FactsOfIsrael.com covers the basic facts on the State of Israel and the Middle East. This includes Maps, the History of the region, Statistics, and more. We also post articles related to the Victims of Palestinian Terrorism, Anti-Semitism, Jewish History, and also a bit of Humor, News and Opinions.


Random Fact:

Fact 265: "On July 31 2002, seven Israeli and American students were slaughtered when a very powerful bomb exploded inside a school bag on a table inside a Hebrew University cafeteria in Jerusalem. Over 80 people were injured by the blast. The Palestinian terrorist group Hamas (Islamic Resistance) proudly claimed responsibility for the murders."

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News, Links and Comments


Note: 15 random articles are displayed below. Refresh this page to display another set of random articles.
United States Congress supports Israel, rejects Palestinian racism (06.24.2004)


NewsIsrael National News (www.israelnationalnews.com) reports that the United States House of Representatives passed a resolution against the Palestinian "right of return" and in support of Israel's right to exist:

A bipartisan effort in the United States House of Representatives produced a resolution yesterday (Wednesday) that lends Congressional backing to the core principles of President George Bush's April 14 letter to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Passing with an overwhelming majority of 407-9, the resolution recognizes "new realities on the ground, including already existing major Israeli population centers" and rejects any Arab "right of return" to Israel. While not referring to an Israeli withdrawal by name, the resolution does reference a "Palestinian state" more than once. The wording was negotiated and agreed upon by House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), primary cosponsors of the resolution.

Commenting on the purpose of the resolution, Rep. DeLay said, "The people of Israel are at war with terror, and it is our responsibility to help them win it." The congressman added, "Peace cannot be negotiated with unpeaceful men. Peace must be won. We must stand with Israel as they work everyday toward its winning."

A Senate vote on a similar resolution is expected later this week.


It always amazes me how the United States see clear regarding historical issues - here are some examples:

1) Standing against Nazi Germany and beating the Nazis in World War II.
2) Standing against Communist Russia and beating Communism during the Cold War.
3) Now standing with Israel against Islamic fascism and Palestinian aspirations for destroying the State of Israel and murdering or displacing millions of Israeli Jews.

America's stand helps Israel force the Palestinians to abandon their racist "Right of Return" and their aspirations to destroy the State of Israel. Otherwise they can continue in their ways of violence, hatred, racism and Islamic fascism - but we'll continue to beat them up as the past two years have proven.

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Palestinian terrorists murder 7 unarmed Israeli civilians and injure a baby and a pregnant woman (07.16.2002)


Palestinian TerrorismThe Jerusalem Post (www.jpost.com) reports that Palestinian terrorists detonated a roadside bomb near the Israeli town of Emanuel killing 7 and wounding 15 unarmed civilians.

After the bomb went off, the Palestinian murderers sprayed gunfire on fleeing passengers. Among the wounded were a baby and a pregnant woman.

It was the first deadly terror attack since June 20 and came hours before representatives of the so-called "Quartet" committee - including the United States, Russia, European Union and United Nations - met in New York to discuss ways of ending more than 21 months of Israeli-Palestinian violence.

"It's a horrendous site," Assaf Yitzhaki, head of the Karnei Shomron fire station, said. He saw passengers trapped inside the bus who had to be rescued by emergency crews.

Medics at the scene quoted the injured as saying that after the initial explosion, several smaller ones went off, or grenades were thrown, followed by shooting.


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Racist Bastards spray paint anti-Jewish Nazi swastikas in France (10.31.2004)


Anti-SemitismThe Jerusalem Post (www.jpost.com) reports that racist bastards spray painted anti-Jewish Nazi swastikas in France:




Racist bastards spray anti-Jewish Nazi symbols in France


Tombs vandalized in eastern France

By ASSOCIATED PRESS, Link



Vandals spray-painted swastikas and Nazi-related inscriptions on about 30 tombstones overnight at a cemetery in eastern France where no Jews are buried, police said Tuesday.



