Obama Depicted As Bin Laden, Orthodox Jew On T-Shirts In Jerusalem (VIDEO)

From Palestinian to ultra-orthodox Jew, President Obama takes on a variety of eyebrow-raising personas emblazoned on T-shirts for sale in souvenir stands across Jerusalem.

But by far the most provocative: the U.S. leader depicted as America's most wanted man, Osama Bin Laden.

And according to Al-Jazeera, the popularity of a particular design is often directly influenced by the current views among both Palestinians and Israelis in regard to the U.S. and its policies. But other vendors, such as Sergio Awenstern, have vowed not to carry any Obama merchandise for sale in their shops. "He doesn't know anything about the Middle East," Awenstern, who owns a shop in West Jerusalem, said. "He thinks with his smile and charisma he can make anything...here it's the real world, it's not Hollywood."

Watch video of controversial Obama T-shirts for sale in Jerusalem here:

Comments

[lightningbolt]

04:28 PM on 02/04/2011

I think it was a horrible idea for HP to give certain commenters moderator privileges.  Many moderators are censoring comments based on their own political views, and not based on the guidelines.  HP, please moderate your moderators or just stop giving moderation privileges to anyone you didn't hire.

[lightningbolt]

03:03 PM on 02/04/2011

The Israel-haters once again will use this article to demonize israel, even though world leaders are mocked in every democracy.

[WorldEdition]

12:32 AM on 02/19/2011

theres that word again

hate

always used by Israelis - projection

[lightningbolt]

03:02 PM on 02/04/2011

In a country that has freedom of speech, it is normal for people to mock the leaders of their own country and other countries.  But, obviously, the Israel-haters will take this opportunity to bash Israel for something that is done in every democracy.

[WorldEdition]

12:33 AM on 02/19/2011

Israel is not a democracy - it is an apartheid state.

arabs have commercialized rights, not equal rights. Just like the old South Africa - also not a democracy

[Talab]

07:10 PM on 01/31/2011

The second t-shirt shop is probably where they get the t-shirts with the scope sight on a muslim woman that is pregnant, crosshairs on her belly and the caption "1 shot 2 kills" from the attitude of the owner
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Israeli-Army-T-Shirts-Mock-Killing-Palestinian-Women-And-Children-During-Gaza-Offensive/Article/200903315245946

[savvy7]

04:01 PM on 01/23/2011

Wonder how they'd react to a t-shirt with a picture of Netanyahu as _itler?

[WorldEdition]

12:34 AM on 02/19/2011

exactly.

because Isrrael is a military dictatorship - you will not find that t-shirt.

[marknez21]

03:20 PM on 01/23/2011

Israel today with Russian immigrants will destroy ISRAEL. They do not listen to WORLD PUBLIC OPINION.

[lightningbolt]

04:15 PM on 02/04/2011

You are assuming world public opinion is all the same.  Who's opinion should they listen to?

[WorldEdition]

12:34 AM on 02/19/2011

yep

[JackHoffman]

02:56 PM on 01/22/2011

Israel today is run my recent Russian immigrants who have never had any skin in the game and are bent on destroying Arabs.

[WBMD]

06:14 PM on 01/22/2011

Why would Russians want to destroy Arabs?

[admiralsonasongbird]

09:04 PM on 01/22/2011

Are denying the fact that most israelis are russians immigrants?

[Talab]

07:17 PM on 01/31/2011

Russians kind of got their butts bloodied and then handed back to them in Afganistan

[WorldEdition]

12:35 AM on 02/19/2011

bingo

[JackHoffman]

02:50 PM on 01/22/2011

Who needs enemies when you can have allies like Israel? Stop giving them our taxes now!

[WBMD]

06:15 PM on 01/22/2011

Seems America's leaders disagree with you.

[lightningbolt]

04:17 PM on 02/04/2011

Are you saying Israel is worse than the USSR, nazi Germany, imperial Japan, Imperial Britain, or Imperial Spain, some of the U.S's greatest enemies?  Clearly you know very little history.

[Freenation]

04:11 PM on 01/21/2011

this is what couple of billions buy these days...sarcasm

[WBMD]

06:16 PM on 01/22/2011

I don't know. Is the Austrian bank robber in the Obama mask being sarcastic?

[GZLives]

02:18 PM on 01/21/2011

And for those who cry "racism"
Here's your real racism

"Palestinian Authority security officials have detained a meat dealer on suspicion of selling land to Jews, Palestinian media outlets reported Friday.

According to the report, the wealthy individual in question is a well-known figure and owns large swaths of land in the Bethlehem area. According to suspicions, he sold some land to Jews some 15 years ago.

The land in question was later used for building homes in Jerusalem's Gilo neighborhood.

The PA reportedly detained and interrogated the man Thursday. During hi interrogation he claimed that all the land belonged to his father, who was the one who sold it to Jews."

Well bashers ?

[JackHoffman]

02:53 PM on 01/22/2011

Are you serious? You live on another planet in a universe in your own mind. The occupation itself is based on racism from Jews.

[WBMD]

06:26 PM on 01/22/2011

No, the occupation is the Israelis' response to the Arabs' failed attempt to exterminate them.

[GZLives]

06:31 PM on 01/22/2011

Sorry Jack but the "occupation" is NOT based on any kind of Israeli "racism but based on an Arab war of Arab choice that the Arabs lost ... but please don't let reality, history and facts stand in the way of your fantasies

[Raymond Strand]

02:56 PM on 01/22/2011

There are crazy racist on both sides. Saying well the other side has racist doesn't negate that your side has racist. Where the Israelis get more heat for their racism is because they're in a position of power and their racism affects more people.

Also that's not even racism, the PA is attempting to stop Israel from colonizing neighborhoods it considers part of a Future Palestinian state. There are Jews and Christians who own land under the PA controlled land and they're not barred from buying or selling to my knowledge.

However a large portion of Israel's religious community which is gaining more and more strength has come out against selling land to Palestinians Christian or Muslim or even Jews who choose to live as Palestinians.

Both sides of the conflict suck, one side isn't more noble or more aggrieved. Both sides need to stop acting like it. Grow the heck up the world is tired of the childish squabbling from both sides. I can definitely see a future where both sides are kicked out of the Holy Land because the world just became fed up with the constant childish attitudes.

[GZLives]

11:24 PM on 01/22/2011

I completely disagree and frankly the facts - not the revised facts according to Arab propaganda, but the genuine facts are in complete conflict with your argument. The Jews in Israel have consistently supported co existence. The Arabs have not. Those are the facts. The Israelis have attempted not once but many times to reach an agreement. The Arabs have not. That's a fact. The Saudi peace plan rolling borders back to 1967 and allowing the right of return to some 4 million Arabs is NOT a real solution and the Arabs have always understood that.

Israelis may have had two or three of their own terrorists in these 6 decades compared to how many thousands of Arabs who have consistently attempted to use violence to achieve their goals? The Israelis have defended themselves and responded to provocation. The Arabs have initiated violence time and time again. Would there be a security wall/fence had there not been suicide bombers? No. Would there be checkpoints had there not been bombers and terror? No

if the Israelis really wanted to obliterate the Palestinian Arabs, they could do so in days. Do they? Arab population in Israel has increased four fold since 1948
Peace was signed with Egypt and Jordan decades ago. It is still holding and that ought to speak volumes. The Palestinian Arabs cannot even make peace amongst themselves.

[GZLives]

11:17 AM on 01/21/2011

To read the comments here it becomes obvious many are clearly not reading /watching the vid clip or unable to to or merely looking for any excuse to lash out. I suppose perhaps that persistent urge to smear and bash can become uncontrollable

Here for all those who are making complete jackasses of themselves is what the story and vid clip show ...

In an Arab market, Arabs are selling these T shirts to other Arabs and tourists.
NOT Jews,
NOT Israelis

When the reporter goes to West Jerusalem and visits an Israeli shop - the T-shirts are NOT for sale

DO I hear the same bashing for the Arabs ?
Of course not
Double standards, hypocrisy and more at work
And you think you have any credibility ?
Pathetic

[blev28]

11:25 AM on 01/21/2011

exactly!

jews dont even go to the arab shuk, if they do its to take a shortcut, definitely not to buy stuff
It is obvious that the Palestinian at his vendor is lying just to antagonize jew, but nothing is new there

[cincinnati]

01:20 AM on 01/22/2011

two shops is hardly an example of the rest, I'm sure the
generally nasty or harsh one's are sold everywhere.....
and the hate of so many extreme Zionist's for
him, or any Dem, is obvious also.....

They only support US Neo-Con's like Bush, Rice,
Cheney.....and that is part of the reason
we invaded Iraq, perhaps the biggest
Blunder in US history.....in the end [ ???? ]
costing over $ 4 TRILLION $$$$$$$...
that's 4,000 BILLIONS $$$$$$$.....where
in the world is the tea party on that spending ?

[BGosh]

07:43 PM on 01/22/2011

May I remind you that the Jewish congresswoman shot by a crazy man in Arizona is a Democrat who supports Israel? Let me suggest you stop believing every insane tidbit of so-called information you breathe for sake of blaming the Jews for stuff like the invasion of Iraq. Truth is, the Knesset told Bush that Iran was the real danger to the region.

[GZLives]

11:08 PM on 01/22/2011

You're sure ?? Seems like two shops were good enough for al Jazeera.

[erehwon2]

11:04 AM on 01/21/2011

Not surprisingly, the Israel bashers rant and draw conclusions in spite of what the article actually shows. For those who actually read the article, listened to the news segment, and have a clue, these are the facts:

An Arab man in the Arab shuk in the Old City is making and selling the T-shirts.

The customers in the shuk are predominantly tourists and other Arabs.

The reporter couldn't find the T-shirt in Jewish shops in West Jerusalem.

So why is everyone getting all huffy about Israel? Because they allow someone to sell the T-shirts and some people are interested in buying them? So what? Contrary to some posters' comments, this is not something officially sanctioned by the Israeli government and, judging by the fact that Jewish merchants aren't selling them, they're probably not in great demand by Israeli Jews.

But obviously if you are eager to bash Israel, little things like facts don't matter.

[basenji]

02:58 AM on 01/21/2011

Of course, Foxman and Dersh come to the pages of this paper and complain about how cartoonists in muslim countries depict jews and israel.

[TheLonelyGod]

09:03 AM on 01/21/2011

Anyone can make a t-shirt. It takes connections to get published in major newspapers.

[basenji]

04:43 PM on 01/21/2011

How many swastika t-shirts have you seen where you live?

[Freenation]

04:13 PM on 01/21/2011

Lol...love the perpetual victimhood stance by foxman yet his opposition to mosque shows his hypocrisy...well dersh is a classic...no comments

[Hard2kill]

11:20 PM on 01/20/2011

America should stop supporting Israel... These people has no debt of gratitude..

[mp146]

04:24 AM on 01/23/2011

Hopefully the fact that Arabs are selling the T shirts in an Arab market doesn't effect your prejudice..watch the video..the Jewish guy in West Jerusalem didn't have it..

[teddyswims]

12:09 PM on 01/23/2011

As you has no sense of spelling...

[riverhouse]

06:06 PM on 01/20/2011

It is long past time for America to simply declare support for a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders and call for a vote in the UN, followed by UN peacekeeping forces to oversee the on ground formation of the new state. We should at that point give equal amounts of aid to both nations.