anti-Israel activists inside Ahava today shutting it down
I wasn’t intending to go to Ahava today. I went down to hear the judgment of the second Russell Tribunal on Palestine at Amnesty International in London.
As Michael Mansfield QC led the other “jury” members in to the room the whole audience rose in silence as if this was some properly constituted legal court instead of the embarrassing sham kangaroo spectacle that it was.
Mr Mansfield read out the judgment and told us that no witnesses of the companies on trial had been present over the two days of the tribunal.
Then the “jury” took questions. I asked whether Israel’s security had come into the “jury’s” deliberations at all. Mr Mansfield told me they had but that one must balance the security of Israeli civilians with human rights as a whole and he quoted the opinion of International Court of Justice which said that Israel’s “separation wall” was disproportionate to its needs.
Mr Mansfield QC (5th from left) reading out the "judgement" today.
Mr Mansfield, in his summing up, concluded that one tactic that should be pursued was of popular action and that if defendants find themselves in court after entering offices or wherever then they could use the defence of “necessity” and argue that they were doing it for the greater good.
As a footnote he told us there is one such non-violent protest taking place at Ahava “now, today” and that Ahava is complicit in illegality.
So I quickly went down to Ahava and found the entrance cordoned off with police tape and a police car on the pavement outside the shop. There was a heavy police presence coming and going from the door of the shop as police took statements from shoppers who were in the shop when it was stormed by two anti-Israel activists.
The activists had locked themselves down on the floor and after being freed were eventually led away to a police van (see footage below).
There were already protesters outside Ahava when I arrived but soon many more made their way from the Russell Tribunal press conference at Amnesty and started taunting Ahava and handing out leaflets to passers-by.
Sadly, the Law Society now has its signature all over this kind of behaviour by hosting the Russell Tribunal in the first place.
As I understand it the Law Society asked for its name to be taken off the literature advertising the tribunal but the first line of today’s “judgment”, as read out by Mr Mansfield, reads:
“The RTP London Session took place at the Law Society, 113 Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1PL on 20-21 November 2010.”
This “judgment” will now be taken all around the world and used in unsuspecting legal systems everywhere and judges will see “The Law Society” quoted and presume this tribunal has some sort of legal standing.
The Law Society and the law have now well and truly crossed over into politics.
The great Lord Denning will be spinning in his grave.
Audio:
Michael Mansfield QC at RTOP
Clips:
an activist on the floor of Ahava today
Police bringing out some of the activists' belongings today
Outside Ahava's boarded-up windows
Outside Ahava today while the shop is shut
RichardMillett's Blog 
Why the f**k does Ahava not take out an injunction against these c***s?
when do you suppose the police / law will actually do something about this Jew bullying?
Great post Richard.
These people are scum, including the ego maniac Mansfield.
I disagree on Denning though. Nasty man he was.
The Law society need to stop their name being used on these so called activists literature .
This sham may have taken place in there building but that’s not an endorsement.
Mansfield has got rich off legal aid, he is the self-publicist par excellence. Show him a bandwagon and he will jump on it.
When I was a student I was very involved in campaigns on behalf of wrongly-convicted prisoners. It was through this that I encountered Mansfield first-hand on a number of occasions.
Now there is no doubt he did brilliant work in some of the miscarriages of justice. There is also no doubt that he is horribly un-self-aware and egotistical. The only people I’ve met who came close were David Mellor and Liam Gallagher, but both were humble in comparison to Mansfield.
I don’t like to be personal but this is relevant. It is his vile egomania that draws him to demonize Israel so much.
Pathetic Assholes Conspiring to Boycott Israel
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Here we tell you everything you need to know about anti-Zionism and BDS! Just what is BDS?
BDS stands for Bigots, Dingbats and Scoundrels. BDS-ers come from the goosestepping Neo-Nazi Right, from the bedwetting radical Left, from the “anarchist” anarcho-fascist movements, from the various front groups for the “International Solidarity Movement” or ISM (which stands for “I Support Murderers”).
