What's New

Resources updated between Monday, December 3, 2018 and Sunday, December 9, 2018

December 8, 2018

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley

"US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley has said that following Washington's failure to pass a UN resolution condemning Hamas at the General Assemnly this week, President Trump suggested cutting funds to countries who did not cooperate and asked: 'Who do you want me to yell at?'

While the US-backed draft resolution got a comfortable majority of votes, it fell short of the two-thirds super-majority needed to pass. Eighty-seven countries voted in favor of the resolution, while 57 opposed it. Thirty-three countries abstained and another 23 were not present.
...
'The president called and he said, 'Nikki what happened?' And I told him, and he goes, 'Who do we need to get upset at? Who do you want me to yell at? Who do we take their money away?'

She then added with a smile: 'I'm not gonna tell you what I told him.'..."

After U.N. rejected U.S. resolution to condemn Hamas, Trump suggested fund cuts as retribution Article

December 7, 2018

December 6, 2018

December 5, 2018

December 4, 2018

Iranian rights activist Hengameh Shahidi, 43, has been in jail since June after months at large during which she was active on social media

Women's rights activist is jailed for 12 years in Iran Document

U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman

"U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman lambasted the United Nations on Monday over its anti-Israel bias, using the occasion of Hanukkah to highlight Israel's legitimate claim to Jerusalem.

Friedman, the first U.S. envoy to serve in the recently opened embassy in Jerusalem, tweeted: 'More than 2,000 years ago, Jewish patriots (Maccabees) captured Jerusalem, purified the Holy Temple and rededicated it as a house of Jewish worship. The U.N. can't vote away the facts: Jerusalem is the ancient and modern capital of Israel. Happy Hanukkah from this blessed city!'
...
In December 2017, Trump upended decades of U.S. policy by officially recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Several months later, he inaugurated a new embassy in the city.

These decisions triggered condemnation from Arab states and other countries, and the U.N. General Assembly passed a nonbinding resolution condemning Trump's stance on Jerusalem..."

U.S. Ambassador to Israel: U.N. cannot vote away Jerusalem's status as capital Article

December 3, 2018

The U.N. General Assembly

The U.N.'s Delusion Article

The Temple Mount in Jerusalem

"The UN General Assembly in New York on Friday approved six anti-Israel resolutions including two that ignored Jewish ties to the Temple Mount.

The primary resolution on Jerusalem, that passed 148-11 with 14 abstentions, also disavowed Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem.

Both that text and a second more global one on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which passed 156-8, with 12 abstentions, spoke of Judaism's most holy site – The Temple Mount – solely by its Muslim name of al-Haram al-Sharif.
...
The United States, Canada and Australia voted against all six resolutions, which are the first batch of some 20 resolutions that the UNGA annually passes against Israel.

'We live in a time of many crises, crises that are raging around the Middle East and around the world. It is a shame that rather than addressing these crises, the UN passes so many biased resolutions,' said Israeli Deputy Permanent Representative Noa Furman.

She said she was particularly concerned by the two resolutions that ignored Jewish and Christian ties to the Temple Mount.

'This omission was deliberate. It shows yet another instance of the Palestinian refusal to recognize the proven historical connection between Judaism, Christianity, the Temple Mount and Jerusalem as a whole.

'The international community must stop participating in such a blatant denial of history. You must not permit these blatant attempts to delegitimize Israel,' Furman said.

The European Union, which supported both texts, warned it could stop doing so unless more include language was used to reference holy sites in Jerusalem..."

148 nations at the U.N. disavow Jewish ties to Jerusalem, Temple Mount Article

Palestinian representative Riyad Mansour (File photo)

"Although reconciliation talks between Hamas and Fatah in Cairo have failed, and in spite of continuing sanctions imposed by Mahmoud Abbas on the Gaza Strip, and notwithstanding the vast differences of opinion between the two organizations over the past 10 years, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas have joined forces to torpedo a U.S. draft resolution [text below] on which the UN General Assembly is expected to vote on Thursday, December 6, 2018.

The draft resolution was drawn up and led by U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley, who is soon leaving her position at the United Nations. It includes a demand to condemn the firing of rockets into Israel and incitement to violence by Hamas.
...
Riyad Mansour, the PLO's permanent observer to the United Nations, is working very hard to torpedo the U.S. draft resolution, claiming that it 'is intended to cause harm to the entire Palestinian people.'

At the end of November 2018, Hussein al-Sheikh, a member of the Fatah Central Council, called upon UN member states to reject the U.S. draft resolution condemning Hamas, and he expressed his opposition to the wording of the resolution.

Abbas Zaki, a member of the Fatah Central Committee, has also been working against the draft resolution. On December 2, 2018, he stated that the U.S. draft resolution is a 'racist draft' and the Palestinians would fight it in every way possible because it harms their struggle.

'Hamas comes from among us, and we are connected to it. It has a prominent presence among the Palestinian people, and we are opposed to any resolution that turns the 'resistance' into a crime. We will not leave Hamas to battle on alone,' Zaki stressed.

In an unprecedented move, Hamas senior official Mousa Abu Marzook praised the Palestinian Authority's position..."

Palestinian Authority and Hamas Join Forces against U.S. at U.N. Article

"Today, the United Nations approved six anti-Israel resolutions. That makes it pretty much an ordinary day at the UN. But today was not ordinary in another way.

The United States has introduced a resolution, supported by the European Union, to condemn Hamas' militant activities and diversion of aid, as well as to encourage intra-Palestinian reconciliation and respect for human rights.

This resolution was supposed to be scheduled for a vote on Monday. However, the Palestinian representative at the UN pushed for a delay until Thursday.

The issue before the United Nations on Thursday is not whether it supports one form or another of a Middle East peace plan. The issue is as plain as the resolution's text. Each country will be asked to vote for or against the activities of Hamas, along with other militant groups like Palestinian Islamic Jihad. If the UN cannot bring itself to adopt this resolution, then it has no business being involved in peace discussions."

Statement by the U.S. Mission on Palestinian Delay Tactics Designed to Defend Hamas Terrorism Development