Copyright 2008 Jewish Policy Center Tue, 1 Jul 2008 17:59:26 -0400 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog webmaster@jewishpolicycenter.org en-us Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/07/israeli-economy-pentium-4-speed.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/07/israeli-economy-pentium-4-speed.html Tue, 1 Jul 2008 17:57:00 EST Intel Corporation today inaugurated its latest plant in Kiryat Gat, Israel -- its sixth plant to be built in Israel, the Jerusalem Post reports. The plant, which will employ 1,900 workers, is expected to produce roughly 10 million dollars of technology a day. It could even raise Israel's growing GDP another 2%. Two articles in the most recent issue of inFOCUS Quarterly address the Israeli economy. Debbie Buchwald, executive director for the Central Atlantic Region of the America-Israel Chamber Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/canwill-hamas-enforce-calm.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/canwill-hamas-enforce-calm.html Thu, 26 Jun 2008 12:09:26 EST The longevity of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire remains in doubt. Hamas recently stated that it is committed to the ‘calm', yet "cannot talk about stopping smuggling because it is something beyond our ability as a government." Questions also arise over the terror group's ability to control other groups from attacking Israel, such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad. After PIJ's recent violation of the truce, Hamas has stated that it will not use force to maintain the ceasefire. To further complicate Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/oil-futures-oils-future.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/oil-futures-oils-future.html Mon, 23 Jun 2008 21:25:00 EST The debate rages over the role of market speculators for the spike in crude prices, Middle East Online reports. While high demand prompts the need for greater refining capacity, some blame oil futures for the current $140 a barrel price. To free America from oil, Anne Korin of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security, asserts that it's time for "Thinking Outside of the Barrel" in the pages of the newest inFOCUS Quarterly. As Americans continue to feel pain at the pump, I argue in a Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/hamas-smuggling-continues.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/hamas-smuggling-continues.html Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:39:49 EST As the tahidya, or ‘calm,' enters day two, Hamas has already reneged on pledges to Israel and Egypt that it will halt smuggling operations. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh stated, "We cannot talk about stopping smuggling because it is something beyond our ability as a government, and we did not give a commitment in this regard." This comes as no surprise. As noted in Palestinian Rocket Report's second dispatch, Hamas has never lived up to previous ceasefires. Rather, it uses the time to regroup and Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/treasury-designations-gone-wild.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/treasury-designations-gone-wild.html Wed, 18 Jun 2008 18:21:00 EST The U.S. Treasury's Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI) has gone wild recently, designating an unusually large number of terrorist targets and freezing their assets. The targets span the globe: June 18 designation of Hizbullah supporters in Venezuela. June 18 designation of 2 leaders of the Islamic Jihad Union (IJU) in Uzbekistan. June 16 designation of 7 members of the Rajah Solaiman Movement (RSM), a jihadist movement in the Philippines. June 13 designation of the Kuwaiti Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/europes-shifting-mid-east-policies-1.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/europes-shifting-mid-east-policies-1.html Tue, 17 Jun 2008 11:45:07 EST Yesterday, the European Union unanimously agreed to upgrade ties with Israel. The new levels of cooperation are manifold, including: increased diplomatic ties, Israeli involvement in E.U. agencies, and possible integration into the E.U.'s economy. Israel's foes reacted angrily. Palestinian Prime Minister Salaam Fayad sent letters to E.U. states urging a halt to the upgraded ties, while the Hamas terrorist organization ironically called it "dangerous for security and stability in the region." Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/israeli-prof-on-al-jazeera-1.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/israeli-prof-on-al-jazeera-1.html Fri, 13 Jun 2008 11:50:00 EST Professor Mordechai Kedar of Bar-Ilan University argues forcefully for a Jewish Jerusalem on al-Jazeera Arab TV. This video is remarkable and worth the 5-minute viewing. Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/rocket-update.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/rocket-update.html Thu, 12 Jun 2008 15:38:51 EST Hamas continues to bombard Israel at an alarming rate. Today, more than 20 rockets hammered Israel, injuring one civilian, and bringing the casualties for June to one killed and more than half a dozen wounded. As Hamas upgrades its rocket capabilities, Israel continues to struggle with a response. There are no easy answers. The JPC's new initiative, Palestinian Rocket Report, was launched to help generate a broader understanding of the challenges surrounding the Palestinian rockets. Michael Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/recent-jpc-posts.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/recent-jpc-posts.html Fri, 6 Jun 2008 14:42:13 EST The JPC has produced a flurry of work in recent days. We encourage readers to note the following: 1. The launch of Palestinian Rocket Report - a new JPC initiative designed to generate increased public awareness of the Palestinian bombardment of southern Israel. 2. Our first report, penned by celebrated radio talk show host and JPC scholar Michael Medved, is entitled "Rockets Illuminate Three-Way Choice for Embattled States" 3. Jonathan Schanzer, JPC's director of policy, weighs in on the Iran Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/rockets-iranian-nukes-top-aipac-agenda.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/06/rockets-iranian-nukes-top-aipac-agenda.html Wed, 4 Jun 2008 10:23:00 EST Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert addressed the AIPAC policy conference yesterday in Washington, DC. On the topic of Palestinian rockets, the prime minister stated: "... if one city, one small city in your state, in your district, was bombed, not even on a daily basis, but just once, with one single missile, what would you do? Would you not demand that your government stand up immediately and take the necessary action to defend your citizens?" Read Olmert's prepared remarks here. Next to the Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/khashan-hammers-norton-too.