The US Jerusalem Embassy Was an Excuse, not a Reason : Europe Sides with Iran, Iran Finances Hamas, Hamas' Vows to Destroy Israel -- the Conclusions Are Obvious

TODAY'S NEWS IS ALL ABOUT THE PALESTINIAN ATTACK ON ISRAELI BORDERS. It was meant to bring disarray to the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem on Monday. It failed. • • • THE US EMBASSY OPENING WAS MARRED BUT NOT DISRUPTED. The Jewish Press reported on Monday that : "Notably, the event was far from bi-partisan. No Democratic congresspeople attended. In addition to politicians and public figures, attendees appeared to be overwhelmingly Orthodox Jews and evangelical Christian clergy, including prominent members of US Jewish and Christian organizations who have long pushed for the embassy relocation. Several individuals noted that the lack of bipartisan support for the move was merely an illustration of a trend that has been developing in North America for years : the waning of Democratic support for Israel and the deepening of Israel’s position as a wedge issue." • Mark Levenson, chairman of the Zionist Organization of America, said : “No, I don’t care that there are no Democrats here. They had plenty of chance to make the move -- President Obama had eight years to do it -- but President Trump is the one to do it. It was a bold move and I applaud him for it. This is an historic day.” Levenson added that he is not worried about the long-term effect of Israel’s loss of bi-partisan support in Washington, nor is he worried about what is going to happen in three, four or five years and said that support for Israel in the United States at the present time is “overwhelming. I think that this move will free Israel up to assert itself more. As a result of this move Israel will not be as demonized, Israel will not act so defensively. No, Israel is not perfect but the country will be able to lean on its record, which is far superior (to any other country in the region.” • • • SENATOR TED CRUZ WAS IN JERUSALEM. Senator Cruz said : "After David Ben-Gurion declared the country's independence in 1948, it took then-US President Harry Truman 11 minutes to recognize the State of Israel....I believe President Trump's decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem will be remembered as a similar moment in history." Senator Cruz argued that moving the embassy to Jerusalem 'lifts a heavy burden from the Jordanians and Egypt.' Why would this be the case? Because, said Cruz, 'a President willing to withstand all the consequent pressures and such scathing international criticism on the matter of Jerusalem, is also a President who can fulfill his commitments to stand by these Arab countries against Iran. We stand alongside friends, and to the same degree we stand against enemies." • Israel Hayom wrote : "The truth is, it's wonderful to see American public officials who mean what they say and say what they mean, speaking with moral clarity and logic, standing by our side. Cruz and Graham addressed the fact that no Democratic Senator or member of Congress attended the embassy ceremony. 'Almost every Democrat voted in favor of transferring the embassy in 1995,' Graham noted. 'There were two who abstained.' Among those Democrats of the party's illustrious past, only former Senator Joe Lieberman was in the crowd at the press conference at the King David hotel on Monday. However...very important Arab countries moved closer. This is certainly one of the reasons a historic opportunity has emerged for a daring diplomatic initiative. And of course, a certain prime minister who knows a thing or two about true strategic patience." • • • ARAB LEAGUE PLANS TO CHALLENGE US EMBASSY MOVE TO JERUSALEM. The Jewish Press reported on Monday that the Arab League plans to convene an emergency meeting on Wednesday "to discuss ways to challenge the illegal move of the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, an unnamed Arab diplomat said Monday, according to the Egyptian state news agency MENA. The meeting will be held 'to counter the illegal decision taken by the United States of America to transfer its embassy to Jerusalem,' according to the report that was confirmed by Reuters. Arab League secretary-general Ahmed Aboul Gheit slammed the countries who attended the inauguration of the new embassy, calling their presence at the celebration “shameful,” according to the French AFP news agency : “It is shameful to see countries participating with the US and Israel in celebrating the former’s embassy move to occupied Jerusalem in a clear and grave violation of international law and Security Council resolutions." He called on all nations to “refrain from taking any step that would harm the rights of the Palestinian people.” He said the move “represents an extremely dangerous step,” adding, “I don’t think the American administration realizes its real implications in the short and long terms.” • • • US STOPS UNSC DISCUSSION OF KUWAIT'S GAZA RESOLUTION. Israel Hayom reported on Tuesday that the "US foils anti-Israel Security Council move over deadly Gaza riots." The