Archive for month: August, 2021

News Update

PM Bennett left Washington for Israel yesterday, after meeting with President Biden on Friday. The PM said, “Biden and I have stroke up a direct and personal bond built on trust. We have achieved all the goals we have set out for ourselves and beyond.” He said that they had agreed on a joint strategic work plan to impede Iran’s attempts to obtain nuclear arms.

For the past 2 nights, dozens of Palestinians staged violent protests along the Israeli-Gaza border fence. On Saturday night, in response to the violence, Israeli warplanes carried out a series of attacks against Hamas targets in Gaza.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz met with PA President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah yesterday. Gantz told Abbas that Israel would take measures to strengthen the Palestinian economy. The two discussed various security and economic related matters. However, a source close to PM Bennett said today that “there is no diplomatic process with the Palestinians, nor will there be one.”

The Health Ministry today reported 6,576 new corona cases on Sunday, with an infection rate of 7.81. At least 752 patients are in severe condition, of whom 156 are ventilated. The official death toll now stands at 6,958. On Sunday, Israel approved the third coronavirus vaccine booster shot for anyone who has been fully vaccinated for at least five months.

 

News Update

IDF warplanes struck Hamas targets in Gaza, including a weapons production facility and a rocket launch site, on Tuesday in response to incendiary balloons launched from Gaza on Monday that causes nine fires. One teen was reportedly killed in the strikes. Hamas has reportedly promised to stop the launching of incendiary balloons from Gaza, following talks with Egyptian mediators.

The IDF deployed additional troops to the Gaza border, ahead of planned demonstrations on the Gaza side. An Israeli Border Policeman was shot in the head during a violent demonstration over the weekend.

IDF troops came under attack in Nablus, during an arrest raid yesterday. Palestinians fired shots and dropped large boulders from rooftops. Soldiers fired at the attackers, including one teen who was about to drop a boulder on the head of the unit commander. The teen was killed.

PM Bennett is in Washington to meet with President Biden. Ahead of the meeting, Bennett told the NYTimes that Israel must form a regional coalition against Iran in cooperation with the US. He said he will present Biden with a plan to contain Iran on all fronts, including imposing new economic sanctions, mobilizing international pressure and continuing Israel’s clandestine campaign against Iran’s nuclear arms program.

The United Nations human rights office expressed concern over the arrests of peaceful demonstrators by Palestinian Authority security forces. The UN body said it was “deeply concerned at continuing pressure on those seeking to exercise their rights to freedom of expression and assembly in Palestine.” A statement from the European Union representative in Jerusalem also condemned the weekend arrests, which it said had come “against the backdrop of reports of an increase in apparently politically motivated arrests by the Palestinian Authority over the past few months.”

Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, one of the premier leaders of the Haredi community, said, “Teachers and educators who have not been vaccinated must not come to teach. Vaccines are a godsend and must be taken to prevent Bitul Torah [wasting time that could be spent on religious studies] and illness. “Every person should try to watch themselves in every way so as not to infect or get infected…and to adhere to the health regulations.”

The Health Ministry today reported 9,891 new corona cases on Tuesday, with an infection rate of 6.69, the highest rate since the start of the current wave of infections. At least 692 patients are in severe condition, of whom 129 are ventilated. The official death toll now stands at 6,880.

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has signed a deal worth €200 million to supply new radars to the German Navy.

Israel is the world’s most expensive country in which to buy a Tesla S electric vehicle. The basic version of the Tesla S, which costs a customer in the US $91,000 (as of today following the most recent price increase), costs a customer in Israel about $166,000 including all taxes. To find out why the price difference, click here.

Arab Israeli swimmer Iyad Shalabi won a gold medal today at the 2020 Paralympics Games in Tokyo. Culture and Sports Minister Yehiel Moshe “Hili” Tropper was among the first to congratulate him.

News Update

Syrian media reported an Israel airstrike in the Damascus area on Thursday.

Satellite images provided by NASA indicate that the massive wildfires in the Jerusalem hill were started by arsonists. Police are investigating.

Israel agreed to resume the transfer of Qatari funds to Gaza. According to the agreement reached, Qatar will send $100 allotments to 100,000 impoverished families in the strip, who will receive it by way of the international organization’s World Food Program. The families will be given a special rechargeable card with which they can withdraw the money from banks in Gaza. The grant will also include funding for the purchase of fuels from Israel to maintain the enclave’s sole power station operating. However, the agreement did not include salaries to Hamas clerks, estimated to be at millions of dollars a month. It is not clear yet whether Hamas will approve the agreement.

