ADL: Rush Limbaugh Reaches New Low With 'Borderline Anti-Semitic' Remarks About Jews

New York, NY, January 21, 2010 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) said Rush Limbaugh reached a new low with "borderline anti-Semitic comments" on his radio show, in which he raised the possibility that liberal Jews were having "buyer's remorse" with President Obama in light of the outcome of the Senate election in Massachusetts.

 

Limbaugh told his listeners: "To some people, banker is a code word for Jewish; and guess who Obama is assaulting?  He's assaulting bankers.  He's assaulting money people.  And a lot of those people on Wall Street are Jewish. So I wonder if there's – if there's starting to be some buyer's remorse there."

 

Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director, issued the following statement: 

Rush Limbaugh reached a new low with his borderline anti-Semitic comments about Jews as bankers, their supposed influence on Wall Street, and how they vote.

 

Limbaugh's references to Jews and money in a discussion of Massachusetts politics were offensive and inappropriate.  While the age-old stereotype about Jews and money has a long and sordid history, it also remains one of the main pillars of anti-Semitism and is widely accepted by many Americans.  His notion that Jews vote based on their religion, rather than on their interests as Americans, plays into the hands of anti-Semitic conspiracy theorists.

           

When he comes to understand why his words were so offensive and unacceptable, Limbaugh should apologize.

Netanyahu: "I'm ready to make peace. Are the Palestinians?"

On commencing peace talks: Israel is ready.



[T]he Palestinian [leaders] are piling demand upon demand [they want met, just to start negotiations.] Let’s get on with peace negotiations.  The only way we can finish the peace negotiations with a peace treaty is to begin them.  We’re ready to begin.  I’m ready to begin them.  I’m prepared for peace.  Are the Palestinians ready for peace?  That’s my question to you.

On negotiating with Hamas: 

 
  The principle that is always raised is that you make peace with your enemy.  That is absolutely true – you make peace with an enemy who wants to stop being an enemy and move to peace..... You cannot negotiate peace with an enemy who wants to destroy you [such as]  Hamas and its parent regime, the Iranian tyranny, [who] openly say that their goal is to destroy us.

From an Address and Interview with PM Netanyahu with the Foreign Press Association  1/20/2010

Evidence: Arab atrocity propaganda triggered Arab flight from Palestine

What Hazem Nusseibeh told the BBC about Deir Yassin The video focuses on an interview with Hazem Nusseibeh, a member of one of Jerusalem's most prominent Arab families.  In 1948 he was an editor of the Palestine Broadcasting Service's Arabic news. In this interview with the BBC he admits that in 1948 he was instructed by Hussein Khalidi, a prominent Palestinian Arab leader, to fabricate claims of atrocities at Deir Yassin in order to encourage Arab regimes to invade the expected Jewish state.  He made this damming admission in explaining why the Arabs failed in the 1948 war.  He said "this was our biggest mistake", because Palestinians fled in terror and left the country in huge numbers after hearing the atrocity claims. Nusseibeh describes an encounter at the Jaffa Gate of Jerusalem's Old City with Deir Yassin survivors and Palestinian leaders, including Hussein Khalidi... 'I asked Dr. Khalidi how we should cover the story,'. He said, "We must make the most of this." So we wrote a press release stating that at Deir Yassin children were murdered, pregnant women were raped, all sorts of atrocities,  though these things didn't happen. In the video clip Abu Mahmud, who was a Dir Yassin resident in 1948, told the BBC that the villagers protested against the atrocity claims: We said, "There was no rape." But Khalidi said, "We have to say this, so the Arab armies will come to liberate Palestine from the Jews." This false press statement was released to New York Times correspondent, Dana Schmidt leading to an article in the New York Times on April 12, 1948, claiming that a massacre took place at Deir Yassin that was reprinted worldwide and cited even in Israel as proof of Israeli atrocities Dr. Hazem Nusseibeh was a representative of Jordan at the Mixed Armistice Commission and he was Minister of Foreign Affairs.He was also the Permanent Ambassador of Jordan to the UN and has authored several books, including The Ideas of Arab Nationalism, Palestine and the United Nations and A History of Modern Jordan. http://www.youtube.com/v/GkhSHiwzaIY&hl=en_GB&fs=1&rel=0

Three times as many urban Saudis favor Israeli strike on Iran as accept Israel as Jewish state

Three times as many urban Saudis favor Israeli strike on Iran as accept Israel as Jewish state

Asked about an Israeli military strike against Iran, one-quarter of urban Saudis said that they would support it at least "to some extent."

Interestingly, that figure is three times larger than the number of respondents who said that they would accept Israel "as a Jewish state," even "under the right conditions" -- a mere 9 percent of urban Saudis took that position. But regional differences are relatively significant here: in Jeddah, hypothetical acceptance of a Jewish state was 17 percent, compared to barely 4 percent in Riyadh or Dammam/al-Khobar.

Israel Matzav   1/20/10>

CNN: Israel's field hospital in Haiti is saving lives

From CNN.  Israel provides expert medical assistance in Haiti.

  Islamic Solidarity Games cancelled over dispute

  
Riyadh, Jan 17 (AP) The Islamic Solidarity Games have been cancelled after a dispute between Arab countries and Iran over the name of the waterway dividing them.

The Saudi-based Islamic Solidarity Games Federation says they cancelled the sporting event, which were meant to be held in Tehran in the spring, after Iran put "Persian Gulf" on the logo.

The five-year-old games were created to strengthen ties among the 57-nations of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference.

Arab nations call the waterway the Arabian Gulf.

The games were originally scheduled for October 2009 but postponed in attempt to reach a compromise.

ADL Continues to Voice Concern About Anti-Jewish and Anti-Israel Climate in Turkey

New York, NY, January 13, 2010 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today renewed its concern that Turkish society is becoming increasingly and openly hostile to Jews and Israel – with harmful statements by government officials and hateful depictions in the mass media.

"We continue to be concerned about a new environment in Turkey which permits and even encourages extreme expressions regarding Jews and Israel," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director.  "We cannot ignore this new atmosphere in which distorted views of Israel and Jews are freely expressed and made to seem acceptable."

ADL wrote a letter to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan citing his government's "harshly critical statements" -- and his own remarks during a recent a visit to Lebanon -- as a case in point.  Mr. Erdogan condemned Israel's actions in Gaza, accused the Jewish State of threatening to undermine "global peace," and called for the U.N. Security Council to consider sanctions against Israel.

The League's letter also pointed to two recent television dramas which portrayed Israelis and the Israeli military as inherently evil and conniving.  The recent television series "Valley of the Wolves" reportedly featured Israeli agents as baby snatchers.

"While we have celebrated Turkey's history of coexistence with Jews and the protection Turkish society provides for its Jewish community, we cannot ignore this new atmosphere and its potential consequences," said Mr. Foxman.  "We respectfully urge the Turkish government to speak out directly to reject anti-Semitism and incendiary demonizing depictions of Israel and Israelis, and to reiterate Turkey's support for its Jewish community."

ADL raised similar concerns in a letter to Mr. Erdogan in October 2009.