PCG's Reliance on Israeli Religious Right Wing Media Source, Arutz Sheva

Before the main topic is discussed here it is very important to remember that what is mentioned here only describes the behavior of a small minority of strict religious Jews. The vast majority of Jews, including most religious Jews, do not practice what is mentioned below. It would be a terrible thing to blame innocent people for something they are not responsible for.

We must not stereotype Jews. The Jewish people are like the entire world in miniature. Some are religious. Some are religious in a more strict way. Some are not religious. Some are left wing. Some are Communists. Some are right wing. Some are soldiers. Some are pacifists. In the United States about 90% of American Jews vote for the Democratic Party. In the State of Israel the Israeli Jews tend to be more right wing then their American counterparts. There is a world to be found among them.

But unfortunately Armstrongism has a bad habit of dehumanizing Israeli Jews by simplistically portraying them like paper thin characters in a movie. This causes us to place unfair expectations upon Jews that they never asked of us instead of seeing that they are just human beings like any other people. They are as beautiful, talented, precious and flawed as any other human being. We must give no place or heed to anti-Semtic hatred.

And so we begin:

Here are some of Amy Flurry's songs. She is the wife of Stephen Flurry. (Hannah (2000), The Fortress (2002), Animal Kingdom (2003), Plowshares)

Here a song sung by Barbara Turgeon, the daughter of Gerald Flurry (By His Spirit).

Although I cannot approve of how these songs are used for the benefit of PCG it would never occur to me to ban Amy Flurry, Barbara Turgeon or Paula Malone from singing just because they happen to be women. But I am aware of one organization (at least in times past) which would have banned them from singing because they are women. And they are not as far removed from PCG as one might think.

In fact this organization is often quoted by PCG's leaders themselves.

This organization is Arutz Sheva (Hebrew for "Channel 7"). It is also referred to as Israel National News. It is a media outlet in Israel that caters towards religious Jews. Stephen Flurry was even interviewed by this media outlet in 2009 as will be seen below.

After years of vaguely hearing that there are religious settlers in the West Bank I decided to read up about them in the following book: Jewish Fundamentalism in Israel by Israel Shahak and Norton Mezvinsky (1999, 2004).

The late Israel Shahak was born in Poland and after surviving the Holocaust moved to the Holy Land and was a prominent commentator on public affairs until his death in 2002. Norton Mezvinsky is an American Jew.

I do not necessarily agree with everything they say, particularly in regards to historical practices mentioned in the last chapter (I simply do not know much about that topic,) but it was a most fascinating read. It is certainly worth reading. It talks mainly about two religious movements in Israel, namely the Haredim (ultra-Orthodox) and the Gush Emunim (Bloc of the Faithful), the religious settlers who move into the settlements in the West Bank.

While reading this book I came upon the following passage which discusses the media organization named Arutz Sheva. (Hebrew for Channel 7.) It is also sometimes referred to as Israel National News. In the quoted passage below it is referred to as Arutz 7.

The religious-nationalist Jewish compromises with modernity regarding women are exceedingly complicated in many ways.

The Halacha forbids Jewish males to listen to women singing whether in a choir or solo regardless of what is sung. This is stated directly in the halachic ruling that a voice of a woman is adultery. [sic.] This is interpreted by later halachic rulings stipulating that the word "voice" here means a woman's singing not speaking. This rule, originating in the Talmud, occurs in all codes of law. A Jewish male who willingly listens to a woman's singing commits a sin equivalent either to adultery or fornication.

The great majority of NRP [National Religious Party] faithful members, nevertheless, listen to women singing and thus commit "adultery" routinely. Some of the most strict NRP members, especially among the religious settlers in the West Bank, have not only puzzled over this problem but at times have tried to solve the problem of how to adjust by developing creative approaches.

In the early 1990s some of the settlers founded a new radio station, Arutz, or Channel, 7. [Arutz Sheva.] For their station to become successful and to appeal as broadly as possible to Israeli Jews, the settlers understood that the songs of the fashionable singers of the day, some of whom were women, would have to be broadcast. The rabbinical censor, however, has refused to allow a breach of the Halacha whereby male listeners would hear female singer and thus commit "adultery."

After further consultation with the censor, the settlers devised an acceptable solution this is still being employed. Men sing the songs, made popular by women; the male voices are then electronically changed to the female pitch and are broadcast accordingly over Arutz 7 [Arutz Sheva]. A part of the traditional public is satisfied by this expedient, and the learned NRP rabbis insist that no adultery is committed when men listen to the songs being sung. The Haredim [ultra-Orthodox] obviously have rejected and condemned this accommodation and to date have refused to listen to Arutz 7 [Arutz Sheva]. (Israel Shahak and Norton Mezvinsky, Jewish Fundamentalism in Israel, 1999, 2004, Chapter 1.)

Arutz Sheva radio was later shut down in 2003 by the State of Israel after being convicted of being a pirate radio station.

(Incidentally Iran has also imposed restrictions upon women singing since 1979. It is likely that PCG would use such information to fear monger about Iran. But would they condemn Israeli Jews who do this as well?)

For the purpose of this post let us keep our attention placed on Arutz Sheva. So it is seen that Arutz Sheva radio, at least before it was shut down in 2003, refused to broadcast women singing. This ban would apply to any female singer among PCG as well, such as Paula Malone, Amy Flurry, Barbara Turgeon or any other female singer within PCG. They would be banned from singing on Arutz Sheva.

In case this seems far fetched here is one report from Arutz Sheva which sympathetically describes some IDF officer cadets who follow this practice getting in a situation which made it hard for them to observe this discriminatory rule.

Soldier’s father says religious officer cadets were told “plug your ears,” not allowed to leave performance.

Religious officer cadets were forced to sit through a peformance [sic] that violates their religious principles last week, the father of one of the cadets says. The soldiers asked to sit out the performance, which featured two female singers and two male instrumentalists, but their commanders refused, telling them to plug their ears instead. (Gil Ronen, Religious Soldiers ‘Forced to Hear Female Singers’, Arutz Sheva, July 26, 2011.)

This issue has also gained attention again recently after a parade celebrating the unification of Jerusalem in 1967 excluded female singers. The following article is from Arutz Sheva and is sympathetic to those who discriminate against female singers in this way.

