Fatah and PA Glorify Murder of U.S. Tourist in Israel, Abbas Refuses to Condemn Attack

Fatah and the Palestinian Authority (PA) praised the murder of Taylor Force, an American West Point graduate visiting Israel with a group from Vanderbilt University, who was killed by a Palestinian terrorist during a stabbing spree yesterday at the Jaffa port, reports Palestinian Media Watch.

Mr. Force, 29, of Lubbock, Texas, had served with the U.S. Army in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation New Dawn (Iraq), and Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan). His wife was also severely injured in the attack outside Jaffa.

A dozen Israelis were also wounded in three separate Palestinian terrorist attacks on Tuesday.

Official PA TV glorified the terrorist by calling him a "Shahid" (martyr).

"A complex operation was carried out in Jaffa, or more precisely in the Jaffa port, by the Martyr (Shahid) - according to Hebrew sources and sources in Qalqilya - Bashar Masalha, 22... in which 12 settlers were hurt, among them an American tourist who was killed, according to the Hebrew sources," stated an official PA TV reporter on March 8.

PA TV also referred to Force and the other victims as "settlers." However, Force is not Israeli and was located in Tel-Aviv-Jaffa, within pre-1967 Israel borders. Palestinian factions from Fatah to Hamas often refer to all Israelis as "settlers," implying that all of Israel is a colonial implant on "occupied" territory. Such a classification encourages Palestinian terrorism since the PA believes killing settlers is allowed under international law. By calling Force a "settler," the PA TV justifies his murder and places blame on the victim.

Furthermore, Fatah honored the terrorists who were killed after conducting three separate attacks against Israelis on Tuesday.

"In the Martyrs' (Shahids') homeland and on the day the Martyrs are roses, flying to their Creator, to Allah's mercy. O the pride of all of the young Palestinians, may your blood remain a source of true honor for the homeland for which you sacrificed all - even your precious lives. We promise you that your blood will continue to be a torch that illuminates our path, until we achieve what you died for as Martyrs. Your blood has taught us a lesson in the school of life: #The_homeland's_honor_is_above_all," read a March 8 post on Official Fatah's Facebook page.

Today, Fatah posted pictures of the terrorists on its Facebook page, along with text that reads: "Happy are the Martyrs (Shahids) #Continuing_toward_true_freedom_and_honor"

Fatah and the PA – led by President Mahmoud Abbas – continue to incite violence against Israelis and encourage Palestinians to follow in the terrorists' footsteps. The glorification of terrorists who murder Israelis continues to fuel the ongoing wave of Palestinian violence over the past 5 months that has claimed the lives of 34 individuals.

On Wednesday, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said that the terrorist attacks in Israel should be condemned "not just from Israel and the United States, but by countries around the world, including the leader of the Palestinian people."

However, a Fatah official explained why Abbas and the Palestinian leadership avoid condemning terrorist attacks against Israelis.

"We do not condemn the operations which have been going on for some time because the Israeli army carries out daily killing operations against the Palestinians without the Israeli government condemning them. They should not ask from us what they do not do," said Fatah's Amin Maqbool in a telephone conversation with Xinhua and translated by the Investigative Project on Terrorism.

The U.S. State Department issued a press release condemning the March 8 attacks but also urged "all parties to take affirmative steps to reduce tensions and restore calm."

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By IPT News  |  March 9, 2016 at 3:58 pm  |  Permalink

Palestinian Social Media Networks Continue to Encourage Terrorist Attacks

Palestinian social media networks continue to play a vital role in promoting the recent wave of violence targeting Israelis, reports the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center.

On February 18, two Palestinian youth stabbed two Israelis in a supermarket located in the Sha'ar Benyamin area. One of the victims, a 21 year old off-duty Israeli soldier later died of his injuries, while the other Israeli was critically wounded.

The terrorists – Iham Sabah and Omar Samir Taha al-Rimawi – were both 14 years old and from a village west of Ramallah.

The terrorists' Facebook pages featured similar violent sentiment associated with  Palestinians previously responsible for attacking and killing Israelis during the most recent wave of Palestinian violence.

Last year, al-Rimawi expressed support on his Facebook page for other Palestinian "shaheeds" (martyrs) who had carried out attacks against Israelis, and revealed an interest in emulating similar terrorist acts.

"We will live like proud hawks...and we will die like proud-standing trees," posted al-Rimawi on his Facebook page, expressing a desire for self-sacrifice.

