We visited{the City of David in March on a day trip to Jerusalem during the work trip to continue work on a nature park in Kedumim near Shechem. If you are in Jerusalem, I absolutely recommend taking the tour of the City of David (it is south of the Kotel, outside of the city walls; they also have a great an incredible website.

Arutz Sheva reports that another archeological find was recently uncovered there:

Archaeologists have unearthed proof of another Biblical story at Jerusalem's ancient City of David, this time corroborating the Book of Jeremiah.

A completely intact seal impression, or "bula", bearing the name Gedaliahu ben Pashur was uncovered. The bula is actually a stamped engraving made of mortar.

Update:

Now the police have admitted to working with Arabs to stop the march:

Police detective Aharon Yair, when questioned by defense attorney Naftali Wurtzburger, admitted to a Jerusalem magistrate court that special police forces dressed in civilian clothing and police hats, waited with local PA Bedouins in ambush for the hikers to arrive in the area as part of a four day journey. Wurtzburger called the police action a provocation.

Update: Israel National News printed a report on this as well. Here is the quote from Mrs. Weiss:

"Everything was going very well, until we arrived in Maoz Esther. A bunch of Arabs swooped down upon us with rocks and clubs, and three of our people were injured; they have just been evacuated by ambulance. At one point, one of our escorts tried to protect one of our boys, and he shot in the air. Right then, something amazing happened:

"From behind a little hill suddenly emerged some cars and policemen wearing civilian clothes, but with police hats - and they arrested the one who shot in the air, as well as some of our other escorts who were carrying weapons!

"Apparently, the police were waiting and watching the whole time, doing nothing until our boy shot in the air. They want to leave us without weapons, and thus cause us to call off our entire trek, because they see - and want to discourage - the wonderful and pioneering spirit that we bring."

"But we will of course not stop, though we are now trying to figure out the best course of action. I can tell you that there will be some sharp measures and protests against the security forces."

Israel National Radio's 7/29 6:00 PM podcast reported that a walking tour of Judea & Samaria led by Daniella Weiss, former mayor of Kedummim in Samaria was attacked by Arabs. Approximately 200 people are participating in the tour of the hilltops of YoSh (Judea & Samaria) that begin in Sa-Nur (one of the Northern Samaria communities destroyed by the expulsions of 2005).

The tour was in its third day of a "beautiful march through the hilltops of the land of Judea and Samaria". At Maoz Esther, a bunch of Arabs swooped down on them with rocks and clubs.

The report goes on to share Mrs. Weiss's testimony that when the Jews began to defend themselves from the attack that, almost instantly, a group of plain clothes Israeli police showed up and arrested the Jews involved. Apparently, the police watched as the Arabs attacked and only intervened to stop the Jews from defending themselves.

Debka reports that Hezb'allah has taken another strategic mountain top in Lebanon -- closer to Israel:

As Iranian and Syrian radar and anti-air weapons officers settled on the strategic peak, our military sources report the Lebanese terrorist group proceeded to grab positions on the Western ridge of Jebel Barukh, east of Jezzine, a move which brings it closer to the Israel border.

Jeremy Gimpel will be in the United States for a speaking tour in September. The eMail announcement reads:

Jeremy Gimpel will be coming to America this September to share a proud Jewish voice and expose the disastrous consequences that the impending division of Jerusalem would have on Israel, the Jewish People, and the Free World.

Knowing the facts is no longer a luxury. It is SURVIVAL.

To book Jeremy to speak in your community email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Here is a video of Jeremy's address to Fellowship Church last March:

Obama: Judea and Samaria should be Judenrein

Also on the three O'clock Israel National Radio newscast, Barack Obama will be meeting with arch terrorist and leader of the Fatah, Abu Mazen (Abbas), and will reportedly tell him that

"supporting Israel doesn't mean that Israel can keep a presense in Judea and Samaria".

I guess since the expulsion from Gaza and Northern Samaria has been such a success and brought that ever elusive peace, Obama will push for more of the same. Of course, there is NO difference between the Dems and the Repubs on this issue. President Bush has been pushing to divide up the Land of Israel at least since 9/11.

Today's 3:00 PM Israel National Radio reports that three years after the disengagement from Gaza and several Norther Samaria communities that 50% of the people affected are still unemployed and that more than one-third of the people polled describe their situation as "bad" or "very bad". Also, more than half of the people expelled say that their health has deteriorated since the expulsion.

The good news is that the Arabs to whom the land was given have improved the green houses and other commercial aspects of the areas with world renowned Moslem technologies. </sarcasm>

The sad truth is that these areas are now used to launch rocket attacks on S'derot and Ashkelon and that the Israeli government officials responsible for the expulsion have not been held accountable -- with the possible exception of Ariel Sharon who initiated the plan and spent his political clout to make it happen -- for the damage that they have imposed upon the Jews who lived in these areas for more than a generation.

Debka reports that the recent Arab terrorist attacks in Jerusalem involving construction tractors are part of coordinated efforts linked to Hamas and Hizb'allah:

Shin Bet director Yuval Diskin said Wednesday, even before the second bulldozer attack which injured 29 people, that going into Jerusalem’s Shuafat is more dangerous than the Jenin refugee camp. “A security vacuum encircles Jerusalem,” he said, “through which terrorists are free to enter the capital.”

Meir Sheetrit, minister of interior, reported after research that the Palestinian family reunion program approved by Israel had been used to plant scores of active terrorists in the West Bank and Jerusalem.

Shin Bet probes in the Arab districts of Jerusalem have turned up close cooperation between Hamas and the fiercely radical Hizb al-Tahir, which is attracting increasing numbers of Palestinian terrorists to its ranks.

Hizb al-Tahrir now controls the mosques on Temple Mount and its environs, having pushed out and replaced the Muslim Waqf sentry posts at the shrine and organized them on the lines of a terrorist militia.

Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah and pro-Jordanian elements, which once ruled Arab sectors of Jerusalem, have lost out to the Islamic fundamentalists.

It is the tactic of those seeking to destroy Israel, the Arabs and Iranians, to attack in such a way as to avoid responsibility and make responses difficult. However, these attacks would not be nearly so effective without the Arab population's participation or assistance with the fight. Sooner or later -- hopefully sooner -- leadership in Israel will need to arise that removes the Arabs sympathetic with Israel's destruction, which is a majority according to polls at least, from its midst.

In the second recent terrorist attack using a construction tractor, a citizen of Judea and Samaria has once again shown leadership and shot the Arab (who enjoyed Israeli citizenship) dead. The man, an IDF officer, lives in Sussia in southern Judea.

23 people were injured including at least one whose leg had to amputated. In the last attempt only a couple of weeks ago, it was a Kiryat Arba Hesder Yeshiva (combines military duty with Torah study) student who shot the Arab after a security guard failed to do so.

Click here for an Arutz Sheva video report.

Shai ben Tekoa of Deprogram Program links to a YNET article by Mordechai Kedar entitled "Mideast Survival Guide". He closes with the following excerpt but the whole thing is worth reading:

Only a people that is instilled with ideology, possesses a sense of mission and confidence in the righteousness of its path, and feels it is part of a historical process and is willing to suffer and pay the price of survivability in blood, sweat, and tears – only such people can survive in the Middle East. This region is no place for post-Jewish spineless people who are necessarily, sooner or later, also post Zionists.

Here's a repost of an Al Jezeera video featuring Mordechai Kedar taking an Al Jezeera newsman to task for asking about Jewish development in Jerusalem: