Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
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Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Thursday, Jan. 31 '19, כ"ה בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. ROUHANI: WE'RE FACING UNPRECEDENTED PRESSURE
2. INDICTMENT: SOLDIERS ATTACKED DETAINED ARABS
3. NATIONAL UNION CHAIR: 'MILITARY PROSECUTOR LACKS COMMON SENSE'
4. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU CROSS AYELET SHAKED
5. TWO JEWISH MEN VIOLENTLY BEATEN IN CROWN HEIGHTS
6. ORTHODOX JEWISH TEEN FOUND DEAD IN MANCHESTER WAS NOT MURDERED
7. HAREDI GIRL BRUTALLY MURDERED IN MANCHESTER
8. WATCH: FEMALE TERRORIST NEUTRALIZED AFTER APPROACHING SOLDIERS
1. ROUHANI: WE'RE FACING UNPRECEDENTED PRESSURE
by Guy Cohen
Iran's president said Wednesday the country was facing the toughest economic situation it had seen in 40 years.
"Today the country is facing the biggest pressure and economic sanctions in the past 40 years," Hassan Rouhani said, according to the presidential website.
"Today our problems are primarily because of pressure from America and its followers. And the dutiful government and Islamic system should not be blamed," he added.
He vowed that the nation would "endure" the external pressure. "The US administration will definitely fail in its latest move against the Iranian nation," he said. "Nobody can harm us as long as we follow the Supreme Leader."
Rouhani spoke at a ceremony honoring the Islamic Republic's first supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, ahead of the 40th anniversary of the February 1979 Islamic revolution.
US President Donald Trump re-imposed sanctions on Iran in May of last year. As a result, the value of the Iranian rial fell sharply, and many foreign companies left the country amid the recession.
Yesterday, Trump tweeted, "When I became President Iran was making trouble all over the Middle East, and beyond. Since ending the terrible Iran Nuclear Deal, they are MUCH different, but a source of potential danger and conflict. They are testing Rockets (last week) and more, and are coming very close to the edge. There [sic] economy is now crashing, which is the only thing holding them back."
2. INDICTMENT: SOLDIERS ATTACKED DETAINED ARABS
by Ido Ben Porat
The Military Advocate General filed an indictment Thursday against five IDF soldiers from the Netzach Yehuda haredi battalion accused of beating two Palestinian Arabs they held as detainees.
According to the indictment, the soldiers, who are accused of aggravated abuse and serious injury in aggravated circumstances, beat the Arabs with slaps, punching and blunt objects while they were handcuffed and blindfolded, causing severe injuries.
The military prosecution asked to extend the detention of the soldiers until the end of the proceedings in their case.
It should be noted that two of the fighters are also charged with the offense of disrupting legal proceedings, after they allegedly coordinated the version they would relate regarding the incident.
The commander of the fighters, an officer with the rank of lieutenant, is in open detention. A decision on his case will be made separately.
Nahal Haredi was founded a few years ago by Los Angeles businessman David Hager in order to integrate the young haredi men into the Israel Defense Force on the mission of defending the Land of Israeli. Nahal Haredi started with a few dozens of soldiers, but today includes thousands.
One of the main battalions of Nahal Haredi is Netzach Yehuda, which operates in Judea and Samaria and takes part in combat and operative missions
3. NATIONAL UNION CHAIR: 'MILITARY PROSECUTOR LACKS COMMON SENSE'
by MK Betzalel Smotrich
Turning IDF soldiers into criminal offenders harms security and lives, and the Military Prosecutor again has lost its common sense and harmed the IDF.
Criminal prosecution and demanding active prison sentences for fighters who saw their comrades' bodies after they were murdered and participated in arresting the terrorist accomplices is a folly that cannot be accepted.
The heroes of the IDF who we send to fight in our name against a cruel enemy deserve backing even if they erred, not abandoning them in the name of a distorted legalistic morality.
Even if the fighters were mistaken, it can be dealt with in disciplinary and not criminal proceedings. Criminal prosecution of fighters for acts carried out in the line of duty should be the last resort to be taken in extreme cases only.
This is far from the case even if unjustified violence was used by the fighters against those who helped murder their comrades-in-arms.
In the next Knesset, the party under my leadership will with G-d's help advance a law for fighter's immunity that will prevent such absurd situations.
MK Betzalel Smotrich is Chairman of the National Union
4. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU CROSS AYELET SHAKED
by Mordechai Sones
In an interview with Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, journalist Udi Segal offered a remark that earned him the Minister's scathing opprobrium.
"Look, Naftali Bennett, or I should say Captain Naftali Bennett, said Gantz was a weak Chief of Staff who strove for a stalemate and didn't want to defeat the Hamas. I want to understand: Netanyahu gave an order..."
At Segal's mention of Bennett's rank Shaked stopped Segal in mid-sentence to say, "Your slight wasn't nice," to which Segal asked, "Why?"
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258397
"Because we're not a fascist country," Shaked retorted. "Not only generals can be politicians, and not only generals can be defense ministers. There were superb civilian defense ministers, right? Moshe Arens, yes? Excellent. One of the best defense ministers there was. So I ask that you not disrespect. Not only someone with epaulets can be defense minister. We're in a democratic country.
"He was a Chief of Staff who did not strive for victory - it's not me saying that, it's the State Comptroller's report that established it.
"The Comptroller's report says Bennett aimed to destroy the tunnels; Bogi Ya'alon and Gantz who were Defense Minister and Chief of Staff said Hamas would not use the tunnels and that's not what happened, and that we didn't need to deal with the tunnels then and we saw it was wrong; now finally Israel is dealing with the tunnels."
Segal asked Shaked, "But it could be that Gantz as Chief of Staff was executing Netanyahu's policy because if so that not a small leadership failure."
Shaked remained unimpressed: "You know, what's amazing is that this entire interview is also about Gantz. Enough with this Gantzfest. We have other things to discuss, we have a new party that we established. I, as opposed to Gantz's party, have a platform, so I'd appreciate it if we'd talk about that."
The interview was released as a New Right party campaign advertisement.
Shaked and Bennett campaigning in Jerusalem
Flash 90
5. TWO JEWISH MEN VIOLENTLY BEATEN IN CROWN HEIGHTS
by Michal Levy
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258375
Two Jewish men were violently beaten by a gang in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn on Tuesday night.
According to the Crown Height Info website, the beatings occurred a few minutes after 1:00 a.m. on President St. between Albany and Troy Ave., when the gang of three began targeting Jewish men on the block.
Their first victim, an older man, was pushed to the ground before being pummeled mercilessly with punches and kicks to his face and body. The beating, caught on video, only ended when the three suddenly broke away and fled.
A few minutes later, the gang targeted a second, younger man, who put up a fight, screaming for help and struggling with them.
Witnesses and victims immediately called 911 and Crown Heights Shomrim, who were both there in moments.
As they canvassed the area looking for the gang, a group matching the description of the gang was located. When the NYPD stopped the group, they attempted to flee. Two were caught, while the third escaped.
Shomrim, working with the police, were able to bring both victims to the 71st precinct where they positively identified their attackers.
The NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force will be investigating the assaults.
Just two weeks ago, an Orthodox Jewish teenager was assaulted by a group of black teens in Crown Heights.
Last week, a Jewish woman walking in Crown Heights was punched by a black male who then ran off.
6. ORTHODOX JEWISH TEEN FOUND DEAD IN MANCHESTER WAS NOT MURDERED
by David Rosenberg
Police in Manchester, England say the death of an Orthodox Jewish teenager is no longer being investigated as a murder case, after she was found dead in an abandoned building.
Sixteen-year-old Sarah Goldman was reported missing at 9:25 a.m. Monday morning. At a quarter to 10 that same morning, her body was found in abandoned Manchester building. Police say Goldman had been hanged to death.
Goldman, a student at Yavneh Girls in King David High School in Crumpsall, was described as "lovely, bright, intelligent, and well-mannered".
Local authorities arrested a 41-year-old man they said was suspected in Goldman's murder.
While police initially investigated Goldman's death as a murder, on Tuesday Manchester police said there was no signs of foul play, and that the case was no longer treated as a murder investigation.
The 41-year-old man arrested in the case has been freed without charges, police said.
"A 41-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder, however he has now been released and there will be no further action taken," Greater Manchester Police said in a statement.
7. HAREDI GIRL BRUTALLY MURDERED IN MANCHESTER
by Arutz Sheva Staff
A sixteen-year-old haredi girl named Sarah was brutally murdered while on her way to school in Manchester. A few hours after she did not arrive to school, a relative found her lifeless in an abandoned building near her home.
The victim was a pupil at Yavneh Girls in King David High School in Crumpsall, according to a report in the Manchester Evening News.
Her family said that Sarah went to school yesterday at 5:30 AM because she wanted to use the gym before school hours, but did not arrive at school. Around 9:30 AM she was reported missing, and 20 minutes later she was found dead.
Superintendent Caroline Hemmingway said Greater Manchester Police was "keeping an open mind and will be exploring all avenues".
She added: "We are currently investigating the tragic death of a 16-year-old girl in Kersal, and it is our top priority to find out exactly how she died.
"The investigation is still in its early stages and a scene remains in place in the building near to Brookside Drive.
"We are trying to piece together this puzzle and help give the girl's family the answers they deserve."
The King David High School was shocked to hear of the murder. "Sarah was a lovely, bright, intelligent and well-mannered pupil and she will be hugely missed by everyone at school."
Manchester, England
iStock
8. WATCH: FEMALE TERRORIST NEUTRALIZED AFTER APPROACHING SOLDIERS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258353
▼
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
A7News: Female terrorist killed during attack east of Jerusalem
Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Wednesday, Jan. 30 '19, כ"ד בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. FEMALE TERRORIST KILLED DURING ATTACK EAST OF JERUSALEM
2. ISRAELI TEEN KILLED IN ACCIDENT SOUTH OF HEVRON
3. TWO INJURED IN AIR FORCE ACCIDENT
4. SIFREI TORAH DESTROYED WITH ACID
5. WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES TO PULL 'ACCOMPANIERS' FROM HEVRON
6. HAREDI GIRL BRUTALLY MURDERED IN MANCHESTER
7. NETANYAHU DECIDES: TIPH TO BE KICKED OUT OF HEVRON
8. PA DROPPING BID TO BECOME FULL UN MEMBER
1. FEMALE TERRORIST KILLED DURING ATTACK EAST OF JERUSALEM
by David Rosenberg
A terrorist attack was foiled Wednesday morning east of Jerusalem, near the Adumim Interchange just west of Maale Adumim.
At just after 10 a.m., the Jerusalem district police said that they had received reports of a stabbing attempt at the al-Zaim checkpoint on Route 1, between Jerusalem and Maale Adumim.
According to initial reports, a female terrorist attempted to stab security officers at the checkpoint Wednesday morning.
When soldiers spotted the female terrorist charging them with a knife in her hand, they opened fire, neutralizing her.
The terrorist was later declared dead.
No injuries have been reported among the Israeli security personnel in the area.
The main road between Maale Adumim and Jerusalem has been closed to traffic following the attack, Rescuers Without Borders said.
Jerusalem district police chief Yoram Halevy arrived at the scene of the attempted stabbing attack Wednesday morning for an incident assessment.
2. ISRAELI TEEN KILLED IN ACCIDENT SOUTH OF HEVRON
by Orly Harari
An Israeli teenager was killed in a car accident in Judea south of Jerusalem Wednesday afternoon, when a truck bearing Palestinian Authority license plates crashed into two private cars.
The accident occurred on Route 60, the primary north-south traffic artery in Judea and Samaria, near the Israeli town of Mitzpeh Eshtemoa in the Har Hevron district south of Hevron.
Two people were injured in the accident, when a truck driven by a Palestinian Arab in his 50s collided with two private cars.
One of the victims, a 19-year-old Israeli man, suffered severe multi-system injuries in the accident. He was airlifted to an area hospital, but was later declared dead.
A second victim, said to be in his early 50s, suffered moderate injuries and was evacuated by ambulance to Soroka for treatment in the hospital's intensive care unit.
MDA paramedics Eli Rosenberg and Oded Deskel called the accident "very serious" and said the teenager was found trapped in his vehicle, which had been crushed by the truck.
"A young man in his 20s who was driving one of the two private vehicles was trapped in the driver's seat while unconscious. With an army medical team which arrived via helicopter, we provided him with medical treatment in the field and performed resuscitation techniques, but his injuries were very severe, and an army doctor was forced to pronounce him dead."
"A man roughly 50 years of age, who was driving the second private car, was moderately injured, and was found lying on the road, suffering from contusions across his body. We quickly loaded him on to the ambulance, and he was evacuated in moderate, stable condition to Soroka hospital."
"The driver, a Palestinian man roughly 50 years of age, was examined at the scene and then evacuated to the hospital while fully conscious."
3. TWO INJURED IN AIR FORCE ACCIDENT
by David Rosenberg
Two Israeli ground crew workers were injured at an air force base Wednesday morning, when a plane they were working on suddenly began to accelerate on the tarmac.
According to a statement by an IDF spokesperson, the incident occurred Wednesday morning at an Israel Air Force (IAF) base in southern Israel.
The accident took place while workers from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) were performing routine maintenance work on an IAF C-130HI transport plane, an Israeli upgrade of the standard Hercules C-130.
While the IAI employees were working on the C-130HI, the plane suddenly began to move forward on the tarmac, driving over 100 yards and cutting into a nearby lane before the plane's advance was halted.
Two IAI workers were injured during the accident, and were evacuated to the hospital for treatment.
Both of the workers are said to be in light condition.
The IDF has opened an investigation into the incident.
4. SIFREI TORAH DESTROYED WITH ACID
by Sponsored Content
Just a day has passed since unnamed vandals desecrated the Siach Yisroel shul in the Kiryat Yovel of Jerusalem. Congregants arrived on Tuesday morning to find sifrei Torah strewn across the floor, splattered with acid. The rest of the synagogue was damaged by the acid as well, including the now-destroyed aron kodesh, seforim, and furniture.
The shul's community are mostly French immigrants, thousands of which have fled European anti-Semitism in recent years. For many the event was not only a reminder of the violence currently rampant in the rest of the world, but "recalls dark days in the history of the Jewish people," said Knesset speaker Yuli Edelstein.
Jerusalem Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi HaRav Aryeh Stern stated, "We were shocked to hear about desecration of the shul in Kiryat HaYovel in Jerusalem … It is incumbent on all of us to protest against the perpetrators of the heinous crime we have seen in the difficult years of the Holocaust by the Nazis. Now we must explore our actions and strengthen our atmosphere of unity, of the people living in Tzion."
As of now the shul is unusable. An urgent fund has been started to replace the sifrei Torah, as well as the destroyed furniture. The fund's efforts are not only to rebuild the physical structure of the synagogue, but to strengthen the unity of the Jewish people in the face of anti-Semitism.
"We will not allow this tragedy to frighten us," says campaign text. "Just as they did their best to destroy us, with yours' and G-d's help we will rebuild it back up to a dignified place of prayer and Torah learning, a symbol for the eternal Jewish people. Terror comes to shake us but klal Yisroel will endure."
Until sufficient funds are raised, the damaged shul, once brimming with life and mitzvot, will stand empty.
Those interested in joining the effort to rebuild the desecrated Siach Yisroel synagogue can do so here.
5. WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES TO PULL 'ACCOMPANIERS' FROM HEVRON
by Mordechai Sones
The World Council of Churches (WCC) announced this morning it is pulling its "ecumenical accompaniers" from Hevron due to "security concerns."
The announcement came two days after Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu announced Israel would not extend the mandate of TIPH, the Temporary International Presence in Hevron.
The WCC's flagship project, Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI), sends operatives to Israel to "monitor" and "report human rights abuses".
WCC has recently come under fire from Im Tirtzu, NGO Monitor, DMU and other pro-Israel organizations for promoting anti-Israel rhetoric and BDS economic warfare.
Over the past few months, Im Tirtzu members have been continuously filming the activities of EAPPI in Hevron. Videos uploaded to social media by Im Tirtzu have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258341
According to WCC general secretary Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, this "intensified harassment of WCC's program" caused it to pull the accompaniers.
"The WCC accompaniers are currently prevented from fulfilling their role as peaceful protective presence for residents in Hevron," said Tveit.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258341
Im Tirtzu CEO Matan Peleg welcomed the announcement and vowed to continue protecting IDF soldiers.
"We're pleased to see foreign government-funded delegitimization organizations are beginning to leave Hevron," said Peleg.
"These organizations do nothing apart from fuel the fires of conflict and provoke IDF soldiers, and they are the true obstacle to peace.
"We're pleased that our efforts to 'film the filmers' succeeded, and we promise to continue working on behalf of IDF soldiers and the State of Israel."
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258341
EAPPI funding
NGO Monitor
6. HAREDI GIRL BRUTALLY MURDERED IN MANCHESTER
by Arutz Sheva Staff
A sixteen-year-old haredi girl named Sarah was brutally murdered while on her way to school in Manchester. A few hours after she did not arrive to school, a relative found her lifeless in an abandoned building near her home.
The victim was a pupil at Yavneh Girls in King David High School in Crumpsall, according to a report in the Manchester Evening News.
Her family said that Sarah went to school yesterday at 5:30 AM because she wanted to use the gym before school hours, but did not arrive at school. Around 9:30 AM she was reported missing, and 20 minutes later she was found dead.
Superintendent Caroline Hemmingway said Greater Manchester Police was "keeping an open mind and will be exploring all avenues".
She added: "We are currently investigating the tragic death of a 16-year-old girl in Kersal, and it is our top priority to find out exactly how she died.
"The investigation is still in its early stages and a scene remains in place in the building near to Brookside Drive.
"We are trying to piece together this puzzle and help give the girl's family the answers they deserve."
The King David High School was shocked to hear of the murder. "Sarah was a lovely, bright, intelligent and well-mannered pupil and she will be hugely missed by everyone at school."
Manchester, England
iStock
7. NETANYAHU DECIDES: TIPH TO BE KICKED OUT OF HEVRON
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu decided Monday night not to renew the mandate of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH).
"We will not allow the continued presence of an international force acting against us," Netanyahu said.
The organization will be forced to leave Hevron as a result of Netanyahu's decision.
TIPH is a group of European civilian observers who have operated in Hevron since 1994. Comprised of representatives from Norway, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey, TIPH says that it "monitors the situation in Hebron and records breaches of international humanitarian law".
The organization has courted controversy with its confrontational dealings with security forces and Jewish residents of Hevron.
In July in a TIPH member who took part in a tour of the Breaking the Silence organization in Tel Rumeida in Hevron slapped a 10-year-old Jewish boy. The member was arrested and forced to leave Israel by the Foreign Ministry.
A few weeks later, Netanyahu ordered the TIPH commander to be summoned for clarification by the Foreign Ministry following publication of footage on Arutz Sheva in which foreign observers are seen puncturing the tires of a car belonging to Jewish Hevron resident of Elad Fass.
8. PA DROPPING BID TO BECOME FULL UN MEMBER
by Elad Benari
The Palestinian Authority (PA) is dropping its bid to become a full member of the UN, its UN envoy said Monday, according to The Associated Press.
The envoy, Riyad Mansour, told reporters that the day will come when "obstacles" in the Security Council to full UN membership for "Palestine" will be removed "but that day is not today."
The main hurdle is the United States which would more than likely veto any Security Council resolution granting the PA full membership of the global body. The US says the only way PA can gain full membership at the UN is by negotiating a peace deal with Israel.
"We disagree with them on that. We believe that our statehood, and our admission, is an innate right for the Palestinian people ... to exercise it alone. It is not open for negotiation with anyone - nor will we ask for permission from anyone," said Mansour, according to AP.
Mansour said the legal right for "Palestine" to be a full member of the United Nations was formalized in the 1947 General Assembly resolution that partitioned British-ruled Palestine into "independent Arab and Jewish states."
Israel was accepted as a UN member, he said, and "Palestine will continue fighting for that right."
Mansour's comments come two weeks after the PA announced it would launch a bid to become a full member of the United Nations.
In 2012, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly approved the de facto recognition of the "state of Palestine" when it upgraded the PA's UN observer status to non-member state.
Full membership would amount to international recognition of Palestinian statehood.
The PA's latest bid to become a full UN member came as it assumed chairmanship of the Group of 77 bloc of developing countries at the UN. In October, the United Nations General Assembly voted in favor of allowing the PA to chair the group in 2019, thus allowing the PA to act more like a full UN member state during meetings in 2019.
Mansour stressed that "negotiation is different than expressions of self-determination."
He noted that America's 13 colonies didn't negotiate with England in 1776 when they declared independence, and Israel didn't negotiate its independence declaration in 1948.
Since then, Mansour said, "we have negotiated, and we could possibly, if the conditions are right."
Relating to the possibility of renewed talks with Israel, Mansour said if Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees are off the table, and settlements are "more or less off the table, what is there left to negotiate?"
