What’s in a name? An often-asked question whose answer is complicated. For example: Why does the media call them Arab towns but Israeli settlements? Why did Greece protest when a new country, located to their north, named itself Macedonia, and then forced by the outcry to rename itself North Macedonia? Why did my mother insist I am David and not Dave?

Creation of the Palestinian Liberation movement. In 1964, at a conference in Cairo, Egypt, it was outsiders (Russia*, Egypt, the Arab League), not the “Palestinians,” who created the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

By definition, “appropriation” is the action of taking something for one’s own use, typically without the owner’s permission. The Arab leadership took the name “Palestinian/Palestine” and attached it to the Arab refugees of the 1948-49 Israel War of Independence. Five Arab nations (Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia) immediately attacked the nascent State of Israel with the aim to commit “genocide” (see item ‘C’ in their own words below) but failed. The resultant Arab refugees were treated differently from any other refugees, under a newly created UN agency, UNRWA.

According to their website, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is an agency of the UN, created to provide assistance to Palestinian refugees. In response to the displacement caused by the 1948-49 Arab Israeli conflict, UNRWA initially served around 750,000 Arab refugees. Today, it supports approximately 5.9 million Arabs (known as “Palestinian refugees”) consisting of multi-generational descendants of the original 750,000. This ignores the original mission of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to enable the re-settling of refugees.

During the Israeli War of Independence, the attacking Arab countries lured their fellow Arabs to leave Israel with a promise that they would return as conquers, even though the Israeli Declaration of Independence clearly states: “it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion… will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions.” (Italic emphasis added.) And to this day, Israel has done so.

In comparison, post-1949, approximately 850,000 Jews were thrown out of Arab countries (Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Egypt, etc.) where they had lived for nearly 1,000 years. These Jews were often given only days to leave and permitted to take only the clothes on their backs. Interestingly, there are no Jewish refugees today from that time, as they became citizens of the various countries in which they settled.

UNRWA’s website has not been updated to include their treasonous role of teaching an inciting terroristic curriculum to Palestinian children in Gaza and Lebanon over many decades, and even employing known Hamas operatives.

These facts raise some questions: Why are Palestinian refugees treated differently than all other refugees in the world? Why weren’t they placed under the care of the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, whose website states that their mission is to ensure that everybody has the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge, fleeing persecution or war at home? What is the endgame of this segregation of Palestinian/Palestine refugees and their descendants?

The answer might be that a new “Palestinian” people was not the creation of a liberation movement but a tactic to be used as a weapon. The proof is in consistent statements made by Arab leaders throughout the decades. Following are just five examples of the Arab and “Palestinian” leadership, in their own words…

1. During the Peel Commission testimony (1937), Auni Bey Abdul-Hadi, an Arab leader said, “There is no such country [as Palestine]! Palestine is a term the Zionists invented! There is no Palestine in the Bible. Our country is part of Syria.”

2. In May 1947, Haj Amin el-Husseini, Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and representative of the Arab Higher Commission to the United Nations said to the UN General Assembly, “Palestine was part of the Province of Syria…Politically, the Arabs of Palestine were not independent in the sense of forming a separate political entity.”

3. According to a February 1948 UN memorandum, Azzman Pasha, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, referring to the upcoming 1948 war said, “This war will be a war of extermination (of the Jews) and a momentous massacre which will be spoken of like the Mongol massacres and the Crusades.” (Italic emphasis added.)

4. Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) executive committee member Zahir Muhsein said: “The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct ‘Palestinian people’ to oppose Zionism.” He further stated there were “no differences between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians, and Lebanese”, though Palestinian identity would be emphasized for political reasons. Source: March 1977, Dutch newspaper Trouw (Italic emphasis added.)

Palestine and the original Palestinians. The modern State of Israel was born on the shoulders of Biblical interpretations, archaeological proof, international law, and defensive warfare. Yet its legitimacy is constantly challenged. There is no dispute or challenge to the existence, rights, or sovereignty of any other country created by internationally sanctioned agreements, except Israel!

There is history and nuance behind specific words and names. Here’s a little history. (The dates below are accepted approximations.)

The Jewish people (aka The Children of Israel), settled in the Promised Land (Israel) about 3,724 years ago (1250 BCE) with Jerusalem as its capital.

The First Temple in Jerusalem, was built on the Temple Mount, completed by King Solomon 2,981 years ago (957 BCE) and destroyed by the conquering Babylonians (after standing for 371 years) in 586 BCE, thus sending the Jews into exile. The Jews were allowed to return in 538 BCE.

The Second Temple in Jerusalem was built on the ruins of the First Temple 2,540 years ago (516 BCE). After standing for 586 years, it was destroyed in 70 CE by the Roman Empire, in retaliation for an Israeli revolt. After the failed Judean Bar Kochba revolt in 135 CE, the Romans decided to wipe “Israel” off the map by renaming Jerusalem “Aelia Capitonia” and Judea “Palæstina.” Over the years, Palæstina became Palestine.

Where did Roman Emperor Hadiran get the idea to rename this region Palæstina come from? During the 12^th century BCE (3,200 years ago), the Philistines settled in an area on the coast between Israel and Egypt. This area contained five cities of the Philistine confederacy (Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Gath, and Ekron), known as Philistia, or the Land of the Philistines. By early seventh century BCE, the Philistines became vassals of the Assyrian rulers. In 135 AD, Hadiran used the name of this civilization that had disappeared 680 years earlier, to rebrand the territory of the Jewish Kingdom of Israel as “Palæstina.” Thus, “Palestine/Palestinian” is just another name for Israel and the Jews.

[To put these large numbers into perspective, the United States is only 248 years old (1776). The Magna Carta is only 809 years old (1215). The Titanic sank only 112 years ago (1912).]

Throughout history, there has always been a Jewish presence in the area originally called Israel. Although there have been many conquerors (Babylonian, Roman, Byzantine, Early Muslim, Crusader, Mamluk, Ottoman) in this territory once called Palestine, throughout the ages, it has always been referred to as the Holy Land or the Promised Land.

Therefore, Palestine = The Holy Land = The Promised Land = Israel (including the Temple Mount) and the Israelites/Jewish people. Not Persians, Christians, Arabs, or Arabs who identify as Palestinians. In other words, “Palestine” was always inexorably tied to “Israel.”

Even the United Nations agrees. The UN General Assembly Resolution 181 (29 November 1947), Part I (“Future Constitution and Government of Palestine”), Section A (“Termination of Mandate, Partition, and Independence”), Paragraph 3 reads: “Independent Arab and Jewish States and the Special International Regime for the City of Jerusalem, set forth in Part III of this Plan, shall come into existence in Palestine two months after the evacuation of the armed [British] forces of the mandatory Power has been completed but in any case not later than 1 October 1948.” (Italic emphasis added.) Note the specific mention in UN Resolution 181 is for a Jewish State and Arab State, not a “Palestinian,” state.

What’s in a name? Palestinian, Arab, Israeli, Jew, Muslim, Christian? Most of us are a combination of several identities. In Israel, there’s always been a Jewish presence and since the late 1800’s Jews in the diaspora began returning home in greater numbers. There are Arabs and Christians who have lived in Israel for just a few generations or for many years. Some immigrated to Israel for love, education, or a career.

The obstacle for peace – Islamic Jihadism. As stated repeatedly, by their own words and actions, many Arab nations in Israel’s neighborhood want to destroy it and kill the Jewish people. Why can’t the Middle East live in peace?

There seems to be one major obstacle to peace – acceptance. Acceptance that the State of Israel is a place where all can practice their religion, have access to their holy sites, and be free to live and build a prosperous life. Instead of being a Muslim-run theocracy, as are some other countries, Israel is a Jewish democratic-theocracy. It is comparable to the concept that Western civilization has adopted by creating countries consisting of European Christian (of various denominations) democracies.

Unfortunately, this concept of religious equality and freedom goes against Islam’s fundamental Quranic belief that only it is the supreme religion, and all others are subservient, who must therefore live as second-class citizens (dhimini), or convert, or die. See Quran 9:33 and other relevant verses.

Islam repeatedly and consistently demonstrates its lack of acceptance of other religions and cultures by wiping them out as they expand. Recent proof can be found in Pakistan, which was a Hindu majority before the jihadist Islamic conquest. Due to Muslim persecution, the indigenous Pakistani Hindu community is on the verge of extinction. And Bethlehem, had a majority Christian population when the Palestinian Authority (PA) took control in 1995. By 2016, the Christian population in Bethlehem had dropped to just 12%.

The world needs to realize the continuing global domination goal of Islam is currently being carried out by the violent instability wrought in the Middle East and through the long-term Islamification of Europe and other countries.

Israel, as the democratic middle eastern country, is the first to battle with Islamic Jihadists. The democratic nations of the world must confront and force Islam to change (read: acceptance of others).

If the world democracies, including NATO and the United Nations, do not join Israel to fight this world-threatening Islamic Jihadist movement now, their countries will undoubtedly be the next to be appropriated and taken over.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* As Romanian KGB defector and secret police operator Gen. Ion Mihai Pacepa revealed decades ago, the Soviet Union under Yuri Andropov deliberately invented a Palestinian national identity in the 1960s as a weapon to destroy Israel, and to undermine America and the West. Moscow recruited and trained Yasser Arafat, created the Palestinian Liberation Organization, crafted its cause, wrote its charter and rebranded Jew-hatred as a “national liberation” movement. The strategy was never about Palestinian statehood. It was designed to legitimize terrorism against the Jews to destabilize the West, fracture America from within and turn the free world against itself. (Source: The myth of the ‘Palestinian’ cause by Avi Abelow, July 6, 2026 / JNS)

It is important to note that people who hope to encourage extremism depend upon the political ignorance of their audiences. Many pro-Hamas/pro-Palestinian demonstrators say that their activism is rooted in a deeply held conviction that the world is divided between the oppressed and their oppressors. And they firmly believe that Israel is the oppressor.

In a recent Wall Street Journal article entitled “From Which River to Which Sea?” Professor Ron E. Hassner points out that college students don’t understand, yet agree with the slogan, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” However, Professor Hassner hired a survey firm to poll students from a variety of backgrounds across the U.S. Once they learned a handful of basic facts about the Middle East geography, history, or demography, nearly seventy percent of those students went from supporting “from the river to sea” to rejecting it.

Many of the demonstrators, who are, or identify as, liberals, women, gay, trans, atheists, Jews, Christians, etc., who were raised in an open democratic society, are actually supporting the opposite. In repeating whatever hateful chants the speaker shouts out, without verifying what they are claiming, participants in these anti-Israel demonstrations are proving that they are uninformed, indoctrinated, and easily led.

What happened to the overreaching educational goal “learn how to think, not what to think?”

The youth from the 1950’s through the early 1970’s, loudly and forcibly demonstrated for anti-war, civil rights, and to free Soviet Jews. They did not demonstrate in support of killing/ raping/ beheading of anybody. And they could easily articulate and factually support their point of view. However, watching street interviews of demonstrators today, it appears they cannot.

Perhaps these demonstrators should take this challenge: Who are the oppressed and who are the oppressors? Perhaps they should ask themselves: What facts support the claims? Are their slogans, chants, and signs “free speech” or “incitement to violence?”

• Let’s look at some claims and ask some questions. But don’t take this author’s word for it. It is imperative for each of us to educate ourselves and to answer the various manipulative claims of the anti-Israel camp. Verify everything by researching a variety of sources including original documents and websites, and news sources of differing political points of view. To paraphrase the late comic Richard Pryor, “who ya gonna believe, your own research or their lies?”

• Israel is a colonial nation. In fact, Israel threw out the colonial British and were given their own country in 1948. Immediately after its re-birth, Israel was attacked by five Arab nations intent on Israel’s destruction rather than rallying to support the Arab/Jewish partition plan. [As for who is a colonialist, research Muslim and the jihadist Islamic conquest of the region throughout history.]
  

• Palestine refugees. UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) states that there were 710,000 original Arab refugees from Israel during and after the 1948 war. Yet, by 2019, there were 5.6 million Palestinian refugees worldwide. During that same period of the 1948 war and into the 1950’s, Jews whose families had lived in various Arab countries for over 1,000 years, were forcibly evicted, creating 850,000 thousand Jewish refugees. They mostly fled to Israel. In addition, also during that time, hundreds of thousands of poverty-stricken, European Jewish refugees from the Holocaust either emigrated to Israel or, like every other (non-Arab) refugee in the world, fell under the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and were duly settled in other counties. Today, there is not one Jewish or WW2 refugee. Why are there four generations of Palestinian refugees?

• Palestinians should have their own state. Actually, they (Arab refugees, who then later adopted the name “Palestinians”) have been offered a state many times and have consistently refused every offer. They don’t want their own state. They want to replace and wipe out Israel. Rather than focus on the betterment of their own people, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas have spent decades educating their citizens, including children, to hate Jews and Israel, and they have spent hundreds of millions of dollars on building terror tunnels. They have misdirected foreign governmental charity funds to create a huge military army, complete with rockets, missiles, and portable rocket launchers. During this same time, Israel has spent its time nation building. [Historic Research Assignment: Examine the origin of the word ‘Palestine.’]

• Israel is an apartheid state. The definition of apartheid is “a policy or system of segregation or discrimination” based on race, religion, gender, etc. Yet a core concept of Israel’s Declaration of Independence is “…[it] will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace …; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions…”. It seems many demonstrators don’t know that there has always been an Arab political party in Israel. Every Israeli citizen has the right vote, go to school, get medical care, and more. Arabs have served in the Israeli army, police, supreme court, Knesset, medical profession, and more. [Question: Do you think the anti-Israel demonstrators have read the Hamas or PA Charters?]

• Israel is occupying the land in violation of international law. Please name or quote which specific international laws Israel is violating.

• Israel is committing genocide. Against whom? Where? Yet the openly stated goal of Hamas and others is the extermination (read: genocide or extinction) of the Jews; and their actions have demonstrated just that.

• Israel is killing innocent civilians and violating international law. It is a sad fact that in any war, civilian casualties take place. However, these claims are baseless. Israel exceeds in its care for enemy civilians by providing advance warnings and enough time for civilians to get out of harm’s way. That’s something no other military in the world does or has done. A point of comparison is the “urban warfare” Battle of Mosul (2016), where ISIS fought Iraqi and U.S. led coalition forces. The civilian casualty rate was 1 combatant to 4.8 civilians. Compare that with the first two months of the current Hamas-Israel war where the rate is 1 combatant to about 2 civilians. That low rate is maintained by the IDF despite Hamas purposely building its military facilities in civilian areas and forcing their civilians to be human shields, which is clearly against international law. Hamas has the ultimate responsibility for the number of civilian casualties in Gaza. [Question: Have mainstream journalists or demonstrators actually read the Geneva Conventions and/or researched the phrase “rules of war?”]
  

• America is a racist country [another related protest chant]: After George Floyd died, many cities experienced numerous riots, incited by Black Lives Matter and other groups. In many of these cities, the mayor and/or the police chief was Black, or a woman, or both. Furthermore, as a result of these “peaceful” demonstrations, many of the communities’ small businesses that were destroyed were minority owned. [Where was the white oppression?]

So, who really are the oppressed? Is it the Jews - who have been subjected to antisemitism, pogroms, ostracization, and executions since ancient times until today?

Or is it Hamas and their “innocent” Palestinian followers who culminated their decades of terrorism by butchering, burning, dismembering, and raping innocents, from babies to elderly, on October 7? The same Hamas who announced that they will do it again and again until they complete the destruction of Israel and the genocide of the Jews. And the same Hamas, who daily sends rockets into civilian areas where schools, hospitals, and homes are located? (Just over the past 2 months, over 10,500 missiles have been lobbed at Israeli civilians.)

Perhaps if they the demonstrators took this challenge, they wouldn’t continue to be the intellectually vacant who blindly support anti-Semitic hatred while actually decrying democratic values? Be aware and informed. Seek the truth. Verify it.

# # #

Author’s note: There are deliberately no links to sources. It is up to the reader to do the research.

With the Republican and Democratic National Conventions behind us and a new university semester upon us, the political discussions regarding Israel and Hamas, Israel and Palestine, Israel and Iran, Israel and the U.S. Administration…you pick…increase in frequency and intensity.

Unfortunately, arguments with friends and family can devolve into shouting matches.

How does one discuss, convince, or at least, input an element of doubt into those who have bought into the anti-Israel demagoguery to really understand what those anti-Israel movements are really about and discover their own “aha!” moment of the truth.

History is usually written by the victors and academics. History is usually taught by the era (i.e., the rise and fall of the Roman Empire) or the event (i.e., World War 1). History is rarely taught by comparison of commonality (i.e., the Black Plague vs. the Spanish Flu).

How can we learn what they really were striving for without the bias of the victors or academics? What could be researched and how should it be examined?

Wouldn’t it be better to hear it in their own words? Let the pro-Hamas and anti-Israel advocates make their own case to your friends and family, in their own words, so you don’t have to?

As a former advertising & marketing professional and professor, I know that popular culture in the form of advertisements, slogans and jingles, is a great representation of the real ideals, beliefs, and morals of the people at a particular time. Therefore, the songs, poetry, slogans, and even national anthems, of a revolutionary movement are a great place to uncover the ideals, beliefs, and morals of those people striving for a specific cause or revolution.

My goal as a professor was always to teach my students how to think, not what to think. I accomplished this by employing the Socratic method – showing the facts and then asking questions. This results in many “aha!” moments. Specifically, because it is in the revolutionaries own words! – rather than the unsubstantiated rhetoric being shouted on campuses or presented by biased (left or right) media outlets.

On our city streets and college campuses the demonstration chants are getting more aggressive and speak more towards inciting violence. All for “free Palestine.”

However, the words, as their actions, of the Arab leadership consistently demonstrate that this “Palestine liberation” movement for a homeland for Palestinians was never their intention. What does “permanent ceasefire” mean if your objectives don’t change? Their objective simply is, and always has been, the elimination of Israel and the extermination of Jews as a people and religion. Here are just five examples of the Arab and Palestinian leaderships supporting this anti-Israel, anti-Jewish, and anti-Zionist position in their own words:

1. 1937 – Auni Bey Abdul-Hadi, a local Arab leader: “There is no such country [as Palestine]! Palestine is a term the Zionists invented! There is no Palestine in the Bible. Our country is part of Syria.”

2. 1947 – Haj Amin el-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem: “Palestine was part of the Province of Syria…Politically, the Arabs of Palestine were not independent in the sense of forming a separate political entity.”

3. 1948 – Secretary-General of the Arab League: “This war will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre which will be spoken of like the Mongol massacres and the Crusades.”

4. 1977 – PLO executive committee member, Zahir Muhsein: “The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people…to oppose Zionism.”

5. 1994 – Yassar Arafat, the Chairman of the PLO, called for a “jihad” to liberate Jerusalem. He suggested that his peace agreement (Oslo Peace Accords) with Israel was only a tactical step that could still be reversed as it is based on ‘Taqiyya,’ which is an Islamic law that ‘permits’ lying to confound and defeat enemies through deception.

Yasser Arafat was very effective in saying one thing to the English language news media and then saying the opposite in Arabic to his followers and the Arab audience. That pattern continues. The proof can be found in media reports on UNRWA and Hamas education programs, as well as key websites that translate messages. Here is a synopsis of what can be found:

Quotes attributed to Palestinian leadership:

• “The Muslim loves death and martyrdom like the Jews love life.”

• “The Palestinian people are prepared to sacrifice the last boy and the last girl so that the Palestinian flag will be flown over the walls, the churches and the mosques of Jerusalem.”

• “The goal of our struggle is the end of Israel, and there can be no compromise.”

• “Peace for us means the destruction of Israel.”

• “Whoever thinks of stopping the uprising before it achieves its goals, I will give him ten bullets in the chest.”

Songs/Poems, and many videos, have a common violent and bloody theme:

• “Strap on the belt, O daughter of my land, and detonate it in front of the enemies / How sweet is the taste of Martyrdom”

• “Write ‘death, death, death to Israel’ with flowing blood, And with the bleeding body cause death, death, death to Israel”

• “[Arafat] you are the rifle and I am the one who learned its art / O [PA President] Mahmoud Abbas, walk on and don’t worry... / By Allah, my blood is your blood

• “I’m coming towards you, my enemy, We’re going down from every house with cleavers and knives, With grenades we announced a popular war. I swear, you won’t escape, my enemy, from the revolution and the people.”

The Hamas Charter. It is hard to expect anything but violence without any opening for peace. Their claim of peace “under the wing of Islam” refers to the concept of ‘dhimmis’ or second-class citizenship that comes with many religious restrictions:

• “Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it.” In other words, genocide for the Israelis and non-Muslims.”

• “There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through Jihad. Initiatives, proposals, and international conferences are all a waste of time and vain endeavors.”

• “I swear by the holder of Mohammed’s soul that I would like to invade and be killed for the sake of Allah, then invade and be killed, and then invade again and be killed.”

• “Under the wing of Islam, it is possible for the followers of the three religions - Islam, Christianity, and Judaism - to coexist in peace and quiet with each other. Peace and quiet would not be possible except under the wing of Islam… It is the duty of the followers of other religions to stop disputing the sovereignty of Islam in this region, because the day these followers should take over there will be nothing but carnage, displacement, and terror.”

The Palestinian Authority Charter offers the following highlighted points of view:

• “Armed struggle is the only way to liberate Palestine.”

• “The destiny of the Arab nation, and indeed Arab existence itself, depend upon the destiny of the Palestine cause.” In other words, linkage for the desire of leverage.

• “…and it attempts to repel the Zionist and imperialist aggression against the Arab homeland and aims at the elimination of Zionism in Palestine.” In other words, genocide.

Also, there is a lot of talk about the Palestinian refugees. Yet, after the first Arab-Israeli War (1948-1949), the head of Britain’s Middle East Office in Cairo, Sir John Troutbeck, reported to the Foreign Office, that the Palestinian refugees declared to him that their Arab brothers “were the ones who persuaded them unnecessarily to leave their homes.” Thus, self-acknowledging the role of various Arab states in the creation of today’s Palestinian refugee problem, now containing even four generations of the original refugees.

The quoted text above are their own words. Perhaps showing or challenging friends and family to read them, note their sources for authenticity, and then ask themselves a few questions, they will see the light or at least have some doubt to keep questioning and verifying.

Here are some suggested questions for them:

1. How do the messages presented (quotes, slogans, and songs), reconcile with your recollection, understanding, history classes, and the messaging presented in the current media news cycles?

2. In reading the topic information, concepts, and objectives, in their own words, did you learn or conclude anything new? If so, what?

3. Are the revolutionaries right in their cause and course of action? Why? Why not?

4. Do you think the revolutionaries will live up to their ideals, stated in their own words, if their revolution is won? Will the resulting society be better or worse for the general population under their new leadership?

Bonus question: Who are the Palestinians? (Answer: Simply look up the origin of the word “Palestine” on the internet, note who lived there when the Roman conqueror renamed it. Hint: Israelites/Jews.)

Having had many of these ‘conversations’ myself, it became my focus to create such a resource. Readers can find all this evidence, and more, in Chapter 8, Sources, and Appendices, of the newly released book: Revolutions: In Their Own Words, What They Really Say About Their Causes, now available on Amazon (Please forgive the obvious plug for my new book.)

This new book presents a new way to look at history (and relevant today) by providing a short, introductory background to the revolution being discussed, a collection of representative songs and slogans, and some comments and analysis to get started in making one’s own conclusions about each revolution. For the purposes of “compare and contrast,” the book also covers the revolutions of America, France, Russia, Israel, Cuba, and Palestine.

By presenting all this evidence and letting them come to their own “aha!” moment of the truth and understanding perhaps will be more powerful than any argument or loss of friendship.

# # #

Every missile attack by Hamas, or its affiliates, on Israel (4,300 in May of 2021, 1,100 in August 2022, 1,468 in May 2023) constitutes a double violation of the Geneva Convention (specifically that it is forbidden, and a war crime, to store and fire weapons from civilian areas and conduct attacks on civilians). Additionally, each knife, shooting, stabbing, and stoning attacks on civilian men, women, the elderly, and children, are also in direct violation of Geneva convention protocols and international laws.

Of the thousands of missiles fired by Hamas into Israel, some fall into open areas and the Mediterranean Sea but approximately 15% fall back into Gaza itself, harming and killing their own people. Certainly, this is a “crime against humanity” perpetrated by Hamas, against innocent Gazans.

Hamas continues to totally control the citizens of Gaza with a cruel and dictatorial rule. Hamas teaches children to kidnap and kill (a direct violation of UN Resolution 1612 Child Abuse). Even though Israel bears the brunt of rocket and terrorist attacks on innocent civilians, it must be remembered that Hamas practices a form of Islam that considers every religion (Jew or Christian) to be beneath theirs (Quran, 9:5).

Hamas is designated as a terrorist organization by The United States, Canada, United Kingdom, The European Union (27 countries), Japan, Paraguay, New Zealand, and the Organization of American States (35 countries). Hamas is even banned in Jordan (Wikipedia).

Besides being acknowledged globally as a terrorist organization, Hamas is also an international criminal organization. Additionally, Hamas, Hezbollah, and affiliates are proxies of Iran, which despite many sanctions against it, continues to export terror.

Regardless of one’s personal or political position towards the State of Israel, it cannot be denied that Israel is a democracy that operates on the basis of laws and an open electoral process, unlike Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, the Palestinian Authority, and other Arab countries. The PA has not had an election since Mahmud Abbas was elected in January 2005 for a four-year term, eighteen and a half years ago.

So, what can be done to solve this international terrorist and criminal problem that is being exacerbated and manipulated by Iran? Who is out there on the world stage, empowered by the international community, to do something about this?

The United Nations’ Charter (Article 93, paragraph 2) states that nonmembers (like Hamas) may become parties to the Statute of the Court determined by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council. This implies that positive action in protecting the citizens of Gaza can be taken by the UN.

NATO “not only helps to defend the territory of its members, but also engages where possible and when necessary to project its values further afield, prevent and manage crises, stabilise [sic] post-conflict situations and support reconstruction” (NATO’s website).

The Arab League, founded in 1945, now has 22 members. The League’s mission is to facilitate political, economic, cultural, scientific, military, and social programs designed to promote the interests of the Arab world. Is not the welfare of the Arabs in Gaza, who are under the brutal rule of Hamas, the Arab League’s concern, too?

What to do about an evil gang that employs terror tactics upon innocent civilians of a neighboring sovereign country and their own people? Here is an idea.

The “mandate” system was established by Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations, drafted by the victors of World War I. The article referred to territories that were no longer ruled by their previous sovereign, where their peoples were not considered “able to stand by themselves under the strenuous conditions of the modern world”. The Article called for such people to be “entrusted to advanced nations who by reason of their resources, their experience or their geographical position can best undertake this responsibility” (Wikipedia). Sounds like Gaza since Hamas took over, right?

In the UN context, a “mandate” refers to the decision that gives a body the authority to carry out its functions. One example is the establishment of a peacekeeping mission and enumeration of the types of activities to be carried out by the mission (UN’s website).

Perhaps one or more of the aforementioned multi-nation organizations, all formed for the purpose of benevolence towards those suffering and in need, could come to the aid of the Gazan people. Take over Gaza, by force, if necessary (in the name of bringing the Hamas leadership to answer for their crimes against humanity). Then put in place a “Mandate for Gaza” to create a more humane local governmental system and help build a country of prosperity and safety for its innocent and helpless citizens.

Once proper educational and governmental foundations are in place, the “Mandate for Gaza” would be dissolved, and the new democratic government of Gaza could be welcomed into the international community.

If the international organizations, and countries of the world, dedicated to defense and world peace, take action, other despots will likely sit up and take notice.

Hamas, and their ilk (Hezbollah, PA, Islamic Jihad, etc.), are getting stronger and bolder. These terrorist organizations, supported by Iran, will benefit if Iran obtains nuclear weapons. The time to employ a comprehensive proactive solution, such as a mandate, is now.

# # #

Genocide is back in the news. At a joint White House press conference (November 21, 2025), New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, in answer to a reporter’s question said, “I have spoken about the Israeli government committing genocide, and I have spoken about our government funding it.”

