to do it (for specifics, see the website of NGO-Monitor).

https://unitedwithisrael.org/brazil-pledges-to-move-embassy-to-jerusalem-during-t

At the grand opening of Brazil’s trade mission in Jerusalem, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s son reiterated his father’s commitment to move the nation’s embassy to Israel’s capital.

On Sunday, Brazil officially opened a trade mission in Jerusalem, which was presented as a significant step toward a full-scale move for the Latin American nation’s embassy in Israel.

While the mission does not currently have diplomatic status, as opposed to the Jerusalem trade offices of Hungary and Honduras, Eduardo Bolsonaro, who is a senior parliamentarian and the president’s son, made comments during the opening on Sunday signaling that Brazil has made a “commitment” to move its embassy to Israel’s capital.

The opening of the office was first announced in March 2019, during a visit to Israel by Bolsonaro.

Speaking in Jerusalem on Sunday, Eduardo Bolsonaro stated, “I was with [the president] before I came here. He told me that for sure, [the embassy move is a] commitment. He’s going to move the embassy to Jerusalem. He’s going to do that.”

“We want to [complete the move] to Jerusalem, not only for Brazil, but to be an example to the rest of Latin America,” Bolsonaro added, “We’re doing a normal thing — to recognize your capital.”

Bolsonaro also quoted the biblical precept that those who bless the nation of Israel will be blessed.

According to the Brazilian Agency for the Promotion of Exports and Investments (Apex-Brasil), a body linked to the Ministry of Foreign Relations that manages the trade mission, the office will handle trade, investment, technology and innovation.

The office, located in Jerusalem’s Har Hotzvim hi-tech park, is headed by Camila Torres Meyer, an international trade analyst, who has worked for Apex for 12 years. The other two employees will be Israelis.