President Trump recognizes Jerusalem as Israel's capital

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Kushner's New Priorities: Middle East Peace Out, Border Wall In [In-Depth, Analysis]

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner giving a speech at the opening of the "Peace to Prosperity" conference in Manama, Bahrain, June 25, 2019. (Credit: REUTERS TV/REUTERS)


From Israeli elections to the Palestinian boycott, Trump's 'deal of the century' has faced countless delays. Now, with Jared Kushner tasked with building the border wall and getting his father-in-law reelected, its release seems more remote than ever.


WASHINGTON -- Five months ago, the Trump administration concluded an international conference centered around its plan for Middle East peace. The workshop, which was hosted in Bahrain, brought together representatives from several Arab countries as well as private business executives from Israel. It was seen as the first step in a process to advance the White House
s peace plan.

In the months that followed, though, no progress has been made -- mainly because of the domestic political situation in Israel. As the country stumbles toward a possible third election in the space of 12 months, the fate of the U.S. peace plan is unclear. It's impossible to predict what, if anything, will emerge from it in the next few months.

[...]

[wayfriend]

Trump accused of 'dipping into a deep well of anti-Semitic tropes' during speech to Jewish voters

Numerous Jewish groups castigated President Trump this weekend over his speech on Saturday to the Israeli American Council, accusing him of using anti-Semitic tropes while trying to appeal to Jewish voters.

[...] "We strongly denounce these vile and bigoted remarks in which the president - once again - used anti-Semitic stereotypes to characterize Jews as driven by money and insufficiently loyal to Israel," the group's executive director, Halie Soifer, said in a statement. "He even had the audacity to suggest that Jews 'have no choice' but to support him. American Jews do have a choice, and they're not choosing President Trump or the Republican Party, which has been complicit in enacting his hateful agenda." [link]

So: yeah. That's real quality on display.

[Hashi Lebwohl]

Curious that they don't say what he supposedly said. I guess we will have to track down that speech on our own to double-check.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Curious that they don't say what he supposedly said. I guess we will have to track down that speech on our own to double-check.

FWIW, I posted about it in a different thread a couple o' days ago.

[Hashi Lebwohl]

+JMJ+

Curious that they don't say what he supposedly said. I guess we will have to track down that speech on our own to double-check.

FWIW, I posted about it in a different thread a couple o' days ago.

I mssed it, then. Thank you--will check it out.

[wayfriend]

And I forgot to include the link to the article.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Christmas message of Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa 2019

Christmas Message of Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa

Apostolic Administrator of the Latin Patriarchate


[...]

"This is the sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger" (Lk 2:12). What does the sign of Bethlehem show us? If this question were addressed to our ecclesial community, what and how should we respond? What have we seen and known in the year that is now over and what can we expect in the coming year?

If we had to look for hope only within our small human affairs, we would have very little to do.

We must deal with the fragility of political life, perceived increasingly distant from the real life of the population and apparently unable to deal systematically with the enormous social and economic problems of our region. In this context, it is difficult to see how it is possible to give even the slightest prospects for the Israeli-Palestinian question, which weighs down the life of a large part of our community. We see so many solution proposals flying over our heads, but we never see them land and lead to something concrete. The arrival of more and more pilgrims from all over the world brings smiles to many families, who can thus work with serenity. Despite this, in most of the territory of our diocese, work remains the main problem for many of our families. We are also witnessing the worsening of the living conditions of many foreign and immigrant workers. The idea of ​​emigrating becomes a temptation, a persistent thought in many of us. I could go on and on with this litany of difficulties. In short, everything seems to tell us that talking about hope is simple rhetoric, an estrangement from the true reality of our land.

Let us remember, then, that the times of Jesus were no better than ours. There was the Roman occupation, there was Herod, there were various centers of power. All in all, man does not seem to have changed much since then.

But woe to those who give up! That is not the message of Christmas. The birth of Jesus has not erased any of the political, social and economic dramas of his time. Jesus did not come to revolutionize the social structures of his time, he did not want to conquer power, but the heart of man. That's how the world changed.

[...]

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Holy Land Coordination Bishops release final statement after visit to local Christians

STATEMENT -- From January 11 to 16, 2020, the bishops of the Holy Land Coordination an carried out its annual visit to local Christians in Gaza, East Jerusalem and Ramallah. At the end of the visit, the bishops drafted a statement in which they express concerns and hopes, urge governments to take responsibility for enforcing international law and protect human dignity and invite Christian faithful from all over the world to pray for this reality.

Holy Land Coordination 2020

We must not ignore the voice of people in the Holy Land

Every year we come to encounter and hear the people of the Holy Land. We are inspired by their enduring resilience and faith in a worsening situation.