Kuwait-drafted statement sought to ‎express the Security Council's "outrage" over the death of 58 Palestinian protesters in violent riots on the Israel-Gaza border that a Hamas official lebeled as protests coinciding with the "deplorable crime" of the US Embassy move to ‎Jerusalem. • Israel Today published an article on Tuesday about the UNSC draft resolution titled "How Can the UN Investigate Gaza Deaths When It Refuses to Acknowledge the Obvious?" Journalist Ryan Jones wrote : "Like a broken record, the United Nations Security Council has called for an independent investigation into the dozens of Palestinian deaths that occurred along the Gaza border fence on Monday. But the UNSC's draft statement on the matter calls into question its very ability to conduct such an investigation. There are already a number of very clear pieces of evidence regarding the Gaza deaths, but the UNSC made rather clear that it has no interest in considering them. In other words, the UNSC has already made up its mind about what it believes happened in Gaza, making any 'investigation' little more than a charade to confirm its condemnation of Israel. Otherwise, why would the UNSC's initial draft statement conclude that the Palestinian actions at the Gaza border were entirely 'peaceful' when numerous videos posted online prove the exact opposite to be true?" • Ryan Jones noted a powerful example of the 'peaceful' Gaza border actions -- an Al Jazeera video of last week's Gaza protest shows a gang of men breaching the security fence wielding machetes, meat cleavers and other weapons, and then marchign on nearby Jewish towns chanting 'Khaybar, Khaybar,' a traditional Moslem battle cry recalling the massacre of an entire Jewish tribe by the Prophet Mohammed and his forces." • Jones notes the wording of the UNSC draft resolution : "The Security Council expresses its outrage and sorrow at the killing of Palestinian civilians exercising their right to peaceful protest. The Security Council calls for an independent and transparent investigation into these actions to ensure accountability." Jones says : "the UNSC is proving itself to be either wholly incompetent as an investigator, or grossly biased against Israel in its willingness to unquestionably accept the Hamas version of events in spite of documented video evidence. There's also the matter of Hamas leaders acknowledging for weeks already in public speeches that the goal of the Gaza fence protests is to breach the barrier and enter southern Israel en masse. 'We will break the walls of the blockade, remove the occupation entity and return to all of Palestine,' declared Gaza-based Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, even as he, too, continued to label the protests a 'peaceful' endeavor." • Ryan Jones points out a little-reported fact : "that there are a number of small Israeli towns and villages located less than a mile from the border with Gaza. If the violent mobs seen in the above videos were to reach those towns, we'd have a genuine massacre on our hands. It's not a stretch to say that any nation, even those now condemning Israel, would do exactly the same (if not employ even more firepower) to protect its towns from such danger." • • • THE MAY 14 GAZA BORDER PROTESTS. The international media was full on only one set of facts -- the Palestinians reported 58 protesters killed and 2,700 wounded in the ‎demonstrations, saying six minors, including one ‎girl, were among the dead. But, Israel Hayom reported another version of Monday : "Hamas, which boasted it could bring over 100,000 ‎people to the border on Monday, had to make due with ‎substantially lower turnout, as at the height of the ‎protest, it numbered some 40,000 Palestinians. ‎The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said riots erupted at 13 points along the ‎border, where protesters torched tires and hurled ‎rocks and firebombs at the troops. The military ‎thwarted several attempts to rush the border, as ‎well as attempts to plant explosives on the ‎security fence.‎ Reuters reported : "Military drones and combat aircraft struck 11 Hamas ‎targets in Gaza and Israeli tanks shelled terror ‎hubs in the Strip's north and south in response to ‎the escalation in violence.‎ Defense officials said they expected a stronger ‎showing on the border on Tuesday, as Hamas' 'March of ‎Return' campaign was designed to peak on Nakba Day. ‎The terrorist group has said that part of its plan ‎for Tuesday's protest was a mass rush of the security ‎fence, something the IDF said it would not allow. " • Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blames Hamas for ‎the violence in Gaza : ‎"Every country has an obligation to defend its ‎‎borders. The Hamas terrorist ‎organization declares ‎it intends to destroy Israel ‎and sends thousands to ‎breach the border fence in ‎order to achieve this ‎goal. We will continue to act ‎with determination to ‎protect our sovereignty and ‎citizens."