9/11 Victims Lose in Appeals Court

Some bad news for victims of 9/11 and their families in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

The hopes of plaintiffs who attempted to hold dozens of foreign organizations and individuals responsible for aiding and abetting al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden in the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks were dashed yesterday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

In three separate decisions in multi-district litigation over the attacks, the circuit upheld the dismissal of claims brought against most of the defendants, including the bin Laden family's construction company, Saudi and Sudanese banks and Islamic charities under the Anti-Terrorism Act, the Alien Tort Statute, the Torture Victim Protection Act and common law tort.

I'm personally familiar with the efforts required to obtain compensation from terrorists and their supporters.  The plaintiffs should not be discouraged by this turn of events.  It's just time to regroup.

Read the article from the New Jersey Law Journal here.
Alisa Flatow
Stephen M. Flatow

Confronting Terror in Boston

One's personal reaction to hearing of the news of a terror attack varies with time and place.  An attack in London will not generate the same kind of emotions as one in Israel or here in the United States.  But there are ways to confront terror even when it does not strike close to home.

Here's a wonderful article written as a follow-up to the Boston Marathon attack, Confronting Terror in Boston.

In the meantime, we pray for the full and complete recovery of the wounded, comfort to the families of the murdered, and the apprehension of the perpetrators.

Well, that's what I have to say.
Alisa Flatow
Stephen M. Flatow

Storm brewing over Jimmy Carter award by Yeshiva University's law school

Looks as though the Jewish community has its fill of sycophants who love to pay tribute to those who hold them in contempt.  Case in point, the news that Yeshiva University's Cardozo Law School's Conflicts Resolution Journal board will be presenting an award to former president Jimmy Carter.

This is the same Jimmy Carter who, while brokering the Camp David agreements between Egypt and Israel, has become an opponent of Israel going so far as to brand it an "apartheid" state.  So, one would think that a Jewish sponsored institution might stay clear of presenting him with an award.  Not to be the case, and YU and the law school are proud of it.

Several campaigns are under way to get the award rescinded, but that's not going to happen.  In any event, I sent the following email to the president of YU and the dean of the law school:

Dear President Joel and Dean Miller-


As the father of Alisa Flatow, a murdered terror victim, and her sisters, Gail and Ilana, Stern College graduates, I can only say I am appalled that Cardozo Law School and Yeshiva University supports the granting of an award to Jimmy Carter by the student editors of the Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution.

Whatever Mr. Carter might have accomplished in connection with the Camp David agreements between Israel and Egypt 30 years ago, he has long since wasted that merit by trivializing the murder of innocent civilians, including my daughter Alisa, and his demonization of the State of Israel as an apartheid state.

I understand that educational institutions are reluctant to interfere with the thought processes of their students, but they do act in loco parents. In this situation, a good parent would have said “no” to honoring Mr. Carter.

Stephen M. Flatow

You can read some articles here and here.

Will anything result from the protest?  Nothing but embarrassment for the university.

Terrorism database

I guess everything boils down to statistics.  Here's a database from the International Institute for Counter-terrorism that is "summary and analysis of the terrorist attacks and counter-terrorism operations that occurred during the month of February 2013, researched and recorded by the ICT database team."

The following is a summary and analysis of the terrorist attacks and counter-terrorism operations that occurred during the month of February 2013, researched and recorded by the ICT database team. Important events this month included the following:


Afghanistan
Taliban militants disguised as policemen killed 17 Afghan police officers at a base in Ghazni province during an overnight attack where they infiltrated the base, poisoned the dinner food of the other officers and then proceeded to shoot the officers at close range. Authorities said the militants then stole their weapons and fled after setting a police vehicle on fire.

Bahrain
A bomb, containing 2kg of explosives, wires and a mobile phone, was discovered on the Saudi-Bahraini causeway. Authorities believe the intended target was tourists from Saudi Arabia. Bahrain's Interior Minister announced eight people had been arrested suspected of being part of a militant cell that was linked to Iran, Iraq and Lebanon. They did not confirm if the two cases were linked.

And the list goes on.  To read the full report, go to ICT Database Report.  It's an eye-opener.
alisa flatow stephen flatow israel kfar darom terror attack