Tuesday, November 26, 2013

US Betrayal Opens Great Opportunity for Israeli Saudi Alliance

Ask yourself, what would happen if Saudi Arabia were to change its buying habits?

Here at the Muqata think tank, we've been analyzing the changes happening around us, and envisioning what a new Middle East could look like, or turn into, if given the chance—based on the real state of affairs in our region. Obviously, we're looking to develop the best possible realistic scenario for Israel, based on current parameters.

America's betrayal of long time allies, and its shifting of alliances to the worst of the worst of the Islamic fundamentalist governments, has encouraged a sea change for the entire region.

After U.S. failure to turn Egypt into a fundamentalist Islamic state, it's now turning to firmly prop up the Islamic Republic of Iran. The end result is that any hope for a popular uprising that would throw out the Ayatollahs is now lost.

A revitalized, aggressive, fundamentalist, and obviously nuclear Iran constitutes a clear and present danger to all the countries in the region, not just Israel.

The recent U.S. betrayal of its long time allies has taught Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the Gulf States the lesson of an exaggerated reliance on the world's biggest super power.

America's Middle East policy has always relied on the three legged stool of Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Iran. When America lost Iran, it tried to replace it with Iraq, then with Libya, and then Egypt, but each attempt resulted in unexpected consequences.

For the U.S., the Iran deal represents a much sought after return to an old and familiar Mid-East policy, never mind the fact that this time Iran and Turkey are very much Islamic, and have developed an imperialistic appetite that threaten their neighbors, most emphatically the Foggy Bottom stool's third leg, Saudi Arabia, which isn't buying any of it.

It's no accident that there has been noise about the Saudis preparing to assist Israel in a strike against Iran's nuclear facilities. The Gulf States, too, save for Bahrain, are in Israel's corner, having had thriving business relations with Israel for years. They all view Iran as a radical menace (a rabid dog?) and Israel as its stabilizing antidote.

At the Muqata think tank, we've come up with what could be a very realistic alignment, and a plan for a truly new Middle East (Tom Friedman, NIF, eat your heart out).

Saudi Arabia has money. Lots of money. Lots of oil too. And of course, lots of desert.

Yet they lack innovation, technology, and no longer enjoy that sense of security they used to have.

Israel has innovation. Israel has technology. Israel knows how to make deserts bloom. Israel has security. But Israel, while becoming energy independent, doesn't have oil or money (on the Saudi scale), or the production capability to stand alone.

Actually, both states could use better production capabilities.

Both also have had the same reliance on the U.S. to supply them with military platforms.

It's also no secret that Israel's military technology and know-how is superior to that of the U.S., but the latter is making sure that the former not be allowed to compete with industries in the American military industrial complex.

And don't get us started on Israel being forced to take the less than wonderful but shockingly expensive F-35.

Ask yourself, what would happen if Saudi Arabia were to change its buying habits?

Let's say they decided to buy an Israeli designed advanced fighter jet. Let's say Saudi Arabia invested in Israeli green tech, to make their deserts bloom.

Let's say that Saudi Arabia made a new alliance with Israel, based on mutual defense and mutual interests.

It would require the hyper conservative Saudis to do something brand new, something they wouldn't have dreamed of doing only five years ago when their ambassador to the U.S. was considered an adjunct member of the Bush cabinet. But those days are gone, and the Saudis, perhaps more so than Israel, are fearing for their lives.

One could think of worse reasons than the will to live for cooperation between historic enemies.

If such a pact—which could be denied ad nauseam by both sides—were to happen, we would definitely see Egypt and Jordan joining in. Secretly.

The new Middle East would include Israel, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and the Gulf states, vs. Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Turkey and Gaza.

The "Palestinians" of Judea and Samaria would have to sit this one out for a while. Without the U.S. to dominate the process, Israel will be taking its time giving them anything other than their human and civil rights – no national rights for now, thank you very much.

Production facilities remain an issue. Who will be able to take Saudi money and Israeli innovation and offer the enormous industrial facilities required for building the fighter planes, anti-missile systems, and desert blooming technologies of the near future?

The Chinese.

They're already deeply interested in the Middle East. They're already involved in major Israeli projects. They will not pass up an opportunity to both become an equal player in the global manufacturing of innovation technology, and push the U.S. down several pegs in the process.

This enormous endeavor will require educating millions of Arabs across the region, forging an affluent middle class to replace tribal societies. Driven by economic opportunity, the masses will soon enough come to expect political freedom as part of the pie – within the scope of their traditions, much the way it's taking place in Arab communities in New Jersey and Michigan—to name but two states—nowadays.

What about the United States?

Israel and Saudi Arabia would of course still remain friends with the U.S. But no longer client states locked into an unequal relationship.

Perhaps by then Sharia law will have replaced the Constitution, and the next president be even more familiar with the way we do business between the Euphrates and the Mediterranean Sea…

And don’t bother lecturing us on the “evil” of Israeli alignment with the less-than-stellar human rights records of China or Saudi Arabia. The USA has zero problem imposing immoral and unethical demands on Israel to release murderous Arab terrorists “for the sake of the peace talks” and no problem throwing Israel under the bus to further diplomacy with Iran. If Israel needs to align itself for a better and more secure tomorrow with China and Saudi Arabia – it is no worse than its previous Oslo capitulation to Arab terror.

Actually, it’s far better because it could provide Israel with better economic and military security against the real threat of a Nuclear Iran.



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Monday, November 04, 2013

Return to the 1187 lines - a look at Crusader history

The Arabs in Israel love to compare the Israelis to the Crusaders.  They want to see us as a temporary invader, who will disappear from this land.

As MK Zahalka said a few months ago: "We were here before you, and we will be here after you."

To which Prime Minister Netanyahu replied: "The first part isn't true, and the second part won't happen", thereby earning himself a place in meme history.



But this view of Crusader history is also a very narrow one.  Though I generally focus on Jewish history in Israel, it's also important to be aware of the other people who lived in this land, if only because history repeats itself, and not always in the way the Arabs think it does.

The Crusaders conquered Israel in 1099.  They managed to hold the country for 100 years, but then in 1187, the Kurdish warrior Saladin conquered Jerusalem and Israel and expelled the Crusaders.  

End of story, right?

Well, not exactly.

