A7News: First photos from Israeli spacecraft

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Tuesday, Mar. 05 '19, כ"ח באדר תשע"ט





HEADLINES:
1. FIRST PHOTOS FROM ISRAELI SPACECRAFT
2. FEIGLIN: CANNABIS LEGALIZATION NON-NEGOTIABLE
3. SPOKESMAN: ZARIF QUIT BECAUSE HE WASN'T INFORMED OF ASSAD VISIT
4. 'WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER TO ANNOUNCE SUSPICIONS AFTER ELECTIONS'
5. YESHIVAT ELON MOREH'S UNIQUE CAMPAIGN
6. ANALYSIS: LAW EXPERTS MAKE MINCEMEAT OF NETANYAHU INDICTMENTS
7. IDF OFFICER SERIOUSLY INJURED IN TERROR ATTACK IN SAMARIA
8. LIKUD OFFICIALLY LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN FOR 21ST KNESSET


1. FIRST PHOTOS FROM ISRAELI SPACECRAFT
by Arutz Sheva Staff

At a distance of 37,600 k"m from Earth, Beresheet's selfie camera took a picture of Earth.

Australia can be clearly seen in the picture.

The photo was taken during a slow spin of the spacecraft.

In it, one can see for the first time the plaque installed on the spacecraft with the Israeli flag and the inscriptions "Am Israel Hai" (the nation of Israel lives - ed.) and "Small country Big dreams."

Science Minister Ofir Akunis commented, "Despite the small size of the Beresheet spacecraft, it brings us great pride."

"The spacecraft is a testament to Israel's strength and technological power, and its successes also convey an important educational message for the children of Israel: You may and must dream big.

"I am proud of my office's decision to be a partner in the spacecraft project, a project whose fruits we are beginning to witness."

Beresheet selfie
SpaceIL



2. FEIGLIN: CANNABIS LEGALIZATION NON-NEGOTIABLE
by Yehonatan Gottlieb

During the Zehut party's conference on cannabis legalization, party chairman Moshe Feiglin declared that after the elections the party would demand the finance portfolio and the education portfolio.

During the conference, there was much talk about the importance of abolishing the ban on smoking and dealing in cannabis in general, and in particular the abolition of regulation of medical cannabis. Feiglin said that "2019 will be the year of legalization, we will kill ourselves over it. This is not going to be a game, it's not going to be political, there aren't going to be negotiations. No one will establish a government in Israel without legalization," he established.

Feiglin spoke about the missed opportunity in the field of medical cannabis both in terms of medical and economic opportunities, and attacked those he claimed were the guilty party - "a group of associates and connected people who managed to acquire the entire market for itself."

"Thousands of jobs, thriving agriculture, abundance, wealth, health are today in Switzerland and Colorado but here no, because here the regular cannabis too is diminished for patients so that the small group will control the market."

"We are going to demand finance and education in order to liberate the economy, so that there will be a truly free market here, and to liberate the spirit and restore education to the responsibility of parents," Feiglin said.

Feiglin added that "It's not only with cannabis. Israel is almost the last place in the quantity of business. So there's no livelihood, so there's no work, so people are not hired, so the salary is low because there's no need for workers. Liberate, my friends, liberate the economy, liberate education, liberate the market."

📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/259934


3. SPOKESMAN: ZARIF QUIT BECAUSE HE WASN'T INFORMED OF ASSAD VISIT
by Arutz Sheva Staff

Bahram Qassemi, spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry, confirmed Tuesday morning that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif resigned his position due to the fact that he was not informed of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's visit to Tehran, the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) reported.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani later rejected Zarif's resignation.

Zarif, who did not attend the meeting with al-Assad, said he was angry at the fact that he was not informed of the meeting.

According to ISNA, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not have any knowledge of the trip at any level. This lack of information was maintained until the end of the trip."

Zarif was also quoted as saying that "the political struggle harms the Foreign Ministry's work."

"I hope my resignation will serve as an incentive for the Foreign Ministry to return to work in the proper manner, and to adopt the proper foreign policy for the country."


4. 'WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER TO ANNOUNCE SUSPICIONS AFTER ELECTIONS'
by 103FM

Ayala Hasson spoke Tuesday on 103 FM with former Supreme Court Justice Yaakov Turkel, about the list of suspicions presented by Attorney General Mandelblit against Prime Minister Netanyahu.

