UN-Hamas day of infamy mars Trump-Israel day of celebration

[Published 9 December 2018]

December 6, 2018 marks the day the United Nations General Assembly (“UNGA”) infamously sold its soul to evil by failing to agree on whether a resolution condemning Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza required a two-thirds — or simple — majority vote.

December 6, 2018 also happened to be the first anniversary of President Trump’s announcement of America’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and the intended relocation of America’s Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

December 6, 2018 was also the fourth day of the eight-day Jewish festival of Hanukkah marking the rededication during the second century B.C. of the Second Temple in Jerusalem following the Jews uprising against their Greek-Syrian oppressors.

America had submitted draft Resolution A/73/L.42 (“L. 42”) to the UNGA on 29 November 2018:

1. Condemning Hamas for repeatedly firing rockets into Israel and for inciting violence, thereby putting civilians at risk;

2. Demanding that Hamas and other militant actors, including Palestinian Islamic Jihad, cease all provocative actions and violent activity, including by using airborne incendiary devices;

3. Condemning the use of resources by Hamas in Gaza to construct military infrastructure, including tunnels to infiltrate Israel and equipment to launch rockets into civilian areas, when such resources could be used to address the critical needs of the civilian population;

The UN’s Press Release sums up what occurred when the draft resolution came to a vote on 6 December:

“The representative of Kuwait, speaking on behalf of the Arab Group, said the situation in the Middle East is directly linked to international peace and security. He condemned Israeli policies that violate international humanitarian law and the Charter of the United Nations and requested a vote to apply the two-thirds majority rule for the adoption of draft “L.42”.

The representative of the United States said a simple majority is required for adoption of the resolution. She called for fairness in the United Nations and said action on the draft was about “doing what is right”. “The General Assembly has never uttered a word in any resolution about Hamas,” she said. The decision to adopt the text by a two-thirds majority is based on a desire to have the resolution fail. She urged all States to vote against the motion."

The Assembly then voted to apply the two-thirds majority requirement for the adoption of L.42 - which was passed by 75 in favour, 72 against, with 26 abstentions.

Those favouring a two-thirds majority vote included 44 out of 56 Islamic States - whilst one (Albania) voted against, 5 abstained and 6 did not vote.

Non-Islamic States supporting the Islamic States-bloc included:

Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, China, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Japan, Nicaragua, Russia, South Africa, Thailand, Venezuela, and Vietnam.

All 21 member States of the European Union supported America’s simple majority stance.

Others backing America included:

Australia, Bosnia, Canada, Colombia, Estonia, Ghana, Honduras, India, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Malawi, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, South Korea, Singapore, Slovakia, Ukraine and Uruguay.

L 42 was then passed by the UNGA by 87 votes for, 57 against and 33 abstentions — but was declared lost because it had not secured the required two-thirds majority.

The Islamic States had won a three-vote procedural victory - setting a precedent that is bound to be attempted again.

Hamas and other militant groups remain free to engage in heinous conduct found worthy of UN condemnation by a majority of UN member States.

The foundational basis of the UN Charter - maintaining international peace and security (Clause 1.1) - has been flagrantly circumvented by the UNGA failing to agree on how to run its own meetings.

The UNGA has become a complete joke and totally irrelevant.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Trump stand shames UN rejection of Jerusalem as Israel's capital

[Published 5 December 2018]

December 6 marks the first anniversary of President Trump’s historic and ground-breaking announcement to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and move the American Embassy to Jerusalem.

President Trump’s decision flew in the face of UN Security Council Resolution 2334 on 23 December 2016 reaffirming that:

“the establishment by Israel of settlements in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, has no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle to the achievement of the two-State solution and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace”

Article 6 of the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine and article 80 of the United Nations Charter conclusively substantiate Israel is not in violation of international law in reconstituting the Jewish National Home in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria (West Bank), and designating Jerusalem as its capital.

The United Nations General Assembly has yet again shown its total ignorance of this long-established international law with its latest resolution on Jerusalem on 30 November - misleadingly declaring Israel’s actions in Jerusalem “illegal and therefore null and void”.