It is very unsettling when the mayor-elect of the most Jewishly populated city in the U.S. foments more hate and untruths against its Jewish citizens and their ancestral homeland. Notably, it was disappointing and surprising that President Trump, by being silent did not rebut Momdani’s false and inflammatory genocidal accusation.

It might be time to look into this claim of “the Israeli government committing genocide.”

Genocide definition: According to the United Nations, genocide is any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group: (a) Killing members of the group; (b) Causing serious physical or mental harm to members of the group; (c) Intentionally subjecting the group to living conditions intended to cause its physical destruction, in whole or in part; (d) Imposing measures aimed at preventing the birth of children within the group; (e) Forcibly transferring children from the group to another group. More simply put, the Oxford Dictionary defines genocide as the murder of a large number of people from a particular nation or ethnic group, with the aim of destroying that nation or group.

Examples of genocidal events: the Spanish Inquisition in the 1400’s, the Holocaust of World War II, and the Islamic conquests, including Pakistan (against Hindus), Western Thrace (against Christians) and Anatolia, Turkey (against Christians), and now in Nigeria (against Christians).

The accusations of certain worldwide government politicians and left-leaning progressive organizations that Israel is committing ‘genocide’ of Palestinians is incredulous on many levels.

The truth of history and facts. The area known as “Palestine” was named “Palæstina” by the Roman Emperor Hadrian after the failed Judean Bar Kochba revolt in 135 CE. This took place 475 years before Islam began. The people who lived in the land of Israel were Jews (Israelites). Throughout history, Palestine = the Holy Land = Israel, including Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.

The term “Palestine” was usurped from the Jews by Muslim Arabs in 1964 when the Arab League created the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to attempt to unify the uniquely multi-generational Arab refugees, created after their failed genocidal attack Israel in 1948. There never was any Arab Palestinian peoplehood, state, or country to liberate. It was a brilliant tactic to try and destroy Israel in a genocidal way. In the Arab leader’s own words, one example: “This war will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre which will be spoken of like the Mongol massacres and the Crusades.” – (Author’s italic emphasis) Source: February 1948 UN memorandum, Azzman Pasha, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, referring to the upcoming May 1948 war.

At this time when five well-trained and well-armed Arab armies were poised to wipe Israel off the map, Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion bravely and publicly read the Israel Declaration of Independence. Its 13^th paragraph: “THE STATE OF ISRAEL will … foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace…; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.” – (Author’s italic emphasis) Obviously, not an Israeli plan for genocide.

It should be noted that unlike every other group of people considered displaced persons and/or refugees, a special UN relief organization was created only for ‘Palestinian’ refugees that allowed for generations to be called refugees, regardless of whether they settled in a new country or were left in refugee camps. Thus, the Arab ‘refugee’ population has grown from 710,000 (1949) to 5.9 million today. Contrast that to the 850,000 Jews thrown out of Arab countries in the 1950’s and settled wherever they could. Those Jewish refugees today now number zero.

Genocide facts by the numbers. Since 1948 the Arab percentage of the total Israeli population has remained about 20%. The Arab population has grown from about 156,000 in 1948 to 1.95 million in 2021. Is this genocide?

The Guardian, quoting the Lancet medical journal on Gaza statistics, “estimates death toll by end of June 2024 was 64,260, with 59% (37,907) being women, children and people over 65.” Upon examining these numbers, mostly sourced from Hamas, Gaza, and Palestinian sources, the results are revealing. The balance of the death toll would be 26,342 representing most or all combatants. Therefore, using their own numbers, the Israeli army killed approximately 1.4 civilians for each combatant.

Yet, a year later (July 2025) on the Hamas controlled Gaza Ministry of Health’s own Telegram channel, they reported 60,199 deaths, with still 59% (32,584) being women, children and people over 65. The balance of the death toll would be 27,605 representing most or all combatants. Using Hamas’ own numbers, the Israeli army killed approximately 1.2 civilians for each combatant.

Comparing urban warfare in Gaza, for example, to urban warfare during the Battle of Mosul, Iraq (October 16, 2016 - July 20, 2017), ISIS fought Iraqi and U.S. led coalition forces. The Associated Press reported that during this time, over 9,600 civilians died. NPR (National Public Radio), quoting from the U.S. Department of Defense, indicated there were 2,000 ISIS soldiers killed in Mosul. This equals 4.8 civilians killed for each combatant.

Who is really committing to genocide? Counter all of this by the often-repeated Islamic Jihadist cry shouted by pro-Palestinians supporters, Hamas, Iran, Hezbollah, Houthis, and the like: “Death to America!” “Death to Israel!” And their deadly actions throughout history. This a real call for genocide against Jews and western Judeo-Chrisitan societies.

War is messy and painful. Urban warfare is even worse. However, world-wide cries accusing Israel and Jews of committing ‘genocide’ are factually not true and are dangerously inflammatory. The number of antisemitic incidents surged by 337% year-over-year, with over 10,000 incidents reported in the U.S. alone from October 2023 to September 2024. These includes physical assaults, killings, vandalism, verbal and written harassment, and disruptive rallies with violent antisemitic rhetoric.

The truth, based on their actions and rhetoric, is that genocide of non-Muslims and their societies are exactly what the Islamic Jihad movement and its pro-Palestinian supporters is based on. Israel and Jews have no global expansionist desires and do not practice genocide.

The non-Muslim world must wake up and stop this Islamic global conquest attempt by any means possible, including, unfortunately, military confrontation, if necessary. False accusations of Israel committing genocide is part of their master plan of deception.

# # #

Islamic Jihad is often a phrase referenced in the media as simply anti-Semitic/anti-Jews/anti-Israel. In reality, Islamic Jihad is an ongoing holy war against infidels, meaning everyone who is not Muslim. This term pits the entire Muslim Islamic world against everyone else. Proof can be found on the streets of Tehran and in multiple cities in the United States with the shouts of “Death to America” in the same breath as “Death to Israel” and the desecration of their national symbols.

The reality of the Muslim goal of world dominance can be seen throughout Islamic history to the present. A very revealing current example of this phenomena can be found in Israel, in the city of Bethlehem-so precious to Christians. In the last year of British rule over the region (1947) and even under Israeli control, approximately 85% of Bethlehem’s population were Christian. Bethlehem has been under the control of the Palestinian Authority since the Oslo Peace Accords (1993). As of a 2017 census, the percentage of Christians in Bethlehem was around 10%.

Jihad is defined as “holy war.” The word “Islam” literally means “submission” or “surrender” to the will of Allah, and it is derived from the Arabic root S-L-M, which is also the root for the words “salam“ (peace) and “silm“ (safety, peace). Islam stresses that the means to peace are justice, submission to God’s will, and righteousness.

In the Qur’an, Islam repeatedly claims superiority over everyone and clearly defines how Muslims should deal with non-believers/infidels. While full texts for context are readily available online, here are some excerpts:

Superiority:

• At-Taubah 9.33: “It is He (Allah) Who has sent His Messenger (Muhammad) with guidance and the religion of truth (Islam), to make it superior over all religions even though the Mushrikun (polytheists, pagans, idolaters, disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah) hate (it).”

• Al-Fath 48.28: “He (Allah) it is Who has sent His Messenger (Muhammad) with guidance and the religion of truth (Islam), that He may make it (Islam) superior over all religions. And All-Sufficient is Allah as a Witness.”

• As-Saff 61.9: “It is He (Allah) who sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to manifest it over all religion, although those who associate others with Allah dislike it.”

Dealing with non-believers/infidels:

• Al-Anfal 8.12-13: [12] “… I (Allah) will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieved, so strike [them] upon the necks and strike from them every fingertip.” [13] “That is because they opposed Allah and His Messenger. And whoever opposes Allah and His Messenger – indeed, Allah is severe in penalty.”

• Al-Ma’idah 5.33: “Those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger, and go about the earth spreading mischief - indeed their recompense is that they either be done to death, or be crucified, or have their hands and feet cut off from the opposite sides or be banished from the land.”

Islam looks at the world in only one of two ways: (a) “Dar al-Islam” refers to territory where security is controlled by Muslims and Islamic-based Shari’ah law is implemented versus (b) “Dar al-Harb”, the absence of either. It is quite easy to conclude that the West is Dar al-Harb.

Prayer: Every one of the five daily prayers begins with the Surah Al-Fatihah, which is the first chapter of the Qur’an. Consisting of seven verses, it is a concise encapsulation of the core beliefs and values of Islam. However, verse #7 deserves special attention. Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan’s translation of Surah Al-Fatiha is widely respected and used in many English editions of the Qur’an. Dr. Khan’s translation, including the words in parentheses, reads: “The Way of those on whom You have bestowed Your Grace, not (the way) of those who earned Your Anger (such as the Jews), nor of those who went astray (such as the Christians).“ Every daily prayer begins with this declaration against Jews and Christians and is repeated at least five times per day.

Perhaps there is hope for a change. Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, President of Egypt, a devout Muslim, declared in a 2015 speech: “It’s inconceivable that [what] we hold most sacred should cause the entire Islamic world to be a source of anxiety, danger, killing and destruction for the rest of the world… It’s antagonizing the entire world! We are in need of a religious revolution. You imams are responsible before Allah. The entire world is waiting for your word … because the Islamic world is being torn, it is being destroyed, it is being lost … by our own hands.”

The world can’t wait too long.

# # #

I ask this question as a former proud protestor and demonstrator (late 1960’s – early 1970s) and recently retired university professor. In just about every picture or video of pro-Palestinian demonstrators on the news today, nearly everyone is masked to hide their identity. Why?

As a pro-Palestinian demonstrator, you support the positions of all those slogans you are shouting for your cause and know what they mean. Like “jihad now” and “from the river to the sea.” Why are you ashamed?

As an anti-Israel demonstrator, I am sure you read the founding charters of the Palestine Authority and Hamas, as well as the State of Israel’s declaration of independence, and understand what they stand for. Why are you ashamed?

As an informed demonstrator, of course you have read and watched the Arabic articles and videos (translated or dubbed into English) from reputable sources like MEMRI, Honest Reporting, and “Revolution: In Their Own Words” explaining their position in their own words. Why are you ashamed?

As an inquisitive university student or left-leaning activist, you do know that Hamas, chosen by Gazans in their January 2006 election, is a designated international terrorist organization by many countries, including the United States. And that like the pro-Hamas Columbia agitator Mahmoud Khalil, supporting them is extremely illegal, whether you are a citizen or alien. Why are you ashamed?

Don’t you want your friends and family to be proud of you? Read and think for yourself. It is ok to trust your leaders and professors but still verify it. Then take off that mask, so you don’t have to be ashamed anymore.

# # #

The almost routine action of the United Nations condemning Israel and inaction of not condemning Hamas, Hezbollah, or their puppet-master Iran for its heinous and barbaric terrorism, has been going on for decades. But the recent Palestinian Authority’s UN resolution is the straw that broke the camel’s back. This resolution, and its list of sponsors and supporters, is a perfect example of taqiyya, an Islamic concept that allows lying to confound and defeat enemies through deception.

Three of the four Arab countries, who are signatories to the Abraham Accords, which are bilateral agreements on Arab-Israeli normalization, are among the sponsors of this anti-Israel resolution. Yet all four voted for the PA resolution. This dichotomous behavior is not surprising. If one looks back to the Oslo Peace Accords (a set of agreements between Israel and the terrorist Palestine Liberation Organization that established a peace process) one will see that shortly after signing the accords, Arafat gave a speech on May 10, 1994, in a mosque in Johannesburg, where he referenced taqiyya and called for a jihad (read: destroy Israel and kill the Jews). He suggested that his signing of the peace accords with Israel was only a tactical step that could be reversed.

By the PA re-stating the “advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, rendered on 19 July 2024,” the resolution’s text contains one unfounded, twisted untruth after the other. In the interest of space, here are just a few:

• Israel’s “Regime.” A ‘regime’ is an authoritarian government. Israel is a parliamentary democracy, while the originating sponsor of this resolution (PA) president is now in his 19^th year of a 4-year term.
  

• “Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful.”

  • Palestinian territory cannot be “occupied” by Israel for a number of reasons. Historically, the name “Palestine” comes from when the Roman Emperor Hadrian renamed the Kingdom of Israel in 135 CE, after the Philistines, who disappeared 750 years earlier, in an effort to try and eradicate the name of the Jewish nation. Therefore, Jews are actually the true Palestinians. (Can you say, “cultural appropriation?”)

  • More recently, UN resolution 181 (Nov 1947) divided a remaining portion of the Mandate for Palestine; one portion of the land for the Jews and one portion for the Arabs (no mention of “Palestinians”). The Jews said yes to the partition, but the Arabs said no and immediately attacked the nascent state of Israel to wipe it out. Israel miraculously survived but Jordan illegally occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem from 1949 to 1967. Not once during those 18 years was the topic of a Palestinian state or resettlement of refugees dealt with, many of whom were lured by the Arab nations to leave Palestine/Israel, while Israel asked them to stay.

  • Jordan and Israel signed a peace treaty in 1994 giving the West Bank and East Jerusalem to the State of Israel. (See more under “two state” solution.)
    

• Calling for “the two-State solution for the achievement of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East.” The Palestinian National Charter, like this resolution, make unfounded claims that repeatedly deny the validity of Israel, Jews, and Zionism and calls for violence against the State of Israel. Many previous two-state proposals for Jews and Arabs have been put forth only to be repeatedly turned down by the PA. The only “lasting peace” they, and others are seeking, is one without Israel or the Jews, in other words, genocide. (“From the river to the sea, Palestine must be free – of Jews.”)

• Other topics of the PA Resolution include calls for economic boycotts and diplomatic questioning whether Jerusalem is actually the capital of the Jewish State of Israel.

This resolution is, in effect, an official declaration of political, diplomatic, and economic war. How should the State of Israel respond to this astounding resolution that passed 124 to 14 with 43 abstaining. (Abstaining? The list of countries – many of whom one would think would be Israel’s friends - and their votes are very telling.)

