Netanyahu's father dies at age 102

Montag, 30. April 2012 | Ryan Jones

Israel on Monday collectively mourned the passing of Benzion Netanyahu, scholar, Zionist leader, and father of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He was 102. Unsurprising considering his age, Benzion Netanyahu was around for the rebirth of the Jewish state, and played a leading role in that miraculous episode. Benzion Netanyahu was born in Warsaw, Poland. He moved with his family to the Land of Israel (then under British Mandate rule) in 1920. He worked for years as the personal aide of Zeev Jabotinsky, a leader in the Zionist movement and founder of Revisionist Zionism. Revisionist Zionism, to which Benzion Netanyahu dedicated his life, was and remains at odds with the more dominant Labor Zionism in that it views the establishment (and now the strengthening) of a Jewish state as its primary goal. Revisionist Zionism originally demanded that the Jews be given sovereignty over all the territories once ruled by their biblical forefathers, including territories that are today part of neighboring Jordan. At the social level, Revisionist Zionism was and still is more focused on strengthening the middle class as a means of boosting the entire economy, a concept that is today the cornerstone of capitalism. By contrast, Labor Zionism is more socialist and welfare-minded in its economic orientation. Revisionist Zionism is the founding ideology of Israel's Likud Party, and both Jabotinsky and Benzion Netanyahu are seen as the "fathers" of Knesset faction that Benjamin Netanyahu today leads. During the 1940s, Benzion lived in the US as head of Jabotinsky's New Zionist Organization of America in order to promote the Zionist goal of establishing a strong and independent Jewish state. Contemporaries have since acknowledged that Benzion's efforts were instrumental in building the foundation for strong American support for Israel. It was because of his lobbying efforts that first the Republican and then the Democratic parties both included support for Israel as part of their official party platforms. Benzion Netanyahu returned to Israel in 1949 following the establishment of the state of Israel. Later in his life, Benzion Netanyahu served as chief editor for the Encyclopedia Hebraica and became a recognized expert on Jewish history in Spain. He eventually returned to the US where he was a professor at Dropsie College (1957-1966), the University of Denver (1968-1971) and Cornell University (1971-1975). Benzion's eldest son, Yonatan Netanyahu, was killed while leading the daring 1976 raid to free 106 airline passengers being held hostage by pro-Palestinian terrorists at Entebbe Airport in Uganda. Following that tragedy, Benzion moved the rest of his family back to Israel. Benzion Netanyahu never shied away from publicly opposing any of the policies of the younger Netanyahu that he felt were harmful to the strengthening of Israel and the gradual return to Jewish sovereignty of all the biblical homeland. Norwegian Scholar Connects Breivik's Attack to Mossad

Norwegian sociologist Johan Galtung connects Mossad to Breivik massacre, claims Jews control 96% of world media.

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By Arutz Sheva Staff

First Publish: 5/1/2012, 2:14 AM

Anders Behring Breivik

Reuters

Norwegian sociologist Johan Galtung has said that he is not ruling out the possibility that the Mossad was involved in the massacre carried out by Anders Behring Breivik last July. The comments were made by Galtung last September at a lecture entitled “Ten Theses on July 22” at the University of Oslo. July 22 was the date on which Breivik shot panicked youths at point-blank range at the Utoya island, killing 69 people. He also claimed that Breivik “belonged to the Freemasonry organization which is based on Judaism.” Galtung, who founded the Peace Research Institute Oslo in 1959, noted that the date on which the massacre took place is the same date when, in 1946, the underground Jewish movement the Irgun planted explosives at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, the headquarters of the British Army at the time. Warnings were given by members of the Irgun to clear the hotel, but were ignored by the British. Furthermore, in a recent interview with the Norwegian magazine Humanist quoted by the Israeli newspaper Ma’ariv on Monday, Galtung claimed that Jews control the world media and tilt public opinion in favor of Israel. “The Jews control 96 percent of world media,” Galtung claimed during the interview, adding that the directors of Walt Disney, Warner Brothers and Viacom are all Jews, as are directors in the big American television networks. “Is this accidentatl? If there is a Jewish boss it means Jewish control,” he claimed. Referring to the massacre in Norway, Galtung told the newspaper that a European journalist who had surmised that the Mossad was behind the massacre “was vilified.” He then added that there was also a conspiracy to assassinate a former U.S. senator known for his anti-Israel positions. Galtung claimed that Israel is the only place in the world in which the issue of anti-Semitism is permitted to be dealt with and said that Jews think that only they are allowed to speak out against themselves. “I remember a famous professor in Israel who said, ‘Anti-Semitism means opposing us more than we deserve,’” Galtung said. “The meaning of his words is that he believes that Jews deserve some of the accusations, but thinks that only Jews can say that.” Soon after Breivik carried out his horrendous attack, anti-Zionists tried to pin it on Israel and the Mossad. The Al Jazeera network, for example, published an article by Gilad Atzmon, an Israeli-born British jazz saxophonist and political activist known for his criticisms of Zionism, Jewish identity, and Judaism. Atzmon harped on the Norwegian Labor party’s support for boycotting Israel and noted, “The Labor Party Youth Movement have been devoted promoters of the Israel Boycott campaign. Many of the children who were gunned down by Breivik earlier had held up anti-Israel signs." Rocket Attack Strikes Near Sderot