The West immediately declared another Crusade to reconquer Jerusalem.  The Crusaders, led by Richard the Lionheart, started off by laying siege to Acre (Akko).  The Muslims vowed to fight till the last man, but after two years, they surrendered.  Saladin paid 200,000 gold dinars in return for the residents of the city.  He also freed 2,500 POWs and returned the remnants of the "True Cross" to the Christians.

The Crusaders continued conquering along the coast, and Saladin, who found himself retreating, responded by destroying the fortresses, in order to prevent them from falling into Christian hands.

In September of 1192, a peace agreement was signed in Jaffa (Yaffo), in which the Muslims recognized the new Crusader state that stretched from Tyre (Tzor) to Jaffa, with the addition of the Ramle-Lod enclave.  The Christians got permission to make free, unarmed pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

Over the next 100 years, the Crusader state spread out over the coast.  Spanning from Armenia, through Syria and along the Israeli coast down to Ashkelon, and included Ramle, Jerusalem and Bethlehem.  At times it also controlled Judea, the Galilee and Lake Kinneret.  Western influence on the coastal area continued almost unabated from the Crusader Era down to today.

As part of the on-going wars: in the spring of 1219, the Ayyubian rulers, Saladin's successors, destroyed the walls of Jerusalem.

During this period the Crusaders focused on trying to conquer Egypt, which they saw as the key to conquering all of Israel.  In the fall of 1219 the Crusaders conquered a major port city on the Nile, Damietta.  The Ayyubian Sultan Al-Kamil started peace negotiations even before the city fell to Christian hands.  He offered to return the Crusaders to the 1187 lines - everything West of the Jordan - and to sign a 30-year peace treaty.

The various Crusader groups split on the offer.  Some wanted to go back to the pre-1187 lines, which included the areas East of the Jordan.  The Sultan then offered the two biggest forts on the eastern side of the Jordan, and agreed to finance the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and three other cities.

The Christians rejected the offer.

Saladin - the great conqueror whose successors
were willing to give it all away

In the summer of 1221, the Muslims reconquered Damietta, and the deal was off anyway.  But the Crusaders continued making gains in Israel.

In early 1229, following political manipulations, Emperor Frederick II signed a ten-year treaty with Al-Kamil: The Tell El-Ajjul-Jaffa Treaty.  This treaty gave the Christians Jerusalem (except for the Temple Mount), and recognized Crusader rule of Sidon, the Nazareth enclave, and several other areas in the Galilee.The Jerusalem enclave included Ramle-Lod and Bethlehem.

This treaty was roundly criticized by various Crusaders, as it was signed without the agreement of the local ruler of the Galilee, and was therefore somewhat theoretical.  But the Crusaders now held Jerusalem.

In 1239, after the treaty expired, the Crusaders sent another force to Israel.  But the Muslim forces attacked their camp and killed them off while they were dining.

In 1240 a new Ayyubian ruler took over, precipitating civil war on the Muslim side.  As the Ayyubians in Egypt and Syria geared up for battle, both sides turned to the Crusaders and offered a land-for-support deal.  Some of the Crusaders sided with the Syrians, and some with the Egyptians.  The Syrians offered the Crusaders the Galilee and Southern Lebanon.  In a treaty signed by the Egyptians in 1241, the Egyptians recognized Crusader rule of the Galilee and added the coastal areas up to Beirut, and down towards Gaza (not included).  The southern border now stretched from Gaza towards Hebron.

But the wars between the Ayyubians were not good for the Crusaders, and the Muslim mercenary forces that came into Israel reconquered almost everything.

The Mongolians attacked in 1260, and were soon followed by a new force - the Mamaluks, the Central-Asian slave-soldiers of Egypt.  The Mamaluks set about to reconquer Israel.  In 1291 Christian Acre fell to the Mamaluks, and so came an end to the story of the Crusaders in Israel.

Bottom line: History is not always so simple, and it did not end in 1187.  The Muslims did reconquer Israel, but quite soon were willing to give it all away.  The successors to the Great Saladin didn't manage to hold Israel for longer than the hated Crusaders.  On the other hand, the Crusaders were offered peace deal after peace deal.  They missed opportunities and always demanded more, until they were finally kicked out and lost everything.

See here for an archive of articles about our history in Israel.  


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Sunday, October 27, 2013

Analysis: What's Behind MK Amir Peretz's Venomous Attacks on the Bayit Yehudi?

From today’s Times of Israel:
MK Amir Peretz -- Defense Minister
during Israel's Second Lebanon War
Environmental Protection Minister Amir Peretz, from the center-left Hatnua [The Movement] party, decried the nationalist Jewish Home party’s attacks on the impending Palestinian prisoner release and especially the verbal assault on Hatnua’s leader Tzipi Livni, in which they blamed her for the release.
Releasing terrorists will lead to violence? What an absurd idea...and how dare you even suggest it will lead to attacks on Israelis.

Yet here's some background the Times of Israel neglected to mention: When MK Amir Peretz slams the “Bayit Yehudi” party for “incitement against his party” the primary reason for his venom is because last week on Tuesday, his wife Achlama Peretz, who was the #2 of David Buskila the incumbent mayor of Sderot -- LOST the election to Mayoral Candidate Alon Davidi – supported by...Bayit Yehudi. Not only did Buskila lose the mayoral election but Peretz’s wife didn’t even make it onto the Sderot city council.

Adding insult to injury, on the very same election day last week, Amir Peretz’s sister, Flora Shushan lost the mayoral election in Mitzpe Ramon to Roni Marom...also supported by...Bayit Yehudi.

So when Peretz says “It is forbidden to allow Bayit Yehudi people to sow seeds of calamity”….he isn’t talking about the Bayit Yehudi’s opposition to freeing convicted murders, rather he's referring to the freeing of Sderot and Mitzpe Ramon from the clutches of his nepotistic fiefdom.

h/t: Elyashiv Raichner


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Sunday, September 29, 2013

Praying for Moshiach

(A JoeSettler Post)

I just saw this on Facebook, and it deserves a proper response.
 

There was a massive flood in a town, but one holy man managed to survive by getting up onto the roof of his house.

As he sat there watching the waters rise higher and higher, he prayed and prayed (3 times a day, in fact) to God to save him from drowning.

A boat came by, but he turned the rescue crew down, telling them he's waiting for God to save him.

Then a helicopter flew by, but he turned down that rescue crew too, saying that he's waiting for God to save him.

Shortly afterwords the holy man drowned.

The man reached heaven and in righteous anger asked God, "Why didn't You save me?"

