We are happy to present you with our Sovereignty bulletin #75, sent to members and supporters of our Sovereignty Movement. You are invited to read, get updated, send us your comments and join:
Dear friends,
Shalom and Hodesh tov.
We will begin with blessings to our Ethiopian brethren, who commemorated the holiday of Sigd this week, which signifies the longings of the entire People of Israel for the Land of Israel and Jerusalem.
May we all imbued with the wonderful spirit that the Ethiopian olim brought with them when they taught us what it is to really sacrifice for the Land of Israel, in the exhausting march through the deserts, in parting from family members who perished on the way, in coping with bloodthirsty and greedy robbers, with the great hope that they carried in their hearts and their words, to come to Jerusalem.
If only we could learn this great lesson that they have conferred upon us, with love for the Land of Israel.
In the Heart of the Battle
We are in the midst of the renewed battle for Jerusalem. This battle does not involve tanks, jets or missiles. It is a quiet battle and sometimes the quiet confuses us all; we fall asleep and the enemy takes more and more steps to determine facts on the ground.
Such is the current battle for the heart of Jerusalem. The Israeli public still is not sufficiently aware of what is happening in the political sphere and the composition of the government makes it difficult for its cabinet to present a unified and clear position and the result is political pressure exerted by the U.S. to open a consulate for the PA in Jerusalem.
The immediate significance of this move, if, G-d forbid, it comes to fruition, is the recognition that Jerusalem is subject to division and turning half of it into the capital of a Palestinian state, which is what the American administration is striving to do. After the American consulate, one European country after the other will establish a similar consulate and the State of Israel will be witness to painful political facts on the ground that eat away and erode her sovereignty over her capital.
In order to block this dangerous move, we, more than twenty organizations of lovers of the Land of Israel and Jerusalem, have united for a series of protest rallies in front of the building where the American administration intends to open the consulate, calling with a great and unified voice: Jerusalem is not subject to negotiation. Jerusalem is indivisible.
We call on the Prime Minister to stand behind the traditional position of all previous prime ministers, from the Right as well as the Left, that the unity of Jerusalem is not subject to any sort of political discussion.
We call on you to join, along with many of your friends and relatives, in the vigils that are being held on Wednesdays in front of the building on Agron Street in Jerusalem. The echoes of the protest reach Washington and the very unity among the organizations carrying one call proves once more, the power of Jerusalem to unite the People of Israel around it.
Click here for the speeches at the first protest vigil
Click here for coverage of the protests in Israeli and international media
For a summary of the 2nd rally please click here
To watch the videos of the speakers who spoke at second rally, please click here
Blessings to the determined ministers Saar and Elkin
Here, we would like to offer our praise to Ministers Sa’ar and Elkin for taking a clear stand against opening a consulate out of the understanding of the severe political ramifications of the step.
Our movement calls on the Prime Minister and other ministers to join this stand. Jerusalem is not subject to political dispute and must be a basis for joint agreement of the Israeli ministers in general.
Now, after the state’s budget has been passed, we expect American pressure to intensify and against this, the ministers must stand like a fortified wall in defense of the Jewish People’s capital; they must stand strong against the pressure.
Disappointing
It is with a significant degree of disappointment that we note the government’s decision not to include the regulation of the young settlement enterprise in the state budget.
Regulating these communities is a vital humanitarian demand, beyond being the minimum that the People of Israel owes to the young pioneers who are not deterred from the difficulties in their path as they embark on a Zionist mission in the hills of Judea and Samaria.
The spirit of these young people beats within the Jewish People and has motivated it through 120 years of Zionism, in drying the swamps, in establishing the farming towns, in strengthening the periphery, in settling the Negev and the Galilee. They do it without standard electricity or water, without proper access roads and without other essential living conditions. They do it with great spirit, which the State of Israel must value and admire, but as of now, they do not receive the appropriate honor and appreciation.
Our call, the call of Zionism over the generations, to the ministers in the government, is to rise above narrow political considerations and regulate the living conditions of the heroes and pioneers of the generation.
On Iranian intentions
We reported to you that the Ribonut (Sovereignty Movement) website was attacked this week by hackers, apparently Iranians, who managed to harm with pinpoint accuracy, articles dealing with our battle to stop the idea of an American consulate for the PA.
The hackers’ choice to focus on these articles and reports shows that we are going in the right direction. If the Iranians see us as a target for arrows in their cyber war, it means that our steps and our battle reach far beyond the expected circles and again, it seems that Jerusalem is the focus of international attention.
Shabbat shalom,
Hodesh tov (Have a good month),
Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar