Antony Loewenstein

How many Jews really think this?

Only a few of us still feel real pain over the destruction of the Temple some 2,000 years ago.

The limits of free speech in a democracy is an age old question. Personally, I find that censoring any opinions is a dangerous precedent, especially those that may be unpopular with the ruling elites. So what to do about this?

Germany’s far-right National Democratic party (NPD) has triggered outrage with plans for a Third Reich-style “training centre” in a small village.

The mastermind of the scheme is Jürgen Rieger, a lawyer and deputy leader of the anti-immigrant, anti-EU party that is steeped in pride for Adolf Hitler and the “achievements” of the Nazi regime. The idea is for the old Hotel Gerhus at Fassberg, near Hanover, to become a place of pilgrimage for NPD devotees, where they can learn about the “menace” of immigration, the “criminality” of Roma gypsies and the “innate decency of law-abiding German nationalists”.

Mr Rieger, 61, has also tried to open Boys From Brazil-style “breeding centres” in other locations; the plan being for all white, Ayran racists like himself to produce offspring to people the Fourth Reich, which he believes is coming one day.

Just another day of destruction in the Gaza Strip, away from prying media eyes or world attention:

The Israeli army has launched another cross border attack on the Gaza Strip, opening fire on villagers’ homes south of the impoverished sliver.

Israeli tanks and bulldozers rolled hundreds of meters deep into the strip on Wednesday and flattened cultivated fields in Al Qararra town in southern Gaza.

According to witnesses several Palestinian homes were damaged in the attack but there were no reports of casualties. Four tanks and two bulldozers conducted the attack.

Palestinian sources say the invading Israeli troops were forced to retreat after they faced resistance from Palestinian fighters.

The following posters by Peace Now are popping up around Jerusalem at the moment:

Why was the First Temple destroyed? Because of three things – idolatry, incest and bloodshed. Why was the Second Temple destroyed? Because there was unfounded hatred. And what, heaven forbid, will lead to the destruction of the Third Temple? The settlements, fanaticism and occupation.

“For this I mourn, for the settlements that were built in the heart of Palestinian territory and that keep peace and quiet from our land. For the settlements that were built, with or without permit, and that turn us into the loathsome scum among the nations.

For the outposts that were built by deception and by turning blind eyes. For Jerusalem, the joy of the land, that has been turned into a city of strife and quarrel. For the continued investment and construction in the settlements, that will ultimately lead to one state for two people – and thus put an end to the Zionist enterprise.

Seek peace, and pursue it. Not Obama’s, not the world’s. The settlements are our problem.

It’s about time, though this should not be framed as Israel doing some wonderful favour to the people whom it recently bombed:

For the first time since the end of Operation Cast Lead, Israel plans to transfer several hundred tons of cement and other construction materials, including metal pipes, into the Gaza Strip to facilitate reconstruction.

Many of Gaza’s buildings were destroyed or damaged during Israel’s three-week offensive against Gaza’s Hamas rulers last winter.

Since the war, Israel has refused to allow construction materials into Gaza, arguing that Hamas could divert iron rods and concrete to build rockets and bunkers.

I found cement was in fact available in Gaza, at heavily inflated prices. Products are coming through the tunnels from Egypt, but the images of decimated suburbs, unable to be repaired, should not be allowed to stand. Repair, rebuild and strengthen.

Unless, of course, Israel is preparing another round against the Strip.

A former worker in the Israeli Prime Minister’s office, Gregory Levey, suggests that the Obama administration appoint George W. Bush as his Middle East envoy to pressure and cajole Israel.

Clearly Levey has never spoken to any Arabs in the Middle East; Bush isn’t the most liked individual.

The split between Fatah and Hamas is spoken about constantly in Gaza. The vast majority of people I talk to say that they dearly hope ideologues on both sides take a step back and reconcile for the sake of peace. Israel and America have other ideas:

A new report for the London-based Middle East Monitor highlights the scale of detention without trial in the West Bank — more than 1,000 political prisoners are reportedly held in Palestinian Authority jails – and extrajudicial killings, torture and raids on Hamas-linked social institutions by security forces trained, funded and organised by the US with Israel’s blessing.

The repression is justified by reference to the commitment to “end terrorism” in the 2003 road map. And the central role played in building up the security forces to carry it out (at a cost so far of $161m from congress) is played by Lieutenant-General Keith Dayton, US security co-ordinator for the Palestinian Authority, a man increasingly regarded as the real power in the West Bank, whose slogan is “peace through security”.

Dayton is advised by a team of British officials, as well as a British private security firm, Libra, closely tied to the Foreign Office. Libra has also been busy working for the occupation forces and interior ministry in Iraq, where sectarianism and human rights abuses have been rife.

In related news, a British parliamentary committee has urged the country to engage Hamas. They saw “few signs that the current policy of non-engagement with Hamas” was effective.

Israel clearly doesn’t like being pressured to change its behaviour, despite sucking on the tit of Washington:

Israel alone in a poll of 25 nations has decreased its approval of the United States since President Barack Obama took office earlier this year, according to a recent survey.

“The image of the United States has improved markedly in most parts of the world, reflecting global confidence in Barack Obama,” states the Pew Global Attitudes survey, which was released last Thursday. “In many countries opinions of the United States are now about as positive as they were at the beginning of the decade before George W. Bush took office … Israel stands out in the poll as the only public among the 25 surveyed where the current U.S. rating is lower than in past surveys.”

Gaza, July 2009:

Facebook is massively popular in Gaza, a way to connect with friends inside the Strip and the world. So this move will cause damage in the Arab world:

The operators of the internet site Facebook have recently removed a webpage dedicated to fans of Hamas’ prime minister in Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, the London-based Al-Hayat reported Sunday.

The webpage, called ‘Commander Ismail Haniyeh’, had attracted more than 10,000 Facebook users by the time it was removed from the internet.

One such user told the Arab daily that the site’s operators had not provided an explanation for their action. He warned that similar action may be taken against other Hamas-affiliated Facebook webpages, including that of Hamas’ politburo chief, Khaled Mashaal, which has already accumulated 17,000 ‘friends’.

Yet another episode in the ongoing series we love to call, “mad Jews in Israel“.

Dream on:

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that the Palestinian residents of Gaza wanted to replace the current Hamas government, and that they will eventually be successful, Army Radio reported.

Speaking at a graduation ceremony in Jerusalem’s National Security College, Netanyahu said “If the Palestinians in Gaza had the power to overthrow the government, they would. And I tell you, they will have that power.”

What I’m finding in Gaza isn’t a massive love for Hamas, though it exists, but profound disillusion with Fatah and politics in general. Hamas has certainly brought security to the streets.

Somehow I don’t think the Palestinians here will be looking to Netanyahu for directions how to conduct their lives.