‎ • The White ‎‎House backed Netanyahu. : "The responsibility for ‎these tragic deaths rests ‎squarely with Hamas. Hamas ‎is intentionally and ‎cynically provoking this ‎response," said White House ‎Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah. The Pentagon confirmed it had deployed additional ‎‎US Marine guards to temporarily bolster security ‎‎at several US embassies after the violence, ‎‎including Israel, Jordan and Turkey.‎ • Fox News was at the Gaza border on Monday and confirmed Israeli media reports : "At least 3 of the 52 Palestinians reportedly killed Monday in clashes ahead of the Jerusalem opening of the US Embassy to Israel were 'armed terrorists' caught trying to plant a bomb near the Gaza border fence, Israel's military said. More than 35,000 protesters amassed at a dozen locations along the security fence, with many engaging in skirmishes that pushed the death toll Monday to the highest in Gaza since a 2014 cross-border standoff between the militant group Hamas and the Jewish state, according to the Associated Press....The relocation of the embassy from Tel Aviv...has infuriated the Palestinians, who seek east Jerusalem as a future capital. 'An IDF patrol foiled a bomb-laying attack by a cell of three armed terrorists near Rafah, close to the border,' the Israeli military said Monday. 'This is a particularly violent protest point. The troops responded with fire at the terrorists. The terrorists were killed.' Israel also said its aircraft targeted a Hamas post in Jabaliya after troops in the area came under fire. None of the Israeli soldiers were hurt. Later in the day, Israel's Defense Forces (IDF) said a fighter jet struck five Hamas military training facilities in northern Gaza. 'Rioters are hurling pipe bombs and firebombs at IDF troops, burning tires, throwing stones and burning objects, with the intention of setting fires in Israel and hurting IDF troops,' a member of the Israeli army was quoted by The Times of Israel as saying. Footage posted online by the IDF purportedly showed Palestinians pressed up against the border fence throwing over objects that were on fire." • • • EUROPE AND TURKEY REACT AS USUAL. That is, against Israel and for the Palestinians. • TURKEY. Israel Hayom reported on Tuesday Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's comments : "Israel's actions in Gaza prove it is a terrorist state." Erdogan called the ‎actions ‎of Israeli military amounted to a "massacre" ‎and a ‎‎"genocide." Turkey and South Africa, two countries known for ‎their hostile diplomatic line toward Israel, ‎recalled their ambassadors to Israel Monday. On Tuesday, Turkey expelled the Israeli and US ambassadors. Turkey declared three days of mourning for ‎those ‎killed and recalled its ambassador to Washington. ‎Erdogan's statement to the media reflected his ongoing dispute with the US in Syria : ‎"Unfortunately, the United States is mercilessly ‎cooperating with Israel just like it collaborated ‎with PYD and YPG [Syrian Kurdish militias] as well ‎as Daesh [ISIS], whom it says it is fighting against. What Israel has done today is ‎genocide, and it is not the first time Israel has ‎carried out a genocide."‎ • SOUTH AFRICA. The South African government said ‎it "condemns in the strongest terms possible the ‎latest act of violent aggression carried out by ‎Israeli armed forces along the Gaza border, which ‎has led to the deaths of over 40 civilians. The ‎victims were taking part in a peaceful protest ‎against the provocative inauguration of the US ‎Embassy in Jerusalem.‎ This latest attack has resulted in scores of other ‎Palestinian citizens reported injured, and the ‎wanton destruction of property. Given the ‎indiscriminate and grave manner of the latest ‎Israeli attack, the South African government has ‎taken a decision to recall Ambassador Sisa Ngombane ‎‎[from Israel] until further notice. As we have stated on previous occasions, South ‎Africa reiterates its view that the Israeli defense ‎force must withdraw from the Gaza Strip and bring to ‎an end the violent and destructive incursions into ‎Palestinian territories. South Africa maintains ‎further that the violence in the Gaza Strip will ‎stand in the way of rebuilding Palestinian ‎institutions and infrastructure.‎ The routine actions of the Israeli armed forces ‎present yet another obstacle to a permanent ‎resolution to the conflict, which must come in the ‎form of two states, Palestine and Israel, existing ‎side-by-side and in peace."‎ • FRANCE. French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the ‎‎‎violence in Gaza and ‎reiterated his opposition to ‎‎the move of the US ‎Embassy to Jerusalem.‎ Macron spoke with Jordanian King Abdullah and ‎‎‎Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on ‎‎Monday and his office said he ‎plans to speak with ‎‎Netanyahu on Tuesday.