0a. Jews are of many races; it'd be impossible to be racist and Jewish simultaneously. 0b. Israel is a secular state ; its laws are not based on the halacha, except for those such as the illegality of murder or those very few that from a halachic perspective ensure our cohesiveness as a culture. And, a Jewish state in the cultural sense of the word will obviously have some aspects that relate to Judaism as a religion, such as the celebration of Jewish holidays as national holidays. But other holidays are respected as well. That Christmas is celebrated in the EU and US makes them no less democratic. 1. Israel hasn't a constitution, but it does have very strong Basic Rights laws that are used like a constitution. In this respect, it's similar to the famous democracy called "The United Kingdom" (heard of them?), whose basic rights listed in the Magna Carta (1215) form the basis of Englands democratic institutions. 2a. Every state is entitled to declare itself as it wishes. Israel calls itself a Jewish democratic state, and this doesn't undermine its being a democracy. Except for France, I can't think of another state that formally denies religion a role in state affairs. Irrespective of religion, in Israel all citizens have one vote and the rabbinate doesn't get to influence policy. Therefore, we're a democracy, not a theocracy. 2b. Israel drafts almost exclusively Jews, but also has within its ranks no small portion of non-Jews such as Beduin, Druse and Circassion, as well as non-Jewish FSU soldiers. 3. Israel's immigration policy specifically permits non-Jews to immigrate under the Law of Return as long as they've had some Jewish ancestry. 4. We occupy no land belonging to our neighbors, except some might claim, the Golan. The rest is disputed territory with no previous nation having sovereignty over it. Golan was liberated from the Syrians who attacked Israel. 4b. The so called "indigenous" populations deprivation came as a result of the intifadeh, not as the result of military violence. The situation before the intifadeh for Arabs in the territories was better than it was prior to the areas' liberation by Israeli forces in 1967. What happened after the intifadeh is the Palestinians' doing not ours. 5. Israel has admitted, for example, a mistake in the USS Liberty affair. We admit we're wrong when we're wrong. It's just we are wrong less frequently than our opponents. 6. Nno Israeli leader has threatened any other leader in the area (unlike Iran) with nuclear weapons. Rather, having these weapons has forestalled the inevitable Arab final putsch to dislodge Israel from its rightful ancestral lands.

7. We are geographically part of southwest Asia, and culturally we're a mix of Europe and the Middle East - similar to Turkey. We have no obligation to be backward like other ME nations just to make them feel less retarded. Being backward doesn't make you authentically part of the ME. 8. Similar to laws in other societies that are "restrictive and discriminator", such as by not allowing you to marry your sister, Halacha regulates divorce because we wish to ensure that all Jews can marry other Jews, and non-halachic divorces would result in a religious status for children that would prevent some marriages. It's a way we get along with each other, that we all follow these laws, whether we are halachly observant or not. That's a far cry from a policy to enforce "racial purity", and it's been a policy enforced within our culture for thousands of years. It's hardly new to Israel. Most Israeli marriages are mixed sephardic/ashkenazic. Our society is a riot of races, not a single one. 9. Israeli towns with significant Arab populations are only underfunded when they have no representation in the government. Because Arab political parties refuse to accept Israel as a Jewish state, they're not invited into any government and therefore, they can't influence the budgets. The same is true, now, for Hareidi cities. It's not racist, just the result of political alliances. When the Arabs learn to work with Jews rather than against them, they'll be invited into the government. Kadima and Labor both have promised this for the next elections, and Kadima has recruited mayors from Arab cities to join their new party. You're certain to see a difference after the next election. 10. Nonsense. Israeli schools openly teach Arabic, and all our textbooks have been rewritten to include Palestinian poetry that incites against our state, and to extol the "sacrifices for peace" made in our agreements with the PA.

Au contrare The land of Palestine was stolen by the Zionists.Anyone who supports that is complicit in the greatest crime of the century. Shame on you all.

