Syrian Sets Building on Fire in Leipzig: One Dead

Hat tip Gates of Vienna, Egri Nok and Vlad Tepes


Two residents of apartment building stand on roof and signal fire fighters for help
 Photo: Einsatzfahrten Leipzig.


It's getting so hard to keep up with the attacks just in Germany, let alone Europe. Here is the latest from Angela's Wonderland. A 32-year-old Syrian man set fire to a large apartment building in Leipzig. Many had to leap to safety into the nets of firemen. As of this writing, one person is dead and 17 are injured. The below posting from Gates of Vienna has two videos, one which has no dialogue and the other is as yet not sub-titled. The Syrian, who was a resident of the building is in custody.

http://gatesofvienna.net/2018/03/a-culture-enriching-arsonist-in-leipzig/



A woman hands her toddler to rescuers
-Photo Silvio Buerger

Trump Hats Violate Fordham Coffee Shop's "Safe Space" Policy

Make Fordham Great Again


A group of conservative students were loudly and rudely told to leave a Fordham University on-campus coffee shop because they were wearing Trump "Make America Great Again" caps. A shop employee told the students they were violating the university's safe space policy (which, according to a Fordham spokesperson, does not exist. The incident was taped.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/12/10/pro-trump-students-in-maga-hats-booted-from-safe-space-campus-coffee-shop.html

There is historical precedence for this. Take this Southern lunch counter in the 1950s:



"Hey, Boys. Don't y'all know ya violatin' our safe space policy? Y'all got 5 minutes to move."

Another Car Attack by Lone Wolf (Italy)

Othman Jridi, an Algerian who was deported from France, wound up in Pompeii, where he drove his car into stone barriers protecting the sanctuary church of Pompeii. There were many pedestrians present, but fortunately, nobody was injured. In a case of quick justice, he has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison. The defendant, who was shouting, "Allahu Akbar" at the moment of attack, admitted he was committing an act of jihad. Translation into English by Fousesquawk.


http://corrieredelmezzogiorno.corriere.it/napoli/cronaca/18_marzo_28/algerino-si-lancia-un-auto-il-santuario-pompei-l-ho-fatto-nome-allah-8f6a6d04-32b4-11e8-838c-89ab153d803a.shtml

Algerian plows his car at Sanctuary (Church) of Pompeii. "I did it in the name of Allah"

Under investigation for terrorism, he  crashed against the barriers put up in defense of the church. To the audience, he recited a litany in Arabic. The man is 22 years old, expelled from France and from the police HQs in Cagliari, but he was still in our country.

He proceeded in the wrong direction on via Bartolo Longo, crowded with pedestrians, then he crashed against the cement flower pots laid out to protect the basilica of Pompeii from terrorist attacks. Othman Jridi, Algerian, (22) arrived in Italy after being expelled from  France, expelled again by the police hqs in Cagliari, but remained in our country and was was caught by the urban po0lice after a brief flight. The presiding judge of Torre Annunziata, Fernanda Iannone-international terrorism expert and author of a dissertation on  foreign terrorist fighters- not only validated the arrest, but receiving the request from  the prosecuting magistrate, also ordered precautionary custody in prison. For the crimes charged (auto theft and false declarations to a  public official), the Algerian has been processed in a direct hearing: The lawyer who is assisting him, Enrica Visconti,  requested the abbreviation, and therefore in the face of a request of four years and one month on the part of the prosecuting magistrate, Jridi was sentenced to two and a half years, a penalty very severe, however, in respect to the light litigation by the accused. The files have been sent to the anti-terrorism pool of the prosecutor of Naples for the necessary intelligence.

Extreme Danger

The defendant could have obtained house arrest ( The law provides for lower sentences at three years.), but the judge decided differently. Too many elements were given as evidence against him. All in all, argued the magistrate, it is necessary to  realize  (the extreme danger of the actions of the defendant,  and for the manner (attack upon a pedestrian zone, a square normally frequented by hundreds of persons, as well as the thousands of pilgrims in festival days), the location (a square in front of the sanctuary of the Madonna of Pompeii) the personality (subject of Algerian nationality, illegally in Italian territory, expelled from French territory), the psychological-physical condition of the person ( who had consumed  by his own admission drug and psychotropic substances) which provoke episodes of terrorist attacks. Not only that: The young Algerian in the course of the hearing asserted that he was not in a condition to know why he had done that act if not to feel closer to Allah, which would have been made easier by taking a drug.