"The prime minister has the presumption of innocence, and secondly, he has very large merits for what he did for the benefit of the people of Israel," Turkel said at the start of the interview.

"I am deeply saddened by what the Attorney General has determined. It saddens me that he reached these conclusions, but I assume that he had something to rely on," Turkel added, but admitted that he had not read the list of suspicions. "I still hope that things will look differently in court."

"As for the timing, in my opinion it would have been more correct to initiate proceedings and announce the list of suspicions and a hearing only after the elections. I think it would have been more decent if it had been done this way, but there could be different views on different matters."

In response to the question of whether the prime minister's feeling of being persecuted is based in fact, Turkel replied: "I believe so. The picture is of a hunting campaign and a persecution campaign that has been waged for a long time. As one who believes in rule of law and Israeli democracy, this does not sit well with me."

Do you think that the enforcement authorities are also participating in this hunting campaign?

"No, by no means. I know the side of the State Attorney's Office from the many years that I was on the bench; There are certainly people with different views in every system, but I have full confidence in our prosecution and law enforcement agencies."

What do you think will remain of all the cases?

Turkel said that as in the past, when an attorney general closed a file against public figures but issued a statement about the problematic nature of the act, this may also happen with Netanyahu's cases: "I do not like the prime minister receiving expensive gifts like cigars and champagne, I'm very sorry about that, but it could be that in the space between ethics and crime, we will reach a place where we stop before the criminal space, and it is quite possible that the Attorney General will not indict for crimes."



5. YESHIVAT ELON MOREH'S UNIQUE CAMPAIGN
by Arutz Sheva Staff

📹 To watch the video: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/259891

With blessings of, "May G-d be with you!" Yeshivat Elon Moreh and its various institutions begin collecting funds to expand Kfar Tapuach's Yeshivat Avinoam, build a new study hall in Elon Moreh's high school yeshiva, and renovate the study hall in the post-high school yeshiva - as well as publish Rabbi Elyakim Levanon's new book "Peace in Your Tent" and begin other projects to increase Torah study and Jewish presence in the Samaria mountains.

Yeshivat Elon Moreh has been working for over 30 years in the area around Shechem (Nablus), the city of Joseph the Righteous, about whom it is said, "Listen to a dream and explain it." To dream and realize the dream is the power of Joseph, and this is what the staff of Elon Moreh's yeshiva are trying to do, under Rabbi Levanon's leadership. For thirty years already, they have been dreaming and realizing their dreams, settling Samaria and lighting up the world with the Torah's redeeming light.

In order to continue realizing the dream, the yeshiva needs to raise 4 million NIS ($1,103,418) - all of which will go directly to adding another level to the yeshiva's unique and pioneering Torah path.

Today, the fundraising campaign begins - and every dollar you give is doubled. Yeshivat Elon Moreh has found generous donors, who promised to double every donation. Without any effort, you can spread and honor Torah, becoming full partners in the growth and Jewish settlement of Samaria, and foiling the dangerous plans to destroy the settlements and the voice of Torah in Samaria's mountains.

How can you help? It's easy! Just click the link and donate as much as you can. Send the link to anyone who loves Torah and supports settling Israel. Tell your families, friends, and anyone who loves the Torah and Israel. Every donation will be doubled!

Come be partners with Joseph the Righteous! Let's dream together and realize our dreams together. May G-d be with you! Together, we will climb to the next level.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE OR FOR MORE DETAILS



6. ANALYSIS: LAW EXPERTS MAKE MINCEMEAT OF NETANYAHU INDICTMENTS
by Yochanan Visser

Speaking a few hours after Israel's Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit announced that he would indict Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu on charges of breaches of trust and bribery in three different cases known as Case 1000, Case 2000 and Case 4000, the Israeli PM highlighted his successful visit to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Netanyahu then went on talking about the Iranian entrenchment in Syria before telling the Israeli public that Mandelblit's decision to indict him was nothing more than an orchestrated attempt to influence the upcoming elections.

"The Left knows they cannot compete with these achievements in the voting booth, so they put massive pressure on the attorney-general to indict even though there is nothing, in order to influence the elections and put the Left in charge," the second-longest serving Israeli PM said referring to the many achievements under his leadership.

Netanyahu repeatedly used the word "witch hunt" to describe the relentless 'anyone but Bibi' campaign by his opponents and the Israeli TV broadcasters which dates back to the moment he returned to the Prime Minister office in March 2009.

