By Maidhc Ó Cathail* | Sabbah Report | www.sabbah.biz
- Snopes.com toes the militarists' line -
Snopes.com, officially known as the Urban Legends Reference Pages, has since its humble inception in 1995 come to be regarded as one of the most trusted debunkers of conspiracy theories on the internet. Described by one of its many fans – it apparently has over 6 million visitors per month – as "the grand-daddy of all fact-checking sites," Snopes is downright cavalier, however, in its attitude to facts surrounding Israel's role in the 9/11 attacks.
In its large section on urban legends relating to 9/11, Snopes purports to debunk a claim that "four thousand Israelis employed by companies housed in the World Trade Center stayed home from work on September 11, warned in advance of the impending attack on the World Trade Center." A click on the link under "Israelis" brings the curious reader to an entry titled "Absent without Leave," in which the "four thousand Israelis" have suddenly and inexplicably been replaced by "four thousand Jews."
In "Absent without Leave," Snopes reproduces a September 17, 2001 report by Lebanon's al-Manar satellite television station, which claimed that the Israelis (not "Jews") "remained absent that day based on hints from the Israeli General Security apparatus, the Shabak." The Al-Manar piece cited also refers to the five Israelis arrested hours after the attacks, after having been witnessed filming and celebrating as the Twin Towers collapsed.
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By Jeff Gates* | Sabbah Report | www.sabbah.biz
Americans know that something fundamental is amiss. They sense-rightly-that they are being misled no matter which political party does the leading.
A long misinformed public lacks the tools to grasp how they are being deceived. Without those tools, Americans will continue to be frustrated at being played for the fool.
When the "con" is clearly seen, "the mark" (that's us) will see that all roads lead to the same duplicitous source: Israel and its operatives. The secret to Israel's force-multiplier in the U.S. is its use of agents, assets andsayanim (Hebrew for volunteers).
When Israeli-American Jonathan Pollard was arrested for spying in 1986, Tel Aviv assured us that he was not an Israeli agent but part of a "rogue" operation. That was a lie.
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For those of you who live outside Israel, it would be very effective to send protests to your local Israeli embassy.
Shir Regev
CO
Shir Regev, has returned to prison for the third time. He was sentenced on 14 July to 34 days of imprisonment, which he is serving in Military Prison no. 6 near Athlit.
In his statement of refusal (repeated here from our previous update on his case) Shir wrote:
I believe it is my personal duty to refuse and defect from an army whose main purpose is to serve as an occupation police for maintaining "Israeli order" and imposing it on defenseless Palestinians who are denied citizenship.
And what is this "Israeli order" ? It is an ongoing process, in effect over 42 years, comprising a military regime over the Palestinians, denying them access to the Palestinian community resources of land, water, agricultural crops and ores. It also entails pollution of their land and their streams, along with support for disenfranchisement by settlers who live in the same areas, under a separate system of seemingly democratic laws. And I have not even mentioned the violation of more basic Palestinian human rights, like denying their freedom of movement, and causing bodily harm, including mass killing, without due investigation of alleged criminal offenses of the gravest kind recognized in Israeli law. Carried out in a territory under military occupation, these acts also constitute war crimes and other violations under international law.
Since I have the medical profile of a "combat soldier", had I joined the army, there is no doubt I would have been sent to serve this 'Mafiosi' system, which has almost nothing to do with the IDF's designated role as "Defense Forces"… This is an army that serves interests in which I do not believe. Therefore, in the dilemma between doing such service and obeying my conscience, I have no doubt about my decision. The day will come when my decision is appreciated by people who presently deny the horrible reality which we as a society are creating for another people and the damage we are inflicting on the souls of many young Israelis who may not be aware of the moral degradation in which they take part.
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By Yousef Munayyer* | Sabbah Report | www.sabbah.biz
To say that the proliferation of Israeli settlements in Occupied Palestinian Territory is an impediment to peace is an understatement. As Israel continues to gobble up Palestinian land, the individual rights of landowners and the Palestinian people are trampled upon, leaving no realistic peace process of which to speak.
Ever since the Israeli occupation began in 1967, the United States has held that the transfer of Israel's civilian population into those territories is illegal and contrary to the Fourth Geneva Convention, an agreement that both Israel and the United States are party to. Consecutive presidential administrations have taken public stances against settlement building.
President Obama's recent national security strategy identifies securing a peace agreement as a key national security interest. Last year, in Cairo, President Obama restated the importance of a peace agreement and said that the United States does not recognize the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements.
This makes the premise of a recent New York Times story exposing the extent of funds from American tax payers to support the continuation of Israeli settlements so disturbing. The story highlighted an issue that has long been problematic for activists and policy-makers alike. Hundreds of millions of U.S. tax dollars in deductible contributions are funneled into occupied territory through American charities to fund the enterprise that is killing the very peace process the United States aims to champion.
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Olympia, WA– The Olympia Food Co-op Board of Directors has decided to boycott Israeli goods at their two locations in Olympia, Washington. At a July 15th meeting packed with Co-op members, the Board reached this consensus. The Co-op becomes the first US grocery store to publicly join the international grassroots movement for boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) on Israel for its human rights abuses.
Co-op board member Rob Richards explained, "My hope is that by being the first in the US to adopt the boycott we act as a catalyst for other co-ops to join in. Each additional organizational entity that joins may have a very small effect on the big picture, but drop by drop fills the tub."
Noah Sochet, a Co-op member and Olympia BDS organizer adds, "As a US citizen and as a Jew, I'm proud to say that my Co-op no longer underwrites the suffering in Palestine."
In accordance with its mission statement, the Olympia Food Co-op has a longstanding boycott policy, which includes a boycott of China (for its occupation of Tibet) and a previous boycott of Colorado (for legalizing discrimination against gays, lesbians, and bisexuals in 1992). The Co-op also has policies for rejecting items whose packaging feature exploitive or oppressive imagery.
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