While most of the Palestinian terrorists who have mounted recent attacks do not appear to be primarily motivated by religious ideology, some of them frequently relied on Islamic terminology and justification to carry out their attacks. Likewise, Al-Rimawi also praised the shahadah, death as a martyr for Allah's sake.

On March 27, 2015, al-Rimawi posted a picture of a rifle being prepared to shoot. "Simply a man...Every dog will have its day," writes al-Rimawi. He sent the post to three friends, one of whom was Iham Sabah, the terrorist who helped al-Rimawi carry out the stabbing atack.

Many of al-Rimawi's Facebook friends supported his desire for martyrdom, including Iham Sabah who helped him stab Israelis in the supermarket. No one among al-Rimawi's social network attempted to dissuade him from carrying out the attack.

Al-Rimawi also "adopted" terrorist Ibrahim Daoud as his personal role model. Daoud, 17, died during violent clashes with Israeli soldiers on November 26, 2015.

There was no mention of any particular Palestinian faction in either of the boys' social media posts, corroborating the view that the recent terrorist campaign is largely spontaneous and lacks organizational direction.

Nevertheless, Palestinian officials from across the political spectrum continue to fuel the violence by publicly glorifying the terrorists and encouraging others to follow in their footsteps.

Hamas spokesman Husam Badran praised the 14-year-old terrorists and the "intifada youth," referring to the attack as a "natural response" to "Israel's crimes," and encouraged other Palestinian youth to conduct terrorist attacks.

On Feb 21, senior Fatah official Sultan Abu al-Einein glorified the terrorists on his Facebook page.

"Iham [Sabah] and Omar [al-Rimawi], you are our leaders," posted al-Einein.

The Facebook page of General Sultan Abu al-Einein praising the two Palestinian terrorists who carried out the stabbing attack in Sha'ar Benyamin (February 21, 2016).

He praised what he referred to as the highly professional nature of the stabbing attack. Notable Fatah and Palestinian Authority (PA) officials, particularly al-Einein, have repeatedly expressed explicit support for Palestinian terrorists who attack Israelis – glorifying their images in official media outlets, attending government sponsored funerals of the attackers, and providing assistance to terrorists' families.

These developments highlight the important role Palestinian officials and social media play in promoting ongoing terrorist attacks against Israelis and Jews.

Click here for the full Meir Amit Center report.

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By IPT News  |  March 1, 2016 at 5:48 pm  |  Permalink

Hizballah Leader Brags About Capabilities That Could Kill Thousands of Israelis

Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah is boasting about his terrorist organization's ability to kill tens of thousands of Israelis with Iranian-supplied precision-guided missiles, reports the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center.

Speaking during a ceremony on Feb. 16, Nasrallah threatened that Hizballah could kill scores of Israelis if he chooses to attack "ammonia tanks" in Haifa that, according to the terrorist leader, hold over 15,000 tons of gas.

"Today Nasrallah has an atomic bomb...[the combination of] Hizballah's missiles and the ammonia barrels in Haifa [equal] and atomic bomb," brags Nasrallah, amid laughing at the prospect of ordering an unprecedented mass-casualty terrorist attack.

Nasrallah has made similar taunts about mass casualty attacks against Israel.

In a 2012 speech broadcast on Al-Manar TV, Nasrallah talked about Hizballah's precision-guided missiles capable of striking high-level targets in Israel that would "turn the lives of thousands of Zionists into a living hell" which would lead to "tens of thousands of Israelis killed, not 300 or 400 or 500."

Nasrallah also claims that Hizballah cannot be deterred, despite the fact that its 2006 war with Israel is credited for avoiding a massive Hizballah attack. After that war, Nasrallah admitted that he would not have ordered the Hizballah incursion and kidnapping of Israeli soldiers that sparked the war had he known Israel would have responded with such overwhelming force.

In an April 2015 interview on Syrian state TV, Nasrallah also admitted that Hizballah cannot defeat Israel without external assistance.

Nevertheless, Nasrallah called for the need to prepare for the next military confrontation with Israel during his latest speech, despite acknowledging that Hizballah does not want to fight Israel at the moment.

"We are prepared to defend out country against the Zionist enterprise even while we are busy in Syria or other places," Nasrallah said as he stood beside a banner with the text, "The resistance will not be defeated."

The "resistance" from the perspective of Israel's enemies, refers to the constant preparation and strategic objective of destroying the Jewish state through a variety of means, including terrorist attacks and seeking to acquire sophisticated weaponry to kill large numbers of Israelis.