‎ Macron's office statement said : ‎"President Macron laments the large number of ‎‎civilian ‎Palestinian casualties in Gaza today ‎‎‎[Monday] and over the past ‎few weeks." • BRITAIN. British Prime Minister Theresa May expressed concern : ‎"We are concerned by the reports of violence and ‎loss of life in Gaza. We urge calm and restraint to ‎avoid actions destructive to peace efforts. The UK ‎remains firmly committed to a two-state solution ‎with Jerusalem as a shared capital." • THE EUROPEAN UNION. ‎The EU statement read : "We expect all parties to act with utmost restraint ‎‎to avoid ‎further loss of life. Israel must respect ‎‎the right to peaceful protest ‎and the principle of ‎‎proportionality in the use of ‎force. Hamas and those ‎‎leading the demonstrations in ‎Gaza must ensure that ‎‎they remain strictly non‎violent and must not ‎‎exploit them for other means." • GERMANY. Germany echoed EU concerns. A Foreign Ministry ‎spokeswoman issued a statement : "The right to ‎peaceful protest must also apply in Gaza. Israel has ‎the right to defend itself and secure its [border] ‎fence against violent intrusions, but the principle ‎of proportionality applies [meaning that live munitions should only be used ‎when other, weaker forms of deterrence had proven ‎unsuccessful and specific threats were present, the ‎spokeswoman added]." She said Berlin called on the Palestinians to ‎refrain from escalating the situation, engaging in ‎violence or inciting others to do so.‎ The German government said it remained ready to ‎carry out development and humanitarian support, but ‎the situation in Gaza needed to calm down before ‎urgently needed measures could be discussed. The spokeswoman said : "One important step on this path is that those who ‎hold power in Gaza renounce violence and the ‎Palestinian Authority once again takes control in ‎Gaza.‎ ‎Everyone must now ensure that the situation does ‎not escalate further." On Tuesday, Germany said it wants an independent investigation into protests on the Israel-Gaza Strip border -- the UK also called for an independent investigation. Chancellor Merkel’s spokesman criticized both Hamas and Israel for the violence. • UNITED NATIONS. The UN human rights office condemned Monday's "appalling deadly violence" by Israeli security forces in Gaza and called for an independent investigation. UN Human Rights Council spokesman Rupert Colville said that Israel had a right to defend its borders according to international law, but lethal force must only be used a last resort and was not justified by Palestinians approaching the Gaza fence. • • • THE HAMAS ATTACK ON ISRAEL. The IDF released information Tuesday about one attempted border crossing by a Hamas squad during protests on Monday. The Jerusalem Post gave the report : "Monday afternoon, when the IDF confronted violent disturbances on the fence, an intelligence alert was received that a Hamas squad was planning to place an explosive charge on the fence to allow to for a mass infiltration into Israel. Troops belonging to the IDF’s Maglan unit stationed themselves opposite the expected attack point in the northern Gaza Strip. When the squad of eight terrorists emerged from amidst the violent demonstration which was taking place, two armored IDF vehicles drove over the fence and were attacked by the cell with explosives and light weapons. According to the army the cell fired at troops from two different locations, one from a hill some 200 meters from the security fence and another point some 30 meters from the border. Troops then engaged the cell, opening fire at them from Israeli territory while a tank and IAF aircraft struck the terrorists' position. All eight terrorists were killed in the exchange of gunfire. 'Yesterday, during a violent riot, which included the burning of tires, throwing of pipe bombs and throwing of stones, we saw shots fired at our forces and realized that Hamas operatives were the ones who carried out the shooting. Due to this, the crowed dispersed and I gave an order to fire. The fighters were operating professionally, with great courage and precision, and prevented a significant shooting attack on our forces,' a commander in the unit said. According to the army a pistol, grenade launchers, charges and preparations for opening the fence were found in the place where the firefight was." ‎ • • • THE "GREAT MARCH OF RETURN." Fox News reported Monday about the "Great March of Return," as it is labeled by Palestinian media : "Since weekly border marches began in late March, dozens of Palestinian protesters have been killed and more than 2,300 wounded in clashes. Israel’s security service, Shin Bet, claimed Monday that Hamas is encouraging Palestinian civilians to flood the border, with their own gunmen waiting in the wings to break through if a fence is breached. Shin Bet, Israel's internal security agency, said it received that information during interrogations of members who already have been captured after crossing the security fence in recent weeks, The Times of Israel reported....'There is a prohibition for Hamas operatives to approach the border, from a fear that they will be killed or captured by IDF troops, unless the security fence falls and then they must enter, armed, into Israel under the cover of the masses and carry out terror attacks. From the information we have, it appears Hamas is encouraging and sending protesters to the border fence in order to carry out violent acts and damage