Two genderist MKs from Labor – Merav Michaeli and Stav Shaffir – fired off an angry letter to Education Minister Naftali Bennett Thursday, alleging that a joint Unity Day ceremony held by a yeshiva and a non-religious school was “degrading and humiliating” to women. ...

The reason for the MKs' ire was a joint decision by the yeshiva and the school, not to feature girls' singing on stage – in keeping with a halachic precept that is widely accepted among leading rabbis, which looks askance at performances by women before male or mixed-sex audiences. ...

Some parents of students at Dror turned to MKs Michaeli and Shaffir, both from the Zionist Union, who in turn called on Bennett to intervene.

“How can we celebrate a day of unity while degrading and humiliating half the population?” Michaeli asked in a letter sent to Bennett on Tuesday. ...

In the letter to Bennett, Michaeli noted that the Supreme Court has banned what genderists term “the exclusion of women from the public sphere.”

“If the issue is of hurt feelings, the feelings of the girls who sing and women in general are hurt no less than the religious feelings of men,” she argued. She added in a televised interview: "The event centers on unity. Are we only honoring unity between men?" (Gil Ronen, Unity Day? Feminist MKs Upset over 'Degrading' Ceremony, June 4, 2015.)

If we are saddened by learning of this we must remember that the vast majority of Jews and also many religious Jews do not follow this discriminatory teaching. I do not say this to belabor the point but simply to state how most people in the world stand on this issue. (I will be honest. I did not even know this was an "issue" until reading Shahak and Mezvinsky's book.)

This prohibition is not mentioned out of simple curiosity but to point out that PCG often cites as an authoritative source this very media source, Arutz Sheva, also referred to as Israel National News, which, at least when Shahak and Mezvinsky wrote, discriminated against women by refusing to let them sing on their radio station.

Stephen Flurry was even interviewed by this media outlet which had banned female singers from their radio station. This interview of Stephen Flurry occurred in early 2009.

On another note, while attending the Jerusalem Conference on Tuesday, I was interviewed by Eve Harow of Israel National News. She asked about our college’s support for Dr. Mazar’s excavation at the City of David. You can listen to the interview here. [Dead link.] It’s the January 29 broadcast. I’m the first one interviewed on part 2 of the program. (The Weekend Web, February 1, 2009.)

Despite how Arutz Sheva would refuse to play songs by any female PCG member PCG has often cited Arutz Sheva in their writings.
 
It is worth noting that PCG's leadership never in any way criticize Arutz Sheva or express any skepticism about anything they say. PCG never even mentions that Arutz Sheva just happens to cater for right wing religious Jews. One would never know how Arutz Sheva leans politically if one only read PCG's writings. Is PCG's leadership not curious about these people they constantly quote? Are PCG's readers aware of the nature of Arutz Sheva? Would they be comfortable about PCG using such a media source that happens to treat women in this way?

PCG trusts Arutz Sheva. But they never bother even telling their readers what it is. One reading PCG's writings would never know that Arutz Sheva caters for right wing religious Israeli Jews. They are portrayed by PCG as neutral and authoritative.

Here we may see PCG quoting Arutz Sheva. Note how often PCG cites Arutz Sheva. Gerald Flurry, Stephen Flurry, Ron Fraser, Joel Hilliker, Brad MacDonald, Mark Jenkins, Richard Palmer and Brent Nagtegaal have all quoted from this media source which would ban women from singing on their radio broadcasts.

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A Ma’ariv reporter revealed in June that the EU Support Committee had earmarked $342,000 for a committee dedicated to “preventing left-leaning new Russian immigrants from swinging to the right.” Over $200,000 was also committed to the liberal Four Mothers movement, which dissolved before the money could reach it. “Hundreds of thousands of euros are scheduled to soon reach Peace Now, the Committee Against Razing Homes, and the far-left group Ir Shalem”—a collection of radically liberal political groups (Arutz Sheva News, June 22).
Arutz Sheva further disclosed in its June 27 edition that the list of left-wing groups receiving EU money was even longer. “This is unbelievable,” Knesset member Benny Elon was quoted as saying. “There is a whole network that looked for the weak links in Israeli society, and then started bankrolling them.… [O]fficial nations—not some private millionaire—were directly involved in Israeli politics.…” This is precisely the pattern of double-dealing that Germany has repeatedly followed. (Joel Hilliker, The Counterfeit Peacemaker, August 2001.)

Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres falsely maintains that “Arafat is the only Palestinian leader who cares about the Western countries’ position” (www.israelnationalnews.com, Oct. 16). Peres admits that Arafat’s “desire to obtain legitimacy for the Palestinian cause influences him” (ibid). At the same time, from the other side of his mouth, Peres says, “Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah don’t care about the West, cannot be influenced, and call for for the destruction of Israel”(ibid.). (A New Push for Palestine, November 2001.)

The same day, Arutz Sheva, an Israeli news service, claimed that Jordan’s King Hussein had presented proof to President Bush of the Jordanians’ prevention of no less than 17 attempted attacks on Israel by Iranian-sponsored Hamas and Hezbollah Islamic jihad terrorists. (Ron Fraser, Up for Grabs, March-April 2002.)

Consider the outcome. These leaders either preside over or vote for an EU budget that sponsors anti-Jewish terrorism! A report released recently by the Funding for Peace Coalition reveals that European taxpayers’ contributions have “been diverted toward graft, terrorism and anti-Israel incitement” (IsraelNationalNews.com, September 3). You can read our related article on page 8 of this issue.  (Ron Fraser, Land of the Free and Home of the Hated, November 2004.)

Europe has long supported the Palestinians financially. Trouble is, much of the €4 billion (US$5.06 billion) the European Union has given the Palestinian Authority over the past decade has gone toward terrorism, corruption, violence and anti-Israel incitement. Such was the conclusion of a report released by the Funding for Peace Coalition in August (IsraelNationalNews.com, September 3). (Joel Hilliker, “Like It or Not”, November 2004.)

An Israeli intelligence report authored in October 2004 showed that Hezbollah has been actively trying to infiltrate the Jewish state from within ever since Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon. At that moment, as reported by IsraelNationalNews.com on Dec. 9, 2004, “Hezbollah and Iran realized the ‘explosive potential’ available in the Israeli-Arab population. Full-fledged citizens with complete mobility throughout the country, the Arabs of Israel were seen as a perfect way of enhancing Hezbollah’s ability to strike out at Israel.” (Joel Hilliker, The Precious Jewel of Iran’s Plan, February, 2005.)

