US condemns Israeli bank raids

[Resistance]

BBC

US officials have criticised Israel's raid of banks in the West Bank town of Ramallah, saying it risks destabilising the Palestinian financial system.

Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei condemned the raid as "a mafia act".

More than $3m was removed from the vaults, Israeli security sources said.

At least three branches were targeted - including buildings used by two Jordanian banks, Arab Bank and the Cairo-Amman Bank.

The raid follows a swoop earlier on Wednesday on offices used by an Islamic charity in the West Bank city of Tulkarm.

[Step By Step]

1. And for the other POV:

Israel Grabs Terror Money, Will Allocate it For P.A. Humanitarian Use

In a 14-hour raid on four banks in Ramallah yesterday, Israeli security forces confiscated some $8.3 million used to fund terrorism. The money will be used for PA humanitarian causes. The U.S. was not happy with Israel's use of force.*

continues at http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=58553

* since when do we concern ourselves with the Bush Admin's slant and unhappiness? only if it fits one's beliefs? if so, one could say the first POV as posted by the thread originator would be pro-Bush!

[Resistance]

4. Israel National News is a known hate site

and is very racist.

But thanks for sharing the "other POV"

:hi:

[ex_jew]

6. Pro-Bush ? I doubt it.

When even the US condemns Israeli operations, I think that's a legitimate subject of discussion.

And anyway how far back does the memory of someone with 18 posts extend ? Trying out a new "handle" ?

[Step By Step]

10. yeah, pro Bush

The first post supported the Bush Admin position in the matter.

Deal with it.

[lefty_mcduff]

20. When the RW thugs in the Whitehouse tell Sharon

and the boys that they've gone too far, it's a pretty safe bet that you've gone too far.

Now you deal with it.

[Gimel]

23. Voicing concern

is not the same as "condemning" It was the PA Prime Minister who condemned it. Yet the degree of objection was raised considerably in the article title.

[lefty_mcduff]

24. You're splitting hairs, methinks.

But let's see..



US State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher criticised the Israeli raid.
"Some of these actions that were taken risk destabilising the Palestinian banking system," he said.



Sounds fairly crticial to me.

[Gimel]

29. Splitting hairs

is the essence of discussion. If you want to see black and white only, that's for another place.

[_Jumper_]

19. We've had a "new" poster join here daily for a few days

They keep "dissappearing" and replaced by "new" posters.:D

[MikeGalos]

7. Bravo Israel

Can anybody in their right mind object to Israel's doing a Robin Hood and taking money earmarked for murdering people and turning it into charity for the poor?

Seeing how often we hear of radical Islamic "charities" (like Sami al-Arian's in Tampa) which turn out to be nothing more than fronts for terror funding, there's a beautiful symmetry to see terror funding turned into charity.

Thank you Israel for a wonderful case almost literally turning swords into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks.

[MikeGalos]

11. What was I thinking...

I asked how anybody in their right mind could object. I forgot I was talking about the Bush administration so that question is moot.

[Resistance]

13. LMAO

Hilarious posts!! Thanks for sharing!

:D

on edit: I particularly liked the "Robin Hood" bit - Dude that's totally classic!

[bemildred]

14. See what I mean?

I was wondering if the cash had little post-it notes
on it that say "earmarked for terrorist acts" or something.

[Resistance]

15. you know what

learning is fun. :D

[MikeGalos]

21. Sometimes the truth is a beautiful thing

isn't it.

[Forkboy]

32. Let me know when somone posts it

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[lefty_mcduff]

18. Ahm. I can.

Land. Olive trees. Cash. Stealing *from* the poor?
Don't sound like any Robin Hood I heard of.

[Gimel]

25. More reports on the same

More details are given in this account by Ha'aretz:

<snip>

The forces focused on two branches of the Arab Bank and on the main branch of the Cairo-Amman Bank in the city.

According to the chairman of the Cairo-Amman Bank, Abdel Malik al-Jabbar, "the army presented an order signed by the general of the Central Command, Moshe Kaplinski, and the soldiers showed bank officials a list of 56 accounts to be confiscated. Then they took NIS 2.8 million from the bank safe, the same amount that was in those 56 accounts. This is a disaster for us. We now expect a run on the bank by customers afraid for their money."

Many millions more were taken from two branches of the Arab Bank, the largest bank operating in the territories, with branches in 40 countries around the world. While Palestinian sources said that more than NIS 10 million was taken from upward of 150 accounts of charities, non-governmental organizations and privately held accounts of residents of the territories, defense sources said they confiscated more than NIS 35 million from accounts they suspect were used to finance terrorism.