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Why don’t you like to be personal Chas? It seems entirely appropriate in the case of this arrogant bumwipe.
Was the self-hater Bruce Levy arrested? Isn’t he already appearing in Court for aggravated trespass?
The LS is entirely complicit, Michael. They have been told repeatedly what this lynch mob is all about, and chose to deny, deflect and duck. They are scum.
I think this is a victory. That they have to resort to such direct action bespeaks weakness and insecurity.
“………Mr Mansfield, in his summing up, concluded that one tactic that should be pursued was of popular action and that if defendants find themselves in court after entering offices or wherever then they could use the defence of “necessity” and argue that they were doing it for the greater good.
As a footnote he told us there is one such non-violent protest taking place at Ahava “now, today” and that Ahava is complicit in illegality……….”
Surely it is illegal for an officer of the law such as Mansfield is to incite such action against law abiding citizens of the UK! I am not a lawyer, but I would like one to check the legality of a man with the status of Mansfield coaxing rabble rousers to attack Jewish owned shops in the UK, shops with legal tenancy agreements and whose owneers pay taxes and business rates, but are not protected against these ill informed ignoramuses!
I was going to buy some new eyecream, bath salts and other stuff from Boots tomorrow.
But seeing as the ISM put the word ‘Ahava’ into my mind, I went with them.
“Hello Chas Newkey-Burden,
You sent a payment of *** GBP to Ahava UK (sales@ahava.co.uk)”
Good work, ISM!
Is the shop closed now? Im just glad they get no publicity! And if ‘they’ are reading this . ha ha ha 🙂 With all the efforts they make I have not seen one article or news clip about them..
Orna, it was open again by about 2.30pm, so was probably shut for about 3 hours in all. Monday morning is quiet for business anyway. Great, Chas!
Pingback: Ooh ah, Ahava, say Ooh ah, Ahava | Oy Va Goy! (Chas Newkey-Burden)
50 pounds (not that I have that sum going spare!) to the man or lady who stands with these suckers and holds up a large placard bearing the legend: NATIONAL IDIOT SOCIETY
That would really cause bystanders to laugh at them and make them look truly foolish!
The more I see them the more I see images of 1930s Germany.
Well said, Ariadne.
Jonathan – bad boy, using the sexist c word! (but I’ll forgive you … just this once!) ;~)
Richard, the pedantic old proofreader in me caught “bordered up” – shome mishshtake, shurely?
Great, informative post as usual – we must all be grateful for the trouble you take on attending these things.
Why the f**k does Ahava not take out an injunction against these p****s?
(to prove I am not sexist Daffers)
thanks Jonathan
I appreciate it, especially after I saw that the second of the 2 nutters looked suspiciously like a non-c…t 😉
Haha good work, Hoff!
Following Chas’ example, I will be placing an order with Ahava.
The sweetest revenge is success. That’s another reason they hate Israel so obsessively.
I popped into Ahava after the AJEX parade on Sunday afternoon and bought some nice skin products. I had a chat to the staff about their problems. They were impressively sanguine and good-humoured about the whole business, but said their biggest problem was complaints from neighbouring shopkeepers about the noise & disruption of the protests. So if we go there we should shop in the other shops as well as Ahava. Treat the protestors like screaming brats or yapping dogs and ignore them.
Its not just that he got rich off legal aid. His chamber specialises in defending those who strive for the downfall of the UK. Take a look at the website of Tooks Chamber – the client list reads like Bin Ladens Ifta dinner guest list. If you don’t know what Ifta dinner is check out that other great liberal’s speech to the faithfull at the Ramadan dinner at the White House.
Mansfield was inciting people to break the law. That is a criminal offence. He should be doing porridge. Utter scum.
He also seems to be ignorant of legal principles generally. The Hove defence won’t work. For several reasons, in fact, but not least that the judge was officially reprimanded for his despicable, skewed, biased and political summing-up.
“The sweetest revenge is success. That’s another reason they hate Israel so obsessively”
Well, of course. Those ‘protesting’ (=inciting to antisemitic hatred, yes, just like the 1930s, but I have been saying this for years, mostly being mocked for my ‘hysteria’ 😦 …) outside Ahava are mostly utter losers with small equipment who need to blame others for their own uselessness. Jew-baiting is less onerous than getting off your backside and contributing something to society. Again, just like the 1930s.
I don’t know when (or if) the law/police will do anything. This country is truly f***d. Islamist schools are openly teaching antisemitic texts (something we have known for ages) and all Gove can say is “It doesn’t seem right”. Yes, Mikey, it isn’t right. In fact, it’s a criminal offence. It’s on the statute book. How about doing something about it, just fr’instance chucking those antisemites into jail (including the racist Ahava thugs, of course), and those who aren’t Brits or are naturalised out of the country? (Yes, the latter is perfectly legal).
I emailed Gove and told him that unless this is done NOW, I’ll have to conclude that his government has no balls and in fact are cowardly liars. I urge everybody here to do the same, CC. to your MP.
It’s almost the anniversary of Kristalnacht.
I have never heard of Ahava. Where is it? I want to buy whatever they are selling.
They are selling the continuing occupation of another people.
Buzz off back to your usual habitat of neo-Nazi websites, mostly antisemite. This was a Jewish country before Arabs were invented.
Yoni is quite right that envy and impotence drives many Jew-haters.
I have lived in an occupied and later quasi-occupied country almost all my life. We, the occupied, behaved reasonably, as a consequence they the occupiers behaved reasonably and so we partied together and had a great time. When lots of occupiers left most of us the occupied hated every instant of it.
Silke, it’s the Arabs who are the occupiers and squatters.
thanks Yoni
my bad
but I am kind of out of my depth as to how to make the point I wanna make and which I think is a legitimate one in a climate where Israel is accused of occupation and the Zeitgeist has it, that all occupation is bad?
Are we talked Germany and Americans, Silke?
Butter fingers, sorry:
Are we talking Germany (or Austria) and Americans?
Isn’t it time for a UK version of the Hashomer?
The Executive Board of UNESCO has declared two of Judaism’ holiest sites to be mosques.
Even though there may be little point in bothering with this corrupt and antisemitic body, I have chosen to sign the following petition, adding a few choice words about these disgusting people:
http://www.petitiononline.com/rabbiv/petition.html
Never give in–never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or
petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.
Sir Winston Churchill
Replacement narrative:
The UNESCO decleration is not the first time Muslims have targeted the symbols of other faiths and civilisations. The chronology extensive. In 630CE Muhammad led 10,000 Muslim soldiers into Mecca and turned Hindu’s most prominent spot, the Ka’aba, into the Masjid al-Haram Mosque. Since that time we could go around the world and name sites that have been symbols of Christianity and Judaism that are now designated mosques, not least in our own golden city Jerusalem. Such mosques are known as Rabats, an Islamic domination at the epicentre of a conquered people’s land – see Cordoba, Istanbul as further examples and witness the destruction of the Buddhist statues in Bimayan as a means of destroying history to replce it with an Islamic narrative. These protesters at Ahava and Michael Mansfield are victims of this replacement narrative as they refuse to understand that they are footsoldiers in in their own destruction.
Sarah, they are in Covent Garden. You can also buy online here:
http://www.ahava.co.uk/aboutahava.html
I have just done the unpleasant task of reading the Anti-AHAVA website –
” Free Palestine Fortnightly Demonstration ” – it is full of Their usual fantasies & boasting .
In reference to the Bertrand Russell Tribunal it says :
” now the sentence has passed . Ahava is getting its just desserts ”
I think that this sentence is indication that these Extremists are enboldened by the antics of the Tribunal . The totally one-sided propaganda of the Tribunal has acted as incitement to behave in this sort of way .