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/khashan-hammers-norton-too.html Fri, 30 May 2008 16:43:12 EST Last year, I wrote a scathing review of Augustus Richard Norton's book, Hezbollah. Hilal Khashan from the American University of Beirut agrees with me. Writing in the latest Middle East Quarterly , Khashan notes that Norton's book "fails miserably. Norton summarily dismisses Hezbollah's terrorist credentials... and...ignores the organic linkage between Hezbollah and Iran's Islamic Republic." Khashan concludes: "Norton's book is the literary equivalent of antifreeze laced Chinese toothpaste. Has Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/the-jpcs-palestinian-rocket-report.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/the-jpcs-palestinian-rocket-report.html Wed, 28 May 2008 15:48:00 EST Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin now believes that Hamas has rockets capable of striking the Israeli population centers of Kiryat Gat and Ashdod. This confirms statements made by Hamas earlier this month in which they stated that 5 Israeli cities with a population of over 20,000 are at risk. While the mainstream media downplays the strategic threat of these rocket attacks, the Jewish Policy Center seeks to stress the dangers of continued escalation. In our recent inFOCUS article with Israel's Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/saudi-hysteria-over-kabbalah-bracelets.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/saudi-hysteria-over-kabbalah-bracelets.html Fri, 23 May 2008 13:39:29 EST Ash-Sharq al-Awsat reports that it is increasingly common to see young Saudi youth sporting a red string around their wrists. The youth are, of course, mimicking A-list celebrities (like Madonna) who wear the red string to ward off the evil eye. The custom stems from Kabbalistic beliefs, prompting Saudi religious figures to warn of a "cultural invasion." Numerous Arabic websites have warned against this trend. The Saudis have long been frightened by a Jewish invasion. At one point, they even Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/urbn-update.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/urbn-update.html Thu, 22 May 2008 16:35:00 EST Update to yesterday's blog: Haaretz reports that Urban Outfitters pulled its offensive t-shirt from stores. Urban insists it did not seek "to provoke controversy or to intentionally offend." Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/urbns-palestinian-merchandise.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/urbns-palestinian-merchandise.html Tue, 20 May 2008 23:21:03 EST As noted by LittleGreenFootballs, Urban Outfitters, a publicly-traded company, has sparked controversy by selling t-shirts depicting an armed Palestinian child (the shirt can no longer be viewed online). In 2007, the store prompted public ire by selling the keffiyeh, the checkered headscarf of Palestinian "resistance." In the Winter edition of inFOCUS, analyst Olivier Guitta noted that clothing with Islamist symbols in Europe was radicalizing European youth. The same might be said of these Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/ubl-slams-us-for-celebrating-israels-60th.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/ubl-slams-us-for-celebrating-israels-60th.html Fri, 16 May 2008 11:28:09 EST Usama bin Laden, al-Qaeda's leader, condemned Western leaders for celebrating Israel's 60th birthday. In a new audio tape, he says the war against Israel and its allies will continue, and that Muslims won't cede "one inch of Palestine," al-Jazeera reports. "Western leaders' participation with the Jews in this celebration confirms... they are in the same trench as the Israelis against us," he said. The release of the tape came as President George W. Bush ended a visit to Israel. During a speech Cory Missimore http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/rockets-rain-down-on-israel.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/rockets-rain-down-on-israel.html Mon, 12 May 2008 14:01:08 EST This weekend, Israel's Negev region was bombarded. On Friday night, Hamas fired mortars, killing an Israeli civilian and wounding others, including an IDF soldier. On Saturday, Hamas fired more than 20 Qassam rockets, and on Sunday one struck a school bus. On Monday, rockets struck Ashkelon killing a tourist; one landed near a school before children arrived. Hamas announced its rocket capabilities were improving, and that it would "continue to fire until the last moment" when a truce is signed. Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/israels-latest-population-stats.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/israels-latest-population-stats.html Wed, 7 May 2008 10:18:27 EST On the eve of Israel's 60th Independence Day, the population stands at 7,282,000, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), the Jerusalem Post reports. Some 5,499,000 of the population (75.5%) are Jews, 1,461,000 (20.1%) are Arabs, and 322,000 (4.4%) are non-Jewish immigrants and their offspring, the CBS reports. Since last year, Israel's population rose by some 130,000. The increase is attributed to natural growth (babies and legal immigrants). These figures support the findings of Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/hamas-makes-a-mess-in-the-med.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/hamas-makes-a-mess-in-the-med.html Fri, 2 May 2008 09:53:33 EST The UN says Gaza's water authority dumped millions of gallons of sewage into the Mediterranean Sea this year, according to the Jerusalem Post. "The sewage discharge is contaminating Gaza seawater and posing health risks for bathers and consumers of seafood. The sewage flows northward to Israeli coasts, including near the Ashkelon desalination plant," a UN report reads. Although the Hamas government poured the human excrement into the water, in keeping with the UN's consistent criticism of Jonathan Schanzer http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/iran-working-to-build-regional-influence-1.html http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2008/05/iran-working-to-build-regional-influence-1.html Thu, 1 May 2008 10:30:27 EST The U.S. State Department calls Iran the world's "most active" state sponsor of terrorism because of its efforts to build regional influence, Agence France Press reports. The entire report, "Country Reports on Terrorism 2007," can be found on the State Department's website. Iran builds regional influence by funding Hizbullah and Hamas. Hizbullah already has an Iranian arsenal designed for war with Israel. Hamas, however, is a more difficult client to arm, on account of the Israeli closure of