The Front Page Cover "I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened"
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Featuring:
How EU's forcing the labeling of products from disputed Israeli territories may actually backfire
Ruth Eglash
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"Rise up together as one voice"
"Be careful where you stand"
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Islamists Attack Christmas Party 
Barack nObama's timing is impeccable. As you recall, hours before the bloody Islamist attack in Paris three weeks ago, nObama offered these words of assurance regarding the metastasizing threat of the Islamic State's terror campaign: "We have contained them.” Apparently not.
Wednesday morning, nObama was asked in a CBS interview if an attack like the one in Paris could happen here. He responded: "We have to make sure that we keep a clear-eyed view about what needs to be done. ISIL is not going to pose an existential threat to us. ... [O]ur homeland has never been more protected by more effective intelligence and law enforcement professionals at every level than [it is] now. If you look at the number of successful terrorist attacks that have occurred, you know, we have disrupted a lot of them..." Apparently not.
Hours after that remark, two Islamists targeted an office Christmas party in San Bernardino, California, and murdered 14 people, wounding 17 others.
As for nObama's claim about being safer now than ever, an hour before the attack yesterday, we published my column, "The Escalating Cost of nObama's Foreign Policy Failures." In that column, I refuted nObama's absurd claim, and reiterated, "Make no mistake: The same sort of bloody mayhem we witnessed in Paris is coming to a homeland theater near you. Indeed, a timeline review of the frequency of Islamist attacks in the U.S. clearly shows a sharp increase beginning with nObama's first year in office." -The Patriot Post
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Clinton Calls for Investigation Into Chicago PD Wannabe elected official Hilly Clinton called for the federal government to investigate the Chicago Police Department after there were protests over the death of Laquan McDonald, who was killed by police in October 2014. The protests were sparked by the release of a video showing Chicago officers shooting the 17-year-old 16 times. It was released during the trial for the officer who fired the shots. Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon said in a statement, "Hilly Clinton is deeply troubled by the shooting of Laquan McDonald and the outstanding questions related to both the shooting and the video." In making the statement, Clinton, currently only a U.S. citizen seeking the limelight, is trying to bolster her credibility with Black Lives Matter protesters. What is unique about Clinton's newest position is that she burned one of her own supporters to do so. The Wall Street Journal notes that Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel worked as a staffer in the Bill Clinton administration and he, at least up until this week, supported Clinton. This is a way for her to distance herself from Barack nObama's platform, and try to become a more attractive candidate for supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement, a potential constituency she insulted in August. This happened even though Emanuel (who, interestingly, planned on taking his family to Cuba for a holiday vacation) fired his police superintendent the day before. He's just one more political casualty on Clinton's scramble for power. Clinton advisers like Sidney Blumenthal should beware. -The Patriot Post.
Long War Update: Whose Side Are We On?
Among the many consequences for Barack nObama's myriad foreign policy screw-ups comes this tidbit from The Washington Post: "Iraqis think the U.S. is in cahoots with the Islamic State, and it is hurting the war." Such charges are "beyond ridiculous," insists Col. Steve Warren, the military's Baghdad-based spokesman. "There's clearly no one in the West who buys it, but unfortunately, this is something that a segment of the Iraqi population believes." Perhaps it's because nObama gives that impression, not only casting aside American blood and treasure, but reportedly having military units warn Islamic State oil transport drivers before bombing their trucks.
Charles Krauthammer observed, "The chairman of the joint chiefs was asked whether he considers the drivers of the oil trucks by ISIS — the ones who export it — as combatants, and he said, 'No, they're civilians, trying to feed their families.' And that's why we actually dropped leaflets warning the drivers three-quarters of an hour before any air strikes. This is a joke and it comes not from the Pentagon, it comes from the White House. This has not been a serious air war and all the promises ... are a joke as long as this president is commander-in-chief." Just so, and the average Iraqi can hardly be blamed for hearing rumors of such events and believing that the U.S. is supporting the terrorists.
-The Patriot Post
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Bill Nye Tells Another Whopper of a Lie
As hard as it sounds, someone actually managed to outperform Barack nObama for stupidest comment award at the UN climate summit. Bill Nye, who's commonly known as "The Science Guy" — or "The Science Lie" in our humble shop — spewed more pompous rhetoric in an interview with the Huffington Post. "It's very reasonable," he asserted, "that the recent trouble in Paris is a result of climate change."
"There's water shortage in Syria, this is fact-based," Nye went on to explain. "Small and medium farmers have abandoned their farms because there's not enough water, not enough rainfall. And especially the young people who have not grown up there, have not had their whole lives invested in living off the land, the young people have gone to the big cities looking for work. There's not enough work for everybody, so the disaffected youths ... are more easily engaged and more easily recruited by terrorist organizations, and then they end up part way around the world in Paris shooting people."