Yoni@5.55pm
Damn I’ve been outed, you’re a f***wit Yoni
Well, you would say that, you thick antisemite?
Spoken like a true f***kwiy
Condemned from your own mouth, idiot.
Ian, read up on paranoid schizophrenia: most of those antisemites display its classical symptoms of a total divorce from reality. I ask you: “The sentence was passed”??!!
These morons have actually convinced themselves that this was a real court of law, instead of infantile make-believe.
And of course, the paranoia essential to their Jew-phobia is unmistakable.
“These morons have actually convinced themselves that this was a real court of law, instead of infantile make-believe.”
Richard too seems to have convinced himself that the event was a ‘real court of law’ – “This ‘judgment’ will now be taken all around the world and used in unsuspecting legal systems everywhere and judges will see “The Law Society” quoted and presume this tribunal has some sort of legal standing.”
It will will it? They will, will they?
Yes, they will. Just look at Goldstone; another sham of a report. But look how much credence has been given to it. People only look at the conclusions not how the reports and tribunals are constituted.
Then why not take the time to publicly refute each of the points raised by the tribunal in the ‘judgment’?
That way these naive judges in legal systems around the world won’t read the conclusions of an independent report and incorporate it into their own laws by mistake?
I would love to Barush/Baruch if i had the time. They had months of preparation and then two whole days and tens of people giving “evidence”. But even if i did do this i am so outnumbered that it would make no difference as the balance of opinion will always be against me. You know you are setting me an impossible task. Nice thought though. Maybe the “powers that be” should do it instead.
Richard
in real (office and village) life I have come quite often across accusations which are impossible to refute, unless you are allowed to make the accuser sit in a witness stand and subject him/her to cross-examination after he has sworn to say the truth.
But even that wouldn’t do, unless it would also be possible to impose severe sanctions on the accuser should he/she repeat or imply to repeat and/or hint at the successfully refuted accusation.
oh and not to restrict myself to “normal” life: blood libel anybody?
Which part of “presume” are you struggling with, Baruch?
@Yoni: It’s apparently a ‘fact’ – (as Richard states that it will happen) – that qualified judges around the world will make changes in their laws. in their countries. based on a presumption that findings from an independent body, published at the end of a two-day event, are in fact active legislation in the UK.
You don’t struggle with that assertation at all?
[…am expecting you to pick up on my typos, Yoni, rather than formulate an answer].
Yoni
yes, we are
Are we talking Germany (or Austria) and Americans?
Germany, first Nuremberg, then Wiesbaden (European Airforce Headquarter) I like to bring up that experience whenever I stumble across the meme that occupation is unquestioningly always a horrible thing –
I’ve been borne in 1942 and thus I don’t mean the whole re-education etc thing but I mean the lure and the seduction of it. The huge cars which stopped everywhere for us to cross safely, their friendliness with us children, the smashing bands they would send to our carnival parades etc. etc.
Since we were amenable (our elders hated or pretended to hate them as “lacking culture”) they were able to show us how good life could be.
i.e. “occupation” can be something the occupied can hugely profit from, if he/she is smart enough to see which side the bread is buttered.
We are dealing with people who don’t even blink with embarrassment when Elias Hazineh an Arab propagandist tells Karsenty with a straight face:
“If you’d been under fire as a child, scrolled under the corner for 10, 15 minutes or whatever, your blood would dry up before your hit. You’re not going to get much blood out of him.”
See: http://www.ctstv.com/michaelcoren/index.php?vidID=20588
If you grew up with anti-Semites as I did, there is nothing you can say to them that will shift their position, as if they had to concede that their hatred is illogical and foundless there would be no purpose in their lives. I believe that they are fed this hatred in their mother’s milk so that it has become genetic – one only has to see the commonality of expression, gait and attitude to wonder if they are all genetically bound.
