Muslim-blasting Trumpet asked to stay away from Israel

This posting has these items, the number reflecting the hostility Trump arouses in the USA/Israel/UK (except for the Daily Wail)
1) The Cable: It turns out Trump won’t be meeting Bibi after all, David Francis in Foreign Policy’s blog;
2) NY Times: Donald Trump puts off Israel visit and meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu ;
3) IB Times: Will Israel cancel Donald Trump visit? Prime Minster Netanyahu rejects Muslim comments, defends religious freedom;
4) JPost: Exclusive: Trump planning Temple Mount visit, some seriously bad briefing here;
5) Ynet news: Netanyahu to meet Trump despite criticism, though not for much longer;
6) Haaretz: Israeli lawmakers call to block Trump’s visit to Israel, a thorough job;
7) Telegraph: Donald Trump: petition to ban presidential candidate from the UK becomes the most popular ever;
8- BBC: Trump claim wrong that police ‘afraid’ in London PM says establishment leads the attacks against (but Daily Mail -not posted – is gung-ho for Trump’s views on Muslims);
9) Parliament UK: The signatories believe Donald J Trump should be banned from UK entry, the petition that has amassed signatories faster than any other parliamentary petition;

Trump on the stump. Photo by Ross D. Franklin/ AP

Turns Out Trump Won’t Be Meeting Bibi After All

By David Francis, The Cable blog, Foreign Policy
December 10, 2015

Donald Trump is not going to Israel. At least not until he’s president of the United States.

With members of his own party and politicians from around the world bashing his plan to ban Muslims from entering the United States, the Republican 2016 presidential frontrunner took to Twitter Thursday morning to tell the world his plans to visit one of the most important U.S. allies in the Middle East are on hold.

His decision to cancel the trip, originally set for Dec. 28, comes after criticism from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who condemned his plan to keep Muslims off American shores. The billionaire businessman announced his policy in the wake of the Paris and San Bernardino terror attacks.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu rejects Donald Trump’s recent remarks about Muslims,” according to a statement from the prime minister’s office released Wednesday. “The State of Israel respects all religions and strictly guarantees the rights of all its citizens. At the same time, Israel is fighting against militant Islam that targets Muslims, Christians and Jews alike and threatens the entire world.”

Netanyahu wasn’t the only Israeli politician calling out Trump. Omer Bar-Lev of the a member of the main centre-left opposition party, the Zionist Union, tweeted this Wednesday:

Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz, a senior Likud lawmaker and a close Netanyahu ally, told Israel’s Army Radio, “I recommend fighting terrorist and extremist Islam, but I would not declare a boycott of, ostracism against, or war on Muslims in general.”

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Photo by Gage Skidmore

Donald Trump Puts Off Israel Trip and Meeting With Benjamin Netanyahu

First Draft, NY Times
December 10, 2015

It might have to be next year in Jerusalem.

Donald J. Trump announced on Thursday that he was postponing the trip he planned to take to Israel later this month. He said he would instead meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after he becomes president.

The change of travel plans comes as Mr. Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, has created an international firestorm with his proposal to bar Muslims from entering the United States.

Mr. Trump was planning to meet with Mr. Netanyahu, who often welcomes American presidential candidates, and visit the Temple Mount, the contested Jerusalem holy site that has been a major source of friction between Israel and the Palestinians.

But the Israeli prime minister faced backlash over the meeting from allies and opponents who consider Mr. Trump’s plan to be discriminatory. Mr. Netanyahu rejected Mr. Trump’s remarks about Muslims this week but had said the meeting would go on as a matter of policy.

Mr. Trump, who once campaigned for Mr. Netanyahu, suggested that he was doing him a favour by dropping the visit.

“I didn’t want to put him under pressure,” Mr. Trump said on Fox News on Thursday. “I also did it because I’m in the midst of a very powerful campaign, that’s going very well, and it was not that easy to do.”