"You can say, 'Well stamp out the terrorists,'" he concluded. "But if everybody's leaving their farms because of water shortages, that's a little bigger problem."
This isn't the first time Nye's made ridiculous surmises. This is the same person who last November blamed anomalous lake-effect snowfall on climate change, absurdly suggesting: "Everybody, when Lake Erie's warmer, more water evaporates into the air and it snows more. I don't make the rules, people." Only Lake Erie was sitting at four degrees below average at the time. Oops. Just two months later, in January 2015, he again blamed a major nor'easter on man-made global warming without a shred of evidence.
Any rational scientists knows that long-term precipitation patterns naturally fluctuate. What does Nye believe is driving Boko Haram, the Nigerian terrorist group whose country has been abnormally wet for the last two decades? But that's the problem — he's not a rational scientist. As meteorologist Joe Bastardi recently opined, "[T]he fact is [Nye] is not a man of science. He is an actor. That is his profession." As are most politicians. And so far, they are doing a terrible job convincing the public that global warming is "our greatest national security threat." And with comments like these, it's no wonder. -The Patriot Post
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{foxnews.com} ~ Defense Secretary Ash Carter on Thursday ordered the military to open all combat jobs to women, rebuffing requests by the Marine Corps to exclude women from certain front-line combat jobs... Declaring that "we are a joint force," Carter said that while moving women into these jobs will present challenges, the military can no longer afford to exclude half of the population from grueling military jobs. He said that any man or woman who meets the standards should be able to serve, and he gave the armed services 30 days to submit plans to make the historic change.
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nObama appoints anti-Israel Hamas supporter as new ISIL czar
{Jeff Dunetz} ~ President nObama has appointed second-generation anti-Israel activist, and former Iran deal negotiator Robert O. (Rob) Malley as his ‘senior adviser on the counterinsurgency campaign against ISIL.’... Malley knows much about terrorism as his dad was close friends with Palestinian terrorist Yasser Arafat (they both were born and raised in Egypt and each was funded by the USSR). While the sins of the father are not normally visited on the son, this son has chosen to follow in his dad’s footsteps. CAMERA reported that Malley grew up in France, where his Egyptian-born father, Simon Malley, and New York raised mother, Barbara (Silverstein) Malley, were radical publishers of a controversial magazine about Africa and the so-called Third World. Malley’s parents were rabidly anti-Israel and counted Yasir Arafat as a personal friend. Indeed, Arafat was among those “leaders” (for want of a better word) who had intervened with the French government to readmit the Malley family to France after they had been expelled for their radical activities..
Exclusive: Secret U.S. Hostage Held by Taliban Allies
{Shane Harris} ~ ‘There are still Americans in captivity in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region,’ a top congressman reveals. The question is: How many? And what’s Washington doing to recover them?... A group of Islamist militants aligned with the Taliban has been holding an American man hostage for more than a year, according to U.S. officials and others familiar with his case, which has not been reported previously. The disclosure of another American hostage raises questions about how many Americans are being held abroad—and what the U.S. government is doing to recover them. The nObama administration has been working to streamline its hostage rescue efforts, which critics say have suffered from a lumbering bureaucracy that hasn’t kept family members fully informed about their loved ones. How effective those efforts have been is unclear. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/12/01/exclusive-secret-u-s-hostage-held-by-taliban-allies.html.
Gingrich Unloads on nObama...
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich unloaded on President nObama’s strange world view that global warming is a bigger threat to America than the current war being waged by ISIS terrorists... Gingrich said that the President’s views go beyond that of a person trying to remain true to extreme left-wing ideology, but that he’s simply “delusional” and “lives in a fantasy world.” Does he? Look at his responses to terrorist attacks in France: When Paris suffered an attack at Charlie Hebdo, the White House responded by sending James Taylor over to play You’ve Got A Friend on guitar. Now, as Paris suffers the worst terrorist attack on their soil since World War II, nObama helps fight by attending a global warming conference, something he said would be a “powerful rebuke” to ISIS. Gingrich isn’t having it and blasts the President for having “a religious-like commitment to a fantasy world.” http://www.thepoliticalinsider.com/gingrich-unloads-on-obama-for-going-after-climate-change/?utm_source=SailThru%26utm_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=TPI%20Newsletter%20-%2012-12-15%20Horizon&utm_term=Daily%20Sends.
