Sunday, August 23, 2009

Their Celebrated Heros:

I. "In opening the congress, Fatah elder statesman and former chief Palestinian peace negotiator Ahmed Qurei announced "We have in our midst the hero Khaled Abu-Usbah."

What was
Abu-Usbah's "heroism"?

"Abu-Usbah's "heroism" derives from a 1978 terrorist attack that killed 37 Israelis. Time magazine (back then able to distinguish terrorists from "militants") described Abu-Usbah's mission: "The terrorists hijacked two buses filled with tourists and sightseers, took them on a wild ride down the road toward Tel Aviv, shooting along the way at everyone in sight, and finally destroyed one bus in an orgy of fire and death."
(Source)

II. "The Lockerbie bomber received a hero's welcome in Libya last night hours after he was freed from a Scots jail.

Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was embraced by Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi's son, Saif-alIslam, on the steps of his plane at Tripoli airport as hundreds of supporters cheered.

The crowds waved Saltire flags and placards bearing the bomber's face as a man raised Megrahi's arm in a victory salute. Many also wore T-shirts carrying Megrahi's image. "

What was Megrahi's heroism?

"On 31 January 2001, he was convicted, by a panel of Scottish Judges sitting in a special court at
Camp Zeist in the Netherlands, of 270 counts of murder for his part in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, on 21 December 1988.[4] Megrahi was sentenced to life imprisonment. " (Wiki)

The New Centrist offers a more comprehensive view.

III. "We want to turn Dalal's funeral into a national wedding, a major celebration," the Fatah official said. "The operation she carried out off the shores of her hometown of Jaffa was heroic and exemplary. She will always be remembered as a symbol for the Palestinian women's struggle."

Who is Dalal Mughrabi? And what was her heroic deed for which she is feted?

"On the morning of March 11, 1978, Mughrabi and her Palestinian Fedayeen unit of eleven members, including one other woman, landed on an Israeli beach, killed an American photographer named Gail Rubin and hijacked a bus along the coastal highway. The Israeli army pursued the bus until it was finally stopped. A long shooting battle between the Palestinians and the soldiers ensued. Eventually, Mughrabi blew up the bus which became a large deathtrap of fire. Most of the passengers were killed, a total of 36 Israelis. Mughrabi and the other attackers died. The attack became known as the Coastal Road Massacre. Israeli military forces launched Operation Litani against PLO bases in Lebanon three days later."

IV. "Upon the arrival of Samir Kuntar, along with four other freed Lebanese prisoners, to Beirut airport, Kuntar was officially received by the Lebanese President Michel Sleiman, Prime Minister Fuad Saniora, Speaker of the Parliament of Lebanon Nabih Berri, some members of the Parliament of Lebanon, and Muslim and Christian clerics.

A public celebration was organized by Hezbollah in Dahieh (the Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut) where Hassan Nasrallah gave a welcoming speech to Kuntar.

On July 17, 2008, Kuntar paid tribute at the tomb of Imad Mughniyeh. Later that day, a homecoming function was organized in Kuntar's native village of Aabey, southeast of Beirut. The ceremony was addressed by Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt and the Labour Minister and Hezbollah official Mohammad Fneish.[36]

On July 19, 2008, Al Jazeera TV broadcast a program from Lebanon that covered the "welcome-home" festivities for Samir Kuntar. In the program, the head of Al Jazeera's Beirut office, Ghassan bin Jiddo, lavished praise on Kuntar by calling him a "pan-Arab hero" and organized a birthday party for him. "

Who is Samir Kuntar? What was his heroic deed?

"After taking the hostages, Kuntar's group took Danny and Einat down to the beach, where a shootout with Israeli policemen and soldiers erupted. Samir Kuntar shot the father, Danny, at close range in the back, in front of his daughter, and drowned him in the sea to ensure he was dead. Next, he smashed the head of 4 year-old Einat on beach rocks and crushed her skull with the butt of his rifle.[1]

Back in the crawl space, two-year-old Yael Haran was accidentally suffocated to death by her mother's attempts to quiet her whimpering from revealing their hideout, so that they would not be found by Kuntar's group.[2]"

***************

And then there is this:

"Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has just appointed Ahmad Vahidi as Iran’s new defense minister. He is one of the Iranians being sought by the Argentine authorities on suspicion of involvement in the 1994 AMIA massacre in Buenos Aires and he is the subject an Interpol Red Notice, for all practical purposes an international arrest warrant."


3 Comments:

At 12:20 PM EDT, Blogger bob said...

Noga, completely off topic and for some day when you have free time. I saw this and thought of you: Jewlicious » If Don Draper Were a Jew…

 
At 7:24 PM EDT, Blogger The Contentious Centrist said...

Thanks, Bob:)

 
At 12:09 PM EDT, Anonymous TNC said...

Welcome back, Noga!

And thanks, as always, for the link.

 

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