God sighed and responded to the holy man, "I sent you a boat and a helicopter! I even sent a free El Al flight to Israel for you, your family and your entire congregation, with an absorption basket to help settle you in! What the heck were you thinking when you were you praying for Moshiach to have no more 3 day Yom Tovs?!"


(Dan l'kaf z'chut: Maybe the Facebook post was somehow referring to Rosh Hashana?)


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Thursday, September 26, 2013

JoeSettler made a mistake, and Israel is going to pay for it

It's not often that I'm wrong, and some of you might revel in that I made a mistake, except that the mistake I made is a bad one. Two weeks ago I read into Obama's statement, following his spectacularly bad Syrian fiasco that he would actually be dealing with his mess at home, and finally leave Israel alone. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Even worse, at the UN, Obama made it abundantly clear that he plans to double down on his pressure on Israel. He made it appear that he is linking that to dealing with Iran, though it's clear he won't do anything at all with Iran, that needs doing, except maybe invite Rouhani to dinner and a photo op. So, he just going to concentrate on making things bad for Israel. Obviously feels he hasn't screwed up the rest of the Middle East enough yet, so he needs to destabilize the only stable country in the region. Gee, thanks.


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Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Holiday greetings from the past

A mosaic from one of the ancient synagogues in Tiberias, displaying the Arba Minim.  The synagogue was built in the 6th century and lasted until the 11th century.  The Crusaders later built their fortress over it.


The mosaic includes a dedication to Prokolos son of Crispos.

See here for an archive of articles about our history in Israel.  

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Hoshana Rabba and Sleepy Hollow

From Encyclopedia Judaica:
From the 13th century onward, there is evidence regarding special popular beliefs connected with Hoshana Rabba. There was a very widespread belief that he who did not see the shadow of his head on the night of Hoshana Rabba [Jameel: From the light of the moon] would die during that year, for Hoshana Rabba was the day of the "seal," wherein the verdict of man (passed on the *Day of Atonement) is "sealed," or the day on which the "notices" of the verdict were sent out (Sefer Ḥasidim, ed. by R. Margoliot (1957), nos. 452–3; Naḥmanides on Num. 14:9; Zohar, Ex., 142a–b).
Hoshanah Rabbah
Germany, 1663.



I guess Hoshana Rabba in Sleepy Hollow in 1790 was less than fortuitous.
The story is set in 1790 in the countryside around the Dutch settlement of Tarry Town (historical Tarrytown, New York), in a secluded glen called Sleepy Hollow. Sleepy Hollow is renowned for its ghosts and the haunting atmosphere that pervades the imaginations of its inhabitants and visitors. The most infamous spectre in the Hollow is the Headless Horseman, said to be the ghost of a Hessian trooper who had his head shot off by a stray cannonball during "some nameless battle" of the American Revolutionary War, and who "rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head".  HT: Steg


A Pitka Tava to all our readers...

--Jameel



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Wednesday, September 18, 2013

The Centralization of Israel and a Cashless Society

Centralization in Israel is a two-headed coin (or perhaps a two-headed monster). There’s no doubt, that so many bureaucratic activities go much smoother in Israel than they do in America, because we have ID numbers and cards that are linked to everything. Of course sometimes that doubles the frustration when obvious things need to be manually duplicated over and over for no reason. On the other hand, that centralization provides no flexibility or safety net. Having problems with one government office can easily spill over to an unrelated one, since you’re linked together everywhere on file. And then there is the basic issue of personal privacy and civil liberties. Now the Israeli government is attempting to implement two extreme decisions that threaten civil liberties more than ever. The first we’ve talked about in the past, which is the biometric system that is currently being tested. God forbid that should ever become mandatory. Right now, even though your personal bio-data is out there with different organizations, there is still some semblance of privacy and protection because of the separation that naturally exists between your health fund, the army, the government, and so on. But once that goes away, there goes your privacy. You will have no control over your personal information at all, and you’re reliant on the government, which as we know, is not the most effective of protectors of personal data. The second move is just as scary. The Israeli government is actually considering trying to find a way to abolish cash. There was a unanimous cabinet decision to explore how to do that (Hey Naftali Bennett, I didn’t vote for you to lose my civil liberties – remember that come election time). They want to get rid of cash, and give everyone rechargeable “cash cards” that will allow the government to track every single transaction you do. EVERY SINGLE TRANSACTION. I can’t even begin to describe the civil liberties and privacy violations that implementing this system will create. And if they actually believe this will get rid of cash, or the black market, they’re even stupider than I thought. Bitcoin, gold, barter… you name it. Smart (and dumb) people will find their way around it. Not to do illegal transactions, mind you, but simply to protect their privacy away from the government’s snooping eyes. And then we’ll all be criminals, because of a dangerous legislation which is an intrusive attempt to suck more tax money out of us and spy on us, and not just spy directly, but with data mining too, to study our purchase and transaction behavior, and find every last penny they can suck out of us and understand what we do with it. I guarantee one thing. If this legislation passes, if the party I voted for, and the ones I didn’t, don’t stop this in its tracks, I will do everything (legal) to make sure those people do not get elected again, and be replaced with people who do care and understand the importance of civil liberties and fear the tyranny of government.

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Friday, September 13, 2013

Did Iran and Russia Just Save Israel?

It would be ironic if true, but it may very well be that Iran and Russia (and Syria) just saved Israel (or God did, using them as proxies). Obama stated on Thursday that he's going to be pivoting his focus away from the international arena and instead concentrate on domestic issues and politics (God help America). After having been burnt in Syria, and completely played by Russia and Iran, it's as close to an admission of policy failure and incompetence as you can possibly get. On the downside, it means the U.S. military may not be dealing with Iran if it tries to cross the nuclear red line, but based on what we've heard during the Syrian debacle, it seems unlikely they were going to do so in the first place. A number of respected U.S. military commentators were saying outright that the U.S. could not financially afford a full-scale war with Syria. The U.S. would need to be prepared for escalation into a full-scale war if they were going to undertake even limited military action. So, if the U.S. wasn't prepared or capable of running a small or full scale operation/war in third world Syria, how can anyone reasonably have expected that they would be in a position to do so in Iran? The message here for Israel, is that Israel is going to have to turn directly to their true source of power for this one. On the upside, if Obama feels burned by Syria, the Arab Spring, Egypt, Russia, and everything else International, then maybe, just maybe, he'll leave Israel alone too. Maybe this is the end of Obama trying to embed Hamas into Judea and Samaria, and trying to divide Jerusalem, trying to kick out Jews out of our homes, and trying to promote this latest "peace process". One can hope. G'mar Chatima Tova