Gaza terrorists launched a short-range Qassam rocket attack on Sderot Monday night. The rocket landed in an open area.

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By Chana Ya'ar

First Publish: 4/30/2012, 10:41 PM

Qassam rocket (archive)

Flash 90

Palestinian Authority Arab terrorists in Gaza aimed at southern Israel Monday night, launching a rocket attack at the town of Sderot. The short-range Qassam missile landed in an area about a kilometer away from Israel's security fence along the Gaza border. The explosion occurred in an open area, and no property damage was reported by the authorities. No one was physically injured. Residents received a 15-second warning of the impending attack due to the Color Red incoming rocket alert system. However, residents living in areas targeted by rocket attacks are frequently traumatized. Children have their sleep disrupted and are often frightened when they are snatched up from their beds by parents in order to run to a bomb shelter or other space space. In addition, those affected by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to prior attacks are typically re-traumatized as a result. Olmert: U.S. Should Lead Attack on Iran, Not Israel

Former PM Olmert says any military action against Iran should be led by the U.S., hints he doesn't trust Netanyahu and Barak.

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By Elad Benari

First Publish: 5/1/2012, 4:14 AM

Ehud Olmert

Israel News Photo: Flash 90

Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said that if international efforts to halt Iran's nuclear program fail, any military action against Tehran should be led by the United States and not by Israel. In an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour which was recorded on Sunday and aired on Monday, Olmert said, “The last resort is a military action. And I prefer that it would be an American action -- supported by the international community -- if all the other efforts would fail.” Olmert added that the U.S. government should decide on the extent and the scope of any military action, saying, “Israel certainly could be part of the effort, but Israel should not lead it.” The former Prime Minister said there is no immediate need for military action against Tehran. “I know one thing: that the Iranian leadership has not gone beyond a certain line for the time being of developing the nuclear program. And that shows that they are at least thoughtful, which means that they are not rushing, but they are calculating their steps.” In the interview, Olmert also responded to the harsh remarks made over the weekend by former Shin Bet head Yuval Diskin. Diskin attacked Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak at an open forum, saying they are “messianic” and “unfit to hold the reins of power. They give the public a false picture on the Iran question. They create the feeling that if Israel does not act, Iran will have a nuclear bomb, even though experts think that an attack on Iran will cause it to speed up the process of arming with nuclear weapons.” Olmert described as “quite unusual” the comments from Diskin and added, “I prefer to distinguish between the personal aspects of what he said and the substantial aspects of what he said. We don't think that the priorities are set in the right way. First priority, as I said, is cooperation with America from a respectful and serious and careful attitude and not trying to teach the president of America or preach to the president of America or blame the president of America, but rather cooperate with him.” Olmert also implied that, like Diskin, he did not trust the current leaders of Israel to make the right decisions. “You have to have full trust in the judgment of those who have to take decisions,” said Olmert. “And you could understand from what I said that maybe something in my trust is lacking.” Asked if he does not have full trust in the Netanyahu government, Olmert replied, “Apparently.” He admitted he was “worried” that a preemptive attack on Iran could be a “terrible, terrible mistake for the security and the well-being of Israel.” Olmert, who faces a series of indictments and court hearings on charges of bribery and abusing public trust, was recently the keynote speaker at the annual J Street conference. The organization describes itself as being “pro-Israel” and “pro-peace,” but many Jews believe that the organization actually undermines the interests of the State of Israel and Jewish people. Only several days ago, J Street’s regional director said that in the event that war broke out involving Israel, J Street would not necessarily support the Jewish state. When Olmert served as Prime Minister, he was determined to reach a peace agreement with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. He went so far as to offer Abbas 94 percent of Judea and Samaria, a shared jurisdiction of Jerusalem, and allowing 5,000 PA Arabs who left their homes in 1948 back into Israel. The details of Olmert’s offer were revealed several months ago in former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s memoir

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