Even though Hizballah remains bogged down fighting on behalf of Iran in support of Bashar al-Assad in Syria's civil war, the terrorist organization constantly seeks to acquire advanced weapons systems, enhance its bases of operations in southern Lebanon, and establish new strongholds in the Golan Heights for the purposes of attacking Israel. Hizballah has also shown a recent willingness to support Palestinian terrorist organizations and cells in the West Bank devoted to killing Israelis.

Click here for the full Meir Amit center report.

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By IPT News  |  February 29, 2016 at 1:18 pm  |  Permalink

Oberlin Professor's Anti-Semitic Rhetoric Part of a Campus Trend

Oberlin College Joy Karega has posted numerous anti-Semitic sentiments on her personal Facebook page, including claims that Jews or Israelis are behind the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and control most of the world, reports The Tower.

Karega, an assistant professor of Rhetoric and Composition, even blamed the Israelis and the Mossad, Israel's national intelligence agency, for orchestrating the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attacks in Paris and even for creating ISIS itself. Shortly after the January 2015 attacks, Karega shared a picture that explicitly suggests the Mossad was behind the attacks in order to prevent France from supporting the Palestinians.

"This ain't even hard. They unleashed Mossad on France and it's clear why," wrote Karega in her status associated with the picture.

The professor also claimed that ISIS was not Islamic and that the terrorist organization is a product of "a CIA and Mossad operation..."

Moreover, Karega shared a blog post that featured a video speech by Louis Farrakhan, the radical Nation of Islam leader who is notorious for his anti-Semitic views. In the video, Farrakhan states that "is now becoming apparent that there were many Israeli and Zionist Jews in key roles in the 9/11 attack.

"Farrakhan is truth-telling in this video," writes Karega.

She shared other anti-Semitic posts suggesting that Jews rule the world and the U.S. government. One post featured a photo of Jacob Rothschild featuring text that reads: "We own nearly every central bank in the world. We financed both sides of every war since Napoleon. We own your news, the media, your oil and your government."

The professor even took issue with a report concerning the Obama administration granting $12 million to Holocaust survivors.

"One of these days some of My Peoples gonna learn who ALL American presidents work for and why they are chosen and placed in office."

A closer look at Karega's "Writing for Social Justice" fall syllabus reveals several problematic required readings. Some of the titles include, "Cowardly, Hypocritical, Subservient Congressional Black Caucus Endorses Israeli Apartheid and Current War Crimes in Gaza" and "How Today's Liberal Zionists Echo Apartheid South Africa's Defenders."

Oberlin College officials do not appear to have reacted to a consistent stream of conspiracy theories involving Jews.

**Update: Oberlin President Marvin Krislov issued a statement Friday saying the school respects Karega's right to express her opinions, but that "does not signal institutional support for" them.

Karega made a point Thursday of striking a defiant tone in the Tower article's wake, describing herself as a victim of "bullying and intimidation."

The exposure of Karega's extremist posts comes amid rising concern that Jewish students at Oberlin campus are subject to increasing anti-Semitism. In contrast, Connecticut College Professor Andrew Pessin was forced to take a leave of absence nearly a year ago based on one Facebook post that was twisted out of context.

In an open letter to the Oberlin administration, a student-led group dedicated to combating anti-Semitism at the college outlined various anti-Semitic incidents that occurred on campus.

George Mason University Law Professor David Bernstein cited the example of an Oberlin alumna, for example, recounted how various students on campus dismissed the Holocaust as "white on white crime."

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By IPT News  |  February 26, 2016 at 10:21 am  |  Permalink

Iran Increases Spending On Global Terrorism

In light of recent sanctions relief, the Islamic Republic of Iran is investing in the murder of Israelis and anti-regime critics.

On Wednesday, the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon Mohammad Fathali proclaimed that Iran supports the "Jerusalem intifada" and plans to pay families of Palestinian terrorists who target Israelis, the Jerusalem Post reports.

"Continuing Iran's support for the oppressed Palestinian people, Iran announces the provision of financial aid to families of Palestinian martyrs who were killed in the 'Jerusalem intifada'," Fathali said in front of the leaders of several Palestinian factions during a news conference in Beirut.

The Iranian official confirmed that every terrorist's family will receive $7,000 for attacking Israelis and $30,000 if a family's home is demolished by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The financial assistance will be transferred via the Palestinian branch of the Shahid Institution, established in 1992 in Iran.

