It’s about time someone pierces these disingenuous lies and stops the revolving door of generational claims of Palestinian refugees. Senator Mark Kirk has done this through his watershed amendment to H.R. 5857 Department of State , Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Act, 2013, which seeks to change the definition of “Palestinian refugee” so that only actual refugees would be counted, reducing some 5 million claiming refugee status to about 30,000.

While the US Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously approved this amendment to H.R. 5757, it still NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT to gain House approval and presidential approval.

How does supporting Kirk’s amendment affect your pocketbook? In a big way. Currently, the U.S. contributes annually $250 million of the approximately $600 million budget of UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency that provides housing, education, and welfare to Palestinian refugees). To date, the U.S. has funneled a total of $4.4 billion to UNRWA since it was founded in 1948, with poor results at best.

Kirk’s watershed reporting requirement will ascertain whether UNRWA is committed to their original mission of refugee assistance or if it’s become a welfare agency for low-income.

By asking Congress to support the Kirk amendment, you are ensuring that there is accountability with regards to the number of actual refuges (and not their descendents) and that funding to those no longer considered refugees would not necessarily end but they would be defined as poverty cases.

Let Congress hear from you NOW.

Find your congressperson and senators below by simply entering your address, and send the email below to each of them…

[CongressLookup]

Dear Representative/ Senator:

As an American taxpayer and pro-Israel supporter, I strongly urge Congress to approve Senator Mark Kirk’s amendment to H.R. 5857 Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Act, 2013.

Senator Kirk’s amendment seeks to change the definition of “Palestinian refugee” so that only true, original refugees would be counted, reducing some 5 million claiming refugee status to about 30,000.

It’s time Congress stops playing along with a false Palestinian narrative, and refuses to pay for a burgeoning population of millions who are taught to believe that Israel is their rightful home, and that Jews and Israelis should be hated (and killed). It’s time peace occurs based on truth and not delegitimization and egregious lies.

Sincerely yours,

The post Tell Congress to Calculate the REAL Number of Palestinian Refugees appeared first on Act for Israel.

I can’t think of any pro-Israel advocate who wouldn’t love to have Woody Allen make his next film in Israel. Can you? I didn’t think so. Especially, after Allen has time and time again said there’s no good reason to leave Manhattan yet he’s made four films in London, one in Spain, one in Rome and one in Paris. Why he’s doing so many foreign films seems to be the question on everyone’s mind. Simply put, Allen told the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and even LA Weekly he makes films in England or France or Italy because that’s where the money is.

Ok. Makes perfect sense.

Now there’s a concerted global effort to bring Woody and his next film to Israel. Sponsored by the Jewish Journal, and spearheaded by Act For Israel’s Noa Tishby, “The Woody Allen Project” has set a goal to raise the money needed to fund Allen’s next film. Why? Noa Tishby, in a video in which she speaks straight to Woody, tells us “You do a film each year. You’ve filmed in Barcelona, in Rome, in London, in Paris. You said, and I quote:

“Countries come and invite me to make movies. What happens in Europe, in South America, in China, in Russia — all these countries call and say, ‘Would you make a movie here if we finance it?”’

Tishby states she knows Woody has never stepped foot in Israel and she’s more than willing to pay to find out what Woody thinks of Israel and in particular Jerusalem.

Allen’s initial turn to foreign production was Match Point (2005). While the film was first slated to film in Long Island and Palm Beach, England offered to finance it if he shot it in London.

Much can be said for the award-winning Vicky Christina Barcelona. The film was nominated for four Golden Globe Awards, including nominations for Javier Bardem, Rebecca Hall and Penelope Cruz in the Actor, Actress and Supporting Actress categories, and won the award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. Cruz won both the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Actress in a Supporting Role. Afterwards, the film put Barcelona on the map as a must-see tourist destination. It also sparked the romance and marriage of Cruz and Bardem. In other words, it was a huge success on all fronts. Speaking of that, Allen’s Midnight in Paris did so well that it’s now the title of an Air France tourist brochure.

So what would it take to get Allen to Israel? The bottom-line cost for an Allen film is $18 million. All he asks is to have the moola in hand and complete control of the film. Imagine what this would do for Israel?

Join Act For Israel’s Noa Tishby and the Jewish Journal to make this happen. So far, pledges are coming in steadily and there is $5907 at the time of this post. But time is running out. We have only 45 days left and we’re counting on you to help us help Israel.

With your help, we can finance Woody Allen’s next film in Israel. Please visit our Action Alert HERE and contribute and pass it to all your family and friends.

The post Woody Allen: Will You or Won’t You? appeared first on Act for Israel.

We need your help to ask Woody Allen to make his next movie in Israel. All it would take is an invitation and about $18 million. Completely doable with your help.

A movie made in Israel would help the world see Israel as the wonderful, vibrant democracy it is. After all, Allen’s film Vicky Christina Barcelona reignited tourism for Barcelona. This kind of press would take years to help Israel, even if Act For Israel, the Jewish Journal and just about every other pro-Israel group chimed in 24×7.

All Allen asks for is funding, and complete control over his project. So we’re asking you to pitch in and ask everyone you know to pitch in too. As Act For Israel’s Noa Tishby says:

“So everyone, let’s put our money where our mouths are. Let’s show ‘em what we got, and let’s all contribute to bring Woody Allen to shoot his next film in Israel. Send this link to your friends, to your family to your mothers; don’t forget to send this link to your mothers…”

VISIT & SHARE THE LINK BELOW NOW

http://www.jewishjournal.com/woodyallen

The post Ask Woody Allen to Make His Next Movie in Israel appeared first on Act for Israel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYjkLUcbJWo

Does polit­i­cal pos­tur­ing pass as an indict­ment in Turkey’s judi­cial sys­tem these days? Is Turk­ish Pres­i­dent Recep Tayipp Erdo­gan using a page from the old Arab League, post-Shah Iran­ian play­book again? Will Turkey’s poorly-written sequel about an “aid” ship with “peace­ful human­i­tar­i­ans” car­ry­ing rice and beans (i.e., provo­ca­teurs with ter­ror­ist ties wield­ing metal crow bars and tons of knives) tank?

Turkey’s recent alle­ga­tions are not sur­pris­ing or even shock­ing but expected and pre­dictable given the cur­rent quag­mire Iran faces regard­ing its nuclear pro­gram. May 23, 2012 not only marked the day Iran resumed nuclear talks with the P5+1 group (con­sist­ing of Chi­nese, French, Ger­man, Russ­ian, British and U.S. nego­tia­tors), it was also the day that Turkey turned its judi­cial sys­tem into a laugh­ing­stock by lev­el­ing base­less alle­ga­tions at top Israeli offi­cers for their response to the Turk­ish Gaza-bound Mavi Marmara.

Israel’s left-leaning Haaretz reported that Turkey’s chief pros­e­cu­tor is expected to charge sev­eral top Israeli offi­cers “for order­ing the inten­tional killing of activists dur­ing the 2010 Israel Defense Forces raid of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla.” Pho­tos of the “peace­ful activists” wield­ing iron rods, a stock­pile of weapons con­fis­cated onboard, and Israeli offi­cers who were beaten and stabbed paint a com­pletely dif­fer­ent scenario.

Haaretz stated The Turk­ish Daily Sabah reported Ankara’s pros­e­cu­tor Abdur­rah­man Yal­cinkaya is fil­ing a 144-page indict­ment that oddly enough includes his­tor­i­cal ref­er­ences regard­ing Turkey and Span­ish Jews in the 15^th cen­tury along with Ger­man Jewry in the Sec­ond World War. O.k., I think the word base­less can be empha­sized again.

Leave it up to the New York Times to add insult to injury after nam­ing a dif­fer­ent pros­e­cu­tor and rub­bing sand­pa­per on it by adding:

A cor­rec­tion is in order. A mil­i­tary response in self-defense, and to pro­tect a country’s sov­er­eign bor­der can hardly be con­strued as “crimes.” It is also worth not­ing the crimes com­mit­ted by the Turk­ish side are notice­ably MIA.