“the powers that be”?
Is that a coded reference to Jonathan Hoffman, who seems to be single-handedly running the British Zionist Federation (the majority of whose organisations want him out) into the grave.
I would pay good money to read what would be Hoffman’s hilarious dog’s dinner of an attempt to critique a legal document.
Perhaps the ZF should look for educated leaders capable of socking it to the enemy in a persuasive, cutting manner, rather than the populist buffoon we currently have lording it over us.
Well, it would be good if the ZF did do something constructive yes and it is made up of far more people than just Jonathan. There are other organisations too though. The ZF is just one part of a huge lobby…..apparently.
Yoni, that petition seems to be doing rather well. 33339 signatures to date.
Suetbullshit: “the majority of whose organisations want him out”
So why, fuckwit, was I just re-elected?
You were just re-elected Jonathan, because you were the only candidate. The ZF gets what it deserves.
Here’s a video every Jewish person should view:
[blip.tv ?posts_id=4443792&dest=-1]
Never mind, here’s the link:
http://www.blip.tv/file/4425207
Jonathan Hoffman, as the so-called Jew of conscience points out, your grubby leadership style has transformed the once glorious ZF of Abba Eban and Chaim Weizmann from a vibrant and pluralist association, the very embodiment of democratic Zionism, into a hollow carcass, an organisation many are ashamed to associate themselves with, a quasi-racist entity which mixes with white supremacists.
Take the tone you address people on this blog and the jc, for example.”Fuckwit” – Is that really language befitting a representative of British Zionism? I know nothing about your family situation, but if you have/will have grandchildren at some point, what are they going to think when they read your infantile, filthy comments? Ashamed, I’m guessing.
Buck up your game, Hoffman. You’re behaviour the last couple of years has been deplorable. Sort it out.
LOL
the real Suetonius is suffering torments worse than hell when he finds out that his honest name is misused by such an fuckwit
“Jonathan Hoffman, who seems to be single-handedly running the British Zionist Federation (the majority of whose organisations want him out) into the grave”
Jonathan is one of a very small handful of people who have the guts to stand up to antisemites. Most of the so-called Jewish leadership in this country, from the absurd chief rabbi down (or perhaps that should be “from the absurd chief rabbi up”) are boot-licking, spineless cowards who have a lot to answer for in regard to the acceptance of antisemitism into mainstream discourse, which has met with virtually no resistance to speak of from the ‘leadership’. Those criticising him should first try to do what he has been doing, before flinging mud at him.
here’s where that spoiled brat from California in the video belongs to
http://www.ngo-monitor.org/article.php?id=2700
and here’s what NGO-Monitor has to say about the funding of Coalition for Women for Peace
http://www.ngo-monitor.org/article/coalition_of_women_for_peace
funded by NIF which doesn’t support BDS wholeheartedly only when it is done a bit
in the good ol’ times they’d be called traitors
these days they are even allowed to keep their passports
I watched that “Jew of Conscience” video
if that thing they chained themselves to in the shop was concrete than it must have been a special light-weight-concrete judging from the ease with which it was carried away by just one person i.e. these guys can’t even come up with let alone transport a proper concrete block.
Question:
English not being my native language I am puzzled whether Jew of Conscience is really proper English. Shouldn’t it rather be Jew OFF Conscience?
Rae has obviously nothing better to do with her time than waste lots of money and air miles to come over from America for a sham conference, a bit of singing outside a shop and talking into a camera. Eventually, when she looks back she will have done nothing with her life and have made zero contribution to society.
Richard
Rae is interesting only as an example of what that “we teach the Israelis democracy” outfit NIF is spending its donors’ money on.
Wherever NIF shows up it takes the we are the super-righteous ones stance and then it supports nutters like her flying around the world to spew hatred ?
Says the ‘non practicing’ solicitor cum roving reporter, going to pro Palestinian events around London then writing about them on his blog.
