Post by Paddy by Grace on Nov 16, 2009 19:26:19 GMT -7
www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=116059
Only site outside NYC to recognize names of every attack victim
By Samuel Sokol
© 2009 WorldNetDaily
JERUSALEM – A memorial to the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks was unveiled in the Arazim park outside of Jerusalem.
Commissioned and built by the Jewish National Fund–USA, the memorial commemorates the victims of radical Islam and features a central sculpture in the shape of a waving American flag transformed into a memorial flame. A small piece of wreckage from the World Trade Center resides in a compartment in the granite base.
The sculpture is surrounded by a circular, crater-like plaza and reflection area tiled in stone.
The Jerusalem monument is one of the first major international memorials to the 9/11 attacks and the only site outside of New York to recognize the names of every victim of the attack.
Both the sculpture and plaza were donated by New Yorkers.
Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who was the mayor of Jerusalem at the time of the attacks, made a surprise appearance at the monument's unveiling.
He used the opportunity to publicly blast the United Nations' Goldstone report, which accused both Israel and Hamas of war crimes during the Jewish state's defensive wars in Gaza this past December and January.
The Israeli incursion was initiated in response to years of rocket and mortar attacks from the Gaza strip. Israeli officials and Jewish organizations have decried the report as biased and fundamentally flawed.
"I know that today there are those who have questions about the wisdom and the necessity of carrying on the fight against these terrorists and their bases in many corners of the world and I trust that the responsible leaders of the western world, and particularly, the leaders of the United States of America, will understand that this war can't be stopped, no matter how long and how painful it may be, until all of the leaders [of terrorist groups] and all of these organizations will be destroyed," Olmert stated.
Acknowledging the difficulties inherent in asymmetric warfare, the former prime minister explained there is a fundamental difference between victims of terror and those hurt in the course of anti-terror operations.
"When [terrorists] attack, when they commit suicidal attacks, the main purpose is to kill innocent civilians … to create chaos and anarchy. When the fight is against terror … in the course of these actions, sometimes uninvolved people are affected. It is against the desire and against the purpose of these operations."
The Israel Defense Forces have come under U.N. condemnation for collateral damage to Gaza sustained during Operation Cast Lead. It is not, however, widely reported that the Hamas terrorist organization used civilian facilities for the launching of rockets or that residential buildings were rigged with explosives by Arab fighters.
During the course of the conflict, Israel allowed several convoys of humanitarian supplies into the Gaza strip as well as utilizing text messages, cellular phone calls and leaflets to warn civilians of Israeli strikes.
Retired IDF Brig. Gen. Dov Shefi lost his son in the 9/11 attacks. He stated that the ceremony "symbolizes the identification of the State of Israel … with the thousands of families of the victims of September 11th throughout the world, with the United States and with the city of New York."
Col. Rick Burgess, the American military attaché in Israel, recalled his memories of the 9/11 attacks.
Burgess told WND: "I was serving in Turkey on September 11th, 2001, and this [ceremony] brought back a lot of memories, powerful memories in my mind, and sitting here with Jerusalem in the background, it's just an amazing experience."
He continued: "The United States is always going to stand with Israel. There's lots of challenges around the world and we're going to work through all these, and it's just very meaningful to me to have this opportunity to be here today."
Only site outside NYC to recognize names of every attack victim
By Samuel Sokol
© 2009 WorldNetDaily
JERUSALEM – A memorial to the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks was unveiled in the Arazim park outside of Jerusalem.
Commissioned and built by the Jewish National Fund–USA, the memorial commemorates the victims of radical Islam and features a central sculpture in the shape of a waving American flag transformed into a memorial flame. A small piece of wreckage from the World Trade Center resides in a compartment in the granite base.
The sculpture is surrounded by a circular, crater-like plaza and reflection area tiled in stone.
The Jerusalem monument is one of the first major international memorials to the 9/11 attacks and the only site outside of New York to recognize the names of every victim of the attack.
Both the sculpture and plaza were donated by New Yorkers.
Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who was the mayor of Jerusalem at the time of the attacks, made a surprise appearance at the monument's unveiling.
He used the opportunity to publicly blast the United Nations' Goldstone report, which accused both Israel and Hamas of war crimes during the Jewish state's defensive wars in Gaza this past December and January.
The Israeli incursion was initiated in response to years of rocket and mortar attacks from the Gaza strip. Israeli officials and Jewish organizations have decried the report as biased and fundamentally flawed.
"I know that today there are those who have questions about the wisdom and the necessity of carrying on the fight against these terrorists and their bases in many corners of the world and I trust that the responsible leaders of the western world, and particularly, the leaders of the United States of America, will understand that this war can't be stopped, no matter how long and how painful it may be, until all of the leaders [of terrorist groups] and all of these organizations will be destroyed," Olmert stated.
Acknowledging the difficulties inherent in asymmetric warfare, the former prime minister explained there is a fundamental difference between victims of terror and those hurt in the course of anti-terror operations.
"When [terrorists] attack, when they commit suicidal attacks, the main purpose is to kill innocent civilians … to create chaos and anarchy. When the fight is against terror … in the course of these actions, sometimes uninvolved people are affected. It is against the desire and against the purpose of these operations."
The Israel Defense Forces have come under U.N. condemnation for collateral damage to Gaza sustained during Operation Cast Lead. It is not, however, widely reported that the Hamas terrorist organization used civilian facilities for the launching of rockets or that residential buildings were rigged with explosives by Arab fighters.
During the course of the conflict, Israel allowed several convoys of humanitarian supplies into the Gaza strip as well as utilizing text messages, cellular phone calls and leaflets to warn civilians of Israeli strikes.
Retired IDF Brig. Gen. Dov Shefi lost his son in the 9/11 attacks. He stated that the ceremony "symbolizes the identification of the State of Israel … with the thousands of families of the victims of September 11th throughout the world, with the United States and with the city of New York."
Col. Rick Burgess, the American military attaché in Israel, recalled his memories of the 9/11 attacks.
Burgess told WND: "I was serving in Turkey on September 11th, 2001, and this [ceremony] brought back a lot of memories, powerful memories in my mind, and sitting here with Jerusalem in the background, it's just an amazing experience."
He continued: "The United States is always going to stand with Israel. There's lots of challenges around the world and we're going to work through all these, and it's just very meaningful to me to have this opportunity to be here today."