Author: Orit ben Tzvi

Orit is Israel Rising's regional and threat analyst. She has a degree from IDC in Middle East Diplomacy and has served both intelligence related activities for the IDF as well as advised privately for firms doing business in the region.
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Reverend’s Pledge at Holocaust Remembrance Ceremony: “We will stand with you”

A United Nations International Holocaust Remembrance Day event was held at the Auckland War Memorial Museum on Fri, 27 January. As the event drew to a close, prayers were offered by the Kaumatua, Rabbi Friedler, and Rev. Arthur Comery. The prayer offered by Rev. Arthur Comery was punctuated with audible amens from the crowd and followed by a rousing burst of applause and affirmation. It so represented the sentiment of many who were present.

Our loving Heavenly Father, on this Holocaust Remembrance Day I come on behalf of the Christian Church.

Mere words cannot describe the depths of our sorrow and of our shame as we recall the six million who perished in the Holocaust, the pain and anguish in which the Church is so utterly complicit.

We reaffirm our sorrow and ask for forgiveness, acknowledging that the Church failed catastrophically to stand against a great evil.

But our thoughts must turn to the present, a present in which we glimpse a new evil arising, a present in which the legitimacy of the Jewish State is being threatened from so many quarters and dear Father we fear when we see the seeds of the old Jew-hatred posing as anti-Israel rhetoric, infesting so many parts of the church.

So on this solemn occasion, we do more than just remember the six million.

Today in this country and right around the world, thousands and thousands of Christians reaffirm our bonds with the survivors of the Holocaust, with the Jewish people and with the Jewish State and we give our solemn pledge that we will do everything in our power to make certain that the Jewish people will never face such evil alone again.

Our pledge is this: We will stand with you.  

Rev. Arthur Comery

Originally Posted on Shalom.Kiwi

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Outrage on the Eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day over German Funding of Anti-Israel NGO

Im Tirtzu CEO Matan Peleg: “Dishonors the memory of the 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust”

Ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day that will be marked worldwide on Friday, January 27, the Zionist organization Im Tirtzu released a new report documenting the German government’s funding of Zochrot, an Israeli NGO that works to “decolonize” Israel by promoting the “right of return” for Palestinian refugees.

Zochrot’s vision, according to its official website, is to “promote acknowledgement and accountability for the ongoing injustices of the Nakba, the Palestinian catastrophe of 1948 and the reconceptualization of the Return as the imperative redress of the Nakba.”

According to the official details from the Israeli Corporations Authority’s non-profit registrar cited in the report, from 2012-2016 the Government of Germany has provided over 1,100,000 NIS (290,000 USD) to Zochrot via two German foundations, Misereor and Rosa Luxemberg Stiftung, which are heavily funded by the federal German government.

Zochrot utilizes this extensive funding to engage in an array of controversial activities, including screening its “Film Festival on Nakba and the Right of Return” on college campuses during Israeli Apartheid Week, promoting an “iNakba” smartphone application, and defaming Israel on the world stage with slanderous language like “ethnic cleansing.”

In 2014, Zochrot CEO Eitan Bronstein and other of the organization’s officials participated in the production of a radical video that dubbed the Holocaust “the best thing that ever happened” to the Jewish people.

In response to the findings of the report, Im Tirtzu sent a letter to Germany’s ambassador to Israel Dr. Clemens Von Goetze demanding the secession of German funding to Zochrot.

“What gives the Government of Germany the right to undermine the character of another democratic and sovereign nation?” the letter reads. “We are calling on your government to immediately cease all funding of ‘Zochrot.’ This funding makes a mockery of any and all efforts to find a peaceful solution to any Israeli-Palestinian issues.”

The German Embassy has yet to respond to Im Tirtzu’s letter.

Germany’s funding of Zochrot also sparked outrage among the children of Holocaust survivors.

Noah Klein, the son of two Holocaust survivors, said:  “As a child of two Holocaust survivors I appreciate that despite the horrors of the Holocaust, Germany has been a great friend and supporter of Israel. However, it is very painful to me that Germany is funding an anti-Israel NGO whose goal is the destruction of the Jewish State. The remnant of my family lives in Israel, and Germany’s funding of such an organization that seeks to destroy their future must stop.”

Lori Fagelston, also the daughter of Holocaust survivors, noted: “This funding is a disgrace like no other. Only a few generations have passed, and Germany is again committing another grave injustice against the Jewish People by funding this anti-Israel organization. This needs to stop immediately.”

Im Tirtzu CEO Matan Peleg said: “The idea that Germany in 2017 is funding an organization that brazenly seeks to destroy the Jewish character of the State of Israel is a disgrace. This funding is not only dishonors the memory of the 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust, but is anti-democratic at its core. This is another painful example of foreign governments working to impose their unwanted policies on the State of Israel via anti-Israel NGOs from within.”

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[watch] Bennett Rising: “For the First Time in Fifty Years Our Destiny is Ours to Choose”

With Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu under increased investigations and the new Trump administration showing flexibility in terms of potential Israeli sovereignty in areas of Judea and Samaria, Naftali Bennett is stepping up his push to end the two state solution as we understand it.

Bennett spoke at the Institute for National Security Studies [INSS] today and forcibly gave across his views of the changing times we live in.


‏”‏First point, a Palestine exists [referring to Hamas in Gaza]. ‏Granted, it’s a terror state. It terrorizes its own population and attacks Israeli schools and hospitals using rockets and attack tunnels. ‏This leads to the second point: Apply Israeli law in Area C, the Israeli controlled areas. We will not annex the land, because one can only annex something foreign. ‏This is the Land of Israel, to which Jews have been connected for thousands of years. ‏It is where 450,000 Israelis live.”

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Naftali Bennett: Either Sovereignty or Palestine

Education Minister Naftali Bennett directly challenged Prime Minister Netanyahu today at a meeting with his Jewish Home faction to push forward with his annexation plan.

“The US is entering a new era. The State of Israel is also this week entering a new era for national security,” Bennett said. “Prime Minister Netanyahu faces a historic decision: either sovereignty or Palestine. Either sovereignty or ISIS on Route 6.”

“We call upon Prime Minister Netanyahu: don’t miss this opportunity which came only after 50 years. We will give complete backing to the Prime Minister to act with courage and determination. There is a perception that we must continue to manuever and defend, but we must initiate [policy] and stick with it.”

He recalled that in 1981, former Prime Minister Menachem Begin acted “with courage” and applied Israeli sovereignty to the Golan Heights. “Today we all understand that he (Begin) was correct. No one will take care of the security of Israel if we do not do it [ourselves]. This is the time for action, not excuses.”

The Prime Minister later responded to Naftali Bennett’s remarks with his own.

“After eight years of pressure I welcome the change in attitude in the White House,” Netanyahu said. “We are faced with great opportunities, but they require responsibility and discretion.”

Netanyahu dealt directly with the question applying sovereignty over Maale Adumim: “We are facing opportunities for the State of Israel, but they require a judgment call. This is not the time for knee-jerk reactions, [hasty] orders, and surprises. We need a responsible and prudent diplomacy. For the good of the State of Israel, and for the good of the settlements, I suggest that everyone put aside all other considerations and allow me to lead. We are entering a new era and we are strengthening our foreign relations.”