JERUSALEM NEWS
NEWS AND INFORMATION
Events, happenings, and Opinions Concerning
Israel, Israelites, Judah, and Everyone Else
Jerusalem News-852
Jerusalem News 852
13 Nisan 5769, 7 April 2009
Contents:
1.
Ehud
Olmet
.
The Outgoing PM
2. False Allegations Against Israeli Soldiers Emanated from Left-Wing Israeli
Military Academy
3. Arab Maniac Axes Young Jewish Boys
4. The Alawite
Pagan Rulers of Syria
5. IDF
Promotes its First Ethiopian Regiment Commander
1.
Ehud
Olmet.
The Outgoing PM
[Extracts Mainly from Wikipedia]
Ehud Olmert born 30 September 1945) was the Prime Minister of Israel from 2006
to 2009. Olmert was the mayor of Jerusalem from 1993 to 2003.
In 2003 he was elected to the Knesset and became a minister and Acting Prime
Minister in the government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. On 4 January 2006,
after Sharon suffered a severe hemorrhagic stroke, Olmert began exercising the
powers of the office of Prime Minister. Olmert led Kadima to a victory in the
March 2006 elections (just two months after Sharon had suffered his stroke) and
continued on as Acting Prime Minister. On 14 April, two weeks after the
election, Sharon was declared permanently incapacitated, allowing Olmert to
legally become Interim Prime Minister. Less than a month later, on 4 May, Olmert
and his new, post-election government were approved by the Knesset, thus Olmert
officially became Prime Minister of Israel.
As Prime Minister, Olmert continued many of Sharon's policies, such as actively
supporting the road map for peace and the two-state solution. Olmert and his
government enjoyed healthy relations with the Fatah-led Palestinian National
Authority, which culminated in November 2007 at the Annapolis Conference. On the
other hand, during his tenure as Prime Minister, there were major military
conflicts with both Hezbollah and Hamas (predominately in the Gaza Strip).
Olmert and Minister of Defense Amir Peretz were heavily criticized for their
handling of the 2006 Lebanon War. In late 2008, a ceasefire between Hamas and
Israel ended, which led to the 2008?2009 Israel?Gaza conflict to erupt. Olmert
declared that the Israeli Defense Force would target the Hamas leadership and
infrastructure in the war.
Throughout his premiership, Olmert was accused of corruption. Facing a challenge
for the leadership of Kadima from Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, on 30 July 2008,
Olmert announced that he would not seek re-election as party leader and that he
would resign from his position as Prime Minister immediately after a new Kadima
leader was named. Livni won the contest and sought to form a new government in
September of that year. However, Livni's attempts at forming a new government
were unsuccessful and instead an election was scheduled for February 2009. On
February 20th, Israeli President, Shimon Peres, chose Benjamin Netanyahu to
become the new Prime Minister and asked him to form a Coalition Government,
after there was no clear victory in the elections. Netanyahu succeeded Olmert on
31 March 2009.
Born near Binyamina in the British Mandate of Palestine, Ehud Olmert is a
graduate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem with degrees in psychology,
philosophy and law.
Olmert was first elected to the Knesset in 1973 at the age of 28 and was
re-elected seven consecutive times.
Following Likud's defeat in the 1992 election, instead of remaining a Knesset
member in the opposition, he successfully ran for Mayor of Jerusalem in November
1993.
Between 1993 and 2003, Olmert served two terms as Mayor of Jerusalem, the first
member of Likud or its precursors to hold the position. During his term in
office, he devoted himself to the initiation and advancement of major projects
in the city, the development and improvement of the education system, and the
development of road infrastructure. He also spearheaded the development of the
light rail system in Jerusalem, and the investment of millions of shekels in the
development of mass transportation options for the city.
[Olmert as Mayor put the budget of Jerusalem into a massive debit. He also
hosted right-wing nationalist demonstrations in the center of the city at which
he was a major speaker. These demos were attended by 10s of thousands of
participants especially from the National Religious sectors. As PM he later
adopted policies he had previously subsidized demonstrations against.]