security infrastructure.' Shin Bet also claimed that Iran is providing funding to Hamas for these border flare-ups, but did not elaborate. A senior figure in the group, designated a terrorist organization by the US, said Monday that the border protests will continue until Palestinians have won back their rights." • Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus, an Israeli military spokesman, said the army had set up additional "layers" of security in and around communities near the border to defend Israeli civilians in case of a mass breach. He said there already had been several "significant attempts" to break through the fence : "Even if the fence is breached, we will be able to protect Israeli civilians from attempts to massacre or kidnap or kill them." • Leaflets dropped over Gaza by Israeli army jets warned that those approaching the border "jeopardize" their lives. The warning said the army is "prepared to face all scenarios and will act against every attempt to damage the security fence or harm IDF soldiers or Israeli civilians." • • • IRAN PAYS FOR THE RIOTS. The Jewish Press reported on Monday that captured rioters say Iran is paying Hamas for the violence and terrorism at Gaza border fences : "Hamas is encouraging and sending protestors to the fence area in order to commit violent acts and damage security infrastructures, according to Shin Bet, which also reported on Monday that Iran is transferring funds to Hamas to encourage violent action in the Gaza Strip fence area, with Hamas financing the violent action as Hamas members in civilian clothing circulate among violent activists and supply gasoline for the kite-firebombs designed to ignite and burn Israeli fields. Hamas militants in civilian clothes encourage children to try to cross the fence in order to steal IDF equipment. • The Jewish Press reported : "Israel's defense establishment revealed on Monday that intelligence gathered over the past few weeks suggests that Hamas is paying Palestinian activists in the Gaza Strip to charge the fence on the border with Israel during violent demonstrations there....The activists are paid a minuscule amount -- some 50 shekels ($14) per activist or a lump sum of $100 per family -- to charge the fence at the risk of being killed by Israeli snipers. Instead of risking its own operatives, Hamas has systematically sent teenagers and children to the area. • Israel Today reported on May 2 that : "A Palestinian man from Gaza has been arrested after approaching the border fence with Israel and demanding that the IDF soldiers guarding it shoot him so he could collect a monetary reward from Hamas....Instead, the soldiers fired in the air and demanded he back away from the fence....He refused....[He] was told by the Israelis that he could come through the fence, but that he'd be arrested and tried for terrorist activity if he did. [He] agreed, and is now on trial in Beersheva. During his interrogation, it was revealed that [he] wanted the soldiers to shoot him so that Hamas would pay him $500 and a monthly stipend, a common reward for those injured while violently confronting Israel. This incident is demonstrative of why so many Palestinians keep gathering at Gaza's security fence, and why so many have been injured by Israeli soldiers. They want to get shot. Some are forced to go into harm's way by their oppressive terrorist overlords. Others are swayed by hateful indoctrination. For the rest, Hamas resorts to one of the oldest tricks in the book, tempting the poorest members of society with cold hard cash to do things they would otherwise never dream of doing." • • • WHAT WOULD OTHER NATIONS DO IF...?? Noah Beck wrote an article for the Jerusalem Post on May 2 asking : "What would the US do if 30,000 Mexicans, organized by a known terrorist group, marched towards the Texas border, demanding to return to their ancestors’ homes, with many of the protesters throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails, carrying fence cutters, launching burning kites that set ablaze US territory near the border, igniting tires, and even shooting guns at US agents across the border? If the US used force to protect its border against such a “peaceful protest,” what percent of the 30,000 Mexicans would end up dead or injured? Would it be more or less than 40 (about 0.13%)? And how would the global media and human rights organizations react to these incidents? Now consider the reaction to Israel’s defense against precisely this kind of assault on its sovereign border." • Noah Beck describes an obvious technique used by Hamas : "Hamas knows that most observers will simply focus on images of injured and killed Gazans, rather than blame Hamas for sending children towards a militarized border. Obviously, there would be no risk of provoking any forceful reaction from Israel’s border protection forces if the protests were peacefully held at a distance of at least 500 meters from the border. But instead, the protestors actively tried to damage the border fence itself, while threatening Israelis on the other side of it. Were