A7News: 'It's time for a preemptive strike on Hezbollah'

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Friday, Nov. 23 '18, ט"ו בכסלו תשע"ט



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HEADLINES:
1. 'IT'S TIME FOR A PREEMPTIVE STRIKE ON HEZBOLLAH'
2. LAPID AND NETANYAHU BATTLE EACH OTHER ON FACEBOOK
3. 'BOLSONARO'S SUPPORT FOR JUDEA AND SAMARIA UNEQUIVOCAL'
4. MASSIVE CRACKDOWN ON ORGANIZED CRIME AMID THREATS TO JAILERS
5. IAEA CHIEF: IRAN IMPLEMENTING NUCLEAR DEAL
6. US REFUSES TO ALLOW JONATHAN POLLARD TO MOVE TO ISRAEL
7. THE MILITARY CENSOR'S UNUSUAL ANNOUNCEMENT
8. NETANYAHU DEDICATES CHABAD'S 8TH MOBILE MITZVAH TANK


1. 'IT'S TIME FOR A PREEMPTIVE STRIKE ON HEZBOLLAH'
by Tzvi Lev

Former Interior Minister Gidon Sa'ar reiterated that Israel should carry out a pre-emptive strike against Hezbollah in order to prevent the terror militia from growing stronger.

Hezbollah currently possesses over 150,000 thousand missiles, more than most NATO countries. Senior defense officials have said repeatedly that Hezbollah is now Israel's major threat and predict that hundreds of Israelis will die in the next war between the two sides.

"Hezbollah has established missile precision factories and turned long-range heavy rockets into missiles that can strike anywhere in the State of Israel. Imagine that all our military and civilian facilities and Ben-Gurion Airport suffered direct hits," Sa'ar told 103FM on Friday.

Sa'ar added that despite the loss of life a pre-emptive strike is liable to cause, the alternative was facing a militia with long-range rockets with pinpoint accuracy.

"We have to ask ourselves whether we want to wait and meet with Hezbollah when it has a qualitative strike capability on the civilian and military infrastructures of the State of Israel," Sa'ar said.

"Experts say that every precision missile causes damage equal to about 10 heavy 'dumb rockets. The Iranians have a certain goal - the accumulation of power around us, even in the context of establishing themselves in Syria and Lebanon, and reaching a qualitative strike capability in order to blackmail us," Sa'ar continued.

"They will hold powerful levers on us. Therefore, I hold the opinion that Israel must act today. Israel can not contain this threat from development.'

The Iranian-backed Lebanese Hezbollah has been building factories in the heart of Beirut to convert missiles into highly-accurate precision weapons capable of striking sensitive Israeli sites. Upon deciding to convert its massive 150,000-strong rocket arsenal to missiles with pinpoint accuracy, Hezbollah chose to transfer its sites to the heart of Beirut in order to deter Israeli airstrikes.

Israel has repeatedly reiterated that it will not allow Hezbollah to obtain highly accurate missiles that would threaten sensitive Israelis sites and has been escalating its threats vis a vis Lebanon.

Sa'ar made similar comments earlier this week at The Jerusalem Post's Diplomatic Conference, where he allegedly said that Israel was approaching the point of no return vis a vis Lebanon.

"If an Israeli preemptive strike is not carried out in the near future, the window of opportunity may be closed," Sa'ar said. "This means that future attack might be far less effective and will involve a much heavier price."


2. LAPID AND NETANYAHU BATTLE EACH OTHER ON FACEBOOK
by Tzvi Lev

Prime Minister Netanyahu and Yesh Atid leader MK Yair Lapid both slammed each other Thursday night in a showdown over a corruption investigation nicknamed 'Case 2000'.

Writing on Facebook, Netanyahu said that Lapid should be investigated by the police following reports that he would routinely meet with Yediot Aharonot newspaper publisher Arnon 'Noni' Mozes while he served as finance minister.

Netanyahu pointed out that Yesh Atid supported the 'Yisrael Hayom Law', which would have shut down the free daily and boosted Yediot Aharonot's earnings. The prime minister also invoked reports that Yesh Atid ministers had paid Yediot Aharonot millions for hidden advertising while serving in the government.

"Did Lapid and Moses talked about the Yisrael Hayom Law? Have we discussed the millions that flowed from one party's ministers to the other?" asked Netanyahu.

"The answers to the questions are still vague, but despite disregarding the calls to look into the questions, the police and the law enforcement system will also have to decide soon: If positive coverage and promoting a law for a friend and associate are not criminal offenses, why did the [Case 2000] investigations begin?"

Lapid responded by criticizing Netanyahu's "crooked priorities" for choosing to attack his political rivals instead of dealing with more weighty matters.

"That's how pressure looks. That's how crooked priorities seem," wrote Lapid. "The South is licking its wounds, the cost of living is at the level of Tokyo, but Netanyahu and his emissaries are busy with the question of whether I met Noni Mozes. The answer is yes, sure, why not?"