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Thursday, September 12, 2013

Another Dark Day for America

I think it's fair to say that Putin spit in Obama's face yesterday, and then rubbed it in for good measure. Just the other day, President Obama made a Clintonian-like statement regarding a possible intervention in Syria, “First of all, I didn't set a red line. The world set a red line.” Um, except that Obama did set a red line. On Aug. 20, 2012, Obama said, “We have been very clear to the Assad regime ... that a red line for us is, we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized.” That's a pretty pathetic attempt to extricate himself from a poorly thought out statement, but not unexpected anymore. Obama painted himself into a corner, and he's been trying to weasel his way out of it, ever since he realized that people were listening to what he said and trying to hold him to it. And now Obama apparently believes that Putin has pulled his chestnuts out of the fire. Syria will (maybe) give up their chemical weapons. Russia and Iran(!) will be guarantors of the deal. Of course, Putin wasted no time in using this victory to reposition Russia as the world's new, undefied superpower. He announced he is going to complete the sale to Iran of the S-300 anti-aircraft missiles that he was forced to halt 3 years ago. He's going to build another nuclear reactor in Iran. (And let's not forget Snowden). Everything that America doesn't (shouldn't?) want to happen. So, if you haven't gotten the point yet, Obama just unilaterally demoted the US from being the sole global superpower. He just gave Iran a green light to do what they want without fear of reprisal, and he personally conceded world leadership to Vladmir Putin. September 11 will once again go down in history as another dark day for America.

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Monday, August 19, 2013

Welcome Back Hosni (Part 2)

Back in June I predicted we would see a military coup in Egypt, Muslim Brotherhood members killed, Morsi who knows where, and Mubarak back in the reins. http://muqata.blogspot.co.il/2013/06/welcome-back-hosni.html

The first 3 have happened, and now I just read in JewishPress.com that Mubarak may be out of jail in less than a week. http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/mubarak-to-be-freed-from-jail-this-week-says-his-lawyer/2013/08/19/

Meanwhile the NYTimes is blaming Israel for wanting the Egyptian military back in charge, instead of Islamic radicals. http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/ny-times-blaming-israel-for-egyptian-havoc/2013/08/19/

I find that amusing, because America should want it too - if they wanted a stable, functioning Egypt and to keep the peace treaty viable (which they are guarantors for).

But unfortunately, Obama seems to think the Muslim Brotherhood is the way to go, so he keeps betting on their apocalyptic horse, and if he can't get Islam in control over Egypt, well, then he'll try to bring them into power in Judea and Samaria by creating an opening for Hamas to take over there.

Anyway, the point of this post is simply to toot my own horn, and thank the blogger, Daled Amos, for reminding me of my Mubarak prediction.


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Thursday, August 15, 2013

Why the Palestinian Authority Supports the "2 State Solution"

30 Second Video featuring Palestinian Authority Official Abbas Zaki.

He explains that if the Jews leave Jerusalem as well Judea and Samaria, then Israel will collapse.



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Where are all the normal Muslims?

The following appeared yesterday on Farid Ghadry's blog in response to a Muslim attack on two British Jewish teens who were volunteering at a local school for Muslim children in Zanzibar.  Two Muslim men threw acid on the teens, leaving them permanently scarred and "burned beyond imagination.  Why aren't there more speaking up like Farid, a Syrian Muslim? With over a billion on the planet, there must be some to speak up like Farid.  

I indict Islam.

Yes, I indict it for ignoring the terror against two innocent British teens in Zanzibar who were doused with acid. I do not give a damn what the reasons were and what justification those bastard Islamists had to change permanently the good lives of two innocent young teens who were there to help Muslims in the first place.

What is Holy about Ramadan when the Muslim bastards in Zanzibar use it to commit the unholiest of acts?

I am really, really angry.

Where are our Muslim leaders to speak out against such terror and to commit, once and for all, to its eradication?

Where is the King of Saudi Arabia, or the President of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation? Cooperation on what? With the OIC’s silence, how could not anyone interpret “Cooperation” to mean to cooperate to disfigure the innocent?

Where is the Grand Imam of al-Azhar University, or the Arab League, or Ayatollah Khamenei, or the millions of other religious Muslim leaders?

Where is Erdogan of Turkey and the Muslim Brotherhood? Why are they silent in the face of such atrocities committed in the name of Islam?

Where are all our collective Muslim voices to indict these senseless acts not even animals in a jungle are capable of?

Islam has become synonymous with terror and the target of justifiable and global contempt. The religion I was born into, and which shelters 1.3 billion people, has turned into a weapon of global destruction against the other 5.7 billion people who do not adhere to Muslim principles.

Islam no longer exists for Islam. Islam exists today to destroy non-Muslims.

I indict all of Islam because the religion that is supposed to support the needy and the helpless has become a cult of terror against the self-sufficient and the enterprising.

I indict all the silent Muslim leaders for their weakness. With their silence, they are feeding these acts of barbarism to define Islam.

I indict them for all the acts of terror committed in the past against thousands upon thousands of innocent people.

I am really, really angry at all the Imams, the Grand Muftis, the Sheikhs, the Mawlawis, the Ayatollahs, the Emirs, the Kings, the Princes, and whatever titles they embrace.

At the end, if they do not indict these acts publicly and courageousely all of them share in the savagery of Zanzibar. That is their legacy.

The Muslim leaders in the OIC and the Arab League must awaken from their slumber by committing serious funds to re-educate our youth and to rid the world of the cancer within, instead of remaining silent or accommodating the evil source of Islamic terror.

It is obvious political correctness and generous aid by the West is not making a difference.

In fact, Western countries have donated hundreds of billions of Dollars in foreign aid to Muslim countries, and we Muslims pay back the West by dousing their children, who came to help our poor and disfranchised, with acid. It is truly sickening.

Something must change. The West must change course to help us find our way, the hard way. This status quo cannot go on.

If you want to help Islam, then it is time to tie your help with what our leaders do or say, and not by how much intelligence they deliver.

Otherwise, stop buying our oil and gas. Let us perish in our own waste. Maybe, then, our leaders will speak out and cooperate with the West based on equality and not based on them forcing Islam upon the rest of the world.

Enough is enough. I am really, really angry.

May those British teens, and all who were injured by Islamic terror in the past, find peace and happiness. May they, and their families, forgive us for not speaking loudly enough.




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Sunday, August 11, 2013

What Unqualifies a Chief Rabbi?

I had a disturbing discussion with some Chareidi relatives the other day.

I innocently (sure) asked what they thought of the results of the vote for Chief Rabbi and of Rav Stav.

As I expected, as Chareidim, they were very happy with the results, and I wasn't taken aback by their vitriol of disgust towards Rabbi Stav, I expected that too. But what did surprise me was the example they used to vilify him.

The example they used to prove that Rav Stav was unqualified to be Chief Rabbi, is that he had at some point answered a question from a young man, a yeshiva student, who wanted to know what to do at the movies when they showed a bad scene.

The specific answer he gave is unimportant, nor did they bother to mention it.

The problem in their eyes, is that he answered a question like that at all.

You see, their argument was that the young man was obviously not a yeshiva student, or even religious, because religious people don't go to movies.

And someone who isn't religious (because he goes to movies), obviously doesn't care about Halacha (you're following the logic I presume), and therefore, any Rabbi who answers a question like that, can't represent Judaism or Rabbis - but, not because the only answer is, "Don't go to movies".

Here's the kicker.

They said that since Rav Stav was providing answers to religious questions to "non-religious" people, he clearly wasn't qualified to be chief rabbi, as the chief rabbi is only supposed to deal with religious issues for religious people, and non-religious people don't have religious issues, as they don't care about Halacha!

I asked them where they heard this insane argument they were making, that they apparently completely believed.

They all said they heard it on Radio Kol Chai (a Shas-controlled radio station), which is  apparently the only radio station a "religous" person is allowed to listen to.

To make a long story short, the argument they've been told to believe, by Shas controlled radio, is that only religious people have real religious questions, and rabbis should only provide answers to real religious questions to real religous people, and any rabbi that bothers to provide an answer to a religious question to a non-religious person is clearly not qualified to be a chief rabbi in Israel.

Is that messed up, or what?

I didn't bother to ask them the next question, because I already know the answer. But if you were to ask them if they'll eat food certified as kosher by our two new, chareidi chief rabbis, whom they're so happy with, the answer will be "no", because their certification isn't kosher (enough?).

It makes you wonder who exactly do they think a chief rabbi is supposed to be the chief rabbi of.


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Tuesday, July 30, 2013

How to Annoy Abbas - All of Eretz Yisrael is OURS!

Sick of the Palestinians displaying their "map of Palestine"?

Nothing will enrage them more than this (and in Arabic as well to make sure they get the message).


Share with your friends!




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Sunday, July 28, 2013

Raise Your Hands if you Approve of Releasing Palestinian Terrorists!

A Palestinian raises his bloodied hands in victory to a cheering crowd after brutally murdering 2 IDF reserve soldiers who made a wrong turn into PA controlled Ramallah.


If you think that a pre-condition for peace talk negotiations should be to release savage murderers from jail, then raise your hands!

If you think Israel should make a mockery of it's judicial system, and spit in the faces of the broken Israeli families whose children and parents were slaughtered by Palestinian terrorists, raise your hands!

If you think that Prime Minister Netanyahu should ignore popular sentiment and release terrorists just for the privilege of  sitting down at a table with a society that glorifies civilian murderers, then raise your hands!

If you think that Israel should bow to American pressure, endanger the lives of its citizens and soldiers, and free murderers while the US refuses to free Jonathan Pollard, raise your hands!

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Monday, July 22, 2013

Three Obvious Questions on the Current Peace Process

 This post first appeared on JewishPress.com

It's become apparent to all that Syria is the natural Arab state. Without a strong and powerful leader, anarchy and internecine murder swiftly develops.

This is not because Arabs are primitive, though in part it is because Islam is fundamentally a violent religion. The real reason is that the Arabs are not really one people, as the root word in Hebrew “Arev” attests to. Arev translates as mixture. The Arabs are in reality a mix of distinct sects, tribes and clans who don't really like one another. When they are supposedly unified, it is only because a strong leader temporarily suppresses their independent identities and locks them together under his strong thumb.

Arab state after state proves this to be true.

This brings us to our first obvious question about the current peace process….

1) Who does Abbas actually represent in the peace talks? While Abbas controls the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria, he doesn’t control the Palestinian Authority in Gaza, as that is under control of a different group – a competing terrorist gang that not only doesn’t he speak for, but a gang who is prepared to overthrow him once conditions are right.

Abbas also doesn’t have the support of the Chamulot, the traditional clan and tribes, who despise him, and would also overthrow Abbas in a second if given the chance.

So if Israel negotiates with Abbas, when the reality is that he doesn’t represent Gaza, when he doesn’t represent the Chamulot, and in fact, since there haven’t been elections, we don’t even know if he represents the rest of the Arab citizens he rules, and he is likely to be overthrown soon, what value does his signature have?

The answer is nothing.

That brings us to the second question…

2) What will keep the "West Bank" from turning into Syria? As we pointed out above, the so-called “Palestinians” are a mixture of different religious sects, tribes and clans, and Bedouin too, who all hate each other, if God forbid, Israel were to pull out the IDF further, we will quickly see a repeat of the Hamas takeover in Judea and Samaria. But this will end up as messy as Syria, when all the groups will start to kill each other to take over. The “West Bank” would quickly deteriorate, and it would be as if we had listened to Shimon Peres as his idiotic ideas to give away the Golan to Syria - pointless and dangerous.

What will stop this Syria-like collapse in the "West Bank"?

Again, the answer is nothing.

And that brings us to our third question and final question…

3) Why in the world would Abbas even want to make peace, when he knows that as soon as he does, his dead, mangled, and cannibalized carcass will be hauled through Bethlehem’s Manger Square by one of the many sects, clans, and tribes that want him dead, and will use this as an opportunity to attempt a coup?

The answer is, he does not.

Reaching peace in these peace talks is the last thing Abbas wants or needs. Ignoring for a moment that he will never obtain the terms of agreement that his cohorts and various friends and enemies are demanding, reaching a true peace agreement means his death, and no further access to his Swiss bank accounts.

For Abbas (or any other future “Palestinian” leader), nothing is better than the current situation. The continuation of the conflict provides him a lifeline (and access to his Swiss bank accounts).

What Abbas does need to get out of this, is a strengthening of his position vis a vis Hamas. The only subject of tangible value for him is the release of terrorists and baby killers.

“Palestinian” society is so sick, that the value they hold most dear, is the value of murdering Jewish babies, and those who murder Jewish women and children are their society’s heroes.

That is why releasing these baby-killers is their first and most non-negotiable demand.

That is why Abbas made it a requirement for talking peace.

Abbas expects nothing else from the talks. He wants nothing to succeed from the talks, but if he is being forced to talk, he can at least demand the one concession that he knows from experience Israel will give him that will temporarily buttress his position as the “Palestinian” leader before the talks collapse.

And that is the release of terrorists and baby killers.

And while I only said three questions, here’s a bonus fourth, which I’ll leave for you to answer.

4) Bibi Netanyahu knows all the above. So, what is he really hoping to achieve with these negotiations, and why?


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Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Temple Mount activism throughout the centuries

Two thousand years ago, around 70 CE, our Temple was destroyed and the Services discontinued.

The Rabbinic authorities of the time quickly moved to help the people transition to a Temple-less reality.  It can be assumed that within a generation of two, the trauma would be forgotten and the people would accept the new reality.

However, that is far from true.   In Israel, Jews have kept the memory of the Temple alive and for generations to come yearned and fought to renew the Temple services: by rebuilding the Temple, preserving the Priestly status, and maintaining the otherwise archaic laws of purity.

The Temple

During the Byzantine Era, Jews were not allowed to live in Jerusalem.  The Pilgrim of Bordeaux wrote in 333 that Jews were allowed onto the Temple Mount once a year, apparently on Tisha B'Av.  "Not far from the statues [of Hadrian] there is perforated stone and the Jews come to it every year and anoint it with oil, and lament with groans and tear their clothing, and then leave".

But the Jews never stopped yearning to rebuild the Temple, and whenever the opportunity arose, took steps towards that end.

John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople in the late 4th century, listed these attempts in several of his homilies against Jews.
The Jews tried many times to rebuild their temple. Not once, not twice, but three times they tried. They tried ill the time of Hadrian, in the time of Constantine, and in the time of Julian. But each time they tried they were stopped. The first two times they were stopped by military force; later it was by the fire which leaped forth from the foundations and restrained them from their untimely obstinacy.

The attempt during Hadrian's time is the Bar Kochba Revolt.

 As for Constantine, Chrysostom might be referring to the revolt against Constantius Gallus in 351, when the Jews managed to reconquer Jerusalem for a short time.  Or he might be referring to an earlier small-scale attempt, as he mentions the rebels were punished by cutting off their ears and being marched around.

In 363 Emperor Julian (Julian the Apostate) ordered the Temple rebuilt.  Jews gladly joined in the efforts, but work stopped following fires caused by an earthquake.

The Christians saw it as an act of G-d, a sign for the Jews that the Temple will never be rebuilt.  As Chrysostom puts it: "Even today, if you go into Jerusalem, you will see the bare foundation [built during Julian's time], if you ask why this is so, you will hear no explanation other than the one I gave (...) So the Jews have no excuse left to them for their impudence."

But the Jews did not stop trying.

In the 5th century, Empress Eudocia, wife of Emperor Theodosius II, influenced her husband to allow the Jews to come back to Jerusalem.  A Christian monk writes that the Jews sent a letter to their brethren: "The time of our Exile is over, and the day of the in-gathering of our tribes has arrived, for the Roman Emperors have commanded that our city of Jerusalem be returned to us.  Hurry and come to Jerusalem on Sukkot, because our Kingdom will be established in Jerusalem."

In 613, the Jews helped the Persians conquer Israel, and were rewarded with a promise that the Temple will be rebuilt and Jews will regain some measure of autonomy.  Apparently the Jews prepared to resume Temple worship.  They purified the city, and according to one Jewish source, restarted offering sacrifices.  But the Byzantines reconquered Israel shortly thereafter, putting an end to that attempt.

A few decades later, the Muslims conquered Israel - the Jews immediately petitioned the new rulers to be allowed to live in Jerusalem, by the Temple Mount.  We know from Jewish and non-Jewish sources that after the Muslim conquest Jews prayed on the Temple Mount.  They were later only allowed to pray at the gates, and later limited to just one gate.


Priests

During Temple times, the Priests (Kohanim) were split up into 24 'Divisions' (Mishmarot) or families.  Each division was 'on duty' at the Temple for two weeks during the year.  Following the destruction of the Temple, the Priestly families moved to the Galilee, each family establishing itself in a different town.

Eleazar Ha-Kalir mentions the Priestly Divisions in his lamentation "Eicha Yashva Havatzelet Hasharon", now read on Tisha Be'Av day.

But these Divisions were not just a matter for a once-a-year memorial ceremony.  The Israeli custom was to pray on the Sabbath for the Priestly Division of that week.  Several fragments found in a synagogue in Caesarea dating to the 3rd century list a portion of the Priestly Divisions.  We also have several hymns (Piyyuts), found in the Genizah, listing the Divisions.  These hymns were said as part of the prayer service, every week mentioning the Division that was 'on duty' for that week.  It is possible these hymns were specifically added to the prayers by the people living in the Priestly towns.

One was written by Haduta, a Jewish poet who lived in Israel in the Byzantine era, and was meant to be said throughout the Amidah prayer.  Another anonymous snippet from the Mussaf Prayer was also found, which might have been written by Haduta as well.  Another piyyut was written by Rabbi Pinchas son of Rabbi Yaakov, a Kohen from Kafra, a village next to Tiberias.  Rabbi Pinchas might be the head of the Israeli Yeshivah, and apparently lived quite a few generations after Haduta.  He wrote a short piyyut for each Division, intended to be said during the Priestly Blessing.

One of the Genizah documents is a declaration from 1034, which says as follows:


Today is the Sabbath, a holy day for G-d
What Division is it?  So and so division
May the Merciful One return the divisions to their place quickly in our days, Amen
How many years since the world was created and until now?
Four thousand and seven hundred and ninety four since the world was created and until now
How many years since the Temple was destroyed and until now?
Nine hundred and sixty seven since the Temple was destroyed and until now
May the Merciful One build his house and Temple, and say Amen

Purity

Hundreds of years after the destruction of the Temple, the Israeli tradition still stressed the laws of purity, spanning the whole gamut of everyday life.  So much so, that the focus of Israeli Jewish life on ritual immersion in the Mikveh was ridiculed by Christian writers.

Additionally, many Temple traditions were transferred into the Synagogue.  This might actually have had to do with the growing influence of the Priests in those days.  There were opinions barring the entrance of the impure to the synagogue.  Traditions such as taking off one's shoes when entering the synagogue, or washing one's hands and feet existed already in the Byzantine era, long before Islam.

When the Karaites came to Israel, they adopted many of the Israeli traditions, as an antithesis of the Babylonian tradition they disdained.  And so the Israeli tradition itself came under attack from the rabbinic establishment abroad.  Together with the Maimonidean attitude that wished to have a unified Judaism, the Israeli tradition was stomped out.


A prayer for the rebuilding of the Temple
inscribed on the Northern Wall of the Temple Mount

Throughout the generations, various groups believed that Redemption will come, if only we take practical steps to achieve it.  From the Karaite 'Mourners of Zion' (9-11th centuries) who believed that making Aliyah and mourning for Jerusalem would bring Redemption, to the Sephardi Jews in Safed (16th century), who tried to reestablish the Sanhedrin, to the Perushim (early 19th century) who believed in living and working the land.

Today's Temple Mount activists continue the tradition.

See here for an archive of articles about our history in Israel.  


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Monday, July 15, 2013

Friday, July 12, 2013

The Jewish Town of Nazareth

Makor Rishon recently interviewed Nabila Espanioly, an Arab political activist and future Knesset member for Hadash (based on a rotation agreement).  Espanioly is head of the Al-Tufula Pedagogical Center, which recently published a booklet for Nazareth kindergarten teachers about the history of Nazareth.  As for the presence of Jews in Nazareth, the booklet states (translation mine): "Archaeological excavations have found no sign of Jews living in Nazareth.  The synagogue building [the Synagogue Church] is actually a church built in the Crusader Era after the 11th century."

The booklet denies there were Jews in Palestine in the First Temple Era, and then continues "If there were Jews in Nazareth at any time, then they were a foreign population, who were welcomed by the Arab-Canaanite families in Nazareth".

That is, of course, nonsense.  It's a shame the people of Nazareth know so little about their history.

In the first centuries CE, Nazareth was a small Jewish village.  Lucas (4:15) describes how the town's most famous son, Jesus, came to the local synagogue to speak on the Sabbath day.
And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and he went to the synagogue, as his custom was, on the sabbath day. And he stood up to read; and there was given to him the book of the prophet Isaiah.  He opened the book and found the place where it was written, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."  And he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, 'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." And all spoke well of him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth; and they said, "Is not this Joseph’s son?"

This picture should be familiar to any Jew.  As we do today, on the Sabbath the Jews would read from the Torah.  The Israeli custom was to read the Torah over a three or three and a half year cycle.  Following that one of the synagogue goers would read from the Prophets, and then someone from the community would stand up to give a sermon.

In 2009 the Israeli Antiquities Authority excavated a Jewish home in the town, dating to the first century BC (English, Hebrew).  Among other artifacts, the archaeologists discovered fragments of chalk vessels, used exclusively by Jews for purity reasons.  They also found a pit, which was probably hewn as part of the Jewish preparations for the Great Revolt (67 CE)

The lack of Jewish antiquities might have to do with the fact that very few excavations were done, and are mostly limited to what the IAA calls "emergency digs" when there's new construction, as was the case with the 2009 dig.  Nonetheless, a few antiquities have been found dating to the first centuries CE.

A Jewish lamp, note the Menorah on the handle

Hebrew inscription: Soam Bar Menachem, RIP


Following the Bar-Kochba revolt, the Priestly families (the Kohanim) moved up to the Galilee.  Nazareth became known as the town of the 18th Priestly Division, the Happizzez family.

The Israeli custom was to pray on the Sabbath for the Priestly Division of that week.  Several fragments found in a synagogue in Caesarea dating to the 3rd century list a portion of the Priestly Divisions, and mention Nazareth by name.

The four Priestly towns mentioned on the fragment: Mamlach, Nazareth, Achla and Migdal

Sevearl Hymns (Piyyut) list Nazareth among the Priestly Divisions.  Eleazar Ha-Kalir mentions Nazareth among the Priestly towns in his lamentation "Eicha Yashva Havatzelet Hasharon", now read on Tisha Be'Av day.  From this Piyyut, we also clearly see that the Hebrew name was pronounced: Nat'zrat

The 4th century bishop, Epiphanius of Salamis, wrote that Nazareth was a Jewish town.  In his book Panarion he tells the story of a Jewish convert to Christianity, Josephus:
"Josephus asked nothing of the emperor but this very great favour—permission by imperial rescript to build Christ's churches in the Jewish towns and villages where no one had ever been able to found churches, since there are no Greeks, Samaritans or Christians among the population.  This rule of having no gentiles among them is observed especially at Tiberias, Diocaesarea, [which is] Sepphoris [Tzippori], Nazareth and Capernaum."  

Ephipanius is slightly exaggerating, and apparently non-Jews did live in the town, but it is clear that Nazareth was a Jewish town.  Not surprising, since until the Persian Conquest in the late 7th century, the Galilee was generally a Jewish stronghold.

Antoninus of Piacenza visited Nazareth around 570 and toured the local synagogue.  From his description we learn that Nazareth was still a Jewish majority town at the time (my translation from Hebrew)
"Afterward we came to the city of Nazareth, where there are many wondrous things.  The synagogue still has the book which was used to teach Our Lord the alphabet.  There is also a bench in the synagogue where Our Lord would sit with the other kids.  The Christians can raise and move the bench, but the Jews can't move it at all; and it can't be taken out.   
And so beautiful are the Jewish women of the town, that you can't find more beautiful women among the Hebrews of the land, and they say it comes from Mary, who was, they say, their mother.   
And though the Jews have no mercy on [or: love for] the Christians, despite that the women are filled with mercy."

Apparently the synagogue served for both Jewish and Christian worship.

In 614, the Persians conquered Israel with the help of the Jews.  According to Eutychius, the Jews of Nazareth joined in battle.  When Emperor Heraclius reconquered the land a few years later, he massacred the Jews of the Galilee in retribution.  Whatever Jews remained were expelled from Nazareth.