Re-take Jewish Gaza! It's been transformed into terrorist training camps - the "peace" promised by PLO/PA. Global jihad is empowered as Islamofascists receive amazing help in the jihad against Israel from the international community. The entire world will pay the price of an Islamic terror state in Israel. THERE NEVER WAS AN ARAB COUNTRY OF PALESTINE. Jerusalem was NEVER the capital of any Arab or Muslim entity. JERUSALEM IS MENTIONED OVER 800 TIMES IN THE BIBLE, not once in the Koran. Around 1948, Arabs violently ETHNICALLY CLEANSED about one million Jews from Arab countries. Arab governments seized the land, homes, bank accounts, businesses and assets of the Jews. Most of the Jewish refugees fled to Israel. THERE MUST NOW BE A JUST SETTLEMENT FOR THE JEWISH REFUGEES AND THEIR DESCENDANTS-COMPENSATION IN LAND AND FINANCES. In 1922, Britain illegally gave MOST OF PALESTINE-80% TO THE ARABS. The area became Jordan, giving the Arabs an Arab Palestinian state on JEWISH land. IT WAS ETHNICALLY CLEANSED OF JEWS. This area is part of ancient, Biblical Israel, and along with present-day Israel, including Judea, Samaria, Gaza and the Golan was recognized by the League of Nations as the Jewish homeland. In 1948, Egypt invaded Gaza and ethnically cleansed ALL Jews. In 1948, Jordan invaded Judea-Samaria (West Bank) and east Jerusalem and ETHNICALLY CLEANSED ALL JEWS. Jordan, opposing G-D DESTROYED 58 synagogues in Jerusalem. In 1967 when Israel won Islam's religious war of aggression against it, Jews returned to the areas of their homeland they had been ethnically cleansed from for 19 years. Islamofascists DECEITFULLY call this return "occupation". Under international law, territories are considered "occupied" only when taken in an act of aggression which does not apply to Israel. Judea, Samaria and Gaza are not 'occupied territories' according to international law because they were not taken from any foreign sovereign. ALL of the Jewish land, homes, properties and businesses stolen from the Jews in the 1948 Islamic invasion must be returned to the Jews IMMEDIATELY

biblebelievers.org.au is a neo-nazi white supremacist internet site.

ps. The people who run that Australian website you quoted, biblebelievers.org.au, are the ones responsible for the current waive of attacks against Lebanese Australians.

The Balfour declaration: Dear Lord Rothschild, I have much pleasure in conveying to you on behalf of His Majesty's Government the following declaration of sympathy with Jewish Zionist aspirations, which has been submitted to and approved by the Cabinet: "His Majesty's Government view with favour the establishment in PALESTINE of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country." I should be grateful if you would bring this Declaration to the knowledge of the Zionist Federation. Yours sincerely, Arthur James Balfour It was not in Tombukto or Uganga or as the German final solution :all Jews to Madagascar. THERE WAS A PALESTINE AND THERE WERE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE AND YOU STOLE THE LAND FROM THEM. FULL STOP.

PM Sharon, As a Israely citizen i would like to see the possiblilites toTake is polltical rights out of the knesset.. I totally aprove thar Democracy is our way and probaly the only way(different form many around us in the midlle east) but somebody who uses is political rights to enpower his spech to "expell" us form Israel should be punished by law and maybe he should try is luck being a poilitical in Lebanon and not in Israel! The 'khazar theory' has been discredited as complete nonsense. Recent genetic testing has traced the vast majority of Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews to Judea. http://www.jewishaz.com/jewishnews/000519/study.shtml http://www.aish.com/societywork/sciencenature/Jewish_Genes.asp "The findings were that most Jewish communities -- long separated from one another in Europe, North Africa, the Near East and the Arabian Peninsula -- do indeed seem to be genetically similar and closely related to one another, sharing a common geographical origin. These Jewish communities are more closely related to each other and to other Middle Eastern Semitic populations -- Palestinians, Syrians, and Druze -- than to their neighboring non-Jewish populations in the Diaspora." Jews are from Judea - fact.