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Wednesday, Jan. 30 '19, כ"ד בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. FEMALE TERRORIST KILLED DURING ATTACK EAST OF JERUSALEM
2. ISRAELI TEEN KILLED IN ACCIDENT SOUTH OF HEVRON
3. TWO INJURED IN AIR FORCE ACCIDENT
4. SIFREI TORAH DESTROYED WITH ACID
5. WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES TO PULL 'ACCOMPANIERS' FROM HEVRON
6. HAREDI GIRL BRUTALLY MURDERED IN MANCHESTER
7. NETANYAHU DECIDES: TIPH TO BE KICKED OUT OF HEVRON
8. PA DROPPING BID TO BECOME FULL UN MEMBER
1. FEMALE TERRORIST KILLED DURING ATTACK EAST OF JERUSALEM
by David Rosenberg
A terrorist attack was foiled Wednesday morning east of Jerusalem, near the Adumim Interchange just west of Maale Adumim.
At just after 10 a.m., the Jerusalem district police said that they had received reports of a stabbing attempt at the al-Zaim checkpoint on Route 1, between Jerusalem and Maale Adumim.
According to initial reports, a female terrorist attempted to stab security officers at the checkpoint Wednesday morning.
When soldiers spotted the female terrorist charging them with a knife in her hand, they opened fire, neutralizing her.
The terrorist was later declared dead.
No injuries have been reported among the Israeli security personnel in the area.
The main road between Maale Adumim and Jerusalem has been closed to traffic following the attack, Rescuers Without Borders said.
Jerusalem district police chief Yoram Halevy arrived at the scene of the attempted stabbing attack Wednesday morning for an incident assessment.
2. ISRAELI TEEN KILLED IN ACCIDENT SOUTH OF HEVRON
by Orly Harari
An Israeli teenager was killed in a car accident in Judea south of Jerusalem Wednesday afternoon, when a truck bearing Palestinian Authority license plates crashed into two private cars.
The accident occurred on Route 60, the primary north-south traffic artery in Judea and Samaria, near the Israeli town of Mitzpeh Eshtemoa in the Har Hevron district south of Hevron.
Two people were injured in the accident, when a truck driven by a Palestinian Arab in his 50s collided with two private cars.
One of the victims, a 19-year-old Israeli man, suffered severe multi-system injuries in the accident. He was airlifted to an area hospital, but was later declared dead.
A second victim, said to be in his early 50s, suffered moderate injuries and was evacuated by ambulance to Soroka for treatment in the hospital's intensive care unit.
MDA paramedics Eli Rosenberg and Oded Deskel called the accident "very serious" and said the teenager was found trapped in his vehicle, which had been crushed by the truck.
"A young man in his 20s who was driving one of the two private vehicles was trapped in the driver's seat while unconscious. With an army medical team which arrived via helicopter, we provided him with medical treatment in the field and performed resuscitation techniques, but his injuries were very severe, and an army doctor was forced to pronounce him dead."
"A man roughly 50 years of age, who was driving the second private car, was moderately injured, and was found lying on the road, suffering from contusions across his body. We quickly loaded him on to the ambulance, and he was evacuated in moderate, stable condition to Soroka hospital."
"The driver, a Palestinian man roughly 50 years of age, was examined at the scene and then evacuated to the hospital while fully conscious."
3. TWO INJURED IN AIR FORCE ACCIDENT
by David Rosenberg
Two Israeli ground crew workers were injured at an air force base Wednesday morning, when a plane they were working on suddenly began to accelerate on the tarmac.
According to a statement by an IDF spokesperson, the incident occurred Wednesday morning at an Israel Air Force (IAF) base in southern Israel.
The accident took place while workers from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) were performing routine maintenance work on an IAF C-130HI transport plane, an Israeli upgrade of the standard Hercules C-130.
While the IAI employees were working on the C-130HI, the plane suddenly began to move forward on the tarmac, driving over 100 yards and cutting into a nearby lane before the plane's advance was halted.
Two IAI workers were injured during the accident, and were evacuated to the hospital for treatment.
Both of the workers are said to be in light condition.
The IDF has opened an investigation into the incident.
4. SIFREI TORAH DESTROYED WITH ACID
by Sponsored Content
Just a day has passed since unnamed vandals desecrated the Siach Yisroel shul in the Kiryat Yovel of Jerusalem. Congregants arrived on Tuesday morning to find sifrei Torah strewn across the floor, splattered with acid. The rest of the synagogue was damaged by the acid as well, including the now-destroyed aron kodesh, seforim, and furniture.
The shul's community are mostly French immigrants, thousands of which have fled European anti-Semitism in recent years. For many the event was not only a reminder of the violence currently rampant in the rest of the world, but "recalls dark days in the history of the Jewish people," said Knesset speaker Yuli Edelstein.
Jerusalem Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi HaRav Aryeh Stern stated, "We were shocked to hear about desecration of the shul in Kiryat HaYovel in Jerusalem … It is incumbent on all of us to protest against the perpetrators of the heinous crime we have seen in the difficult years of the Holocaust by the Nazis. Now we must explore our actions and strengthen our atmosphere of unity, of the people living in Tzion."
As of now the shul is unusable. An urgent fund has been started to replace the sifrei Torah, as well as the destroyed furniture. The fund's efforts are not only to rebuild the physical structure of the synagogue, but to strengthen the unity of the Jewish people in the face of anti-Semitism.
"We will not allow this tragedy to frighten us," says campaign text. "Just as they did their best to destroy us, with yours' and G-d's help we will rebuild it back up to a dignified place of prayer and Torah learning, a symbol for the eternal Jewish people. Terror comes to shake us but klal Yisroel will endure."
Until sufficient funds are raised, the damaged shul, once brimming with life and mitzvot, will stand empty.
Those interested in joining the effort to rebuild the desecrated Siach Yisroel synagogue can do so here.
5. WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES TO PULL 'ACCOMPANIERS' FROM HEVRON
by Mordechai Sones
The World Council of Churches (WCC) announced this morning it is pulling its "ecumenical accompaniers" from Hevron due to "security concerns."
The announcement came two days after Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu announced Israel would not extend the mandate of TIPH, the Temporary International Presence in Hevron.
The WCC's flagship project, Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI), sends operatives to Israel to "monitor" and "report human rights abuses".
WCC has recently come under fire from Im Tirtzu, NGO Monitor, DMU and other pro-Israel organizations for promoting anti-Israel rhetoric and BDS economic warfare.
Over the past few months, Im Tirtzu members have been continuously filming the activities of EAPPI in Hevron. Videos uploaded to social media by Im Tirtzu have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258341
According to WCC general secretary Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, this "intensified harassment of WCC's program" caused it to pull the accompaniers.
"The WCC accompaniers are currently prevented from fulfilling their role as peaceful protective presence for residents in Hevron," said Tveit.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258341
Im Tirtzu CEO Matan Peleg welcomed the announcement and vowed to continue protecting IDF soldiers.
"We're pleased to see foreign government-funded delegitimization organizations are beginning to leave Hevron," said Peleg.
"These organizations do nothing apart from fuel the fires of conflict and provoke IDF soldiers, and they are the true obstacle to peace.
"We're pleased that our efforts to 'film the filmers' succeeded, and we promise to continue working on behalf of IDF soldiers and the State of Israel."
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258341
EAPPI funding
NGO Monitor
6. HAREDI GIRL BRUTALLY MURDERED IN MANCHESTER
by Arutz Sheva Staff
A sixteen-year-old haredi girl named Sarah was brutally murdered while on her way to school in Manchester. A few hours after she did not arrive to school, a relative found her lifeless in an abandoned building near her home.
The victim was a pupil at Yavneh Girls in King David High School in Crumpsall, according to a report in the Manchester Evening News.
Her family said that Sarah went to school yesterday at 5:30 AM because she wanted to use the gym before school hours, but did not arrive at school. Around 9:30 AM she was reported missing, and 20 minutes later she was found dead.
Superintendent Caroline Hemmingway said Greater Manchester Police was "keeping an open mind and will be exploring all avenues".
She added: "We are currently investigating the tragic death of a 16-year-old girl in Kersal, and it is our top priority to find out exactly how she died.
"The investigation is still in its early stages and a scene remains in place in the building near to Brookside Drive.
"We are trying to piece together this puzzle and help give the girl's family the answers they deserve."
The King David High School was shocked to hear of the murder. "Sarah was a lovely, bright, intelligent and well-mannered pupil and she will be hugely missed by everyone at school."
Manchester, England
iStock
7. NETANYAHU DECIDES: TIPH TO BE KICKED OUT OF HEVRON
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu decided Monday night not to renew the mandate of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH).
"We will not allow the continued presence of an international force acting against us," Netanyahu said.
The organization will be forced to leave Hevron as a result of Netanyahu's decision.
TIPH is a group of European civilian observers who have operated in Hevron since 1994. Comprised of representatives from Norway, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey, TIPH says that it "monitors the situation in Hebron and records breaches of international humanitarian law".
The organization has courted controversy with its confrontational dealings with security forces and Jewish residents of Hevron.
In July in a TIPH member who took part in a tour of the Breaking the Silence organization in Tel Rumeida in Hevron slapped a 10-year-old Jewish boy. The member was arrested and forced to leave Israel by the Foreign Ministry.
A few weeks later, Netanyahu ordered the TIPH commander to be summoned for clarification by the Foreign Ministry following publication of footage on Arutz Sheva in which foreign observers are seen puncturing the tires of a car belonging to Jewish Hevron resident of Elad Fass.
8. PA DROPPING BID TO BECOME FULL UN MEMBER
by Elad Benari
The Palestinian Authority (PA) is dropping its bid to become a full member of the UN, its UN envoy said Monday, according to The Associated Press.
The envoy, Riyad Mansour, told reporters that the day will come when "obstacles" in the Security Council to full UN membership for "Palestine" will be removed "but that day is not today."
The main hurdle is the United States which would more than likely veto any Security Council resolution granting the PA full membership of the global body. The US says the only way PA can gain full membership at the UN is by negotiating a peace deal with Israel.
"We disagree with them on that. We believe that our statehood, and our admission, is an innate right for the Palestinian people ... to exercise it alone. It is not open for negotiation with anyone - nor will we ask for permission from anyone," said Mansour, according to AP.
Mansour said the legal right for "Palestine" to be a full member of the United Nations was formalized in the 1947 General Assembly resolution that partitioned British-ruled Palestine into "independent Arab and Jewish states."
Israel was accepted as a UN member, he said, and "Palestine will continue fighting for that right."
Mansour's comments come two weeks after the PA announced it would launch a bid to become a full member of the United Nations.
In 2012, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly approved the de facto recognition of the "state of Palestine" when it upgraded the PA's UN observer status to non-member state.
Full membership would amount to international recognition of Palestinian statehood.
The PA's latest bid to become a full UN member came as it assumed chairmanship of the Group of 77 bloc of developing countries at the UN. In October, the United Nations General Assembly voted in favor of allowing the PA to chair the group in 2019, thus allowing the PA to act more like a full UN member state during meetings in 2019.
Mansour stressed that "negotiation is different than expressions of self-determination."
He noted that America's 13 colonies didn't negotiate with England in 1776 when they declared independence, and Israel didn't negotiate its independence declaration in 1948.
Since then, Mansour said, "we have negotiated, and we could possibly, if the conditions are right."
Relating to the possibility of renewed talks with Israel, Mansour said if Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees are off the table, and settlements are "more or less off the table, what is there left to negotiate?"
Monday, January 28, 2019
A7News: Poll: Left-wing alliance would net 40 seats
Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
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Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Monday, Jan. 28 '19, כ"ב בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. POLL: LEFT-WING ALLIANCE WOULD NET 40 SEATS
2. MIAMI COP FILMED TRASHING JEWISH TEXT FIRED
3. 'SILENCE OF GREEK CHURCHES ON ANTI-SEMITISM IS DISTURBING'
4. TRUMP TO EUROPE: DON'T EVEN THINK OF EVADING IRAN SANCTIONS
5. WATCH: MK YEHUDA GLICK VISITS TEMPLE MOUNT AHEAD OF WEDDING
6. "THEY YELLED 'SLAUGHTER THE JEW' AND STABBED ME"
7. ARAB KILLED AFTER LYNCH ATTEMPT WAS CONVICTED TERRORIST
8. BRITISH LABOUR REINSTATES MP SUSPENDED OVER ANTI-SEMITISM
1. POLL: LEFT-WING ALLIANCE WOULD NET 40 SEATS
by David Rosenberg
Could a grand alliance of left-wing and center-left parties deny Binyamin Netanyahu an unprecedented fifth term as prime minister?
Since the Knesset voted to dissolve itself early and head to new elections, slated for April 9th, incumbent premier Binyamin Netanyahu's Likud has led the polls with a comfortable, double-digit lead.
While Netanyahu has led with an average of 29 to 30 seats in polls conducted this month, the Likud's nearest competitors, by comparison, have averaged just 12 to 13 seats.
But a new poll shows that if the center-left and left-wing parties were to form an alliance, the new list would easily defeat the Likud and would be well-positioned to form the next governing coalition.
The poll, conducted by TNS Teleseker last week and published Sunday evening by Saloona, shows the Likud leading the pack with 28 seats – down from its present 30 mandates.
In a distant second is former IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz's Israel Resilience Party (Hason Yisrael) with 15, followed by Yeshat Atid with 13 seats and the predominantly Arab Joint List and break-away Ta'al parties with a combined 12 mandates.
The New Right faction of Education Minister Naftali Bennett would win nine seats, while Labor would plummet from 18 seats to just eight.
Among the haredi factions, United Torah Judaism would rise if new elections were held today, growing from six mandates to seven, while Shas would fall from seven seats to five.
The far-left Meretz party would win five seats, as would former Yisrael Beytenu MK Orly Levy's new Gesher faction, and the Kulanu party. Yisrael Beytenu would sink to just four seats, barely crossing the electoral threshold, as would the Jewish Home. Tzipi Livni's Hatnuah, formerly a partner in the Zionist Union alliance with Labor, would fail to cross the threshold.
If Yesh Atid and Israel Resilience ran on a joint list along with former IDF Chief of Staff Gabby Asheknazi, however, the poll found, the alliance would defeat the Likud, winning 34 seats to just 26 for the Likud. The New Right would lose one seat in this scenario, winning eight rather than nine seats, while Labor would win seven instead of eight mandates. Kulanu would sink to four mandates, as would Gesher.
Should Labor, former Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon's Telem party, Tzipi Livni's Hatnuah, and former premier Ehud Barak also join the grand alliance, the new list would net a whopping 40 seats.
Under such a scenario, the Likud would win 29 mandates, while the Joint List and Ta'al factions would fall to just 11 seats total, the New Right would win nine seats, while Kulanu, Shas, Meretz, Yisrael Beytenu, Gesher, and the Jewish Home would win four each.
Netanyahu's current coalition partners – which now hold a combined 61 seats for a razor-thin Knesset majority – would win just 57 seats in this scenario.
2. MIAMI COP FILMED TRASHING JEWISH TEXT FIRED
by Marcy Oster, JTA
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258206
A Miami police sergeant was fired over a video showing him throwing a wooden box engraved with a Star of David and a copy of the Tanach in the back of a pickup truck calling them trash.
Sgt. Roberto Destephan, a 13-year veteran of the force, had been suspended for the last two months over the cellphone video. He was fired on Thursday, the Miami Herald reported.
"We don't need this s— either, man. This crap? F— this. Takin' out the trash, dog," Destephan says on the video after turning the camera on his face. Destephan also had served as the vice president of the Miami Fraternal Order of Police when the video surfaced.
Destephan and supporters say police officers were clearing out old, moldy items from the office and that the cellphone video had been heavily edited. He said it was being used to prevent him from running in an upcoming union election. The office reportedly was located in a former Jewish funeral home and the items belonged to the previous owners.
Miami Police Chief Jorge Colina told the newspaper that he was concerned about the officer's character and credibility coming into question if he has to testify in court over an arrest. "It isn't just what he said, but what are the consequences of that. Do we lose the public's trust?" Colina said.
Destephan has 15 days to appeal his firing.
3. 'SILENCE OF GREEK CHURCHES ON ANTI-SEMITISM IS DISTURBING'
by Arutz Sheva Staff
President Reuven Rivlin spoke with Greek President Prokopis Pavapoulos Monday to condemn the destruction of the monument to the Jewish community in Thessaloniki.
The monument, which was vandalized last Friday by unknown perpetrators, was erected in memory of the the Jewish community in the city who were massacred during the Holocaust. It is located at the University of Aristotle in Thessaloniki.
The marble slabs that were erected in the monument, which were taken from an old Jewish cemetery that was destroyed by the Nazis in 1942, were smashed.
This is the third time that unknown vandals have damaged the monument in the last six months, and the 16th time that a Jewish site in Greece has been vandalized since the beginning of 2018.
"This case proves that anti-Semitism is still alive and kicking and that it is still necessary to fight against it," Rivlin said in his conversation with the Greek president. "Internal political disagreements must not lead to such expressions of hatred, and we must concentrate efforts on an uncompromising war against this phenomenon."
The President thanked the President of Greece for his unequivocal condemnation of the incident last night at the International Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony in Thessaloniki, but emphasized that "the silence of the heads of the churches in Greece is very disturbing."
"Unfortunately, all the church's religious institutions in Greece are silent in the face of manifestations of anti-Semitism, as we saw yesterday," the president said, stressing that it is very important that the Archbishop of Athens and all of Greece make a public statement against anti-Semitism.
4. TRUMP TO EUROPE: DON'T EVEN THINK OF EVADING IRAN SANCTIONS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The US is prepared to punish any attempt to circumvent the Trump administration's sanctions against the Iranian regime – including Europe. That's the message White House officials are conveying to European allies, according to a report by the Associated Press.
The Bush administration, with the help of European allies, built a comprehensive sanctions regime against Tehran over Iran's nuclear program.
As part of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, however, the signatories offered Tehran sanctions relief, allowing much-needed foreign currency into inflation-ravaged Iran.
Last May, President Trump withdrew the US from the nuclear deal, reimposing wide-ranging economic sanctions on Iran in November, despite protests from the deal's European signatories.
The European Union has vowed to circumvent the American sanctions, and is currently in the process of establishing a back-door channel for businesses to conduct transactions with Iran while evading the US sanctions regime.
"I hope that we can announce the launch very soon," said European Union spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Maja Kocijancic last week.
But the White House is warning the EU that the US will not tolerate efforts to evade sanctions on Iran, and will not hesitate to punish violators.
A senior Trump administration official told AP that the US is determined to enforce the Iranian sanctions regime, and will hold any individuals or entities involved in circumventing them responsible.
5. WATCH: MK YEHUDA GLICK VISITS TEMPLE MOUNT AHEAD OF WEDDING
by Hezki Baruch
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258246
MK Yehuda Glick (Likud) ascended the Temple Mount Monday morning in honor of his upcoming wedding, which is scheduled to take place Monday evening.
During his visit to the Temple Mount Monday, Glick met with his bride-to-be, Hadas Disin, the founder of the Amitzim organization, which provides support for widows, widowers, and orphans. Disin was widowed at the age of 29 by the sudden death of her first husband.
On January 1st, Glick, 53, announced that he was engaged to Disin, 46, a resident of Talmon in the Binyamin district of Samaria. The engagement announcement came one year to the day after Glick's first wife, Yaffa, has passed away.
6. "THEY YELLED 'SLAUGHTER THE JEW' AND STABBED ME"
by Eliran Aharon
M., the young man who was attacked this past Shabbat near the Israeli town of Adei Ad in Samaria, recalled the harrowing moments of the attack in an interview with Arutz Sheva.
"I went down from Adei Ad towards a [nearby] hill, where I passed by children who were playing, and when I reached to the hill, there were three Arabs waiting for me, shouting 'Itbah al Yahud' (Arabic for 'slaughter the Jew'). They tried to harm me in many different ways," he recalled.
"God gave me strength, and I managed to break free and escape. I ran past the kids [he had seen earlier] and shouted at them that there are terrorists approaching and that they need to run. At that point I saw that my hands were bleeding after they had stabbed me with a knife, and I ran to Adei Ad and called the security officer, who notified the emergency squad.
But the emergency squad was ambushed, in much the same way M. had been.
"When I was in the army ambulance I heard that the emergency squad members were reporting that they were in mortal danger and were calling for help, and they were in an ambush surrounded by some 300 Arabs who threw stones and pieces of metal at them."
"There are those who will say that I came to the Arabs' territory and provoked them ... It's clear to me that it's just an invention. I was in an area which belongs to Adei Ad, very far from the Arabs' area," he added.
"We're in a bizarre situation here, where Jews are afraid to speak, because the media tries to make everything look like a 'price tag' incident." So-called 'Price Tag' incidents are acts of vandalism or arson committed by Jewish youths against Arab property.
"The Arabs are the aggressors, and the people who are causing most of the mess here are left-wing activists who are fomenting chaos in the entire area."
7. ARAB KILLED AFTER LYNCH ATTEMPT WAS CONVICTED TERRORIST
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The Arab who was killed during the events near the Samaria community of Adei Ad over the weekend, Hamdi Nussan, was a convicted terrorist who sat in prison for a number of terror attacks.
Speaking with Arutz Sheva on Sunday, a spokesman for the community of Adei Ad said that the Arab man who was killed was not a mere "demonstrator but a terrorist. A convicted terrorist who sat in Israeli jail. The 'father of four' described in the media had a past of serious offenses of shooting and placing bombs."
"We are talking about a Hamas terrorist. By the way, that entire village is a Hamas village. It's a village in which arrests are carried out by security forces almost every night," the spokesman noted.
Samaria Council head Yossi Dagan said in response, "The defense establishment must operate within the village of Al-Mu'ayyir, to catch the terrorists who organized the lynching attempt yesterday."
"We expect the defense establishment, and I call upon the defense minister, to act decisively against the terror hotbeds," the council head added.
"This picture is not much different from the situation in which children on a bar mitzvah hike found themselves when they toured the town of Migdalim only a year ago. They defended themselves and prevented a severe disaster when one of the accompanying parents fired in the air, stopping the Palestinian rioters from lynching the children."
"I expect the defense establishment, in the clearest way possible, to procure the arrest capture of the terrorists and carry out operations inside the terror hotbeds, so that the motivation to carry out attacks will be reduced, and the security of the residents is preserved," Dagan stressed.
8. BRITISH LABOUR REINSTATES MP SUSPENDED OVER ANTI-SEMITISM
by Ben Ariel
A former MP from the British Labour Party, who was suspended from the party last August over comments made online about the Jewish community, has been reinstated following an investigation, The Independent reports.
Jim Sheridan, a former Paisley and Renfrewshire North MP who is now a councillor in Renfrewshire, said he is "delighted" with the decision and his support for Labour will continue.
The party launched an investigation against Sheridan following a complaint related to a social media post in which he spoke about his loss of "respect and empathy" for the community amid the anti-Semitism row.
In a statement issued on Friday, he reiterated his apology while calling his accusers "misguided".
"Today I was notified that my suspension from the Labour Party has been lifted with no further action to be taken by the party," said Sheridan.
"Whilst I am delighted with this decision, I remain of the view that my accusers were misguided and overreacted to what was intended to highlight my personal frustration and criticism of those intent on undermining our leadership in Scotland and the UK."
"I would also like to reiterate my sincere apologies to the Jewish community whose historic struggle I have supported all my political life," added Sheridan.
A Labour Party spokesman said, according to The Independent, "The Labour Party takes all complaints of antisemitism extremely seriously and we are committed to challenging and campaigning against it in all its forms."
"All complaints about antisemitism are fully investigated in line with our rules and procedures and any appropriate disciplinary action is taken."
The British Labour party has been embroiled in a series of controversies related to anti-Semitism in recent years. Dozens of Labour members have been suspended over their anti-Semitic statements.
Party leader Jeremy Corbyn himself has been accused of holding anti-Semitic views by senior UK Jewish leaders. Corbyn has also been criticized for calling Hamas and Hezbollah his "friends" and for outright refusing to condemn those two terrorist organizations despite being urged to do so by local Jewish groups.
Corbyn insists he is not an anti-Semite. In a recent interview with the BBC he described anti-Semitism "as a scourge in any society, I have opposed it all my life…I have spent my whole life opposing racism in any form and I will die fighting racism."
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Monday, Jan. 28 '19, כ"ב בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. POLL: LEFT-WING ALLIANCE WOULD NET 40 SEATS
2. MIAMI COP FILMED TRASHING JEWISH TEXT FIRED
3. 'SILENCE OF GREEK CHURCHES ON ANTI-SEMITISM IS DISTURBING'
4. TRUMP TO EUROPE: DON'T EVEN THINK OF EVADING IRAN SANCTIONS
5. WATCH: MK YEHUDA GLICK VISITS TEMPLE MOUNT AHEAD OF WEDDING
6. "THEY YELLED 'SLAUGHTER THE JEW' AND STABBED ME"
7. ARAB KILLED AFTER LYNCH ATTEMPT WAS CONVICTED TERRORIST
8. BRITISH LABOUR REINSTATES MP SUSPENDED OVER ANTI-SEMITISM
1. POLL: LEFT-WING ALLIANCE WOULD NET 40 SEATS
by David Rosenberg
Could a grand alliance of left-wing and center-left parties deny Binyamin Netanyahu an unprecedented fifth term as prime minister?
Since the Knesset voted to dissolve itself early and head to new elections, slated for April 9th, incumbent premier Binyamin Netanyahu's Likud has led the polls with a comfortable, double-digit lead.
While Netanyahu has led with an average of 29 to 30 seats in polls conducted this month, the Likud's nearest competitors, by comparison, have averaged just 12 to 13 seats.
But a new poll shows that if the center-left and left-wing parties were to form an alliance, the new list would easily defeat the Likud and would be well-positioned to form the next governing coalition.
The poll, conducted by TNS Teleseker last week and published Sunday evening by Saloona, shows the Likud leading the pack with 28 seats – down from its present 30 mandates.
In a distant second is former IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz's Israel Resilience Party (Hason Yisrael) with 15, followed by Yeshat Atid with 13 seats and the predominantly Arab Joint List and break-away Ta'al parties with a combined 12 mandates.
The New Right faction of Education Minister Naftali Bennett would win nine seats, while Labor would plummet from 18 seats to just eight.
Among the haredi factions, United Torah Judaism would rise if new elections were held today, growing from six mandates to seven, while Shas would fall from seven seats to five.
The far-left Meretz party would win five seats, as would former Yisrael Beytenu MK Orly Levy's new Gesher faction, and the Kulanu party. Yisrael Beytenu would sink to just four seats, barely crossing the electoral threshold, as would the Jewish Home. Tzipi Livni's Hatnuah, formerly a partner in the Zionist Union alliance with Labor, would fail to cross the threshold.
If Yesh Atid and Israel Resilience ran on a joint list along with former IDF Chief of Staff Gabby Asheknazi, however, the poll found, the alliance would defeat the Likud, winning 34 seats to just 26 for the Likud. The New Right would lose one seat in this scenario, winning eight rather than nine seats, while Labor would win seven instead of eight mandates. Kulanu would sink to four mandates, as would Gesher.
Should Labor, former Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon's Telem party, Tzipi Livni's Hatnuah, and former premier Ehud Barak also join the grand alliance, the new list would net a whopping 40 seats.
Under such a scenario, the Likud would win 29 mandates, while the Joint List and Ta'al factions would fall to just 11 seats total, the New Right would win nine seats, while Kulanu, Shas, Meretz, Yisrael Beytenu, Gesher, and the Jewish Home would win four each.
Netanyahu's current coalition partners – which now hold a combined 61 seats for a razor-thin Knesset majority – would win just 57 seats in this scenario.
2. MIAMI COP FILMED TRASHING JEWISH TEXT FIRED
by Marcy Oster, JTA
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258206
A Miami police sergeant was fired over a video showing him throwing a wooden box engraved with a Star of David and a copy of the Tanach in the back of a pickup truck calling them trash.
Sgt. Roberto Destephan, a 13-year veteran of the force, had been suspended for the last two months over the cellphone video. He was fired on Thursday, the Miami Herald reported.
"We don't need this s— either, man. This crap? F— this. Takin' out the trash, dog," Destephan says on the video after turning the camera on his face. Destephan also had served as the vice president of the Miami Fraternal Order of Police when the video surfaced.
Destephan and supporters say police officers were clearing out old, moldy items from the office and that the cellphone video had been heavily edited. He said it was being used to prevent him from running in an upcoming union election. The office reportedly was located in a former Jewish funeral home and the items belonged to the previous owners.
Miami Police Chief Jorge Colina told the newspaper that he was concerned about the officer's character and credibility coming into question if he has to testify in court over an arrest. "It isn't just what he said, but what are the consequences of that. Do we lose the public's trust?" Colina said.
Destephan has 15 days to appeal his firing.
3. 'SILENCE OF GREEK CHURCHES ON ANTI-SEMITISM IS DISTURBING'
by Arutz Sheva Staff
President Reuven Rivlin spoke with Greek President Prokopis Pavapoulos Monday to condemn the destruction of the monument to the Jewish community in Thessaloniki.
The monument, which was vandalized last Friday by unknown perpetrators, was erected in memory of the the Jewish community in the city who were massacred during the Holocaust. It is located at the University of Aristotle in Thessaloniki.
The marble slabs that were erected in the monument, which were taken from an old Jewish cemetery that was destroyed by the Nazis in 1942, were smashed.
This is the third time that unknown vandals have damaged the monument in the last six months, and the 16th time that a Jewish site in Greece has been vandalized since the beginning of 2018.
"This case proves that anti-Semitism is still alive and kicking and that it is still necessary to fight against it," Rivlin said in his conversation with the Greek president. "Internal political disagreements must not lead to such expressions of hatred, and we must concentrate efforts on an uncompromising war against this phenomenon."
The President thanked the President of Greece for his unequivocal condemnation of the incident last night at the International Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony in Thessaloniki, but emphasized that "the silence of the heads of the churches in Greece is very disturbing."
"Unfortunately, all the church's religious institutions in Greece are silent in the face of manifestations of anti-Semitism, as we saw yesterday," the president said, stressing that it is very important that the Archbishop of Athens and all of Greece make a public statement against anti-Semitism.
4. TRUMP TO EUROPE: DON'T EVEN THINK OF EVADING IRAN SANCTIONS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The US is prepared to punish any attempt to circumvent the Trump administration's sanctions against the Iranian regime – including Europe. That's the message White House officials are conveying to European allies, according to a report by the Associated Press.
The Bush administration, with the help of European allies, built a comprehensive sanctions regime against Tehran over Iran's nuclear program.
As part of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, however, the signatories offered Tehran sanctions relief, allowing much-needed foreign currency into inflation-ravaged Iran.
Last May, President Trump withdrew the US from the nuclear deal, reimposing wide-ranging economic sanctions on Iran in November, despite protests from the deal's European signatories.
The European Union has vowed to circumvent the American sanctions, and is currently in the process of establishing a back-door channel for businesses to conduct transactions with Iran while evading the US sanctions regime.
"I hope that we can announce the launch very soon," said European Union spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Maja Kocijancic last week.
But the White House is warning the EU that the US will not tolerate efforts to evade sanctions on Iran, and will not hesitate to punish violators.
A senior Trump administration official told AP that the US is determined to enforce the Iranian sanctions regime, and will hold any individuals or entities involved in circumventing them responsible.
5. WATCH: MK YEHUDA GLICK VISITS TEMPLE MOUNT AHEAD OF WEDDING
by Hezki Baruch
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258246
MK Yehuda Glick (Likud) ascended the Temple Mount Monday morning in honor of his upcoming wedding, which is scheduled to take place Monday evening.
During his visit to the Temple Mount Monday, Glick met with his bride-to-be, Hadas Disin, the founder of the Amitzim organization, which provides support for widows, widowers, and orphans. Disin was widowed at the age of 29 by the sudden death of her first husband.
On January 1st, Glick, 53, announced that he was engaged to Disin, 46, a resident of Talmon in the Binyamin district of Samaria. The engagement announcement came one year to the day after Glick's first wife, Yaffa, has passed away.
6. "THEY YELLED 'SLAUGHTER THE JEW' AND STABBED ME"
by Eliran Aharon
M., the young man who was attacked this past Shabbat near the Israeli town of Adei Ad in Samaria, recalled the harrowing moments of the attack in an interview with Arutz Sheva.
"I went down from Adei Ad towards a [nearby] hill, where I passed by children who were playing, and when I reached to the hill, there were three Arabs waiting for me, shouting 'Itbah al Yahud' (Arabic for 'slaughter the Jew'). They tried to harm me in many different ways," he recalled.
"God gave me strength, and I managed to break free and escape. I ran past the kids [he had seen earlier] and shouted at them that there are terrorists approaching and that they need to run. At that point I saw that my hands were bleeding after they had stabbed me with a knife, and I ran to Adei Ad and called the security officer, who notified the emergency squad.
But the emergency squad was ambushed, in much the same way M. had been.
"When I was in the army ambulance I heard that the emergency squad members were reporting that they were in mortal danger and were calling for help, and they were in an ambush surrounded by some 300 Arabs who threw stones and pieces of metal at them."
"There are those who will say that I came to the Arabs' territory and provoked them ... It's clear to me that it's just an invention. I was in an area which belongs to Adei Ad, very far from the Arabs' area," he added.
"We're in a bizarre situation here, where Jews are afraid to speak, because the media tries to make everything look like a 'price tag' incident." So-called 'Price Tag' incidents are acts of vandalism or arson committed by Jewish youths against Arab property.
"The Arabs are the aggressors, and the people who are causing most of the mess here are left-wing activists who are fomenting chaos in the entire area."
7. ARAB KILLED AFTER LYNCH ATTEMPT WAS CONVICTED TERRORIST
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The Arab who was killed during the events near the Samaria community of Adei Ad over the weekend, Hamdi Nussan, was a convicted terrorist who sat in prison for a number of terror attacks.
Speaking with Arutz Sheva on Sunday, a spokesman for the community of Adei Ad said that the Arab man who was killed was not a mere "demonstrator but a terrorist. A convicted terrorist who sat in Israeli jail. The 'father of four' described in the media had a past of serious offenses of shooting and placing bombs."
"We are talking about a Hamas terrorist. By the way, that entire village is a Hamas village. It's a village in which arrests are carried out by security forces almost every night," the spokesman noted.
Samaria Council head Yossi Dagan said in response, "The defense establishment must operate within the village of Al-Mu'ayyir, to catch the terrorists who organized the lynching attempt yesterday."
"We expect the defense establishment, and I call upon the defense minister, to act decisively against the terror hotbeds," the council head added.
"This picture is not much different from the situation in which children on a bar mitzvah hike found themselves when they toured the town of Migdalim only a year ago. They defended themselves and prevented a severe disaster when one of the accompanying parents fired in the air, stopping the Palestinian rioters from lynching the children."
"I expect the defense establishment, in the clearest way possible, to procure the arrest capture of the terrorists and carry out operations inside the terror hotbeds, so that the motivation to carry out attacks will be reduced, and the security of the residents is preserved," Dagan stressed.
8. BRITISH LABOUR REINSTATES MP SUSPENDED OVER ANTI-SEMITISM
by Ben Ariel
A former MP from the British Labour Party, who was suspended from the party last August over comments made online about the Jewish community, has been reinstated following an investigation, The Independent reports.
Jim Sheridan, a former Paisley and Renfrewshire North MP who is now a councillor in Renfrewshire, said he is "delighted" with the decision and his support for Labour will continue.
The party launched an investigation against Sheridan following a complaint related to a social media post in which he spoke about his loss of "respect and empathy" for the community amid the anti-Semitism row.
In a statement issued on Friday, he reiterated his apology while calling his accusers "misguided".
"Today I was notified that my suspension from the Labour Party has been lifted with no further action to be taken by the party," said Sheridan.
"Whilst I am delighted with this decision, I remain of the view that my accusers were misguided and overreacted to what was intended to highlight my personal frustration and criticism of those intent on undermining our leadership in Scotland and the UK."
"I would also like to reiterate my sincere apologies to the Jewish community whose historic struggle I have supported all my political life," added Sheridan.
A Labour Party spokesman said, according to The Independent, "The Labour Party takes all complaints of antisemitism extremely seriously and we are committed to challenging and campaigning against it in all its forms."
"All complaints about antisemitism are fully investigated in line with our rules and procedures and any appropriate disciplinary action is taken."
The British Labour party has been embroiled in a series of controversies related to anti-Semitism in recent years. Dozens of Labour members have been suspended over their anti-Semitic statements.
Party leader Jeremy Corbyn himself has been accused of holding anti-Semitic views by senior UK Jewish leaders. Corbyn has also been criticized for calling Hamas and Hezbollah his "friends" and for outright refusing to condemn those two terrorist organizations despite being urged to do so by local Jewish groups.
Corbyn insists he is not an anti-Semite. In a recent interview with the BBC he described anti-Semitism "as a scourge in any society, I have opposed it all my life…I have spent my whole life opposing racism in any form and I will die fighting racism."
Sunday, January 27, 2019
A7News: Arab killed after lynch attempt was convicted terrorist
Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Sunday, Jan. 27 '19, כ"א בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. ARAB KILLED AFTER LYNCH ATTEMPT WAS CONVICTED TERRORIST
2. GALANT: ISRAEL HAS A PLAN TO KICK IRAN OUT OF SYRIA
3. NETANYAHU: TRUMP'S IRAN SANCTIONS ARE CRIPPLING HEZBOLLAH
4. MALAYSIA STRIPPED OF SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS OVER BAN ON ISRAELIS
5. LARGEST KOSHER STORE IN THE UNITED STATES TO OPEN THIS WEEK
6. WATCH: ROSEANNE BARR VISITS JERUSALEM'S OLD CITY
7. 'THEY SURROUNDED ME AND TRIED TO DRAG ME INTO THE VILLAGE'
8. VENEZUELA BACKTRACKS ON EXPULSION OF US DIPLOMATS
1. ARAB KILLED AFTER LYNCH ATTEMPT WAS CONVICTED TERRORIST
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The Arab who was killed during the events near the Samaria community of Adei Ad over the weekend, Hamdi Nussan, was a convicted terrorist who sat in prison for a number of terror attacks.
Speaking with Arutz Sheva on Sunday, a spokesman for the community of Adei Ad said that the Arab man who was killed was not a mere "demonstrator but a terrorist. A convicted terrorist who sat in Israeli jail. The 'father of four' described in the media had a past of serious offenses of shooting and placing bombs."
"We are talking about a Hamas terrorist. By the way, that entire village is a Hamas village. It's a village in which arrests are carried out by security forces almost every night," the spokesman noted.
Samaria Council head Yossi Dagan said in response, "The defense establishment must operate within the village of Al-Mu'ayyir, to catch the terrorists who organized the lynching attempt yesterday."
"We expect the defense establishment, and I call upon the defense minister, to act decisively against the terror hotbeds," the council head added.
"This picture is not much different from the situation in which children on a bar mitzvah hike found themselves when they toured the town of Migdalim only a year ago. They defended themselves and prevented a severe disaster when one of the accompanying parents fired in the air, stopping the Palestinian rioters from lynching the children."
"I expect the defense establishment, in the clearest way possible, to procure the arrest capture of the terrorists and carry out operations inside the terror hotbeds, so that the motivation to carry out attacks will be reduced, and the security of the residents is preserved," Dagan stressed.
2. GALANT: ISRAEL HAS A PLAN TO KICK IRAN OUT OF SYRIA
by Tzvi Lev
Absorption Minister Yoav Galant said during a cultural event on Shabbat that Israel had a plan to force Iran to leave Syria.
The former General added that Russia agreed to Israel's plan, upon which he did not elaborate. "Israel and Russia have a shared interest to expel the Iranians from Syria," he said.
"As long as the Russians had to defeat the rebel organizations, they saw the Iranians and Hezbollah as partners because they were active on the battlefield," continued Galant.
Galant's comments come amid rising tensions on Israel's northern border as the IDF attemps to stop Iran from establishing itself militarily in Syria. Last Monday, Israel hit military targets in Syria in response to the launching of a surface-to-surface missile on Sunday by Iranian forces operating in Syria.
The targets hit by Israel included Syrian-operated air defense systems and Iranian munitions depots, an intelligence site, and an Iranian-operated military training camp.
At least 21 were reportedly killed in the Israeli strikes, including 12 Iranian soldiers.
3. NETANYAHU: TRUMP'S IRAN SANCTIONS ARE CRIPPLING HEZBOLLAH
by David Rosenberg
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu mocked Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah's threats on Sunday, and said the Shi'ite terror organization is increasingly desperate following the IDF's successful campaign against Hezbollah's cross-border terror tunnels and the loss of much of the financial support it had enjoyed from Iran.
Speaking at a cabinet meeting Sunday, Netanyahu said Nasrallah was "very embarrassed". Netanyahu credited both the sanctions regime reimposed by the Trump administration on Iran, and the recent IDF campaign against Hezbollah.
"Nasrallah broke his silence yesterday. He is very embarrassed for three reasons: One, because of the great success of our Operation Northern Shield. He and his people put great effort into the surprise weapon of invasive tunnels, including their excavation, in contrast to what he said, in recent years and months. Within six weeks, we completely denied him this weapon.
"Second, Nasrallah is in a predicament due to financial distress. The policy that we pushed of reimposing sanctions on Iran, which was clearly and sharply adopted by President Trump, is striking hard at the sources of financing for Iran and its proxies, especially Hezbollah.
"Third, Nasrallah is in distress due to our determination. Against Nasrallah stands the lethal striking force of the IDF. Believe me; Nasrallah has good reasons not to want to feel the might of our arm."
Netanyahu's comments came in response to a statement by Nasrallah in which the Hezbollah leader vowed his organization would continue digging terror tunnels into Israel, adding that he was "surprised" it took Israel so long to discover the project.
"Operation Northern Defense has not ended," said Nasrallah. "Although the Israelis have declared its end, the digging continues."
This is the first time Nasrallah has made a public statement since Israel launched its campaign to uproot tunnels from southern Lebanon in December.
The Hezbollah leader's uncharacteristically lengthy silence caused speculation to abound to the resigns behind his reticence. Lebanese media reported several weeks ago that Nasrallah was hospitalized after an apparent heart attack, with some reports claiming he is also fighting cancer.
However, reports that Nasrallah is sick were rejected by Hossein Amirabdollahian, assistant to Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani, who called such an assertion the "biggest lie of the new year."
Prime Minister Netanyahu's comments in Hebrew:
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258198
4. MALAYSIA STRIPPED OF SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS OVER BAN ON ISRAELIS
by Gary Willig
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) stripped Malaysia of its right to host the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships over the country's discrimination against Israeli participants, the IPC announced on Sunday.
The city of Kuching in the eastern Sarawak state was scheduled to host hundreds of swimmers from 70 countries from July 29 to August 4. The competition would have served as a qualifying event for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics
Earlier this month Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said his country would deny visas to Israeli para swimmers seeking to attend the meet.
"We maintain our stand on the prohibition. If they do come, it is a violation," he said, according to AFP.
"If they (the International Paralympic Committee) want to withdraw Malaysia's right to host the championship, they can do so," added Mahathir.
Israel's Foreign Ministry condemned Malaysia's "shameful" decision to ban Israelis from the competition.
"The Malaysian government has taken the decision to ban the participation of Israelis in official international sports events in Malaysia, including the participation of athletes with disabilities in a swimming competition organized by the International Paralympic Committee," said a statement released by the Foreign Ministry.
"This is shameful and totally opposes the Olympic spirit," said the statement, which added that "Israel condemns the decision, inspired no doubt by Malaysia's PM Mahatir's rabid anti-Semitism".
The IPC, which had earlier decided to strip Malaysia of its rights to host the competition during a meeting of its Governing Board over the last week.
Andrew Parsons, IPC President, said: "All World Championships must be open to all eligible athletes and nations to compete safely and free from discrimination. When a host country excludes athletes from a particular nation, for political reasons, then we have absolutely no alternative but to look for a new Championships host."
The Paralympic Movement has, and always will be, motivated by a desire to drive inclusion, not exclusion. Regardless of the countries involved in this matter, the IPC would take the same decision again if it was to face a similar situation involving different countries.
"In September 2017 when the IPC signed the contract with the Paralympic Council of Malaysia (NPC Malaysia) to host the World Para Swimming Championships, we had assurances that all eligible athletes and countries would be allowed to participate in the event with their safety assured.
"Since then, there has been a change of political leadership and the new Malaysian government has different ideas. Politics and sport are never a good mix and we are disappointed that Israeli athletes would not have been allowed to compete in Malaysia.
"As a result of the Board's decision today, we are now looking for a new host for this vital World Championships, which acts as a qualifier for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. We will strive to maintain the same dates and conditions for the Championships as to not upset the training schedules of athletes who aim to peak for the end of July and early August. However, we may need to be flexible in this area bearing in mind the circumstances we face."
Chelsey Gotell, Chairperson of the IPC Athletes' Council, said: "The IPC Athletes' Council has received a great deal of correspondence from athletes around the world on this situation. We have discussed all potential outcomes and engaged with the World Para Swimming Athlete Advisory Group to gather their feedback on the situation to ensure the athlete voice was well reflected in the IPC Governing Board discussion and decision."
"Not only does this decision stress the importance of keeping sport and politics separate, but it also reinforces the IPC's commitment to our fundamental moral and ethical principles that encompass inclusivity of all eligible Para athletes and nations to compete at IPC sanctioned events."
The IPC invited all nations which are interested in hosting the competition in Malaysia's stead to contact the organization by February 11, 2019.
Mahatir was sworn in as prime minister last May, nearly two decades after he last held office. He is well known for his anti-Semitic rhetoric, writing on his personal blog in 2012 that "Jews rule this world by proxy."
In 2003, speaking at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit in Kuala Lumpur, he said that "1.3 billion Muslims cannot be defeated by a few million Jews. There must be a way. And we can only find a way if we stop to think, to assess our weaknesses and our strength, to plan, to strategize and then to counterattack. We are actually very strong. 1.3 billion people cannot be simply wiped out. The Europeans killed 6 million Jews out of 12 million."
More recently, the Malaysian Prime Minister said that Jews are "hook-nosed" and accused them of creating problems in the Middle East.
Last August, Mahatir defended his right to be anti-Semitic, arguing that anti-Semitism is an artificial construct created to silence critics of the Jews.
5. LARGEST KOSHER STORE IN THE UNITED STATES TO OPEN THIS WEEK
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Osher Ad, a kosher supermarket, will be opening their second overseas branch this week. The new store will be opening in cooperation with David Weiss in Lakewood, New Jersey, under the name Bingo.
Lakewood is considered a Haredi-American center with a community of 20,000 Haredi households.
The huge branch covers more than 7,000 square meters, employs about 170 people and is located next to Costco and Home Depot branches.
In order to maintain a comfortable and friendly shopping experience, SuperSmart's smart technology will also operate in the branch.
The SuperSmart technology is used in several branches of the store in Israel. The technology enables purchase through an application without the need to go to a cashier and significantly shortens purchase time.
This second branch overseas joins the chain that had opened in Brooklyn, New York two years ago with a local partner, in which millions of dollars had been invested.
Osher Ad was established in 2009 by Aryeh Boim, Avrum Moshe Margalit and Yehuda Laniado. It has since grown into the fourth largest food retail chain in Israel and the first to open branches outside of Israel.
With already 20 branches around the world, it is considered the first heavy discount chain in the US Jewish market, and will continue to expand to various regions of the world where there is a large concentration of Jews. The city of Monsey in New York is expected to be the next target for a store opening.
A statement from Osher Ad said, "We are happy about the opening of the largest Jewish store in the United States this week. It serves as an example of an Israeli retail chain opening branches overseas. We do not stop for a moment in planning additional branches in areas where there are high concentrations of Jews and will continue to do everything to give our customers a convenient and cost-effective savings experience."
6. WATCH: ROSEANNE BARR VISITS JERUSALEM'S OLD CITY
by Hezki Baruch
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258190
The actress Roseanne Barr on Sunday morning visited the Wittenberg House in the Muslim quarter of Jerusalem, run by Ateret Cohanim.
Roseanne is being hosted by Minister of Culture and Sport Miri Regev.
Roseanne asked to visit the special house, also known as the Ariel Sharon House, because of the fact that the national writer Mark Twain stayed there in 1867 during his travels in the "Holy Land" which he famously documented in his book "The Innocents Abroad."
Barr is being accompanied by "America's rabbi" Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, the founder of the World Values Network, which is financing the visit.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258190
[album:open:10869]
7. 'THEY SURROUNDED ME AND TRIED TO DRAG ME INTO THE VILLAGE'
by Arutz Sheva Staff
A teenager recounted how he was stabbed Saturday afternoon in an ambush near the Adei Ad community, in the northern Binyamin region.
"On Saturday, I went out to pray privately about 200 meters from the town. I got there, and suddenly I saw three Arabs who encircled me. They attacked me, beat me and, at one point, attempted to drag me to the village.
"I managed to escape to Adei Ad and on the way, I saw there was blood. I looked and understood that they had stabbed me. I saw some kids close by and told them to go away. Apparently they didn't understand. I then alerted the emergency squad, which immediately sent the kids away and apparently went after the attackers."
An IDF Spokesperson stated, "earlier today, there was a physical attack between a number of Palestinians and a resident near Adei Ad, during which a civilian was lightly wounded and did not need an evacuation."
The IDF also said, "The first details indicate that later, tensions between the residents and Palestinians in the area developed during which live fire was carried out by the residents. There is one Palestinian killed and a number of Palestinians wounded. IDF and Border Police forces rushed to the area and responded with riot dispersal measures. The disturbance has been dispersed."
The Adei Ad community said, "At noon on Saturday, a group of hikers on the outskirts of the town were attacked with knives stabbings and severe violence by Arabs from the village of al-Mu'ayyir.
"One of the hikers was stabbed, and they managed to call for help. The forces in the regional alert stations were mobilized to rescue the hikers and to dispel any reports of a missing hiker. The forces were attacked with severe violence and the moment they sensed a tangible danger to their lives they responded by gunfire in the air," the community said, adding, "Military forces that arrived at the scene and confronted dozens of Arabs who attacked the soldiers with severe violence."
"The community of Adei Ad views with severity the repeated attacks by residents of the Arab villages in the region and calls on security forces to respond harshly and punish all the terror villages," the community stated.
Hebrew audio:
[audio:2052905]
8. VENEZUELA BACKTRACKS ON EXPULSION OF US DIPLOMATS
by Elad Benari
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government on Saturday backtracked on an order that gave US Embassy personnel 72 hours to leave Venezuela, The Associated Press.
Maduro on Wednesday announced he was breaking his country's diplomatic relations with the United States, after President Donald Trump recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president and called on Maduro to step down.
The Trump administration refused to obey his order, arguing that Maduro was no longer Venezuela's legitimate president. That set the stage for a potentially violent showdown at the hilltop Embassy compound on Saturday night, when the deadline was to expire.
However, on Saturday night the Foreign Ministry in Caracas issued a statement saying the Maduro government had opened a 30-day window to negotiate with the Trump administration the establishment of a "US interests office" in Venezuela, and a similar office for Venezuela in the United States.
The State Department did not immediately confirm the Venezuelan government's account, reiterating only that its priority remains the safety of its personnel and that it has no plans to close the embassy, according to AP.
Earlier in the day, Venezuela's Foreign Affairs Minister faced off against Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at a special UN Security Council meeting on Venezuela's situation.
During the debate -- which was convened by the US -- Pompeo urged all nations to end Venezuela's "nightmare" and support opposition Guaido. while Russia accused the Trump administration of attempting "to engineer a coup d'etat" against Maduro.
Pompeo told the Security Council that it's beyond time to back the Venezuelan people as they try to free themselves from what he called Maduro's "illegitimate mafia state" and support Guaido.
Russia's UN Ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, said Venezuela doesn't threaten international peace and security and accused "extremist opponents" of Maduro's legitimate government of choosing "maximum confrontation," including the artificial creation of a parallel government. He urged Pompeo to say whether the US will use military force.
Pompeo later told reporters who asked for a response, "I am not going to speculate or hypothesize on what the US will do next."
Venezuela has been rocked by protests and civil unrest in recent years as the government's socialist policies have caused the country to sink into economic ruin. Inflation has run rampant and there is a shortage of basic commodities such as food.
In 2017, the US imposed sanctions on Maduro, freezing all his assets in the US, and prohibiting Americans from dealing with him.
The outspoken Maduro has insulted his political opponents as "heirs to Hitler" in the past, and has been frequently accused of anti-Semitism.
In 2014, he twice expelled American diplomats from Venezuela, claiming they were encouraging protests against him by opposition groups.
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Sunday, Jan. 27 '19, כ"א בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. ARAB KILLED AFTER LYNCH ATTEMPT WAS CONVICTED TERRORIST
2. GALANT: ISRAEL HAS A PLAN TO KICK IRAN OUT OF SYRIA
3. NETANYAHU: TRUMP'S IRAN SANCTIONS ARE CRIPPLING HEZBOLLAH
4. MALAYSIA STRIPPED OF SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS OVER BAN ON ISRAELIS
5. LARGEST KOSHER STORE IN THE UNITED STATES TO OPEN THIS WEEK
6. WATCH: ROSEANNE BARR VISITS JERUSALEM'S OLD CITY
7. 'THEY SURROUNDED ME AND TRIED TO DRAG ME INTO THE VILLAGE'
8. VENEZUELA BACKTRACKS ON EXPULSION OF US DIPLOMATS
1. ARAB KILLED AFTER LYNCH ATTEMPT WAS CONVICTED TERRORIST
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The Arab who was killed during the events near the Samaria community of Adei Ad over the weekend, Hamdi Nussan, was a convicted terrorist who sat in prison for a number of terror attacks.
Speaking with Arutz Sheva on Sunday, a spokesman for the community of Adei Ad said that the Arab man who was killed was not a mere "demonstrator but a terrorist. A convicted terrorist who sat in Israeli jail. The 'father of four' described in the media had a past of serious offenses of shooting and placing bombs."
"We are talking about a Hamas terrorist. By the way, that entire village is a Hamas village. It's a village in which arrests are carried out by security forces almost every night," the spokesman noted.
Samaria Council head Yossi Dagan said in response, "The defense establishment must operate within the village of Al-Mu'ayyir, to catch the terrorists who organized the lynching attempt yesterday."
"We expect the defense establishment, and I call upon the defense minister, to act decisively against the terror hotbeds," the council head added.
"This picture is not much different from the situation in which children on a bar mitzvah hike found themselves when they toured the town of Migdalim only a year ago. They defended themselves and prevented a severe disaster when one of the accompanying parents fired in the air, stopping the Palestinian rioters from lynching the children."
"I expect the defense establishment, in the clearest way possible, to procure the arrest capture of the terrorists and carry out operations inside the terror hotbeds, so that the motivation to carry out attacks will be reduced, and the security of the residents is preserved," Dagan stressed.
2. GALANT: ISRAEL HAS A PLAN TO KICK IRAN OUT OF SYRIA
by Tzvi Lev
Absorption Minister Yoav Galant said during a cultural event on Shabbat that Israel had a plan to force Iran to leave Syria.
The former General added that Russia agreed to Israel's plan, upon which he did not elaborate. "Israel and Russia have a shared interest to expel the Iranians from Syria," he said.
"As long as the Russians had to defeat the rebel organizations, they saw the Iranians and Hezbollah as partners because they were active on the battlefield," continued Galant.
Galant's comments come amid rising tensions on Israel's northern border as the IDF attemps to stop Iran from establishing itself militarily in Syria. Last Monday, Israel hit military targets in Syria in response to the launching of a surface-to-surface missile on Sunday by Iranian forces operating in Syria.
The targets hit by Israel included Syrian-operated air defense systems and Iranian munitions depots, an intelligence site, and an Iranian-operated military training camp.
At least 21 were reportedly killed in the Israeli strikes, including 12 Iranian soldiers.
3. NETANYAHU: TRUMP'S IRAN SANCTIONS ARE CRIPPLING HEZBOLLAH
by David Rosenberg
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu mocked Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah's threats on Sunday, and said the Shi'ite terror organization is increasingly desperate following the IDF's successful campaign against Hezbollah's cross-border terror tunnels and the loss of much of the financial support it had enjoyed from Iran.
Speaking at a cabinet meeting Sunday, Netanyahu said Nasrallah was "very embarrassed". Netanyahu credited both the sanctions regime reimposed by the Trump administration on Iran, and the recent IDF campaign against Hezbollah.
"Nasrallah broke his silence yesterday. He is very embarrassed for three reasons: One, because of the great success of our Operation Northern Shield. He and his people put great effort into the surprise weapon of invasive tunnels, including their excavation, in contrast to what he said, in recent years and months. Within six weeks, we completely denied him this weapon.
"Second, Nasrallah is in a predicament due to financial distress. The policy that we pushed of reimposing sanctions on Iran, which was clearly and sharply adopted by President Trump, is striking hard at the sources of financing for Iran and its proxies, especially Hezbollah.
"Third, Nasrallah is in distress due to our determination. Against Nasrallah stands the lethal striking force of the IDF. Believe me; Nasrallah has good reasons not to want to feel the might of our arm."
Netanyahu's comments came in response to a statement by Nasrallah in which the Hezbollah leader vowed his organization would continue digging terror tunnels into Israel, adding that he was "surprised" it took Israel so long to discover the project.
"Operation Northern Defense has not ended," said Nasrallah. "Although the Israelis have declared its end, the digging continues."
This is the first time Nasrallah has made a public statement since Israel launched its campaign to uproot tunnels from southern Lebanon in December.
The Hezbollah leader's uncharacteristically lengthy silence caused speculation to abound to the resigns behind his reticence. Lebanese media reported several weeks ago that Nasrallah was hospitalized after an apparent heart attack, with some reports claiming he is also fighting cancer.
However, reports that Nasrallah is sick were rejected by Hossein Amirabdollahian, assistant to Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani, who called such an assertion the "biggest lie of the new year."
Prime Minister Netanyahu's comments in Hebrew:
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258198
4. MALAYSIA STRIPPED OF SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS OVER BAN ON ISRAELIS
by Gary Willig
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) stripped Malaysia of its right to host the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships over the country's discrimination against Israeli participants, the IPC announced on Sunday.
The city of Kuching in the eastern Sarawak state was scheduled to host hundreds of swimmers from 70 countries from July 29 to August 4. The competition would have served as a qualifying event for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics
Earlier this month Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said his country would deny visas to Israeli para swimmers seeking to attend the meet.
"We maintain our stand on the prohibition. If they do come, it is a violation," he said, according to AFP.
"If they (the International Paralympic Committee) want to withdraw Malaysia's right to host the championship, they can do so," added Mahathir.
Israel's Foreign Ministry condemned Malaysia's "shameful" decision to ban Israelis from the competition.
"The Malaysian government has taken the decision to ban the participation of Israelis in official international sports events in Malaysia, including the participation of athletes with disabilities in a swimming competition organized by the International Paralympic Committee," said a statement released by the Foreign Ministry.
"This is shameful and totally opposes the Olympic spirit," said the statement, which added that "Israel condemns the decision, inspired no doubt by Malaysia's PM Mahatir's rabid anti-Semitism".
The IPC, which had earlier decided to strip Malaysia of its rights to host the competition during a meeting of its Governing Board over the last week.
Andrew Parsons, IPC President, said: "All World Championships must be open to all eligible athletes and nations to compete safely and free from discrimination. When a host country excludes athletes from a particular nation, for political reasons, then we have absolutely no alternative but to look for a new Championships host."
The Paralympic Movement has, and always will be, motivated by a desire to drive inclusion, not exclusion. Regardless of the countries involved in this matter, the IPC would take the same decision again if it was to face a similar situation involving different countries.
"In September 2017 when the IPC signed the contract with the Paralympic Council of Malaysia (NPC Malaysia) to host the World Para Swimming Championships, we had assurances that all eligible athletes and countries would be allowed to participate in the event with their safety assured.
"Since then, there has been a change of political leadership and the new Malaysian government has different ideas. Politics and sport are never a good mix and we are disappointed that Israeli athletes would not have been allowed to compete in Malaysia.
"As a result of the Board's decision today, we are now looking for a new host for this vital World Championships, which acts as a qualifier for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. We will strive to maintain the same dates and conditions for the Championships as to not upset the training schedules of athletes who aim to peak for the end of July and early August. However, we may need to be flexible in this area bearing in mind the circumstances we face."
Chelsey Gotell, Chairperson of the IPC Athletes' Council, said: "The IPC Athletes' Council has received a great deal of correspondence from athletes around the world on this situation. We have discussed all potential outcomes and engaged with the World Para Swimming Athlete Advisory Group to gather their feedback on the situation to ensure the athlete voice was well reflected in the IPC Governing Board discussion and decision."
"Not only does this decision stress the importance of keeping sport and politics separate, but it also reinforces the IPC's commitment to our fundamental moral and ethical principles that encompass inclusivity of all eligible Para athletes and nations to compete at IPC sanctioned events."
The IPC invited all nations which are interested in hosting the competition in Malaysia's stead to contact the organization by February 11, 2019.
Mahatir was sworn in as prime minister last May, nearly two decades after he last held office. He is well known for his anti-Semitic rhetoric, writing on his personal blog in 2012 that "Jews rule this world by proxy."
In 2003, speaking at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit in Kuala Lumpur, he said that "1.3 billion Muslims cannot be defeated by a few million Jews. There must be a way. And we can only find a way if we stop to think, to assess our weaknesses and our strength, to plan, to strategize and then to counterattack. We are actually very strong. 1.3 billion people cannot be simply wiped out. The Europeans killed 6 million Jews out of 12 million."
More recently, the Malaysian Prime Minister said that Jews are "hook-nosed" and accused them of creating problems in the Middle East.
Last August, Mahatir defended his right to be anti-Semitic, arguing that anti-Semitism is an artificial construct created to silence critics of the Jews.
5. LARGEST KOSHER STORE IN THE UNITED STATES TO OPEN THIS WEEK
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Osher Ad, a kosher supermarket, will be opening their second overseas branch this week. The new store will be opening in cooperation with David Weiss in Lakewood, New Jersey, under the name Bingo.
Lakewood is considered a Haredi-American center with a community of 20,000 Haredi households.
The huge branch covers more than 7,000 square meters, employs about 170 people and is located next to Costco and Home Depot branches.
In order to maintain a comfortable and friendly shopping experience, SuperSmart's smart technology will also operate in the branch.
The SuperSmart technology is used in several branches of the store in Israel. The technology enables purchase through an application without the need to go to a cashier and significantly shortens purchase time.
This second branch overseas joins the chain that had opened in Brooklyn, New York two years ago with a local partner, in which millions of dollars had been invested.