The preamble to the Jerusalem Embassy Act overwhelmingly passed by the United States Senate (93-5) and the House (374-37) on 24 October 1995 sets out the following facts that underscore the total lack of legal and moral integrity of the United Nations:

1. Each sovereign nation, under international law and custom, may designate its own capital.

2. Since 1950, the city of Jerusalem has been the capital of the State of Israel.

3. The city of Jerusalem is the seat of Israel’s President, Parliament, and Supreme Court, and the site of numerous government ministries and social and cultural institutions.

4. The city of Jerusalem is the spiritual center of Judaism, and is also considered a holy city by the members of other religious faiths.

5. From 1948-1967, Jerusalem was a divided city and Israeli citizens of all faiths as well as Jewish citizens of all states were denied access to holy sites in the area controlled by Jordan.

6. In 1967, the city of Jerusalem was reunited during the conflict known as the Six Day War.

7. Since 1967, Jerusalem has been a united city administered by Israel, and persons of all religious faiths have been guaranteed full access to holy sites within the city.

8. The United States maintains its embassy in the functioning capital of every country except in the case of our democratic friend and strategic ally, the State of Israel.

9. In 1996, the State of Israel will celebrate the 3,000th anniversary of the Jewish presence in Jerusalem since King David’s entry.

The United Nations - in discarding these inconvenient truths - has done the cause of world peace a grave disservice whilst the groundwork for a humanitarian disaster affecting both Arabs and Jews is being plotted by the PLO, Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran.
President Trump made it crystal clear that his decision was:

“not intended, in any way, to reflect a departure from our strong commitment to facilitate a lasting peace agreement. We want an agreement that is a great deal for the Israelis and a great deal for the Palestinians. We are not taking a position of any final status issues, including the specific boundaries of the Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem, or the resolution of contested borders. Those questions are up to the parties involved”.

Trump’s principled stand on Jerusalem is morally justified and accords with international law. Guatemala has already moved its Embassy to Jerusalem — Brazil is planning to follow.

The United Nations continues to ignore Trump’s message at its peril and to its eternal shame.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Jordan-Israel peace agenda trumps PLO-UN war agenda

[Published 3 December 2018]

Jordan and Israel are becoming enmeshed in a binational agenda requiring urgent direct negotiations - which if successfully concluded - could end the 100-years old Jewish-Arab conflict.

That agenda includes:

1. Redrawing the existing Jordan-Israel international boundary after allocating sovereignty in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) between their two respective States.

2. Clarifying the right of Jews to enter and pray at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem - currently controlled by Jordan as Custodian of the Islamic holy sites

3. Renewing 25 year leases of two areas leased by Jordan to Israel for agricultural use that expire next year.

4. Increasing the amount of water currently being supplied by Israel to Jordan

5. Progressing the feasibility of constructing the Mediterranean-Dead Sea Canal

6. Financing the Red Sea-Dead Sea Water Conveyance - a planned pipeline that runs from the coastal city of Aqaba to the Lisan area in the Dead Sea.

Jordan and Israel’s Peace Treaty - signed in 1994 - has successfully withstood serious pressures that could have seen it’s revocation in:

1. September 1997 — when an Israeli attempt to assassinate Hamas leader Khaled Meshall was botched

2. May 2014 — when Jordan recalled its ambassador from Israel “in protest at the increasing and unprecedented Israeli escalation in the Noble Sanctuary, and the repeated Israeli violations of Jerusalem,”

3. July 2017 — when an armed guard at the Israeli embassy in Amman opened fire after being attacked with a screw driver by a teenager who was delivering furniture to a home within the embassy compound—killing his attacker and the owner of the property.

However cool heads and common-sense prevailed on both sides on those occasions to prevent the Peace Treaty being trashed.

In contrast — the lack of any peace agreement with the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) has caused negotiations between Israel and the PLO to be conducted over the last 25 years under an atmosphere of confrontation and mutual distrust.

Jerusalem-based journalist Khaled Abu Toameh has pointed out that PLO Chairman — Mahmoud Abbas — has vowed at least 15 times in recent months to thwart President Trump’s upcoming plan to end the Jewish-Arab conflict—even though Abbas hasn’t yet seen its contents.

Toameh continues:

“Abbas and his representatives in Ramallah have radicalized their people against the Israeli government to a point where meeting or doing business with any Israeli official is tantamount to treason. That is why Abbas does not and cannot return to the negotiating table with Israel and also why Abbas cannot change his Jorposition toward the Trump administration.”