Israel has promised the money will be used instead on projects "that benefit Palestinian welfare." Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz last night ordered the government coordinator in the territories to draw up plans to use the confiscated money for "humanitarian" purposes in the territories. Mofaz is issuing orders for improvements in the Palestinian health services, busing for school children and improving infrastructure at checkpoints and other crossing points. "The money should be used to improve conditions for the residents of the territories, not to kill Israelis," he said.

<snip>

The banks have asked several Israeli lawyers to represent them in suits to recover the money and to prevent similar actions in the future. The army said the account holders will be able to appeal the confiscation of their accounts.

<snip>

http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/398421.html

A startling move, but highlights the flow of money into the Palestinian areas. Large amounts for this "impoverished, imprisoned people".

[Forkboy]

31. LMAO

Well Herschel was just posting a thread the other day where he agreed with Rummy.Since when does he concern himself with Bush slant? Only if it fits one's beliefs? I think you know the answer.

[izzie]

2. For a Bush to call robbing a bank bad would be like.......

well I am not sure but it seem to be a family thing with him.Something like coal to Newcastle or some such thing.

[Resistance]

3. y'know .....

I don't recall where in the Road Map it lists as an Israeli commitment to go from town to town robbing banks and charities.

[Step By Step]

9. It's called seizing assets of

terrorist front organizations.

[DuctapeFatwa]

5. So are they sending in Marines to return the money to its rightful owners

or just cleverly managing to make themselves look like idiots while insulting the intelligence of the rest of the world again?

[Step By Step]

8. Neither.

The rightful owners are the Palestinian people.

The money was being used for suicide bombings.

So, Israel has given the money to the PA.

[DuctapeFatwa]

16. News reports differ on what they intend to do with it

Some quote them as saying they will "hold" it.

The BBC article above says they will use it for humanitarian purposes, which I have no doubt will be believed by both bush and sharon regime loyalists, however it is the longstanding policy of both the US and Israeli governments that providing humanitarian aid to Palestinians is in itself an act of terrorism, hence the US-funded Policy of Starvation.

[Resistance]

17. For the Israeli Army

being "humanitarian" is not murdering an entire group of peace activists, instead only crushing one of them to death, so the point is made.

[MikeGalos]

22. Yeah

I'm sure that PA public radio isn't going to say that the money helping their citizens eat came from the Israelis yet again.

Nice to see that Israel's found a way to keep it out of Arafat's wife's account in France where the rest of the humanitarian aid money went.

[Resistance]

26. LOL

I love how stolen loot from a bank becomes "humanitarian aid money"!

...kinda like the "Peace Fence"...

Only in I/P!! Gotta love it.

:party:

[MikeGalos]

27. I love how

intercepting funds being laundered to fund the murder of children becomes "stolen loot".

Anything rather than to admit that the PA has terrorists murdering innocent civilians or that they've got lots of funding sources (gee, like ones found in the EU and the US and Saudi Arabia and, and, and)

But, no. There must be some way to blame it on Israel rather than Arafat and his holy innocents.

[Resistance]

28. LOL

So now robbing banks is actually "intercepting funds"

Classic! :D

[Violet_Crumble]

30. Y'all should be thankful!

The benign and thoughtful heroes of the IDF obviously weren't trying to destroy the Palestinian banking sector and destroy investor confidence when they robbedliberated these Terrorist Banks of their Terrorist Funds looked after by the Terrorist Bank Workers. If they'd been trying to destroy anything, they'd have dropped a one-tonne bomb on each institution, preferably when it was full of Terrorist small investors (we can call them pre-emptive collateral damage if we prefer) queued up to withdraw some Terrorist Cash. No, we should all bow our heads and try to appreciate the grave danger that the brave Terrorist Fighters of the IDF placed themselves in when entering these Terrorist nests. I can just see them nervously wiping sweaty palms on their uniforms while wondering why a pilot couldn't have just been called in to drop a bomb on the place, and in doing so remove any danger to them. Don't the powers-that-be know that the Terrorist Bank Managers would study any footage from security cameras they didn't manage to locate and cover in classic bank-heist style? Don't the powers-that-be know that the Terrorist Bank Manager would hand that footage over to their Terrorist friends who'd hunt down each and every brave and selfless soldier and Terrorise them? And what's worse, those poor troops would be thinking to themselves, is that even though they'd be given a prominent place on all those garish 'Victims Of Terrorism' pages, they'd know that wherever progressives gather, there'd be a logical and rational explanation as to why that poor departed troop was actually not a victim of terrorism ;)

Note: for anyone requiring sarcasm tags in order to detect heavy dose of sarcasm, this is a self-tag post...

Violet...