Archive for month: June, 2019

Defense Summit
PM Netanyahu met with US National Security Advisor John Bolton and Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev in Jerusalem to discuss issues related to Iran. Patrushev said Israeli air strikes on Syria were “undesirable” and condemned attempts to isolate Iran. He said the attempts to present Iran as the main threat to the region and equate it to international terrorist groups are “not acceptable,” urging Israel and the United States to show “restraint” toward the Islamic Republic. He also said, “Iran is contributing a lot to fighting terrorists on the Syrian soil and stabilizing the situation there.”

Bolton said that US suctions would push Iran to the negotiating table and that all options remain open in the event that Iran moves ahead with nuclear production. He said, “They’ll either get the point or … we will simply enhance the maximum pressure campaign further. It will be, I think, the combination of sanctions and other pressure that does bring Iran to the table.”

Netanyahu said, “All three of us would like to see a peaceful, stable and secure Syria. We also have a common objective to achieve that larger goal, and that is no foreign forces that arrived in Syria after 2011 remain in Syria. We think there are also ways to achieve this common goal, which will create a more stable Middle East. The departure of all foreign forces from Syria – will be good for Russia, good for the United States, good for Israel, and may I add, good for Syria.”

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Bahrain Meetup
Kicking off the Bahrain economic workshop yesterday, Jared Kushner said, “My direct message to the Palestinian people is that, despite what those who have let you down in the past say, President Trump and America have not given up on you. This workshop is for you.”

He said economic growth and prosperity for the Palestinians were not possible without an “enduring and fair political solution” to the conflict – one that guaranteed Israel’s security and respected the dignity of the Palestinian people. But he added that political issues would be addressed when the full peace plan is released, at a later time.

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Right Wing Block
Far-right Otzma Yehudit member Itamar Ben-Gvir announced his party is pulling out of the agreement reached with the United Right Party,  before the April 2019 elections, uniting political parties to the right of the ruling Likud in order to garner the maximum amount of right-wing votes. Ben-Gvir claims that he was not given a Knesset seat as promised in the original agreement.

Election Reversal
During the past few days, Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein has been examining a move that would eliminate the dispersion of the 21st Knesset and the elections to the 22nd Knesset The first stage of the process is the convening of the Knesset Presidium by the speaker and the annulment of the Knesset’s election recess.

The second stage is the formulation of new legislation that will create a legal basis for canceling the dispersion of the Knesset, a basis that does not yet exist today. The legislation must be passed by a majority of at least 80 Knesset members, so it is contingent on the formation of a broad coalition that will allow it.

PM Netanyahu is apparently fully behind the proposal.

The Attorney General has reportedly told politicians privately that there is no feasible way to cancel the elections.

Ehud Barak, who is in the process of setting up a new party to run in the September elections tweeted that canceling the elections would be ‘corruption Netanyahu-style.’

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Chilean Visit
Chile’s President Sebastian Pinera is in Israel for a 3 day visit. He has already visited the Western Wall and Had Vashem. Pinera is also scheduled to meet with President Reuven Rivlin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Tuesday and Wednesday. In 2011, Chile recognized Palestine as an independent state.

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Rwanda Air
Rwanda Air, Rwanda’s national airline, launched its inaugural direct flight to Israel on Monday.

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Graveyard Searches
Syrian sources are reporting that Syrian and Russian personnel are searching for missing Israelis in a cemetery in the Damascus area, where the bones of Zachary Baumel, which were brought to Israel two months ago, were also allegedly located.

Journalist Roi Kais reported on Thursday on Kan 11 News that the cemetery in question is a cemetery for “shaheeds” in the Al-Yarmuk camp in southern Damascus. The cemetery has been shut down for the searches and authorities are not permitting anyone to get close to it.

A source in the Syrian opposition estimates that the Russians are asking the Assad regime to step up searches for the missing Israelis.

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Election Update
Israel’s Arab parties – Balad, Hadash, Ra’am and Ta’al, have announced that they will run together in a joint list in the upcoming election.

In the April elections, the four parties ran as two lists – Ra’am with Balad and Hadash with Ta’al. Both lists won enough seats to enter the Knesset, but the Ra’am-Balad list narrowly squeaked past the threshold with four seats. Hadash-Ta’al got six seats, bringing the total number of Knesset members for the Arab community to 10. In the 2015 elections, however, the joint list of all four parties won 13 seats.