they expecting hugs and flowers in response?" • The sad truth is, says Beck, that Hamas "is deceiving the the Palestinians themselves into thinking that they have any hope of 'returning' to any homes or territory in present-day Israel that their ancestors might have occupied before 1948. Have Israeli Jews ever demanded a 'return' to the millions of homes their ancestors lost in Europe, during the Holocaust, or in the Arab and Moslem world, from which roughly a million persecuted Jews were displaced between the 1940s and the 1970s? Instead, the Jews accepted the cruelty of history and focused their energies on building a vibrant state in the tiny sliver of land they were given the chance to develop in 1948. By contrast, when Gazans received a historic opportunity, after Israel’s 2005 unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, to prove that they can engage in responsible and peaceful state-building, they opted to turn Gaza into a Somalia rather than a Singapore. Instead of choosing coexistence and cooperation, Hamas has promoted a culture of anti-Israel hatred, while diverting Gaza’s resources to terrorist rockets and attack tunnels, even after launching and losing three wars against Israel in the span of seven years (2008, 2012, and 2014). Poor governance has consequences, as Gazans have painfully learned from a shortage of jobs, electricity, sanitation and other basic goods that Hamas has failed to deliver." • • • DEAR READERS, it is the truth that Hamas has simply destroyed the lives of all the Palestinians caught in Gaza after Hamas won an election in 2007 -- and never held another one. The Palestinians living in Gaza are responsible for their fate at the hands of Hamas -- they go on blaming Israel while ignoring Hamas’ role in the violence and, more generally, giving Hamas a pass on its cruelty, corruption, and disastrous policies. Noah Beck noted that the human rights organization Amnesty International recently called for an arms embargo against Israel, arguing that Israel has been “killing and wounding of civilians demonstrating in Gaza by the Israeli forces, despite the fact that they don’t pose any immediate threat.” If you look at video of Gazans, they are dirty because there is little running water, in old clothes and living in squalor because unemployment is at 43% for adults and 64% for young men. That is what Hamas has done for Gaza Palestinians. • The Jerusalem Post asks : "IS THE IDF ACTING LEGALLY? Is the IDF acting legally and with restraint or illegally and with loose open fire rules as the Gaza border confrontation continues? Is the confrontation about nonviolent protests or violent riots?....From seeing the confrontation up close near Nahal Oz on Monday (granted only from the Israeli side), there are a few important observations. As the protests started, they remained relatively calm and concentrated. There was less smoke, fewer signs of Palestinian explosives, fewer sounds of Israeli gunfire, fewer Palestinian fire kites and no Israeli air strikes or tank fire to speak of. At a particular moment, it appeared that the Palestinian crowds were given an order or a signal. Suddenly, thousands of people started sprinting and spreading out along the border. Shortly thereafter, the number of large plumes of smoke -- from burning tires, Molotov cocktails or other explosives -- multiplied fast. There were also far more bursts of gunfire. Additionally, a number of fire kites were released into the air from the Palestinian side. A little while later, there were reports of serious explosives being used by Palestinians, and tank fire and air strikes from the Israeli side. None of this makes a certain case for either side. In order to judge the legality of the use of force, one must be able to see exactly what IDF soldiers saw and were doing, and exactly what the Palestinians who were shot were doing. But it does give context. While this was nothing like an all-out battle and there were clearly peaceful protesters, there was also a visible wide and organized violent effort to storm portions of the Israeli border defense line. This is not surprising as this is exactly what Hamas pledged to do leading up to Monday." • The Jerusalem Post tries to explain the application of the rules of engagement at the Gaza border "into at least three periods." Before April 9th's warning to the IDF by the International Criminal Court, the JPost says : "the IDF asserts that it was following international law and exercising degrees of restraint in using lethal force, but it was also trying to send a message to Palestinians not to approach the border. At this stage, opening fire rules might have been looser in cases where IDF soldiers were unsure whether an approaching Palestinian was dangerous or how dangerous he was. This was also a stage during which Hamas’s involvement in the confrontations was less blatant." Than, according to the JPost, after the April 9 warning, IDF leadership started to order greater restraint in borderline cases -- this was the second stage, with rounds of confrontation with no deaths, or