Historically and rationally, nations at war have no direct relations on any level. Therefore, Israel as a declared enemy by the PA, should act accordingly and have nothing more to do with the PA directly. Here are some ideas for actions that Israel can take over the near term:

1. No direct financial services. (Curiously, what is the currency of the PA? Yes, it’s the Israeli Shekel.)

2. No direct trade or selling of any goods and services to the PA, including utilities.

3. Due to the actions of their government, anyone with a PA identity card is persona non-grata. Therefore, no entry or transit thru Israel via land, air, or sea.

4. Anyone qualifying under point #3 above (or any Arab Musim country national) moving goods into and/or through Israel cannot enter and must transfer the transport to a driver with an Israeli ID.

5. Any country or company doing business with, or within Israel, accepts its sovereign borders, including the Temple Mount.

6. Any foreign embassy not located in Israel’s capital city of Jerusalem should be lowered in status to a consulate.

The PA can easily and should turn to Jordan and their other brother Arab nations to supply them with goods and services currently being provided by their declared enemy, Israel.

It should be noted that the PA was only able to introduce this September 2024 resolution because in June 2024 they were given full UN member status. 146 out of 193 UN members gave the coveted member status to a terrorist organization (PLO) who’s own Charter has not renounced terror.

To become a UN member the PA had to sign that they solemnly agreed to abide by the Charter of United Nations. Those ideals and purposes include: “…practice tolerance and live together in peace … maintain international peace and security…to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression… …sovereign equality.... refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state… ensure that states which are not Members of the United Nations act in accordance with these Principles… A Member which has persistently violated the Principles contained in the present Charter may be expelled from the Organization…” (Author’s emphasis: italics.)

It should be remembered that any UN member that is an Islamic country might use taqiyya to justify signing on to the UN Charter, as a deception because aggressive world domination is their objective. Therefore, they all do not meet the qualifications for UN membership.

Where are the voices and protests of the non-Muslims member nations? The silence, acquiescence, and docile behavior unfortunately demonstrates the ineptitude, ineffectiveness, and immorality, of the UN as a worldwide unifying organization.

# # #

The current negotiations between Hamas -- an Iran-supported, internationally designated foreign terrorist organization -- and Israel, a legitimate democratic nation-state, is a puzzlement.

About 3,800 Hamas terrorists were among the 6,000 Gazans who invaded Israel on Oct. 7 and committed barbaric, inhumane atrocities. Every inhumane act committed, including the taking of hostages and the firing of thousands of indiscriminate rockets into civilian Israeli towns and cities, is against every law of humanity, conduct under the laws of war and many acts of the Geneva Conventions.

Throughout these last 11 months, the Israeli military response has been effective in reducing Hamas’s military abilities. Even though Israel has had to deal with intense and ongoing diplomatic and media pressure, in addition to punitive arms shipment delays, including outright arms contract cancellations from its allies—the United States and Britain. Unfortunately, and desperately, the goals of the hostages’ return (dead and alive), as well as eliminating Hamas’s control of Gaza, still remain. Therefore, Israel is compelled to negotiate with proven liars.

Note on Israeli military effectiveness: When the often-quoted, unsubstantiated claim of 40,000 Gazan deaths at the hands of the Israelis is mentioned, the fact that this statistic includes enemy combatants is omitted. The Israeli military has consistently delivered a civilian-to-combatant death ratio of less than 2-to-1, a historically unprecedented low number, in what analysts describe as one of the most difficult and complex urban warfare operations ever attempted. Let that sink in.

While these tense negotiations are going on, Khaled Mashaal, a top official of Hamas recently urged the resumption of suicide bombings against the innocent citizens of the party they are negotiating with, namely Israel. Read that previous sentence again to let the incredible incongruity set in. (All the while, Israel is suffering from the nearly daily rocket and drone attacks from Iranian-backed Hezbollah and the increasing terror attacks from the Palestinian Authority in Judea-Samaria, aka “the West Bank.”)

That leads us to Yasser Arafat, chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which became the Palestinian Authority after he signed the Oslo Accords. The Oslo Accords was a set of agreements between Israel and the PLO that established a peace process for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Shortly after signing the accords, Arafat gave a speech on May 10, 1994, in a mosque in Johannesburg, where he called for a jihad to liberate Jerusalem (read: destroy Israel and kill the Jews). He suggested that his signing of the peace accords with Israel was only a tactical step that could be reversed. He based this on taqiyya, an Islamic concept that allows lying to confound and defeat enemies through deception.

Here is an excerpt from that speech. The text was transcribed directly from a tape recording of Arafat’s address. “What they are saying is that [Jerusalem] is their capital. No, it is not their capital. It is our capital. It is the first shrine of the Islam and the Muslims.

“This agreement (the Oslo Accords), I am not considering it more than the agreement which had been signed between our prophet Mohammed and Quraysh, and you remember the Caliph Omar had refused this agreement and [considered] it a despicable truce.

“But Mohammed had accepted it, and we are accepting now this peace offer. But to continue our way to Jerusalem, to the first shrine together and not alone.”

The first quote is a bald-faced lie as Jerusalem is considered the third holiest Muslim site and has been the Temple Mount and Jewish capital of Israel for more than a thousand years before Mohamed. The second statement Arafat referred to was an agreement known as “The Treaty of Hudaybiyyah,” which allowed Mohammed to pray in Mecca for 10 years. Two years later, when Mohammed grew stronger, he broke the agreement because he felt the Quraysh supported an attack by one of their allies on an ally of the Muslims. Mohammed subsequently slaughtered the tribe of Quraysh and conquered Mecca. The third statement declares that just like Mohamed accepted and broke a peace agreement, so does Arafat.

Arafat’s modern interpretation of taqiyya exposed his intention to move from the original concept, to lie and mislead in order “to shield oneself,” to the new interpretation of employing this immoral tactic to achieve an ultimate goal by deception. As he said in his own words above, we sign it now but continue to conquer.

It should be noted that the term used for one of the negotiation’s key objectives, “permanent ceasefire,” is a contradiction, as this concept does not end the conflict but merely delays restarting it sometime in the future. Proof can be found by reviewing all the previously broken Hamas-ceasefire agreements, as well as the untenable non-negotiable conditions Hamas is putting forth in the current proposed ceasefire. (Mainly that, Israel should completely withdraw, rebuild Gaza and put Hamas back in power. No accountability.) It could be sarcastically said that “ceasefire” in Arabic means “re-arm.”

The all-important hostage issue is mere leverage from Hamas’s point of view. To Jews, Israelis and other moral people worldwide, the hostages are of utmost concern. Hamas knows this. As does their puppet master, Iran, which controls Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis and other regional terrorist groups. (Note: Only an Iranian regime change will bring the potential for permanent peace and stability to the entire region.)

Yes, “negotiate.” But negotiate from strength and on terms that contain ultimatums and consequences. The drawn-out negotiations have been only a Hamas delay tactic to increase the deaths of their own citizens and hostages, whom the terrorist organization uses as human shields, which, in turn, leads to more unfounded international condemnation of Israel. This condemnation emboldens Hamas to reject agreed-upon terms and demand more.

The world, especially the United States, must desist from only pressuring Israel, they must immediately bring strength and support to Israel and specify terms that contain ultimatums and consequences with the end objective to effectively decimate the power of Hamas, as well as any Islamic jihadists’s ability to rise and threaten Israel and Western civilization again. Unfortunately, with the full knowledge that this is negotiating with liars. Can you say taqiyya?

# # #

The Palestinian Authority’s ability to recently submit a UN resolution and demand a vote for the “Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria within six months” goes against every core principle in the UN Charter. The fact that UN recently gave the PA, an organization with a terrorist history (PLO) and a pay-for-slay government policy, Member status, also goes against the UN’s foundational principles.

Some background. Formed in the aftermath of World War II (1945) by the major Allied powers, the UN now has 193 members. They all must agree and sign onto the foundational agreement known as the Charter of the United Nations. This document established its ideals and purposes.

Those ideals and purposes: “…practice tolerance and live together in peace … maintain international peace and security…to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression… …sovereign equality.... refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state… ensure that states which are not Members of the United Nations act in accordance with these Principles… A Member which has persistently violated the Principles contained in the present Charter may be expelled from the Organization…”

How’s United Nations living up to the lofty ideals, which every member country solemnly swore to uphold? Here are just a few examples:

• UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is a specialized agency established to promote international collaboration in the fields of education, science, culture, and communication. Yet UNESCO consistently ignores archeological and historical proof, and national sovereignty, when it comes to Israel. Because of this, both the U.S. and Israel left the organization in 2017 in protest. (The US has since returned.) According to UN Watch, over the eight years between 2009 and 2017, UNESCO adopted 60 resolutions against Israel. Yet during this same time period, only 6 resolutions on Crimea; 4 on Iraq; 2 on Syria; and none on Iran, Sudan, North Korea, or any other country in the world.

• According to their website, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is a specialized agency of the UN to provide assistance and protection to Palestinian refugees. This agency was created in response to the displacement caused by the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict, initially serving around 750,000 Arab refugees. Today, it now supports approximately 5.9 million registered Arabs (now known as Palestinian refugees), descendants of the original 750,000. This ignores and duplicates the mission of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Omitted is their recently exposed treasonous role of teaching and inciting a terroristic curriculum to children over the decades, and even hiring known members of designated terrorist organizations.

Two facts of note: 1. Refugee status only applies to the one displaced, not to future generations, as they are citizens of where they are born. 2. Post-1949, approximately 850,000 Jews were thrown out of Arab countries (Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Egypt, etc.), in which Jews lived for many generations - nearly 1,000 years. They were given only days to leave, many with just the clothes on their backs. Interestingly, there are no Jewish refugees today, as they became citizens of countries in which they settled.

Two questions: 1. Why are Palestinian Refugees different than all other refugees in the world? 2. What is the origin of the word “Palestine?”

• The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has a standing agenda item, Agenda Item 7. It focuses on the “Human Rights Situation in Palestine and Other Occupied Arab Territories.” This agenda item is unique in that it singles out Israel for scrutiny. No other country is subject to a similar standing agenda.

• The UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), plays the UNHRC’s role in promoting women’s rights. A key mission is “Ending Violence Against Women” by addressing and preventing all forms of violence against women and girls. Yet, UN Women (and other women’s groups), have been notably silent after the documented barbaric atrocities by Hamas and Gazans on Israeli women on October 7. The UN Women is governed by an Executive Board composed of 41 member states with seats proportionally distributed by geography, not performance. Countries with poor to terrible records of abuse have been, and are, on the Executive Board.

• UN Security Council or General Assembly. There have been no condemnations against Iran and all their terrorist proxies (Hamas, Hezbollah, and others) or the inhuman brutalities they have wrought against innocent civilians over the past year.

You may think the writer is only focused on Israel. In the interest of brevity and space, let’s also ask, what about any condemnation on:

• 5.3 million Syrian refugees (per the UN Refugee Agency), 7.2 million displaced, and over 306,887 civilians killed (per UN estimates). The UN is silent.

• Kurdish-Turkish Conflict, this ongoing conflict (began in 1978), has led to the displacement of up to 3 million people, primarily Kurds, with significant casualties over the years. The UN is silent.

• Yazidis has faced severe persecution and displacement, particularly following the 2014 genocide perpetrated by ISIS in Sinjar, Iraq. The UN is silent.

• More. Sadly much more, all without any UN consequences. The UN is silent.

Compare and contrast. Go on the internet and review the UN Charter. Are the members adhering to the principles they signed? Where and what are the consequences for not following the principles they swore to uphold? Just start with condemning and punishing (expulsion, sanctions, etc.) the obvious true evil culprits and support the victims and members who live up to the ideals of a united nations organization.

The PA’s demands are tantamount to an act of war against Israel. For example, demanding the total Israeli withdrawal from historical Judea-Samaria, engaging in world-wide BDS, accusing barbs of apartheid against Israel (a country whose Arab-Muslim population has actually increased the State of Israel was established) versus that of the PA that has affected ethnic cleansing of Jews and Christians (since the PA took control Beit Leḥem/Bethlehem, for example, now has no Jews and a decimated Christian population).

It is disheartening that the PA is even able to propose and demand such a resolution.
It blatantly demonstrates the UN’s continued lack of adherence to its core mission.
It makes the idealistic organization called the United Nations embarrassing and useless.

# # #

A new axis of evil has arisen that is actively threatening Western civilization. It is ominous, imminent, active, serious, and deadly. This enemy of Western Civilization is comprised of Russia (and its proxy, the Wagner Group), China, Iran (and its proxies in Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon and Gaza), North Korea, and Afghanistan.

Yet, there has been little to no confrontation to stop their growing force and belligerence. There was no U.S. ‘punishment’ meted out after a Chinese spy balloon floated over the USA. No stopping Iran’s imminent nuclear weapons development. No counterattack to Iran’s proxy’s attacks on U.S. military bases in Iraq and Jordan (that have injured and killed U.S. citizens). And no united counterattack or little political support to acts of war against Israel. There have been no counterattacks on Yemen by NATO (only some defensive action by an American-led coalition), whose purpose is to protect Europe. All the while, Houthis have been attacking and succeeding in blocking European shipping, making passage through the Red Sea a treacherous journey. And there has been a very weak response to Russia’s invasion of Crimea and Ukraine, with weapons donated, but in limited quantities, with holds on how and where they should be used.

This can be called Cold War II. If not shut down decisively and strongly, by the Western powers it might lead to World War III.

The original Cold War was the time following World War II, from about 1947 to 1991, consisted of immense tension between the United States (and its allies), against the Soviet Union (and its satellite states). It became known as “The Cold War” because this on-going conflict involved political, military, and ideological rivalry but did not result in direct warfare between the two superpowers. There were indirect military conflicts such as the Korean War, Vietnam War, and many Arab-Israeli wars and conflicts, each side being supported by the other superpower.

That first Cold War was won only through the strength of confrontation exhibited by the U.S. and allies against the Soviet bloc. The Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962 was one example where Russia was discovered to be installing missile sites in Cuba – just 90 miles off the coast of the United States. In response, President John F. Kennedy responded by imposing a naval blockade around Cuba to prevent further Soviet shipments of missiles. The U.S. did not a call for “de-escalation” but put forth a strong military backed confrontation as a show of deterrence. Russia removed its missiles.