There NEVER was an Arab country of Palestine. Jerusalem was NEVER the capital of any Arab or Muslim entity. At the time of Muhammad's death, there was not a single mosque in Jerusalem. Jerusalem is mentioned over 800 times in the Bible, not once in the Koran. Muslims pray facing Mecca. It is Muslim practice to take over, desecrate and destroy the holy sites of other religions-Jews, Christians, Bhuddists, Hindus... The Muslims build mosques on top of the holy sites of other religions to signify that their religion is superior to all others. Muslims did this on the Temple Mount. During the time Jordan controlled Jerusalem from 1948-1967, no foreign Arab leaders visited Jerusalem. Jordanian radio broadcast Friday prayers not from Al-Aqsa Mosque, but from a mosque in Amman. Jordan destroyed 58 synagogues in Jerusalem. Jordan's army desecrated the 2,500 year old Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives. Jordan used Jewish tombstones for pavement and latrines. 13th Century Arab Muslim biographer Yakut, noted: "Mecca is holy to Muslims; Jerusalem is holy to the Jews.

John, you must be old at this ynet site. Being that I lived in Israel, unlike your pompous arrogant Island hopping self, I feel inclined to state my opinion at any time that I choose. The fact that most of your palestinian terrorist friends were not born or one to two years old ,before they grew up to be thug terrorists doesn't change anything. I never witnessed one Palestinian child or jewish child born with a golden spoon in his mouth saying he had some right to land. Everyone grows up, gets a job, and buys their house, or land ,Island Boy. It's about that simple. I didn't go terrorize the town or realtor when I went to get some land. I payed for it. Unlike your Arab friends, who either murder innocent people unneccesarily, or try to invade and try to drown all the jews in the Med. It's about time some of us told you pill poppin Islanders to get off the mind altering drugs and come back to reality. My advice to you is to hop on the nearest whale, and float off your Island to some hungry shark to be a quick meal.

Yes, there was land stolen - FROM THE JEWS. After the destruction of the Second Temple, the Romans renamed Judea and called it Palestina to obliterate any connection to the Jews. So, my dear history boy, it was our land renamed, but our land nevertheless. And so it is to this very day.

Imagine this: in the year 1944, A US senator is elected declaring that he will personally help Hitler kill Roosevelt and all AMericans who oppose him. ARe ISraelis so infeted with LIberalism ( Tel Aviv gay capital, Dana International, hanover of Gaza to Arabs, Hadassah hospital's unspoken motto of allowing anybody. How many years dows Israel have left? Jeff Burke

Please tell me where exactly does it state in the Balfour declaration that Palestine is a sovereign and independent country? It's referring to Palestine as a REGION, not a country or a nation-state. Do you understand the difference between REGION and COUNTRY? Siberia is a region in Russia, but it's not a country. There's no such thing as a Siberian people. The same thing applies to Palestine. It's a region, and there's no such thing as a Palestinian people, just a motley assembly of Arab brigands from elsewhere in the Middle East who swarmed into Palestine when the Jews began modernizing the economy of the region in the 1880s.

to talk about land theft when you're sitting on land stolen from the Native Americans (American Indians). Either go back to Europe, or shut the f*ck up.

I believe that at the time, what is today Israel was the southern part of the province of Syria of the Ottoman Empire. "Palestine" that Lord Balfour referred to was the area covered by the Roman province that existed after Rome defeated the Jews in 70 C.E. There were many more Arabs than Jews when the Zionist movement began, but the Zionists did not dispossess the Arabs when they came. Hoewver, Jews and Arabs didn't get along so well, because the Arabs saw Jews as imperialists from Europe, and Jews saw Arabs as anti-Semites. So the UN partitioned the land. Fair enough. http://www.mideastweb.org/palpop.htm

Yes, there was a LAND of Palestine but no NATION or COUNTRY of Palestine.