Olmert was elected as a member of the sixteenth Knesset in January 2003.
Following the elections he was appointed as Designated Acting Prime Minister
and Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor. From 2003-2004, he also served as
Minister of Communications.
On 7 August 2005, Olmert was appointed acting Finance Minister, replacing
Benjamin Netanyahu, who had resigned in protest against the planned Israeli
withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.[5]
Olmert, who had originally opposed withdrawing from land captured in the Six-Day
War, and who had voted against the Camp David Peace Accords in 1978, is a vocal
supporter of the Gaza pullout. After his appointment, Olmert said:
"I voted against Menachem Begin, I told him it was a historic mistake, how
dangerous it would be, and so on and so on. Now I am sorry he is not alive for
me to be able to publicly recognize his wisdom and my mistake. He was right and
I was wrong. Thank God we pulled out of the Sinai."[6]
When Sharon announced his leaving the Likud and the formation of a new party,
Kadima, Olmert was one of the first to join him.
Acting Prime Minister
On 4 January 2006, as the designated Acting Prime Minister, Olmert became Acting
Prime Minister as a result of the serious stroke suffered by then Prime Minister
Ariel Sharon. This occurred after consultations took place between Cabinet
Secretary Yisrael Maimon and Attorney General Menachem Mazuz, whom declared
Sharon "temporarily incapable to carry out the duties of his office", while only
officially in office. Then, Olmert and the cabinet reaffirmed in an announced,
that the 28 March elections would be held as scheduled.
In his first major policy address after becoming caretaker Prime Minister, on
24 January 2006 Olmert stated that he backed the creation of a Palestinian
state, and that Israel would have to relinquish parts of the West Bank to
maintain its Jewish majority. At the same time, he said, "We firmly stand by the
historic right of the people of Israel to the entire Land of Israel."
The Disengagement Plan had progressed under Sharon during 2005. In February 2006
as part of the Disengagement Process nine homes in the West Bank settlement of
Amoa were destroyed. Ca. 10,000 Israeli Police, Israeli Border Police, and IDF
soldiers were arraigned against ca. 4000
settler youths or 1000 if counting only those within the settlement itself.
Relative to past procedures and what had been previously accepted in Israeli
society excessive brutality was employed and illegal methods used. The
impression was that this brutality had been directed from above
and had an anti-religious anti-Jewish element to it.
On 7 March 2006, it was disclosed that an inquiry was being carried out on the
1999 sale and lease-back of Olmert's Jerusalem house, which allegedly was done
on financial terms very favorable to Olmert, in what would amount to an illegal
campaign contribution and/or bribe.[9] A criminal investigation regarding the
matter was formally launched on 24 September 2007.[10]
On 24 May 2006 Olmert was invited to address a joint session of the U.S.
Congress.[11] He stated that his government would proceed with the disengagement
plan if it could not come to agreement with the Palestinians.
On 2 May 2007, the Winograd Commission accused Olmert of failing to properly
manage the 2006 Lebanese War,[16] which prompted a mass rally of over 100,000
people calling for his resignation.[17]
[It could be that criticism of Olmert concerning the Lebanese War was unfair.
The war broke out shortly after he took office and the shortcomings
that emerged should have been attributed to his predecessors.]