In their recent powerful message, the local Catholic Bishops lamented the international community's failure to help realise justice and peace here in the place of Christ's birth.[1] Our governments must do more to meet their responsibilities for upholding international law and protecting human dignity. In some cases they have become actively complicit in the evils of conflict and occupation.

The local Bishops also warned that people are facing further "evaporation of hope for a durable solution". We have witnessed this reality first-hand, particularly how construction of settlements and the separation wall is destroying any prospect of two states existing in peace.

[...]

We encourage Christians in our own countries to pray for and support this mission. The increase in people making pilgrimages to the Holy Land is encouraging and we call for those who come to ensure they encounter the local communities.

At the same time we implore our governments to help build a new political solution rooted in human dignity for all. While this must ultimately be shaped by the peoples of the Holy Land in dialogue, there is an urgent need for our countries to play their part by:

• Insisting upon the application of international law.
• Following the Holy See's lead in recognising the State of Palestine.
• Addressing the security concerns of Israel and the right of all to live in safety.
• Rejecting political or economic support for settlements.
• And resolutely opposing acts of violence or abuses of human rights by any side.

In taking these steps the international community can meaningfully stand in solidarity with those Israelis and Palestinians who are refusing to give up their non-violent struggle for justice, peace and human rights.

[...]

[Hashi Lebwohl]

I recognize that the "State of Palestine" is a subset of Israel.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Catholic Ordinaries of Holy Land react to "Peace to Prosperity" plan, invite world Christian Churches to pray

Statement on the "Peace-to-Prosperity" Plan


The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, for decades, is at the center of many peace initiatives and proposals for solution.

As said many times in the past, we think that no proposal and no serious perspective could be reached without the agreement of the two peoples, Israelis and Palestinians. These proposals have to be based on equal rights and dignity.

The plan "Peace-to-Prosperity" presented yesterday does not contain these conditions. It does not give dignity and rights to the Palestinians. It is to be considered a unilateral initiative, since it endorses almost all the demands of one side, the Israeli one, and its political agenda. On the other hand, this plan does not really take into considerations the just demands of the Palestinian people for their homeland, their rights and dignified life.

This plan will bring no solution but rather will create more tensions and probably more violence and bloodshed.

We expect that the previous agreements signed between the two parties be respected and improved upon the basis of complete human equality among peoples.

We invite all world Christian Churches to pray for the Holy Land, to work towards justice and peace and to be the voice of the voiceless.

"And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace." (James 3, 18​)

Jerusalem, January 29, 2020

[SoulBiter]

There is no solution that the Palestinians will accept that also doesn't include:

Return of all lands they consider theirs.
Recognition that the Capital of Jerulsalem is the Palestinian Capital.

Palestine needs to figure out that the above is NOT going to happen and be willing to accept that they need to select a new Capital and know that Israel is not leaving.

the UN is not helpful.

The United Nations remains committed to supporting Palestinians and Israelis to resolve the conflict on the basis of United Nations resolutions, international law and bilateral agreements and realising the vision of two states Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security within recognized borders, on the basis of the pre 1967 lines

[Rawedge Rim]

There is no solution that the Palestinians will accept that also doesn't include:

Return of all lands they consider theirs.
Recognition that the Capital of Jerulsalem is the Palestinian Capital.

Palestine needs to figure out that the above is NOT going to happen and be willing to accept that they need to select a new Capital and know that Israel is not leaving.

the UN is not helpful.

The United Nations remains committed to supporting Palestinians and Israelis to resolve the conflict on the basis of United Nations resolutions, international law and bilateral agreements and realising the vision of two states Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security within recognized borders, on the basis of the pre 1967 lines

don't disagree; OTOH what I'm seeing is not one contiguous Palestinian state, but a whole bunch of islands surrounded by Israel; no access to a seaport, airport, etc.

I can see why the Palestinians are bitching.

Now what I do agree with is that the "right of return" is a non-starter in any century to come (short of the Zombie Apocalypse)

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Evangelicals embrace Trump's peace plan, saying it recognizes the Bible 'as legal' [In-Depth]

President Donald Trump speaks during an event with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020. (AP/Susan Walsh)


To many evangelicals and ardent Christian Zionists, God promised the land of Israel to the Jews and to the Jews alone.

The belief comes, at least in part, from the Book of Genesis which recounts of the covenant God made with Abraham:

"The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you" (Genesis 17:8​).

Yet on Jan. 28, when President Donald Trump unveiled his long-awaited plan for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, which calls for some land swaps with Palestinians and a Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem, his evangelical advisers congratulated him for it.

Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas who attended the unveiling in Washington, called the proposal "courageous and compassionate."

The Rev. Johnnie Moore, another evangelical adviser, said it was "nuanced, realistic and comprehensive."

