Israel Uncensored

20
Apr
2023

A Difficult Pesach

On this week’s Israel Uncensored, Josh Hasten says that it was truly difficult joyously celebrating Pesach (Passover) this year, following the terrorist murders of Efrat residents Lucy Dee, 48, and her daughters Maia, 20, and Rina, 15 HY”D, who were gunned down by jihadists while driving in the Jordan Valley. Thousands have paid their respects to the Dee family at the shiva this week, with more and more stories emerging demonstrating how amazing these three lost souls were through their acts of kindness and love of the Land of Israel and the Jewish People.

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
03
Apr
2023

Arabs Will Be Grateful for New “National Guard”

On today’s Israel Uncensored, Josh Hasten argues that while the Attorney General and others are up in arms about Israel’s new National Guard entrusted to National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, in the end, both Jews and especially Arabs, will be grateful for the new law enforcement body. With rampant crime, murder, and illegal activities especially in the Arab sector, Josh says the new force will tackle these issues, creating a better quality of life for Israel’s Arab community, and will thus be welcomed. Ironically, when the idea was conceived under the previous government, the pushback was at a minimum. It sounds like those opposed to the new force, have politics on their mind.

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
13
Mar
2023

Is the Biden Administration Funding the Protests?

Israeli media over the weekend reported that a senior government official claimed that the protests which have been taking place in Israel over the past 10 weeks (under the guise of opposition to the judicial reform), were partially being funded by the U.S. Biden Administration. At the same time, it was noted that Prime Minister Netanyahu has not yet been invited to the White House for a visit. Is the U.S. Administration taking a page out of the Obama and Clinton playbooks by getting involved in Israeli politics and internal matters while snubbing our leadership? This question, and much more news from Israel on this week’s Israel Uncensored with Josh Hasten.

Photo Credit: The U.S. National Archives

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
06
Mar
2023

Pilots Getting Political

Israeli media reported this week that 37 out of 40 reservist pilots from the Israeli Air Force’s elite 69th fighter squadron will not show up for training this Wednesday in protest over the government’s judicial reform plan. While some opposition officials have called on the pilots to show up for duty, and leave politics out of the army, others have praised their protest. This report reeks of hypocrisy as those who called on soldiers not to fulfill their orders to carry out the 2005 expulsion of Gush Katif, were nearly universally condemned by those saying that soldiers can’t pick and choose. At the same time El Al had trouble finding pilots willing to fly Prime Minister to a scheduled visit in Rome later this week. Apparently El Al pilots have the right to pick and choose their passengers. “Hypocrisy” is the theme of this week’s Israel Uncensored with Josh Hasten.

Photo Credit: Israel Defense Forces / Commons Wikimedia

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
27
Feb
2023

US Ambassador Patronizes Israel’s Prime Minister

This week, US Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides – under direction from the Biden Administration, decided to weigh in on Israel’s proposed judicial reform. In a patronizing manner, Nides said “We’re telling the prime minister [Netanyahu] – as I tell my kids – pump the brakes…” Israeli Minister for Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli told Nides to “mind his own business.” On this week’s Israel Uncensored, Josh Hasten says that Nides’ patronizing remarks against Israel’s government are unacceptable. While the US and Israel are great allies, Israel is not a banana republic which needs a scolding, as if we are the ambassador’s children.

Photo Credit: www.flickr.com/photos/usembassyta/51940168124

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
23
Jan
2023

Supreme Court Flexing

On Sunday Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, complying with a Supreme Court ruling, fired Shas Party Minister Aryeh Deri. It is true that Deri has a criminal past and promised to stay away from politics, but on this week’s Israel Uncensored, Josh Hasten says that no doubt, the court’s ruling was politically motivated. He explains that the firing of Deri is a result of the court flexing its muscles, upset over the government’s proposed judicial reforms.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
16
Jan
2023

The Sour Grapes Protest, part II

Demonstrators took to the streets once again this past Saturday night with headlines claiming they came out to voice their opposition to judicial reform. However, the language used – referring to the current government as a “regime” and comparing it to the Nazi party, as PLO flags waved in the air, shows that the agenda of the sour grapes protesters goes far beyond judicial reform. The scary goal – use any means necessary, even if it means trampling on democracy, to overthrow the government.

Photo Credit: Stephen Melkisethian / Flickr

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
09
Jan
2023

The Sour Grapes Protest

Thousands of Israelis demonstrated against the government this past Saturday night under the guise of “democracy,” saying they were against the new government’s proposed judicial reforms. However, on this week’s Israel Uncensored, Josh Hasten says the protest reeked of sour grapes by “liberals,” who in reality don’t respect Israel’s election results or its democratically elected leadership.

Photo Credit: SMcGarnigle / Commons Wikimedia

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
02
Jan
2023

Haters Gonna Hate

On today’s Israel Uncensored, Josh Hasten calls out those Israelis who have already taken to the streets to protest the new government – despite the fact that the government hasn’t been given a chance to implement any policies. Josh says that the concepts of “liberalism” and “free speech” have been hijacked by those protestors who claim to be open-minded folks who respect democracy, yet take to the streets when they don’t get what they want.

Photo Credit: Flickr

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored
26
Dec
2022

Give Up on Sovereignty for Peace with Saudi Arabia?

A news report over the weekend indicated that incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is once again considering pushing off applying sovereignty over Judea and Samaria in exchange for a normalization agreement with Saudi Arabia. Sovereignty was pushed off in exchange for the Abraham Accords agreement with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain several years ago. On today’s Israel Uncensored, Josh Hasten says that while an alliance against Iran is a top priority, Israel should stay strong on the sovereignty issue.

Photo Credit: Commons Wikimedia

Posted by Josh Hasten in Israel Uncensored