Video Proves Police, IDF Covered Up Palmers' Murder
by Gil Ronen
9 oktober 2011, Tisjrie 11, 5772
Video shot by the Hatzala Judea and Samaria emergency services organization and published Friday morning indicates clearly that security forces had to know Asher Palmer and baby Yehonatan were murdered, and were not the victims of a road accident.
The video was published by the organization on its Facebook page, after the terror cell that murdered the Palmers was arrested.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=2470808057391
It shows rocks scattered on the road near the scene of the crash on Route 60. The car's windshield – a special windshield that is relatively rock-proof – is badly broken but intact overall except for one spot where a rock made a clean cut through it – right above the steering wheel.
The cameraman then spots the rock itself inside the car – its profile is elongated and with straight sides, just like the hole it punched through the rock-proofed glass. The cameraman can be heard shouting: "Look at the rock! Are you guys crazy? Look at the rock inside the car!"
Nationalists accused security forces of intentionally lying to the press and saying that the event was an accident, so as not to cause Jewish protests and possible violence on the day in which Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas addressed the United Nations. Another possibility, though much less likely, is that security forces wanted the terrorists to think that they were safe, so as to cause them let down their guard and make their capture easier.
Palestinian Authority Paid Arabs to Riot
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
September 27, 2011, Elul 28, 5771
The Palestinian Authority and international groups paid many of the Arabs who rioted after last week’s United Nations session where a motion was submitted for recognizing the PA as a country, the IDF reports.
Arutz Sheva previously has reported that international leftists pay Arabs to riot every Friday at the separation/security fence, but the revelation that the PA pays them contradicts stated agreements not to incite.
The riots in Judea and Samaria last week were larger in number and more violent than usual, but they did not constitute a significant escalation, according to Cpt. Ala Sa'ad, who serves as a consultant on Palestinian matters. He is part of the IDF COGAT’s Coordination and Liaison Office unit (CLO).
The military noted that despite the paid rioters, the economic situation of PA Arabs is relatively good and that the IDF is interested in maintaining social and economic stability.
"Before any operational activity, the brigade and battalion commanders give notes, and so do we – explaining the sensitive sites in the region," explained Cpt. Sa'ad. "For example during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, the forces suspended activities to avoid harming such sites,” even though the Hamas terrorist organization used them as staging grounds for attacks.
Through regular conversations and coordination with Palestinian Authority Arabs, CLO personnel become familiar with the location of such sensitive sites that should be avoided.
"The economic conditions in Judea and Samaria are considered good, though any deterioration, even interior, can affect the Palestinian populations and thus influence security conditions and IDF activity," Cpt. Sa'ad said.
Hundreds of trucks enter and leave Israel, Judea and Samaria and Gaza through various land crossings every day, augmenting economic development.
“The Palestinian Authority gains millions of shekels from this trade and if trade were to be suspended due to security threats, both Israel and the PA would suffer financial strain,” explained Cpt. Sa’ad.
Palestinian security bodies also coordinate with the Judea and Samaria CLO any activity near Israeli territory and communities. In case of any conflict between Israeli and Palestinian residents of Judea and Samaria, CLO officers report to the area and resolve the issues, neutralizing any disagreements, he added.
‘Rock Terrorist’ Smashes Window of Rabbi’s Car
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
September 27, 2011, Elul 28, 5771
Arab rock-throwers continue to terrorize highways after they caused the deaths of Asher Palmer and his baby son Yonaton last Friday. Residents are beginning patrols Tuesday after a rabbi miraculously escaped with his life in an attack that smashed his window Monday evening, covering him with glass.
The grassroots Judea Residents' Council has revealed that a CT scan conducted on Asher Palmer, who was murdered with his baby son Yehonatan on Friday, as well as an autopsy conducted in the Abu Kabir forensic lab, both confirm that a rock hit his face and caused fractures in the front of his skull. (Arutz Sheva 26-09-2011)
Under the banner “Stones Kill – Don’t be the Next Victim,” the Women in Green announced they will patrol the highway where Rabbi Yaron Durani’s vehicle was attacked as he drove from Gush Etzion, south of Jerusalem, to his community of Nokdim, opposite Tekoa in eastern Gush Etzion.
Nearly 20 similar attacks have been carried out recently by Arab terrorists, according to police, who initially claimed that Friday’s fatal car crash was a result of reckless driving. The IDF also said no terror was involved.
After eyewitness reports http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/148252 published by Arutz Sheva of a bloodstained rock inside found inside the vehicle, security officials backtracked and confirmed http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/148238 that Palmer lost control of his car after the rock smashed his windshield http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/148281 and possibly scored a direct hit on his face. He and his baby son were buried on Sunday. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Blogs/Message.aspx/4756
Last week, a young couple with small children barely escaped injury after an Arab in a taxicab that passed by their car threw a large rock, estimated to weigh about four pounds. It landed inches in front of the car, the intended victim told Arutz Sheva.
A security officer pointed out that the impact of the rock is approximately 100 miles an hour after taking into account the speed of the Jewish and Arab vehicles headed in opposite directions.
The attack was carried out on Highway 60, which connects Jerusalem with Gush Etzion, Hevron-Kiryat Arba and the southern Hevron Hills.
Rock-throwing attacks have terrorized drivers for more than 25 years since the first Intifada broke out in the last 1980s. "Drive-by” terror previously has been used by terrorists to carry out shooting attacks. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/148254 Using the tactic for rock throwing, intended to result in a direct hit or to cause the driver to lose control and crash, makes it difficult for IDF patrols to catch the perpetrators.
The Women in Green campaign is taking action to stop “rock terror" and has posted signs along the highway, in Arabic and Hebrew, that “on the road, we are equal.”
Today (Tuesday), they intend to have a car convoy patrol the Efrat-Nokdim road with organized departure from Efrat's southern gate at 5 p.m., from Tekoa's main road at 5:15 p.m. and from the Nokdim gate at 5:20 p.m..
The nationalist group noted that leftists can say, “We told you so,” meaning that terror would result if Jews do not surrender the land where they live. However, “if we defend our land and so not agree to return to the ‘stone age,’ we can put an end to this [rock terror] before the next funeral,” Women in Green stated.
The organization demanded that the government act to take full sovereignty over the roads and to severely punish terrorists.
Poll: Young PA Arabs want Sharia Law, Seek Iran as Ally
by Maayana Miskin
October 28, 2010, Cheshvan 20, 5771
A poll conducted by the Palestinian Authority-based Palestinian Center for Research and Cultural Dialogue (PCRD) found that young PA Arabs want to live in a country run by Islamic law, and a plurality sees Iran as its natural ally.
One thousand Arab men and women ages 18 to 30 who live in Judea and Samaria were polled for the survey, which was conducted in October.
The populace polled lives under the PA, dominated by the secular Fatah group, but 38.3% of them said they wish to live in a state governed by Islamic law (Sharia). An additional 34.7% said the state should be run using a combination of Sharia law and civil law.
Only 22.9% expressed support for the use of secular law in a future Arab state in Judea and Samaria. Less than half expressed support for a democratic regime, while 28.1% want an Islamic regime where all parties are based on Islamic principles, and 17.2% want an Islamic theocracy with just one party.
Respondents were slightly more flexible when asked what type of government should be in place in what was called “historic Palestine” -- a term referring to the entire state of Israel, including Judea and Samaria. 34.7% said Islamic law should rule a binational state that includes Israel as well, while 20.2% said they would be willing to live in a secular state as long as it was officially Muslim.
The most popular potential PA ally was Iran, which 18.7% chose as “the best ally to Palestinians in the long run.” The second most popular ally was Jordan, with 18.1% support, followed by Saudi Arabia, with 10.7% support.
Western countries had fewer supporters, but still made the list: 2.3% said they would ally with the United States, 3.1% chose Germany, and 5.7% chose Japan. “Scandinavian Countries” was the most popular choice for a potential ally outside the Muslim world, with 7.5% support.
PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party won the most support from young voters, but was closely followed by “none of the above.” 39.1% said they support Fatah, while close to 31% said they do not support any existing PA party, and more than 40% said they would support the establishment of a new party. 9.8% said they support Hamas.
The left-leaning Israeli paper Ha'aretz chose to emphasize the poll's findings regarding PA democracy, while ignoring the results showing Iran's popularity, and respondents' lack of interest in democracy. The poll found that most young PA Arabs see the PA as having “good” or “average” performance when it comes to democracy, and 71% are satisfied with the state of human rights.
Poll: PA Youth Reject PA State as Solution
by Chana Ya'ar
September 22, 2010, Tishrei 14, 5771
The latest Palestinian Authority public opinion poll shows that the population’s 18-year-olds largely reject any solution whatsoever to the so-called “Palestinian problem” and appear to be unable to make their peace with any compromise that might provide a way out of their conflict with Israel.
The survey, conducted by the Center for Opinion Polls and Survey Studies at An-Najah National University from September 17-19, sampled 1,361 eligible voters aged 18, residing in Judea, Samaria and Gaza. The findings were translated by IMRA, the Independent Media Review and Analysis watchdog agency.
Not Everyone Sees PA State as Solution
Perhaps surprisingly, only a slim majority of respondents (52.5 percent) said they accept the creation of a new PA country on the area of the 1967 borders “as a final solution for the Palestinian problem.” Nearly as many (43.6 percent) rejected the idea, with only 3.8 percent saying they had no opinion.
An even greater majority (62.9 percent) said they opposed the creation of a PA state within the 1967 borders with some land exchange as a final solution for the “Palestinian problem.” Only 32.9 percent of respondents said they would accept such an option, with 4.2 percent expressing no opinion.
Significantly, more than three-quarters of the PA’s voting youth (78 percent) rejected the idea of making Jerusalem a capital for two states, “Palestine” and Israel, with only 19.4 percent of respondents supporting the idea.
Rejection Upon Rejection: No Solution is Good Enough
It appears that none of the options presented found favor with young PA voters, regardless of what they were. For example, a majority of respondents (56.1 percent) also rejected a confederation between the PA and Jordan, with only 35.3 supporting the idea. Nearly ten percent (8.7 percent) expressed uncertainty, saying they didn’t know, or had no opinion on the matter.
In addition, a majority (53.4 percent) also rejected a deployment of Arab peace forces in Judea and Samaria. There was, however, a more positive response to this plan: 42.3 percent of respondents said they supported the idea.
A higher majority – 61.9 percent – rejected the idea of a deployment of international peacekeepers in Judea and Samaria, with only 33.3 percent expressing support.
Pessimism About Direct Talks
The majority of respondents (67.9 percent) said they expect the direct talks between Israel and the PA to fail, and 63.3 percent assigned the blame for that potential failure to the Israeli government. Nearly a fifth (20.9 percent) said the U.S. would be to blame if talks fail; only 10.5 percent said the PA would bear any responsibility.
An overwhelming majority (81 percent) supported PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s decision not to participate in talks if Israel ends its 10 month-long freeze on Jewish construction in Judea and Samaria as scheduled on September 26. A similar number (81.9 percent) said they reject conducting talks “in case Israel continues building settlements” in Judea, Samaria and eastern Jerusalem.
Ambivalence on Fatah v. Hamas
A great deal of ambivalence was seen in the responses to queries on issues surrounding the split between the two major factions in the PA, Fatah and Hamas, and how the status of the Gaza region might be affected in the future.
Respondents were evenly split (47 percent each) on the question of whether it is possible to reach a reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas in the near future. Likewise, there was nearly an even split between those who felt such a reconciliation could speed the peace process (38.6 percent) and those who felt it would have no effect (39.2 percent). Another 15.9 percent said it would simply result in entangling and stopping the peace process altogether.
The majority of respondents (65.4 percent) said they believe, nevertheless, that Gaza will not remain separate from the rest of the PA forever. However, 31.8 percent said they thought it might continue to be separate, as it is at present.
Shalit Irrelevant to Fatah-Hamas Issue
The issue of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, held captive in Gaza by Hamas since he was abducted by the group’s operatives in June 2006, was not considered relevant to the process by a majority of respondents (55.4 percent).
However, more than a third (34.5 percent) said they believed that concluding a prisoner exchange deal with Israel for Shalit’s freedom might, in fact, speed up the process of reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas.
One of the highest number of ambivalent responses were seen on this question: 10.1 percent told pollsters they either had no opinion, or simply did not know whether concluding a deal would speed up a reconciliation, or not.
Election Apathy: ‘I Won’t Vote’
On a number of different questions, a significant percentage of respondents (20 percent) said they would not participate in elections, with nearly an equal number (18 to 19 percent) expressing ambivalence about the issue altogether.
If presidential elections were to be held at present, a slim majority (32.3 percent) said they would vote for a Fatah candidate – but 20.8 percent said they would not vote at all, and 19.2 percent said they had not yet decided what to do. Only 10.4 percent said they would vote for Hamas, 3.5 percent said they would vote for an Islamic independent, and 3.2 percent said they would vote for a leftist candidate.
Respondents were equally divided about legislative elections: 33.2 percent said they would vote for a Fatah ticket, and 10.7 percent said they would vote for Hamas. But 20.9 percent said they would not vote, and 17.9 percent were undecided; 3.6 percent said they would support an Islamic independent ticket, and 3.2 percent said that would vote leftist.
A larger majority (47.4 percent) predicted a Fatah win if PA legislative elections were to be held today, however, with 15.9 percent saying that Hamas would win. The largest number of ambivalent responses was seen in this question, however: fully 23.6 percent said they had no opinion or did not know who would win if a PA legislative election were to be held today.
Fayyad More Popular Than Haniyeh
The government of Salam Fayyad won hands down (61.3 percent) when it came to perception of who was the most capable of managing internal PA affairs, as opposed to the Gaza government of Hamas de facto Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh (22 percent).
Likewise, Fayyad won a thumbs-up on his performance rating from the PA’s young voters: 68.3 percent said the Fayyad government’s performance was “good,” as opposed to 23 percent who rated it “bad,” and 8.7 percent who had no opinion or said they didn’t know.
Fayyad’s rating contrasts sharply with that of Haniyeh: only 30.6 percent of respondents felt the Hamas leader had done a good job in the Gaza region he has ruled since 1007, with 57.2 percent rating his performance as “bad” and 12.2 percent expressing ambivalence.
Of those who responded to the survey, 37.9 percent were supporters of Fatah, 11.6 were Hamas supporters, 3.3 percent considered themselves independent Islamists and the rest belonged to other groups.