Channel 10 reported earlier this week that Lapid would periodically meet with Yediot Aharonot publisher Noni Mozes while he served as Finance Minister.

Mozes, a central figure in the 'Case 2000' probe involving Prime Minister Netanyahu, owns the Yediot Aharonot newspaper and is seen by many as one of Israel's most powerful people.

The frequent meetings were held on Friday mornings at the home of a businessman from the affluent city of Savyon. While Lapid listed the meetings he had with journalists in his publicly disclosed daily planner, his sessions with Mozes remained off the record.

Lapid, who formerly wrote for Yediot Aharonot, said that his meetings with Mozes were innocuous, adding that he had met with other newspaper publishers "such as Sheldon and Miri Adelson, Ron Lauder, Eli Azur, and others".

Mozes has featured prominently in an influence-peddling scheme together with Prime Minister Netanyahu. In the investigation known as 'Case 2000", police probed allegations that Netanyahu conspired with Mozes as the publisher of the Yediot Aharonot newspaper against Israel Hayom – a competing Hebrew daily distributed for free in Israel.

The case centers around claims that Netanyahu agreed to pass legislation, dubbed the "Israel Hayom Law", banning the free distribution of newspapers, in exchange for promises from Mozes that his paper would tone down its criticism of the premier.


3. 'BOLSONARO'S SUPPORT FOR JUDEA AND SAMARIA UNEQUIVOCAL'
by Arutz Sheva Staff

A delegation comprised of South American leaders and Christian supporters of Israel toured Samaria this past week in an attempt to learn more about the region.

The dignitaries met with the Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan, toured the Barkan Industrial Zone, and visited Rehelim's Tura winery.

A close confidant to incoming Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro predicted that he would end up moving his nation's embassy to Jerusalem despite the Arab pressure not to.

"We have never had politicians with such faith in their hearts and what is happening now in Brazil with the choice of the president of Brazil," said Carlos Kiroa, a close friend of Bolsonaro.

"In May, we met with Bolsonaro, who was then a candidate for the presidency of Brazil, and we talked about the importance of supporting Israel," said Dr. Kiroa. "Bolsonaro announced that his commitment to Israel will be unequivocal and, of course, his support for Judea and Samaria."

"We are pushing hard to continue the trend throughout Latin America. It was May, and now as an elected president, Boulsonaro said that his support for Israel would be eternal and the transfer of the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem was the first thing he would do."

"We are continuing to build coalitions all over the world for the benefit of Judea and Samaria and the State of Israel," said Yossi Dagan. "We have met Dr. Kiroa over a year ago, and he has become a true friend of Judea and Samaria. The mandates and influence of Christians who love Israel is growing in the world, as is the support for Israel and Judea and Samaria. We will continue to operate in any space for the West Bank and for the creation of strong coalitions.'

Yossi Eldar, who is the president and founder of the Parliament for Israel, said that "The Parliament for Israel was founded in order to connect Latin American countries and parliaments to the Land of Israel, the land of the Bible by bringing leaders from Latin America, establishing lobbies in various parliaments, Jerusalem, influence on UN votes, prayer marches for the State of Israel, and more."

"We are working to promote the change that we all see: Latin America is becoming a better friend of Israel and a better friend of the biblical West Bank."

After being elected, Bolsonaro announced via Twitter that he intended to uphold his campaign promise and move the Brazilian embassy to Jerusalem.

"As previously stated during our campaign, we intend to transfer the Brazilian Embassy from Tel-Aviv to Jerusalem. Israel is a sovereign state and we shall duly respect that," he wrote.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu later hailed Bolsonaro's announcement.

"I congratulate my friend Brazilian President-Elect, Jair Bolsonaro, for his intention to move the Brazilian Embassy to Jerusalem, a historic, correct and exciting step!" he said.

Palestinian Arab leaders were not thrilled by Bolsonaro's announcement. Senior Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) official Hanan Ashrawi condemned Bolsonaro's announcement, saying, "These are provocative and illegal steps that will only destabilize security and stability in the region."


4. MASSIVE CRACKDOWN ON ORGANIZED CRIME AMID THREATS TO JAILERS
by Tzvi Lev

The Israel Prison Service said it had started a massive operation spanning seven different prisons in an effort to target a mafia syndicate that has been terrorizing jailers.

Over the past week, numerous prisons have been attacked with gunfire and grenades in what authorities say is a campaign to scare jailers into upgrading the conditions of prisoners belonging to organized crime syndicates.

"We operated tonight with special forces in seven prisons against heads of criminal organizations and other criminals. Dozens of cells were searched and criminals were sent to solitary confinement," said Israel Prison Service Spokesperson Assad Liberti said.

"We are acting against criminals and heads of criminal organizations and harshening the steps. It's not convenient for them, we see the extreme and extreme response they are making towards our people and we are doing everything necessary to get the situation back to normal."

On Thursday morning, shots were fired at Ayalon Prison. While no injuries were reported, police say that that the incident is connected to a shooting attack at Hadarim Prison on Wednesday.