Travellers to Palestine from the Western world left records of what they saw there. The theme throughout their reports is dismal: The land was empty, neglected, abandoned, desolate, fallen into ruins. Nothing there [Jerusalem] to be seen but a little of the old walls which is yet remaining and all the rest is grass, moss and weeds. -- English pilgrim in 1590 The country is in a considerable degree empty of inhabitants and therefore its greatest need is of a body of population" -- British consul in 1857 There is not a solitary village throughout its whole extent [valley of Jezreel] -- not for 30 miles in either direction. . . . One may ride 10 miles hereabouts and not see 10 human beings. For the sort of solitude to make one dreary, come to Galilee... Nazareth is forlorn... Jericho lies a moldering ruin... Bethlehem and Bethany, in their poverty and humiliation... untenanted by any living creature... A desolate country whose soil is rich enough, but is given over wholly to weeds... a silent, mournful expanse... a desolation... We never saw a human being on the whole route... Hardly a tree or shrub anywhere. Even the olive tree and the cactus, those fast friends of a worthless soil, had almost deserted the country... Palestine sits in sackcloth and ashes... desolate and unlovely... -- Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad, 1867 The restoration of the "desolate and unlovely" land began in the latter half of the Nineteenth Century with the first Jewish pioneers. Their labors created newer and better conditions and opportunities, which in turn attracted migrants from many parts of the Middle East, both Arabs and others. The Balfour Declaration of 1917, confirmed by the League of Nations Mandate, commited the British Government to the principle that "His Majesty's government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a Jewish National Home, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object... " It was specified both that this area be open to "close Jewish settlement" and that the rights of all inhabitants already in the country be preserved and protected. Mandate Palestine originally included all of what is now Jordan, as well as all of what is now Israel, and the territories between them. However, when Great Britain's protégé Emir Abdullah was forced to leave the ancestral Hashemite domain in Arabia, the British created a realm for him that included all of Manfate Palestine east of the Jordan River. There was no traditional or historic Arab name for this land, so it was called after the river: first Trans-Jordan and later Jordan. By this political act, that violated the conditions of the Balfour Declaration and the Mandate, the British cut more than 75 percent out of the Jewish National Home. No Jew has ever been permitted to reside in Trans-Jordan/Jordan. Less than 25 percent then remained of Mandate Palestine, and even in this remnant, the British violated the Balfour and Mandate requirements for a "Jewish National Home" and for "close Jewish settlement". They progressively restricted where Jews could buy land, where they could live, build, farm or work. After the Six-Day War in 1967, Israel was finally able to settle some small part of those lands from which the Jews had been debarred by the British. Successive British governments regularly condemn their settlement as "illegal". In truth, it was the British who had acted illegally in banning Jews from these parts of the Jewish National Home. http://christianactionforisrael.org/isreport/july01/history_palestine.html

NYC Man, You are pathetically ignorant. "Israel is a racist JEWISH state NOT a secular state." - Jewish refers to the people and not only to the religion/culture. Egypt is an Arab country, France is a French country and a future "Palestine" will be a fictitious "Palestinian" (Arab) country. 1. Israel has no constitution. A constitution is a must for any democracy - Britain has no constitution. Is Britain a dictatorship? 2. [Israel's] army drafts almost exclusively Jews - Anyone is free to apply, and many Arabs/Druze/Beduin serve. 3. Israel's immigration policy discriminates on the basis of religion. - Any ethnic perso can become Jewish, which is a sign of the non-racist aspect of the Jewish people. A member of the Jewish people is naturally eligible for immigration (as is any human being). 4. Israel militarily occupies lands belonging to its neighbours. For nearly 40 years, it has subjected their indigenous populations to terror and deprivation through military violence. - The status of the diputed land is not defined, so you have justification for calling it someone else's land 5. Israel has never admitted wrongdoing - Oh, I think there's a consensus in Israel that Oslo was a disaster. And don't forget the investigations into Sharon's role in Lebanon in the '80's. 6. Israel is a threatening nuclear power. Israel's nuclear capability is a potential weapon of mass destruction towards its neighbours and the world. - Ridiculous. 7. Israel refuses to see itself as part of Asia or the Middle East - Say what? Are you sure you're not confusing Israel with Turkey? 8. Israeli Jews are obligated to follow the Halakah. The Halakah (Jewish Law) rules in matters of divorce; there is no civil dissolution of marriage allowed. Halakah Law also forbids Israeli Jews from marrying outside their faith. This restrictive and discriminatory method of maintaining "racial purity" - Educate yourself on the different Jewish rituals and criteria regarding marriage, conversion etc. 9. Israeli towns with significant Arab populations are under-funded.Discrimination is abound against non-jewush(second class citizens) - Really? Well in that case, is Israel any different from say the France? 10. Israeli schools openly teach hatred towards Palestinians. - Ridiculous. The opposite problem is infinitely bigger. Check out the website TeachKidsPeace.

"Nov. 29, 1947, “Partition Plan" (UN General Assembly Resolution 181) was never ratified by the Security Council, and thus any division of Palestine into Jewish and non-Jewish areas was never [legal]" The partition plan was just a recommendation, and was never accepted by the Arabs, who preferred starting a war of annihilation against the Jews and Israel. In fact, there's only ONE binding document on the land issue, and that is the document elaborated by the League of Nations in San Remo in 1922/1923: http://www.therightroadtopeace.com/infocenter/Heb/SamRemoRes.html In it, the international community is committed to the creation of a Jewish homeland isn ALL of the British mandate Palestine, INCLUDING Gaza and the West Bank, and also Transjordan. The Brits illegaly severed Jordan (78% of the mandate, and gave it to the Palestinian Arabs. This means Israel only received 13%.

What a lot of bull shit is written in these postings. Everybody knows that the Jews are the true original inhabitants of the Land of Israel. The Arabs are foreign imports most of whom came to Israel looking for work under the British mandate. There is not even the slightest doubt that the Land of Israel belongs to the Jews. This is proven by historical writings, archeological findings, and the fact that Judaism is the origin of both Christianity and Islam. The greatest proof of the Jewish right to the Land is the fact that the Jews exist and have never forgotten their origin. The Arabs are just a greedy bunch of people who want to Islamize everyone and take over the entire world. The existence of a Jewish State in their midst is a great embarrassment to them. They all know the truth that the Jews are the indigenous people of the Land of Israel because it is actually written in their Koran. Abraham was the first Jew and he came to the Land at the dawn of time. The Koran refers to the Jews as the "People of the Book. Which book? The Bible of course which is essentially the history of the ancient Jewish people in the Land of Israel.

What I find laughable about most of your comments is that you seem to conveniently forget that probably not a single one of you can trace his roots back in 'Israel' more than a generation while Bishara can make you wet your pants. What I wonder is whether it's ignorance on your side or simply a convenient way to lie-to and fool yourselves (and make clowns out of yourselves). Get real. Bishara belongs there more than any of you, but now that all of you are there try to grow up and get along. Some of the comments about ethnic cleansing I have seen here are not too far from those heard in 1940s Germany. Unfortunately, the whole world seems to have learned from the horrors of the Nazis except you.

There are many Jews in Israel whose roots go back centuries. My family, on both sides, has been in what's now Israel for the last four hundred years, whereas many Arabs, with few exceptions, are descended from the Arabs who've come to what's now Israel since the 1880s.

Your claim is like saying the "Daughters of the American Revolution" members have more right to be in the United States than decendants of Pocahantas. It's an obviously false argument that you are making.

I have to laugh at people like you. Ignorance is bliss, isn't it?! Here you guys have all the media, all the lobbies, all the arms, all the Jewish establishment, all the great powers, and you are STILL worried about a relatively small group of anti-Zionists. What pathetic creatures.

Israel's most famous king, king David founded Jerusalem. Reigious Jews pray three times a day in the direction of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is mentioned constantly in prayers. Passover Seder ends with: "Next year in Jerusalem!" And at the conclusion of Yom Kippur. Jerusalem is mentioned in the blessings at the end of meals. During Jewish wedding ceremonies, the groom breaks a glass as a sign of mourning of the destruction of the two Temples, accompanied by Psalm 137: "If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget her skill. May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not exalt Jerusalem above my chief joy." During the First and Second Temple periods, the Temple was the central focus of Jewish life. The First Temple was built by King David's son, King Solomon. 2 Chronicles 2:4:"Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of the L-RD my G-d, dedicating it to Him, to burn fragrant incense before Him and to set out the showbread continually...on sabbaths and on new moons and on the appointed feasts of the L-RD our G-d, this being required forever in Israel." The great, the mighty and the awesome G-D of the universe returned Jewish Holy Land and holy places to the Jews in the 1967 Six Day War. The response of Israeli leaders was shocking. They gave control of Judaism's holiest site, the Temple Mount to Muslims. There are no words to describe this terrible offense - this terrible betrayal of the Ruler of the universe, the Holy One of Israel. Control of Jewish land and the HOLIEST site on earth, the Temple Mount, has been given by Israel's leaders to the enemies of Israel. Bringing down upon Jews ever increasing terror, death, destruction and war.

On March 27, 2002, at the Park Hotel in Netanya, terrorists targeted for murder Jews honoring and thanking G-D for His great mercy: Exodus 12:14 “you shall celebrate it as a feast to the L-RD” Exodus 12:42 “It is a night to be observed for the L-RD for having brought them out from the land of Egypt; this night is for the L-RD, to be observed by all the sons of Israel throughout their generations.” The Islamic homicide bomber murdered 30 Israelis as the Jews obeyed G-D, taking part in the Passover meal. 140 Jewish innocents were injured. The bomb was filled with nails and other metal pieces to maximize the suffering of survivors. On August 19, 2003, terrorists targeted for murder Jews who worship G-D - Giver of all life. The homicide bomber blew himself up on the bus as Jews returned from prayer at the Western wall-the Temple Mount, the holiest place on earth, is Judaism's holiest site. Jerusalem is mentioned over 800 times in the Bible, not once in the Koran. The gruesome attack-the bomb packed with metal pieces, killed 22 Jews and injured 134, many seriously. If Jesus Christ lived today, from the time Jesus was in his mother's womb, he would be targeted for murder by the Islamofascists for being a Jew living in his homeland of Israel. The Palestinian Authority hailed as heroes the terrorists who brutally murdered defenseless 8 months pregnant Jewish Gaza mother, Tali Hatuel, and four little daughters in Gush Katif in May 2004. In defiance of Israel's G-D, and massively breaking G-D's law given to Moses: "YOU SHALL NOT MURDER", the Palestinian Authority teach that murdering Jews is a religious obligation through their mosques, media and public education system. Islamic human bomb murderers of innocent Jews are revered and considered heroes. Broadcast from Gaza mosque, Oct 13 2000, Dr. Ahmad Abu Halabiya, on Palestinian Authority TV (transcribed by Memri): "Have no mercy on the Jews, no matter where they are, in any country. Fight them, wherever you are. Wherever you meet them, kill them. Wherever you are, kill those Jews and those Americans who are like them..."

Bishara said, "Return Palestine to us and take your democracy with you. We Arabs are not interested in it.". Aren't the "palestinians" supposed to be an entirely separate and unique people lacking any form of independence and self-determination? Mr. Bishara's statements would seem to entirely refute that premise. Do Arabs have nothing to apologize to anyone for? Have Arabs never taken any land(s) from any other people(s)? If they have, might they still be occupying any of these lands today? Why is the legitimacy of many existing "Arab" states not subject to any question? How did North Africa and the Levant become "Arab"? When are Arabs going to return any land to anyone? Bishara is yet another very vocal Arab supremacist and imperialist (pan Arabist) with an attitude that everything belongs to "us" or is "ours". His attitude is "what's mine is mine and what's yours is mine". Bishara speaks as if he would be doing the world a favor if he were to express interest in democracy. If "we Arabs are not interested in it", why should anyone else, including George Bush, care ? Mr. Bishara stands firmly for the noble principle that his people, who occupy 99.86% of the Near and Middle East don't have enough land.

Calling yourself a Christian doesn't make you one... arafat claimed to be christian too! You can tell a real Christiaa from their fruit, and dismantling Israel is NOT one of those good fruit!