PM Bennett plans to meet with President Biden in Washington late next week. US Press Secretary Jen Psaki said, “Prime Minister Bennett’s visit will strengthen the enduring partnership between the United States and Israel, reflect the deep ties between our governments and our people, and underscore the United States’ unwavering commitment to Israel’s security. The visit will also be an opportunity for the two leaders to discuss efforts to advance peace, security, and prosperity for Israelis and Palestinians and the importance of working towards a more peaceful and secure future for the region.”

Hezbollah has organized shipments of oil from Iran to Lebanon, to help alleviate severe fuel shortages in the country caused by a massive financial and political crisis. Hezbollah leader Nasrallah warned the US and Israel not to interfere with the shipments.

The Health Ministry today reported 5,024 new corona cases on Thursday. At least 599 patients are in severe condition, of whom 104 are ventilated. The official death toll now stands at 6,748.

News Update

Massive wildfires broke out in the Jerusalem hills yesterday. Some fires are still burning today. Over 17,000 dunams (420 acres) have been burned and 10,000 people have evacuated their homes. Some homes were burned. Fire and Rescue Commissioner Dedi Simchi said 12 firefighting planes were deployed, along with crews from around 60 fire engines.

An IDF special counterterrorism unit entered Jenin last night, disguised as Arabs, to arrest a wanted terror suspect. As they were leaving the city, a large number of terrorists, including snipers, attacked the unit with heavy gunfire from close range. The until returned fire, killing at least 4 terrorists. No Israeli casualties were reported.

The Health Ministry today reported 5,075 new corona cases on Sunday, putting the infection rate at 6.07%. At least 519 patients are in severe condition, of whom 92 are ventilated. The official death toll now stands at 6,668. Despite the increase in infections, the number of patients with severe conditions is dropping. The country is in the process of offering a third vaccine dose to those over 50. Close to a million people have already received their third dose.

Sahar Ismail, a senior adviser for Arab affairs in the Education Ministry and a member of the New Hope party (right wing) was shot to death yesterday outside his home in the village of Rameh in the Galilee. No motive has been discovered yet.

The first Israeli citizen was born in Dubai on Saturday. The little girl, Maya, is the daughter of Ilan Sztulman, the head of Israel’s consulate in Dubai. Mazal Tov!

News Update

PM Bennett said yesterday that Israel views the Lebanese government responsible for rocket fire launched from its territory, whether the Hezbollah terror group fired the weapons or not. His comments, at the weekly cabinet meeting, came just days after 2 rockets fired from Lebanon hit open areas near Kiryat Shemoneh in northern Israel.

The London-based Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper quoted a senior Western diplomatic source as saying that the U.S. had pressured Bennett not to change the rules of engagement against Hezbollah ahead of the renewal of Iran nuclear talks next month in Vienna. The pressure reportedly came due to concerns that Iran would use any attacks on its Lebanese proxy as an excuse to pull out of the talks. According to the report, the recent Hezbollah rocket fire was the Iranian-backed group testing PM Bennett’s resolve. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned Saturday evening the group could escalate its cross-border actions against Israel in the future.

The Health Ministry today reported 3,371 new corona cases on Sunday, putting the infection rate at 3.8%. At least 360 patients are in severe condition, of whom 57 are ventilated. The official death toll now stands at 6,542, after two more patients died on Sunday.

The Defense Ministry announced that work began yesterday to make the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron accessible to disabled people. The project, which will take around 6 months, will include the construction of an access road from the parking lot to the plaza of the tomb and a wheelchair lift with a bridge that will allow worshipers of all religions to reach the site.

Israel’s former President Reuven Rivlin, 81, has been appointed president of Israeli technology company ElectReon Wireless, which is developing and implementing wireless Electric Road Systems (ERS) – a platform that charges electric vehicles while driving, using coils under the asphalt. ElectrRon said that Rivlin’s job would involve promoting cooperation between the company and foreign governments and international companies and exposing activities to “decision makers around the world.”

Israeli gymnast Linoy Ashram, 22, won the gold medal in rhythmic gymnastics on Saturday in Tokyo. It is Israel’s second gold medal in this olympics. The Russians were not too happy with the results, calling them rigged. Ashram became the first non-Russian rhythmic gymnast to win the coveted Olympic gold medal in the competition since the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games. The Russians took the silver this year. Sorry guys…