On 29 November 2007, he warned of the end of Israel in case a two-state solution
is not eventually found for the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. "If the day comes
when the two-state solution collapses, and we face a South African-style
struggle for equal voting rights (also for the Palestinians in the territories),
then, as soon as that happens, the State of Israel is finished," Olmert said on
the last day of the Annapolis Conference. "The Jewish organizations, which were
our power base in America, will be the first to come out against us," Olmert
said, "because they will say they cannot support a state that does not support
democracy and equal voting rights for all its residents."[20]
Rocket and mortar attacks by Palestinian militants from the Hamas-controlled
Gaza Strip on Israel occurred frequently throughout the Spring and Summer of
2008 until a ceasefire was agreed to between Hamas and Israel in June. Rocket
attacks increased sharply in November after an Israeli raid on an Hamas-built
smuggling tunnel.[21] The ceasefire expired in December 2008 and negotiations
stalled between the two parties to renew the ceasefire. On 24 December, the
Negev was hit by more than 60 mortar shells and Katyusha and Qassam rockets, and
the IDF was given a green light to operate.[22] Hamas claimed to have fired a
total of 87 rockets and mortar rounds that day at Israel, code-naming the firing
"Operation Oil Stain".[23] On 25 December, Olmert delivered a 'last minute'
warning to Gaza in direct appeal to Gaza's people via the Arabic language
satellite channel al-Arabiya, to pressure their leaders to stop the barrages. "I
am telling them now, it may be the last minute, I'm telling them stop it. We are
stronger," he said.[24] The attacks did not stop and Israel launched its
military operation, codenamed Operation Cast Lead, on the morning of 27
December, when more than 50 fighter jets and attack helicopters began to bomb
strategic targets. Air strikes continued for days, when on 3 January 2009 the
IDF began a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip.
The war finally finished on 18 January 2009. A day before, Israeli officials
announced a unilateral ceasefire, without an agreement with Hamas. In a press
conference, Israeli Prime Minister Olmert declared the ceasefire effective that
night, at 0000 GMT on the 18th January.
On 30 July 2008 Olmert announced that he would not contest the Kadima party
leadership election in September, and would resign from office once his party
elects a new leader.
After Tzipi Livni won the leadership election, Olmert officially resigned but
remained Prime Minister.
[Elections were held as a result of which Benyamin Netanyahu became PM and
Kadima, the party of Olmert, formed the Oppostion.]
On 16 January 2007, a criminal investigation was initiated against Olmert. The
investigation focused on suspicions that during his tenure as Finance Minister,
Olmert tried to steer the tender for the sale of Bank Leumi in order to help
Slovak-born Australian real estate baron Frank Lowy, a close personal
associate.[32] Israeli Police who investigated the case eventually concluded
that the evidence that was collected was insufficient for indictment and no
recommendations to press charges were made.[33]
In April 2007 it was further alleged that, during his office as Minister of
Trade, Industry and Labor, Olmert may have been guilty of criminal behavior by
taking an active part in an investment center.[34] During a parliamentary
inquest in July 2007, Olmert flatly denied these accusations.[35]
In May 2008, it became public that Olmert was the subject of another police
investigation. The investigation concerns bribery allegations.[36] [37] Olmert
said that he took campaign contributions from the Jewish-American businessman
Morris Talansky when he was running for Mayor of Jerusalem, leadership of the
Likud and candidacy in the Likud list for the Knesset, but resisted calls to
resign...On 27 May Morris Talansky testified in front of court that over the
last 15 years he gave Olmert more than $150,000 in cash in envelopes. On 6
September 2008 Israeli police recommended that criminal charges should be
brought against Olmert.[40]
On 26 November 2008, Attorney General Meni Mazuz, had informed Olmert that he
decided to file an indictment against him in what has come to be known as "Rishontours"
affair, pending a hearing before the attorney general. Olmert would speak abroad
on behalf of groups such as the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, a support group
for the IDF or a charity for mentally disabled Israeli children, Rishon Tours
then billed each group for the same trip as if they alone were paying and placed
the money in special bank account allegedly for Olmert's personal use.[41][42]
Although a frequent target of corruption allegations, Olmert has never been
convicted of a crime.[43]
Personal life
Ehud Olmert's wife, Aliza, is a writer of novels and theater plays, as well as
an artist. Some people believe that Aliza is more left-leaning in her politics
than her husband. She claimed to have voted for him for the first time in
2006.[44]
The couple has four biological children and an adopted daughter.[45] The oldest
daughter, Michal, holds a Masters in psychology and leads workshops in creative
thinking. Their daughter Dana is a lecturer in literature at the Tel Aviv
University and the editor of a literature series. She is a lesbian and lives
with her partner in Tel Aviv. Her parents are accepting of her sexual
orientation and partner. Dana is active in the Jerusalem branch of the Israeli
human rights organization Machsom Watch. In June 2006 she attended a march in
Tel Aviv protesting alleged Israeli complicity in the Gaza beach blast, which
made her the subject of bitter criticism from right wing personalities.[46]
Their son Shaul Olmert married an Israeli artist and lives in New York. He is
currently a Vice President at Nickelodeon. After Shaul had finished his military
service, he signed a petition of the Israeli left-wing organization Yesh Gvul.
He later became the spokesman of Beitar Jerusalem, his father's favorite
football team. This team is often associated with the Israeli right. Ehud's
younger son Ariel, who did not serve in the IDF, studies French literature at
the Sorbonne in Paris. Shuli is their adopted daughter. She was orphaned from
her mother at birth.
2. False Allegations Against Israeli
Soldiers Emanated from Left-Wing Military Academy
DEBKA Weekly Newsletter
Summary of DEBKAfile's Exclusives in the Week Ending April 2, 2009
Military police probe clears Israeli soldiers of alleged violations in Gaza
30 March: Judge Advocate General Brig.-Gen Avichai Mandelblit decided March 30
to close the Military Police probe into allegations that Israeli soldiers
committed human rights violations and abuses during Operation Cast Lead the IDF
against Hamas last January. The advocate general, who launched an investigation
in response to glaring headlines in Israeli and world media, discovered that the
charges rested purely on hearsay and rumor, blown up to serve an agenda rather
than based on real evidence.
The rumors were leaked to the media by the head of the Rabin Pre-military
Academy Danny Zamir and aired at an academy conference. Both sources later
admitted they had not witnessed any of the incidents they described.
Brig.-Gen Mandelblit said that while the IDF must constantly examine its moral
standards, the damage caused the Israeli military's reputation and morale by
false allegations was inestimable. It could have been avoided had the complaints
been verified before publication.
3. Arab Maniac Axes Young Jewish Boys
DEBKA Weekly Newsletter
Summary of DEBKAfile's Exclusives in the Week Ending April 2, 2009
02 March: One or more Palestinian terrorists rampaged around Bat Ayin, in the
West Bank Gush Etzion bloc Thursday, April 2, attacking two Israeli boys with an
axe. Shlomo Nativ, 16, died of his wounds, the second, aged 7, suffered a
serious skull injury. Residents opened fire on the terrorists who managed to get
away. Heavy security reinforcements were rushed to the area. They set up
roadblocks and surrounded neighboring Arab villages to search for the killer or
killers. All the communities in the area were put on terror alert. The attack
occurred on the second day of school holiday for the Passover festival.
4. The
Alawite
Pagan Rulers of Syria
http://www.apologeticsindex.org/a21.html
Extracts
Syrian President Hafez Assad comes from the Alawite religious minority which,
though considered a sect of Shiite Islam, bears little resemblance to Islam in
doctrine or practice. The secretive faith -- in name indicating followers of
Ali, son-in-law of Islam's founding Prophet Mohammed -- also combines elements
of Christianity and astrology. It is believed to date to the 9th century.
(...)
Alawites, unlike Muslims and Christians, believe women do not have souls.
Astrological phenomena also takes on special meaning. There is a belief, for
example, that the Milky Way is made up of deified souls of believers.
(...)
Alawites are estimated to number in the hundreds of thousands, living mainly in
Syria, where they account for about 6 percent of the 17 million population, but
also in Lebanon and Turkey.
A Look at Alawite Religious Sect, Las Vegas Sun/AP, June 12, 2000
Assad Patronage Puts a Small Sect on Top in Syria
New York Times, June 22, 2000
http://www.nytimes.com/library/
world/mideast/062200syria-assad.html
[Story no longer online? Read this]
DAMASCUS, Syria, June 18 -- When Hafez al-Assad died on June 10, his power and
privileges passed to his eldest surviving son, Bashar, a 34-year-old eye doctor
who is just a few formalities away from officially inheriting the Syrian
presidency.