Osher Ad was established in 2009 by Aryeh Boim, Avrum Moshe Margalit and Yehuda Laniado. It has since grown into the fourth largest food retail chain in Israel and the first to open branches outside of Israel.
With already 20 branches around the world, it is considered the first heavy discount chain in the US Jewish market, and will continue to expand to various regions of the world where there is a large concentration of Jews. The city of Monsey in New York is expected to be the next target for a store opening.
A statement from Osher Ad said, "We are happy about the opening of the largest Jewish store in the United States this week. It serves as an example of an Israeli retail chain opening branches overseas. We do not stop for a moment in planning additional branches in areas where there are high concentrations of Jews and will continue to do everything to give our customers a convenient and cost-effective savings experience."
6. WATCH: ROSEANNE BARR VISITS JERUSALEM'S OLD CITY
by Hezki Baruch
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258190
The actress Roseanne Barr on Sunday morning visited the Wittenberg House in the Muslim quarter of Jerusalem, run by Ateret Cohanim.
Roseanne is being hosted by Minister of Culture and Sport Miri Regev.
Roseanne asked to visit the special house, also known as the Ariel Sharon House, because of the fact that the national writer Mark Twain stayed there in 1867 during his travels in the "Holy Land" which he famously documented in his book "The Innocents Abroad."
Barr is being accompanied by "America's rabbi" Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, the founder of the World Values Network, which is financing the visit.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258190
[album:open:10869]
7. 'THEY SURROUNDED ME AND TRIED TO DRAG ME INTO THE VILLAGE'
by Arutz Sheva Staff
A teenager recounted how he was stabbed Saturday afternoon in an ambush near the Adei Ad community, in the northern Binyamin region.
"On Saturday, I went out to pray privately about 200 meters from the town. I got there, and suddenly I saw three Arabs who encircled me. They attacked me, beat me and, at one point, attempted to drag me to the village.
"I managed to escape to Adei Ad and on the way, I saw there was blood. I looked and understood that they had stabbed me. I saw some kids close by and told them to go away. Apparently they didn't understand. I then alerted the emergency squad, which immediately sent the kids away and apparently went after the attackers."
An IDF Spokesperson stated, "earlier today, there was a physical attack between a number of Palestinians and a resident near Adei Ad, during which a civilian was lightly wounded and did not need an evacuation."
The IDF also said, "The first details indicate that later, tensions between the residents and Palestinians in the area developed during which live fire was carried out by the residents. There is one Palestinian killed and a number of Palestinians wounded. IDF and Border Police forces rushed to the area and responded with riot dispersal measures. The disturbance has been dispersed."
The Adei Ad community said, "At noon on Saturday, a group of hikers on the outskirts of the town were attacked with knives stabbings and severe violence by Arabs from the village of al-Mu'ayyir.
"One of the hikers was stabbed, and they managed to call for help. The forces in the regional alert stations were mobilized to rescue the hikers and to dispel any reports of a missing hiker. The forces were attacked with severe violence and the moment they sensed a tangible danger to their lives they responded by gunfire in the air," the community said, adding, "Military forces that arrived at the scene and confronted dozens of Arabs who attacked the soldiers with severe violence."
"The community of Adei Ad views with severity the repeated attacks by residents of the Arab villages in the region and calls on security forces to respond harshly and punish all the terror villages," the community stated.
Hebrew audio:
[audio:2052905]
8. VENEZUELA BACKTRACKS ON EXPULSION OF US DIPLOMATS
by Elad Benari
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government on Saturday backtracked on an order that gave US Embassy personnel 72 hours to leave Venezuela, The Associated Press.
Maduro on Wednesday announced he was breaking his country's diplomatic relations with the United States, after President Donald Trump recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president and called on Maduro to step down.
The Trump administration refused to obey his order, arguing that Maduro was no longer Venezuela's legitimate president. That set the stage for a potentially violent showdown at the hilltop Embassy compound on Saturday night, when the deadline was to expire.
However, on Saturday night the Foreign Ministry in Caracas issued a statement saying the Maduro government had opened a 30-day window to negotiate with the Trump administration the establishment of a "US interests office" in Venezuela, and a similar office for Venezuela in the United States.
The State Department did not immediately confirm the Venezuelan government's account, reiterating only that its priority remains the safety of its personnel and that it has no plans to close the embassy, according to AP.
Earlier in the day, Venezuela's Foreign Affairs Minister faced off against Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at a special UN Security Council meeting on Venezuela's situation.
During the debate -- which was convened by the US -- Pompeo urged all nations to end Venezuela's "nightmare" and support opposition Guaido. while Russia accused the Trump administration of attempting "to engineer a coup d'etat" against Maduro.
Pompeo told the Security Council that it's beyond time to back the Venezuelan people as they try to free themselves from what he called Maduro's "illegitimate mafia state" and support Guaido.
Russia's UN Ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, said Venezuela doesn't threaten international peace and security and accused "extremist opponents" of Maduro's legitimate government of choosing "maximum confrontation," including the artificial creation of a parallel government. He urged Pompeo to say whether the US will use military force.
Pompeo later told reporters who asked for a response, "I am not going to speculate or hypothesize on what the US will do next."
Venezuela has been rocked by protests and civil unrest in recent years as the government's socialist policies have caused the country to sink into economic ruin. Inflation has run rampant and there is a shortage of basic commodities such as food.
In 2017, the US imposed sanctions on Maduro, freezing all his assets in the US, and prohibiting Americans from dealing with him.
The outspoken Maduro has insulted his political opponents as "heirs to Hitler" in the past, and has been frequently accused of anti-Semitism.
In 2014, he twice expelled American diplomats from Venezuela, claiming they were encouraging protests against him by opposition groups.
Friday, January 25, 2019
A7News: Roseanne Barr visits Samaria, lauds settlers
Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Friday, Jan. 25 '19, י"ט בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. ROSEANNE BARR VISITS SAMARIA, LAUDS SETTLERS
2. WATCH: DICHTER 'INFILTRATES' RAMALLAH, MEETS WITH MAHMOUD ABBAS
3. ISRAEL EXCORIATES IRISH AMBASSADOR OVER 'ANTI-SEMITIC' BILL
4. UNITED JEWISH APPEAL TO LEND MONEY TO UNPAID FEDERAL WORKERS
5. HAMAS THREATENS ISRAEL AS IDF PREPARES FOR NEW CLASHES
6. WHY WAS JEWISH FAMILY KICKED OFF AMERICAN AIRLINES FLIGHT?
7. REPORT: HAMAS REFUSES QATARI MONEY
8. REGEV EXULTS AS CONTROVERSIAL THEATER MAY BE SHUTTERED
1. ROSEANNE BARR VISITS SAMARIA, LAUDS SETTLERS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258146
Actress and comedian Roseanne Barr and Rabbi Shmuely Boteach visited Samaria Friday morning, planting trees and meeting with settlement leaders as the pair kick off a campaign to combat anti-Israel boycotts.
Barr, 66, met with Samaria Regional Council chief Yossi Dagan outside of the Israeli town of Peduel in Samaria, where she helped plant trees in honor of the recent Tu B'Shvat holiday earlier this week.
During her visit, Barr praised the local settlers, calling them Israel's "front line".
"You are pioneers. The people of Samaria are standing on the front line of the State of Israel."
Rabbi Boteach echoed Barr's sentiment, saying "The people who live here are heroes, they are pioneers who live here despite the difficulties, and thanks to them, the settlements have expanded and grown stronger."
Dagan thanked Barr for her efforts to combat the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement (BDS).
"It is so nice to meet someone like you, who is fighting unceasingly for the truth despite the price that you have paid for your bravery."
When Dagan explained that the BDS campaign, which seeks to isolate Israel diplomatically, economically, and culturally from the world to punish it for Israel's continued presence in Judea and Samaria, harms businesses which employ both Jews and Palestinian Arabs, Roseanne said efforts to boycott Israel are aimed at curtailing coexistence between Jews and Arabs.
"BDS is against coexistence, it's their enemy. They prefer war, and to collect money."
2. WATCH: DICHTER 'INFILTRATES' RAMALLAH, MEETS WITH MAHMOUD ABBAS
by Tzvi Lev
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258110
Likud lawmaker Avi Dichter appears to have gone back to his days as an officer in Israel's Shin Bet internal security agency.
A former head of the Shin Bet, Dichter showed off his fluent Arabic in a new campaign video he released on Thursday that highlighted his successful efforts to pass a law punishing the PA for payments to terrorists.
In the clip, Dichter is seen donning a fake mustache and Kaffiya in order to go undercover as a Palestinian in Ramallah, where he meets with who is ostensibly PA President Mahmoud Abbas. Dichter asks Abbas where he can find employment for his son, to which Abbas answers that he can become a terrorist and merit monthly payments from the PA.
The PA leader then shows Dichter the various levels of compensation terrorists who killed Jews are entitled to. "Your salary goes according to the years you spent in jail." 'Mahmoud Abbas' tells Dichter. "The wall's have ears. The [fun and games] are over " responds Dichter. "What did you think, that you would continue to pay salaries to terrorists while the State of Israel continues napping?"
Dichter then goes on to exult in his success in passing the 'Pay to Slay Law', which enables the Israeli government to withhold tax funds to the Palestinian Authority as long as the PA continues to pay salaries to terrorists who attacked Israeli citizens.
The bill, which was co-sponsored by Dichter and Yesh Atid MK Elazar Stern, passed in its second and third readings in July by a vote of 87-15.
3. ISRAEL EXCORIATES IRISH AMBASSADOR OVER 'ANTI-SEMITIC' BILL
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Israeli foreign ministry officials excoriated Ireland's backing for a bill banning business ties with Jews in Judea, Samaria, and parts of Jerusalem, delivering a sharp reprimand to the Irish ambassador to Israel.
"It was made clear to the ambassador that this hypocritical and anti-Semitic legislation will have serious consequences for Israeli-Irish relations and [Ireland's] standing in the region if [the bill] is advanced," the Israeli Foreign Ministry said Friday.
"It would be better if Ireland confronted dictators and evil terrorist groups instead of [attacking] Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East."
On Thursday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the Israeli Foreign Ministry said that Alison Kelly, Ireland's ambassador to the Jewish state, had been summoned for a formal reprimand.
"It is disturbing and disappointing that the initiators of Irish law focus on a hypocritical attack on Israel, rather than focusing on the dictatorships that slaughter their citizens," Israel's Foreign Ministry said Thursday. "This is a clear expression of obsessive discrimination that should be rejected with disgust."
The summons came in response to the Irish parliament's preliminary approval for a boycott law which would criminalize commercial ties with businesses operating in Israeli towns over the pre-1967 Green Line. Violators could face up to five years in prison and as well as fines, if the law receives final approval.
4. UNITED JEWISH APPEAL TO LEND MONEY TO UNPAID FEDERAL WORKERS
by Canaan Liphshiz, JTA
The UJA-Federation of New York has allocated $5 million toward interest-free loans to federal employees who have been furloughed or are working without pay because of the government shutdown.
The Jewish charity announced the move Tuesday, saying in a statement that the money will be distributed by the Hebrew Free Loan Society, or HLFS, to applicants who reside in New York City, Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties and who earn $40,000 or less annually. The loans are to cover expenses for employees who are not receiving a salary because of the shutdown.
Some 18,000 federal employees work at affected agencies in New York City according to the office of Mayor Bill de Blasio, the statement said.
Applicants can download forms on the HLFS website.
Some 800,000 federal employees are not being paid due to the government shutdown that started on Dec. 22 after President Donald Trump and the Democrats failed to reach a deal on whether to fund a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
"Today, it's clear that federal workers in our area are in financial distress because of the shutdown. We hope this loan program will alleviate some of the stress and worry for these individuals and their families," said Eric S. Goldstein, CEO of UJA-Federation of New York.
Earlier this month, HLFS approved an emergency program to provide loans of up to $2,000 per household to affected Jews living in the Washington, D.C., area.
5. HAMAS THREATENS ISRAEL AS IDF PREPARES FOR NEW CLASHES
by David Rosenberg
The Hamas terror organization threatened Israel on Friday, vowing to confront the Jewish state and "immediately retaliate" as a standoff over foreign funds to the Gaza Strip continues.
Senior Hamas officials told the Al-Akhbar Lebanese news outlet Friday that it had a "threatening message" for Israel, warning that it would "immediately retaliate" to an Israeli "aggression", warning that its response would be "even greater than" the last major confrontation - referring to attacks in November of last year.
Hamas also demanded that Israel drop the conditions it placed on the transfer of Qatari funds to Gaza, including Israel's ban on payments to Hamas terrorists.
Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas leader, told Al-Akhbar the terror group had rejected the Qatari money transfer Thursday because of limitations placed on the payment by Israel.
Al-Hayya says Hamas explained "our position" to Qatari officials on why it had "rejected the payment, because of conditions set by the Israeli occupation."
The Gaza-based terror group has demanded that the amount permitted to be transferred from Qatar be increased from $15 million to $22 million, and that payments be allowed to known Hamas terrorists. Israel has conditioned the Qatari money transfers on the pledge that no funds be transferred to Hamas terrorists.
In November, terrorists operating out of the Gaza Strip fired hundreds of rockets at Israel, prompting the IDF to respond with a targeted air campaign against Hamas positions in the Strip. The two-day escalation left two dead and nearly 60 injured on the Israeli side, and marked the worst violence between Israel and Gaza since August 2014.
Hamas has accused Israel of 'escalating' the conflict this week, when a special prison guard unit made a surprise inspection of terrorists' cells at an Israeli prison west of Jerusalem.
After prison guards found weapons, cell phones, and other forbidden items in the prisoners' cells, dozens of terrorists held at Ofer prison rioted, lighting fires in the facility and injuring two guards.
On Tuesday, Hamas terrorists opened fire on Israeli soldiers along the Israel-Gaza border, claiming the attacks were "retaliations" for the Israeli Prison Service's crackdown on contraband at Ofer prison. One IDF soldier was lightly injured in the sniper attacks. Israeli forces opened fire on the sniper, killing him.
In response to the shootings, Israel halted the transfer of $15 million from the Gulf Arab state of Qatar to the Gaza Strip.
In addition, the IDF struck a Hamas training camp in the coastal enclave.
Since then, however, Israel has approved the transfer of the Qatari funds to Gaza in a bid to de-escalate the conflict with Hamas, which has been unable to cover payments to tens of thousands of employees in the Gaza Strip after the Palestinian Authority cut funding to the coastal enclave.
On Thursday, it was reported that Hamas had refused to accept the new payment from Qatar, despite approval from Israel.
Given Hamas' refusal to accept the Qatari money transfer, the IDF estimates that this Friday's riots on the Israel-Gaza border will be larger and more intense.
With Hamas signaling its willingness to further escalate tensions with Israel, the Israeli security establishment has also beefed up anti-missile defenses, including the deployment of an Iron Dome anti-missile system in Gush Dan in central Israel.
6. WHY WAS JEWISH FAMILY KICKED OFF AMERICAN AIRLINES FLIGHT?
by David Rosenberg
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258138
An Orthodox Jewish family was ordered off of an American Airlines flight earlier this week, leaving them stranded without their luggage, baby stroller, or child car seat.
Yossi Adler, 36, his wife Jennie, and their 19-month old daughter had been vacationing in Miami, Florida this past week, and were scheduled to fly back to Detroit Wednesday night on an American Airlines flight.
After being seated on the plane, the family was suddenly ordered off and escorted back to the gate, with no explanation offered.
Once they had been taken back to the gate, ABC's Local 10 News in Miami reports, American Airlines staff closed the gate and informed the Adlers that they would not be permitted back on the plane.
At this point, the Adlers were finally given an explanation for their removal from the flight – fellow passengers had apparently complained of a foul smell from the family.
"All of a sudden, as soon as they took us off, they closed the gate and then they said, 'Sorry, sir, some people complained you had body odor and we're not letting you back on,'" Yossi Adler said.
"There's no body odor that we have. There's nothing wrong with us."
To add insult to injury, the family was left in Miami without their luggage, baby stroller, or child safety seat – despite promises from the airline that their luggage and other items would be removed from the plane before takeoff.
"They have our car seat, stroller, everything," Jennie Adler said.
A spokesperson for American Airlines confirmed to Local 10 that the Adlers had been ejected from the flight over their "body odor".
"Mr. Adler and his wife were removed from the flight when several passengers complained about their body odor. They have been booked into a hotel for the night and given meal vouchers. They have been rebooked on a flight Thursday."
But the Adlers aren't buying the airline's story.
"I want them to own up to what really happened and to tell me the truth," Yossi Adler said. "What was it?"
On Thursday, the couple boarded a second flight, and returned to Detroit without incident.
The Adlers say that after their arrival in Detroit, they were reunited with their luggage, stroller, and child safety seat which had been left on the first flight.
7. REPORT: HAMAS REFUSES QATARI MONEY
by Gary Willig
The Hamas deputy leader in Gaza announced that the organization's leadership met with a Qatari envoy in the Gaza Strip and informed him that they refused to accept the third round of Qatari money, Arab media reported.
"We will not turn Gaza into an area for managing elections in Israel," senior Hamas officials told the Qatari envoy.
The Hamas statement comes shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the Security Cabinet approved the transfer of the $15 million from Qatar to Hamas in Gaza.
Israel had halted the money transfer on Tuesday following the shooting of an IDF soldier by a terrorist from Gaza. The soldier was lightly injured.
Israel has already allowed two installments of Qatari money to enter Gaza, which is used for the payment of Hamas employees in Gaza.
On Wednesday evening, it was reported that the defense establishment recommended that the $15 million be given to Hamas in order to calm tensions between the two sides. Senior security officials also said during the cabinet meeting that the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization was responsible for shooting the IDF officer and not Hamas.
They also claimed that the Hamas terrorist organization has refrained from creating provocations against Israel in recent days.
8. REGEV EXULTS AS CONTROVERSIAL THEATER MAY BE SHUTTERED
by Tzvi Lev
Culture Minister Miri Regev came out in support of Israel's NGO Registrar after it reportedly recommended that Haifa's controversial Al-Midan theater be shuttered due to financial irregularities.
"I am proud of the decision of the NGO Registrar, which supports my viewpoint, and I am waiting for the closure of Midan and the opening of a genuine Arab theater that is loyal to the State of Israel and its values and symbols," said Regev in a video she released.
Reports on Wednesday said that the NGO Registrar had informed the Al-Midan Theater in Haifa that an investigation into theater file had been transferred to the Ministry of Justice's enforcement and control unit, which would consider dismantling the non-profit which manages Al-Midan.
The Al-Midan theater in Haifa has been criticized in the past for hosting plays glorifying "the Palestinian struggle" against Israel, including a play adapted from the writings of a terrorist murderer responsible for the gruesome killing of IDF soldier Moshe Tamam in August 1984.
Tamam, 19, was hitchhiking when he was abducted by a terror cell which included Israeli-Arabs. Tamam's remains were later found after he had been tortured to death and his body severely mutilated.
Al-Midan, which was established in 1994 in cooperation with the Rabin government's Education Ministry, sparked controversy in 2014 when it began running the play "A Parallel Time", adapted from the writings of Tamam's murderer Walid Daka.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258097
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Friday, Jan. 25 '19, י"ט בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. ROSEANNE BARR VISITS SAMARIA, LAUDS SETTLERS
2. WATCH: DICHTER 'INFILTRATES' RAMALLAH, MEETS WITH MAHMOUD ABBAS
3. ISRAEL EXCORIATES IRISH AMBASSADOR OVER 'ANTI-SEMITIC' BILL
4. UNITED JEWISH APPEAL TO LEND MONEY TO UNPAID FEDERAL WORKERS
5. HAMAS THREATENS ISRAEL AS IDF PREPARES FOR NEW CLASHES
6. WHY WAS JEWISH FAMILY KICKED OFF AMERICAN AIRLINES FLIGHT?
7. REPORT: HAMAS REFUSES QATARI MONEY
8. REGEV EXULTS AS CONTROVERSIAL THEATER MAY BE SHUTTERED
1. ROSEANNE BARR VISITS SAMARIA, LAUDS SETTLERS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258146
Actress and comedian Roseanne Barr and Rabbi Shmuely Boteach visited Samaria Friday morning, planting trees and meeting with settlement leaders as the pair kick off a campaign to combat anti-Israel boycotts.
Barr, 66, met with Samaria Regional Council chief Yossi Dagan outside of the Israeli town of Peduel in Samaria, where she helped plant trees in honor of the recent Tu B'Shvat holiday earlier this week.
During her visit, Barr praised the local settlers, calling them Israel's "front line".
"You are pioneers. The people of Samaria are standing on the front line of the State of Israel."
Rabbi Boteach echoed Barr's sentiment, saying "The people who live here are heroes, they are pioneers who live here despite the difficulties, and thanks to them, the settlements have expanded and grown stronger."
Dagan thanked Barr for her efforts to combat the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement (BDS).
"It is so nice to meet someone like you, who is fighting unceasingly for the truth despite the price that you have paid for your bravery."