Michal Rozin, a left-wing member of Israel’s Parliament who garnered signatures from about a third of the state’s lawmakers calling on Mr. Netanyahu to cancel his meeting with Mr. Trump, on Thursday declared “a victory of the democratic values of the state of Israel.”

“We’ve succeeded. racism has surrendered to us,” Ms. Rozin of the Meretz Party said through her spokesman. “Trump has received the message that the state of Israel has no room for a racist, chauvinist and benighted person like him.”

A spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu, David Baker, did not return an email message asking for reaction on Thursday afternoon, though Israel Radio reported that the prime minister’s office had denied any role in the cancellation.

On Wednesday evening, the office had issued a statement saying that Mr. Netanyahu “rejects Donald Trump’s recent remarks about Muslims,” but that he had “decided earlier this year on a uniform policy to agree to meet with all presidential candidates from either party who visit Israel and ask for a meeting.”

“This policy does not represent an endorsement of any candidate or his or her views,” the Wednesday statement said. “Rather, it is an expression of the importance that Prime Minister Netanyahu attributes to the strong alliance between Israel and the United States.”

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Photo by Dominick Reuter/Reuters

Will Israel Cancel Donald Trump Visit? Prime Minister Netanyahu Rejects Muslim Comments, Defends Religious Freedom

Nearly one-third of Israeli Parliament members signed a petition asking Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to condemn Donald Trump’s proposed Muslim immigration ban ahead of his visit to Israel.

By Abigail Abrams, IB Times
December 09, 2015

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday he rejected Donald Trump’s recent comments about Muslims, emphasizing that Israel “respects all religions.” The Israeli leader issued a statement just hours after it was announced that Trump would be meeting with him during a visit to Israel at the end of December, the Associated Press reported.

“The state of Israel respects all religions and strictly guarantees the rights of all its citizens,” the statement said. “At the same time, Israel is fighting against militant Islam that targets Muslims, Christians and Jews alike and threatens the entire world.”

The meeting between Netanyahu and Trump — set for Dec. 28 — was scheduled two weeks ago, before Trump caused international outrage by proposing a “total and complete” ban on Muslims entering the United States. Netanyahu said he meets with all presidential candidates who visit his country, and the meeting does not represent an endorsement of Trump.

Trump announced his plan to stop Muslims traveling to the U.S. after the attackers in last week’s shooting in San Bernardino, California, were found to be Muslims. One of the shooters, Tashfeen Malik, had come to the U.S. after living in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia and had pledged her loyalty to the Islamic State militant group in an online post. However, Trump’s campaign told the Guardian they had been looking into a ban for “some time.”

Other international leaders in countries like England, Scotland and Canada have also condemned Trump’s Muslim comments, with some institutions distancing themselves from the controversial candidate. In Israel, members of the opposition party condemned the fact that their prime minister would still host Trump’s visit.

“Imagine that a country or a candidate would say entrance to Jews is forbidden, the whole world would stand up in protest, saying this is a racist anti-Semite. A racist like this has no place here among us,” Arab parliamentarian Issawi Frej of the dovish Meretz party told Israel Radio, the Associated Press reported.

Frej has asked the interior minister not to let Trump enter Israel. Earlier Wednesday, nearly 40 lawmakers — one-third of Israel’s parliament — signed a petition asking Netanyahu to condemn Trump’s “racist” remarks and urging him to cancel the meeting unless Trump apologizes.

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Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Exclusive: Trump planning Temple Mount visit

Netanyahu to meet with Republican candidate; MKs call to ban Trump from Knesset as pressure mounts on PM to cancel meeting.

By Lahav Harkoc, JPost
December 09, 2015

Republican US Presidential candidate and real estate mogul Donald Trump is planning a visit to the Temple Mount when he comes to Israel for the first time at the end of the month.

A source closely connected to organizing the trip confirmed to The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday that Trump’s staff is looking into the logistics of visiting the holy site and point of conflict between Israel and the Arab world.

The planned visit follows Trump’s call for “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on,” in light of what he said was “great hatred towards Americans by large segments of the Muslim population.”

Palestinians have often used Israeli politicians’ visits to the Mount as an excuse for violence, alleging Israel is changing the status quo, which Israel denies.

The government maintains the status quo, in that non-Muslims may visit, but not pray on the Wakf Islamic Trust administered Temple Mount, the site of two of Islam’s holiest sites, al-Aksa mosque and the Dome of the Rock shrine.

Jewish visitors are often harassed at the holy site, and earlier this year, a delegation of US congressmen visiting the plaza also complained of harassment by Wakf guards.

Palestinian claims about the Temple Mount reached a fever pitch in recent months and the controversy has contributed to sparking the current wave of terrorism. At the outset of the violence, police found explosives hidden in al-Aksa. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has been accused by media watchers of claiming Jews’ feet defile the site.

A security source said Trump would probably not be allowed to visit the Temple Mount, the Post’s sister publication Ma’ariv reported.

The source said that when the current wave of terrorism began, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu banned all politicians from visiting the site. The source added that Trump’s visit is meant to be a provocation, so security forces are likely to bar him from ascending the mount.

Netanyahu on Wednesday rejected Trump’s remarks regarding Muslims, but officials suggested his December 28 meeting with Trump would go ahead as planned.

“The State of Israel respects all religions and protects stringently the rights of all its citizens,” a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office said.

“At the same time, Israel is struggling with extremist Islam that is attacking Muslims, Christian and Jews as one and is threatening the entire world.”

The statement said Netanyahu’s meeting with Trump was scheduled two weeks ago, and that the PM, previous to that, had established a policy of meeting with every candidate who comes to Israel.

“This policy does not reflect support for the candidates or their policies, but rather expresses the importance that the PM attributes to the strong alliance between Israel and the United States.”

Netanyahu’s spokesman confirmed that the prime minister is willing to meet with any US presidential candidate who visits Israel.

But politicians across Israel’s political spectrum put pressure on Netanyahu to cancel the meeting in light of Trump’s latest remarks.

Meretz chairwoman Zehava Gal- On said such a meeting would be a “slap in the face to Muslim citizens of Israel.”

“It is embarrassing that Netanyahu is willing to legitimize Trump as a reasonable candidate who is worth a meeting with a head of state,” Gal- On said. “Netanyahu’s willingness to meet with Trump despite his serious racist statements authorizes what the prime minister’s statements showed about him long ago: That there has never been such a racist, irresponsible prime minister.”

A petition circulated by Meretz’s Michal Rozin asking that the meeting be cancelled was signed by 37 MKs, including two from the coalition: Roy Folkman (Kulanu) and Ya’acov Margi (Shas).

MK Michael Oren (Kulanu) said Netanyahu is in a difficult position.

While Trump has said things that offended Muslims, Latinos, women and others, he could be elected president and it could hurt US-Israel relations if Netanyahu snubbed him.

Trump has not asked to go to the Knesset during his trip to Israel, but that did not stop several MKs from saying he should be banned from the legislature because of his comments about Muslims.

“As far as it depends on me, this racist Donald Trump should not be welcome in the Knesset,” MK Omer Bar-Lev (Zionist Union) tweeted.

עמר בר-לב @omerbarlev
As far as it depends on me, this racist @realDonaldTrump should not be welcome in the @knessetisrael
6:55 AM – 9 Dec 2015

MK Ahmad Tibi (Joint List) wrote on Twitter: “I asked [Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein] to ban neo-Nazi Trump and all Trumps from entering the Knesset, though his statements are not strange to some racists in the Knesset.”

Tibi also retweeted a graphic comparing Trump to Adolf Hitler.

MK Esawi Frej (Meretz) asked Interior Minister Silvan Shalom to ban Trump from entering the country.