And so came the end of the Jewish history of Nazareth.  By the time Arculf, a Frankish bishop, came to Israel in 670, the synagogue had been fully turned into a church.

Under Muslim rule Nazareth was a small village.  A 13th century Arab historian mentions Jews in the city, though there are no other corroborations for that fact.

See here for an archive of articles about our history in Israel.  


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Tuesday, July 09, 2013

VIDEO: Tisha B'Av -- The Children Are Ready. Are you?

The "9 days" started yesterday, and I keep seeing "how to survive the 9 days" posts, ways to make the best dairy meals, and how to get past Tisha B'Av in one piece.

The real answer lies in this video: The Children Are Ready.

And they are...we need to get past the Kotel, get past the mindset of 2000 years of exile, and look to the future.

The future is within our grasp...we just need to be ready.  Are you?




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Thursday, July 04, 2013

Egypt: Is It Good For the Jews?

One thing you pick up in Yeshiva in the first question one asks when a major (or minor) event happens, "Is it good for the Jews?".

It's not egotistical or self-centered. It's just a historical fact that events, whether we Jews were involved or not, will ultimately start having ramifications for Jews.

The answer isn't always clear either. Sometimes it might look good for the Jews, but not be, and sometimes it might look bad, but actually turn out good.

Egypt is an interesting case study. Morsi wasn't exactly good for the Jews.

An unstable and collapsing Egypt is dangerous for Israel, as is a more radically Islamic Egypt. So Morsi was bad for the Jews.

Except, as a result of his and the Muslim Brotherhood's takeover and mess, the Gaza Islamists and the Egyptian Islamists aren't the best of friends anymore. And that's likely to stay that way for a while. And that's good for the Jews.

And now, once again we're seeing the possibility of the more secular and more democratically inclined Egyptians trying to take over Egypt, as well as an Egyptian distaste for radical Islam, and that would also appear to be good for the Jews.

It would mean a stable Egypt, hopefully a less extreme Egypt, and perhaps even a democratic Egypt. Except that last part's unlikely.

The reality is that somewhere between 30% to 50% of Egyptians are illiterate and uneducated.

Given the opportunity they will probably vote for the Muslim Brotherhood again. (It will be interesting to see if I'm proven right or wrong on this theory).

It's in the cities, where Egyptians are more educated and more secularized, where they understand and want a less religiously fanatic leadership.

Only problem is, they aren't the majority, so the only likely way they'll get what they want is if they find a non-democratic method of getting a non-Muslim Brotherhood leadership installed.

Good for the Jews? Don't know.

But there are other after-effects from this latest Egyptian revolution.

In Tunisia, they are now also trying to reignite their revolution, and empower moderate leadership.

Perhaps this could even affect the final results of the Syrian civil war, and teach them to also reject Islamic leadership.

Regardless, it's good to see the Egyptians are rejecting their radical Islamic elements, and all we can hope is that this will be good for the Jews.

Of  course, as one Rebbe of mine once said, as long as they're busy fighting each other, they'll be too busy to attack us.

And that unfortunate reality is good for the Jews.


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Sunday, June 30, 2013

Welcome Back Hosni

Call me optimistic, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we see Egypt’s favorite dictator back in power in the near future. The current protests in Egypt have got Morsi on the ropes, and the army certainly doesn’t appear to be backing him at all. And why should it? The country has deteriorated to incredibly low levels since Mubarak was kicked out. I’m willing to bet the Egyptian people would be glad to have Mubarak back at the reins, and putting everything back where it belongs. Consider this – after being deposed, Mubarak wasn’t shot or hung. Quite an unusual move, I’d say. Almost as if someone (the army?) wanted to keep him in reserve in case things got really, really bad. Bad, sort of like where Egypt is now, with only a few weeks of gas left. Morsi, on the other hand, doesn’t really enjoy that kind of support from the army, or the people. If a coup happens, you can be rest assured that Morsi will most likely quietly find his end somewhere behind a building, and if Mubarak does come back after his extended sabbatical vacation, the rest of the Muslim Brotherhood members will likely be meeting Allah almost as soon. I just want to remind (the potentially) returning President Mubarak of one thing. It was Fuad Ben-Eliezer and others in the Israeli government that showed you support and offered you asylum when the going got tough, not America, and definitely not your fellow Arab countries. So when you’re back in power and cleaning house, if you could take care of the Sinai for us and those Gaza tunnels, it would be much appreciated.

Sunday, June 23, 2013

IDF using JiHawg bullets?

Though this idea has been around for a while, the US media has only now started reporting it.

Since 2010, a USA company entitled "JiHawg Ammunition" has been manufacturing bullets with "Porcine Coating" (Pattern Pending) based on the "highest quality pork product."

They certify that Jihawg Ammo is "Haraam" or unclean and their mission is to "Send Muslim [terrorists] Straight to Hell"
"According to the belief system of the radical Islamist becoming "unclean" during Jihad will prevent their attaining entrance into heaven.

Jihawg Ammo is a natural deterrent to radical and suicidal acts of violence.

We at Jihawg Ammo hope you will stock up on Jihawg as a natural deterrent to the ever growing threat of radical Islam and Sharia Law. We, however, stress that the nullifying principle of our product is only effective if you are attacked by an Islamist in Jihad. Otherwise, our ammo functions just like any other ammunition so we obviously insist upon defensive use of our ammo only-not offensive. (JiHawg.com)
For years there has been discussion that IDF elite units use this sort of ammunition, but we have not been able to confirm this via the IDF spokesman's office, and I assume they would deny it.
“With Jihawg Ammo, you don’t just kill an Islamist terrorist, you also send him to hell. That should give would-be martyrs something to think about before they launch an attack. If it ever becomes necessary to defend yourself and those around you our ammo works on two levels,” the company said in a press release earlier this month.

The company’s website bills the bullets as “Peace Through Pork” and a “peaceful and natural deterrent to radical Islam.” There’s a related line of apparel that feature slogans like “Put Some Ham in MoHAMed” and a target poster that says “Give Em a Spankin with some Bacon.”

“The nullifying principle of our product is only effective if you are attacked by an Islamist in Jihad,” the company’s website says. “Otherwise, our ammo functions just like any other ammunition, so we obviously insist upon defensive use of our ammo only-not offensive.” (HuffPo)
I doubt there would be any Kashruth issues with using these bullets, since a weapon's barrel gets so hot after it's been fired, that the barrel has effectively "kashered" itself after every shot.



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