The markings, the latest anti-Jewish vandalism in France, were discovered at a municipal cemetery in the small town of Genlis, about 15 kilometers (9 miles) from Dijon, police said. Authorities opened an investigation, and it was not immediately clear who carried out the attacks.



The government says the number of anti-Semitic acts in France appears to have rebounded this year, with 166 counted in the first nine months of 2004, compared to 127 for all of last year. In 2002, Interior Ministry officials counted 195 such acts.


In the last French elections, Communist and other parties on the extreme left received roughly 17% of the vote. The neo Nazi National Front and other fascist parties received over 20% of French vote. France also has a large Muslim population which is very alienated from western principles of Democracy and freedom but is more in line with fanatical Islamic religious values.

If you add it up you realize that almost 50% of France (17% + 20% + 10% = 47%) is an extreme leftist, a fascist from the extreme right, or someone who probably supports Islamic Supremacists from Al-Qaeda or the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

It is therefore no surprise that these bastards (and France as a whole) hate the United States of America, Israel, or any other western democracy that fights Communism, Nazism or Islamic Supremacism.

I copy below the results from the last French election, including the first and second round. If you haven't already done so, please start the boycott of French products; click here for more details.

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Palestinian terrorist kills Israeli mother and 3 of her children, including a 5-year-old boy (06.21.2002)


Palestinian TerrorismThe Jerusalem Post (www.jpost.com) reports that a Palestinian terrorist entered an Israeli town in the West Bank and murdered a mother and three of her children.



Rachel Shabbo and 3 of her children,
killed in their home by a Palestinian terrorist


The Palestinian murderer entered the family's house and started shooting randomly with the intent to slaughter all unarmed Israeli civilians. He succeeded in killing Rachel Shabo 40, and three of her sons, Naria, 16, Zvika, 12 and Avishai, 5.

Two of the family's other children were wounded: a 10-year-old boy with serious gunshot wounds to the legs, and his 13-year old sister, with moderate to serious chest wounds.

The terrorist was killed by soldiers, who began searching for possible additional terrorists when the house caught fire. The terrorist jumped from a window in the house, exchanged fire with security forces, and was killed.


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Links to sites that sell gas masks, potassium iodate, body suits, readiness kits and more: (02.15.2003)


AnnouncementAfter I posted a story about an Israeli vet who invented a gas mask for dogs (click here for the original article), I have received a few requests from American pet owners who are interested in purchasing the kits. The Israeli vet, Dr. Kishon, seems to only serve Israel, so I did some research and found the following site:

http://www.protectivesuits.com/pet_shield.html


Here are some sites that are not only related to pets, but will also help you protect yourself. These sites sell gas masks, potassium iodate, body suits, readiness kits and more:

http://www.healthywealthyandwise.net/shop/list.html?categ=2
http://www.bt.cdc.gov/
http://www.safetysquare.com/home.html
http://areyouprepared.com/security_and_protection.html
http://www.kio3.com/


Faster please.

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What happens to the bus after a Palestinian suicide bombing? (08.09.2002)


NewsThe British Times Online (www.timesonline.co.uk) has published an article that explains what happens to the Israeli buses that are taken out of service after a Palestinian suicide bombing.

This scrapyard, a few miles from the Lebanese border, is where the buses are dumped after their 15 minutes of infamy, when the dead have been pulled from the wreckage and the television cameras have departed. It is a startling reminder of how Egged, Israel’s largest public transport operator, is on the front line in the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

The latest arrival is the charred remains of bus No 361, its roof torn off, in which nine people were murdered by a suicide bomber at Meron Junction, near Safed, on August 4. Beside it, the green, blue and pink livery already fading in the sun, is bus No 960, on which eight Israelis died near Haifa on April 10. [...]

“It’s like I am magnetised to come here,” he says. “Every day I come for ten minutes to look, trying to visualise what happened to the people inside these buses. I don’t know why. Because I care, maybe. I knew one of the girls who died at Meron Junction; a lovely youngster who helped me to run Egged’s summer camps for children: very special, very beautiful, very talented.” [...]