The Objective

In addition, the defendant in the course of the hearing continually made labial sounds and recited an Arabic litany in the name of Allah. "There is the concrete and present danger that the defendant will commit other crimes of (this) kind", and therefore it is necessary to apply the measure of precautionary custody in prison not forcing the State to presume that he will abstain  from crime in the future, since, for the State. it is the only suitable measure  to confront  precautionary need.; such measure appears also proportionate to the gravity of the acts committed and to applicable sanctions in a case of this kind. The judge, therefore, stressed the presence of the indicated elements of the lone wolf profile (Drugged, in prayer, exalted, in a religious zone in a period of religious festival), that he had traveled many kilometers to reach an unmistakable object. But what leans toward detention in prison was also the fact that after having lied  about his identity to the Carabinieri, brought into the case by the Urban Police, Jridi continued to lie  about his address. He gave that of a fellow Algerian and when he arrived at the location, accompanied by the military, he whispered in Arabic, "Say that I live here, if you don't they will arrest me".  The resources to investigate this deeper, the anti-terrorism pool of the Naples prosecutor has in abundance.

Tell the French People the Truth How Col. Beltrame Died

Hat tip Gates of Vienna, Riposte Laique and Oz-Rita for translation

“Minister, stop lying to the people with the help of the media. My surgeon brother is the one who received Lieutenant Colonel Beltrame yesterday at the hospital in Carcassonne; he confirmed to me this morning that in reality, he was EGORGÉ [translator: had his throat slit].”


Last week, during the latest Islamic terror attack in southern France, police Colonel Arnaud Beltrame courageously swapped himself for a hostage held by the terrorist in a market. He died in the process.

What apparently, the French government and media are afraid to tell the public is that Beltarme's throat was slashed by the vicious animal who murdered him.

http://gatesofvienna.net/2018/03/the-halal-slaughter-of-colonel-beltrame-in-trebes/

Germany: "We Want Everyone to See What Was Done to our Daughter"

Hat tip Gates of Vienna

Another tragedy strikes a German family. A young woman stabbed senselessly by a 17-year-old Syrian refugee. The human toll mounts in Angela Merkel's "new Germany".



http://gatesofvienna.net/2018/03/we-want-everyone-to-see-what-was-done-to-our-daughter/

" Wir schaffen dass." (We can do this.")

You've done it, Frau Merkel.

UCI Center for Jewish Studies

This article first appeared in Times of Israel Blogs.

Hat tip Mike Report



The recently-established Center for Jewish Studies at the University of California at Irvine will be hosting a panel discussion on April 16 on, "American Jews and Israel: The next 30 years". The announced discussion is about the relationship between American Jewry and Israel. The announced panelists are Liora Halperin (Benaroya Chair in Israel Studies, University of Washington), Noam Pianko, (Samuel N. Stroum Chair in Jewish Studies, University of Washington) and Hasia Diner (Paul and Sylvia Steinberg professor of American Jewish History, New York University). This event will coincide with the 70th birthday of the State of Israel.

First of all, I am not questioning the academic credentials of the panelists in any way. Nor do I question the right of these people-or anybody else working in Jewish studies- to be a supporter or opponent of  Zionism and/or Israel. I have learned long ago that feelings about Israel are divided among American Jews and that within US academia, many Jewish professors have differing points of view. For example, UCI professor Mark LeVine, who is listed as associated faculty within the center, is an outspoken critic of Israel, which is his right. As for the others in the Center, I don't know who they are or where they stand on Israel. Nor do I much care.

My point is this: Checking into the backgrounds of the three panelists, it is safe to say that they are not supporters of  Zionism. Again, that is their right, and I have no desire to debate the issue with them. My concern is that what we have looming here is yet another academic one-sided bashing of Israel in which all the panelists are of a like mind. It would be safe to predict that they will tell their audience that Israel is losing support among American Jews due to "its oppressive treatment and occupation of Palestinians".

First of all, Diner is no supporter of Zionism, as this article she wrote for Haaretz in 2016 illustrates.

As for Pianko, he serves on a regional advisory council for the New Israel Fund, an organization which often takes more progressive and pro-Palestinian positions as opposed to Israel. 

Nor would one infer from this  Middle East Forum report that Halperin is pro-Israel. Just the fact that she was part of a Middle East Studies Association panel pretty much says it all.

My question is, "Where is the balance?" Who would tell the audience that most American Jews still support Israel? Who would say that most Americans support Israel? Who would point out that support for Israel is strong with Evangelical Christians? Who would defend Israel's defensive policies? I know for a fact that a request was sent to the Center's director, Matthias Lehmann, to add a couple of pro-Israel panelists to provide some sort of balance. As of this writing, nothing has changed.