There Is No “Pattern” of Mass Shootings in America
{Bob Adelmann} ~ President nObama commented on the shooting in San Bernardino on Wednesday in an interview on CBS News... "The one thing we do know is that we have a pattern now of mass shootings in this country that has no parallel anywhere else in the world." Ironically, he made his statement on the day after he arrived back from Paris, the site of the November 13 terrorist attack that killed 130 people. France, which has strict gun control, has had five terrorist attacks in 2015, and Europe has seen seven in total, and the year's not over yet. The president needs to check his facts before attempting to scare the American people into enacting more gun laws. Two data sets disprove his claim — one from the FBI and the other from Grant Duwe, a criminologist at the Minnesota Department of Corrections and author of Mass Murder in the United States: A History. http://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/crime/item/22072-there-is-no-pattern-of-mass-shootings-in-america?utm_content=Rudy%20Tirre&utm_source=VerticalResponse&utm_medium=Email&utm_term=There%20Is%20No%20%26ldquo%3BPattern%26rdquo%3B%20of%20Mass%20Shootings%20in%20America&utm_campaign=There%20Is%20No%20%E2%80%9CPattern%E2%80%9D%20of%20Mass%20Shootings%20in%20Americacontent.
nObama blames the victims: “We have to search ourselves...”
{Pamela Geller} ~ nObama is wrong, but he’s right. It is not America, but the Islamic world that must search itself and self-reflect... Islam and its adherents must search themselves as a society. The ummah (the worldwide Muslim community) needs to search itself. They don’t. They have no impetus to do that. Their hatred, violence and supremacism are sanctioned by a cowed West. They are winning. nObama’s asinine comment reflects that. It is the language of the conquered. We are free — we live in the greatest country in the world based on individual rights and freedom. If we have to search ourselves, it’s because this country elected this plant twice. If we have to search ourselves, it’s because this country has bought into the jihad denial on the left. If we have to search ourselves, it’s because we allow nObama to continue his jihad against freedom, against America. If we have to search ourselves, it’s because this country has lost its civilizational self-esteem. If we have to search ourselves, it’s because this country we haven’t run the left out of a once decent, moral and rational society. If we have to search ourselves, it’s because we haven’t marched on the White House..
Navy Accepts Fourth MUOS Communication Satellite
{Sam LaGrone} ~ The fourth satellite that will make up the Navy’s high bandwidth next generation communication constellation has been accepted by the service, according to manufacturer Lockheed Martin... MUOS-4 — launched in September — completed on-orbit testing on Nov. 30 and will be relocated to its operational orbit position next year. “The satellite joins MUOS-1, MUOS-2 and MUOS-3, launched respectively in 2012, 2013 and January 2015, and four required MUOS ground stations. MUOS-5, an on-orbit spare, also will be launched next year,” read a Lockheed Martin statement. http://news.usni.org/2015/12/03/navy-accepts-fourth-muos-communication-satellite?utm_source=USNI+News&utm_campaign=7b0300bf58-USNI_NEWS_DAILY&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_0dd4a1450b-7b0300bf58-231491269&mc_cid=7b0300bf58&mc_eid=3999f18767.
What if the digital economy creates lots of wealth but few jobs?
{James Pethokoukis} ~ In the new Oxford University study “Industrial Renewal in the 21st Century: Evidence from US Cities,” researchers Thor Berger and Carl Benedikt Frey examine the tech revolution’s job effects... How much creation and how much destruction is really happening — and in what Schumpeterian share? Is society overall benefitting? Berger and Frey’s results suggest technological unemployment and underemployment are big risks going forward. The digital economy is creating wealth and jobs only for a few. As the FT’s Izabella Kaminska cites from Frey, “Major economies like the US need to think about the implications for lower-skilled workers, to ensure that vast swathes of people don’t get left behind.” Here are major results of the study: http://www.aei.org/publication/what-if-the-digital-economy-creates-lots-of-wealth-but-few-jobs/?utm_source=paramount&utm_medium=email&utm_content=AEITODAY&utm_campaign=120415.
Leading Muslim Voice Speaks Out Against Islamic Extremism
{Genevieve Wood} ~ In the aftermath of the massacre in Paris and the shooting this week in San Bernardino, Calif., the debate over the threat of Islamic terrorism is again front and center... Many political leaders, including President Barack nObama, refuse to make the connection between the terrorist acts of groups like ISIS and the religion of Islam. And few Muslim leaders appear willing to speak out against Islamic extremism. But one such voice, Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, the founder and president of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, sat down with The Daily Signal to do just that..
Conservative Leaders Against McCon-nell’s Campaign Finance...