Fathali also called for Israel's destruction, receiving praise from Hamas.

"The martyrs' blood will release the entire Palestine, from the river to the sea," said the ambassador.

Hamas foreign relations chief Osama Hamdan extended his appreciation for Iran's ongoing sponsorship of Palestinian terrorism, acknowledging that the Iranian initiative is not the first time support of this kind has been offered.

In January, Iran's main terrorist proxy, Hizballah, coordinated a Palestinian terrorist cell attempting to conduct a suicide bombing and shooting attack against Israelis. Israeli authorities foiled the plot. The operatives received $5,000 from Hizballah, which covered the purchase of a sub-machine gun that was discovered in possession of two operatives when they were arrested.

Israel is not the only target for Iranian terror.

Its state-run media outlets raised $600,000 to bolster a 1989 bounty for the killing of Salman Rushdie, a British author of The Satanic Verses, a book Iran considers blasphemous.

After the book's release, the Islamic Republic's founding leader Ayatollah Khomeini called on Muslims to kill Rushdie, forcing the author into years of hiding. An Iranian religious organization increased the initial bounty to $3.3 million in 2012, demonstrating that Iran will go to great lengths to stifle critics of the regime.

These developments show that as the international community engages with Iran and lifts economic sanctions, part of the released funds are already being transferred to augment the regime's sponsorship of terrorism worldwide.

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By IPT News  |  February 25, 2016 at 1:49 pm  |  Permalink

House Committee Approves Bill Demanding MB Terror Designation

The House Judiciary Committee passed a bill Wednesday calling on the State Department to classify the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist group by a 17-10 party-line vote.

The GOP leadership under Speaker Paul Ryan supports the legislation, a high-ranking Republican source told the Investigative Project on Terrorism (IPT) on background. This makes floor passage more likely.

The bill states that it is the "sense of Congress that the Muslim Brotherhood meets the criteria for classification as a foreign terrorist organization."

Under the bill as amended by committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., Secretary of State John Kerry would have 60 days to issue a detailed report to Congress indicating whether the Brotherhood meets the criteria qualifying it as a terrorist group.

"The Brotherhood's strategic goal 'in America is a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and 'sabotaging' its miserable house from within so that it is eliminated and God's religion is made victorious over all other religions," Goodlatte said, quoting the Brotherhood's 1991 Explanatory Memorandum, in a statement given before the vote. "The Brotherhood and its leaders and affiliates, such as Hamas, have supported Islamist terrorism – directly, through fundraising, and through exhortation.

"Each of these activities constitutes an act of terrorism under the Immigration and Nationality Act."

Under the bill, the administration would be forced to deny admittance to any foreign national tied to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Since Obama became president, people connected to the Muslim Brotherhood have received entry visas despite their open support for terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hizballah.

Previously banned individuals such as Sheikh Rached Ghannouchi, head of Tunisia's branch of the Brotherhood, and Tariq Ramadan, grandson of Brotherhood founder Hasan al-Banna, have been welcomed to the U.S. by the Obama administration despite their vocal support for Hamas. Ramadan fought his ban in court and won an appeal.

Other foreign Brotherhood speakers such as Ragheb Elsergany exploit the platform given to them by the Obama administration to advocate for Muslims to support Palestinian "mujahideen" fighting against Israel.

If the Brotherhood were designated, it would be a crime for people in the United Sates to provide material support to it, and the Treasury Department could force banks to block financial transactions related to the Brotherhood. The bill lists U.S. groups that include the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) and the North American Islamic Trust (NAIT) as groups under the control of the international Muslim Brotherhood.

"The Muslim Brotherhood continues to pose a global threat. The jihadist movement actively supports and finances terrorist networks around the world, including al-Qaida and Hamas. The United States must recognize and sanction the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization as part of our national security strategy," co-sponsor Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., said in a statement.

The White House declined to comment on the committee vote.

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By John Rossomando  |  February 24, 2016 at 5:57 pm  |  Permalink

Georgetown's Nathan Lean Says Everything by Saying Nothing

In just two minutes, journalist Asra Nomani exposed the empty and bullying nature of people pushing the "Islamophobia" narrative. The term is often used to stifle criticism of Islamism – a political movement aimed at imposing Islam on society – by casting it as inherently bigoted.

During a forum Tuesday devoted to the issue, Nomani confronted Georgetown University's Nathan Lean, whose life is dedicated to combating "Islamophobia," about his own behavior.