A security team conducting a patrol around the prison in a patrol vehicle heard the shooting and notified law enforcement officials.

The gunmen drove off immediately after the shooting, fleeing the scene.

"We are in a new situation in the Israel Prison Service, the heads of the criminal organizations are not resting, and we are also trying from inside the prison cells to strike, become stronger and direct criminal activity," said Commissioner Ofrah Klinger on Friday morning.

Following Thursday's shooting attack, police arrested two residents of the Israeli-Arab city of Jaljulia.

📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/255169


5. IAEA CHIEF: IRAN IMPLEMENTING NUCLEAR DEAL
by Elad Benari

Iran is implementing its side of its nuclear deal with major powers, the UN atomic watchdog reaffirmed on Thursday, according to Reuters.

"Iran is implementing its nuclear-related commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action," International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Yukiya Amano told a quarterly meeting of his agency's 35-nation Board of Governors.

The JCPOA is the official name of the nuclear deal that was signed in 2015 between Iran and six world powers.

"It is essential that Iran continues to fully implement those commitments," he added, confirming the findings of a confidential report to IAEA member states last week.

The report comes two weeks after a second round of new American sanctions targeting Iran's oil industries came into effect. The sanctions were imposed after US President Donald Trump withdrew in May from the 2015 nuclear deal, which he has said is "the worst deal ever negotiated".

Germany, France and Britain, which did not agree with Trump's decision to leave the deal, have been scrambling to prevent a collapse of the agreement, under which international sanctions against Tehran were lifted in exchange for strict limits being placed on Iran's nuclear activities.

Amano did not comment on the broader impact of US sanctions, the latest round of which took effect on November 5. Iran has warned it could scrap the deal if signatories France, Britain and Germany and their allies fail to preserve the economic benefits promised by its terms.

The European powers have been working on setting up a so-called special-purpose vehicle that would act as a kind of clearing house matching Iranian exports with EU exports in what amounts to a barter arrangement to circumvent US sanctions.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt visited Iran for the first time this week, where he held talks with the Iranian government on issues including the future of the 2015 nuclear deal.

Earlier this month, France, Germany, Britain and the European Union issued a joint condemnation of the US move to reimpose sanctions on Iran that were lifted as part of the 2015 nuclear agreement.



6. US REFUSES TO ALLOW JONATHAN POLLARD TO MOVE TO ISRAEL
by Arutz Sheva Staff

Israel officially asked the US to allow former Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard to immigrate to Israel three years after his release from prison, but the United States Department of Justice refused, according to a report Wednesday in Hadashot 2.

Pollard served as an analyst for the US Navy in the 1980s, during which time he was recruited by Israeli intelligence to collect information on Israel's behalf regarding regional threats.

In 1985, Pollard was discovered by US law enforcement officials, and after seeking asylum at the Israeli embassy in Washington, was turned over to the FBI.

Given a life sentence in November 1985, Pollard was paroled 30 years later in November 2015 under severely restrictive conditions.

According to the report, in parallel with efforts in the political arena, Israel also acted on the bureaucratic level and submitted an official request to the US Justice Department to allow Pollard to be brought to justice in Israel in a regulated agreement between the two countries.

Recently, Israel received a response in which the Department rejected the Israeli request, claiming that Pollard's crimes were too serious to allow him to leave the US.

The request to consider Pollard's age and his precarious health was also rejected.

The Prime Minister's Office said in response that "Prime Minister Netanyahu remains committed to bringing Pollard back to Israel."


7. THE MILITARY CENSOR'S UNUSUAL ANNOUNCEMENT
by Uzi Baruch

The Military Censor published an unusual announcement Thursday calling on the public not to publish information about the fighting in Gaza and to act responsibly.

"Hamas is currently trying to decipher and understand the incident that took place deep in Gaza (11/11) and any item of information, even if it is considered harmless by its publicizers, could endanger human life and harm state security," the statement said.

"Regardless of the credibility of the information published by Hamas, we ask you to refrain from expanding the publication of pictures, personally identifiable information or other personal information that you have received in the media, social networks, Whatsapp groups and any other media platform," she said.


8. NETANYAHU DEDICATES CHABAD'S 8TH MOBILE MITZVAH TANK
by Arutz Sheva Staff

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara on Thursday evening attended a ceremony to affix a mezuzah in a Chabad mobile mitzvah tank, which was held at the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem.

Chabad mobile mitzvah tanks are spread throughout the country. The eighth active tank was dedicated on Thursday. It is the 20th overall mitzvah tank over the past 30 years.

Prime Minister Netanyahu wrote in the tank guestbook:

"To David Nahshon, honored rabbis, to our deepest friends –

My wife Sara and I are moved by the long friendship between us, and from boundless inspiration that prevails over us from meetings with the Lubavitcher Rebbe, among the Jewish People's greatest spiritual leaders. Be strong and have courage in your holy work. Benjamin Netanyahu."





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