Free Republic

The commander of the Basij militia of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said that “erasing Israel off the map” is “nonnegotiable,” according to an Israel Radio report Tuesday. Militia chief Mohammad Reza Naqdi also threatened Saudi Arabia, saying that the offensive it is leading in Yemen “will have a fate like the fate of Saddam Hussein.” Naqdi’s comments were made public as Iran and six world powers prepared Tuesday to issue a general statement agreeing to continue nuclear negotiations in a new phase aimed at reaching a comprehensive accord by the end of June.

We Wait By Ari Bussel "Just behold and guard very carefully not to forget the things your eyes have seen so they do not leave your heart all the days of your life, and inform them to your sons and to the sons of your sons." Deuteronomy 4:9 When good people do nothing... What is a person to do, singlehandedly prevent the war to destroy Israel? How about to know one’s history and be able to separate some basic facts from fiction? First, we were taught it was the “Israeli-Arab Conflict.” How ingenious to reverse the order, putting Israel first,...

Fatah & Hamas Become one By Ari Bussel One thing became evident during my first two days in Israel: Israel goes round and round, like ducklings around their mother. They stray and go in all directions, always under the watchful eye of Mother Duck. But in Israel’s case, Mother Duck is the Palestinians, and Israel behaves contrary to her age, centuries-old wisdom or experience. Hamas’ Political Wing in Damascus, Syria, and Fatah (the Palestinian Authority), have agreed in Egypt to a reconciliation that will eventually lead to a transitory unity government. Elections will be established within a year (for the...

Behind Iran's open threat to Israel Amir Taheri writes in the New York Post about what may lie behind Iran President Ahmadinejad’s naked threat to obliterate Isarel: Ahmadinejad has gone several steps further — presenting the destruction of Israel as a major goal of his government. Why? One reason may be his desire to distance himself as far as possible from his predecessor, Muhammad Khatami, and from Hashemi Rafsanjani, the powerful mullah-cum-businessman who still heads a key faction within the regime. Ahmadinejad has criticized the “softness” of Khatami and his mentor Rafsanjani, which led to “a decline in revolutionary spirit.”...

Following his demand for a crackdown, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon recently remarked that anti-Israel incitement in the Palestinian Authority media had indeed lessened. The incitement issue has generated significant interest and optimism worldwide. Unfortunately, both Sharon's satisfaction and the resulting optimism demonstrate a fundamental lack of understanding about Palestinian society. Media incitement is a tool used by Palestinian leaders to provoke violent attitudes and behavior toward Israel. While even a limited reduction in incitement would be welcome it hardly begins to address the depth of the problem. Palestinian Authority religious and academic leaders have been teaching, for four and a...

Dec. 15, 2004 21:38 Abbas: No to resettling refugees By KHALED ABU TOAMEH PLO chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) on Wednesday rejected a new Israeli initiative to resettle Palestinian refugees in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and neighboring Arab countries. "Any proposal regarding the resettlement of the refugees is completely rejected," Abbas told reporters in Saudi Arabia. Abbas was referring to the Foreign Ministry's diplomatic initiative aimed at finding a permanent solution to the Palestinian refugees in the PA-controlled areas and in neighboring Arab countries. The initiative calls for asking countries that support the PA financially to invest capital in...

(IsraelNN.com) The following IMRA interview with Ahmed Qureia (Abu Ala), in English, was conducted on 22 December 1997. Abu Ala was selected by Yasser Arafat to be the PA’s next prime minister. IMRA: Yasser Arafat's most recent statements about Jerusalem indicate that there would be not compromise on any of the area of Jerusalem to the east of the 1967 line. Abu Ala: There will be no compromise for one centimeter of the West Bank including Jerusalem. IMRA: I have spoken with people from the Israeli peace camp and they all seem to be convinced that in a settlement such...