"I'm thrilled that you have an opposition to pernicious, nasty attacks," Nomani said. "My question is, why do you engage in them?"

"We'll take another question," Lean said. His only comment was an attempt to smear Nomani, implying her question was not worthy of a reply because he disagrees with her. Nomani said he was misrepresenting her views.

[AV] 772 [/AV]

Lean presents himself as a serious academic. He is the research director at the Pluralism, Diversity and Islamophobia project at Georgetown University's Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding.

Center Director John Esposito is a longtime ally of Islamist activists in the United States, defending Palestinian Islamic Jihad board member Sami Al-Arian and serving as a defense expert in the Hamas-support trial of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development.

Lean's dismissal of a legitimate question – on the video, Nomani backs up her description of his "pernicious, nasty attacks" with several recent examples – took place in an open forum on "Islamophobia."

When challenged about it later, Lean mischaracterized the incident, claiming Nomani "threw a tantrum." Watch the video above. It's a wildly inaccurate claim.

Lean's refusal to engage in a question presented professionally and politely seems to fly in the face of the ideals espoused by the Association of American Colleges and Universities.

"Academic responsibility requires professors to submit their knowledge and claims to rigorous and public review by peers who are experts in the subject matter under consideration; to ground their arguments in the best available evidence; and to work together to foster the education of students," it says.

Lean may not consider Nomani a peer, but her career as a Wall Street Journal reporter made her a horrified witness of where unchecked radical Islamist thought can lead. Now, she's part of a fledgling Muslim Reform Movement, which declares its full embrace of "a respectful, merciful and inclusive interpretation of Islam," "for secular governance, democracy and liberty" and "for the protection of all people of all faiths and non-faith who seek freedom from dictatorships, theocracies and Islamist extremists."

Lean and his colleagues could try to take issue with the reformists' principles, but that might prove to be difficult. It is so much easier to ignore a legitimate question or smear the messenger.

That says it all.

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By IPT News  |  February 24, 2016 at 1:00 pm  |  Permalink

Radical Canadian Imam: "Rome Will Be Conquered"

A radical Canadian imam called for Muslims to "look forward" as "Rome will be conquered," in a Friday sermon posted on the Internet on Feb. 16 and translated by the Middle East Monitoring Research Institute (MEMRI).

"The prophecies of the Prophet Muhammad came true. But some prophecies have not come true yet. Look forward to it, because the Prophet Muhammad said that Rome would be conquered! It will be conquered," preached Imam Shaban Sherif Mady.

Mady, based in Edmonton, also spoke of restoring the "rightly-guided" Islamic Caliphate.

His reference to conquering Rome mirrors a similar call by Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

"This is my advice to you. If you hold to it you will conquer Rome and own the world, if Allah wills," Baghdadi preached in an attempt to garner more recruits to ISIS.

Mady's Facebook page reveals the extent of his radicalism, boasting a cover photo featuring Muslim Brotherhood leaders including ousted Egyptian President Mohammad Morsi and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In one photo, Mady is shown signalling the infamous Muslim Brotherhood four-fingered salute.

On Tuesday, Mady shared a Hamas propaganda video on his Facebook page depicting terrorists sniping and killing Israeli soldiers, issuing threats to Israelis in Hebrew and Arabic. Mady captioned the video by writing: "Qassam (Hamas' terrorist wing), the earth's best soldiers."

Moreover, on Feb. 13, Mady posted photos of Hamas terrorists celebrating "the martyrdom of Imam Hassan al Banna, founder of the Muslim Brotherhood," according to an Investigative Project on Terrorism (IPT) translation.

A day later, Mady shared a gruesome video of a wounded woman and called for the destruction of Israel.

"Israel is a terrorist state, in its government and people...The Intifada continues until we restore all of free Palestine...And Jerusalem is the capital of righteous Islamic Caliphate," Mady wrote in the caption accompanying the video.

Mady was a scholar at Egypt's Al-Azhar University and served with the Egyptian Ministry of Education. He is now an imam in Edmonton and has preached extremely radical Friday sermons in the past to his Muslim congregation in Edmonton, reports CIJ News.

He recently praised Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for welcoming Muslim refugees, but also called on Allah to destroy enemies of the faith:

"Why (was the Muslim Brotherhood movement was designated as) a terrorist organization? Because it calls for the return of the Caliphate (Islamic State). If so, I'm an operative of the Muslim Brotherhood, I'm a terrorist... (O Allah) to those who want to harm Islam and the Muslims, make their animosity annihilate themselves, make them kill themselves, destroy them completely, annihilate them all, like you did to the peoples of A'd and Thamoud...O Allah, support all mujahideen in any place around the globe."

