Barack Obama’s Delivers Reassuring Speech to the Israeli People
This is President Obama’s recent speech to the Israeli people – one of the most reassuring he has made to Israelis during his presidency, explicitly acknowledging their right to a Jewish state living in security next to its Arab neighbours, backed by the strongest country in the world [the USA].
I don’t know what his true vision or policy is, but this will definitely improve his reputation amongst Israelis and American Jews who have been very anxious about him.
My only reservations are his comments insisting that the Palestinian Authority, led by Mahmoud Abbas, is a partner for peace. I am not so sure. To date, I feel that the only difference between the PA and Hamas is their strategy for eliminating Israel.
Hat tip: Israellycool – “President Obama’s Full Speech to the Israeli People”
Arab Republic of Jordan Turns Own Citizens into Refugees
As part of ongoing Arab attempts to perpetuate the Palestinian refugee problem, in order to extort money from the Western world and bring about the destruction of Israel, Jordan has announced that it is revoking the passports of thousands of its own citizens who had lived in the West bank until 1967.
Sadly, mainstream media coverage of this matter has been virtually non-existent.
The Hashemite Kingdom of of Jordan (originally Transjordan) was created by the British in 1923, by separating 76% of the territory of Palestine located east of the Jordan river and giving it to King Abdullah as a favour in exchange for not fighting the French in Syria. Jordan was founded with a policy forbidding Jewish people from living there.
This move by the British to create Jordan from lands under its administration was controversial, considering that the land was commited to being part of the Jewish state in the Balfour declaration of 1917, which was recognised by the League of Nations [the forerunner of the UN], in 1922.
Jordan was one of the Arab participants in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war who invaded Palestine following the declaration of Israeli independence. By the end of the war, it captured land West of the Jordan river, which today is commonly referred to as the West Bank, Cis-Jordan or the Hebrew names Judea and Samaria.
Jordan annexed this territory following the war and gave citizenship to all residents, except Jewish people who had been forced to flee.
Jordan lost control of the West Bank following the six-day war of 1967, when Israel defeated the Arab coalition comprising Syria, Egypt and Jordan. Jordan eventually gave up all territorial claims to the West Bank in 1988, following the first Intifadah.
Netanyahu’s Speech
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Natanyahu made a fantastic speech that succinctly addressed the history and realities of the Arab-Israeli conflict and provided a framework for a settlement with the Palestinians. A copy can be found here
This speech was remarkable in what was conveyed, namely that:
- The conflict is about the constant Arab rejection of self determination for the Jewish people in their historic homeland.
- Exploding the popular media myth that the main Arab gripe is about the territories captured by Israel in 1967 following the 6-day war, when in fact Arab hostility against Jews in Mandatory Palestine began in 1920, long before the modern state of Israel was established.
- Exposed the folly of the belief that unilateral withdrawals bring peace, by recounting the aftermath of the complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, resulting in the Islamic terrorist group Hamas taking power and launching missiles against Israel.
- Israel accepts the realisation of an Arab Palestinian state provided that the Arabs accept the reality of the Jewish state.
To Prime Minster Netanyahu, I say Bravo!