Middle East expert Prof. Rafi Yisraeli gave a realistic picture of the situation when he said last Thursday: “[I]f there are elections and Hamas wins, then we really will have accomplished nothing at all [by leaving Gaza]—we’ll simply have a very hostile state on our border, with rocket attacks and terrorism .…” He went on to say that, on the other hand, if Abbas did gain enough support from the Palestinians by securing the release of Palestinian prisoners, Hamas won’t take it quietly but will instigate more violence. “In short, the situation is quite volatile, and Israel does not appear to have anything to gain, as usual” (IsraelNationalNews.com, October 6).  (Chaotic Palestinian Politics Are About to Get Radical, October 11, 2005.)

An Israeli intelligence report authored in October 2004 showed that Hezbollah has been actively trying to infiltrate the Jewish state from within ever since Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon. At that moment, as reported by IsraelNationalNews.com on Dec. 9, 2004, “Hezbollah and Iran realized the ‘explosive potential’ available in the Israeli-Arab population. Full-fledged citizens with complete mobility throughout the country, the Arabs of Israel were seen as a perfect way of enhancing Hezbollah’s ability to strike out at Israel.” (Iran’s President Confirms Frightening Foreign Policy Objective, October 31, 2005.)

“You can tell a lot about a political or historical event by looking at who’s celebrating it—and in this case it should be obvious that anything which gives Hamas encouragement is most assuredly a dangerous and foolhardy mistake” (IsraelNationalNews.com, August 16). ...
IsraelNationalNews.com reported September 4 that, in a recent speech to Gaza students, Abbas patently praised suicide bombers: “They receive their reward in the Garden of Eden,” he said, reminding the students that martyrs and suicide terrorists “brought about the withdrawal from Gaza.” (Joel Hilliker, Israel's Bleeding Wound, November 2005.)

Christian publications in Italy and around the world—including the official Vatican newspaper El Messagero—are reporting that an agreement is to be signed on this visit that would transfer sovereignty of parts of Jerusalem’s Mount Zion to the Vatican. Specifically, as IsraelNationalNews.com reported last month, the proposed contract would give the Roman Catholic Church control over what it claims is the location of the Last Supper (a room actually built by the Crusaders in the 14th century)—one of the most sacred sites in Catholicism—in exchange for an ancient synagogue in Spain that has since been converted into a church. Currently, a Jewish Yeshiva (religious school) is located on the site, which Jews believe King David’s tomb lies beneath. (Vatican Seeks Pieces of Jerusalem, November 16, 2005.)

In the past several years, the EU has increasingly involved itself, much of the time behind the scenes, in the Middle East peace process. At the same time, it has strengthened its economic and other ties with Israel. In September, for example, Israel and the Palestinian Authority signed an agreement to operate a joint transportation office with the EU’s assistance. Because the EU has agreed to fund the project, it will “play a major role” in large transportation projects within Israel and the Palestinian territories (IsraelNationalNews .com, September 22).  (Europe’s Help Welcomed in Gaza, December 2005.)

“The fight has begun for Jerusalem,” announced Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia last week, just days after the Israeli withdrawal was complete (Arutz Sheva, August 30). On August 28, at a meeting in the Arab section of Jerusalem, Qureia said that the PA would now focus its attention on that city. “The only viable country would be with the 1967 borders,” said the Palestinian prime minister. “The Palestinians will not accept less than a state on the lands occupied in 1967 with Jerusalem as its capital” (ibid.). ... Of course, Israel is determined to hold on to Jerusalem. One Israeli politician who appears to see the danger of losing Jerusalem, however, is Benjamin Netanyahu, who resigned from the government in protest of the Gaza pullout. “Jerusalem is in danger,” he stated last week (August 31). “The Palestinians are actively trying to detach Jerusalem from Maaleh Adumim [an Israeli settlement in the West Bank east of Jerusalem]” (Arutz Sheva, August 31). (War Over Jerusalem Has Begun, December 5, 2005.)

On January 22, Israel’s Arutz Sheva reported a meeting that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad held in Syria with representatives of Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Israeli Defense Minister Sha’ul Mofaz labeled it a “summit of terror.” He said Ahmadinejad called the meeting “to be sure that the terrorism against Israel would not slow down for a moment, and would even increase.” This is what Hamas leaders were doing just days before their electoral victory!  (Brad MacDonald, What the Hamas Victory Means for the Middle East, February 3, 2006.)

IsraelNationalNews.com made an interesting comparison, hinting at Iran’s intention to provoke confrontation. In May 1967, Egypt demanded UN peacekeepers leave the Suez Canal area, signaling its intention to attack Israel—a situation that resulted in the Six Day War. North Korea withdrew from the NPT shortly before going public with its nuclear weapons program. (U.S. Says Iran Has Nuclear Weapons Capability, February 14, 2006.)

January 22, Israel’s Arutz Sheva reported a meeting that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad held in Syria with representatives of Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Israeli Defense Minister Sha’ul Mofaz labeled it a “summit of terror.” He said Ahmadinejad called the meeting “to be sure that the terrorism against Israel would not slow down for a moment, and would even increase.” This is what Hamas leaders were doing just days before their electoral victory!
But Tehran does more than just cheer these groups on. There is abundant proof that Iran provides weapons to Hezbollah and supports it with financial aid to the tune of about $100 million per year. Iran gave about $10 million to the PA-based Islamic Jihad in 2005—about twice as much as it did in 2004. Iran’s support of Palestinian terrorist groups is growing. (Gerald Flurry, Jerusalem Is About to Be Cut in Half, March 2006.)

Hamas shows no signs of renouncing violence against Israel. A couple of recent illustrations of this reality: Hamas has launched a website for children “preaching the moral desirability of being a suicide terrorist via cartoons and children’s stories” (Arutz Sheva, March 9). (Olmert Campaigns on West Bank Pullout, March 14, 2006.)

Israel’s Arutz Sheva stated that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made the trip to Syria “to be sure that the terrorism against Israel would not slow down for a moment, and would even increase” (January 22). (Brad MacDonald, The Greatest Fan of Palestinian Terrorism, March 27, 2006.)

