Saturday, June 17, 2006
It's an anonymous source, but hey, it's a good quote:
YNet: Official: Int’l probe? Investigate Qassam fire first
Top government official says Israel would cooperate with int’l probe on Gaza blast ‘five minutes after similar probe on Qassam fire on Sderot is concluded’
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was among those demanding an investigation be launched into the Gaza incident...
...A day after receiving the findings of the IDF probe into the blast, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said in Paris that the findings apparently prove Israel was not involved in the beach explosion, adding that he hopes those countries that condemned Israel immediately following the incident would refrain from doing so in the future without waiting for an investigation’s conclusions.
“Our enemies are not Palestinian children or mothers,” Olmert said. “We do not want to harm innocent civilians.”
During his meetings with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and other top UK officials, Olmert stressed the fact that tragedies may accidentally occur during Israeli self-defense activity, adding that the difference is that Palestinian Qassam rocket fire toward civilian targets in Israel is intentional...
Note this beach scene description at Meryl's:
Kids frolicked seemingly free of fears of more shells. Some peddled chocolates to passers-by...
...But as a boy ran through the sand to launch his kite, a more sinister launching took place behind him.
Out of the sand dunes burst a Qassam rocket, soaring skywards towards Israel through a brilliant blue sky.
The children froze in their tracks and looked for their parents. Some started to run, the ghosts of the week before still fresh in their minds. A mother called out to them and their panic quickly stopped.
“She said the Israelis won’t send their bombs again,” a small girl said before scampering back to her sandcastle...
In a world where one side has already been judged right and the other wrong, investigations and/or probes no longer matter.
Hi Solomonia,
here is my account of "Boston Celebrates Israel" day.
Here are some impressions fresh from today Boston Celebrates Israel event.
It started at Copley square; from there, we walked to City Hall Plaza, where most of the event was taking place.
I had the same posters as last year, white on blue.
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Genocide against the US
=
Genocide against Israel
=
Islamonazism
Remember 9/11
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Moderate Muslims
Help US to fight
Islamonazism
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We are NOT
DHIMMIES
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Last year, I had those posters attached to a massive handle (a spade handle that I bought at Home Depot: one of the people at the event joked that these were dual user posters and indeed, I wanted to be able to use them to protect myself). As a result security people and the police insisted that I should get rid of those handles, before entering City Hall Plaza. I had to rip my signs off the handles, and after that they allowed me to enter.
Remembering my last year experience I attached my posters to very thin and long pieces of wood that could not be used as weapons, yet, this year, the security people were insistent that I should get rid of the handles not even near the City Hall Plaza, but next to the Copley square. That I did, and proceeded holding my signs by hand.
It was a very difficult day for such event: hot and humid so maybe because of this, or because of the disengagement I got impression that there was less of a crowd this year than last. Also I got impression that this year both Jews and Christians who came to the event were to the left of those who came last year.
As expected, when we came to City Hall Plaza we were “greeted†by the haters of the USA and Israel.
Probably due to the weather there were fewer of them this year than last year, as well. They were pretty close to the fence (behind which the event was taking place). They were holding signs urging destruction of Israel, right to resist American occupation of Iraq, Palestine from river to see, Palestinian right of return, calling Israelis and Americans racists, nazis and colonialists. They were also shouting slogans to match, against Israel as well as against the USA.
Right before I was entering City Hall Plaza, the security people started shouting that everyone, entering it, cannot carry signs, but should leave them next to the gate. In spite of this I “smuggled†my signs. Once inside, I was trying to understand the rationale behind not allowing the posters in. I talked to several organizer people before I found someone who could explain this to me. Imagine the DHIMMITUDE of it: it turned out that if the would allow Jews and Christians supporting Israel in with their signs, they would also have to allow the Islamonazis in with their signs. This is in spite of the fact that the Islamonazis could stand next to where we were entering the area, hold their signs and shout with the help of a loudspeaker. I asked what I should do. The person told me that if I want to carry the signs, I should leave the area. I went out and stood behind the police facing the shouting crowd of Islamonazis. I started shouting too, something like “Islamonazis go back to Saudi Arabiaâ€. And I did my best to be heard. A woman organizer came to me and started urging me to get inside and join the event. But since she insisted, that I should give up on my posters, I stayed where I was. A policeman asked me not to stand behind them. So I went around the police and continued holding my signs and shouting right face to face with Islamonazis. An islamonazi girl pointed me to an islamonazi boy, he came within ten inches made a face, meaning to scare me and started shouting. I was not frightened and just increased the volume of my shouts. Policeman insisted that I should not be face to face with the guy like that (even though it was the guy to came to me, not vice versa). I stepped away, holding my posters. At some point I started shouting again and two policemen insisted that I should get inside the fence. I asked them what about my posters, they said, pointing to the organizers, that it was their business.
Anyway I entered the place smuggling my posters again. For the rest of the event I was standing next to the fence, facing the islamonazi crowd and holding the signs. Sometimes people were coming to me and helping to hold the signs or bringing water. At some point an organizer girl came to me insisting that I should leave the signs, and join the event. I showed her “we are not DHIMMIES†sign and asked her not to be one. After some time trying to convince me, she left.
Overall, as I said, the Islamonazi crowd was thinner than last year. Perhaps, because of this, police allowed them to be very close to the fence. At some point I counted them: there were ~10 Naturei Karta (an ultra-orthodox anti-zionist Jewish sect) who probably came from NY (most of them are located in Jerusalem, but some live in New York city). There were also ~50 of others: many wearing caffia, some young people, probably students, and some older people that looked more like junkies. Unlike last year, it seemed to me that there were fewer people that looked like they were of middle east origin (I have no idea why). At some point, I wanted to take pictures of them, but it turned out, I do not know how to operate my camera on such a bright and sunny day. (Next time, I’ll consult with zombie).
Outstanding was an islamonazi girl in her 20ties, shouting most. At some point, apparently, she led the crowd to break into the celebration place, because more police were summoned, and from what I could see, there was a minor scuffle. I hoped that they would all be arrested, but unfortunately it did not happen.
To summarize, there was much more dhimmitude on the Jewish – American side this year and this is worrisome. On the other hand, as I said above, the anti-American anti-Jewish crowd was smaller than last year and, even though they were using a loudspeaker, they were not shouting as loud as last year (perhaps police did not allow them).
Also last year, some white racist organization came to demonstrate against Israel. They stayed separate from the pro-palestinian demo and actually they were much milder and quieter than Islamonazis. This year, they did not come at all.