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More Updates

Blue and White number 2 Yair Lapid tweeted against deferments and demanded that Israel be a state for all of its citizens. The tweets come as his party is reportedly trying to woo the Haredi parties to join with them in a future potential government.

Avigdor Lieberman, head of Yisrael Beytenu, said that he will not join a narrow left-wing government. He will only join a unity government that includes both Likud and Blue and White.

Rafi Peretz, head of the United Right-Wing parties, has offered Ayelet Shaked the second slot on the right-wing list if she joins. But Shaked wants the number 1 spot, claiming that only she can unite the right-wing voters and win the maximum number of seats for the list.

Electric Plane
Eviation Aircraft Ltd., an Israeli aviation company, displayed the Eviation Alice, an entirely electric commuter plane, at the Paris Air Show this week.

The Alice, which can seat nine passengers and two pilots, can fly at 273 miles per hour for up to 621 miles on one battery charge, at a cost of $200 per hour of flight. The battery comprises 65% of the plane’s weight. The plane’s unusual and modern look, which Eviation CEO Omar Bar-Yohay described as “whale-shaped,” is due to its aerodynamic efficiency.

Eviation already has orders for a “double-digit” number of airplanes from US regional carrier Cape Air, with which Eviation signed its first deal. Each plane will carry a $4 million price tag.

“Operating at a fraction of the costs of conventional jetliners, our Alice will redefine how people travel regionally and usher in a new era of flying that is quieter, cleaner, and cost-effective,” Bar-Yohay said.

The company is expecting Alice to be ready for commercial use by 2022.

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Gaza Attacks
Incendiary balloon attacks from Gaza continue, despite the ceasefire agreement reached after the latest round of fighting between Israel and the Gaza terror groups, which included the transfer of $25 million to Hamas from Qatar.

At least three fires were started on Sunday in the Eshkol and Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Councils. All the fires were extinguished and no injuries were reported. The same two communities were subjected to incendiary balloons attacks on Friday as well with at least seven fires breaking out there. Between Tuesday and Thursday more than a dozen fires were started as a result of terror balloons.

The terrorists have apparently devised a new method of delivering the incendiary balloons which causes more fires. They soak a slow-burning fuse in explosive liquids and attach it to an incendiary balloon. The balloon drips fireballs as it flies, creating several ignition points from just one device.

Meanwhile, Palestinian media is reporting that an IDF unit trying to enter the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza last night came under fire from Hamas and was forced to retreat back into Israel. The IDF has not commented on the report.

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Election Update
Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman on Sunday reiterated that he would only join a government of national unity after the September 17 elections, citing a looming economic crisis and the need to block religious and far-right legislation. He told Channel 13 on Saturday night that he would only support a coalition of both Likud and the Blue and White party as such a government would better reflect the will of the voters.

In response, Likud warned that Lieberman would lead to a left-wing government, so voters should vote only for Likud. Meanwhile, Blue and White has pledged not to join a unity government as long as PM Netanyahu faces corruption charges.

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Deputy Health Minister Yaakov Litzman, of the haredi UTJ party, rejected reports that his party was discussing joining a government with Blue and White. He reiterated that UTJ will only join in a government formed by PM Netanyahu.

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Former Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said that Israel should take advantage having a sympathetic US administration in office and annex Area C of the West Bank, which is roughly 60% of the West Bank and contains all of the Jewish settlements and is under full Israeli military control.

She also confirmed that she would run again in the upcoming election but did not indicted what party she would run with. Shaked is viewed by many as the only person who can unite the right wing voter base.

Meanwhile, the PM is expected to appoint United Right leader Rafi Peretz as education minister and the second-in-command, MK Bezalel Smotrich, as transportation minister in his interim cabinet. Both men will also reportedly be given seats in the security cabinet. However, Smotrich said today that he would not, under any circumstances, join a temporary cabinet.

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Trump Heights
The cabinet convened in the Golan on Sunday to to announce the inauguration of a new settlement named after President Donald Trump, called Ramat Trump or Trump Heights. U.S. Ambassador David Friedman, who attended the ceremony, called it “absolutely beautiful” and said, “I can’t think of a more appropriate and a more beautiful birthday present.” Friday was the president’s birthday. In April, the US president recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan.

The settlement, which was established in 1991 as Beruchim, currently has only 10 residents. The newest plan is to build 110 housing units in Trump Heights. For now, there will be no luxury high-rise apartments or hotels. But you gotta start somewhere.