{Melissa Quinn} ~ As the Senate gears up to debate the $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill, conservative leaders are pushing back against a measure floated by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McCon-nell boosting the amount of money political parties can spend in coordination with candidates... In a letter circulated among conservative groups, nearly 50 conservative leaders Thursday rallied in opposition to a campaign finance policy rider McCon-nell, R-Ky., will reportedly insert into the omnibus spending bill. McCon-nell’s measure would lift the amount of money political parties can spend in coordination with a candidate. “There is no doubt that campaign finance restrictions need reform,” the signatories said. “However, the McCon-nell rider provides preferential treatment to the Washington establishment and subordinates the voices of those who contribute to other multi-candidate organizations. Therefore, the Congress should not include this rider.”.
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How EU's forcing the labeling of products from disputed Israeli territories may actually backfire
Ruth Eglash
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It might even help, he said.
It might even help, he said.
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A few days after the EU announced its new labeling guidelines, Berg continued to expand his business: installing a new whiskey distillery in his boutique winery, a few miles from the outskirts of the Palestinian city of Ramallah.
A few days after the EU announced its new labeling guidelines, Berg continued to expand his business: installing a new whiskey distillery in his boutique winery, a few miles from the outskirts of the Palestinian city of Ramallah.
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He is also preparing to launch an online shop to sell his wares, as well as goods from other nearby Jewish settlements, to Israel's evangelical Christian supporters in the United States. And he may also get a little help from one of Israel's biggest fans: Republican presidential candidate and evangelical pastor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, who has led dozens of tours to Israel and never misses a chance to visit Berg's winery.
He is also preparing to launch an online shop to sell his wares, as well as goods from other nearby Jewish settlements, to Israel's evangelical Christian supporters in the United States. And he may also get a little help from one of Israel's biggest fans: Republican presidential candidate and evangelical pastor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, who has led dozens of tours to Israel and never misses a chance to visit Berg's winery.
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"I believe the best way to fight the decision is to show that we have people who love Israel, they read the Bible and they know this is our homeland," Berg said, as he described the e-commerce initiative, called "Blessings of Israel."
"I believe the best way to fight the decision is to show that we have people who love Israel, they read the Bible and they know this is our homeland," Berg said, as he described the e-commerce initiative, called "Blessings of Israel."
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"We are proud of where we are located and if you want us to label our products, we will and we will tell you the story of every product, every factory, where it is located and how it came about and what our connection is to the land of Israel," he said.
"We are proud of where we are located and if you want us to label our products, we will and we will tell you the story of every product, every factory, where it is located and how it came about and what our connection is to the land of Israel," he said.
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If Berg is sanguine about the prospect of labeling goods from the settlements, the Israeli government is definitely not. The leadership sees the new development as a dangerous path toward a full boycott of Israeli products in Europe.
If Berg is sanguine about the prospect of labeling goods from the settlements, the Israeli government is definitely not. The leadership sees the new development as a dangerous path toward a full boycott of Israeli products in Europe.
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On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the Foreign Ministry to re-evaluate the European Union's involvement in peace efforts with the Palestinians because of its decision to label settlement goods.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the Foreign Ministry to re-evaluate the European Union's involvement in peace efforts with the Palestinians because of its decision to label settlement goods.
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Even though goods from the settlements make up only 0.1 percent of Israel's overall export capacity, the announcement drew angry responses from politicians ranging from cries of hypocrisy to comparing the move to the ostracizing of Jewish businesses in Europe during the Holocaust.
Even though goods from the settlements make up only 0.1 percent of Israel's overall export capacity, the announcement drew angry responses from politicians ranging from cries of hypocrisy to comparing the move to the ostracizing of Jewish businesses in Europe during the Holocaust.
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One lawmaker even posted a Nazi-era photo of a storefront painted with "Jude," the German word for Jew, and a Star of David on his Facebook page.
One lawmaker even posted a Nazi-era photo of a storefront painted with "Jude," the German word for Jew, and a Star of David on his Facebook page.
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The recent decision by a German supermarket to pull settlement-made wines from its shelves drew damning headlines in Israel. It was also the focus of a weekly cabinet meeting in which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it "a boycott in every respect." Within hours, the store apologized and agreed to restore the goods.
The recent decision by a German supermarket to pull settlement-made wines from its shelves drew damning headlines in Israel. It was also the focus of a weekly cabinet meeting in which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it "a boycott in every respect." Within hours, the store apologized and agreed to restore the goods.
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The European Union says it is obliged to fully inform consumers about the geographic origin of products so that the buyers can make informed decisions. If goods originate in a Jewish settlement located in territories captured by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, then the public should know, it says. Europe considers Jewish settlements illegal under international law.
