Video - Michael Coren on Danish agitators and Lieutenant Colonel Shalom Eisner.

HT: IsraelMatzav.

Commander Lt. Col. Shalom Eisner who hit Danish protester is a Second Lebanon War hero

Commander Lt. Col. Shalom Eisner who hit Danish protester is a  Second Lebanon War hero.(JP).The IDF investigation of the beating of a Danish agent provocateur Andreas Ayas of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) by Deputy Bik’ah Brigade Commander Lt. Col. Shalom Eisner, will be presented Tuesday the the IDF Chief of Staff, and it appears that the report will recommend to remove Lt. Col. Eisner from office, but keep him in the army. However, the legal proceedings against Eisner will continue, and may affect his future career. The investigation was headed by Central Command Chief, Gen. Nitzan Alon. On Tuesday, Denmark has demanded clarification from Israel about the incident and the investigation. The Foreign Office updated the Danish Ambassador in Israel about the steps taken since the exposure of the video online. President Shimon Peres attempted to minimize the damage when he said that “The IDF responded clearly, and we must await its conclusions. It’s an isolated incident that should be investigated, and we should avoid far-reaching conclusions.”
Beyond the moral aspects, the investigation also dealt with the operational conduct of the forces in the field during the event. In this respect, the report found failures, primarily in inadequate preliminary preparations for the event; the force that was sent into the area was too small and did not receive police support as required. On Monday, 83 reserves officers and soldiers sent the Defense Minister and the IDF Chief of Staff a letter supporting the Eisner, who had been suspended from his post. Hagit Rein, grieving mother of the late Major B’naya Rein who was killed in the Second Lebanon War and whose body was recovered by Eisner under fire, called the Army Radio to express her dismay at the way Eisner was being judged by the “media court.”
During that war, B’naya Rein assembled a special force to assist damaged tanks. He was killed on that mission for which he had volunteered, and his body remained in enemy territory. At the command level it was decided that rescuing the body was too dangerous, according to the reservists’ letter. Then it was decided they lacked the necessary resources for a rescue mission. After three days, Shalom Eisner, who was then commander of an armored battalion, heard about the abandoned body and said it was unacceptable that the body of an army officer would be lying on the ground while his parents were waiting for him at home. Eisner took a jeep, recall his fellow officers and soldiers, put on a flak jacket and went out to get B’naya. “Surrounded by burned-out tanks, missiles flying in every direction, he just went out into the field, loaded the body and brought it back.” Lt. Col. Eisner’s supporters expressed their complete faith in him “as a man, as a friend and as a moral commander.”Read the full story here.
If you want to see how Danish police treat protesters see video below compliments of IsraelMatzav.

Fly-in Pro-Palestinian activists instructed to protest at int'l airports, told not to start riots.

                                                    Flytilla 2012 -  Grounded in Paris




Fly-in Pro-Palestinian activists instructed to protest at int'l airports, told not to start riots.(YNet).The pro-Palestinian "flytilla" may well prove to be much smaller than planned, as many activists were banned from boarding flights to Israel on Saturday. The largest group of activists was meant to arrive from France. They were instructed to arrive at the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris at 5 am on Sunday. Should they be barred from boarding the flights, the activists will express their protest in letters to the media.On Saturday, organizers briefed the activists on social media networks, calling them to challenge the airlines and show up at the airports with their tickets. The message stated that the blockade was a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention and that Israel had turned Palestine into a huge prison. It was also noted that Israeli immigration inspectors from the Oz Unit have decided to stop their strike in wake of the fly-in. The activists were given specific instructions on how to act in case Israeli authorities refuse to allow them in. They were instructed to leave a copy of their passport with relatives and take the numbers of government officials from their countries of origin. They were also briefed on Israeli airport rules and guidelines. Organizers asked the activists to "stay calm but determined" in case they are denied entry and that there is a possibility they will eventually be allowed in. The activists were also instructed not to start riots or insult airport officials. They plan to appeal any decision barring them from Israel with the involvement of a lawyer. They were also told to contact the organizers in order to report to the media the developments at the airport. Organizers stressed the importance of the media in pressuring the Israeli authorities into changing their decision. Once in Israel, they will receive a letter from the Israeli government which reads: "You could have chosen to protest Syrian regime's daily savagery, but instead you chose to protest against Israel, the Middle East's sole democracy."See below.Read the full story here.

Flytilla Letter HT: IsraelMatzav.

German 'efficiency' - Lufthansa cancels airline tickets of 'flytilla' participants.

German 'efficiency' - Lufthansa cancels airline tickets of 'flytilla' participants.(YNet).German airline Lufthansa canceled the tickets of dozens of pro-Palestinian activists scheduled to fly to Tel Aviv on Sunday as part of a mass fly-in dubbed "Welcome to Palestine," the organizers said Friday. "Dozens of passengers who bought a plane ticket to travel to Tel Aviv on Sunday, April 15, were notified Thursday by Lufthansa that their reservation was canceled at the behest of Israel," they said in a statement.The "flytilla" participants, which consists of some1,500 pro-Palestinian activists from several countries, plan to land in Ben-Gurion Airport on Sunday, and from there proceed to the Palestinian Authority. Israeli authorities announced they would deny the activists entry into Israel and said they would seek to prevent their boarding by providing airline passenger lists. "Lufthansa, like all airlines, is obliged by the principle of following the laws and guidelines on entry to the territory of countries to which it transports its passengers," said a spokesman for the company."The Israeli authorities have written to several airlines including Lufthansa, and asked them not to fly certain passengers to Israel. Therefore, Lufthansa is obliged to follow this directive," he said. However, in their statement, the fly-in organizers warned that passengers "will arrive, as expected, at airports this weekend," adding that the move constituted a violation of international law. Read the full story here.

Israeli group wants 'flytilla' activists put on trial.

                                                          Pic by Alexander Munch


Israeli group wants 'flytilla' activists put on trial.(HD).An Israeli group today called for the arrest and trial of hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists who are expected to arrive at Ben Gurion airport as part of a solidarity campaign this weekend. Between Saturday evening and Sunday, hundreds of activists, mainly from European countries, are expected to land at Israel's main international airport as part of a campaign called "Welcome to Palestine." The visitors are expected to openly declare their intent to visit the West Bank. But Israel has vowed to prevent them from arriving.
Nitsana Darshan-Leitner of the Israel Law Centre, said she had asked Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein "to put an end" to the campaign, now in its third year. "We are asking him to put them on trial," she told Israeli public radio. "This is criminal activity... (which is) a breach of several laws in Israel including unauthorised assembly and crossing the border when they have been specifically told not to come here." In previous years activists have been held in custody pending deportation but not charged with any offence. "Israel must put an end to this," Darshan-Leitner said, "They don't learn because they don't pay the price." 
Hundreds of Israeli police are to be deployed in and around the airport from Saturday night, and the security establishment has already approached foreign carriers in an attempt to prevent known activists from travelling, press reports said. Representatives of all the airlines which fly to Israel were summoned to a meeting last week with senior police and defence officials, at which they were told that the activists would not be allowed in, Maariv newspaper reported on Wednesday.
"It was made clear to those present that every activist that arrived in Israel would be detained, and the airline would be held responsible for returning him at its own expense," it said. Israel is also planning to hand the airlines a list of activists who are expected to arrive shortly before the planes are scheduled to take off from their points of origin, it said. Most of the flights defined as "problematic" would not arrive at the main Ben Gurion terminal, but would be rerouted to another part of the airport where they would be "isolated so that the police officers can check the passengers prior to disembarkation," the paper said.French organisers of the planned event said on Wednesday they still plan to travel despite Israeli opposition.Read the full story here.

'Flytilla' organizers: Israel won’t determine who enters Palestine.