But Dr. Assad is not the only heir to his father's 30 years of authoritarian
rule.
Behind him -- in the officer corps of the armed forces, the intelligence
services, the palace guard and the ruling Baath Party command -- stand thousands
of his fellow Alawites, members of a minority religious sect who owe their
fortunes and their influence exclusively to Assad family patronage.
Their dominance is never openly discussed, however. It is a taboo in Syria to
speak publicly about Alawite power or the power of any other minority. Syrian
nationalism and Arab nationalism were supposed to have erased sectarian
identities, under the ruling philosophy of the Assad government.
For most of the late President Assad's reign, his favoritism toward Alawites was
a source of much private resentment among Syria's traditionally dominant Sunni
Muslim majority. In the early 1980's, the supremacy of the Alawites,
historically regarded in Syria as heretics, was a spur for a violent rebellion
by Islamic fundamentalists.
He dealt with the Sunni fundamentalist rebellion by brutally crushing it. And he
carefully courted other religious minorities in Syria, like Shiite Muslims and
Christians, who also feared that they would be trampled if the Sunnis were to
regain political power.
The Alawites, at about 1.5 million strong in Syria and representing about 12
percent of the country's population, are considered by some to be a distant
offshoot of the Shiite branch of Islam. Most members of the sect live in Syria,
although there are scattered communities in Turkey as well.
Their belief system has been a matter of speculation, rumor and suspicion from
more orthodox Muslims of both the Shiite and Sunni sects almost from their
beginnings in the ninth century, when the branch was founded by a man named Ibn
Nusayr, who declared himself the gateway to truth.
Only a small group within the sect are initiated into Alawite rituals and
doctrine. But researchers who have studied the group say they drink wine in some
ceremonies, incorporate elements of Phoenician paganism, and hold that Ali, the
son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, is a divine. All of that is anathema to
conventional Islam.
Alawite
http://www.mandrake-press.co.uk/Main_article/alawite.html
Extracts:
Alawites are a Middle-eastern religious group prominent in Syria, who backed the
late Syrian president Hafez al-Assad.
Alawites call themselves Alawi The term Alawite is of relative recent origin and
historically they have been called Nusairis, Namiriya or Ansariyya. To avoid
confusion, this article uses the modern term.
History
Origin of Alawites is in dispute. According to some sources they were originally
Nusayri, a sect that broke ties with Ismailis in the 9th century. In 857,
Muhammadu ibn Nusair declared himself as the Bab or representative to the 10th
Imam among the Shi'tes.
In the 10th century, Alawites were established during the Hamdanid dynasty of
Aleppo but they were driven out when the dynasty fell at 1004. 1097 Crusaders
initially attacked them but later allied them against the Ismailis. In 1120
Alawites were defeated by Ismailis and Kurds but three years later they fought
Kurds successfully. In 1297 Ismailis and Alawites tried to negotiate a merge,
but it came to nothing.
Alawites were actively persecuted under Mameluke rule from 1260 onwards. When
Ottoman Empire took over in 1516, they killed over 90,000 Alawite Shia's and
continued the practice. Afterwards Alawites were regarded as outcasts and the
empire sent Turks to settle their lands. Reportedly some of the Turks converted
to become Alawites. After Alawites attacked Ismaili village of Masyaf in 1832,
Pasha of Damascus sent troops against them.
After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, Syria and Lebanon came under French
mandate. French gave autonomy to Alawites and other minority groups and accepted
Alawites into their colonial troops. In 1920-1936 Alawites tried unsuccessfully
found their own country Alaouites. When in April 27 1924 group of Alawites
killed some Christian nuns, French troops marched against them.