The root of this prob­lem lies in Turkey’s posi­tion that Israel’s counter-terrorism block­ade is ille­gal, even though Israel’s Turkel Com­mit­tee Report along with the UN’s Palmer Report both have deemed the block­ade is legal. Given the fact that the Turk­ish gov­ern­ment know­ingly and will­ingly sent armed IHH mem­bers – a known ter­ror­ist group – to break Israel’s counter-terrorism block­ade yet refused to allow Israeli naval offi­cers aboard the Mavi Mar­mara to inspect its cargo is hugely sus­pect. Turkey con­stant finger-pointing while refus­ing to take respon­si­bil­ity for their crimes and reck­less actions makes Turkey’s judi­cial sys­tem a joke. These new alle­ga­tions will likely be viewed as ground­less all while serv­ing as yet another diver­sion for BFF Iran­ian Pres­i­dent Mah­moud Ahmadine­jad as he attempts to con­vince West­ern pow­ers that his nuke pro­gram is for “peace­ful” purposes.

To under­stand Turkey’s role in this sadis­tic game of “we did it and now Israel has to pay for it”, you first have to under­stand how the rela­tion­ship between these for­mer allies dete­ri­o­rated way before the Mavi Mar­mara sailed on May 31, 2010.

While most media out­lets are report­ing that the Mavi Mar­mara inci­dent led to the chill in Turkish-Israeli rela­tions, the dete­ri­o­ra­tion between Turkey and Israel came about because of Erdogan’s rise to power and his delib­er­ate left turn away from once close West­ern allies towards Islamist coun­tries. Once you under­stand how Erdogan’s influ­ence rose by dis­tanc­ing him­self from demo­c­ra­tic coun­tries while schmooz­ing the likes of Ahmadine­jad and Syr­ian Pres­i­dent al-Bashar Assad, it’s not hard to rec­og­nize des­per­ate mea­sures like Turkey’s lat­est “indictment.”

Inci­den­tally, some IHH mem­bers are inter­twined with Turkey’s gov­ern­ment and have even par­tic­i­pated in some UN efforts, taint­ing the alle­ga­tions even more.

More claims may sur­face that Israel offered to pay mil­lions to the fam­i­lies of the “activists” who died aboard the Mavi Mar­mara like this one. It’s impor­tant to keep in mind that pay­ing for someone’s tragedy doesn’t unan­i­mously equate to guilt. Plenty of “vic­tims” threaten celebri­ties with law­suits unless they “set­tle” out of court. Bot­tom­line remains that Israel has never accepted blame for the deaths of the provo­ca­teurs on the Mavi Mar­mara and likely never will.

If Turkey wanted to help Gazans, they would have deliv­ered “aid” in an entirely dif­fer­ent way. Each week Israel ships tons of goods into Gaza. Israel offers open cross­ing to any coun­try that wishes to deliver goods to Gazans as long as the aid is checked ahead of time to pre­vent arms smug­gling to Iran­ian prox­ies (i.e., ter­ror­ist groups) like Hamas and Hezbol­lah. If Turkey wanted to deliver aid they would have worked through any one of the des­ig­nated Israeli chan­nels to deliver it. They instead wanted to cre­ate an inter­na­tional inci­dent, dele­git­imize Israel, break its legal counter-terrorism block­ade and turn pub­lic opin­ion against the Jew­ish state.

All the while, we can no longer let Turkey’s fic­ti­tious alle­ga­tions take our minds off over 10,000 butchered Syr­i­ans, and Iran’s attempt to pass off nukes as a “cure for can­cer”. This is where astute freedom-lovers must read between the lines. Erdo­gan talks pub­licly about cre­at­ing “a buffer zone” for the tens of thou­sands of dis­placed Syr­i­ans at the hands of his buddy Assad, though I have yet to hear him green light mil­i­tary action to stop his BFF from slaugh­ter­ing Syr­i­ans. Still think Erdo­gan is tired of hear­ing about the Armen­ian geno­cide? I wonder.

The post Mavi Marmara Sequel: Knife-Weilding ‘Aid’ Ship Goes to Court appeared first on Act for Israel.

Blame it on Iran’s sketchy track record (and we can all agree the photo ops in white lab coats don’t change the world’s perception of Iran’s nuclear intentions one iota). Iranian “cooperation” with IAEA nuclear inspectors in the past years have ended in stalemate, all while the Iranians denied access to their Parchin military facility, suspected of nuclear-related military research. Iranian enrichment activities taking place at 20 percent and even 4.5 percent are highly suspected as a means-to-an-end for nuclear bombs, not medical isotopes for curing cancer.

Amos Gilad, a senior Israeli defense official said regarding Iran’s nuclear intent:

“Today they have enough uranium, raw material for the bomb, they have the missiles that can carry them and they have the knowledge to assemble a warhead on a missile. They have not yet decided to do this because they are worried about the response.”

Now, imagine you’re Israeli for a moment and try wrapping your arms around intelligence that paint Iran as lying about its nuclear intentions all while examining comments made by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, dubbed by many sources as “Ahmadinijadisms:”

“O dear Imam (Khomeini)! You said the Zionist Regime that is a usurper and illegitimate regime and a cancerous tumor should be wiped off the map. I should say that your illuminating remark and cause is going to come true today…the Zionist regime faces a complete deadend and under God’s grace your wish will soon be materialized and the corrupt element will be wiped off the map.” – June 2, 2008 speech during a ceremony commemorating the 19th anniversary of Ayatollah Khomeini’s death

“Those who think they can revive the stinking corpse of the usurping and fake Israeli regime by throwing a birthday party are seriously mistaken. Today the reason for the Zionist regime’s existence is questioned, and this regime is on its way to annihilation.” – May 2008 statement to IRNA news agency

“If European countries claim that they have killed Jews in World War II… why don’t they provide the Zionist regime with a piece of Europe.” – December 2005 statement on Iranian television

“I have no doubt that the new wave that has started in Palestine, and we witness it in the Islamic world too, will eliminate this disgraceful stain from the Islamic world.” – October 26, 2005 speech to an Islamic Student Associations conference in Tehran on “The World Without Zionism”

Reading Ahmadinejad’s quotes you can see that we’re not just dealing with your average, vulgar, antisemitic Helen Thomas. Ahmadinejad is calling for the destruction of an entire country, one that contains nearly 2 million Arab-Israelis.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that you can’t take the crazy out of hate but you can apply international pressure, increase sanctions and revert to military action to ensure we don’t end up with a nuclear Iran (or N. Korea for that matter). We just have to ensure any agreement our current US administration is pushing for with Iran is based on the interest of Israel and a world without a nuclear Iran and not who wins the White House in November.

The post You Can’t Take the Crazy Out of Ahmadinejadisms appeared first on Act for Israel.

The post Jerusalem & its Jewish Ties appeared first on Act for Israel.

Map of Israel purposely mislabeled as "Palestine" and distributed in Arab countries as a form of delegitimization.

Today, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson offered a tidbit that I couldn’t help but nibble on. In his latest threat, Ramin Mehmanparast told the semiofficial Mehr news agency Thursday that if Google doesn’t restore the name of the Persian Gulf to its Google Maps service, the internet giant could face “serious damages.” Given this logic, what’s good for Iran, is certainly fair game for Israel.

Arab states intentionally mislead their citizens and encourage anti-Israel sentiment by purposely leaving Israel off maps of the Middle East. Instead of labeling Israel properly, Arab states include a vast area that includes Jordan, labeled as “Palestine.” Cities such as Tel Aviv and Haifa simply don’t exist on maps in Arab states. Arab school children not only grow up to hate Jews, they have no knowledge, official or otherwise, of the existence of Israel.

It’s sad to think that learning about Israel is as taboo in Arab countries as learning about the birds and the bees. Young adults who learn Israel is a sovereign nation no different than its neighbors are doing so in private via whispers. Arab states continue to keep Israel’s existence a secret from its citizens in numerous ways. Schedules of foreign airlines that show Israel on their route maps or that list Israeli destinations are banned in Arab countries. The same is true for US magazine distribution to Arab countries. Mainstream news magazines like Time and Newsweek are forced to print special editions for Arab countries in order to compete, since they systematically forbid advertising from Israeli companies. I guess seeing ads for Israeli companies might seem odd since most young people are kept in the dark about their Jewish neighbor’s existence.

This kind of discrimination towards Israel is seen over and over when Israelis, Jews, or tourists who have visited Israel, are barred from entering Arab countries based on either their religion or an affiliation with Israel. Just last June, Illinois Sen. Mark Kirk (R) called for the Federal Aviation Administration to investigate allegations Delta Airlines blocked Jewish passengers from flying as part of an agreement with a Saudi Arabian airline (they did not, but the publicity damage was done). His goal was to:

“determine whether Delta Airlines violated US law or regulation and to ensure no US citizen is denied their right to fly solely on the basis of their religion.”

And what can we make of Mehmanparast’s saber rattling to Google? First, we can thank him for his ability to safely air his “complaint” as we know airing a similar complaint against his own government would land him with black and blue marks and an extensive stay in the notorious Evin prison. Secondly, we can chuckle as he’s threatening one of the world’s most successful internet companies. And lastly, we can tip our hats his way as we continue exposing the hypocrisy of how Arab countries go to great lengths to leave Israel nameless and faceless.

The post With Love From Iran appeared first on Act for Israel.

A Palestinian protester uses a sling to hurl stones at Israeli troops during clashes outside Ofer prison near Ramallah on "Nakba", May 15, 2012.

There’s something to be said for civilizations that rise above adversity and violence and focus on progress and prosperity. Israel is not only considered the Silicon Valley of the Middle East for its welter of technological startups and contributions, it’s also feeding hungry bellies in developing countries via its breakthroughs with drip irrigation and other agricultural advances. Even the Nigeria, Sudan and India are getting in on the action.

It’s hard to believe that one of the smallest nations in the world has accomplished so much given the volatile neighbors that surround the Jewish state. Many of these “neighbors” still can’t get over the UN’s vote on November, 29, 1947 to divide the land they termed “Palestine” into a Jewish state, Israel and an Arab state, Jordan. Though, you have to admit it’s rather interesting that Palestinians have no ill will over the creation of Jordan (which by the way is much larger than Israel). How much larger?

Jordan is approximately 34,495 sq miles (89,342 km²),
while Israel is about 8,019 sq miles (20,770 km²)

Instead, Palestinians only reserve their ill will for Israel. No one could be more disgruntled with this historical moment (when it relates to Israel) than Arabs who claim they are descendants of Palestinians. “Nakba” is the Palestinians term for “catastrophe” over Israel’s modern independence. Palestinians commemorate “Nakba” by storming Israel’s borders, lobbing rocks, and throwing Molotov cocktails.

We all know acts of war like these would be met with a barrage of bullets at the doorstep of any Arab country yet luckily today only about a dozen Palestinian protestors were injured in clashes. Last year, out-of-control pro-Palestinian rioters from Syria were not so lucky.  The Syrian Reform Party reported at the time that they paid these border-jumpers a $1,000 dollars a pop. Why? Obviously, to take pressure off Syria’s human rights abuses that are still ratcheting up under the brutal “leadership” of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

“Nakba” again begs the question: Have Palestinian even read the Oslo Accords? It specifically states that protesting can only occur for peaceful purposes. Ok, so let’s examine what “Nakba” accomplishes. Did it gain Palestinians a state? No. Did it help Palestinians prosper? No. Well, it certainly cranked up the Palestinian PR machine and got the attention of the IDF, Israeli border police and pro-Israel bloggers like myself to notice yet another unnecessary act of violence. It did cause slight injuries to three border police and one IDF soldier around the Kalandiya checkpoint near Jerusalem, and also at Beitunia near the Ofer Prison. Oh, and it did accomplish one other thing: rioters were met with tear gas, rubber bullets and other crowd dispersal tools thanks to fast-acting IDF and police forces.

Sixty-four years later, accomplishments can be easily weighed with only one overriding conclusion: the conflict is not about land; it’s about the refusal to accept thy Jewish neighbor.

Photo credit: REUTERS/Darren Whiteside

The post Nothing Says Peace Like Molotov Cocktails appeared first on Act for Israel.

Haaretz’s Barak Ravid quoted Gould stating:

“Iran will not get something for nothing. We will not be lifting sanctions simply because the atmosphere of the talks is constructive. Iran needs to come to the table with concrete proposals for how it can rebuild the trust of the international community. We will judge Iran by its actions and take our decisions accordingly. People who are worried that we are going to get carried away with a kind of negotiating warmth and that suddenly we will dismantle the sanctions regime don’t need to worry.”

Those observing on the sidelines have a couple of concerns with the international community’s “pressure” on Iran. To put it bluntly, they are China and Russia. To date, Syrians have been left to fend for themselves amid Syrian President al-Bashar Assad’s killing regime. The international community knows that Syria is a proxy of Iran yet seems to consider  “monitoring” the bloodbath akin to stopping it. And Russia and China are two of the permanent members on the Security Council yet neither have condemned Assad’s murderous actions or demanded his ouster.

More recently, there’s the case of Chen Guangcheng, the Chinese activist who took refuge in the U.S.  Embassy in Beijing and subsequently left prompting reports that the State Department had dropped the ball. While new reports indicate the Chinese government is “allowing” Guangcheng to apply for a Visa to study in the United States (one can imagine how long that process might take), other reports state the activist who either sheltered him or drove him to the US Embassy have disappeared into the bowels of detention.

Either way, without appearing strong to countries that have racked up countless human rights abuses like Iran, China and Syria, having much leverage with Iran on its nuclear ambitions seem futile. Then there’s the obvious concern that talking is not equivalent to acting. Iranian leaders, like their Palestinian counterparts, are usually willing to talk but ultimately use this platform for positive international PR spin followed by excruciating inaction. We’ve seen this tactic used time and time again when observing numerous land concessions Israel anted up for peace followed by its disengagement from Gaza all while Palestinian leaders offered hollow rhetoric, random terrorism, rapid missile strikes and have yet to cough up an iota for peace.

So applying those failed Palestinian peace lessons to Iran, is rebuilding trust of the international community (and ultimately lifting sanctions) enough of a consolation prize for the Islamic regime to stop its nuclear ambition? Current activities suggest this is far from the case. When satellite images imply that Iranians are likely “sanitizing” the Parchin facility of incriminating evidence before a visit, Iranian leaders are still unwilling to show their poker hand.

Photo credit: Reuters

The post Iran Stalls, Bluffs & Denies its Nuclear-Related Military Ambitions appeared first on Act for Israel.

Just today, The Hill’s blog post indicated Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak was pessimistic at best regarding the ability of the P5+1 engagement team to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. To that end, the blog post quoted Barak:

“The P5+1 engagement with Iran, however, does not fill me with confidence,” he said. “I may sound pessimistic, but the state of Israel cannot afford to be duped.”

Somehow, world powers have forgotten that Israel is a sovereign nation, which has a responsibility to protect its citizens from potential nuclear threats. The United States doesn’t ask for permission to go to war and neither should we expect Israel to wait while Iran has more time to continue developing their nuclear capabilities.

We can’t deny Iran was tossed a “freebie” when the P5+1 engagement group began courting it with nuclear talks. After all, China and Russia are supporters of Iran and have yet to denounce the violence in Syria because of their oil trade with Iran – Syria’s primary benefactor. Ashton’s record is not exactly pro-Israel. And while these talks are occurring, Iran’s nuclear program continues full-steam ahead.

To sum up what Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said recently in a CNN interview:

“I can tell you the centrifuges are spinning.  They were spinning before the talks began recently with Iran. They were spinning during the talks. They are spinning as we speak,”

Let’s hope the P5+1 group doesn’t ultimately monitor Iran’s nuclear program the same way the UN is monitoring Syria’s killing regime.

The post Ahmadinejad or Ashton? Tough Choice appeared first on Act for Israel.