MK Taleb Abu Arar (Joint List) protested at Trump’s plans to visit the Temple Mount, saying, “If Trump the racist plans to visit al-Aksa, the holiest place in the world for Muslims, to harm the sensitivities of people against whom he incites, he and Netanyahu will be responsible.”

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Photo by David Becker/Getty Images

Netanyahu to meet Trump despite criticism

ADL says that Trump’s declaration calling on preventing Muslims from entering the US is “deeply offensive and runs contrary to our nation’s deepest values”; Netanyahu set to meet with trump in light of controversy.

By Yitzhak Benhorin, Ynet news
December 09, 2015

Washington – Jewish organizations in the United States harshly criticized Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Tuesday, following his declaration that the US must prevent the entry of Muslims to the country, whether they be immigrants or tourists.

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which was founded in 1913 to respond to the growing phenomenon of antisemitism, said that “a plan that singles out Muslims and denies them entry to the US based on their religion is deeply offensive, and runs contrary to our nation’s deepest values.”

Meanwhile, Trump tweeted Tuesday night that he would visit Israel before the end of the year. “I am very much looking forward to it,” he wrote.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to meet with Donald Trump on December 28, in light of the backlash against his anti-Muslim remarks. Netanyahu’s office stated that the appointment was made two weeks ago, prior to Trump’s comments. The office added that “the prime minister would meet with any candidate from any party

Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO, stated that “Mr. Trump’s plan to bar people from entry to the United States based on their religion is unacceptable and antithetical to American values. The U.S. was founded as a place of refuge for those fleeing religious persecution, and religious pluralism is core to our national identity. A plan that singles out Muslims and denies them entry to the U.S. based on their religion is deeply offensive and runs contrary to our nation’s deepest values.

“In the Jewish community, we know all too well what can happen when a particular religious group is singled out for stereotyping and scapegoating. We also know that this country must not give into fear by turning its back on its fundamental values, even at a time of great crisis. As we have said so many times, to do otherwise signals to the terrorists that they are winning the battle against democracy and freedom.”

According to a CNN poll, Trump still leads among Republican voters in New Hampshire, the second state to hold Republican primaries. Trump has 32% of voters’ support, a six percent increase since September. He is followed by Marco Rubio with 14%.

In recent days Trump was the target of a series of condemnations from the US and abroad. The harshest criticism came from the White House, which stated that his plan disqualified him from being president. Nevertheless, Trump stood behind his declaration during an appearance on ABC news.

Fortune magazine commented that Trump’s statements might have a negative effect on his business with Arabic and Muslim countries, particularly in the Gulf. In 2013 Trump signed an agreement with an investment group from Dubai to open a set of prestigious golf courses, the first of which will open in 2017. Qatar Airways also maintains a big office in Trump Tower in Manhattan.

Despite the statement, Al Jazeera reported that Trump’s partners in the Gulf and Turkey would continue doing business with him as usual. Earlier this year his daughter Ivanka Trump stated that her father intends to expand his business in the Middle East, particularly with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

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Photo via Donald J. Trump

Israeli Lawmakers Call to Block Trump’s Visit to Israel

The Republican presidential hopeful will meet with Netanyahu in Jerusalem later this month, despite controversial call for a ban on Muslims entering the U.S.

By Ilan Lior , Barak Ravid and News Agencies
December 09, 2015

A planned visit to Israel by Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump drew a welter of criticism from across the Israeli political spectrum on Wednesday over his call for a ban on Muslims entering the United States.

During his trip later this month, Trump will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem. The prime minister’s bureau said on Wednesday that the meeting has been scheduled a couple of weeks ago, before Trump made his controversial comments. The bureau also said that Netanyahu would meet with any candidate from any party who arrives in Israel and seeks a meeting.

Playing to U.S. fears about radical Islam after the California gun rampage, Trump has shrugged off domestic and international outrage at his comments. He said on Twitter he was “very much looking forward” to visiting Israel by year’s end.Israeli politicians of various stripes condemned Trump’s remarks and called to block the visit. Thirty-seven Knesset members signed a letter on Wednesday calling on Netanyahu to condemn Trump’s remarks and cancel their meeting.

The letter, drafted by MK Michal Rozin, was primarily signed by opposition lawmakers from Meretz, Zionist Union, Joint List and Yesh Atid – as well as two coalition MKs – Yakov Margi of Shas and Roy Folkman of Kulanu.

“While leaders around the world condemn the Republican presidential candidate’s racist and outrageous remarks, Netanyahu is warmly embracing him,” Rozin said. “Their meeting in the end of the month backs up [Trump’s] racist statements, thus disgracing Israel’s democratic character and hurting its Muslim citizens.”

Earlier, MK Ahmad Tibi (Joint List), who is among the signatories on the letter, said he had asked for the “neo-Nazi” not to be admitted to the Knesset.

That call was echoed by MK Omer Bar-Lev the Zionist Union, who on Twitter deemed the real-estate billionaire turned Republican candidate a “racist.”

The censure was joined by Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party. Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz, a senior Likud lawmaker and Netanyahu confidant, described Trump’s rhetoric on Muslims as harmful from an  Israeli and U.S. standpoint.

“I recommend fighting terrorist and extremist Islam, but I would not declare a boycott of, ostracism against or war on Muslims in general,” Steinitz told Israel’s Army Radio.

“We in the state of Israel have many Muslim citizens who are loyal,” he said. “On the contrary, the extremists and the terrorists should be distinguished from the loyal citizens, and in the United States, too, there are loyal Muslim citizens.”

Marc Zell, vice-president of Republicans Overseas and a party representative in Israel, had harsh words for Trump.

“He is a demagogue. And we as Jews, and also as Israelis, know what a demogogue is, historically,” Zell told Army Radio in a separate interview, saying he was voicing his own opinion rather than a  formal Republican position.

“The Republican party has a long list of candidates worthy of the presidency, and we have to change the leadership in the White House, which has caused a lot of damage, but Donald Trump is not the answer,” Zell said.

Opposition Leader Isaac Herzog declined to join in the protestation against Netanyahu’s meeting with Trump, indeed he wouldn’t rule out meeting with the Republican hopeful himself. “Trump’s statements are shocking and disgusting,” Herzog said. He further expressed hope that Trump would learn about coexistence with Muslims from his visit to Israel.

MK Roy Folkman (Kulanu), one of two coalition members who signed the letter, told Haaretz that he was unaware of the fact that the meeting was already scheduled. “Had I known that the Prime Minister’s Office had already confirmed the meeting, I might have not signed it.” He added that while he objected to Trumps comments against women, immigrants, and people with disabilities, he “trusts that the prime minister will know to express this correctly.”

There was no immediate response to Trump’s plans from President Reuven Rivlin, who was visiting Washington and scheduled to meet U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday.

On Monday, the White House called on Republicans to say they would not support Trump. U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said his comments could undermine U.S. security. Trump’s Republican rivals joined the condemnation.

The prime ministers of France and the United Kingdom, the United Nations, U.S. Jewish groups and Muslim residents of Asian countries all denounced the real-estate mogul’s comments.

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Donald Trump: petition to ban presidential candidate from the UK becomes most popular ever

US Republican presidential candidate announces he is postponing his trip to the Holy Land as a petition calling to ban Trump from UK passes 400,000 [18.00, Dec 10th]

By Rozina Sabur, David Lawler and Raziye Akkoc, Daily Telegraph
(This is the running blog on Trump at 18.00, Dec 10th]

• Petition to ban Trump from UK becomes most popular ever
• Trump cancels Israel trip after dozens of Israeli MPs accused him of racism
• Trump says UK should thank him after losing Scottish degree title
• Allister Heath: Trump’s crude pantomime villainy will make it harder to fight Islamic terror
• Meet the voters who support Trump

Highlights
• A petition calling for Donald Trump to be barred from entering the UK has become the most popular ever campaign on the Government’s website. It is currently approaching half a million signatures.