In the Middle East, during this same Cold War period, Russia sought expansion by militarily supporting Egypt, Syria, Jordan, and others (just think of the Israel-Arab wars of 1956, 1967, 1973, 1982). To counter this Russian aid, the U.S. and its allies poured military and economic support into Israel. There were no calls for restraint or threats to hold up shipments on Israel.

As the nuclear arms race continued between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R, there was an understood deterrent called MAD (Mutual Assured Destruction). If the U.S. detected a Soviet launch, they would be able to launch a counter strike, before any missiles reached America, and vice-versa. The end result is that both countries would be destroyed. In 1991, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) effectively ended the nuclear arms race.

Unfortunately, now the burden rests disproportionately on the United States. As the winner of World War II and the Cold War, they have become the superpower ‘policeman’ of the world. Unfortunately, evil only fears and responds to strength. And that strength has not been shown. As we all know, power abhors a vacuum. Therefore, we are in the throes of Cold War II.

If this Cold War II continues along the way it has been, weakly, without this axis of evil being forcefully stopped, it will most likely turn into WW III. One prescient reason we could be on the cusp of WW III, is that Islam does not have the same deterrent of MAD, as mentioned before. The Hamas leader Ismail Haniye has repeatedly said “We love death like our enemies love life! We love Martyrdom…” This Islamic concept is taken to the point that if innocent Muslims are killed while terrorists attack, it is acceptable to them because then the victims become martyrs themselves.

Calls for “de-escalation” means back to the status quo (terrorist organizations continuing to commit crimes against humanity with impunity), leaving the axis of evil emboldened to wreak more havoc, along with death and destruction on the Middle East, Ukraine, and elsewhere.

If we fear “escalation” the threats will not be solved. Unfortunately, forces of evil must be met with stronger messages of deterrence for us to live in peace and hold on to our society’s free way of life. Words of warning, such as “don’t,” haven’t worked because they believe we won’t back that up with actions of deterrence. Our enemies welcome the escalation. Let’s give it to them, before it’s too late. If we don’t, they will give us WW III.

# # #

There is great concern for the well-being of global trade after recent attacks on international shipping by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels. According to United Nations’ statistics, the volume of commercial traffic using the Suez Canal has recently fallen by more than 40%. This has started to lead to a drastic rise in consumer prices, as carriers are faced with the dilemma of a massive rise in insurance costs, or a huge increase in fuel costs, as ships now must go around Africa, instead of using the Suez Canal. Some shipping companies have even decided to curtail or suspend their routes through the Red Sea to the Suez Canal.

Although about 30% of global container trade passes through the Suez Canal, its importance to Europe is disproportionately greater than that of US shipping. The Suez Canal is the shortest maritime route from Europe to Asia.

To respond to the Houthi threat to the security and economic well-being of Europe, a United States-led multinational coalition military operation was formed in December 2023 to respond to these attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. Where is NATO?

Why is this not a NATO-led operation? Especially since NATO’s stated raison d’être (reason for being) is to guarantee the freedom and security of its members through political and military means. NATO is an alliance of 31 member states – 29 European countries and only two North American (US and Canada). The Iran-backed Houthis’ actions have an immediate effect and more greatly affect European shipping and economy more so than that of North America. However, as we’re in a world economy, eventually, all will feel the pain.

NATO, and/or a US-led coalition, has the ability to quickly and completely render the Houthis completely inoperative without putting any boots on the ground. However, the current campaign consists mostly of just shooting down the missiles and rockets aimed at ships.

Instead, the fire power of the US led (or NATO-led, if there was one) coalition should be directed to remove the threat not and just play defense. Firepower should be directed to the missile launchers, the people operating these missile and rocket launchers, and the source of these munitions. After all, a good defense is a strong offense.

Ukraine. Again, where is NATO?

When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, it was actually part of a conflict that started in 2014. Since Ukraine is just a NATO neighbor country, many called it a “buffer zone” war. Therefore, as a non-NATO member, Ukraine could not invoke Article 5, which provides that “if a NATO Ally is the victim of an armed attack, each and every other member of the Alliance will consider this act of violence as an armed attack against all members and will take the actions it deems necessary to assist the Ally attacked.”

Regardless of former President Donald Trump’s recent disturbing comments, it bears repeating that NATO’s stated raison d’être is to guarantee the freedom and security of its members through political and military means. Since NATO has not stepped up to lead and stop this powerful Russian invasion, Ukraine has been on its own, relying on the generosity of western countries.

The Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a research institute for globalization issues, provides some surprising and disturbing data. The top four military aid commitments to Ukraine (Jan. 24, 2022 to Oct. 31, 2023) are by country: USA 43.9 billion euros, Germany 17.1 billion euros, UK 6.6 billion euros, EU Institutions 5.6 billion euros. Interestingly, the NATO members who share a border with Ukraine, Poland and Hungary, offered only 3.3 billion and zero euros, respectively.

As a NATO member America should definitely and proportionately contribute to this Europe-threatening hostile invasion, which is a huge threat to the stability of the world economy. But why is the USA contributing 14.6 billion euros more than the three next countries combined? In addition, another 56.6 billion euros (61 billion dollars) commitment is in a current bill coming up for a vote in the US Congress! Where is NATO?

They are all full of… a lot of hypocrisy. And the truth is in the numbers.

Hamas’s health ministry reports nearly 16,000 have been killed in Israeli bombardments in eight weeks of warfare. Other sources indicate 5,000 Hamas terrorists had been killed. That equals two civilians for each combatant killed.

Does this meet the international meaning of “proportionality” under the Geneva Convention? Let’s compare and contrast a recent similar urban combat situation.

During the Battle of Mosul, Iraq (October 16, 2016- July 20, 2017), ISIS fought Iraqi and U.S. led coalition forces. The Associated Press reported over 9,600 civilians died. NPR, quoting from the U.S. Department of Defense, indicated there were 2,000 ISIS soldiers killed in Mosul. This equal 4.8 civilians killed for each combatant.

That is more than twice the civilian casualty rate in this Israeli war. The IDF regularly goes beyond any other army in the world to protect civilians. And the numbers prove it. Yet, the call to change or cease military activities related to the issue of reducing civilian casualties are a focus only when Israel is involved.

The repeated messages from the U.S. that Israel should protect innocent Gazan civilians is counterproductive by providing false anti-Israel talking points, inferring that Israel is not, when it does better than any other military, including America’s.

Meanwhile, Yemen Houthis are attacking Israel with ballistic missiles and disrupting global shipping, U.S. bases are being repeatedly attacked in Iraq and Syria. Hezbollah is firing rockets at Israeli civilians. Iran is behind it all, acting as the head of the snake.

Unfortunately, the escalation of this war that the U.S. does not want is already happening. Remember the character, Jim Malone, in the 1987 movie The Untouchables: “They pull a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue.” This is how to stop escalation. Unstopped, Iran and its proxies feel emboldened. As seems to be happening right now.

The U.S. needs take effective action immediately, even as it talks or mulls over a coalition. The Western world needs to kill the head of the snake (Iran) because after Israel, the rest of the non-Arab world is their next target. Not only will this show strength and create deterrence to these inhumane actors in the Mid-East but also to Iran’s new friend, Russia, which will help currently in Ukraine and prevent future Ukraine-like situations.

The United States must lead, follow, or get out of the way.

The first and continued responsibility of any government is the protection of its citizens. If it fails at this, it doesn’t deserve to govern.

Hamas has completely failed to protect its citizens after being elected to govern Gaza in 2007.

• Firing missiles into Israel results in approximately 15% of them falling back into Gaza itself, harming and killing their own people. This is a “crime against humanity” perpetrated by Hamas, against innocent Gazans.

• These missiles are stored and fired from schools, mosques, and hospitals. Each incident violates two international laws, one targeting (Israeli) civilians and not military targets, and the second, the use of human shields. Thus, putting Gazan citizens in harm’s way when Israel rightfully and defensively tries to eliminate these threats.

• Hamas also blocks and kills their own citizens to prevent them from going to safe areas when warned by Israel. (By sending warning messages to civilians, Israel goes far beyond the requirements of international law regarding civilian collateral damage; think Allied and USA bombings during WWII, Korean War, Vietnam War).

• Hamas’ brutal and barbaric attack on October 7, 2023 into Israel unquestionably violated Article Three of the Geneva Convention, which reads in part that these “acts are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any place whatsoever” against “persons taking no active part in the hostilities”: “(a) Violence to life and person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment, and torture; (b) Taking of hostages; (c) Outrages upon personal dignity, in particular humiliating and degrading treatment;” and the list goes on.

• Hamas continues to totally control the citizens of Gaza with a cruel, dictatorial rule. Hamas teaches children to kidnap and kill (a direct violation of UN Resolution 1612 Child Abuse). Hamas practices a form of Islam that considers every religion (Jew or Christian) to be beneath theirs (Quran, 9:5).

• Hamas is designated as a terrorist organization by The United States, Canada, United Kingdom, The European Union (comprising 27 countries), Japan, Paraguay, New Zealand, and the Organization of American States (comprising 35 countries). Hamas is even banned in Jordan.

• Hamas is also officially designated as an international criminal organization. Hamas, Hezbollah, and their affiliates are proxies of Iran, which despite many sanctions against it, continues to export terror.
  

As this Hamas-Israel War rages, many in the geo-political world are talking about the day after. What should be in place to build Gaza into a peaceful productive member of the region rather than the international terrorist and criminal problem that now exists?

Who can be empowered and overseen by Israel to ensure peace after the war ends?

Some nations, including the United States, suggest turning Gaza over to the Palestinian Authority. However, there is little difference between Hamas and the PA. The PA has not held elections since Mahmud Abbas was elected in January 2005 for a four-year term, eighteen and a half years ago. A recent poll by the Arab World for Research and Development (AWRAD) of Palestinians residents living under the control of the PA found that 83.1% supported the Hamas atrocities of Oct 7!

So, if the world is trying to create a change for the betterment of the Gazan population, the PA is not an alternative.

Here’s a better solution: Mandate. The “mandate” system was established by Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations, drafted by the victors of World War I. The article referred to territories that were no longer ruled by their previous sovereign, where the population was not considered “able to stand by themselves under the strenuous conditions of the modern world”. The Article called for such people to be “entrusted to advanced nations who by reason of their resources, their experience or their geographical position can best undertake this responsibility.”

In the UN context, a “mandate” refers to the decision that gives a body the authority to carry out its functions. One example is the establishment of a peacekeeping mission and with specific types of activities to be carried out by the mission.

The United Nations’ Charter (Article 93, paragraph 2) states that nonmembers (like Gaza) may become parties to the Statute of the Court determined by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council. This implies that positive action in protecting the citizens of Gaza can be taken by the UN.

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) “not only helps to defend the territory of its members, but also engages where possible and when necessary to project its values further afield, prevent and manage crises, stabilise [sic] post-conflict situations and support reconstruction.”

The Arab League, founded in 1945, currently has 22 members. The League’s mission is to facilitate political, economic, cultural, scientific, military, and social programs designed to promote the interests of the Arab world. Shouldn’t the welfare of Arabs in Gaza, who are under the brutal rule of Hamas, be the Arab League’s concern, too?

Perhaps one or more of the above-mentioned organizations, all formed for the purpose of benevolence towards those suffering and in need, could come to the aid of the Gazan people. A “Mandate for Gaza,” creating a more humane governmental system seems to be the right answer.

The “Mandate for Gaza” would be established to create a government that doesn’t oppress its citizens or wish the destruction of its neighbors. “The Mandate for Gaza” would aim to build a country of prosperity with safety for its citizens.

Once proper educational and governmental foundations are in place to achieve these goals, the “Mandate for Gaza” would be dissolved, and a new government of Gaza could be welcomed into the international community.

If international organizations, and countries of the world, who say they are dedicated to world peace, take action, then perhaps other despots (Hezbollah, PA, Iran, etc.) might sit up and take notice.

The time to employ a comprehensive, proactive solution, such as a mandate, is the day after. But the right plan should be prepared now.

# # #

We have all heard the phrase “Status Quo” in reference to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, Israel. It has been treated as a legal document, spelling out the control and access to the Temple Mount, which is the holiest place on Earth for the Jewish People. The phase “status quo” implies never changing.

But is the Status Quo, as it related to the Temple Mount, really unchanging? Is it really historically or even politically correct? Is it working? Is it a truly existing legal document?

Much has been written on the Quranic references and Islamic 19^th century writings asserting the Jewish provenance to the Land of Israel and the Temple Mount. While I won’t repeat them here, a great example is a 2010 article from Tablet magazine “Allah is a Zionist.”

Then there are two obvious questions: 1. Why did the rabbis of 1967 not demand Israel maintain control of our holy Temple Mount, even if there were Jewish religious issues regarding access? Did the rabbis not have any concept of symbology, politics, control, historic value, archeologic opportunities, etc.? And 2. Why should a foreign power control anything in another country, except embassies/consulates? [It is generally accepted by citizens of any country that any property owned or administered by a person or entity is subject to the laws of the land, and not the owner, entity, religious order, or foreign government.]

Why after IDF Lt. Gen. Mordechai “Motti” Gur jubilantly declared “Har HaBayit BeYadeinu!” (The Temple Mount is in our hands!) during the Six Day War (June 1967), is it now not in our hands? Land and rights captured in modern defensive warfare belongs to the victor. Historically, it has always been that spoils belong to the victor.

We all think we know what the Status Quo is. After the Six Day War, Moshe Dayan gave control of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and the Patriarchs Tomb in Hebron to the Waqf under Jordanian control. Instructions were given to IDF Chief Rabbi Goren to stop all Jewish actions through the newly formed Israeli Ministerial Committee on Holy Sites. [The Eroding Status Quo, by Yizhak Reiter, Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research, 2017, pg 21]

Due to fears and to soften international pressure on Israel, incredulously Israel ceded administration of the site (not just the Mosque but the entire holy Temple Mount) to Muslim clergy, including Jordan, who at that time was an enemy, and in a state of war with, Israel. And Prime Minister Levi Eshkol decided to continue the conduct of the long-held “Status Quo.”

I say long-held because this Status Quo of Jews not having access or control over the Temple Mount has existed for centuries. In other words, it has “always been done that way.”

We could say that the Status Quo started it with the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. But let’s leap forward.