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Mixed Celebration
The mayor of a West Bank village was expelled from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah party after pictures emerged of Israeli ultra-Orthodox settlers attending his son’s wedding celebration. The group from Modi’in Ilit were at Thursday’s celebrations for the son of Radi Nasser, mayor of Deir Qaddis, at the invitation of Palestinians who work with them at a car repair garage near the settlement.

The mayor denied any knowledge of the Israelis’ participation, telling the Jerusalem Post: “When I learned about the presence of the settlers, I kicked them out, together with the (Palestinian) men who were with them.” But pictures of the wedding appeared online showing the Jewish men dancing with other wedding guests.

The Jerusalem Post quoted Fatah spokesman Osama Qawassmeh as saying that the participation of “terrorist settlers in Palestinian social events is a cowardly, condemnable, despicable and reprehensible act.” The PA said it will launch an investigation and possibly take steps against those who invited the Israelis. 

To see photos from the event click here.

AG Says No
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit on Thursday rejected PM Netanyahu’s request to postpone his pre-indictment hearing, explaining that new elections did not constitute a justification for further delay to the proceedings. The attorney general has already granted the prime minister a three-month extension from the formerly agreed upon date of July 10 for the hearing.

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Syrian missiles
The IDF said yesterday that several anti-aircraft missiles were fired from Syria toward the Golan Heights. The missiles failed to reach Israeli territory.

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Justice Minister
PM Netanyahu appointed Likud MK Amir Ohana as the new Justice Minister. Ohana, who is the first openly gay Knesset member, will only serve until new elections in September. If the PM wins again, he will likely give Ohana the communications ministry and save the much sought after justice ministry for a valuable coalition partner, as a bargaining chip.

Announcing the appointment Wednesday, Netanyahu called Ohana “a lawyer who knows the judicial system well.” He added that the new minister was one of the proposers of the controversial Nation-State Law, which defines Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people.

Ohana lives in Tel Aviv with his partner Alon Hadad, and their four-year-old twins who were born in the U.S. to a surrogate mother.

MK Bezalel Smotrich from the Union of Right-Wing Parties, who was outspoken in his desire to be Justice Minister, is likely to be appointed Transportation Minister instead. Smotrich recently said that he would like Israel to be governed by Jewish religious law (halacha).

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Parade Arrests
Around 15,000 people turned out yesterday for the Gay Pride parade in Jerusalem. At least 2,600 police officers were deployed to secure the event. The police said at least 49 people had been detained before and during the parade, including a man carrying a knife who was arrested by undercover police officers just hours before the event was due to get underway. The police said the suspect refused to identify himself and was taken for further questioning.

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Election Update
PM Netanyahu has decided not to allow Ayelet Shaked to join the Likud list for the upcoming election, as was initially speculated. Many senior Likud members had informed Netanyahu that they would oppose allowing her to join. Shaked can either run again with the New Right party or join the larger United Right.

According to the latest poll, Likud is estimated to win 37 seats against 33 for Blue and White.

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Richest Israeli
According to a report in the Hebrew business daily The Marker, Israeli-American philanthropist Miriam Adelson is the richest Israeli of 2018 with an estimated value of $22 billion. Most of her wealth was transferred to her this year as a gift from her husband, philanthropist and businessman Sheldon Adelson, in the form of stock shares of his Las Vegas Sands Corporation.

The Marker also reported that it was due to Miriam’s influence that her husband founded the daily newspaper Yisrael Hayom and has made huge donations to Israel-related projects over the years, such as Birthright Israel.

Miriam, 73, born and raised in Tel Aviv, went to medical school and practiced internal medicine in a Tel Aviv hospital.

Second on the list, Roman Abramovich, worth $13 billion.

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Shavuot
The holiday of Shavuot begins Saturday night and extends for one day in Israel and two days outside of Israel. The holiday literally means weeks, and is the culmination of the counting of 7 weeks (49 days) from the second day of Passover.

Shavuot is described in the Torah as the harvest festival during which farmers bring their first produce to the Temple in Jerusalem. Shavuot is also the anniversary of the giving of the Ten Commandments and Torah at Mount Sinai. The Book of Ruth is read in the synagogue, and dairy meals are traditionally eaten. It is also customary to stay up all night (first night) to study Torah.

Happy Shavuot!!