A few minutes before he arrived, volunteers from Zaka, the ultra-religious recovery service, had spent hours searching the wreckage to find and bury every scrap of human flesh and bone as required by Jewish tradition. Sometimes there are surprises. “They found two legs under the floor,” Mr Shiler said.


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Racist bastards desecrate Jewish cemetery in France (08.10.2004)


Anti-SemitismCnn (www.cnn.com) reports that once again racist bastards have desecrated a Jewish cemetery:



France, August 2004, racist Bastards desecrate Jewish tombstones
with Nazi Swastikas and inscriptions with Adolf Hitler's name


Vandals scrawled anti-Semitic graffiti on dozens of tombstones in Lyon overnight, authorities said Tuesday, the third time a Jewish cemetery has been desecrated this year.

Swastikas and inscriptions with Adolf Hitler's name were painted on headstones in de la Mouche cemetery in this southern French city, the same burial site that was desecrated by skinheads in 1992. [...]

The vandalized graves were at the back of the cemetery, a distance from the guardian's house, and among its oldest tombs. A monument to Jewish World War II soldiers was also covered with graffiti, the French Veterans Affairs Ministry said. [...]

A recent report by the French Interior Ministry found 510 anti-Jewish acts or threats in the first six months of the year, compared with 593 for all of 2003.


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Israel's goals and strategy in her war against Palestinian terrorism (12.17.2002)


OpinionThe Washington Institute (www.washingtoninstitute.org) has a good article on the reasons and goals of Israel's war on Palestinian terrorism:

Many argue that Israel's current war on Palestinian terror lacks a coherent strategy. Indeed, the obvious mission -- to reduce the amount of terror and the damage caused by it -- cannot serve as an outline for the direction of the war. The first strategic goal of this war should be to change the mindset of Arab leaders who believe that Israel can be forced to make concessions. The second strategic goal should be to create a new kind of leadership within Palestinian society. The only way to achieve both goals is to fight terror relentlessly; this is the Israeli government's obligation to its citizens. [...]

Throughout this conflict, certain constraints must be kept in mind. Israel will have to negotiate with the Palestinians at the end of the day -- another reason beyond the obvious why all efforts must be made not to harm civilians while fighting terror. Moreover, Israel must endeavor to achieve its objectives with minimal friction and maximum legitimacy from the international community, though without sacrificing its own vital security interests.

When Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Yasir Arafat realized in September 2000 that he would not get all he wanted, he launched a war of terror against Israel. The Palestinians and other Arabs shared the view that Israel would collapse under a wave of terror; Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon in May 2000 had only reinforced this belief. Therefore, the Israeli war on Palestinian terror must change this mindset throughout the Arab world (especially in Palestinian society), making clear that no negotiations or concessions will be offered under fire. Achieving this goal requires three components. First, Israeli society must remain steadfast. Second, the United States should refrain from pressuring Israel into measures that could be seen as capitulation. Third, Israel's leadership must maintain its determination not to make any political concessions while under fire. Terror must be seen as an illegitimate and futile tool.


Thanks to Imshin for the link. I copy the full article below.

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Iran and Syria continue to support terrorism (07.24.2002)


OpinionThe Wall Street Journal (www.wsj.com) has a good article by Dennis Ross, who was the lead American negotiator on the Middle East peace process in the first Bush and both Clinton administrations.

It's no surprise that the Israeli killing of wanted Hamas militant Salah Shehada and members of his family has drawn the world's attention. It is graphic and it reminds everyone of a seemingly endless struggle. But having just returned from the Middle East, I am struck by a burgeoning danger that is receiving scant attention. With a constant stream of supply from both the Iranians and Syrians, Hezbollah is building a formidable arsenal of highly mobile rockets. [...]

But Bashar Assad seems to lack his father's sense of limits. As if providing weapons to Hezbollah was not enough, he is also procuring spare parts for Iraq from Eastern Europe. That's something new; his father sought Saddam Hussein's demise, not his strengthening. [...]