Of course, there is no academic requirement that any event give voice to both sides of an argument. I have attended a few events at UC Irvine put on by students who support Israel (which are usually disrupted by the pro-Palestinian side). It is hard to recall one-sided pro-Israel or conservative events sponsored by academic units, which often give credit to students who attend and often carry the imprimatur and weight of professors, as opposed to events sponsored by student groups.  

It is frustrating to work within the academic community (I taught part-time at UC Irvine for 18 years.) and constantly see the non-stop academic bashing of Israel while any effort to bring in pro-Israel speakers is met with disruption. Many of the figures and speakers I have observed and heard speak at UCI and other universities are people I consider to be Jew haters. Now the UC Irvine Center for Jewish Studies puts on a one-sided event against Israel and Zionism. To me, it casts suspicion on the agenda and ideological purpose of this Center. I also note that the Center's advisory board consists of prominent leaders from the Orange County Jewish community, people who are active in major Jewish organizations. Are they paying attention to what's going on? I wonder. Donors and potential donors should pay close attention to what the UC Irvine Center for Jewish Studies is doing.

More From Golden West College

Yesterday, I received an email from Golden West College President Wes Bryan in regards to the March 14 "Islam 101" incident.

Dear Mr. Fouse,

Thank you for your follow-up email.  We agree with you that public events should promote free speech and that all attendees should have an opportunity to engage in respectful dialogue to express diverse thoughts.  From the accounts we have heard and gathered, we know that some who were at the Islam 101 event did not have the opportunity to ask all of their questions due to the early conclusion of the event.  For that reason, we are reviewing our procedures and protocols, including Public Safety, to ensure both the protection of participants while also honoring free speech during public events.  We will strive to offer a balanced and quality educational experience for our students and will continue to welcome community members to public events and activities.

Sincerely,

Wes Bryan

President

Golden West College

15744 Golden West Street

Huntington Beach, CA 92647-2748

(714) 895-8101 - Voice

(714) 895-8929 - FAX

Golden West College’s mission is to provide an intellectually and culturally stimulating learning environment for its diverse student population. The College provides enriching and innovative educational programs that help students meet their individual goals: transfer to four-year institutions, earn associate degrees, complete certificates in career and technical education, advance their careers, and demonstrate college readiness. The College is committed to academic excellence, community engagement, and student success through continuous assessment and improvement of student learning and institutional effectiveness.

Here is the latest in coverage from Frontpage Magazine (prior to the above letter):

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/269720/confronting-golden-west-college-its-enforcement-gary-fouse

Of course, Bryan's  carefully crafted letter, while somewhat encouraging, does not address the most egregious issue, that of calling in the campus cops to confront those who asked challenging questions of the speaker. That is not the main reason they should be reviewing their procedures. Of course, to admit guilt over the campus police issue might open themselves to a successful legal action.

*Update: This letter from Bryan to fellow attendee, Steve Amundson, is more forthcoming.

Dear Steve,

I understand that you were disappointed in this event, and would have preferred an individualized response to your inquiry. Our intent in the previous response was to affirm that the event was problematic in many ways.  We agree with you that public events should promote free speech and that all attendees should have an opportunity to engage in respectful dialogue to express diverse thoughts. We acknowledged that this did not occur and that we could do a better job.

For that reason, we are reviewing our procedures and protocols, including Public Safety, to ensure that faculty and staff on campus treat others with dignity and engage in respectful interaction with others, while supporting free speech and individuals right to express diverse thoughts. In the future we will strive to offer a balanced and quality educational experience for our students and will continue to welcome community members to public events and activities.

I believe this has been a learning experience for the college and that we will do a better job going forward in protecting free speech while providing students rich learning opportunities.

Sincerely,

Wes Bryan

President

Golden West College

15744 Golden West Street

Huntington Beach, CA 92647-2748

(714) 895-8101 - Voice

(714) 895-8929 - FAX

Golden West College’s mission is to provide an intellectually and culturally stimulating learning environment for its diverse student population. The College provides enriching and innovative educational programs that help students meet their individual goals: transfer to four-year institutions, earn associate degrees, complete certificates in career and technical education, advance their careers, and demonstrate college readiness. The College is committed to academic excellence, community engagement, and student success through continuous assessment and improvement of student learning and institutional effectiveness.

SFSU Update on Professor Rabab Abdulhadi

The saga of San Francisco State University Professor Rabab Abdulhadi continues. If you recall, when offensive messages about Zionists were chalked around the SFSU campus recently, many Jewish organizations wrote to SFSU President Les Wong. In response, he issued a public announcement to the university that defended Jewish students and announced that Zionists were welcome on campus.



Abdulhadi issued a response that Wong's support of Jewish/Zionist students was a "declaration of war against  Arabs, Muslims and Palestinians". What's more, her message was put out on a SFSU web server.

The above information was described in the below post a few days ago.

http://garyfouse.blogspot.com/2018/03/the-latest-outrage-from-sfsus-rabab.html


Below is how Wong replied to Abdulhadi's outburst (March 26):


https://news.sfsu.edu/announcements/message-president-wong-your-voice-our-identity

Message from President Wong: Your voice, our identity

Monday, March 26, 2018

Dear SF State Community,

We are aware of a post by faculty member Rabab Abdulhadi responding to my recent comments to the campus community. Dr. Abdulhadi’s post expressed her opposition to my comments and to Zionism generally.  While she is entitled to voice her own opinion, it cannot be done in a way that implies university endorsement or association.

Dr. Abdulhadi’s post does not reflect the opinions, values, or policies of San Francisco State University.  To the contrary, SF State promotes the principles of inclusion, thoughtful intellectual discourse, and sharing of ideas that are central to our academic environment.  All are welcome at SF State and a diversity of perspectives helps us grow as an institution. 

Yet, this important message can be lost or obscured when individuals within the university post contrary personal beliefs on campus-affiliated web pages, as is the case with this post. As a result, SF State is taking corrective action and will affirm this core principle in its social media policies and practices to avoid confusion and better safeguard the university’s web presence in the future.

Leslie E. Wong

President

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Here is how the AMCHA Initiative (a pro-Jewish-Israel organization based in California) reported it.  In addition, they responded with a letter to CSU Chancellor Timothy White and the CSU trustees protesting Abdulhadi's response (using SFSU web pages no less), which was followed by more anti-semitic activity on campus.

https://amchainitiative.org/60-groups-to-white-CSU-trustees

Dear Chancellor White and CSU Trustees, We are 60 Jewish, Christian, education, and civil rights organizations, representing hundreds of thousands of individuals across the country. We are writing out of deep concern for the safety and well-being of Jewish students at San Francisco State University, following the posting of an incendiary message on the official Facebook page of the Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas (AMED) program at the university’s College of Ethnic Studies.  Written by Professor Rabab Abdulhadi, the founding director and sole faculty member associated with AMED, the message clearly targeted Jewish students at SFSU for vilification and discrimination, and could be read by many as a frightening incitement to violence. As you undoubtedly know, for years Jewish students at SFSU -- particularly those who identify as Zionists by religious belief, ethnic identity, national origin and/or political persuasion -- have been subject to numerous acts of harassment, discrimination, intimidation and suppression of speech, primarily at the hands of members of the anti-Zionist group General Union of Palestine Students (GUPS). Just last month, over a dozen Jewish students affiliated with the SFSU Hillel, including the organization’s student president, wrote a letter to President Wong claiming that the university “has been complicit in allowing hate and discrimination against [the Jewish] community to go unaddressed.”  In response to the concerns expressed by the Jewish students, President Wong sent an email to the campus community, in which he acknowledged, “The last couple of years have been difficult for our Jewish students.” He also apologized for his own “past comments and actions that were deeply hurtful” to Jewish students, including “comments about Zionists and whether or not they are welcomed at San Francisco State University,” and he wrote, “Let me be clear: Zionists are welcome on our campus.”  Shortly after President Wong had issued his statement, Professor Abdulhadi posted a statement on her personal Facebook page that included the following:  “I consider the statement below from President Wong, welcoming Zionists to campus, equating Jewishness with Zionism, and giving Hillel ownership of campus Jewishness to be a declaration of war against Arabs, Muslims, [and] Palestinians…” Abdulahadi prefaced her statement with the words: “URGENT: We need your support. Please see statement by SFSU president welcoming Zionists to campus below and my reply. Please share widely!” and she signed the statement as “Director and Senior Scholar, Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas Studies.”  By afternoon, Professor Abdulhadi’s posting was shared by the official Facebook page of AMED, where it is still visible.  That same day, it was also posted on the Facebook page of GUPS, a group for which Professor Abdulhadi serves as faculty advisor. Later in the afternoon, the message “Zionists are not welcome here” was chalked in huge letters on a campus walkway, with similar messages chalked and posted in numerous other places across campus.  In addition, in a posting on her personal Facebook page a few days later, Prof. Abdulhadi further clarified her position, stating, “Zionists are NOT welcomed on our campus.” It is appalling and deeply disturbing that Professor Abdulhadi would, in her role as director of AMED, promote a statement that denigrates Jewish and non-Jewish students who identify as Zionists and state that they are unwelcome at the university. Even more disturbing is Abdulhadi’s highly inflammatory suggestion that the mere presence of students who identify as Zionists constitutes a “declaration of war” against Arabs, Muslims and Palestinians -- a statement which could be understood as incitement to violence and a direct threat to Jewish students at SFSU. Most disturbing of all, however, is that AMED, an academic unit in the College of Ethnic Studies at SFSU, would re-post such a hateful message and give it both academic and institutional legitimacy.  We believe that AMED’s reposting of Professor Abdulhadi’s hateful message violates Jewish students’ inalienable rights to freedom of expression and full participation in campus life, rights that are guaranteed to each and every CSU student. When an academic unit at a state university uses its official online presence to attack students on its campus for their religious beliefs, ethnic identity or political opinions, it is clearly out of control and must be stopped. We urge you to thoroughly investigate AMED and its administration, and to inform California taxpayers exactly how you intend to address this shameful violation of student rights and university standards. Sincerely,  The Undersigned 60 Organizations:

Now the chancellor of the California State University system, Timothy White, has responded directly to the AMCHA Initiative expressing his own concern and promising that the CSU will take corrective action.

On Mar 26, 2018, at 5:31 PM, White, Timothy <twhite@calstate.edu> wrote:

Ms. Rossman-Benjamin,

Thank you for reaching out to me and the Board of Trustees regarding a post by San Francisco State’s faculty member Rabab Abdulhadi, which was responding to President Wong’s recent comments to the campus community (http://news.sfsu.edu/announcements/message-president-wong-sf-state-community).  Because this post appears on a site that affiliates with the San Francisco State University name, it carries the implication that it reflects the views of the university - when in fact Professor Abdulhadi’s statement explicitly contradicts the principles of inclusion that are central to the values, mission and policies of San Francisco State and the California State University (http://news.sfsu.edu/sites/default/files/assets/announcements/Chancellor%20White%20Memo%20-%20CSU%20Commitment%20to%20Inclusive%20Excellence%201-29-18.pdf).

  

President Wong and his staff took immediate corrective action with this faculty member regarding the post, and have communicated on this matter to the campus community (https://news.sfsu.edu/announcements/message-president-wong-your-voice-our-identity ).  As I write you, it is not yet clear whether this faculty member will comply with the request. If not, the University will explore all appropriate options with respect to this conduct. SFSU is also updating its social media policies and practices to help prevent this type of situation and better safeguard the university’s web presence.

Again, thank you for contacting me on this matter.

Sincerely,

Tim

Timothy P. White, Chancellor

The California State University

Office of the Chancellor

401 Golden Shore

Long Beach, CA  90802

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And AMCHA's response (May 28):

Dear Chancellor White and CSU Trustees, 

Thank you very much for your swift and appropriate response to our groups' letter regarding the hateful and discriminatory message that was posted on the official social media page of the Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas program in the College of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University. We greatly appreciate your prompt attention to this matter, as well as President Wong’s statement clearly noting that the post was unacceptable, that corrective action would be taken, and that the university’s web presence would be better safeguarded from such misuse in the future. We commend you for standing up against this type of exclusionary behavior that fosters intolerance and puts all students at risk.  

We would also like to point out that such departmental misbehavior does not happen in a vacuum. If the head of an academic unit is willing to use her program’s official social media platform to target a group of students on campus with hateful and discriminatory messages, it is reasonable to ask whether such messages are also being conveyed in the classroom or conference hall.  We hope that you will fully investigate AMED, and any other academic unit on a CSU campus that would misuse the university’s name and resources to promote hatred and bigotry against CSU students.

Thank you again for your commitment to addressing this matter,

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hopefully, some house cleaning is coming at SFSU. It would be long overdue. The actions of AMCHA Initiative over the past several years has shown that positive changes can be made to a university system badly in need of change.  It will take a long time to overcome the leftist teachings in our universities. When it comes to hatreds like anti-semitism, however, the changes must come promptly and fast.  In the past few years, that campus has experienced serious and threatening expressions of hate and violence expressed by pro-Palestinian students. Until, there has been virtually no action taken to make Jewish students feel safe on campus.  Hopefully, that is coming to an end, but the public needs to remain watchful.