• Trump was unrepentant as he said on Twitter: “The United Kingdom is trying hard to disguise their massive Muslim problem. Everybody is wise to what is happening, very sad! Be honest.”

• However, Trump announced earlier today he would be cancelling his trip to Israel after Benjamin Netanyahu criticised his statements on Muslims and dozens of Israeli MPs publicly accused him of racism.

• Public figures across the world rebuked the Republican presidential candidate’s comments, with Mohamed Ali – America’s most well known Muslim – saying: “I believe that our political leaders should use their position to bring understanding about the religion of Islam”, adding that the shooters in San Bernardino and Paris “have perverted people’s views on what Islam really is.”

• Polls taken in the US after the remarks were publicised showed a spike in support among Republican primary voters, with Mr Trump on around 35% and as many as 20 points ahead of his main rivals.

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Trump claim wrong that police ‘afraid’ in London – PM says

By BBC news
December 08, 2015

The prime minister has joined the mayor of London in rejecting comments by US presidential hopeful Donald Trump that parts of London are “so radicalised the police are afraid for their lives”.

The Republican nomination contender made the remarks in a TV interview.
A Downing Street spokeswoman said David Cameron “completely disagrees” with Mr Trump and thinks “his views are wrong”.

The mayor of London Boris Johnson said Mr Trump’s comments were “complete and utter nonsense”.

“The Prime Minister completely disagrees with the comments made by Donald Trump, which are divisive, unhelpful and quite simply wrong,” his official spokeswoman said.

The comments represent a departure from the practice usually followed by British prime ministers of avoiding commentary on the merits of contenders in the US presidential race.

Opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn said the presidential hopeful’s remarks were an “affront to common humanity” and called for people to “unite against racism”, coming in the wake of Mr Trump’s call to ban Muslims from entering the US.

The Metropolitan Police said: “We would not normally dignify such comments with a response, however on this occasion we think it’s important to state to Londoners that Mr Trump could not be more wrong.

“Any candidate for the presidential election in the United States of America is welcome to receive a briefing from the Met Police on the reality of policing London.”

‘Outrageous and dangerous’

Mayor Boris Johnson said the remarks were ill-informed.

“As a city where more than 300 languages are spoken, London has a proud history of tolerance and diversity and to suggest there are areas where police officers cannot go because of radicalisation is simply ridiculous,” he said.

Mr Johnson said police officers were doing “excellent work” in London.

“Crime has been falling steadily both in London and in New York – the only reason I wouldn’t go to some parts of New York is the real risk of meeting Donald Trump,” he added.

Fiyaz Mughal, director of Tell Mama, an organisation that monitors Islamophobic attacks, said: “He plays up to what groups like IS want – that is divided and weaker communities.”

Mr Trump’s comments risked marginalising the people who could help fight extremism, said Mr Mughal.

The Republican party frontrunner was also attacked by Labour candidate for London mayor Sadiq Khan, who said the billionaire “can’t just be dismissed as a buffoon – his comments are outrageous, divisive and dangerous”.

Conservative mayor candidate Zac Goldsmith said Mr Trump was “an appalling creature… one of the most malignant figures in politics”.

Poll ratings

Asked on MSNBC if Muslims were needed in the effort to help confront terrorism, Mr Trump said: “If you look at Paris – and I hate to do this, the chamber of commerce is gonna go crazy – Paris is no longer the same city it was.

“They have sections in Paris that are radicalised – police refuse to go in there. They’re petrified.

“We have places in London and other places that are so radicalised the police are afraid for their own lives.”

The BBC’s Anthony Zurcher, in Washington, says Mr Trump’s poll ratings have risen after other hardline statements.

In January, US broadcaster Fox News was forced to issue an on-air apology for televising a claim that Birmingham was a “Muslim-only city” where non-Muslims “don’t go”.

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