with one incident of death, which was clearly identified as Palestinians trying to plant plastic explosives. The Jerusalem Post says stage ended on Monday : "With the IDF facing a significant increase in organized violence from the Palestinian side, it entered a third stage in which it appears to have been at least as aggressive in using live fire as it was early on, if not more aggressive. Surprisingly, the High Court failed to issue a decision before Monday about the legality of the IDF’s rules of engagement at the Gaza border, with human rights groups having filed a petition to declare those rules illegal. It appears that the IDF, and possibly the High Court, are waiting until after the Gaza border crisis is over to announce their views of the broader rules and of individual questionable incidents where minors, journalists or seemingly non-threatening Palestinians were killed by the IDF. Only after they publish their decisions and information on these incidents and issues, will the picture become clearer. But just from watching the confrontation up close on Monday, it was clear that there is nothing simple or black and white about the situation, and compared to global media coverage, there is far more than meets the eye." • Why do the UN, Europe, the entire Democrat Party -- and possible even the Jerusalem Post -- fail to see the truth? They ignore history, current context, and the demonstrated evil intent of Hamas, Iran and all those whose goal is to erase Israel from the face of the Earth. Why would these 'collaborators' in the destruction of Israel expect Israel to rely on unfriendly-nation and international-body dictates about how Israel is to engage in a war for its survival?? They offer Israel the 'opportunity' to make concessions to its sworn enemies. • Noah Beck rightly states : "It has been an article of faith among European and US 'Progressives' that Israel’s conflict with the Palestinians could be resolved if only Israel withdraws from territory that it conquered in 1967, after surrounding Arab armies threatened to annihilate the NJ-sized country. In 2005, to test that idea and hopefully promote better relations with Gazans, Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza Strip. Israelis on the right argued that such a move would be perceived as a surrender out of weakness, and the power vacuum created by the Disengagement, as Israel’s 2005 Gaza withdrawal was called, would be quickly filled by extremists who exploit their newfound freedom to attack Israel. Israelis on the left claimed that taking a big risk to promote better relations, and eventually peace, with Gaza would strengthen Israel’s international standing. Those supporting the Disengagement also argued that it would bring Israel global support if ever the Israeli army was forced to defend its border with the Gaza territory that it evacuated. The Great Deception March shows just how much the right was right." • In a world where the president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, believes he has the right and the international support needed to say publicly that the Holocaust was the result not of Nazi anti-Semitism, but rather the Jews' "social behavior, [charging] interest, and financial matters," how can Israel trust support from anyone but the United States -- and that, only since US support for Israel has been restored by President Trump after 8 long years of President Obama's policy of offering to Israel disrespect and deception. Abbas' goal was to convince the world that the Jewish people have no right to live in the Holy Land, and, apparently, no right to live at all. US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman called Abbas' onslaught indicative of the true reason Middle East peace has been so elusive, tweeting that Abbas "has reached a new low in attributing the cause of massacres of Jewish people over the years to their 'social behavior relating to interest and banks.' To all those who think Israel is the reason that we don't have peace, think again." • And now we learn from reports that the Iranian Justice Seeker Student Movement group has distributed posters that say : "The Student Justice Movement will support anybody who destroy the illegal American embassy in Jerusalem,” in Farsi, Arabic, and English -- a copy was given to the Washington Free Beacon. “There will be a “$100,000 dollar prize for the person who destroys the illegal American embassy in Jerusalem,” the poster states. Former Pentagon advisor Michael Rubin told Infowars that terrorism is central to the Iranian government’s philosophy : “Unfortunately, terrorism directed toward diplomats and embassies has become a central pillar of the Islamic Republic’s culture. Terrorism is lionized in Iranian schools. This bounty is more the rule than the exception. To blame Washington or Jerusalem is to blame the victim and give terrorists a veto over US policy.” • Iran is the financial pillar of Hamas. The US embassy moving to Jerusalem was not the reason for Hamas attacks on Israel, it was Hamas' excuse to raise them to a higher level.