The European Union says it is obliged to fully inform consumers about the geographic origin of products so that the buyers can make informed decisions. If goods originate in a Jewish settlement located in territories captured by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, then the public should know, it says. Europe considers Jewish settlements illegal under international law.
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Lars Faaborg-Andersen, the EU ambassador to Israel, said at a conference in Jerusalem that he was surprised by the accusations of anti-Semitism and hypocrisy.
Lars Faaborg-Andersen, the EU ambassador to Israel, said at a conference in Jerusalem that he was surprised by the accusations of anti-Semitism and hypocrisy.
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"Under EU consumer law, it is not permissible to write 'Made in Israel' on a product from an Israeli settlement. That would be incorrect and misleading information," he said.
"Under EU consumer law, it is not permissible to write 'Made in Israel' on a product from an Israeli settlement. That would be incorrect and misleading information," he said.
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More than 500,000 Jewish settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem on land that the Palestinians seek for a future state. There are 16 to 20 industrial parks as well as hundreds of farms, vineyards and date groves. Many employ Palestinian laborers.
More than 500,000 Jewish settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem on land that the Palestinians seek for a future state. There are 16 to 20 industrial parks as well as hundreds of farms, vineyards and date groves. Many employ Palestinian laborers.
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"The EU decision will not hurt Israel's economy, but it might affect the Palestinian economy, because if businesses in the settlements do not get orders, they will have to fire their Palestinian workers," said David Simha, president of the Israeli-Palestinian Chamber of Commerce, a nongovernmental organization aimed at bringing the two sides together via business.
"The EU decision will not hurt Israel's economy, but it might affect the Palestinian economy, because if businesses in the settlements do not get orders, they will have to fire their Palestinian workers," said David Simha, president of the Israeli-Palestinian Chamber of Commerce, a nongovernmental organization aimed at bringing the two sides together via business.
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Some of the Jewish-owned businesses there receive support from abroad specifically because they are in located the West Bank. Berg's Psagot Winery, for example, has an angel investor in the form of the wealthy Jewish American Falic family, owners of Duty Free Americas and big supporters of Israel.
Some of the Jewish-owned businesses there receive support from abroad specifically because they are in located the West Bank. Berg's Psagot Winery, for example, has an angel investor in the form of the wealthy Jewish American Falic family, owners of Duty Free Americas and big supporters of Israel.
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In Ramallah, the EU decision was seen as a decisive step toward fighting the growing Israeli settlement industry and part of the Palestinian Authority's diplomatic war against Israel in general.
In Ramallah, the EU decision was seen as a decisive step toward fighting the growing Israeli settlement industry and part of the Palestinian Authority's diplomatic war against Israel in general.
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"We appreciate this positive move, and it is our hope that the European Union will develop this labeling into a total boycott of all settlements and settlers, including Israeli officials who live in settlements," said Palestinian lawmaker Hanan Ashrawi.
"We appreciate this positive move, and it is our hope that the European Union will develop this labeling into a total boycott of all settlements and settlers, including Israeli officials who live in settlements," said Palestinian lawmaker Hanan Ashrawi.
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Bassam Zakarneh, head of the Palestinian Workers' Union, said the EU decision reflected a willingness "to fight illegal building in the West Bank" and was a sure sign of support for Palestinian rights.
Bassam Zakarneh, head of the Palestinian Workers' Union, said the EU decision reflected a willingness "to fight illegal building in the West Bank" and was a sure sign of support for Palestinian rights.
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At the Psagot winery, Berg's Palestinian workers say they are more worried about the deteriorating security situation in the West Bank than decisions in far-away Europe to reword labels. But they do understand that if Berg loses revenues, their jobs, which offer higher wages and better conditions than Palestinian employers, could be jeopardized.
At the Psagot winery, Berg's Palestinian workers say they are more worried about the deteriorating security situation in the West Bank than decisions in far-away Europe to reword labels. But they do understand that if Berg loses revenues, their jobs, which offer higher wages and better conditions than Palestinian employers, could be jeopardized.
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"It is good working with Jews, and we have much better employment conditions here than in Ramallah," said Hamudi Hadalin, a 23-year-old Palestinian who works in the winery's visitors center and lives in a nearby village. "I really hope there will be peace one day. Then I can continue to work in this place without any problems."
"It is good working with Jews, and we have much better employment conditions here than in Ramallah," said Hamudi Hadalin, a 23-year-old Palestinian who works in the winery's visitors center and lives in a nearby village. "I really hope there will be peace one day. Then I can continue to work in this place without any problems."
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