Iran has taken an active interest in the Palestinian situation. As the rest of the world demands that Hamas denounce violence and recognize Israel, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad promised to cut off Iranian funding if Hamas stopped its terrorist activities against the Jews. Israel’s Arutz Sheva stated that Ahmadinejad made a special trip to Syria “to be sure that the terrorism against Israel would not slow down for a moment, and would even increase” (January 22). Iran accomplishes this goal by supporting terrorist organizations like Hamas, al Qaeda, and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah; Iran’s Revolutionary Guards regularly travel to Lebanon to help train Hezbollah fighters. (Israel’s Enemies Encroaching, April 11, 2006.)

Israel’s Arutz Sheva stated that President Ahmadinejad made the trip to Syria “to be sure that the terrorism against Israel would not slow down for a moment, and would even increase” (January 22). (Brad MacDonald, Iran Is King, May 2006.)

Last year, Christian publications around the world—including the official Vatican newspaper El Messagero—reported that an agreement would be signed transferring sovereignty of parts of Jerusalem’s Mount Zion to the Vatican. Specifically, as IsraelNationalNews.com reported in October, the proposed contract would give the Catholic Church control over what it claims is the location of the Last Supper (a room actually built by the crusaders in the 14th century)—one of Catholicism’s most sacred sites. Currently, a Jewish religious school is located there, which Jews believe sits atop King David’s tomb. (Mark Jenkins, Jerusalem and the Last Crusade, May 2006.)

Reported on in two separate articles (here and here) by IsraelNationalNews.com, the poll had several telling results:  (Joel Hilliker, PA Almost Unanimously Supports Hezbollah, August 15, 2006.)

Hate propaganda is scattered through Palestinian textbooks, according to an August 29 Arutz Sheva report. (Palestinian Textbooks Teach Hate, September 6, 2006.)

On Friday, an Islamist leader in Israel claimed Jerusalem will soon be free of Jewish presence and become the new capital of Islam. Sheikh Raed Salah made the comments in southern Galilee at the 11th annual conference of the Israeli Islamic Movement, according to IsraelNationalNews.com. (Joel Hilliker, Muslims Reiterate Goal to Capture Jerusalem, September 18, 2006.)

On September 12, the Fatah-run Al-Quds newspaper quoted Fatah spokesman Mahir Miqdad, saying he “emphasized that the source of the authority for the Palestinian undertaking is the Palestine Liberation Organization .…” IsraelNationalNews.com sheds light on just what the implications are:  (Palestinian Unity Government Proposed, September 18, 2006.)

While Jewish residents are subjected to these more extreme laws, Arabs routinely undertake illegal construction projects, stage events without a license, operate unauthorized sellers’ stands, and blare prayers from mosque loudspeakers “at unusual times and at high volume,” according to Jewish residents (IsraelNationalNews.com, October 25). (Israel’s Sovereignty Over Jerusalem Eroding, November 6, 2006.)

Arutz Sheva recently noted how Hezbollah terrorists are more prone to roaming freely and conducting their activities at night because UNIFIL does not patrol the streets after dark. Spanish UNIFIL official Richard Ortax admitted that nightly patrols are not conducted by UN troops “because of the danger involved.” These soldiers went to Lebanon prepared for confrontation. They are well-trained and equipped with some of the best technology and weaponry available, not to mention that they outnumber Hezbollah fighters almost 2 to 1—yet it’s too dangerous for them to participate in nightly patrols?  (Brad MacDonald, Lebanon: Hezbollah Rearms While UN Sleeps, November 10, 2006.)

“Army intelligence has documented that terrorists since the August 2005 Israeli retreat from Gaza have stocked up with tons of military-grade explosives, as well as millions of rounds of ammunition and advanced weaponry,” reported IsraelNationalNews.com (November 28). (Israel PM Renews Offer of Land for Peace, November 29, 2006.)

Hamas also has the firm support of Iran, which committed $50 million when the crisis began. In his first visit abroad since taking power, PA Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh visited Iran last week. He emphasized the close relationship the Palestinian Authority—and more accurately, his terror group—has with the Iranian government: “They [Israelis] assume the Palestinian nation is alone. … This is an illusion. We have a strategic depth in the Islamic republic of Iran. This country [Iran] is our powerful, dynamic and stable depth.” The prime minister acknowledges that his strategy and the power of his people come from Iran, whose president wants to wipe Israel off the map. During that visit, Iran promised $250 million to the PA over the course of the next year or so, which, in the words of Arutz Sheva, turns “the PA into a form of Iranian dependency.”  (Mark Jenkins, West “Punishes” Hamas With Lamest Sanctions Ever, December 14, 2006.)

It has also put the Israeli government in a difficult spot. Stratfor reported immediately after the incident: “Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s extremely weak domestic standing will force his government to carry out a significant retaliation.” However, the following day, sources close to the prime minister, as reported by IsraelNationalNews.com, said that though the Defense Ministry is talking tough, “no large-scale offensive is to be expected” (January 30).  (Suicide Bombings Resume in Israel, February 1, 2007.)

Member of Knesset (MK) Zevulun Orlev decided he’d had enough, and recently proposed a bill that, in the words of Israel National News, “would allow the Knesset to vote to expel one of its own members who incited racial hatred, denounced Israel’s existence, or expressed support for a terrorist organization or for violence against the State of Israel.”  (Joel Hilliker, Israel Permits Anti-Israelism in Knesset, February 14, 2007.)

A major mosque in London has sold copies of a DVD that prophesies “mass extermination of Jews around the world on a ‘day of judgment’ and attacks Christian groups,” according to Arutz Sheva (January 12). London has become an epicenter for radicalized anti-West thinking. (Mark Jenkins, Why London Doesn’t Need a Giant Mosque, March 2007.)

The “unofficial suspension of U.S. arms deliveries,” which has been ongoing since September, is a significant setback to the tiny Jewish nation (Arutz Sheva, Dec. 28, 2006). It says it needs the equipment to restock in preparation for a possible large-scale war, which might include an attack from Syria. (U.S. Halts Arms Sales To Israel, March 2007.)

Now that the EU is weakening its stance against the PA, it follows that Israel too will be pressured into releasing funds to the Hamas-driven government. Arutz Sheva reported June 11:

The financial move raises the status of the PA without formal acceptance. It is also likely to result in increased pressure on Israel to release $700 million in tax revenue collected for the PA but withheld following the Hamas victory, leading to an accelerated disintegration of Western resolve to boycott the terrorist organization. (Brad MacDonald, EU Resumes Sending Money to PA, June 12, 2007.)

Meanwhile in Israel, the military conducted a large-scale exercise last week at Shizafon Base in the south of Israel simulating “an invasion of Syria within the context of a war, involving infantry units, tank divisions and the Air Force,” according to Arutz Sheva. (Olmert Offers Golan to Syria, June 12, 2007.)

In the days following the Hamas takeover, according to Arutz Sheva, hundreds of Gazan residents amassed at Israel’s Erez Crossing in an attempt to enter Israel, “but were turned away” (June 17). (Stephen Flurry, Gazans Seek Refuge in Israel, June 26, 2007.)

Meanwhile, the Israeli military conducted a large-scale exercise in June at Shizafon Base in the south of Israel simulating “an invasion of Syria within the context of a war, involving infantry units, tank divisions and the Air Force,” according to Arutz Sheva (June 8). (Israel Offers Golan to Syria, August-September 2007.)

Arutz Sheva reported July 26, “By stating so clearly that ‘the occupation of the West Bank will have to end,’ Rice has set a new standard for United States officials of her stature in opposition to Israel’s presence in Judea and Samaria.”  (Why Is America Imploring Israel to Capitulate?, August 1, 2007.)

Israel this summer gave millions of dollars to Fatah with one condition: The money could not be given to Hamas. Fatah then wired Hamas the $16 million last week, reported Arutz Sheva. Fatah says it was an accident. (Fatah Sends Hamas $16 Million on “Accident”, August 13, 2007.)

He said current peace negotiations would undoubtedly get hung up over the Temple Mount. According to a report from Arutz Sheva, Olmert has essentially agreed to the concessions offered at Taba, which include Palestinian sovereignty over the Temple Mount, but not the Jewish quarter of the Old City or the Wailing Wall—the Western Wall of the Temple Mount. But a senior adviser to Mahmoud Abbas recently said the Western Wall “is part of Islamic heritage that cannot be given up, and it must be under Muslim control” (Arutz Sheva, October 12). The sticking point, as my father forecasted, is the Temple Mount. (Stephen Flurry, Can This Man Save Israel?, November-December 2007.)

Arutz Sheva reports (emphasis ours): An ISDN line regularly broadcasts, over PA radio, the Islamic prayer services from the Temple Mount. This week, however, it granted the license to do so to Hamas—complete with Hamas Radio commercials, station identifications, and incitement against Jews. “Whoever wants to hear the Temple Mount services this week has to go to HamasRadio,” says Rabbi Richman. (Brad MacDonald, Israel Government Idle as Hamas Broadcasts From Temple Mount, December 21, 2007.

Egypt rejected Israeli accusations that it has not done enough to stop smuggling across the Egyptian border. Almost half a billion dollars’ worth of equipment is smuggled over the border each year, according to Arutz Sheva. The tunnels are a huge thorn in the Israelis’ side. Earlier this week, Arutz Sheva wrote, “[W]hile the 150 tunnels bring in a total of some $150 million annually, the value of men, weapons and other merchandise smuggled in each year total more than three times that amount—close to a half-billion dollars.” (Egypt-Israel Meetings Underpinned by Spirit of Division, December 28, 2007.)

The growing divide between Israel and Egypt was exposed with a spat between the two countries over the issue of smuggling across the Egyptian border. Israel’s foreign minister criticized Egypt’s lack of action to stop the smuggling into the Gaza Strip, and Egypt’s foreign ministry responded tersely: “It is better for the Israeli minister to concentrate on negotiation efforts with the Palestinians, instead of speaking randomly about issues she should not be dealing with if she is not fully aware of the situation.” Almost half a billion dollars’ worth of equipment is smuggled over the border into Gaza each year, according to Arutz Sheva.  (The Week in Review, January 5, 2008.)

According to some reports, Iran has donated up to $300 million for Arab construction in eastern Jerusalem. According to the 2005 Arutz Sheva report, Saudi Arabia secretly financed the “PA building campaign for political reasons in strategic areas in Jerusalem and other parts of Israel.” Clearly, the Arabs’ massive illegal construction ventures are not the haphazard, personal projects of a few Palestinians. (Brad MacDonald, Remodeling Jerusalem, January 17, 2008.)

Arutz Sheva reported, “Lieberman said the land-for-peace formula that has governed Israeli negotiations for nearly 20 years has been a dramatic failure, and stressed that Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria have nothing to do with the Arab world’s ongoing rejection of Israel as a Jewish country.”  ([Avigdor] Lieberman Quits Olmert Government, January 17, 2008.)

There may be good reason Mubarak was not too perturbed. “In all likelihood, the border breach was coordinated on some level between Egypt and Hamas,” Stratfor reported. Supporting this probability is the fact that just the day before, Mubarak was on the phone to the president of Hamas’s sponsor Iran—for the first time ever—discussing Gaza and the need to lift the siege on Gaza. Certainly, it was no random action. IsraelNationalNews.com reports, “Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal reportedly ordered the preparations and timed the demolition of the border to coincide with the terrorist summit that began in Damascus Wednesday. Called the Palestinian National Congress, the conference was organized by Iran and Syria and is being attended by dozens of representatives from each of the terrorist groups seeking Israel’s destruction.” (The Week in Review, January 26, 2008.)

There was quite a lot more covered in the speech. To read more, IsraelNationalNews.com has some additional excerpts here. (Stephen Flurry, The Weekend Web, February 24, 2008.)

These riotous events show once again the City of Peace is anything but. Israel National News reported that the protests were not a spontaneous reaction to the events in Gaza, but rather were organized by elements interested in “heating up” the Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria regions. Whether it is spontaneous or planned, hatred among the Arabs toward Jews here is definitely heating up. (Violent Outbursts Plague Jerusalem, March 5, 2008.)

Geert Wilders’s controversial film about the Koran and radical Islam is now available on Arutz Sheva. The video was pulled from the website LiveLeak after its employees received death threats. Network Solutions has blocked Geert Wilders’s home page, leaving Arutz Sheva as one of the few websites showing it.  (Stephen Flurry, The Weekend Web, March 30, 2008.)

“When Israel’s ideology will collapse, and after we take Jerusalem, Israel’s ideology will collapse altogether, and then we will proceed with our own ideology, inshallah [if Allah wills], and we will throw them out of all of Palestine,” said Abbas Zaki, PA ambassador to Lebanon, on Lebanese television last Wednesday. Watch the full clip, translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute, here. Israel’s Arutz Sheva also noted the highlights of Zaki’s heart-to-heart with the Lebanese. (Brad MacDonald, April 15, 2008.)