When Dagan explained that the BDS campaign, which seeks to isolate Israel diplomatically, economically, and culturally from the world to punish it for Israel's continued presence in Judea and Samaria, harms businesses which employ both Jews and Palestinian Arabs, Roseanne said efforts to boycott Israel are aimed at curtailing coexistence between Jews and Arabs.
"BDS is against coexistence, it's their enemy. They prefer war, and to collect money."
2. WATCH: DICHTER 'INFILTRATES' RAMALLAH, MEETS WITH MAHMOUD ABBAS
by Tzvi Lev
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258110
Likud lawmaker Avi Dichter appears to have gone back to his days as an officer in Israel's Shin Bet internal security agency.
A former head of the Shin Bet, Dichter showed off his fluent Arabic in a new campaign video he released on Thursday that highlighted his successful efforts to pass a law punishing the PA for payments to terrorists.
In the clip, Dichter is seen donning a fake mustache and Kaffiya in order to go undercover as a Palestinian in Ramallah, where he meets with who is ostensibly PA President Mahmoud Abbas. Dichter asks Abbas where he can find employment for his son, to which Abbas answers that he can become a terrorist and merit monthly payments from the PA.
The PA leader then shows Dichter the various levels of compensation terrorists who killed Jews are entitled to. "Your salary goes according to the years you spent in jail." 'Mahmoud Abbas' tells Dichter. "The wall's have ears. The [fun and games] are over " responds Dichter. "What did you think, that you would continue to pay salaries to terrorists while the State of Israel continues napping?"
Dichter then goes on to exult in his success in passing the 'Pay to Slay Law', which enables the Israeli government to withhold tax funds to the Palestinian Authority as long as the PA continues to pay salaries to terrorists who attacked Israeli citizens.
The bill, which was co-sponsored by Dichter and Yesh Atid MK Elazar Stern, passed in its second and third readings in July by a vote of 87-15.
3. ISRAEL EXCORIATES IRISH AMBASSADOR OVER 'ANTI-SEMITIC' BILL
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Israeli foreign ministry officials excoriated Ireland's backing for a bill banning business ties with Jews in Judea, Samaria, and parts of Jerusalem, delivering a sharp reprimand to the Irish ambassador to Israel.
"It was made clear to the ambassador that this hypocritical and anti-Semitic legislation will have serious consequences for Israeli-Irish relations and [Ireland's] standing in the region if [the bill] is advanced," the Israeli Foreign Ministry said Friday.
"It would be better if Ireland confronted dictators and evil terrorist groups instead of [attacking] Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East."
On Thursday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the Israeli Foreign Ministry said that Alison Kelly, Ireland's ambassador to the Jewish state, had been summoned for a formal reprimand.
"It is disturbing and disappointing that the initiators of Irish law focus on a hypocritical attack on Israel, rather than focusing on the dictatorships that slaughter their citizens," Israel's Foreign Ministry said Thursday. "This is a clear expression of obsessive discrimination that should be rejected with disgust."
The summons came in response to the Irish parliament's preliminary approval for a boycott law which would criminalize commercial ties with businesses operating in Israeli towns over the pre-1967 Green Line. Violators could face up to five years in prison and as well as fines, if the law receives final approval.
4. UNITED JEWISH APPEAL TO LEND MONEY TO UNPAID FEDERAL WORKERS
by Canaan Liphshiz, JTA
The UJA-Federation of New York has allocated $5 million toward interest-free loans to federal employees who have been furloughed or are working without pay because of the government shutdown.
The Jewish charity announced the move Tuesday, saying in a statement that the money will be distributed by the Hebrew Free Loan Society, or HLFS, to applicants who reside in New York City, Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties and who earn $40,000 or less annually. The loans are to cover expenses for employees who are not receiving a salary because of the shutdown.
Some 18,000 federal employees work at affected agencies in New York City according to the office of Mayor Bill de Blasio, the statement said.
Applicants can download forms on the HLFS website.
Some 800,000 federal employees are not being paid due to the government shutdown that started on Dec. 22 after President Donald Trump and the Democrats failed to reach a deal on whether to fund a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
"Today, it's clear that federal workers in our area are in financial distress because of the shutdown. We hope this loan program will alleviate some of the stress and worry for these individuals and their families," said Eric S. Goldstein, CEO of UJA-Federation of New York.
Earlier this month, HLFS approved an emergency program to provide loans of up to $2,000 per household to affected Jews living in the Washington, D.C., area.
5. HAMAS THREATENS ISRAEL AS IDF PREPARES FOR NEW CLASHES
by David Rosenberg
The Hamas terror organization threatened Israel on Friday, vowing to confront the Jewish state and "immediately retaliate" as a standoff over foreign funds to the Gaza Strip continues.
Senior Hamas officials told the Al-Akhbar Lebanese news outlet Friday that it had a "threatening message" for Israel, warning that it would "immediately retaliate" to an Israeli "aggression", warning that its response would be "even greater than" the last major confrontation - referring to attacks in November of last year.
Hamas also demanded that Israel drop the conditions it placed on the transfer of Qatari funds to Gaza, including Israel's ban on payments to Hamas terrorists.
Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas leader, told Al-Akhbar the terror group had rejected the Qatari money transfer Thursday because of limitations placed on the payment by Israel.
Al-Hayya says Hamas explained "our position" to Qatari officials on why it had "rejected the payment, because of conditions set by the Israeli occupation."
The Gaza-based terror group has demanded that the amount permitted to be transferred from Qatar be increased from $15 million to $22 million, and that payments be allowed to known Hamas terrorists. Israel has conditioned the Qatari money transfers on the pledge that no funds be transferred to Hamas terrorists.
In November, terrorists operating out of the Gaza Strip fired hundreds of rockets at Israel, prompting the IDF to respond with a targeted air campaign against Hamas positions in the Strip. The two-day escalation left two dead and nearly 60 injured on the Israeli side, and marked the worst violence between Israel and Gaza since August 2014.
Hamas has accused Israel of 'escalating' the conflict this week, when a special prison guard unit made a surprise inspection of terrorists' cells at an Israeli prison west of Jerusalem.
After prison guards found weapons, cell phones, and other forbidden items in the prisoners' cells, dozens of terrorists held at Ofer prison rioted, lighting fires in the facility and injuring two guards.
On Tuesday, Hamas terrorists opened fire on Israeli soldiers along the Israel-Gaza border, claiming the attacks were "retaliations" for the Israeli Prison Service's crackdown on contraband at Ofer prison. One IDF soldier was lightly injured in the sniper attacks. Israeli forces opened fire on the sniper, killing him.
In response to the shootings, Israel halted the transfer of $15 million from the Gulf Arab state of Qatar to the Gaza Strip.
In addition, the IDF struck a Hamas training camp in the coastal enclave.
Since then, however, Israel has approved the transfer of the Qatari funds to Gaza in a bid to de-escalate the conflict with Hamas, which has been unable to cover payments to tens of thousands of employees in the Gaza Strip after the Palestinian Authority cut funding to the coastal enclave.
On Thursday, it was reported that Hamas had refused to accept the new payment from Qatar, despite approval from Israel.
Given Hamas' refusal to accept the Qatari money transfer, the IDF estimates that this Friday's riots on the Israel-Gaza border will be larger and more intense.
With Hamas signaling its willingness to further escalate tensions with Israel, the Israeli security establishment has also beefed up anti-missile defenses, including the deployment of an Iron Dome anti-missile system in Gush Dan in central Israel.
6. WHY WAS JEWISH FAMILY KICKED OFF AMERICAN AIRLINES FLIGHT?
by David Rosenberg
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258138
An Orthodox Jewish family was ordered off of an American Airlines flight earlier this week, leaving them stranded without their luggage, baby stroller, or child car seat.
Yossi Adler, 36, his wife Jennie, and their 19-month old daughter had been vacationing in Miami, Florida this past week, and were scheduled to fly back to Detroit Wednesday night on an American Airlines flight.
After being seated on the plane, the family was suddenly ordered off and escorted back to the gate, with no explanation offered.
Once they had been taken back to the gate, ABC's Local 10 News in Miami reports, American Airlines staff closed the gate and informed the Adlers that they would not be permitted back on the plane.
At this point, the Adlers were finally given an explanation for their removal from the flight – fellow passengers had apparently complained of a foul smell from the family.
"All of a sudden, as soon as they took us off, they closed the gate and then they said, 'Sorry, sir, some people complained you had body odor and we're not letting you back on,'" Yossi Adler said.
"There's no body odor that we have. There's nothing wrong with us."
To add insult to injury, the family was left in Miami without their luggage, baby stroller, or child safety seat – despite promises from the airline that their luggage and other items would be removed from the plane before takeoff.
"They have our car seat, stroller, everything," Jennie Adler said.
A spokesperson for American Airlines confirmed to Local 10 that the Adlers had been ejected from the flight over their "body odor".
"Mr. Adler and his wife were removed from the flight when several passengers complained about their body odor. They have been booked into a hotel for the night and given meal vouchers. They have been rebooked on a flight Thursday."
But the Adlers aren't buying the airline's story.
"I want them to own up to what really happened and to tell me the truth," Yossi Adler said. "What was it?"
On Thursday, the couple boarded a second flight, and returned to Detroit without incident.
The Adlers say that after their arrival in Detroit, they were reunited with their luggage, stroller, and child safety seat which had been left on the first flight.
7. REPORT: HAMAS REFUSES QATARI MONEY
by Gary Willig
The Hamas deputy leader in Gaza announced that the organization's leadership met with a Qatari envoy in the Gaza Strip and informed him that they refused to accept the third round of Qatari money, Arab media reported.
"We will not turn Gaza into an area for managing elections in Israel," senior Hamas officials told the Qatari envoy.
The Hamas statement comes shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the Security Cabinet approved the transfer of the $15 million from Qatar to Hamas in Gaza.
Israel had halted the money transfer on Tuesday following the shooting of an IDF soldier by a terrorist from Gaza. The soldier was lightly injured.
Israel has already allowed two installments of Qatari money to enter Gaza, which is used for the payment of Hamas employees in Gaza.
On Wednesday evening, it was reported that the defense establishment recommended that the $15 million be given to Hamas in order to calm tensions between the two sides. Senior security officials also said during the cabinet meeting that the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization was responsible for shooting the IDF officer and not Hamas.
They also claimed that the Hamas terrorist organization has refrained from creating provocations against Israel in recent days.
8. REGEV EXULTS AS CONTROVERSIAL THEATER MAY BE SHUTTERED
by Tzvi Lev
Culture Minister Miri Regev came out in support of Israel's NGO Registrar after it reportedly recommended that Haifa's controversial Al-Midan theater be shuttered due to financial irregularities.
"I am proud of the decision of the NGO Registrar, which supports my viewpoint, and I am waiting for the closure of Midan and the opening of a genuine Arab theater that is loyal to the State of Israel and its values and symbols," said Regev in a video she released.
Reports on Wednesday said that the NGO Registrar had informed the Al-Midan Theater in Haifa that an investigation into theater file had been transferred to the Ministry of Justice's enforcement and control unit, which would consider dismantling the non-profit which manages Al-Midan.
The Al-Midan theater in Haifa has been criticized in the past for hosting plays glorifying "the Palestinian struggle" against Israel, including a play adapted from the writings of a terrorist murderer responsible for the gruesome killing of IDF soldier Moshe Tamam in August 1984.
Tamam, 19, was hitchhiking when he was abducted by a terror cell which included Israeli-Arabs. Tamam's remains were later found after he had been tortured to death and his body severely mutilated.
Al-Midan, which was established in 1994 in cooperation with the Rabin government's Education Ministry, sparked controversy in 2014 when it began running the play "A Parallel Time", adapted from the writings of Tamam's murderer Walid Daka.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258097
Thursday, January 24, 2019
A7News: 'We know our son is innocent'
Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Thursday, Jan. 24 '19, י"ח בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. 'WE KNOW OUR SON IS INNOCENT'
2. 'WESTERN IMAMS WHO PRAISE ISLAMIC CALIPHATE ARE TERRORISTS'
3. OCASIO-CORTEZ, TLAIB WIN POWERFUL HOUSE COMMITTEE ROLES
4. ANALYST: ISRAELI STRIKES ON IRANIAN TARGETS 'AS FAIR AS CAN BE'
5. IRON DOME BATTERY DEPLOYED IN CENTRAL ISRAEL
6. SOLDIER WOUNDED BY GUNFIRE FROM GAZA
7. WATCH: SPECIAL POLICE FORCES CAPTURE BARKAN TERRORIST
8. MAY: CORBYN WILLING TO SIT WITH HAMAS BUT NOT WITH ME
1. 'WE KNOW OUR SON IS INNOCENT'
by Eliran Aharon
The attorneys of the Jewish minor accused of killing Aisha a-Rabi attacked today's decision to file an indictment.
Attorney Amir Bracha of the Honenu organization said, "The indictment filed today should not have been submitted. A big question mark hangs over this indictment. We repeatedly said it all along. The court also spoke of the fact that the main evidence is actually some kind of unknown DNA that we don't know at the moment what it is. This indictment is based on a limping leg that's unlikely to stand trial.
"This indictment causes serious damage, certainly to a 16-year-old minor and his family. We'll photocopy this evidence, and we'll be able to attack this indictment with help of experts on our behalf. The minor states again he is not behind this incident. The State, instead of wanting to reach the truth and identify the person who really did it, simply marked their goal instead of focusing and really getting at the truth," added the lawyer.
The minor's father said, "We know our son's innocent. The ordinary man-on-the-street understands our son's innocent. Unfortunately, the over-motivation to find guilty at all costs has turned us into victims. It'll take time unfortunately but one day our son will be exonerated. We're sure of this and we know it. But who will give back the years of youth stolen from him? Who will heal his broken heart and that of the family? And of his friends? Who will answer for this? We don't know that. We're strong and hope that we'll survive. But the injustice cries out to Heaven. Many thanks to you all and thanks to all the supporters helping us."
Hebrew video:
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258088
2. 'WESTERN IMAMS WHO PRAISE ISLAMIC CALIPHATE ARE TERRORISTS'
by Mordechai Sones
Egyptian-Canadian writer Said Shoaib said imams in the West embrace colonialist Islam and deceive Westerners by talking about the "greatness of the Islamic caliphate," The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) reported.
During an interview with German-Egyptian political scientist and author Hamed Abdel-Samad which was uploaded to Abdel-Samad's Youtube account last week, Shoaib said such words constitute a form of terrorism that might become armed terrorism should the opportunity present itself, and the West has failed to realize this.
Shoaib explained this form of Islamism is being taught in mosques and in Islamic schools throughout the West, and the natural course of such education is terrorism.
Hamed Abdel-Samad added that the same Muslims who show enmity to other religions in their home countries come to the West and criticize Christians, Jews, the West, and secularism while demanding that nobody criticizes Islam.
He also called the Canadian government naïve, criticizing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's "romantic" fantasy that everybody should "hold hands and hug and kiss one another." Abdel-Samad said Trudeau doesn't know what is really being taught in Canadian mosques; Shohaib added that Western politicians don't know anything about Islam.
Shohaib said "a lot of blood will be shed here in the West", and if Western politicians fail to stop the terrorist "wave" in the West, ordinary citizens will become more inclined to elect increasingly "extreme" leaders. He added: "The main plan of the Islamists is to destroy Western civilization. They have said it themselves!"
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258089
3. OCASIO-CORTEZ, TLAIB WIN POWERFUL HOUSE COMMITTEE ROLES
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Liberal freshmen are quickly becoming power players in the Democrat-led House of Representatives; new Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez score seats on the powerful House Oversight Committee.
Ocasio-Cortez was already assigned a place on the Financial Services committee, giving the new Congresswoman broad influence in her first year.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258090
4. ANALYST: ISRAELI STRIKES ON IRANIAN TARGETS 'AS FAIR AS CAN BE'
by i24News
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258091
U.S. Marine Corps Ret. Gunnery Sergeant Jessie Jane Duff joins i24NEWS' David Shuster and Tal Heinrich to discuss the latest on an IDF strike against Iranian targets in Syria.
5. IRON DOME BATTERY DEPLOYED IN CENTRAL ISRAEL
by Mordechai Sones
The Iron Dome missile system was deployed yesterday in Gush Dan in light of security tensions on the Syrian and Gaza borders.
However, National Security Council head and former Military Intelligence research division head Maj. Gen. (res.) Yaakov Amidror estimated yesterday that Syria would not fulfill its threats to bomb Ben-Gurion Airport.
In an interview with Radio 103FM Amidror confirmed the Syrians had the means to fire at Ben-Gurion Airport, but said the Syrians had a clear interest not to use them.
Maj. Gen. (res.) Yaakov Amidror
Eliran Aharon
"The Syrians have missiles that can reach Ben Gurion Airport. They have antiaircraft missiles that can damage planes coming out of Ben-Gurion Airport, but the relationship between us and Syria is such that a Syrian attempt would give us permission to strike them so hard that the Syrian regime would be over, so I don't see the Syrians risking such an incident. The chances that the Syrians would do such a thing seem to me baseless," he explained.
Regarding Iranian backing, Amidror said, "In the Middle East, the countries usually talk very high, but once it comes to support, one doesn't help the other. There are few cases where an organization or state has come to help another country out of commitment alone. The Iranians in Syria have no ability to back the Syrians. This is what we're fighting for and what we want to prevent."
6. SOLDIER WOUNDED BY GUNFIRE FROM GAZA
by Arutz Sheva Staff
An IDF soldier was lightly wounded when terrorists from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip opened fire at his unit Tuesday afternoon.
Shortly before the shooting, terrorists broke through the security fence, sabotaged military equipment, and returned to the Gaza Strip. The IDF responded by firing tank shells at the Hamas position.
An IDF spokesperson stated: "An IDF tank attacked an observation post belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization after an IDF officer was lightly injured in a disturbance in the southern Gaza Strip, which included the throwing of stones at IDF forces. The circumstances of the injury are under investigation."
The soldier was shot in the upper body and evacuated by ambulance to the hospital.
The IDF later released an additional statement: "Following the earlier investigation, a preliminary investigation revealed that during a riot involving stone throwing, a terrorist opened fire at IDF soldiers, one of whom was lightly injured and was evacuated to the hospital."
"In addition, five suspects approached the security fence in the southern Gaza Strip. Two of the suspects crossed into Israel and returned immediately to the Gaza Strip."
7. WATCH: SPECIAL POLICE FORCES CAPTURE BARKAN TERRORIST
by Mordechai Sones
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258040
Under Shin Bet direction and in conjunction with IDF forces, the Israel Police's special weapons and tactics fighters conducted last month an operation to locate the terrorists Ashraf Na'alwa and Salah Barghouti.
On the night of December 12, 2018, the soldiers identified the terrorist Salah Barghouti, who carried out the attack in Ofra. During the attempt to arrest Barghouti in Ramallah, he tried to run over the soldiers who returned fire at him and he was severely wounded and later pronounced dead.
Minutes after the complex operation, the police, Shin Bet, and IDF were preparing for further activity that night (13.12.18), this time in the Askar refugee camp in Shechem. An operation was carried out to arrest Ashraf Na'alwa, who carried out the severe attack in Barkan in which Kim Lavengrond-Yehezkel and Ziv Hajbi were murdered.
Special police forces capture Barkan terrorist
In video revealed today for the first time, special Yamam police units are seen in the Askar refugee camp in Shechem, in the building where the terrorist was hiding.
The soldiers who came to the building carried out extensive searches to locate the house where they suspected the terrorist was found. The soldiers broke into the house and sent the dog Rambo for searches during which Rambo was shot several times. The fighters raided the house, located the terrorist with whom they engaged in a gunfight, and he was killed by police fire while armed with his weapon.
Rambo was treated and is currently undergoing rehabilitation in the unit.
The new video is from an observation post watching the building where the terrorist hid and a helmet camera on one of the fighters.
8. MAY: CORBYN WILLING TO SIT WITH HAMAS BUT NOT WITH ME
by Elad Benari
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258070
British Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday ripped Labour leader and opposition head Jeremy Corbyn over his refusal to sit down with her and discuss Brexit.
In her remarks, May took a jab at Corbyn, who has been embroiled in controversy over his past connections to terrorist groups.
"He has been willing to sit down with Hamas, Hezbollah and the IRA without preconditions but he will not meet with me to talk about Brexit," May said during Prime Minister's Question Time in the House of Commons.
Corbyn said in response that he had offered to meet with the prime minister last fall, quoting a line previously used by MP Hilary Benn, "While the door to her office may well be open, minds inside are completely closed."
Corbyn has been plagued by anti-Semitism, both on his part and by members of his Labour party.
Dozens of Labour members have been suspended over their anti-Semitic statements, and the party has been criticized for its failure to deal with the phenomenon.
Corbyn has come under fire as well for calling Hamas and Hezbollah his "friends" and continues to be plagued by incidents of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel statements.
More recently, the Daily Mail newspaper published photos of the Labour leader at a cemetery in Tunisia holding a wreath near the graves of some of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) terrorists who were responsible for the massacre of the 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
Days later, a picture emerged of Corbyn apparently making a salute linked to the Muslim Brotherhood organization.