Thanks, mostly harmless, but exposing the hypocrisy and anti-Semitism that you perpetuate is very worthwhile.
yes, Richard it is true and genuine and laudable and hopefully satisfying for you “good for the life” activity.
while that Rae-woman’s disregard for the well-being of her Israeli-family and their neighbours is disgusting
in my view she is campaigning for freedom of “expression” for suicide bombers – an issue those safely living in California are eminently qualified to lobby for. ;-(
“You’re behaviour the last couple of years has been deplorable”
Come back when you’ve learned to spell.
Sorry Yoni, I meant “your”. My blunder notwithstanding, Hoffman’s behaviour cannot be described as anything but deplorable.
‘Sorry Yoni, I meant “your”. My blunder notwithstanding, Hoffman’s behaviour cannot be described as anything but deplorable.’
Like censure of the pseudo-Latin master, Pseudonius, matters anywhere but in his own head.
That may work with the sexually abused boys in your English prep school. It doesn’t anywhere else.
Actually, Macarthur, they have a fixation on Jonathan. When the Jewish-state haters run out of anything constructive to say, which is usually quite quickly, they start slagging off Jonathan, so he must be doing something right.
My mail order box from Ahava just arrived, so I’m off for a pamper!
http://www.oyvagoy.com/2010/11/22/ooh-ah-ahava-say-ooh-ah-ahava/
Be sure to post before and after pictures.
“That may work with the sexually abused boys in your English prep school. ”
Anybody know what this clown is babbling about?
I was at the buycott on noon Sunday to buy some Ahava products, but the shop wasn’t open. I got tired of waiting and left. What happened?
Err maybe
1. They felt the heavy burden of supporting a regime exploiting an occupied people and as a show of solidarity closed for the day.
2. They didn’t want the unwelcome attention that rubbing up with the likes of the EDL brings
3. The buycott was so successful they sold out of all their stock
4. The super activists managed to close the shop
The Dead Sea is partly in Israel. Buzz off back to your neo-Nazi website, mostly antisemite.
Yes this is true but Mitzpe Shalem is in occupied territory, sorry ‘disputed’ territory.
‘ Buzz off back to your neo-Nazi website’
What website might that be?
I tried to comment on mostly antisemitic’s blog, but the site won’t display the verification (‘Turing’) code. I think he’s scared of posts that disagree with his brainless agenda. So here goes instead:
“I am more upset about my country perpetrating human rights violations against the Palestinian people for generations”
Anyone ever explained to you about ‘begging the question’, ‘Mr Professor’?
1. There is no ‘Palestinian people’.
2. The so-called ‘Palestinians’ are the ones committing the human rights violations by conducting a genocidal war against Israeli Jews and indeed Jews elsewhere (although some quislings and plenty of antisemitic non-Jews believe this is unimportant: Jews should be good little victims and not complain when murdered).
It’s not my blog you plonker, it just happens to be a blog I agree with most of the time, you should try reading it once in a while instead of the hate filled sites you seem to frequent.
1. There is no ‘Palestinian people’.
Would you prefer it if they called themselves Martians?
Plonker your father, asshole. You link to it. Normally, at least among people with a positive IQ, that means it’s your blog. Kapish, or do you need it explained in shorter words?
They call themselves ‘Palestinians’ as part of the canard that there is a country called ‘Palestine’ which is their ancient homeland. Not that you’d grasp this point. Logic 100.0001 failure.
The European Union wishes good luck to the Israel-bashing Russell tribunal
http://philosemitism.blogspot.com/2010/11/european-union-wishes-good-luck-to.html
@Yoni 9.08
So what should they call themselves?
PS. Check out my new link
Arabs.
mostly harmless, “Palestinian” often meant Jewish until Israel was born.
It is a newly invented turn of phrase. Yoni is accurate. You are not.
Rather, “Palestinian” is a newly invented phrase in the context of it referring exclusively to Arabs.