“Nothing would prevent Hamas from continuing to import and manufacture weapons and train terrorists,” Arutz Sheva reports.

Hamas has also offered the promise of a 10-year pause in their attacks, if Israel would agree to relinquish all of Judea, Samaria, and eastern Jerusalem, including the Old City, and to grant citizenship to millions of foreign Arabs. If Israel were to meet those conditions, Hamas leaders say, they would agree to a 10-year cease-fire, after which they would resume their efforts to destroy the Jewish state. (Hamas Leader Admits Cease-fire Only a “Tactic”, April 28, 2008.)

But this declaration calls into question the president’s own policy in Arab-Jew conflict. In an article today, IsraelNationalNews.com spells out the abundant evidence that Fatah and the Palestinian Authority, which Washington considers partners in the peace process, are themselves terrorist organizations. (Stephen Flurry, The Weekend Web, May 18, 2008.)

This case was unusual, however, because of the intervention of IDF soldiers to restore order. Arutz Sheva reports that local residents say their complaints usually result in no security force response whatsoever. Some are even facetiously suggesting that perhaps the Kibbutz movement should send some volunteers to guard Jewish crops in addition to the volunteers it regularly sends to accompany local Arabs during the Olive harvest. (Palestinians Torch Jewish Crops, Again, May 20, 2008.)

Israel National News says, “IDF sources have warned Western Negev municipal leaders that Hamas is preparing to renew its rocket attacks—and that it has the wherewithal to do so with fury.” With Hamas and other terrorist groups firing an average of two shells or rockets a day, the ceasefire has not involved much ceasing of fire on the behalf of the Gazans. Hamas claims that the groups firing on Israel are not under their control. They had plenty of brutal force to boot the Western-backed Fatah from Gaza in last summer’s coup—but now that they control the Strip, they just can’t seem to get a handle on the rogue terrorist groups within Gaza that supposedly have no link to Hamas.  (Stephen Flurry, The Weekend Web, July 13, 2008.)

Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah couldn’t resist the urge to come out of hiding on Wednesday night in order to gloat over Kuntar’s release. “The age of defeats is gone, and the era of victories has come,” Nasrallah declared before cheering throngs of Lebanese. Arutz Sheva noted the stark contrast between Nasrallah’s “era of victories” speech and Ehud Olmert’s “tired of winning” address three years ago. “We are tired of fighting; we are tired of being courageous,” Olmert told the Israel Policy Forum. “We are tired of winning, we are tired of defeating our enemies.”  (Stephen Flurry, What Happened to the Lion of Judah?, July 18, 2008.)

Security officials are still on edge in Jerusalem. According to Israel National News, “An Arab working in the Geulah branch of the famous Hevron Yeshiva has been arrested after threatening to carry out a terrorist attack in Jerusalem. The Arab made the threat after he was fired from his job.”  (Stephen Flurry, The Weekend Web, July 20, 2008.)

The clearest eyed observers of reality can see that the United States is in deep, deep trouble. The government simply cannot afford to bail itself and its state-sponsored enterprises out of their unprecedented indebtedness. America is plain broke and just won’t admit it. Writing for the Israeli newspaper Arutz Sheva, Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu reports, “First it was Citibank. Now it’s Barclay’s and New York City’s Chrysler Building skyscraper. Muslim Arabs are buying out collapsing Western banks and businesses and gaining growing international power .… The latest American symbol to go down the drain is the Anheuser-Busch beer brewer” (July 18).  (Ron Fraser, The Coming Religious Storm, July 20, 2008.)

And finally, at a time when you would hope Israel would draw closer to God, the Knesset is reconsidering Israel’s position regarding the Sabbath. “The new measure,” according to Israel National News, “would allow public transportation to run and permit many recreation and entertainment-oriented businesses to open.” (Stephen Flurry and Richard Palmer, This Week in Jerusalem, July 25, 2008.)

On Tuesday, Israeli President Shimon Peres joined the list of high-profile Israelis who see the division of Jerusalem as inevitable. According to Arutz Sheva, “Peres said that there must be a separation between the Arabs of Jerusalem and the Jews, and that it must be in the form of a wall.”  (Stephen Flurry, Iran: Filling the Power Void, August 1, 2008.)

On Tuesday, Israeli President Shimon Peres joined the list of high-profile Israelis who see dividing Jerusalem as inevitable. According to IsraelNationalNews.com, “Peres said that there must be a separation between the Arabs of Jerusalem and the Jews, and that it must be in the form of a wall.” (This Week in Jerusalem, August 1, 2008.)

In synagogues on Tisha B’Av, Jews read from the Old Testament book of Lamentations. “It was written by the Prophet Jeremiah,” Arutz Sheva writes, “who warned Jews to repent to prevent the fall of Jerusalem, which he [prophesied]. His advice not only was ignored, but he also was IMPRISONED FOR STATING VIEWS that threatened the king’s power.” (Stephen Flurry, Jerusalem Watch: Crackdown in Palestinian Territories, August 15, 2008.)

There has been a concerning rise in Palestinian terrorism against Jews recently, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), in addition to a rise in Jewish disturbances. Incidents of Arab Molotov firebomb attacks and rock-throwing at Jewish-driven cars have increased over the past several days, according to IsraelNationalNews.com. Another violent incident, where a Muslim terrorist stabbed an IDF soldier near Jericho on Monday, was the result of the removal of military checkpoints, according to the Almagor Terror Victims Organization. The United Nations is pressuring Israel to remove security checkpoints in order to boost Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s standing among Palestinians. Also this week, Palestinian terrorists in Gaza fired a rocket at Sderot on Sunday, causing a fire and one injury. (The Week in Review, September 20, 2008.)

Tens of thousands of Muslims observed an anti-Jewish day on September 26. Muslims in Iran, Gaza and elsewhere kept the 30th “Quds Day” observance by marching down streets, burning Israeli and American flags, mocking the Holocaust, celebrating past suicide bombings and calling for more. Arutz Sheva reports (September 28):

Iranian Muslim students at the Palestine Square in Tehran unveiled a book mocking the Holocaust, with its cover depicting a Jew with a crooked nose while drawing the outline of dead bodies. The book depicts Jews leaving the Nazi gas chambers with a counter that records “5,999,999,” one less than the round figure of 6 million Jews who were Nazi terror victims. 

