Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is scheduled to address the Conference this evening, laying out his political strategy for the coming years. Previous conferences saw Sharon’s acceptance of the Road Map and his official announcement of his disengagement plan.
Wednesday morning, the conference hosted a discussion regarding the Prime Minister’s plan to dismantle Jewish towns in Gaza and hand the land over to the Arabs. Defending the continued Jewish presence in Gaza and the northern Shomron was Major-General (Res.) Yaakov Amidror. Amidror, a former Deputy Head of IDF Intelligence, sharply protested the limited time that conference organizers allotted to speakers such as himself with opinions against the Prime Minister’s plan. He pointed out that pro-disengagement speakers were granted large blocks of time to express their ideas, as opposed to mere minutes allotted for anti-disengagement views.
Amidror warned that Israel would not be able to effectively fight terrorism following a Gaza withdrawal. He stressed that the IDF is only able to fight terrorism in areas where it is present. “The Rafiah tunnels are child's-play compared to what would follow an exit from Gaza,” he warned.
Prior to Amidror, Sharon confidant Dov Weisglass and Brigadier-General (Res.) Itamar Ya’ari spoke for over an hour about how beneficial to Israel the Gaza expulsion/withdrawal plan would be. Weisglass also confirmed that a February meeting had taken place in London between members of the PA and European and American representatives, at which the parties discussed the Gaza disengagement plan.
One topic discussed on the conference’s second day was ways to counter anti-Israel activity across the globe. IsraelNationalTV.com recorded the plenary session, which was delivered in English:
“What the heck is the problem with Israelis and Israeli spokespeople that use words that Americans do not understand, do not comprehend and do not internalize?” asked Frank I. Luntz, President of Luntz Research Companies speaking at the plenary session. “Never use the word ‘incitement’ again when you are speaking with Americans,” Luntz advised. “You must instead describe to Americans the ‘culture of hate’ that teaches Palestinian children at the youngest age to hate Jews and hate Israelis; that renames streets and squares after suicide bombers; that celebrates on television, in the news, and even in music-videos, death destruction and mayhem,” Luntz said.
Robert Wistrich, the head of Hebrew University’s Vidal Sassoon Center for the Study of Anti-Semitism, spoke during the same English session about “countering the myth of Zionist racism.” Wistrich said that Israel advocacy has failed to educate people on the “very obvious facts about the countries which surround us in the Middle East. If we are going to discuss racism, the record of the Muslim and Arab world is a singularly appalling one in its treatment of non-Muslims in general, not just Jews, but of Christians and other minorities.”
Highlights of the conference can be viewed at www.IsraelNationalTV.com
Wednesday morning, the conference hosted a discussion regarding the Prime Minister’s plan to dismantle Jewish towns in Gaza and hand the land over to the Arabs. Defending the continued Jewish presence in Gaza and the northern Shomron was Major-General (Res.) Yaakov Amidror. Amidror, a former Deputy Head of IDF Intelligence, sharply protested the limited time that conference organizers allotted to speakers such as himself with opinions against the Prime Minister’s plan. He pointed out that pro-disengagement speakers were granted large blocks of time to express their ideas, as opposed to mere minutes allotted for anti-disengagement views.
Amidror warned that Israel would not be able to effectively fight terrorism following a Gaza withdrawal. He stressed that the IDF is only able to fight terrorism in areas where it is present. “The Rafiah tunnels are child's-play compared to what would follow an exit from Gaza,” he warned.
Prior to Amidror, Sharon confidant Dov Weisglass and Brigadier-General (Res.) Itamar Ya’ari spoke for over an hour about how beneficial to Israel the Gaza expulsion/withdrawal plan would be. Weisglass also confirmed that a February meeting had taken place in London between members of the PA and European and American representatives, at which the parties discussed the Gaza disengagement plan.
One topic discussed on the conference’s second day was ways to counter anti-Israel activity across the globe. IsraelNationalTV.com recorded the plenary session, which was delivered in English:
“What the heck is the problem with Israelis and Israeli spokespeople that use words that Americans do not understand, do not comprehend and do not internalize?” asked Frank I. Luntz, President of Luntz Research Companies speaking at the plenary session. “Never use the word ‘incitement’ again when you are speaking with Americans,” Luntz advised. “You must instead describe to Americans the ‘culture of hate’ that teaches Palestinian children at the youngest age to hate Jews and hate Israelis; that renames streets and squares after suicide bombers; that celebrates on television, in the news, and even in music-videos, death destruction and mayhem,” Luntz said.
Robert Wistrich, the head of Hebrew University’s Vidal Sassoon Center for the Study of Anti-Semitism, spoke during the same English session about “countering the myth of Zionist racism.” Wistrich said that Israel advocacy has failed to educate people on the “very obvious facts about the countries which surround us in the Middle East. If we are going to discuss racism, the record of the Muslim and Arab world is a singularly appalling one in its treatment of non-Muslims in general, not just Jews, but of Christians and other minorities.”
Highlights of the conference can be viewed at www.IsraelNationalTV.com