'Flytilla' organizers: Israel won’t determine who enters Palestine.(YNet).Israel vowed Tuesday to prevent the entry of hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists from Europe and North America expected to arrive in the country this weekend, calling them provocateurs who are intent on disturbing public order. The activists are set to board flights to Israel with the aim of participating in demonstrations against Israeli policy in the West Bank. Although organizers say all protests will be peaceful, Israeli officials said the activists would be deported. “The provocateurs will be dealt with in a determined and quick way,” said Israel’s public security minister, Yitzhak Aharonovitch.
“If they arrive in Israel they will be identified, removed from the plane, their entry into Israel will be prevented and they will be moved to a detention facility until they are flown out of Israel.” Last July, Israel blocked a similar effort by preventing scores of activists from boarding Tel Aviv-bound flights in Europe, questioning dozens more upon arrival at the airport and denying entry to 69. Israel had tracked the activists on social media sites, compiled a blacklist of more than 300 names and asked airlines to keep those on the list off flights to Israel. Officials say Israel will use similar tactics this time as well. During a press conference in Bethlehem Tuesday, Mayor Victor Batarseh said the West Bank city will "welcome the 1,500 ambassadors to our land." Addressing the activists, he said, "You are friends in need, and our goal is to build walls of hope, not walls of separation." The mayor urged Israel to allow the activists to enter without "humiliating" them. Abdelfattah Abusrour, a local organizer, said, “They have the right to enter Palestine. It’s not up to Israel to forbid anybody from coming into Palestine." He claimed the activists were coming to Bethlehem to take part in cultural activities and other activities aimed at helping the city. "Last year some activists were prevented from boarding planes in their home countries," Abusrour claimed. Another organizer said, "If Israel prevents the activists from entering, the entire world will see that it does not allow us to host visitors from around the world. Israel can't tell activists where to go and where not go, just as European countries don't tell Israelis where they can or cannot visit." The organizers said most of the 1,200 to 2,000 activists are expected to arrive from Central Europe, adding that other pro-Palestinian activists will be arriving from New Zealand, Australia, Turkey and the US. Mazen Quneisa, one of the local organizers, said, "Minister Aharonovitch called us hooligans, but we aren't. This is not the flotilla to Gaza, and those who will be arriving are normative, not radical people. I hope Israel will do the right thing and allow them to enter." Israel has been jittery about large influxes of foreign activists since a naval raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla in May 2010 turned deadly. The Israeli navy and the activists have each accused each other of sparking the bloodshed in which nine Turkish activists were killed. Organizers say this week’s mission, sponsored by an umbrella group called “Welcome to Palestine,” seeks to draw attention toward Israeli travel restriction on Palestinians.According to the itinerary, a special welcome ceremony will be held for the activists in Bethlehem on Sunday. On Monday they are scheduled to tour the Jordan Valley, on Tuesday they will travel to Hebron and visit Ramallah the following day. The activists are scheduled to visit Jerusalem on Thursday, and on Friday they are set to attend a seminar in Bethlehem titled "How can we end the occupation?"Hmmmm......Let them in, then put them on the no fly list, enjoy prolonged Palestinian hospitality.Read the full story here.

Israel braces for another 'flytilla'

Israel braces for another 'flytilla'.(YNet).Is a second fly-in underway? Hundreds, possibly thousands, of foreign pro-Palestinian activists are set to arrive in Israel via the Ben Gurion International Airport on Sunday ahead of trip to Palestinian Authority. The measure is perceived as having volatile potential, and police sources said Monday that security forces are gearing to stop the activists at the airport should they cause a public disturbance – something authorities believe is very likely.The "flytilla," titled the "Welcome to Palestine 2012" campaign, is expected to consist of activists from the United States, Europe, Australia and New Zealand who plan to go to Bethlehem, before travelling to other Palestinian cities.
Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch, who will coordinate the government's efforts vis-à-vis the fly-in, has already held several meetings on the matter, as well as a survey of the airport.Aharonovitch's team consists of officials from the police, the Immigration authority, the Israel Aviation Authority and various other branches in the defense establishment. Sunday, which will see the end of the Passover break in Israel, is considered one of the busiest days in Ben Gurion Airport. Aharonovitch stressed that airport security, which will be reinforced, has been instructed to exercise restraint while maintaining order.
Israel's efforts to stop the first "flytilla," in July 2011, were somewhat successful, as many European nations stopped the activists from boarding their flights. Jerusalem sources said that those who will arrive in Israel will not be granted entry and will be deported.The fly-in's organizers said that unlike last year, European airlines are not expected to blacklist activists. Dr. Mazin Qumsieh, one of the organizers, said that some 1,500 people are expected to arrive in Israel as part of the "flytilla," adding that some may arrive before Sunday."The airlines won't obey an Israeli demand to blacklist activists this time… After last year's events, some groups sued the airlines. 
"I don't know how Israel plans to deal with this, but what would it look like of it deports 1,500 people?" he said. Qumsieh stressed that the activists have been instructed to tell the truth about their reason for traveling to Israel. The Palestinian Authority, he added, is aware that even if the activists arrive in Israel – they will be promptly deported. The Palestinians are aware of the fact the regardless of the fly-in's end result, they are likely to have the upper hand – PR wise.But Qumsieh insisted that is not the "flytilla's" goal: "We're not trying to make Israel look bad. I want Israel to let them in. "Israel shouldn’t isolate us from the international community," he concluded. "I hope Israel does the right thing." Hmmm.....Israel should let them in and then put them promtly on a no - fly list, let them enjoy Palestinian 'hospitality'.Read the full story here.