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By IPT News  |  February 23, 2016 at 12:49 pm  |  Permalink

Iraqi PM's Plan to Include Shiite Militias in Mosul Offensive Underscores Iranian Influence

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi plans to include the Iranian-backed Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi militias, many of which are trained or controlled by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), in any planned offensive to retake Mosul.

A Kurdish source told the Saudi newspaper Asharq al-Awsat that Iran placed considerable pressure on Al-Abadi to include these Shiite militias in his war plans. "There is no pressure from the U.S. on the participation of Hashd al-Shaabi forces in Mosul's liberation, but they will participate," Al-Abadi told Iraq's parliament.

The Islamic State captured Iraq's second largest city in June 2014, and Iraqi officials say they plan to launch an offensive to retake the city late this year or early next. The demand shows the depth of Iranian influence in Iraq, said Washington Institute Adjunct Fellow Phillip Smyth, who specializes in studying Shiite militias.

"It says their influence is not only present but expanding," Smyth told the Investigative Project on Terrorism (IPT).

Al-Abadi previously conceded that these same militias committed war crimes during assaults on Takrit and Muqdadiyah. The militias do not answer to Al-Abadi. They report to Hadi al-Ameri, leader of the Iranian-backed Badr Corps, who in turn reports to Gen. Qasem Soleimani, leader of the IRGC Qods Force.

The State Department considers Kitaib Hizballah, a component of Al-Hasd Al-Shaabi, a terrorist group.

The Kurdish source expressed concern that Iran could exploit the operation to retake Mosul as a pretext to threaten Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan's capital. Iraq's Kurdish leadership opposes Iran's influence.

Sunnis also oppose including the Shiite militias, warning it could trigger a Sunni versus Shia bloodbath that would play into the Islamic State's hands.

Atheel Al-Nujaifi, commander of the pro-government Al-Hashd Al-Watani Sunni militia, told Asharq Al-Awsat that ISIS would not be defeated if Shiite militias participate in the offensive. He described Al-Abadi's decision as "imprudent" and warned that it was being done without concern for the relations between Iraq's different regions.

A Kurdish leader told the Saudi newspaper that most of the inhabitants of the Nineveh province surrounding Mosul will not join the fight if the Shiite militias participate in the offensive.

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By John Rossomando  |  February 22, 2016 at 6:31 pm  |  Permalink

Anti-Israel Protester Threatens Palestinian Activist During College Lecture

Anti-Israel protesters confronted and threatened a Palestinian human rights activist who was critical of the Palestinian Authority while lecturing at the University of Chicago, reports Algemeiner.

Bassem Eid, founder of the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group, was confronted by hostile protesters last week. They challenged him for speaking of PA human rights abuses without referencing Israel's "occupation," according to a post Eid shared on his Facebook page.

A former student at Chicago's Columbia College who claimed he was from Gaza threatened Eid physically.

A video shows the man yelling threats in Arabic including: "I'm going to destroy this place!", "I'm going to kill this mother****!" and "Wait until you go to your car!"

[AV] 771 [/AV]

Eid previously worked as an investigator for B'Tselem, a human rights organization which often is critical of the Israeli military. His turn to criticizing Palestinian rejectionism and human rights abuses angered anti-Israel activists.

During his Chicago lecture, most questioners expressed outrage that Eid took issue with Palestinian actions but did not criticize Israel. He also criticized campaigns to boycott, divest and sanction (BDS) Israel as counterproductive, in part because it can cost Palestinians their jobs wiht Israeli businesses.

The protester who made the threats also promised to attend a subsequent lecture Eid gave at DePaul University in Chicago on Saturday. "Get ready for it," he said.

The incident is just the latest in a series of disturbances on college campuses when a speaker is either pro-Israel or insufficiently critical of the Jewish State. Students at Brown University tried to shout down an appearance by former Soviet-dissident Natan Sharansky and actor Michael Douglas about Jewish identity.

Saturday's lecture occurred without major disturbance, Eid reported, although some students walked out protest.

SendCommentsShare: Facebook Twitter

By IPT News  |  February 22, 2016 at 12:54 pm  |  Permalink

Newer Postings   |   Older Postings

FEATURED MULTIMEDIA