In 1939 a portion of northwest Syria, that contained a number of Alawite
communities, was given to Turkey by the French, greatly angering the Alawite
community. After the World War Two, Alawite followers of Sliman Murshad tried to
resist Syrian nationalist troops but he was captured and hanged in 1949.
Syria became independent in 1947 and the country endured a succession of
military coups, rise of Ba'ath Party and inclusion to United Arab Republic. In
1966, Alawite-oriented military officers successfully rebelled and came to
dominate the Syrian Ba'ath party. In 1970 then-Air Force Colonel Hafez al-Assad
took power and instigated a "correctionist movement" in the Ba'th Party. 1971 he
became a president of Syria. Alawite status was significantly improved and in
1974 Imam Musa al-Sadr, leader of Twelver Shiites proclaimed that he accepted
them as Shiite a muslims.
However, Syrian Sunni majority did not appreciate Alawite power and Muslim
Brotherhood tried to assassinate Assad in June 25, 1980.
After the death of Hafez a-Assad his son Bashar al-Assad has maintained the
Alawite power.
In Syria, Alawites live in mountains near the city of Latakia, in cities of Hama
and Homs and, due to Hassad's influences, in Damascus. Estimates about their
exact numbers range from 1.5 to 1.8 million or about 12% of the Syrian
population.
Alawi Religion
The Alawi Capture of Power in Syria
by Daniel Pipes
http://www.danielpipes.org/191/the-alawi-capture-of-power-in-syria
Extracts:
'Alawi doctrines date from the ninth century A.D. and derive from the Twelver or
Imami branch of Shi'i Islam (the sect that predominates in Iran). In about A.D.
859, one Ibn Nusayr declared himself the bab ("gateway to truth"), a key figure
in Shi'i theology. On the basis of this authority, Ibn Nusayr proclaimed a host
of new doctrines which, to make a long story short, make 'Alawism into a
separate religion. According to Ibn Kathir (d. 1372), where Muslims proclaim
their faith with the phrase "There is no deity but God and Muhammad is His
prophet," 'Alawis assert "There is no deity but 'Ali, no veil but Muhammad, and
no bab but Salman." 'Alawis reject Islam's main tenets; by almost any standard
they must be considered non-Muslims.
Some 'Alawi doctrines appear to derive from Phoenician paganism, Mazdakism and
Manicheanism. But by far the greatest affinity is with Christianity. 'Alawi
religious ceremonies involve bread and wine; indeed, wine drinking has a sacred
role in 'Alawism, for it represents God. The religion holds 'Ali, the fourth
caliph, to be the (Jesus-like) incarnation of divinity. It has a holy trinity,
consisting of Muhammad, 'Ali, and Salman al-Farisi, a freed slave of Muhammad's.
'Alawis celebrate many Christian festivals, including Christmas, New Year's,
Epiphany, Easter, Pentecost , and Palm Sunday. They honor many Christian saints:
St. Catherine, St. Barbara, St. George , St. John the Baptist, St. John
Chrysostom, and St. Mary Magdalene. The Arabic equivalents of such Christian
personal names as Gabriel, John, Matthew, Catherine, and Helen, are in common
use. And 'Alawis tend to show more friendliness to Christians than to Muslims.
For these reasons, many observers - missionaries especially - have suspected the
'Alawis of a secret Christian proclivity. Even T. E. Lawrence described them as
"those disciples of a cult of fertility, sheer pagan, antiforeign, distrustful
of Islam, drawn at moments to Christianity by common persecution." The Jesuit
scholar Henri Lammens unequivocally concluded from his research that "the
Nusayris were Christians" and their practices combine Christian with Shi'i
elements.
The specifics of the 'Alawi faith are hidden not just from outsiders but even
from the majority of the 'Alawis themselves. In contrast to Islam, which is
premised on direct relations between God and the individual believer, 'Alawism
permits only males born of two 'Alawi parents to learn the religious doctrines.
When deemed trustworthy , these are initiated into some of the rites at 16-20
years of age ; other mysteries are revealed later and only gradually. Religious
secrecy is strictly maintained, on pain of death and being incarnated into a
vile animal. Whether the latter threat is made good, mortals cannot judge; but
the first certainly is. Thus, the most renowned apostate from 'Alawism, Sulayman
Efendi al-Adhani, was assassinated for divulging the sect's mysteries. Even more
impressive, at a time of sectarian tension in the mid-1960s, the suggestion that
the 'Alawi officers who ran the country publish the secret books of their
religion caused Salah Jadid to respond with horror, saying that, were this done,
the religious leaders "would crush us."
Women do most of the hard labor ; they are prized "precisely because of the work
they do that men will not do except grudgingly, finding it incompatible with
their dignity." Women are never inducted into the mysteries ("Would you have us
teach them whom we use, our holy faith?"); indeed, their uncleanliness requires
their exclusion from all religious rituals. Females are thought to retain the
pagan cult of worshipping trees, meadows, and hills, and to have no souls. In
all, females are treated abominably; but one consequence of this disrespect is
that they need not be veiled and enjoy greater freedom of movement than Muslim
women.
"Spiritual marriages" between young (male) initiates and their religious mentors
probably lie at the root of the charges of homosexuality.
Taqiya permitted 'Alawis to blow with the wind. When France ruled, they
portrayed themselves as lost Christians. When Pan-Arabism was in favor, they
became fervent Arabs. Over 10,000 'Alawis living in Damascus pretended to be
Sunnis in the years before Asad came to power, only revealing their true
identities when this became politically useful. During Asad's presidency,
concerted efforts were made to portray the 'Alawis as Twelver Shi'is.
'Alawis were so badly off after World War I, many of the youth left their
homeland to work elsewhere. Sons left to find menial labor or to join the armed
forces. Daughters went off at the age of seven or eight years to work as
domestics for urban Sunni Arabs. Because many of them also ended up as
mistresses (one estimate holds that a quarter of all 'Alawi children in the
1930s and 1940s had Sunni fathers), both Muslims and 'Alawis saw this practice
as deeply shameful. In some cases, daughters were even sold. It is no
exaggeration to say, as does one indigenous historian, that 'Alawis "were among
the poorest of the East." The Reverend Samuel Lyde went even further, writing in
1860 that "the state of ['Alawi] society is a perfect hell upon earth."
The 'Alawis' ascent took place over the course of half a century. In 1920 they
were still the lowly minority just described; by 1970, they firmly ruled Syria.
This stunning transformation took place in three stages: the French mandate
(1920-46), the period of Sunni dominance (1946-63), and the era of 'Alawi
consolidation (1963-70).
5.
IDF
Promotes its First Ethiopian Regiment Commander
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/130768
by Hillel Fendel
Extracts:
(IsraelNN.com) Lt.-Col. Tzion Ankur, who arrived in Israel at age 4 in 1980
after walking to Sudan, is the first Ethiopian-born Israeli to reach the high
post of Regiment Commander.
Ankur, 33, served in the past as a paratroopers platoon commander, a team leader
in the Bahad-1 Officers Training Base, and a battalion commander in the Haruv
Regiment.
He and his family, including grandparents and great-grandmother, walked to Sudan
from northern Ethiopia in 1980, and were then flown by the Israel Air Force to
Israel. ?When we arrived, we kissed the ground,? Tzion later recounted. ?All
of our dreams and longings had been linked to Israel. Along the way, when things
got hard, those who were old or ill said that they could die only after they
reached the Holy Land and Jerusalem.?
Ethiopian Statistics
Some 4,000 officers and soldiers of the Ethiopian community serve in the IDF, 5%
of whom are officers. Over 85% of the males in the community enlist in the
army, and some 50% of the females. Over a third of the Ethiopian soldiers are
in combat positions, and 20% are drivers. On the other hand, 23% of the males
drop out of the army before their term of service has ended, and10.7% of the
inmates in army prison are Ethiopian.
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