Abbas has instead sought to advance the PLO’s stated aim to destroy both Israel and Jordan by using the United Nations as the Trojan horse to initially try to impose the creation of a second Arab state in former Palestine — in addition to Jordan — over Israel’s objections.

The UN General Assembly recognition of the fictitious and non-existent “State of Palestine” as Chair of the 144 nation G77 bloc at the United Nations for 2019 indicates the lack of credibility and integrity to which an acquiescent and fawning United Nations is prepared to sink in supporting the PLO’s agenda.

Trump’s plan could represent the last chance to resolve the Jewish-Arab conflict peacefully. Should Jordan and Israel simultaneously agree to negotiate on its final terms — then the prospect of Trump actually pulling off “the deal of the century” becomes realistically achievable.

Redefining the boundary between two countries sharing a signed peace treaty is infinitely easier to achieve than creating a potentially-hostile third state between them that seeks both their destruction.

Jordan-Israel negotiations offer hope for an enduring peace. The PLO-UN flight into fantasy promises war, chaos and upheaval.

Author’s note: The cartoon—commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Australia's Jerusalem Embassy move sinks in sea of Islamic threats

[Published 21 November 2018]




Forget about Australia moving its Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Indonesian threats to not sign a free trade agreement with Australia — coupled with veiled Malaysian suggestions of terrorist attacks on Australian targets if the Embassy is moved - will suffice to burst Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s thought-bubble.

Australia gave Indonesia $360 million in aid in 2016 and was the world’s 16th largest donor in giving $15 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

Indonesia gave UNRWA $5000 in 2016 — whilst Malaysia gave nothing.

Indonesia and Malaysia — two Islamic states — flex their muscles on Islamic claims to Jerusalem - yet pathetically fail to financially support their Islamic brethren.

Morrison first flagged the Embassy move on 16 October at a joint press conference with Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne:

“Now, in relation to our diplomatic presence in Israel. What I have simply said is this - we’re committed to a two-state solution. Australia’s position on this issue has to date assumed that it is not possible to consider the question of the recognition of Israel’s capital in Jerusalem and that be consistent with pursuing a two-state solution.

Now, Dave Sharma, who was the Ambassador to Israel, has proposed some months ago a way forward that challenges that thinking and it says that you can achieve both and indeed by pursuing both, you are actually aiding the cause for a two state solution. Now, when people say sensible things, I think it is important to listen to them”

Australia’s commitment to the two-state solution — the creation of a second Arab state — in addition to Jordan - in the territory that comprised the 1922 Mandate for Palestine - is based on:

1. The 1993 Oslo Accords and

2. The 2002 President Bush Roadmap

Intensive negotiations between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organisation spanning the last 25 years have failed to achieve this two-state solution — being unable to agree on whether the new State should:

(i) Be demilitarised

(ii) Include all the territory of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) with East Jerusalem as its capital

(iii) Exclude all Jews currently living there necessitating their resettlement in Israel.

Australia is not alone in clinging to this outdated two-state solution. Countless UN Resolutions calling for this two-state solution continue to consume reams of paper and dominate meetings of UN committees, the General Assembly and Security Council — rather than considering alternative solutions to ending the Jewish-Arab conflict.

Morrison probably did not realise how close he was to committing Australia to a very different two-state solution when he told the press conference:

“The whole point of a two-state solution is two nations recognised living side by side. And so, opening up that discussion does provide us with the opportunity, I think, to do what Australians have always done and that is to apply a practical and common-sense and innovative role in trying to work with partners around the world to aid our broader objectives, in this case a two-state solution.”

That alternative two-state solution involves Jordan and Israel — the two successor states to the Mandate for Palestine - currently exercising sovereignty in 95% of the territory comprised in the Mandate - negotiating the allocation of sovereignty in the last remaining 5% between their two respective States.

This solution was first suggested by the League of Nations in 1922: one Jewish State and one Arab state living side by side in former Palestine in peace with each other. Redrawing the international border between Jordan and Israel in direct negotiations would complete this two-state solution.

Moving Australia’s Embassy to Jerusalem would be a no-brainer under the 1922 two-state solution.

Author’s note:The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog