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The diabolical destruction of Biblical sites in Judea and Samaria
January 25, 2022
ancient Jewish archeological site. (TPS/Shomrim Al Hanetzach)
‘Our history is being erased’ – Knesset Members call on the Israeli government to take action and protect archeological sites in Judea and Samaria from Palestinian destruction.
By Aryeh Savir, TPS
The Knesset’s Education Committee held a session Monday on the damage and destruction of heritage and archeology sites in Judea and Samaria, during which Members of Knesset called on the government to formulate a plan for the preservation of archeology sites in Judea and Samaria.
Grave robbers and antiquities thieves from the Palestinian Authority (PA) carry out illegal digs and excavations. The phenomenon of antiquity destruction is pervasive and affects all sites that are not under preservation, and a survey of the sites in Judea and Samaria shows that a staggering 95% of the archeological sites have been robbed, vandalized or disturbed.
Findings presented during the session by a coalition of organizations working for the protection of Israeli antiquities show that 90% of the sites that are destroyed are being destroyed by the PA for development purposes, and 10% are destroyed for robbery purposes.
Most recently, unknown individuals from the PA have again caused damage to the Biblical-era site of Yehoshua ben Nun’s Altar on Mount Ebal.
Joshua, son of Nun.
In November 2020, the PA inaugurated a “Palestinian” tourist complex in the town of Sebastia in Samaria, the historic capital of the biblical Kingdom of Israel.
Sebastia was named by Herod. Previously it was called the city of Samaria, once capitol of the northern kingdom.
Moshe Guttman, chairman of “Shomrim Al Hanetzach” (Preserving Eternity), a watchdog group dedicated to protecting Israel’s archaeological treasures, warned the Committee that “our history is being erased. We think the State of Israel is sleeping while standing up and no one is doing anything about it.”
Hanania Hizmi, Archeology Chief of Staff at the IDF’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), claimed that the data presented to the committee on the destruction of heritage sites is incorrect.
However, he said that he has “eight inspectors at our disposal and it is difficult to monitor all the sites in such a wide area. Our inspectors have investigative and detention powers. We think we need 20 more people so that we can do serious work.”
‘There is no Palestinian people’
Amir Ganor, director of a robbery unit at the Israel Antiquities Authority, said the IAA “does not make any political distinction and every culture for us is a whole world. The situation is shocking – in Judea and Samaria, in almost every cave we entered we found a looting excavation. We work almost every night to thwart the actions of antiquities robbers.”
“If the sovereign tells us to deal with the destruction of antiquities and the robbery of sites in Judea and Samaria, we will do it with great joy and success, because we are the professional body that knows how to deal with these things,” he stated.
Hanan Erlich of the Ministry of Justice reported that his office has commenced with actions to contend with the phenomenon.
During the debate, the Jewish and Arab MKs waged a battle of words, with Arab MK Sami Abu Shehadeh claiming that “there is an erasure of the Palestinian people with a wave of the hand by a group of petty racists,” and MK Orit Strook responding “there is no ‘Palestinian people’ and that is why you are erasing the history of the Jewish people.”
Acting Chairman of the Committee, MK Moshe Tor-Paz said the committee wants to conduct an archeological survey of all the sites, “regardless of religion and heritage.”
“The committee takes seriously the state of antiquities in Judea and Samaria and seeks to compare the treatment of antiquities in Judea and Samaria with the practice of antiquities within the Green Line. The committee wants to conduct an archeological survey of all the sites, regardless of religion and heritage, and offer a plan for their preservation,” he stated.
The committee requests the establishment of the “Judea and Samaria District” in the IAA, similar to the existing model in the Nature and Parks Authority.
Killing Jews is ‘our right,’ says brutal murderer who ‘hopes for ‘peace’
January 26, 2022
Killing Jews is ‘our right,’ says brutal murderer who ‘hopes for ‘peace’Mother of six Esther Horgan (l)
was killed near her village of Tal Menashe by Muhammad Cabha (r). (Courtesy/Shin Bet)
Murderer of Israeli mother of six says terror is a legitimate form of resistance.
By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News
The Palestinian terrorist who brutally murdered Israeli mother of six Esther Horgan in December 2020 challenged her family’s calls for him to be harshly punished in an Israeli military court on Wednesday. He characterized the slaying as an act of resistance that he was entitled to carry out.
During the sentence hearing, Horgan’s family said they would like to see Muhammad Kabha given a life sentence for the killing and an order to pay compensatory damages. Odelia Horgan, the victim’s daughter, spoke out about how the murder had affected the family.
“Since she’s been gone, our lives have been turned upside down,” Arutz Sheva reported her as saying. “Shock, our world has been shaken. The pain grows every day. How could such a human being perish from such a cruel act, disappear from the face of the earth?”
“Esther’s murder is personal to our family, to our community, and to all of Am Yisrael (the Jewish people),” Benjamin Horgan, the victim’s husband, told the court.
He said the Palestinian Authority was largely responsible for Kabha’s actions, citing their “encouragement of terrorism.” Horgan said it was “unfortunate” that Kabha was the only person being held to account for the killing, saying that “this murder was ordered” by the PA.
“According to the killer’s confession, he was inspired to go out and avenge the death of his friend who died in an Israeli prison,” Horgan said.
He explained that while that prisoner’s death had occurred naturally, it was presented to the public by the PA as an “execution [of a Palestinian by Israel], in [the style of] a blood libel, and it pushed [Kabha] to take revenge.”
By whipping up excitement via false narratives about alleged Israeli abuses of Palestinians, Horgan said, the PA has created an atmosphere which led to murder and should consequently be held responsible.
Referencing the PA’s pay-for-slay policies, Horgan said that Israel could no longer “lend a hand” to an institution that rewards the murder of Jews with funding.
“If we do not take a stand today, we will….[in the future] need to discuss the case of another terrorist who caused another family in Israel to be bereaved,” he added, calling upon Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and other senior figures in the Israeli government to hold the PA accountable for both incitement and pay-for-slay.
Kabha, however, challenged the Horgan family’s assessment of events, saying that he had not been motivated by the PA.
“The family is saying that we’re dealing with incitement by the PA, but this is not incitement and not terror,” he said. “We’re talking about our right [to resist].”
He said he hopes that one day there will be peace, with no more killing on either side of the conflict.
Kabha’s absurd “pro-peace” remarks came some 13 months after he ambushed the French-born Israeli woman as she walked in the Reihan Forest near Tel Menashe in Samaria, overpowering her and repeatedly beating her in the head with rocks until she died.
The religion of peace strikes again!
Islamic State terrorists surrender to Kurds at captured, child-filled prison
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) took full control
of the al-Sina’a prison on Wednesday
The Kurdish-led SDF have beaten off Islamic State terrorists at the al-Sina’a prison in the northeastern Syrian city of Hasaka.
In a tweet on Wednesday, spokesman Farhad Shami confirmed the victory, stating that all IS militants had surrendered just hours after 500 handed themselves over following earlier clashes.
“Game Over Daesh,” he wrote in a subsequent tweet.
Shami shared photos from the prison in the aftermath of the battle.
His tweets made no reference to the 850 children and minors the UN children’s agency believes to have been caught in clashes at the prison complex.
UNICEF has registered its concern for the fate of the children who had been living alongside some 5,000 prisoners since it was seized by militants last Thursday.
“Every day counts. It’s very hard to even imagine what atrocities these children are witnessing,” UNICEF’s Middle East and North Africa regional advocacy and communications head, Juliette Touma, said on Tuesday.
The children, who had reportedly been detained for suspected links to IS during the US-backed campaign in 2019, were being held in a dormitory at the facility. The SDF said IS militants had been holed up in the building.
The Kurdish-led forces claimed the children were being used as a “human shield.”
If that were all they were used for, I would be very happy.
Sina’a prison is the largest facility operated by the SDF.
UK govt loses case against alleged ISIS member
The Court of Appeal has ruled that it’s unlawful for the UK to remove
a person's British nationality without prior notice
The UK government has lost its latest legal bid to strip a woman of her British citizenship for allegedly deciding to join Islamic State in Syria, after the Court of Appeal agreed she must be given prior notice before its removal.
The woman, who has only been identified as ‘D4’, is thought to be currently detained within the same Syrian camp as Shamima Begum, who was stripped of her British citizenship in 2019 and told she will never be allowed to return to the UK.
In its ruling, the Court of Appeal stated that, while there may be “good policy reasons” to give the home secretary the power to strip people of citizenship without notice, it is currently “not lawful.”
As such, the judge upheld an earlier High Court ruling that the attempt to strip D4 of her citizenship was “void and of no effect” because she was not notified and was unaware it had happened for 10 months.
The UK government is currently seeking to pass legislation through parliament that would give the home secretary the legal authority to deprive people of citizenship without notice. If passed, she would be able to do so in cases where it would “not be reasonably practicable” or “in the interests of the relationship between the UK and another country.”
Alleged IS members are believed to make up the majority of the 150 individuals whose British citizenship was revoked since 2014 under legislation that allows removal when it is “conducive to the public good.” However, the figures available only cover up to the end of 2019, as the government hasn’t published an annual report on the matter in two years.
An analysis by Free Movement, a group that seeks to provide information to individuals affected by immigration control, believes that, at least, 464 people have lost their British citizenship over the past 15 years. Since 2006, 175 lost their nationality on national security grounds, while 289 saw it stripped away for fraud.
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