Iran is also pushing Hamas very hard to continue the suicide bombings in Israel. As I heard from Israelis and Palestinians, recent efforts by the Palestinian Authority officials in Gaza to convince Hamas to stop terror attacks against Israelis appeared to be making headway until the Hamas leadership in Gaza got explicit instructions from the Hamas leadership outside--with considerable Iranian pressure--to persist with the bombings. The same was true for the Islamic Jihad, whose leader Ramadan Shallah resides in Damascus and was equally insistent that the bombing must continue.

Iran and Syria clearly want the conflict to continue between Israelis and Palestinians. Perhaps they believe Israel will lose its resolve and gradually be weakened to the point of collapse. They seem prepared to fight to the last Palestinian to produce such an eventuality. Perhaps they fear American determination to go after Saddam Hussein, believing if he goes, they will be next. Their reasoning might be that the more the situation between Israelis and Palestinians embroils the region, the less the U.S. will be capable of going after Saddam.


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Islamic Warmonger Racist Shrieks of Hate from Mosques in Saudi Arabia, the West Bank/Gaza, Syria, Iraq and Qatar (01.04.2003)


Palestinian TerrorismThe FBIS (wncnet.fedworld.gov) has published a translation of Friday Prayer sermons from Saudia Arabia, Yemen, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza, Syria, Iraq, and Qatar (12/27/2002):

WEST BANK & GAZA STRIP: Gaza Palestine Satellite Channel Television in Arabic, official television station of the Palestinian Authority [...] at 0955 GMT carry a 16-minute live sermon from Shaykh Ijlin mosque in Gaza: "O God, lift the siege imposed on us. O God, lift the siege imposed on our people and our Arab nation. O God, destroy the unjust Jews. O God, avenge the blood of our martyrs."


This kind of racist blind hate is commonly broadcasted on Arafat's TV. The official television of the Palestinian Authority was funded by the European Union. EU Commissioner Chris Patten, suggested last month that he needed an inquiry into PA funding "like a hole in the head", and continues to oppose any investigation into the direct financing of Palestinian terrorism by the EU.

IRAQ: Baghdad Republic of Iraq Television in Arabic, official television station of the Iraqi Government, at 0925 GMT carries a 23-minute live sermon from Abd-al-Qadir al-Jaylani Mosque in Baghdad: "O God, support Islam and Muslims, elevate justice and Islam, and help the faithful score victory over infidels." He goes on: "O God, help your mujahidin servants in Palestine and Iraq. O God, strengthen them and help them score victory over your enemy and their enemy. O God, destroy unjust infidels, criminal Americans, and aggressive Zionist Jews. O God, destroy them, shake the ground under them. O God weaken them, disperse them, down their planes, and drown their ships."


The Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) is a United States government operation which translates the text of daily broadcasts, government statements, and select news stories from non-English sources around the world. It's website is available at wncnet.fedworld.gov but you'll get an error if your network has not been granted access.

I copy the full list of Islamic Warmonger Racist Shrieks of Hate below.

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Fact 16: Palestinian Arab Refugees (09.02.2002)


NewsletterThe latest FactsOfIsrael.com newsletter has been sent.

This week's fact is Fact 16: Palestinian Arab Refugees.

Click here to check out the latest newsletter, and please subscribe (for free) if you haven't already done so.

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Racist bastard burns Jewish School in Paris, France (11.15.2003)


Anti-SemitismThe Jerusalem Post (www.jpost.com) reports that a racist bastard has burned down a Jewish school in a suburb of Paris, France:

Fire gutted the Merkaz HaTorah Jewish secondary school in the Paris suburb of Gagny in the Seine-Saint-Denis region Saturday morning at 3am. There were no injuries.

Fire started simultaneously in two separate places on the first floor of the school where works were under way. A primary school and a kindergarten for 200 children were to be inaugurated there in January 2004. The arsonist or arsonists broke into the building through a ground floor window.


This primitive anti-Jewish racism in France and Europe has reached levels not seen since the second World War. It seems to me that it has become fashionable to be a racist bastard in France and Europe - for example, click here for a report on how this week a famous Greek composer has called the Jews "the root of all evil".

The difference between today and 50 years ago is that we have the State and Army of Israel. We also have a fair, democratic and just superpower on our side: the United States of America.

Imagine the reaction in the US if some moronic composer called the African Americans "the root of all evil". There would be strong condemnations from all sides, all political parties, the media, and the overwhelming majority of Americans. And rightly so.

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Saudi Ambassador to Britain is Nazi (07.11.2002)


NewsThe British Telegraph (www.telegraph.co.uk) reports that the Saudi Ambassador to England has said that 'The Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza is worse than anything Europe experienced under Nazi Germany'.

This is typical of anti-Israeli propaganda: turning the victims (Jews) into the perpetrators of violence (German Nazis). It is a theme I hear constantly in the San Francisco Bay Area, repeated by left-wingers and even assimilated Jews with no connection to Israel or Judaism.

The German Nazis killed over 6 million Jews during World War II. The average number of Jews killed PER DAY was 15,000-20,000. On bad days it would go as high as 30,000. The current number of Palestinians killed since October 2000 is a bit over 1400, mostly armed or violent men.

Next time you hear someone say Israel is acting like Nazi Germany, just call him/her a Nazi - your arguments will be just as strong as theirs.

The Saudi Ambassador to Britain is Nazi.

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Maison d'Éditions Flammarion publie roman raciste et anti-juif (French) (11.22.2002)


Anti-SemitismLa Maison d'Éditions Flammarion s'apprête à lancer un roman pour adolescents intitulé "Rêver la Palestine" qui incite les adolescents au délire anti-juif avec incitation à la haine et au meurtre. Voici un extrait d'un message envoye a La Maison d'Éditions Flammarion par Mr. Jean-Marie Gélinas, Président Amitiés Québec-Israël:

On m'informe (Université Lille) que dès les premières pages de ce roman, on y rencontre un torrent d'immondices, où on raconte que de jeunes palestiniens héros de cette fiction, luttent contre des soldats israéliens qui assassinent froidement les enfants, les vieillards, qui violent les femmes, profanent les mosquées et brisent les os des nourrissons.

Ces jeunes adolescents palestiniens finissent par se rendre à l'évidence. "Les juifs sont un peuples maudit, il faut tuer tous les Israéliens", voilà le type de dialogue qu'on me raporte qui jalonne les deux cents pages du roman.

Et les plus courageux de nos héros, passent à l'acte et commettent des attentats suicides. Gamal se fait sauter, tuant cinq soldats. Ses amis le pleurent : "Tu es courageux Gamal et tu nous manqueras. Nous vaincrons grâce à toi" se lamente son copain Ibrahim. "Mais pourquoi foutre ta vie en l'air pour ne tuer que cinq soldats. C'est insignifiant. Tu aurais pu en tuer des centaines".


Envoyez un message a La Maison d'Éditions Flammarion et faites leur savoir que le racisme n'est pas accepte dans les societes modernes. Leur adresse est bgautrand@flammarion.fr.

Le message entier est copie ci-dessous.

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Iraqi soldiers surrender... even though the war has not started (03.15.2003)


NewsThe Sunday Mirror (www.sundaymirror.co.uk) reports that a few Iraqi soldiers thought the war had started and... surrendered:

TERRIFIED Iraqi soldiers have crossed the Kuwait border and tried to surrender to British forces - because they thought the war had already started.

The motley band of a dozen troops waved the white flag as British paratroopers tested their weapons during a routine exercise.

The stunned Paras from 16 Air Assault Brigade were forced to tell the Iraqis they were not firing at them, and ordered them back to their home country telling them it was too early to surrender.

The drama unfolded last Monday as the Para batallion tested mortars and artillery weapons to make sure they were working properly.

The Iraqis found a way across the fortified border, which is sealed off with barbed-wire fencing, watchtowers and huge trenches.


In a related story, Iraq has asked the French for help with surrendering techniques - click here for the details.

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