In addition to all of these, Corbyn has been criticized for playing down the anti-Semitism in his party and for alienating Jews.
The Labour leader, however, insists he is not an anti-Semite. In a recent interview with the BBC he described anti-Semitism "as a scourge in any society, I have opposed it all my life…I have spent my whole life opposing racism in any form and I will die fighting racism."
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Thursday, Jan. 24 '19, י"ח בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. 'WE KNOW OUR SON IS INNOCENT'
2. 'WESTERN IMAMS WHO PRAISE ISLAMIC CALIPHATE ARE TERRORISTS'
3. OCASIO-CORTEZ, TLAIB WIN POWERFUL HOUSE COMMITTEE ROLES
4. ANALYST: ISRAELI STRIKES ON IRANIAN TARGETS 'AS FAIR AS CAN BE'
5. IRON DOME BATTERY DEPLOYED IN CENTRAL ISRAEL
6. SOLDIER WOUNDED BY GUNFIRE FROM GAZA
7. WATCH: SPECIAL POLICE FORCES CAPTURE BARKAN TERRORIST
8. MAY: CORBYN WILLING TO SIT WITH HAMAS BUT NOT WITH ME
1. 'WE KNOW OUR SON IS INNOCENT'
by Eliran Aharon
The attorneys of the Jewish minor accused of killing Aisha a-Rabi attacked today's decision to file an indictment.
Attorney Amir Bracha of the Honenu organization said, "The indictment filed today should not have been submitted. A big question mark hangs over this indictment. We repeatedly said it all along. The court also spoke of the fact that the main evidence is actually some kind of unknown DNA that we don't know at the moment what it is. This indictment is based on a limping leg that's unlikely to stand trial.
"This indictment causes serious damage, certainly to a 16-year-old minor and his family. We'll photocopy this evidence, and we'll be able to attack this indictment with help of experts on our behalf. The minor states again he is not behind this incident. The State, instead of wanting to reach the truth and identify the person who really did it, simply marked their goal instead of focusing and really getting at the truth," added the lawyer.
The minor's father said, "We know our son's innocent. The ordinary man-on-the-street understands our son's innocent. Unfortunately, the over-motivation to find guilty at all costs has turned us into victims. It'll take time unfortunately but one day our son will be exonerated. We're sure of this and we know it. But who will give back the years of youth stolen from him? Who will heal his broken heart and that of the family? And of his friends? Who will answer for this? We don't know that. We're strong and hope that we'll survive. But the injustice cries out to Heaven. Many thanks to you all and thanks to all the supporters helping us."
Hebrew video:
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258088
2. 'WESTERN IMAMS WHO PRAISE ISLAMIC CALIPHATE ARE TERRORISTS'
by Mordechai Sones
Egyptian-Canadian writer Said Shoaib said imams in the West embrace colonialist Islam and deceive Westerners by talking about the "greatness of the Islamic caliphate," The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) reported.
During an interview with German-Egyptian political scientist and author Hamed Abdel-Samad which was uploaded to Abdel-Samad's Youtube account last week, Shoaib said such words constitute a form of terrorism that might become armed terrorism should the opportunity present itself, and the West has failed to realize this.
Shoaib explained this form of Islamism is being taught in mosques and in Islamic schools throughout the West, and the natural course of such education is terrorism.
Hamed Abdel-Samad added that the same Muslims who show enmity to other religions in their home countries come to the West and criticize Christians, Jews, the West, and secularism while demanding that nobody criticizes Islam.
He also called the Canadian government naïve, criticizing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's "romantic" fantasy that everybody should "hold hands and hug and kiss one another." Abdel-Samad said Trudeau doesn't know what is really being taught in Canadian mosques; Shohaib added that Western politicians don't know anything about Islam.
Shohaib said "a lot of blood will be shed here in the West", and if Western politicians fail to stop the terrorist "wave" in the West, ordinary citizens will become more inclined to elect increasingly "extreme" leaders. He added: "The main plan of the Islamists is to destroy Western civilization. They have said it themselves!"
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258089
3. OCASIO-CORTEZ, TLAIB WIN POWERFUL HOUSE COMMITTEE ROLES
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Liberal freshmen are quickly becoming power players in the Democrat-led House of Representatives; new Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez score seats on the powerful House Oversight Committee.
Ocasio-Cortez was already assigned a place on the Financial Services committee, giving the new Congresswoman broad influence in her first year.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258090
4. ANALYST: ISRAELI STRIKES ON IRANIAN TARGETS 'AS FAIR AS CAN BE'
by i24News
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258091
U.S. Marine Corps Ret. Gunnery Sergeant Jessie Jane Duff joins i24NEWS' David Shuster and Tal Heinrich to discuss the latest on an IDF strike against Iranian targets in Syria.
5. IRON DOME BATTERY DEPLOYED IN CENTRAL ISRAEL
by Mordechai Sones
The Iron Dome missile system was deployed yesterday in Gush Dan in light of security tensions on the Syrian and Gaza borders.
However, National Security Council head and former Military Intelligence research division head Maj. Gen. (res.) Yaakov Amidror estimated yesterday that Syria would not fulfill its threats to bomb Ben-Gurion Airport.
In an interview with Radio 103FM Amidror confirmed the Syrians had the means to fire at Ben-Gurion Airport, but said the Syrians had a clear interest not to use them.
Maj. Gen. (res.) Yaakov Amidror
Eliran Aharon
"The Syrians have missiles that can reach Ben Gurion Airport. They have antiaircraft missiles that can damage planes coming out of Ben-Gurion Airport, but the relationship between us and Syria is such that a Syrian attempt would give us permission to strike them so hard that the Syrian regime would be over, so I don't see the Syrians risking such an incident. The chances that the Syrians would do such a thing seem to me baseless," he explained.
Regarding Iranian backing, Amidror said, "In the Middle East, the countries usually talk very high, but once it comes to support, one doesn't help the other. There are few cases where an organization or state has come to help another country out of commitment alone. The Iranians in Syria have no ability to back the Syrians. This is what we're fighting for and what we want to prevent."
6. SOLDIER WOUNDED BY GUNFIRE FROM GAZA
by Arutz Sheva Staff
An IDF soldier was lightly wounded when terrorists from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip opened fire at his unit Tuesday afternoon.
Shortly before the shooting, terrorists broke through the security fence, sabotaged military equipment, and returned to the Gaza Strip. The IDF responded by firing tank shells at the Hamas position.
An IDF spokesperson stated: "An IDF tank attacked an observation post belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization after an IDF officer was lightly injured in a disturbance in the southern Gaza Strip, which included the throwing of stones at IDF forces. The circumstances of the injury are under investigation."
The soldier was shot in the upper body and evacuated by ambulance to the hospital.
The IDF later released an additional statement: "Following the earlier investigation, a preliminary investigation revealed that during a riot involving stone throwing, a terrorist opened fire at IDF soldiers, one of whom was lightly injured and was evacuated to the hospital."
"In addition, five suspects approached the security fence in the southern Gaza Strip. Two of the suspects crossed into Israel and returned immediately to the Gaza Strip."
7. WATCH: SPECIAL POLICE FORCES CAPTURE BARKAN TERRORIST
by Mordechai Sones
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258040
Under Shin Bet direction and in conjunction with IDF forces, the Israel Police's special weapons and tactics fighters conducted last month an operation to locate the terrorists Ashraf Na'alwa and Salah Barghouti.
On the night of December 12, 2018, the soldiers identified the terrorist Salah Barghouti, who carried out the attack in Ofra. During the attempt to arrest Barghouti in Ramallah, he tried to run over the soldiers who returned fire at him and he was severely wounded and later pronounced dead.
Minutes after the complex operation, the police, Shin Bet, and IDF were preparing for further activity that night (13.12.18), this time in the Askar refugee camp in Shechem. An operation was carried out to arrest Ashraf Na'alwa, who carried out the severe attack in Barkan in which Kim Lavengrond-Yehezkel and Ziv Hajbi were murdered.
Special police forces capture Barkan terrorist
In video revealed today for the first time, special Yamam police units are seen in the Askar refugee camp in Shechem, in the building where the terrorist was hiding.
The soldiers who came to the building carried out extensive searches to locate the house where they suspected the terrorist was found. The soldiers broke into the house and sent the dog Rambo for searches during which Rambo was shot several times. The fighters raided the house, located the terrorist with whom they engaged in a gunfight, and he was killed by police fire while armed with his weapon.
Rambo was treated and is currently undergoing rehabilitation in the unit.
The new video is from an observation post watching the building where the terrorist hid and a helmet camera on one of the fighters.
8. MAY: CORBYN WILLING TO SIT WITH HAMAS BUT NOT WITH ME
by Elad Benari
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258070
British Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday ripped Labour leader and opposition head Jeremy Corbyn over his refusal to sit down with her and discuss Brexit.
In her remarks, May took a jab at Corbyn, who has been embroiled in controversy over his past connections to terrorist groups.
"He has been willing to sit down with Hamas, Hezbollah and the IRA without preconditions but he will not meet with me to talk about Brexit," May said during Prime Minister's Question Time in the House of Commons.
Corbyn said in response that he had offered to meet with the prime minister last fall, quoting a line previously used by MP Hilary Benn, "While the door to her office may well be open, minds inside are completely closed."
Corbyn has been plagued by anti-Semitism, both on his part and by members of his Labour party.
Dozens of Labour members have been suspended over their anti-Semitic statements, and the party has been criticized for its failure to deal with the phenomenon.
Corbyn has come under fire as well for calling Hamas and Hezbollah his "friends" and continues to be plagued by incidents of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel statements.
More recently, the Daily Mail newspaper published photos of the Labour leader at a cemetery in Tunisia holding a wreath near the graves of some of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) terrorists who were responsible for the massacre of the 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
Days later, a picture emerged of Corbyn apparently making a salute linked to the Muslim Brotherhood organization.
In addition to all of these, Corbyn has been criticized for playing down the anti-Semitism in his party and for alienating Jews.
The Labour leader, however, insists he is not an anti-Semite. In a recent interview with the BBC he described anti-Semitism "as a scourge in any society, I have opposed it all my life…I have spent my whole life opposing racism in any form and I will die fighting racism."
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
A7News: Why Israel went public with its war on Iran
Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Wednesday, Jan. 23 '19, י"ז בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. WHY ISRAEL WENT PUBLIC WITH ITS WAR ON IRAN
2. NETANYAHU WARNS OF 'DEADLY RESPONSE' TO GAZA TERROR
3. LEFT AND REFORM PUSH TO FIRE TZFAT CHIEF RABBI SHMUEL ELIYAHU
4. NAFTALI BENNETT AS DEFENSE MINISTER?
5. SYRIA'S UN ENVOY THREATENS BEN-GURION AIRPORT
6. SOLDIER WOUNDED BY GUNFIRE FROM GAZA
7. NETANYAHU ASKS IRAN: TRUE OR FALSE?
8. ORTHODOX RABBI APPOINTED TO SERVE ILLINOIS STATE LEGISLATURE
1. WHY ISRAEL WENT PUBLIC WITH ITS WAR ON IRAN
by Yochanan Visser
Pundits and politicians in Israel tried to explain why Israel now openly talks about its military activities against Iran in Syria after the Israeli air force (IAF) again carried out a large operation against Iran-related targets in Syria.
Politicians on the left of the political spectrum in Israel think the announcements about Israeli strikes against the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps were connected to domestic politics and the upcoming elections in Israel.
"I am sorry to say it is all related to April 9 and political survival. Can someone explain to me what the benefits are of the announcements other than politics?" former IDF Chief of Staff and Israeli Defense Minister Moshe 'Boogy' Ya'alon told Army Radio (Galatz) in Israel.
In reality, however, there are other factors which play an important role in the apparent decision to abandon the long-standing Israeli policy of remaining silent about the military campaign against the Quds Force and its predominantly Shiite allies in Syria.
Let's first take a look at what happened on Monday when the IAF again carried out a series of devastating airstrikes against Iran-related targets in Syria.
The assault, which was reportedly again carried out from the Mediterranean Sea and Lebanese airspace, destroyed Iranian military facilities and Syrian air defenses throughout the country.
The so-called 'Glass House,' the headquarters of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps near el-Kisweh in the Damascus region, wasn't targeted this time since it has been empty after earlier Israeli airstrikes.
The 'Glass House' is where the covert war against Israel from Syrian soil had been overseen by Qassem Soleimani, the shrewd commander of the Quds Force, and his staff.
The Israeli assault was in retaliation for an Iranian surface-to-surface missile attack on Mount Hermon in northeastern Israel on Sunday which followed a new IAF attack on Iranian weapon storehouses near Damascus the same day.
The missile, which was launched from an area where the Quds Force wasn't supposed to be under a Russian American de-escalation agreement, was intercepted by the Iron Dome anti-missile shield and caused no damages or casualties.
In a highly unusual move, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released extensive information about the aerial attacks and said that the operation was aimed at the Quds Force of the IRGC and the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad who is steadily turning Syria into an Iranian proxy.
Yisrael Katz, Israel's Minister of Intelligence, later told Galatz that the policy for taking on Iran in Syria had changed and that the Jewish state was now in "open confrontation" with Iran.
"This is an open confrontation with Iran. When we need to step it up, we'll step it up," Katz said while again adding that Israel would not allow the continuing Iranian entrenchment in Syria.
To understand the depth of Iran's entrenchment in Syriam one should read a new analysis published by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
As happened in Lebanon, Iran is entrenching itself "not only militarily, but also politically, religiously, and culturally," according to the authors.
This is done by "purchasing real estate, changing demographics, and by developing networks of support between Damascus and the Lebanese border" the report said.
Iran is also "pushing social, religious, and economic programs designed to woo underserved and deprived communities which may not be ideologically aligned with Tehran but lack viable alternatives," the authors reported in a reference to the Sunni Arab population in Syria.
The report also dealt with the situation in southern Syria, the area along the Israeli and Jordanian border, where Iran has established military bases and security networks over the past half year and is recruiting disgruntled Sunni Arabs who were part of the opposition front against Assad during the civil war.
The authors urge the US Administration to take non-military steps to thwart the Iranian entrenchment in Syria, such as sanctions on persons who work with Iran to turn Syria into another proxy state.
Israel, from its side, has apparently decided to prepare the ground for decisive action against Iran in Syria after the Trump Administration announced it would withdraw US Special Forces from Syria and would not interfere with Israel's actions against Iran in Syria.
This explains why the Israeli government and the top brass of the IDF are now openly talking about the formerly covert war against Iran in both Lebanon and Syria
Gady Eisenkot, the now retired IDF Chief of Staff, recently revealed that the Israeli military has carried out thousands of strikes against Iran-related targets in Syria and claimed this had stopped the Iranian military build-up in the country.
Eisenkot also suggested that Iran's activities in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria were responsible for the decision not to invade the coastal enclave again after its proxies Islamic Jihad and Hamas tried to drag Israel into an all-out war at the beginning of November 2018.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu earlier indicated that Israel could soon see a major escalation in the war against what Iran and its allies call 'the resistance front'.
This happened after the Iranian-backed pro-Assad coalition announced it had changed the rules of engagement in Syria and would now respond to every Israeli strike against Iran-related targets in the war-torn country.
Monday's events were a new indication Israel has adjusted its strategy vis a vis Iran and it has little to do with the upcoming election in the country.
The government in Jerusalem realizes that it will need the support of the international community to expand its campaign against Iran in Syria now that the Iranian axis has threatened to bomb Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv and said it is ready to "eliminate" Israel via a multiple-front-war.
In this respect, it's important to understand that Iran is not only trying to heat up the northern front in Israel but is also trying to open-up fronts in Gaza and the 'West Bank' (Judea and Samaria).
2. NETANYAHU WARNS OF 'DEADLY RESPONSE' TO GAZA TERROR
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who also serves as Defense Minister, warned Hamas and other terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip not to escalate their conflict with Israel, a day after a sniper attack along the Gaza border left one IDF soldier wounded.
"If there is someone in Gaza who is thinking of lifting up their head, I advise them not to do it, because our response will be deadly and very painful," Netanyahu said while visiting army units during a training exercise.
Netanyahu also discussed Israel's recent strikes on Iranian forces inside of Syria.
"We are dealing appropriately with the Iranian army in Syria. The IDF is the only military in the world that is fighting Iran's army."
On Monday, Israeli forces struck Syrian and Iranian targets inside of Syria, killing 21, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Fifteen of the dead were identified as "foreign nationals", typically referring to Iranian soldiers.
Yesterday, an IDF soldier was lightly injured when a terrorist sniper operating out of the Gaza Strip shot him in the head. The soldier survived the attack with only light injuries thanks to his helmet, which stopped the bullet.
Following the attack, Netanyahu blocked the transfer of Qatari funds to the Gaza Strip.
The IDF later conducted an airstrike on a Hamas military camp in retaliation for the sniper attack.
3. LEFT AND REFORM PUSH TO FIRE TZFAT CHIEF RABBI SHMUEL ELIYAHU
by Mordechai Sones
Reform movement leader Gilad Kariv attacked Tzfat Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu after the Rabbi's meeting with students of the Pri Ha'aretz yeshiva in Rechelim and attacking the detention of the boy suspected of involvement in the death of Aisha al-Rabi.
"Rabbi Eliyahu should have been dismissed from his public office a decade ago," Kariv said, "because he's a racist, and because of the serial violation of all the rules required of a public office holder. Instead, he enjoys de facto immunity from Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, who refuses to take disciplinary action against him.
"Her recent announcement to the Supreme Court that she'll make do with another clarification conversation with him encourages him to continue his campaign of incitement and provides tailwind to violent and dangerous elements. It's a disgrace to the State of Israel that a person like Rabbi Eliyahu serves as a city rabbi and as a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council and it's shame to the Justice Minister who in her embarrassing silence gives a tailwind to a person like him," added the Reform Movement Director.
MK Esawi Frej (Meretz) sent a letter to the Attorney General demanding that Rabbi Eliyahu be fired immediately and put on trial for incitement.
"Enough! It's time to finally do the right thing and fire Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the Rabbi of Tzfat. For Rabbi Eliyahu, it's commonplace to incite against Arabs, women, the gay community; against the legal system and who not," wrote Frig.
"But if there was one more red line that state employee Shmuel Eliyahu could cross, he crossed it when he encouraged suspects in the murder. As a civil servant, he expressed support for terrorists. Terrorism. 'What happened? What are you accused of? You threw a stone,' Eliyahu said, adding that he'd told the suspects in the murder of Aisha al-Rabi. A public figure who receives his salary from Israeli citizens, encouraging suspects in the murder. A moral low in a country that could have prevented it, but preferred to ignore all warning bells."
Frej appropriated Talmudic terminology and shouted: "Shmuel Eliyahu is an habitual offender ["Shor mued"] - an habitual racist. An habitual inciter and now also an habitual terror-supporter. Shmuel Eliyahu cannot serve another minute in a public position, and it's proper that like anyone who supports and encourages terrorism, he will be put on trial for his actions.
"I ask you to act as soon as possible. For too long the State has been dragging its feet in dealing with Inciter Rabbi Eliyahu. The time has come for action," the Muslim Meretz Knesset Member wrote in his letter to the Attorney General.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258030
4. NAFTALI BENNETT AS DEFENSE MINISTER?
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The New Right will press the next government to tap Naftali Bennett as Defense Minister, and demand that it retain the Justice Ministry portfolio, Bennett said Wednesday.
Speaking with Yediot Ahronot Wednesday morning, Education Minister and New Right chief Naftali Bennett said that either he or former IDF chief of staff Benny Gantz would likely take the Defense Ministry next term – an appointment that would likely determine whether the government will adhere to right-wing principles.
"We are real, genuine right-wing," said Bennett, "we're against the establishment of a Palestinian state, against surrendering territory, opposed to freeing terrorists, and we're in favor of conservative judgeships."
"For 40 years we've voted for right-wing governments, but gotten left-wing [policies]. We have the determination to change that."
Last year, Bennett demanded Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu appoint him as Defense Minister to replace Avigdor Liberman, who bolted from the government in November.
Despite an ultimatum by Bennett, Netanyahu refused, with the Jewish Home chief ultimately backing down on his threat to topple the government.
After the government subsequently moved for early elections, however, Bennett and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked left the Jewish Home party, and established the New Right (HaYamin HeHadash).
Now, at the helm of the new party, Bennett says he still hopes to secure the Defense Ministry, but expressed concern former IDF chief Benny Gantz, a newcomer to politics, could take the Defense portfolio.
"I don't have anything personal against Benny Gantz," Bennett said. "I'm talking about his positions. He symbolizes the 'stalemate strategy' under which we don't strive for victory; the idea is to safely get out of any conflict – but without winning. That approach has failed for the past 30 years."
With polls showing Gantz netting 11 to 14 mandates in the April 9th election, Bennett said the New Right hopes to secure 15 seats to ensure they take the Defense Ministry portfolio.
"We're aiming for 15 seats. We want the Defense and Justice portfolios in the next government."