"I am not being given the chance to disprove [the accusations] until after the election - and I will disprove them all," Netanyahu fumed while claiming his family had gone through "seven circles of hell" since the start of the campaign against him.

By now, virtually every pundit, politician and analyst in Israel and abroad has commented on Mandelblit's unprecedented decision with former Jerusalem Post editor in chief and current New York Times columnist Bret Stephens predicting Netanyahu will go down in history like former US President Richard Nixon.

While admitting that the indictment doesn't necessarily mean Netanyahu is guilty and acknowledging he has been "a remarkably effective Prime Minister" who has had "considerable success in foreign policy, economy and defense,," Stephens nevertheless came to the conclusion that "the reign of King Bibi has gone on long enough."

His article scantly addressed the legal aspects of the controversial indictments and Stephens sounded a lot like the left-wing Israelis I recently interviewed about Netanyahu's premiership.

They told me that the Knesset should adopt a law that would limit the premiership in Israel to two terms. Why? Because they hate Netanyahu.

That was before Mandelblit succumbed to the pressure of leftist activists who every week demonstrated opposite his home and even chased after him during prayers in his synagogue in Petach Tikva.

Netanyahu called Mandelblit "weak" and predicted that the indictments were "a house of cards that would collapse."

Avraham Bell, a renowned Israeli expert in the field of law and professor at Bar Ilan University and the University of San Diego, seemed to concur.

Bell fears that Mandelblit's decision will permanently damage the Israeli law system and "heralds a crisis for Israel's democracy."

"Mandelblit's announcement inserts law enforcement officials into the political arena in an unprecedented way, and on a very shaky legal foundation. If the legal theories that the attorney general is introducing against Netanyahu become general law, a considerable part of the democratic life of Israel will have to pass through police interrogation rooms," according to Bell.

"The criminal charges against the Prime Minister lack legal substance, and they threaten both the rule of law in Israel and the health of its democracy," Bell wrote citing the fact that his views are shared by the American law expert Alan Dershowitz.

"No one should be charged with a crime unless he has willfully crossed a bright line and plainly violated a serious criminal statute. To bring down a duly elected prime minister on the basis of an expansive and unprecedented application of a broad and expandable criminal statute endangers democracy," Dershowitz recently wrote.

On Monday, the former Harvard Law School professor and supporter of former US President Barack Obama doubled down on his criticism on Mandelblit. Dershowitz wrote in an open letter to the Israeli Attorney General that pressing forward with the charges against Netanyahu would have "dangerous implications for democracy and freedom of the press."

Bell's article is worth reading since he analyzed the thee indictments thoroughly and because he's one of Israel's most prominent law experts.

Netanyahu's decision to open his address to the nation about the indictments with remarks about his visit to Putin didn't get much attention from the media but it was perhaps the most important part of his speech.

The two leaders have a personal relationship which dates back to March 1997 when Netanyahu made his first of 13 trips to Russia as Israeli PM.

Putin was one of former Russian president Jeltsin's deputies and to this day views Netanyahu as an equal while he has a special affection for Israel because of the presence of what he still considers a million Russians in the Jewish state.

Netanyahu succeeded in solving the crisis between Russia and Israel which erupted in September 2018 after the Russians falsely blamed the Israeli Air Force for downing a Russian IL-20 reconnaissance airplane.

The reconciliation between the two countries is of vital importance for Israel's ability to confront Iran in Syria since the Russians control Syrian airspace and have the advanced S-300 anti-aircraft missile shield at their disposal to foil IAF airstrikes in the war-torn country.

Netanyahu reported after the meeting with the Russian leader that Putin understands Israel's security needs and that he had told him Israel would continue to operate against the Iranian entrenchment in Syria.

The fact that on Netanyahu's watch the Israeli military succeeded to stay out of the Syrian mud while at the same time decimating Iran's military build-up in the country is no small accomplishment.

It's only one of the many achievements of Netanyahu in the field of security and foreign relations and Israelis have proven in the past that this is what really matters to them when election day comes.

A similar campaign by the Israeli left in 2015 ended in a miserable defeat for the now-disbanded Zionist Union after social media activists published a list of 67 achievements by governments led by Netanyahu days before the election.

"Israelis really do not like it when they see meddling in their politics. They take it very seriously since every day is an existential threat. They cannot afford to make a mistake with their Prime Minister. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is tried and true," American pro-Israel activist Dr. Joseph Frager wrote on Sunday.

Frager thinks the indictment of Netanyahu will backfire and calls upon the Israeli right to unite once again.

"The Right must fully unite behind him once again. It is more than imperative. It is critical," according to the Assistant Professor at the Einstein School of Medicine.


7. IDF OFFICER SERIOUSLY INJURED IN TERROR ATTACK IN SAMARIA
by David Rosenberg

Two Israeli security personnel were injured in a ramming attack in Samaria early Monday morning.

The incident occurred in the village of Kafr Nimma northwest of Ramallah in the Binyamin district of Samaria, when terrorists ran down a group of Israeli soldiers at the entrance of the village.

Soldiers from the unit opened fire on the terrorists, killing two and wounding a third, an IDF spokesperson said.

"IDF soldiers who stopped on the side of the road northwest of Ramallah were run over by terrorists. In response, the troops fired towards the terrorists, neutralizing two of them and lightly wounding another. Additional troops are on the way to the scene."

One of the two soldiers injured in the attack has been listed in serious condition. The second is said to have been lightly injured in the attack.

Scene of attack
צילום: TPS
The seriously injured victim has been identified as an IDF officer, while the second victim has been identified as a Border Police officer.

"Overnight, an IDF officer was severely injured and a Border Police soldier was lightly injured as a result of a car ramming attack in Kafr Ni'ma, northwest of Ramallah," and IDF spokesperson said. "The injured soldiers were evacuated to a hospital for further medical treatment. Their families have been notified."

Army medics and MDA volunteers treated the soldiers at the scene before evacuating them to the hospital.

"When we got to the scene, we were brought to an IDF medical unit which was treating two young men who had been hit by a car," MDA paramedic Ahuva Stern said. "Both of them were fully conscious. We treated one young man in his twenties who was suffering from multi-system injuries. We provided him with life-saving medical treatment and evacuated him while continuing treatment, including anesthesia and putting him on assisted breathing. His condition is serious but stable."

MDA paramedic Yishai Rauchberger and senior MDA medic Akiva Oshri added: "We joined an IDF medical force and treated a 19-year-old in the intensive care unit. He had suffered a leg injury and told us that he had been hit by a car. We gave him medical treatment and evacuated him to the hospital. He was calm and was able to communicate with us."


8. LIKUD OFFICIALLY LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN FOR 21ST KNESSET
by Mordechai Sones

The Likud party officially launched its campaign for the 21st Knesset this evening. Before the speech, Netanyahu and his wife Sara shook hands with their competitor, Gideon Sa'ar.

Prime Minister Netanyahu told those gathered that perhaps more than 41 Likud MKs will be elected. "We must win because of our way and achievements," Netanyahu said. "Israel's power ranking and influence are due to our policies."

Netanyahu told the Likud gathering that Israel's high ranking as a world power is thanks to the connections he cultivated, saying it belied claims by the Left that Israel was isolated.

"Victory is not guaranteed, it's not in our pocket. The Knesset election will be difficult." He blamed the difficulty on what he called an unprecedented combination of the Left and the media. "The corruption cases will collapse after the election," he said.

"Only a big Likud will defeat the Left," the Prime Minister said, warning against Likud members voting out of the party or not voting in Knesset elections.

Using a rhyme, he said only a big Likud (Likud gadol in Hebrew) could defeat the Left (smol). "The media has been propaganda against me for four years," he said. Netanyahu invoked the phrase "either Bibi or [hostile Arab Member of Knesset Ahmed] Tibi", saying members of the Blue and White List won't sit with him, so that leaves Tibi.

"Gantz opposed the Sinai border barrier. Lapid-Gantz means Left, weakness, and capitulation. Lapid-Gantz would deny the benefits of natural gas."

Netanyahu said more tax cuts are on the way. "We've made unprecedented social investment."

He warned that if Lapid-Gantz succeed in blurring differences between the paths, the Left will win.

"We're Right and Lapid-Gantz are Left. With your help, we'll continue doing it our way."
Elections Committee Chairman Judge Chanan Meltzer said Netanyahu's speech would be broadcast on television with a 10-minute delay, and that in those minutes the broadcasting organization editors would review the speech as it happens and decide whether it is news or election propaganda. This, following a petition by the Labor Party.