“Generally speaking, Jews were prohibited from ascending to the Temple Mount area during the period of Muslim rule over Jerusalem. During a portion of Mamluk rule (1250–1516) and under the Ottomans (1516–1917) it was forbidden for Jews to even come close enough to look onto the Temple Mount.” [The Eroding Status Quo, by Yizhak Reiter, Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research, 2017, pgs. 15-16]

This changed briefly when the British took over in 1920 and allowed all faiths to enter during certain hours, and pay fees to do so, but that ended with the murderous Arab riots of 1929 when the Supreme Muslim Council and the Islamic Waqf of Jerusalem prohibited Jews from entering the site’s gates. So, the Status Quo went back to the way it was always done: keep the Jews out.

The proposal for a Special International Regime for the City of Jerusalem set forth in United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181 (Partition Plan) of 29 November 1947, included in Part III, Section 13 called for: “1. Existing rights in respect of Holy Places and religious buildings or sites shall not be denied or impaired. 2. Free access to the Holy Places and religious buildings or sites and the free exercise of worship shall be secured in conformity with existing rights and subject to the requirements of public order and decorum. 3. Holy Places and religious buildings or sites shall be preserved. No act shall be permitted which may in any way impair their sacred character.”

It is important and interesting to note that from 1948 to 1967 when Jordan illegally occupied the Temple Mount and parts of Jerusalem (along with other occupied “West Bank” areas), the Jordanians lived up to none of the ideals laid out in UN GA Resolution 181 (Partition Plan). However, after June of 1967, Israel did live up to those ideals and more. But Israel, through Moshe Dayan, still continued the concept of a Status Quo where Jews do not have full rights or access to the Temple Mount. Back to the way it was always done: keep the Jews out.

I believe this continuation of the so-called Status Quo is because of the width of a horse’s ass. The “horse’s ass” story is a logical progression that the parameters of a highly sophisticated NASA spaceship are based on the width of a horse’s ass. [The complete story is below.]

The main finding of Nadav Shragai in his Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (JCPA) November-December 2014 report entitled The “Status Quo” on the Temple Mount were: “1. The reality on the Mount, 47 years after the establishment of the status quo, has changed dramatically. The main elements of this status quo are no longer in practice. In many regards the status quo of 1967, which Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan crafted for the Temple Mount at that time, has “died” even though no one has buried it, while the political and diplomatic discourse keeps mistakenly referring to it as if it is still with us. 2. The reality that replaced the old status quo has greatly increased Muslim control and status on the Mount compared to the arrangements that emerged after the Six-Day War. Conversely, this situation has greatly degraded the status of Jews and the State of Israel on the Mount. And 3. The most notable element that remains from the old status quo is the prohibition of Jewish prayer on the Mount. The State of Israel does not intend to change this rule, and declares again and again that it intends to uphold it.”

So the Status Quo, which implies never changing, has changed. Just a few examples: The Gate of Mercy (Sha’ar Ha’Rachamim) compound is the fifth mosque that the Muslims have created on the Temple Mount, where in 1967, there was only one. The Muslims carried out unauthorized renovation in Solomon’s Stables (which caused serious damage to antiquities) and converted it into another mosque. They have closed tourist gates (Chain Gate and Cotton Gate). For a more detailed list of illegal changes Muslims made to the Temple Mount, see Nadav Shragai and Lenny Ben-David’s Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (29 Feb 2019) article “Who Is Breaking the Status Quo on the Temple Mount?”

Therefore, there is no Status Quo. It is time re-examine this situation that presents many security and sovereignty issues and not continue as is because that’s the “way we’ve always done it.”

It is also appalling to realize that nearly all the changes to the so-called Status Quo of the Temple Mount have been in the favor of the foreign power (Jordan) and only one religious organization (Islamic Waqf), in tight concert with the PA, all who are hostile to Israel (to say the least).

The Status Quo is, at its core, is an agreement or contract. To be legal, an agreement, contract or memorandum of understanding, must contain a few key universal elements:

• Context: what caused this contract to come into being, what is the current situation (status), etc. Perhaps a few “whereas” to set the scene.

• Parties: who are the entities/persons involved. It is obvious but important to note that the parties are agreeable to enter in a mutually beneficial agreement.

• Terms & Conditions: roles and responsibilities of each of the parties, detailed points on execution, how proper execution of the T&C will be measured, processes for revisions, how decisions are made.

• Breach of Contract: what determines a breach, who and how should notification of the breach be handled, time allowed for rectification of breach, what happens if a breach leads to termination (court or arbitrator, division or forfeiture of assets, etc.).

[For many years I have looked for an official government document outlining Moshe Dayan’s Status Quo, approved by the Knesset or Knesset committee, signed by an Israeli Prime Minister or Foreign Minister and counter signed by Jordan or the Waqf or both. I have been unsuccessful.]

So as Shragai states in his JCPA report, “the status quo of 1967…has “died” even though no one has buried it, while the political and diplomatic discourse keeps mistakenly referring to it as if it is still with us.” Shragai wrote this in 2014 based on events that start with continuing the old concept of a status quo, onto a similar status quo from 1967, which over 57 years after the establishment of the status quo, has changed dramatically (in other words breached) and hence, redrawn.

To support my assertion, I quote from Prof Hillel Frisch, who in 2015, as a senior research associate at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies in his paper “Why the Status Quo on the Temple Mount Needs to Change” made the following important strategic and moral points:

“Strategically, the status quo must change because the demand that Jews (and Christians as well) be given the right to pray on the Temple Mount is interlocked with Israel’s justifiable demand that the Palestinians accept Israel as nation state of the Jewish People.

Most Palestinians oppose both Jewish prayer on Har HaBayit (the Temple Mount) and recognition of Israel as a Jewish state for the same ideological and theocratic reason. In their view, Jews can be no more than ahl al-dhimmi, a protected but subordinate religious minority under the protection of Muslims, and not a sovereign people equal to the Muslim Palestinian state and its nationals.

Only if the Palestinians accept the right of parity and religious freedom on the Mount in Jerusalem, and recognize Israel as nation state of the Jewish People will the War of Independence that Israel fought in 1948 be truly over.

In short, there will never be peace if a Jewish presence on the Temple Mount is seen as a provocation or desecration of the holy place.

Then there is the moral argument. As a modern democratic state, Israel must ensure equality and parity to all religious communities who deem Jerusalem sacred. By opposing Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount, Palestinian Authority politicians and Israel’s Arab MKs show their true colors as leaders driven more by theocratic conviction and anti-Jewish prejudice than anything resembling democratic and liberal convictions.”

Therefore, to set things right, we have three choices:

1. Continue with an ever-changing Status Quo that favors one side, therefore ending up with many political and security ramifications, let alone archaeological disasters. Follow the horse’s ass (see below).

2. Take total Israeli control over the Temple Mount and kick the losers out. This would be taken as tremendous incitement.

3. Develop a new agreement of understanding that is more in line with ancient and modern history. This involves the understanding and realization by Jordan and the Waqf that they lost the wars in 1948 and 1967 (and others), that the Temple Mount is in Israel’s hands, and that the mosques on the Temple Mount should be treated like other mosques throughout a free and democratic Israel.

The third choice would be a win for all. No more violence or harassment by militants, free access to tourists and worshipers of all faiths, better maintenance, better security, properly handled archaeological research, and more.

I challenge the smarter-than-me people at lawfare NPOs and NGOs (non-profit and non-governmental organizations) to redefine and start the discussion or process for creating a new Status Quo that addresses the arguments above. This should be taken only as a plan to set things historically correct (as the Temple Mount is the holiest Jewish site with a much later Muslim presence, approximately 1,600 years later.) and politically correct (recognizing the sovereignty under international law, ceded territory in 1994 Jordanian peace treaty, and Israel’s ability to maintain the site under the ideals of UN GA Res 181) for all.

The Width of a Horse’s Ass

The US standard railroad gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches. That’s an exceedingly odd number.

Why was that gauge used? Because that’s the way they built them in England, and the US railroads were built by English expatriates.

Why did the English build them like that? Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the pre-railroad tramways, and that’s the gauge they used.

Why did “they” use that gauge then? Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing.

Okay! Why did the wagons have that particular odd wheel spacing? Well, if they tried to use any other spacing, the wagon wheels would break on some of the old, long distance roads in England, because that’s the spacing of the wheel ruts.

So who built those old rutted roads? The first long distance roads in Europe (including England) were built by Imperial Rome for their legions. The roads have been used ever since.

And the ruts in the roads? The initial ruts, which everyone else had to match for fear of destroying their wagon wheels, were first formed by Roman war chariots. Since the chariots were made for Imperial Rome, they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing.

So the United States standard railroad gauge of 4 feet, 8.5 inches derives from the original specification for an Imperial Roman war chariot. Specifications and bureaucracies live forever. So the next time you are handed a specification and wonder what horse’s ass came up with it, you may be exactly right, because the Imperial Roman war chariots were made just wide enough to accommodate the back ends of two war horses. Thus, we have the answer to the original question.

Now a twist to the story.

When you see a Space Shuttle sitting on its launch pad, there are two big booster rockets attached to the sides of the main fuel tank. These are Solid Rocket Boosters, or SRBs. The SRBs are made by Morton-Thiokol at their factory in Utah. The engineers who designed the SRBs might have preferred to make them a bit fatter, but the SRBs had to be shipped by train from the factory to the launch site. The railroad line from the factory had to run through a tunnel in the mountains. The SRBs, therefore, had to fit through that tunnel. The tunnel is slightly wider than the railroad track, and the railroad track is about as wide as two horses’ behinds. So, a major design feature of what is arguably the world’s most advanced transportation system was determined over two thousand years ago by the width of two horse’s behinds.

# # #

Archaeological evidence of a large number of vineyards and wine presses in ancient Israel date back to around 3000 BCE, the early Bronze Age. Many people in the mid-East were employed in the growing and harvesting of grapes, wine storage, and transport of precious wines throughout the world. This entire wine industry was abruptly ended 3,600 years later upon the Muslim invasion of the Holy Land in 634 CE. A new religion founded only 24 years earlier; Islam was expanding throughout the Mideast by conquering and domination. According to Islamic Shariah law, Israel’s large Mediterranean wine industry was forbidden and therefore, destroyed, as alcohol consumption of any kind is forbidden to Muslims (Qur’an 2:219, 4:43, 5:90).

This decree remained largely in effect until the mid to late 1800s when the Ottoman Empire allowed Jews to return to the Land of Israel. Tens of thousands of them came from all parts of the world, purchased land, and began establishing agricultural communities (such as Rishon Le’tzion, Zichron Ya’akov, and Rosh Pina, founded between 1882 and 1883). Thanks to the investments (money and expertise) and generous donations of the Rothschilds and Montefiores, these became early wine producing centers. Israel’s wine industry continued to grow post WW1. Today, the Israeli wine business is a global award-winning industry and has even expanded into the general alcohol market to include Israeli-made whisky, gin, and more.

History – banning all alcohol product and consumption – by the same Islamic conquerors, is being set up to repeat itself. It is being aided by those who are today blinded by false and incompatible political ideals instead of recognizing reality. Today, the Islamic Sharia “no alcohol” law is in effect in many Muslim countries, with others restricting consumption for non-Muslims.

These leftist progressive supporters of Islamic Jihad should realize that the people they are supporting are not just anti-Israel/Jewish/Zionist. According to the Qur’an (8:12-13, 9:33 to quote just two of many), the Muslim stated goal is to conquer and convert all infidels (aka: non-Muslims) or make them third class citizens (dhimmi). [Also see “Not just an anti-Jewish thing, Islamic jihad is so much more” and “Why We Are Afraid, A 1400 Year Secret”]

In the wake of the October 7, 2023, atrocities committed by Iran-backed Hamas, organized worldwide demonstrations by left progressives incredulously support the executioners of these horrible war crimes, yet condemn the innocent victims who were inhumanely attacked.

It must be realized that the new “Peace Agreement” involving Hamas and Israel, while sorely welcomed, doesn’t end the call for a Palestinian State or Islamic Jihad. This overwhelming call for ‘recognizing’ a Palestinian State (who’s charter calls for the destruction of State of Israel and the Jewish people) includes U.N. leading members and countries who are also major alcoholic producers and consumers (France, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Spain, Ireland, to name a few), which is very incongruous, on many levels, to say the least.

Perhaps, many of the leaders of Western democracies are taking pro-Palestine (Islam) positions because they are playing to their increased Muslim populations (Pew Research: Europe’s Growing Muslim Population estimates that the number of Muslims will be about 30% of the world population by 2030) or maybe they are just surrendering to the unspoken threat of terrorism if they do not. (Based on recent terrorist attacks in major European cities, how is that working out for you?)

Imagine the World Without Alcoholic Beverages. What would the world be without wine, whisky, or beer? Or what would a ban on alcohol do to a country’s brand identity and pride? Consider what the impact of a total ban on alcohol would have on any county’s economy, societal interactions, and even national pride.

It is past time for those countries and progressive left liberals to re-evaluate what they are protesting for or against. They can easily do research by exploring what the Islamic movement professes in their own words versus what they say to the Western media. Check out MEMRI.org, Honest Reporting, or even ask A.I. The difference may surprise you.

To all, do your own research using multiple sources. Think objectively and logically. Talk amongst your friends, family, and networks. Speak and reach out to your elected representatives on both local and state/national levels. Make your voice heard that continued support of pro-Islamic Jihad causes is not compatible with your gender-equality, democratic way of life, livelihood, and right to imbibe your drink of choice.

The progressive left liberals in many Western democratic republics have inexplicably chosen to align themselves with a side that does not hold the same societal, cultural, or religious values as they themselves hold. Simply do a comparison of what values we in the West hold dear, which is based on personal freedoms and Judeo-Christan values, versus the opposite held by Islam. Many demonstrators would be astonished to find that they are not in any way compatible.

After such research, you might just lift a cup and toast to support those on the Israel political, cultural, societal, or religious side, just as they toast “l’Chaim v’Shalom!” (To Life and Peace!).

# # #

[As appeared on JNS.org Jul 16, 2025.]

Two recent articles in the Wall Street Journal need to be discussed. First is Mr. Elliot Kaufman’s July 5, 2025 “A New Palestinian Offer for Peace With Israel” discussing how Hebron’s Sheikhs propose to leave the Palestinian Authority and join the Abraham Accords. The second is Mr. Mahmoud Jabari’s July 9, 2025 response “A Hebron ‘Emirate’ or a Colonial Deception?” where the author posits that the Hebron proposal plays into Israel’s plan to divide and conquer the Palestinians of the West Bank.

In Mr. Kaufman’s article, the Sheiks write that they will recognize “the State of Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people.” He goes on to point out that the “Sheikhs accepting Israel as a Jewish state goes further than the Palestinian Authority ever has and sweeps aside decades of rejectionism.”

Mr. Kaufman, however, does not explore if they will change their anti-Israel/Jewish and Western education programs and whether religious prayers will now reflect this fundamental Islamic change of not seeking complete political and religious dominance.

The title of Mr. Jabari’s opinion piece already sets up its anti-Israel tone and biased slant. Here are some fact-check points the WSJ failed to uncover.

• Mr. Jabari points out he left Hebron as a young child because the “violence of the second intifada and the relentless aggression of Israeli settlers made staying impossible.” Yet, he fails to point out that the intifada is an Islamic call to kill (genocide) and the “aggression” of Israelis is his misinformative explanation of the fact that Israeli government has control over Hebron based on the Oslo Accords.

• His claim that the Sheik’s proposal is “peace through fragmentation, replacing Palestinian national aspirations… This isn’t new thinking — it’s the colonial playbook.” Again, he is referring to Israel as a colonial power rather than the rightful democratic government it is.

• While he is correct that the Palestine Liberation Organization recognized Israel’s right to exist in 1993, the rhetoric and actions of the Palestinian leaders and followers tell a different story. The two intifadas (violence against Jews) (1^st: 1987-1993 and 2^nd: 2000-2005), included many various violent and deadly terrorist attacks in many central Israel cities (Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Herzliya, to name a few). A tacit encouragement of violence against Jews has continued, as can be seen by the horror of two Palestinian Authority policemen murdering a 22-year-old Jewish man at a shopping center very recently (July 10, 2025). This is reenforced by the July 13, 2025 WSJ editorial “Report shows how PA Security Forces lionize officers who kill Israelis.” Actions speak louder than words.

• He claims that [Netanyahu’s] “government allowed the provision of money to Hamas after its rise to power in Gaza to weaken the Palestinian Authority.” But he doesn’t mention that the money came from Qatar to be distributed to the general population and that after Hamas was elected by the Gazans in 2006 there was deadly and violent routing of PA and Fatah in 2007.

• Mr. Jabari states “The settler population nearly doubled during the Oslo years.” He goes on to claim “that there are places where the Palestinian Authority is absent not because residents reject it, but because Israel restrains it. The Jabari neighborhood is located in Area C, the 60% of the West Bank where Israel prohibits PA security forces from operating and maintains full military (and police) control.” What he neglects to point out is that the Oslo Peace Accords set up Areas A, B, and C. By definition and agreement with the Palestinian leadership, Area C (including Hebron) is where Israel maintains full control and Area A is where the PA administers control. There is no “sleight of hand” to fragment Palestinian society, as he contends.

• He complains that Sheik’s commitment to “zero tolerance” for terrorism by Palestinian workers implies that Palestinian society somehow tolerates violence. And that “[M]ost Palestinians, including those who oppose the occupation most strongly, seek freedom through peaceful means.” Yet surveys by Palestinian pollsters show an overwhelming Palestinian support of the terrorist organization Hamas and its violent methods.

• He claims that “Palestinians aren’t asking for Israeli approval of our representatives. We’re asking for the right to choose them ourselves, to shape our own future, to live as a free people in our own land.” Choose your own leaders? Then why is Mahmud Abbas celebrating his 20^th year as president of the PA after being elected to a 4-year term? Live in your own land? While the origin of “Palestine” and its people is another discussion, the question remains why have Palestinian and/or Arab leadership turned down numerous offers for the “two-state” solution starting with United Resolution 181 in November 1947?

• According to the author, “real peace” should have the victim (Israel) end the war in Gaza rather than the inhumane, Iran-backed Hamas attackers, who have never agreed to returning all hostages. Then, he continues, Israel should negotiate with the PA and PLO for a “credible and irreversible” path to a two-state solution based on the June 6, 1967, borders. Even though, (a) the recent history of negotiations by the PA, PLO, Hamas, Hezbollah, and even Iran, have been based on taqiyya, an Islamic concept that allows lying to confound and defeat enemies through deception; (b) it would violate the 1994 Jordan-Israel Peace Treaty that officially gave the West Bank (Judea and Samaria) to Israel after defeating the invading Jordanians (along with the Syrians and Egyptians) in the Six Day War of June 1967; (c) the Oslo Peace Accords already gave the PA territory to demonstrate its ability to govern.

• In addition, Mr. Jabari includes two more standards in his description of “real peace.” (1) The resolution of the Palestinian refugee issue. Yet one has to ask why, when compared to any other displaced people, and even the UN’s own refugee agency, only Palestinians have UN-sanctioned multi-generational funded refugee status? and (2) a “Marshall Plan-style investment program that builds the Palestinian economy from the ground up, including in Gaza.” This is a good idea but what happened to the more than $40 billion already given by the US, UNRWA and other countries to the PA since 1994 to build their economy and infrastructure? Instead it was spent on “pay to slay” salaries of terrorists, funding rockets, and building of massive terror tunnels.

However, the most egregious statement by Mr. Jabari, allowed to be printed by the WSJ, is “But when you deny people legitimate political channels for their aspirations, when you close every door to dignity and self-determination, you can’t be surprised when some choose desperate measures.”

Mr. Jabari is therefore supporting, endorsing, defending, and rationalizing the inhumane and barbaric violence of October 7, 2023, when Hamas (and followers) brutally murdered, burned babies, raped, and kidnapped civilians. And they gleefully filmed themselves doing it. These barbaric actions are against every international law.

And if Mr. Jabari believes “doors to dignity and self-determination” are closed, maybe he can explain why Palestinians have rejected repeated two-state solutions, while Hamas and Hezbollah have signed many cease fires, only to start attacking Israeli civilians time and again. If any doors have been closed, the Palestinians have done it to themselves.

Mr. Jabari’s bio line to the article merely states that he “is a Geneva-based international-affairs analyst.” While he is that, it should be noted that he has done very well for himself educationally and careerwise. He currently serves as the Global Engagement Lead at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Geneva, Switzerland. This is the prestigious organization that runs the famous annual Davos Meeting. Yet he still considers himself a “refugee.”

Finally, it is most disturbing and upsetting that the reputable Wall Street Journal would give Mr. Jabari a platform to foment these lies and misinformation. Solving the Palestinian problem requires facing the truth not misinformation. They should know that. The WSJ is not Tucker Carlson.

# # #

In the early 1970’s, a New York University finance professor of mine said to our senior class, “give me one set of numbers and I will give you two sets of answers.” For most of my professional business career this has been true.

Against that mantra, which I have lived by for many decades, I am going to offer a few sets of numbers and only one set of answers. Because there is only one answer.

1. The ‘land’ set of numbers. There are about 1.978 billion Muslims in the world today out of approximately 8.2 billion people. Seventy-two percent (72%) of Muslims live in countries where either the Islamic religious symbol (crescent moon) is on its national flag, Islam is the official state religion, and/or more than 70% of that country’s population identifies as Muslim. The total area of these Islamic countries is 10.8 million square miles (28.1 million square kilometers) or 21.6% of the world’s total landmass.

Christians (of any and all denominations) number about 2.167 billion people. Eighty-five percent (85.1%) live in countries where either the Christian religious symbol (cross) is on its national flag, a Christian denomination is the official state religion, and/or more than 70% of that country’s population identifies as Christian. The total area of these Christian countries is 30 million square miles (77.6 million square kilometers) or 59.6% of the world’s total landmass.

In comparison to these two largest religions in the world, there are only about 15.7 million Jews in the world. Forty-nine percent (49%) live in the one and only country where the Jewish religious symbol (Star of David) is on its national flag, Judaism is the official state religion, and/or more than 70% of that country’s population identifies as Jewish. The total area of this one and only Jewish country is 10.85 thousand square miles (37.7 thousand square kilometers) or just 0.03% of the world’s landmass.

As a point of comparison, the Islamic lands are 733 times larger than Israel.

Sources below.

2. The self-created “Palestinian Refugee” set of numbers. This refugee population was the direct result of Arab nations not taking in their fellow Arabs who became refugees in the 1948 war they started in order to wipeout (genocidal) the nascent Jewish state. It is important to note that these refugees were not strangers, as were (for example) Eastern European refugees were to Western nations after World War II (different dress, language, customs, religion, etc.). These newly named “Palestinian Refugees” were their own Muslim brothers and sisters who were kept in poor living conditions for generations in refugee camps. Through the unique unheard of concept of “generational” refugees, and the knowing involvement UNRWA, these disregarded relations were taught to aspire to be a human weapon against the State of Israel and Jews. Without understanding the true “why and how,” this has become the cause celeb by the mainstream media and the left.

At the end of World War II there were approximately 3.5 million European Jews who were survivors and classified as refugees. In the early to mid-1950’s there were 850,000 Jewish refugees forcibly exiled from Arab lands, where they had lived for over 1,000 years. While there are still some living Jewish WWII survivors and those exiled from Arab lands, today none of them are “refugees” because (per the accepted definition of a refugee) they, and therefore their descendants, have become citizens of the countries to which they have been relocated. Yet, from the approximate 720,000 original Palestinian Arab refugees of 1948, they and their descendants now number 5.9 million, and are still called “refugees.”

History is full of many different “population resettlement events” and can be found by simply web-searching that phrase. Jewish history, for example, is full of events that caused upheaval and massive, world-wide Jewish refugees, from ancient times to today: Babylonian Empire exiles (597 & 586 BCE), Roman Empire exiles (66, 115, & 132 CE), English expulsion (1290), Spanish Inquisition (1478), the Holocaust (1939), and in 1948 to the early 1950’s expulsion from Arab lands; to name a few. Therefore, the topic of resettlement is obviously not new and should be explored as a solution for the Palestinian Refugee crisis. (By referring to Palestine, it begs the question, what is the origin of the word “Palestine”?)

3. The “rightful claim to the land” set of numbers. Contemporaneous documentarians of history; repeated Biblical references to, and descriptions of, the Promised Land; in situ archaeological evidence; and international law (UN Resolution 181); even ancient and modern Muslim texts confirm the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem…all support the fact that the Land of Israel belongs to the Jews. It is acknowledged that the borders of the Biblical Promised Land have been adjusted to accommodate modern established countries and weapons (i.e.: Syrian snipers shooting at Jewish civilians from the Golan Heights from the early 1900’s until 1967).

4. The “religious law” set of numbers. It is important to note that there are no Jewish laws for land expansion. There has never been any empire building in Israel’s ancient or modern history. In fact, Israeli Prime Minister Meachem Begin returned the vast Sinia Peninsula to Egypt in the Camp David Accords (1978), even though it was legitimately captured land during a defensive war.

Furthermore, there are no Jewish commandments to convert non-Jews. In other words, the Jews and the State of Israel have no desire to conquer or convert…only to live in peace and in their own land. Period. Compare that to the centuries of empire building history of Christians, which has changed, and the expansionist history of Muslims, which has not changed and still goes on, to this day.

Finally, there is the Jewish concept of “dina d’malchuta dina” (דינא דמלכותא דינא “the law of the kingdom/country is the law”). This principle is often discussed in Jewish legal contexts and refers to the idea that Jews should generally follow the laws of the country in which they reside, as long as those laws don’t contradict fundamental religious principles. Unlike Christianity and Islam which seek to impose their religious laws (i.e., abortion, close bars on Sundays, Sharia, etc.) on the laws of the land in which they reside.

Contrast this with many mentions in the Qur’an regarding disbelievers and world dominance. Here are just two: Al-Anfal 8:12 (“…cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieved, so strike [them] upon the necks and strike from them every fingertip.”) and dominance At-Taubah 9:33 (…the religion of truth [Islam] to manifest it over all religion…”).

5. The ‘religious freedom’ set of numbers. If there’s a question of religious freedom for the growing percentage of Muslims (18%) living in Israel, there is no need for concern. All citizens (Muslims, Christian, Druze, Baháʼí, etc.) enjoy freedom of religion, access to their religious sites, education, political representation, employment, and more. This is guaranteed in Israel’s Declaration of Independence and its laws. Unlike non-Muslims living in many Islamic countries being subject to prejudicial and oppressed dhimmi status. Or as seen in the town of Bethlehem where the Christian population went from an overwhelming majority under Israeli control to around 10% under Palestinian Authority rule given to them in the 1993 Oslo Accords.

Additionally, the Muslim claim that Jerusalem is Islam’s third holiest site is actually weak and vague. Jerusalem is not mentioned once in the Qur’an. The claim that Mohamed ascended from the Temple Mount is based on Qur’an Sura Al-Isra (17:1) and Surah An-Najim (53:1-18). These texts do not mention, allude, or even refer to Jerusalem, let alone Israel.

Counter that “claim’ with the hundreds of times Jerusalem, Israel, Hebron, Jericho, and other known landmarks that exist today, are mentioned throughout and repeatedly described in the Tanaḥ (Jewish Biblical texts).

One set of answers. Each “set of numbers” above includes irrefutable facts of history on one side, juxtaposed by the consistent inflammatory words of the Arab and Palestinian leaders preaching and indoctrinating over the past hundred years and leading to ongoing terrorism, intifadas, and the barbaric inhumane actions of the current Iranian-backed Hamas-Israel war. In addition, there’s the fact of high growth and infiltration of Muslim population throughout much of the world.

The contextual comparison of the vastness of Muslim lands (21.6% of the world’s landmass), and the other “sets of numbers” above, is the conclusion that there obviously is no territorial, military, political, or religious objective to conquer the infinitesimal strip of land called Israel (0.03% of the world’s landmass).

Therefore, there can be only one set of answers: Muslims are actively pursuing the genocide/slavery/dhimmi of all disbelievers (Jews, Christians, Hindus, et al.), with the goal of Islamic domination of rule and religion over the entire world. The numbers don’t lie. It is what they pray for.

# # #

Sources for Table of Landmass and Selected Religions:

• World pop: https://www.statista.com/statistics/262879/countries-with-the-largest-population; land mass https://www.farmbrite.com/post/global-land-use-for-agriculture; https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries

• Earth’s Landmass: https://nationsonline.org/oneworld/earth.htm

• Landmass by country: https://www.worldometers.info/geography/largest-countries-in-the-world

• Flags: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2014/11/25/64-countries-have-religious-symbols-on-their-national-flags/

• Total Muslim pop: https://timesprayer.com/en/muslim-population/

• Total Muslim pop in Muslim controlled countries/Religion by country: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/what-countries-have-a-national-religion

• Islam is the State religion: https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/islamic-countries-in-the-world.html

• Christians: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/most-christian-countries#countries-with-the-highest-percentage-of-christians;

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_by_country

• Israel: including the Golan Heights, Yehuda & Shamron (West Bank), and Jerusalem: https://tradingeconomics.com/israel/land-area-sq-km-wb-data.html; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golan_Heights; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel;

• https://allisrael.com/israeli-population-reaches-10-million-at-dawn-of-2025;

• Total Jewish pop in world 15.7m https://www.jpr.org.uk/countries/how-many-jews-in-world

# # #

“Israel has begun to pay increasingly exorbitant prices for its hostages” writes Amit Segal, a well-respected Israeli political commentator, in his recent January 23, 2025, Wall Street Journal article. For at least the second time in less than 15 years, Israel is in the midst of an on-going extortion agreement with an Islamic Jihadist terrorist group for return of mistreated (alive and dead) hostages abducted on October 7, 2023, in return for release of a disproportionate number of convicted terrorist murderers. As was Gilad Shalit’s exchange (after more than five years of captivity), in October 2011 for the release of more than 1,000 Palestinian terrorist prisoners, including Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader behind the horrendous October 7^th attack on Israel.

To lessen the chances of this from happening once again, let’s look at two parallel subjects: The Abraham Accords and the Two-State Solution based on history, facts, and logic.

The Two-State Solution. Since 1920, Arab countries and other entities, such as The Palestinian Authority (PA), have been repeatedly offered different versions of a “two state solution.” Starting with Winston Churchill slicing off 70% of the original League of Nations Mandate territory to create Trans-Jordan to the United Nations Resolution 181 in 1947, further dividing the remaining 30% of the Mandate into an Arab (not “Palestinian”) and a Jewish state. The Jews agreed, but the surrounding Arabs states invaded with the genocidal intent of wiping the newly founded modern State of Israel off the map.

Actions speak louder than words. Successive Arab wars, on-going terrorist activities, and at least five rejections of two-state solution offers clearly demonstrate the Arab goal. Even The Palestinian National Charter, which is rife with historical and factual inaccuracies, repeatedly advocates violence “aim[ed] at the elimination of Zionism in Palestine.”

What to do with the Palestinian refugee problem? Perhaps the question should be “Why is there a Palestinian refugee problem?” After all, from the tens of millions of refugees from World War II, there are none remaining. In addition, there are no Jewish refugees after the shocking expulsion of 850,000 Jews from Arab lands in the early 1950’s, where Jews had lived for over one thousand years.

The answer to the Palestinian Refugee problem can be found in the different objectives of the UN Refugee Agency and UNRWA. The former is focused on caring for and settling refugees to become productive citizens of the countries where they and their descendants take refuge. However, the latter’s objective is to use the unique generational refugee status (where 3^rd and 4^th generations later are still considered refugees) as a tactic to achieve the Islamic Jihadist goal of world religious domination and rule. Proof of UNRWA’s complicity in this violent objective can be found at UNwatch.org.

The two-state solution is actually a “two step” solution for Arabs who call themselves “Palestinians” to establish a free Palestine from “the (Jordan) river to the (Mediterranean) sea”, effectively erasing Israel and Jews off the map, as stated in the PA’s founding and guiding charter. There is no stated goal of living in peace with their neighbor Israel. In fact, the official stated Palestinian goal is the opposite. [An interesting side question is “What is the origin of the word ‘Palestine’?” The answer might surprise you as to who are the original real Palestinians.]

Here is a possible two-step solution to the insolvable “two-state solution.” First, redefine Palestinian Refugees to conform with the accepted term of “refugee” under the UNHCR, rather than the unconventional multi-generational definition found in the PA Charter and UNRWA. As all other refugees and their descendants have historically done, they would retain their ethnic identity but become citizens of their adopted country. In this case, many would be Arabs settling in Arab countries (same language, plus similar culture and religion).

Second, look at a map of the Middle East and compare the land mass of Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, and Egypt. With a monetary incentive, incentivize all “Palestinian” refugees from Gaza to go to areas in the vast underpopulated Arab countries that have potential to take in Gazan refugees for citizenship and true ‘nation building.’ (While President Trump just announced this option for Palestinians living in Gaza, perhaps it should also apply to all “Palestinians” living in Yehuda and Shamron, America, and Europe, so that the “Palestinians” can live together as one Arab peoples.)

This would create a real two separate state solution allowing “Palestinian”-Arabs to build and live in a truly Arab state.

The Abraham Peace Accords consist of multiple agreements signed between Israel and several Arab states which encourage a vision of a Middle East that is stable, peaceful and prosperous, for all. The current signatories are UAE, Bahrain, Suda, Morocco, and Israel.

Since its signing in 2020, trade and tourism between these countries has grown to billions of dollars. Diplomatic relations have grown, as well.

Saudi Arabia is considered by many to be the leading influential Arab state, and its participation in the Accords would be transformative. It is said that the Saudis have not signed the Accords for a few reasons, ranging from seeking greater leverage on certain issues such as the Palestinians or other commitments from the United States, also a key player in forming the Abraham Accords.

It should be noted, as the Saudis drew very close to signing onto the Accords, Iran and its proxies began a war to try and prevent it. Hence, the timing of the Iran sponsored, supported, and funded inhumane horrendous attack of October 7, 2023, successfully created a world-wide crisis. It also accomplished Iran’s nefarious goal of stopping the Saudi’s from signing onto the Abraham Peace Accords. While the Israeli war against Iran and its proxies is not over by far, the recent election of US President Trump, and his incoming administration, might present an opportune time to revisit two sub-texts but key components of the Abraham Accords: Jerusalem and the Palestinian statehood.

The Abraham Peace Accords do not directly address the status of Jerusalem, the Temple Mount, or Judea and Samaria (aka West Bank). The Accords effectively sidestep this issue, allowing normalization without resolving the dispute over Jerusalem. Some critics believe the Accords potentially weaken the Arab world’s leverage on the recurring issue of the push for a two-state solution, by agreeing to live in peace instead of war with Israel as the agreements focus more on normalizing relations between Israel and Arab states, rather than directly addressing these specific territorial issues.

Actions speak louder than words. The almost routine action of the United Nations to unsubstantially and repeatedly condemn Israel with complete inaction of not condemning Hamas, Hezbollah, or their puppet-master Iran, for their heinous and barbaric terrorism, has been going on for decades. Including the September 2024 Palestinian Authority’s UN resolution condemning Israel. The resolution’s list of sponsors and supporters, are a perfect example of taqiyya, an Islamic concept that allows lying with the aim of confounding and defeating enemies through deception.

It’s notable that three of the four Arab countries, who are signatories to the Abraham Peace Accords, were among the sponsors of the above-mentioned PA’s UN anti-Israel resolution and all four voted for the PA resolution. This dichotomous behavior is not surprising. Just look back to the 1993 Oslo Peace Accords (agreements between Israel and the terrorist Palestine Liberation Organization that established a peace process). Shortly after signing the accords, Yassar Arafat gave a speech in a mosque, where he referenced taqiyya and called for a jihad (an order to destroy Israel and kill the Jews). He explained that his signing of the peace accords with Israel was only a tactical step that could be reversed.

How then can Israel, the United States, or even the world, trust the signatories of the Abraham Peace Accords where Israel’s “partners in peace” supported anti-Israel resolution in the UN, which clearly demonstrate this taqiyya duplicitous stance?

The Abraham Peace Accords need a new clause. One suggestion to ensure all signatories are truthful and have signed the Accords in good faith, is to revise the Accords to include a clause that conveys this condition: “By signing this agreement, the signatory government accept the validity of the ancient and modern State of Israel, with its long, continuous history and heritage of the Jewish faith and people. This includes recognizing and accepting of Israel’s sovereignty and borders, including the ancient and modern capital of Jerusalem, the Temple Mount, Yehuda and Shomron.” To demonstrate equality, this can also be included: “Israel, in return, acknowledges the rights and borders of the Arab state signing below.” Perhaps these suggestions won’t stop taqiyya, but it will call attention to any political or military actions that would be counter-productive to the peaceful stability intent of the Abraham Peace Accords.

# # #

The almost routine action of the United Nations condemning Israel and inaction of not condemning Hamas, Hezbollah, or their puppet-master Iran for its heinous and barbaric terrorism, has been going on for decades. But the recent Palestinian Authority’s UN resolution is the straw that broke the camel’s back. This resolution, and its list of sponsors and supporters, is a perfect example of taqiyya, an Islamic concept that allows lying to confound and defeat enemies through deception.

Three of the four Arab countries, who are signatories to the Abraham Accords, which are bilateral agreements on Arab-Israeli normalization, are among the sponsors of this anti-Israel resolution. Yet all four voted for the PA resolution. This dichotomous behavior is not surprising. If one looks back to the Oslo Peace Accords (a set of agreements between Israel and the terrorist Palestine Liberation Organization that established a peace process) one will see that shortly after signing the accords, Arafat gave a speech on May 10, 1994, in a mosque in Johannesburg, where he referenced taqiyya and called for a jihad (read: destroy Israel and kill the Jews). He suggested that his signing of the peace accords with Israel was only a tactical step that could be reversed.

By the PA re-stating the “advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, rendered on 19 July 2024,” the resolution’s text contains one unfounded, twisted untruth after the other. In the interest of space, here are just a few:

• Israel’s “Regime.” A ‘regime’ is an authoritarian government. Israel is a parliamentary democracy, while the originating sponsor of this resolution (PA) president is now in his 19^th year of a 4-year term.
  

• “Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful.”

  • Palestinian territory cannot be “occupied” by Israel for a number of reasons. Historically, the name “Palestine” comes from when the Roman Emperor Hadrian renamed the Kingdom of Israel in 135 CE, after the Philistines, who disappeared 750 years earlier, in an effort to try and eradicate the name of the Jewish nation. Therefore, Jews are actually the true Palestinians. (Can you say, “cultural appropriation?”)

  • More recently, UN resolution 181 (Nov 1947) divided a remaining portion of the Mandate for Palestine; one portion of the land for the Jews and one portion for the Arabs (no mention of “Palestinians”). The Jews said yes to the partition, but the Arabs said no and immediately attacked the nascent state of Israel to wipe it out. Israel miraculously survived but Jordan illegally occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem from 1949 to 1967. Not once during those 18 years was the topic of a Palestinian state or resettlement of refugees dealt with, many of whom were lured by the Arab nations to leave Palestine/Israel, while Israel asked them to stay.

  • Jordan and Israel signed a peace treaty in 1994 giving the West Bank and East Jerusalem to the State of Israel. (See more under “two state” solution.)
    

• Calling for “the two-State solution for the achievement of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East.” The Palestinian National Charter, like this resolution, make unfounded claims that repeatedly deny the validity of Israel, Jews, and Zionism and calls for violence against the State of Israel. Many previous two-state proposals for Jews and Arabs have been put forth only to be repeatedly turned down by the PA. The only “lasting peace” they, and others are seeking, is one without Israel or the Jews, in other words, genocide. (“From the river to the sea, Palestine must be free – of Jews.”)

• Other topics of the PA Resolution include calls for economic boycotts and diplomatic questioning whether Jerusalem is actually the capital of the Jewish State of Israel.

This resolution is, in effect, an official declaration of political, diplomatic, and economic war. How should the State of Israel respond to this astounding resolution that passed 124 to 14 with 43 abstaining. (Abstaining? The list of countries – many of whom one would think would be Israel’s friends - and their votes are very telling.)

Historically and rationally, nations at war have no direct relations on any level. Therefore, Israel as a declared enemy by the PA, should act accordingly and have nothing more to do with the PA directly. Here are some ideas for actions that Israel can take over the near term:

1. No direct financial services. (Curiously, what is the currency of the PA? Yes, it’s the Israeli Shekel.)

2. No direct trade or selling of any goods and services to the PA, including utilities.

3. Due to the actions of their government, anyone with a PA identity card is persona non-grata. Therefore, no entry or transit thru Israel via land, air, or sea.

4. Anyone qualifying under point #3 above (or any Arab Musim country national) moving goods into and/or through Israel cannot enter and must transfer the transport to a driver with an Israeli ID.

5. Any country or company doing business with, or within Israel, accepts its sovereign borders, including the Temple Mount.

6. Any foreign embassy not located in Israel’s capital city of Jerusalem should be lowered in status to a consulate.

The PA can easily and should turn to Jordan and their other brother Arab nations to supply them with goods and services currently being provided by their declared enemy, Israel.

It should be noted that the PA was only able to introduce this September 2024 resolution because in June 2024 they were given full UN member status. 146 out of 193 UN members gave the coveted member status to a terrorist organization (PLO) who’s own Charter has not renounced terror.

To become a UN member the PA had to sign that they solemnly agreed to abide by the Charter of United Nations. Those ideals and purposes include: “…practice tolerance and live together in peace … maintain international peace and security…to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression… …sovereign equality.... refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state… ensure that states which are not Members of the United Nations act in accordance with these Principles… A Member which has persistently violated the Principles contained in the present Charter may be expelled from the Organization…” (Author’s emphasis: italics.)

It should be remembered that any UN member that is an Islamic country might use taqiyya to justify signing on to the UN Charter, as a deception because aggressive world domination is their objective. Therefore, they all do not meet the qualifications for UN membership.

Where are the voices and protests of the non-Muslims member nations? The silence, acquiescence, and docile behavior unfortunately demonstrates the ineptitude, ineffectiveness, and immorality, of the UN as a worldwide unifying organization.