5. SYRIA'S UN ENVOY THREATENS BEN-GURION AIRPORT
by Elad Benari
Syria's Ambassador to the United Nations, Bashar Jaafari, on Tuesday threatened that if the Security Council did not act to stop the Israeli attacks on his country, Syria would have to retaliate and attack the Ben-Gurion Airport.
Speaking at a Security Council meeting on the Middle East, Jaafari said that the time had come for the Council to take the necessary steps to stop the Israeli attacks.
If the UN Security Council didn't adopt measures to halt the Israeli repeated aggressions on the Syrian lands, Syria would practice "its legitimate right of self-defense and respond to the Israeli aggression on Damascus International Airport in the same way on Tel Aviv Airport," he said, in comments quoted by the official Syrian SANA news agency.
"Isn't time now for the UN Security council to stop the Israeli repeated aggressions on the Syrian Arab republic territories," continued Jaafari, who affirmed that the restoration of the Golan is a firm right for Syria which can't be negotiable or abolished through prescription.
Jaafari went on to say that the "Israeli occupation's attempts to change the status in Golan are doomed to failure and they will not affect any form of legal or sovereign right to Syria on it."
The Syrian envoy's comments follow this week's Israeli air strikes against Iranian targets in Damascus.
The attacks on Quds Force targets were carried out in response to the launching of a surface-to-surface rocket that was carried out on Sunday by Iranian Quds forces operating in Syrian territory into Israeli territory and was aimed at the northern Golan Heights. The IDF's Iron Dome aerial defense system intercepted the rocket.
The targets hit by the Israeli attack included Syrian-operated air defense systems and Iranian munitions depots, an intelligence site, and an Iranian-operated military training camp.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu warned Iran and Syria on Monday that Israel will not tolerate "acts of aggression", nor will it accept Iran's continued presence on Syrian soil.
"Last night the air force strongly attacked Iranian targets in Syria after Iran launched a missile from there at our territory," Netanyahu said.
"We will not ignore such acts of aggression as Iran attempts to entrench itself militarily in Syria and given explicit statements by Iran that it intends to destroy Israel, as the commander of the Iranian air force has just said," Netanyahu continued, referring to comments by Aziz Nasirzadeh, the commander of the Iranian air force.
6. SOLDIER WOUNDED BY GUNFIRE FROM GAZA
by Arutz Sheva Staff
An IDF soldier was lightly wounded when terrorists from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip opened fire at his unit Tuesday afternoon.
Shortly before the shooting, terrorists broke through the security fence, sabotaged military equipment, and returned to the Gaza Strip. The IDF responded by firing tank shells at the Hamas position.
An IDF spokesperson stated: "An IDF tank attacked an observation post belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization after an IDF officer was lightly injured in a disturbance in the southern Gaza Strip, which included the throwing of stones at IDF forces. The circumstances of the injury are under investigation."
The soldier was shot in the upper body and evacuated by ambulance to the hospital.
The IDF later released an additional statement: "Following the earlier investigation, a preliminary investigation revealed that during a riot involving stone throwing, a terrorist opened fire at IDF soldiers, one of whom was lightly injured and was evacuated to the hospital."
"In addition, five suspects approached the security fence in the southern Gaza Strip. Two of the suspects crossed into Israel and returned immediately to the Gaza Strip."
7. NETANYAHU ASKS IRAN: TRUE OR FALSE?
by Arutz Sheva Staff
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257988
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu filmed a message to mark forty years since the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Contrasting the cooperation between the countries and economic conditions with the current Iranian regime's hatred of Israel and broken economy, Netanyahu reiterated a message of friendship to the people of Iran, who Netanyahu called the primary victims suffering at the hands of the regime.
The prime minister ended his message with the hope that Israel and Iran will one day work together as friends again and not as enemies.
8. ORTHODOX RABBI APPOINTED TO SERVE ILLINOIS STATE LEGISLATURE
by Marcy Oster/JTA
An Orthodox rabbi was appointed to serve in the Illinois State Legislature.
Rabbi Yehiel Kalish was sworn in to the Illinois House of Representatives on Sunday night. Kalish, 43, is the first rabbi to serve as an Illinois state representative.
"I may be the first rabbi in any state legislature. And that's very exciting," Kalish told the CBS affiliate in Chicago.
The rabbi is married and has six children.
He replaces Rep. Lou Lang, a Democrat who served in the legislature for 32 years. Lang resigned following his reelection after receiving a partnership offer from prominent lobbying firm Advantage Government Strategies. He was harmed last year by a sexual harassment allegation, though absolved of the allegations after an investigation by the Illinois Inspector General. Lang was on the three-member committee that selected Kalish from among 20 possible candidates.
Kalish will represent the Illinois House 16th District, which includes Rogers Park, Skokie, Lincolnwood and Morton Grove. Orthodox Jews comprise about 30 percent of the district, according to the Yeshiva World News.
Kalish is chief executive of S4 Group, a government affairs and business development firm that devises strategies for private companies. He also serves as a cantor for Congregation Shaarei Tzedek Mishkan Yair in Chicago. He formerly worked for more than 10 years at Agudath Israel of America, focusing on governmental advocacy in state capitols across the country.
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
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Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Wednesday, Jan. 23 '19, י"ז בשבט תשע"ט
HEADLINES:
1. WHY ISRAEL WENT PUBLIC WITH ITS WAR ON IRAN
2. NETANYAHU WARNS OF 'DEADLY RESPONSE' TO GAZA TERROR
3. LEFT AND REFORM PUSH TO FIRE TZFAT CHIEF RABBI SHMUEL ELIYAHU
4. NAFTALI BENNETT AS DEFENSE MINISTER?
5. SYRIA'S UN ENVOY THREATENS BEN-GURION AIRPORT
6. SOLDIER WOUNDED BY GUNFIRE FROM GAZA
7. NETANYAHU ASKS IRAN: TRUE OR FALSE?
8. ORTHODOX RABBI APPOINTED TO SERVE ILLINOIS STATE LEGISLATURE
1. WHY ISRAEL WENT PUBLIC WITH ITS WAR ON IRAN
by Yochanan Visser
Pundits and politicians in Israel tried to explain why Israel now openly talks about its military activities against Iran in Syria after the Israeli air force (IAF) again carried out a large operation against Iran-related targets in Syria.
Politicians on the left of the political spectrum in Israel think the announcements about Israeli strikes against the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps were connected to domestic politics and the upcoming elections in Israel.
"I am sorry to say it is all related to April 9 and political survival. Can someone explain to me what the benefits are of the announcements other than politics?" former IDF Chief of Staff and Israeli Defense Minister Moshe 'Boogy' Ya'alon told Army Radio (Galatz) in Israel.
In reality, however, there are other factors which play an important role in the apparent decision to abandon the long-standing Israeli policy of remaining silent about the military campaign against the Quds Force and its predominantly Shiite allies in Syria.
Let's first take a look at what happened on Monday when the IAF again carried out a series of devastating airstrikes against Iran-related targets in Syria.
The assault, which was reportedly again carried out from the Mediterranean Sea and Lebanese airspace, destroyed Iranian military facilities and Syrian air defenses throughout the country.
The so-called 'Glass House,' the headquarters of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps near el-Kisweh in the Damascus region, wasn't targeted this time since it has been empty after earlier Israeli airstrikes.
The 'Glass House' is where the covert war against Israel from Syrian soil had been overseen by Qassem Soleimani, the shrewd commander of the Quds Force, and his staff.
The Israeli assault was in retaliation for an Iranian surface-to-surface missile attack on Mount Hermon in northeastern Israel on Sunday which followed a new IAF attack on Iranian weapon storehouses near Damascus the same day.
The missile, which was launched from an area where the Quds Force wasn't supposed to be under a Russian American de-escalation agreement, was intercepted by the Iron Dome anti-missile shield and caused no damages or casualties.
In a highly unusual move, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released extensive information about the aerial attacks and said that the operation was aimed at the Quds Force of the IRGC and the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad who is steadily turning Syria into an Iranian proxy.
Yisrael Katz, Israel's Minister of Intelligence, later told Galatz that the policy for taking on Iran in Syria had changed and that the Jewish state was now in "open confrontation" with Iran.
"This is an open confrontation with Iran. When we need to step it up, we'll step it up," Katz said while again adding that Israel would not allow the continuing Iranian entrenchment in Syria.
To understand the depth of Iran's entrenchment in Syriam one should read a new analysis published by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
As happened in Lebanon, Iran is entrenching itself "not only militarily, but also politically, religiously, and culturally," according to the authors.
This is done by "purchasing real estate, changing demographics, and by developing networks of support between Damascus and the Lebanese border" the report said.
Iran is also "pushing social, religious, and economic programs designed to woo underserved and deprived communities which may not be ideologically aligned with Tehran but lack viable alternatives," the authors reported in a reference to the Sunni Arab population in Syria.
The report also dealt with the situation in southern Syria, the area along the Israeli and Jordanian border, where Iran has established military bases and security networks over the past half year and is recruiting disgruntled Sunni Arabs who were part of the opposition front against Assad during the civil war.
The authors urge the US Administration to take non-military steps to thwart the Iranian entrenchment in Syria, such as sanctions on persons who work with Iran to turn Syria into another proxy state.
Israel, from its side, has apparently decided to prepare the ground for decisive action against Iran in Syria after the Trump Administration announced it would withdraw US Special Forces from Syria and would not interfere with Israel's actions against Iran in Syria.
This explains why the Israeli government and the top brass of the IDF are now openly talking about the formerly covert war against Iran in both Lebanon and Syria
Gady Eisenkot, the now retired IDF Chief of Staff, recently revealed that the Israeli military has carried out thousands of strikes against Iran-related targets in Syria and claimed this had stopped the Iranian military build-up in the country.
Eisenkot also suggested that Iran's activities in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria were responsible for the decision not to invade the coastal enclave again after its proxies Islamic Jihad and Hamas tried to drag Israel into an all-out war at the beginning of November 2018.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu earlier indicated that Israel could soon see a major escalation in the war against what Iran and its allies call 'the resistance front'.
This happened after the Iranian-backed pro-Assad coalition announced it had changed the rules of engagement in Syria and would now respond to every Israeli strike against Iran-related targets in the war-torn country.
Monday's events were a new indication Israel has adjusted its strategy vis a vis Iran and it has little to do with the upcoming election in the country.
The government in Jerusalem realizes that it will need the support of the international community to expand its campaign against Iran in Syria now that the Iranian axis has threatened to bomb Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv and said it is ready to "eliminate" Israel via a multiple-front-war.
In this respect, it's important to understand that Iran is not only trying to heat up the northern front in Israel but is also trying to open-up fronts in Gaza and the 'West Bank' (Judea and Samaria).
2. NETANYAHU WARNS OF 'DEADLY RESPONSE' TO GAZA TERROR
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who also serves as Defense Minister, warned Hamas and other terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip not to escalate their conflict with Israel, a day after a sniper attack along the Gaza border left one IDF soldier wounded.
"If there is someone in Gaza who is thinking of lifting up their head, I advise them not to do it, because our response will be deadly and very painful," Netanyahu said while visiting army units during a training exercise.
Netanyahu also discussed Israel's recent strikes on Iranian forces inside of Syria.
"We are dealing appropriately with the Iranian army in Syria. The IDF is the only military in the world that is fighting Iran's army."
On Monday, Israeli forces struck Syrian and Iranian targets inside of Syria, killing 21, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Fifteen of the dead were identified as "foreign nationals", typically referring to Iranian soldiers.
Yesterday, an IDF soldier was lightly injured when a terrorist sniper operating out of the Gaza Strip shot him in the head. The soldier survived the attack with only light injuries thanks to his helmet, which stopped the bullet.
Following the attack, Netanyahu blocked the transfer of Qatari funds to the Gaza Strip.
The IDF later conducted an airstrike on a Hamas military camp in retaliation for the sniper attack.
3. LEFT AND REFORM PUSH TO FIRE TZFAT CHIEF RABBI SHMUEL ELIYAHU
by Mordechai Sones
Reform movement leader Gilad Kariv attacked Tzfat Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu after the Rabbi's meeting with students of the Pri Ha'aretz yeshiva in Rechelim and attacking the detention of the boy suspected of involvement in the death of Aisha al-Rabi.
"Rabbi Eliyahu should have been dismissed from his public office a decade ago," Kariv said, "because he's a racist, and because of the serial violation of all the rules required of a public office holder. Instead, he enjoys de facto immunity from Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, who refuses to take disciplinary action against him.
"Her recent announcement to the Supreme Court that she'll make do with another clarification conversation with him encourages him to continue his campaign of incitement and provides tailwind to violent and dangerous elements. It's a disgrace to the State of Israel that a person like Rabbi Eliyahu serves as a city rabbi and as a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council and it's shame to the Justice Minister who in her embarrassing silence gives a tailwind to a person like him," added the Reform Movement Director.
MK Esawi Frej (Meretz) sent a letter to the Attorney General demanding that Rabbi Eliyahu be fired immediately and put on trial for incitement.
"Enough! It's time to finally do the right thing and fire Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the Rabbi of Tzfat. For Rabbi Eliyahu, it's commonplace to incite against Arabs, women, the gay community; against the legal system and who not," wrote Frig.
"But if there was one more red line that state employee Shmuel Eliyahu could cross, he crossed it when he encouraged suspects in the murder. As a civil servant, he expressed support for terrorists. Terrorism. 'What happened? What are you accused of? You threw a stone,' Eliyahu said, adding that he'd told the suspects in the murder of Aisha al-Rabi. A public figure who receives his salary from Israeli citizens, encouraging suspects in the murder. A moral low in a country that could have prevented it, but preferred to ignore all warning bells."
Frej appropriated Talmudic terminology and shouted: "Shmuel Eliyahu is an habitual offender ["Shor mued"] - an habitual racist. An habitual inciter and now also an habitual terror-supporter. Shmuel Eliyahu cannot serve another minute in a public position, and it's proper that like anyone who supports and encourages terrorism, he will be put on trial for his actions.
"I ask you to act as soon as possible. For too long the State has been dragging its feet in dealing with Inciter Rabbi Eliyahu. The time has come for action," the Muslim Meretz Knesset Member wrote in his letter to the Attorney General.
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/258030
4. NAFTALI BENNETT AS DEFENSE MINISTER?
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The New Right will press the next government to tap Naftali Bennett as Defense Minister, and demand that it retain the Justice Ministry portfolio, Bennett said Wednesday.
Speaking with Yediot Ahronot Wednesday morning, Education Minister and New Right chief Naftali Bennett said that either he or former IDF chief of staff Benny Gantz would likely take the Defense Ministry next term – an appointment that would likely determine whether the government will adhere to right-wing principles.
"We are real, genuine right-wing," said Bennett, "we're against the establishment of a Palestinian state, against surrendering territory, opposed to freeing terrorists, and we're in favor of conservative judgeships."
"For 40 years we've voted for right-wing governments, but gotten left-wing [policies]. We have the determination to change that."
Last year, Bennett demanded Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu appoint him as Defense Minister to replace Avigdor Liberman, who bolted from the government in November.
Despite an ultimatum by Bennett, Netanyahu refused, with the Jewish Home chief ultimately backing down on his threat to topple the government.
After the government subsequently moved for early elections, however, Bennett and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked left the Jewish Home party, and established the New Right (HaYamin HeHadash).
Now, at the helm of the new party, Bennett says he still hopes to secure the Defense Ministry, but expressed concern former IDF chief Benny Gantz, a newcomer to politics, could take the Defense portfolio.
"I don't have anything personal against Benny Gantz," Bennett said. "I'm talking about his positions. He symbolizes the 'stalemate strategy' under which we don't strive for victory; the idea is to safely get out of any conflict – but without winning. That approach has failed for the past 30 years."
With polls showing Gantz netting 11 to 14 mandates in the April 9th election, Bennett said the New Right hopes to secure 15 seats to ensure they take the Defense Ministry portfolio.
"We're aiming for 15 seats. We want the Defense and Justice portfolios in the next government."
5. SYRIA'S UN ENVOY THREATENS BEN-GURION AIRPORT
by Elad Benari
Syria's Ambassador to the United Nations, Bashar Jaafari, on Tuesday threatened that if the Security Council did not act to stop the Israeli attacks on his country, Syria would have to retaliate and attack the Ben-Gurion Airport.
Speaking at a Security Council meeting on the Middle East, Jaafari said that the time had come for the Council to take the necessary steps to stop the Israeli attacks.
If the UN Security Council didn't adopt measures to halt the Israeli repeated aggressions on the Syrian lands, Syria would practice "its legitimate right of self-defense and respond to the Israeli aggression on Damascus International Airport in the same way on Tel Aviv Airport," he said, in comments quoted by the official Syrian SANA news agency.
"Isn't time now for the UN Security council to stop the Israeli repeated aggressions on the Syrian Arab republic territories," continued Jaafari, who affirmed that the restoration of the Golan is a firm right for Syria which can't be negotiable or abolished through prescription.
Jaafari went on to say that the "Israeli occupation's attempts to change the status in Golan are doomed to failure and they will not affect any form of legal or sovereign right to Syria on it."
The Syrian envoy's comments follow this week's Israeli air strikes against Iranian targets in Damascus.
The attacks on Quds Force targets were carried out in response to the launching of a surface-to-surface rocket that was carried out on Sunday by Iranian Quds forces operating in Syrian territory into Israeli territory and was aimed at the northern Golan Heights. The IDF's Iron Dome aerial defense system intercepted the rocket.
The targets hit by the Israeli attack included Syrian-operated air defense systems and Iranian munitions depots, an intelligence site, and an Iranian-operated military training camp.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu warned Iran and Syria on Monday that Israel will not tolerate "acts of aggression", nor will it accept Iran's continued presence on Syrian soil.
"Last night the air force strongly attacked Iranian targets in Syria after Iran launched a missile from there at our territory," Netanyahu said.
"We will not ignore such acts of aggression as Iran attempts to entrench itself militarily in Syria and given explicit statements by Iran that it intends to destroy Israel, as the commander of the Iranian air force has just said," Netanyahu continued, referring to comments by Aziz Nasirzadeh, the commander of the Iranian air force.
6. SOLDIER WOUNDED BY GUNFIRE FROM GAZA
by Arutz Sheva Staff
An IDF soldier was lightly wounded when terrorists from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip opened fire at his unit Tuesday afternoon.
Shortly before the shooting, terrorists broke through the security fence, sabotaged military equipment, and returned to the Gaza Strip. The IDF responded by firing tank shells at the Hamas position.
An IDF spokesperson stated: "An IDF tank attacked an observation post belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization after an IDF officer was lightly injured in a disturbance in the southern Gaza Strip, which included the throwing of stones at IDF forces. The circumstances of the injury are under investigation."
The soldier was shot in the upper body and evacuated by ambulance to the hospital.
The IDF later released an additional statement: "Following the earlier investigation, a preliminary investigation revealed that during a riot involving stone throwing, a terrorist opened fire at IDF soldiers, one of whom was lightly injured and was evacuated to the hospital."
"In addition, five suspects approached the security fence in the southern Gaza Strip. Two of the suspects crossed into Israel and returned immediately to the Gaza Strip."
7. NETANYAHU ASKS IRAN: TRUE OR FALSE?
by Arutz Sheva Staff
📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/257988
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu filmed a message to mark forty years since the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Contrasting the cooperation between the countries and economic conditions with the current Iranian regime's hatred of Israel and broken economy, Netanyahu reiterated a message of friendship to the people of Iran, who Netanyahu called the primary victims suffering at the hands of the regime.
The prime minister ended his message with the hope that Israel and Iran will one day work together as friends again and not as enemies.
8. ORTHODOX RABBI APPOINTED TO SERVE ILLINOIS STATE LEGISLATURE
by Marcy Oster/JTA
An Orthodox rabbi was appointed to serve in the Illinois State Legislature.
Rabbi Yehiel Kalish was sworn in to the Illinois House of Representatives on Sunday night. Kalish, 43, is the first rabbi to serve as an Illinois state representative.
"I may be the first rabbi in any state legislature. And that's very exciting," Kalish told the CBS affiliate in Chicago.
The rabbi is married and has six children.
He replaces Rep. Lou Lang, a Democrat who served in the legislature for 32 years. Lang resigned following his reelection after receiving a partnership offer from prominent lobbying firm Advantage Government Strategies. He was harmed last year by a sexual harassment allegation, though absolved of the allegations after an investigation by the Illinois Inspector General. Lang was on the three-member committee that selected Kalish from among 20 possible candidates.
Kalish will represent the Illinois House 16th District, which includes Rogers Park, Skokie, Lincolnwood and Morton Grove. Orthodox Jews comprise about 30 percent of the district, according to the Yeshiva World News.
Kalish is chief executive of S4 Group, a government affairs and business development firm that devises strategies for private companies. He also serves as a cantor for Congregation Shaarei Tzedek Mishkan Yair in Chicago. He formerly worked for more than 10 years at Agudath Israel of America, focusing on governmental advocacy in state capitols across the country.