Today’s Top Stories

1. European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini: Boycotting Israel is protected free speech:

“The EU stands firm in protecting freedom of expression and freedom of association in line with the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, which is applicable on EU Member States’ territory, including with regard to BDS actions carried out on this territory,” Mogherini said in a written reply to a query by an Irish member of the European Parliament last month. “Freedom of expression, as underlined by the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, is also applicable to information or ideas ‘that offend, shock or disturb the State or any sector of the population,’” Mogherini said.

2. Israel’s trying to block the PA from joining Interpol.

Israel fears that sensitive information could be leaked to terrorists if the Palestinians join the organization, an official in Jerusalem told The Times of Israel, without giving further details . . . Israel is hoping that the combination of the Palestinian Authority with Kosovo, which, along with the Solomon Islands, is also requesting Interpol membership, will bring Russia and other countries to side with Israel. Russia does not recognize Kosovo, which declared independence in 2008.

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3. Mohammad Dahlan, an exiled political rival of Mahmoud Abbas, said he’s not interested in running for president of the Palestinian Authority. The former Gaza strongman said he would support the candidacy of Marwan Barghouti, a terrorist currently imprisoned in Israel. The Times of Israel and picked up on Dahlan’s interview with Maan News.

4. Israel Blamed For Palestinian Oppression of Women: Julie Bindel’s take on Israeli and Palestinian women’s rights politicizes the issue as a way to bash Israel.

5. Mosul, CNN, ISIS and Israel: Contrasting CNN coverage of the West’s fight against ISIS and Israel’s battle against Hamas raises questions of double standards.

Israel and the Palestinians

• A Palestinian policeman wounded 3 IDF soldiers in a shooting attack near Ramallah yesterday. According to Palestinian reports, PA security forces tried to prevent the attack which is now being praised by a local Fatah chapter. This afternoon, police thwarted a stabbing attack outside Hebron’s Cave of the Patriarchs.

• There’s a growing problem of Christian IDF soldiers being ostracized or even violently attacked by Muslim neighbors. This Jerusalem Post snippet was particularly chilling:

One of the people who was supposed to be interviewed for this article is a senior Christian officer in the IDF who promised to talk about the soldiers’ distress and his struggle for them. When he awoke on the morning that the interview was scheduled, he found a Palestinian flag on the door of his home together with a harsh warning. After making sure that an explosive device was not planted in his car, the officer called and asked not to be interviewed. “I’m going to the base for two weeks and am leaving behind a family under threat. I’ll forgo the exposure if you don’t mind,” he said.

• Critics raise fuss as Scottish parliament gives nod to new pro-Israel lobby group. More at the Herald Scotland.

• The Washington Post looks at the significance of Michel Aoun’s election as Lebanon’s new head of state.

Commentary/Analysis

• Israel’s Ambassador to Sweden, Isaac Bachman posted on Facebook an English translation of an op-ed he wrote in the Goteborgs-Posten about Palestinian terror, UNESCO, and Sweden’s response to it all.

To say that Israel has no connection to the Temple Mount is like saying that Sweden has no connection to IKEA . . .

• The problem of partisan pundits isn’t limited to the US elections, just more pronounced. CNN dumping Donna Brazile is a teachable moment and Jack Shafer nails it.

• President Obama’s “legacy thing” is on my mind today . . .

– Wall St. Journal (staff-ed): Obama’s Israel surprise? (click via Google News)

– Alan Dershowitz: Obama: Don’t destroy peace process by turning it over to the UN

– Jonathan Tobin: Obama and Palestinian unity

– Aaron David Miller and Richard Sokolsky: Memo to the next president: Avoid the ‘vision thing’ in the Mideast

• Here’s what else I’m reading today:

– Khaled Abu Toameh: Palestinians: Back in bed with Hamas

– Ben-Dror Yemini: World is silent, except when it comes to Israel

– Tsega Melaku: To UNESCO: ‘Yerusalem is home

– Daniel Johnson: Anti-Semitism goes to parliament (click via Google News)

– Robert Jones: Jews die, Turks celebrate

– Firas Maksad: Lebanon’s new Hezbollah-led political order

Image: CC BY-SA Karsten Seiferlin; star and cross flag CC BY-SA HonestReporting.com;

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