 “One picture,” Arutz Sheva continued, “shows Jews entering a Nazi extermination furnace and leaving as terrorists who are toting guns.” Meanwhile, in Gaza, Hamas politician Ahmed Abu Helbiya celebrated the school shooting of eight yeshiva students, one of the bulldozer attacks in Jerusalem and the recent attempted running over of more Jews by an Arab in his car. Helbiya also told Arabs to “contain the enemy and halt [Israel’s] aggression by planning martyrdom operations” (ibid.). (Anti-Jew Day in Iran, October 6, 2008.)

“Giving the properties away,” reports IsraelNationalNews.com, “means that Israel will not be able to pave roads or lay electricity and other infrastructures without Vatican approval.”  (Vatican Presses for Possession of Jerusalem Sites, May 6, 2009.)

Palestinian political party Fatah’s sixth General Assembly approved a resolution August 6 saying Jerusalem is an “integral part of the Palestinian homeland and political entity.” The resolution, reports IsraelNationalNews.com, says that Fatah considers Jerusalem a “red line” that no one can cross. (The Week in Review, August 15, 2009.)

Hamas has “educated” 100,000 children in Gaza this year at 700 summer camps, with a budget of $2 million, according to Arutz Sheva. As well as being indoctrinated with Hamas’s ideology, the children are given weapons and hand-to-hand combat training, as well as training on how to use explosive belts for suicide missions. (Summer Camp, Hamas-Style, August 26, 2009.)

Hamas has “educated” 100,000 children in Gaza this year at 700 summer camps, with a budget of $2 million, according to Arutz Sheva. As well as being indoctrinated with Islamic ideology, the children were given weapons and hand-to-hand combat training, as well as training on how to use explosive belts for suicide missions. Hamas launched an aggressive campaign to draw children away from the United Nations Works and Relief Association camps, which had over 200,000 in attendance. Through these camps, as well as other methods such as television, music videos and schooling, Hamas and other Islamist groups are poisoning the minds of a generation of Palestinian children to hate Israel. No amount of negotiations between Jews and Palestinians will change that.  (The Week in Review, August 29, 2009.)

According to Arutz Sheva, the UAE “reportedly seized the weapons several weeks ago, finding 10 containers of rocket-propelled grenades and ammunition that were camouflaged as ‘machine parts.’”  (Brad MacDonald, North Korea caught red-handed, August 30, 2009.)

The Israel Antiquities Authority has reported finding a massive 26-foot-high wall in ancient Jerusalem—what later became the City of David. According to Arutz Sheva .... (Brent Nagtegaal, Massive fortification excavated near City of David, September 2, 2009.)

Israel has limited access to the mosque for Muslim men under age 50 in response to violence incited by Muslims. Seventy-five Arab Muslims have been arrested in the recent wave of violence. The detainees, says IsraelNationalNews.com, “are suspected of attacking policemen, blocking off roads, hurling rocks and fire bombs, disturbing the peace and illegal demonstration.”  (Palestinian leaders call for general strike, October 8, 2009.)

ITRR [Institute of Terrorism Research and Response] issued the warning after intercepting a message circulating among al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorists that said the “next strike is very near,” and that it would “surprise everyone in its effect, which will be much more shocking than that of Sept. 11, 2001″ (Arutz Sheva, September 8). ... According to Arutz Sheva, “German security services have … been cited in local media discussing stepped-up jihadist chatter, threats and intelligence warnings aimed at the German state in recent months” (op. cit.). (Brad MacDonald, Is Germany’s 9/11 Coming?, November-December 2009.)

Palestinian terrorists killed Israeli Meir Avshalom Hai, a father of seven, in the West Bank on Thursday. He was gunned down while driving his car near Nablus. An Israeli brigade commander in the area said the military had been removing checkpoints from West Bank roads but would consider putting new ones in place. IsraelNationalNews.com reports that the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah faction said Thursday evening that they were the ones who carried out the terror attack.  (The Week in Review, December 26, 2009.)

“The results also pull out the rug from any possible intentions by the Obama administration to try to topple the Netanyahu government in favor of a Kadima-Labor coalition,” reports IsraelNationalNews.com. “It shows strong support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s opposition to President Obama’s demands to stop building for Jews in Jerusalem” (April 14). This is a further indication that the Arab-Jew impasse over Jerusalem will continue—till it reaches the point of violence. (The Week in Review, April 16, 2010.)

The Palestinian Authority will invest in projects aimed at “Arabizing” Jerusalem, it was decided at a meeting on Monday between PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and his ministerial-level government members in Ramallah. Money and other resources will be allocated to institutions such as schools, culture centers and health clinics. IsraelNationalNews.com reports: “The Fayyad government is authorized by the new decision to relocate government offices and important institutions to what mass media refer to as Eastern Jerusalem but actually includes northern and southern areas of the capital as well. The stated goal is to implant the sense among Jerusalem Arabs that the address for their issues is the PA” (May 5).  (The Week in Review, May 7, 2010.)

Iran held eight days of military drills in the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz, beginning May 5. This follows the military exercises held by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard just last month. The war games, according to IsraelNationalNews.com, are to train Iranian troops and intimidate potential enemies. Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency reported that on Monday Iran’s military warned off a U.S. reconnaissance aircraft trying to observe the maneuvers.  (The Week in Review, May 14, 2010.)

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority will invest in projects aimed at “Arabizing” Jerusalem, it was decided at a meeting May 3 between PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and his ministerial-level government members. “The Fayyad government is authorized by the new decision to relocate government offices and important institutions to what mass media refer to as eastern Jerusalem but actually includes northern and southern areas of the capital as well,” IsraelNationalNews.com reported. “The stated goal is to implant the sense among Jerusalem Arabs that the address for their issues is the PA” (May 5).  (Worldwatch, July 2010.)

In additional proof that the Gaza Strip has become an incubator for various terror groups since Israel’s pullout five years ago, an 11-member terrorist cell headed by a Gaza-based Palestinian Authority Arab has been captured in Morocco. Yahya al-Hindi is a former member of the Islamic Jihad terror organization and is responsible for having built a global jihad network in Gaza that serves as a regional “exporter of terrorism,” according to IsraelNationalNews.com. Al-Hindi’s group is aligned with al Qaeda, from whom he gained training in Afghanistan, along with Taliban operatives, in 2007.  (The Week in Review, September 3, 2010.)

Gaza Strip terrorists launched more missiles into Israel in September than during any other month since the period immediately following Israel’s Operation Cast Lead in early 2009. IsraelNationalNews.com reports that the motivation appears to be a desire by Hamas to disrupt the peace negotiations between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority. The Israel Defense Forces website reports that 30 missiles and shells were fired last month, more than double the preceding month. In the past nine years, terrorists have fired over 11,000 rockets at Israel.  (The Week in Review, October 8, 2010.)

“The new law makes it extremely unlikely that any government can surrender any of the land covered by the law, barring a drastic shift in political leanings against the growing nationalist mood,” writes IsraelNationalNews.com.  (Israel Passes Law to Protect Its Capital, December 1, 2010.)

“The new law makes it extremely unlikely that any government can surrender any of the land covered by the law, barring a drastic shift in political leanings against the growing nationalist mood,” writes IsraelNationalNews.com (November 23). The Trumpet has long predicted that Israel would not give away East Jerusalem in a peace deal. Rather, the Bible indicates that the eastern part of the city will be violently taken over by the Palestinian Arabs. (The Week in Review, December 3, 2010.)

“The new law makes it extremely unlikely that any government can surrender any of the land covered by the law, barring a drastic shift in political leanings against the growing nationalist mood,” wrote IsraelNationalNews.com (Nov. 23, 2010).  (WorldWatch, February, 2011.)

IsraelNationalNews.com says that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that Hamas will be moving its headquarters. It says that Netanyahu told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security Committee that Mashaal has left Damascus and is moving to Egypt. (Hamas to Move to Egypt?, June 2, 2011.)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security Committee that Mashaal has left Damascus and is moving to Egypt, according to IsraelNationalNews.com. Biblical prophecy indicates that Syria will move away from its alliance with Iran. Egypt, on the other hand, is prophesied to become a much closer ally to Iran. Hamas moving its headquarters to Egypt is symbolic of this shift. (The Week in Review, June 3, 2011.)

Three years later and with Musharraf gone, Pakistan is now “not only not cooperating with the American war on terror, but is actually fighting against it,” according to Arutz Sheva.  (Brent Nagtegaal, Pakistan arrests Osama bin Laden informants, June 15, 2011.)

Catholic bishops express anti-Jewish bias: Catholic bishops visiting the Gaza Strip have described Gaza as “the largest prison in Europe.” In reporting on the visit by the Vatican’s high-profile delegation of eight bishops from Europe and North America, News.va, the Roman Catholic Church news agency, described Israeli air strikes but made no mention of continuing rocket attacks on Israeli civilians, or the Islamic persecution of Gaza’s small Christian community. “The bishops’ official visit in Gaza is part of a recent Vatican course of action with the Palestinian Authority,” reports IsraelNationalNews.com. (The Week in Review, January 13, 2012.)

In an article in Arutz Sheva on December 15, Italian journalist Giulio Meotti explained how Catholic authorities in recent months have “increased their political initiatives for Catholic control over some sites in Jerusalem.” (Brad MacDonald, Why Does the Vatican Want a Palestinian State?, March 2012.)

“Islamist takeover complete,” headlines Arutz Sheva, writing, “The Muslim Brotherhood’s Morsi appears to be wasting no time in consolidating his hold over power at the expense of the military, which many hoped would be a moderating power over him.”  (Islamist Victory in Egypt: Morsi Fires Military Chiefs, August 13, 2012.)

Despite this stated purpose, the upcoming conference is itself evidence of an alliance now forming under Iran’s radical umbrella. “A visit by Morsi would solidify the ‘terror axis’ of Iran—Hezbollah, Syria and Hezbollah-dominated Lebanon in the north and Hamas to the south of Israel,” Arutz Sheva reported Sunday. “Morsi’s intended visit to Iran will come at the same time he is trying to convince Israel and the West that he has good intentions towards Israel.” (Morsi to Attend Tehran Conference, August 19, 2012.)

Arutz Sheva reported yesterday, “Many Israel government officials are concerned that Egypt may be exploiting the anarchy in the Sinai to convince Israel and the United States it must maintain an armed presence with weapons and manpower beyond the limits stated [in the treaty].” (Is Morsi Using Sinai Instability to Break Peace Treaty With Israel?, August 20, 2012.)

Obviously, this alarmed some in Israel. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman called for Cairo to remove the tanks and aircraft it had deployed in the region. “Many Israel government officials are concerned that Egypt may be exploiting the anarchy in the Sinai to convince Israel and the United States it must maintain an armed presence with weapons and manpower beyond the limits stated in the 1979 peace treaty,” Arutz Sheva reported (August 19). (Brad MacDonald, A New Pharaoh, October-November 2012.)

The Obama administration has played host to “scores of known radical Islamists,” who “made hundreds of visits” to meet with top administration officials, according to a year-long investigation publicized by Arutz Sheva reported in October. After combing through millions of visitor logs, investigators from the Investigative Project on Terrorism (IPT) “identified many of these visitors as belonging to groups serving as fronts for the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas and other terrorist organizations,” Arutz Sheva reported. (White House Unrolls Red Carpet for Extremists, November 12, 2012.)

According to Arutz Sheva, Syrian insurgents dug a 300-meter tunnel under the checkpoint over the course of 50 days, and then proceeded to pack it with 40 tons of explosives. When the enormous tunnel bomb was detonated on May 5, four buildings and at least 30 troops were obliterated immediately. (Syrian Rebels Detonate Colossal Tunnel Bomb, May 9, 2014.)

Four years ago, Italian journalist Giulio Meotti, writing for Arutz Sheva, explained how Catholic authorities had “increased their political initiatives for Catholic control over some sites in Jerusalem.” He recalled, for example, how the head of the Vatican’s Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, had said that “peace negotiations in the Middle East must tackle the issue of the status of the holy sites of Jerusalem.” According to Tauran, the time had arrived for some of Jerusalem’s holy places, including the City of David, to be put under Vatican charge. After all, “it’s practically just the Holy See who is concerned about [Jerusalem],” Tauran stated. (Brad MacDonald, Why Is the Pope Provoking War in Israel?, May 15, 2015.)