Pastor John Hagee, chairman of Christians United for Israel, said it was "the best peace proposal any American administration has ever put forth."

For years, Hagee has defended Israel's right to make decisions free of international interference or pressure.

"God did not make a covenant with Washington, D.C.," Hagee said in 2011. "He made a covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And that covenant stands. It is still the covenant."

But Trump's plan, developed with adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner and announced alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is as close to the biblical ideal as Israel is likely to get, evangelicals said.

[...]

Evangelical leaders who were briefed on the proposal during the three years it took to draft it said the plan was close to biblical, mindful that even Abraham divided his property with Lot, his nephew, after a quarrel.

"From our perspective what he's done is recognize the Bible as legal," said Mike Evans, a Christian Zionist who heads the Jerusalem Prayer Team, referring to Trump's plan to apply Israeli law to parts of the West Bank.

Evans, who attended the unveiling ceremony, said he had talked beforehand to Kushner as well as Jason Greenblatt, Trump's Israel adviser; David Friedman, the U.S. ambassador to Israel; and Avi Berkowitz, another Trump adviser.

[...]

[Hashi Lebwohl]

There is no solution that the Palestinians will accept that also doesn't include:

Return of all lands they consider theirs.
Recognition that the Capital of Jerulsalem is the Palestinian Capital.

Palestine needs to figure out that the above is NOT going to happen and be willing to accept that they need to select a new Capital and know that Israel is not leaving.

the UN is not helpful.

The United Nations remains committed to supporting Palestinians and Israelis to resolve the conflict on the basis of United Nations resolutions, international law and bilateral agreements and realising the vision of two states Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security within recognized borders, on the basis of the pre 1967 lines

One afternoon radio host here the other day went back to the end of World War I to get a more-than-sufficient background to where we are now. In the last century, Israel has accepted every peace plan which has been offered by either the Palestinians or some other group seeking to attain peace, even offers where it does not really gain anything. In that same time, the Palestinians have rejected *every* peace offer, regardless of whether Israel offered it or some other group offered it in hopes of attaining peace. In other words, even when it had nothing to gain Israel was willing to accept peace but the Palestinians rejected peace, even when the offer gave them all the benefits. That tells you how the two sides approach things.

The Palestinians want only two things: *all* the land and Israel gone. Nothing else will appease them, which is why they are rejecting this offer which the Saudis, the Egyptians, and the Jordanians support. Those three nations are also getting sick of the Palestianians' bullshit despite being Muslim nations.

[Hashi Lebwohl]

Abbas said he is cutting security ties with both Israel and the United States because of this peace deal. Whatever, Mahmoud--all you have ever been is a roadblack in the way of peace, anyway. He also says "I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold Jerusalem". erm....dude? You don't control Jerusalem so you cannot sell it. What he means to say is that he does not want to accept a deal that would not allow Palestianians to retake all of Jersualem by force (as if such a thing could ever happen). Even other Muslim nations are urging you to accept this deal, numbnut--take their advice.

[Gaius Octavius]

Israel will probably drone strike him.

"You had your chance."

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

EU: Israeli Steps Toward West Bank Annexation Would 'Not Pass Unchallenged'

Netanyahu with John Bolton and U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman during a tour of the Jordan Valley, 2019. Kobi Gideon / GPO


Trump's Mideast peace plan unveiled last week allows Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements as well as the Jordan Valley.


Israeli steps toward annexation of the Jordan Valley and parts of the West Bank, should they be implemented, "could not pass unchallenged," The European Union's foreign policy chief said in a statement on Tuesday.

"In line with international law and relevant UN Security Council resolutions, the EU does not recognize Israel's sovereignty over the territories occupied since 1967," said Josep Borrell in response to promises by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to push for applying Israeli sovereignty over settlements in the West Bank before the country's third election in less than a year, on March 2.

"Steps towards annexation, if implemented, could not pass unchallenged," the statement said.

Moreover, the EU urged both Israel and the Palestinians "to refrain from any unilateral actions contrary to international law that could exacerbate tensions. We are especially concerned by statements on the prospect of annexation of the Jordan Valley and other parts of the West Bank."

[...]

[Hashi Lebwohl]

Whatever--the EU is welcome to try and do something about it. Control of the West Bank comes down to boots on the ground with guns, as has been the case since at least 1967.

[SoulBiter]

Agreed Hashi,
Like it or not, that War redefined the control of that area. I bet they would not be complaining if in 1967 they defeated Israel and took total control over Jerusalem. In fact the shoe would be solidly on the other foot with them saying that Israel needs to get over it.

[Hashi Lebwohl]

There would not be an Israel had they lost in 1967. That Arab alliance would have pushed all the way to the Mediterranean without a second thought.