Archive for month: October, 2021

News Update

PM Bennett met with Swiss President Guy Parmelin and asked him to take decisive steps against Iran’s nuclear ambitions in Switzerland’s capacity as member of the board of the International Atomic Energy Association. The two also discussed ways to bolster bilateral relations with an emphasis on innovation and scientific development.

Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain and Sweden released a statement urging Israel not to carry out plans to build 3,000 new housing units in Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

PM Bennett was quoted as saying, in a closed meeting, that he predicted that the rotation agreement that would give Yair Lapid the prime minister job in the summer of 2023 will never occur, since the coalition will fall apart before then. The PM’s Office confirmed the remarks but added that Bennett was committed to fulfilling the rotation agreement.

As of Thursday, Google Earth and other online map services show photos of the nuclear facility in the city of Dimona in the Negev, with an option to alter dimensions to improve photo resolutions and see the installations from up close.

The change in the online map services policy came after former U.S. President Donald Trump had ordered to lift restrictions on American-owned satellite imaging – an order that came into effect last summer and reversed a 1997 law lobbied by Israel to protect its military bases. Israel’s military censor did not prevent publication of the images and their availability, although among the military installations open to scrutiny are major air bases where Israel Air Force’s helicopters are clearly visible.

[Before writing this, I had never really used Google Earth. But I tried it out now, and it’s just incredible. Take a trip to the Holy Land from your living room. Amazing!]

The Health Ministry reported that there were 651 new daily COVID-19 on Tuesday. The infection rate now stands at .92%. There are currently 227 people in serious condition being treated in hospitals, with 133 on ventilators. The number of people who have dies from the virus since the start of the pandemic is 8,081. Israel will probably begin vaccinating children under 12 towards the end of November or sooner. This will hopefully be over very soon.

Thousands of people marched in Tel Aviv today, to urge the government to take action to protect the earth’s climate. The PM announced today that Israel will join the list of nations pledging to become carbon neutral by 2050.

It turns out that Jordanian Air Force planes took part in the Blue Flag aerial drill conducted by the Israeli Air Force this week. The news was leaked when a German photographer posted a photo of the drill, which included a Jordanian aircraft. The secret is out…

The shekel is at its strongest levels ever. That’s not such good news for American’s — the US dollar will only buy you 3.15 shekels. But Israelis will be able to get more for their money on overseas trips!

News Update

U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported an Israeli airstrike against pro-Iranian Hezbollah targets in the Quneitra Province on the Syria Golan Heights. Missile batteries were hit in the outskirts of the city of al-Ba’ath and the village of al-Krum. This is the first reportedly Israeli strike in Syria since PM Bennet met with Russian President Putin on Friday.

A pro government Turkish newspaper has released photos of 15 alleged Mossad operatives who were arrested by Turkish authorities earlier this month. According to the report, the senior operative among the arrested, named only as “AZ,” is a Mossad officer based in Germany who was allegedly in charge of the network. All the agents are of Arab descent. For more, click here.

The government yesterday approved a 5 year, NIS 30 million, plan for social and economic development in Israel’s Arab communities. The government plan also allocates funding for Arab population in the mixed Arab and Jewish cities where racial riots broke out last May. To read more, click here.

The Health Ministry reported that there were 810 new daily COVID-19 on Sunday. The infection rate now stands at 1.01%. There are currently 279 people in serious condition being treated in hospitals, with 150 on ventilators. The number of people who have dies from the virus since the start of the pandemic is 8,409.

News Update

Security forces clashed with Palestinian rioters near the Damascus Gate of Jerusalem’s Old City. The rioters threw rocks at passing vehicles. Police arrested 22 rioters. The riots erupted shortly after thousands marched through East Jerusalem in honor of the birthday of the Prophet Mohamed according to Muslim tradition, led by local activists of the Fatah movement. To view video, click here.

Israel is in talks to normalize relations with the Comoros, a Muslim-majority island nation off the coast of eastern Africa. Also, in an interview with Emirati website Erem News published Monday, Israel’s Minister of Regional Cooperation Issawi Frej said that Qatar, Tunisia, Oman and Malaysia may join the Abraham Accords.

The government has approved a budget of $1.5 billion (NIS 5 billion) to prepare a plan for a potential strike against Iran’s nuclear program. The funds will be used to purchase various types of aircrafts, intelligence-gathering drones and unique armaments needed for such an attack, which includes heavily fortified underground sites.

A scuffle broke out between the leader of the Arab Joint List, MK Ayman Odeh and Religious Zionist party member MK Itamar Ben Gvir when Odeh came to visit and support a Hamas security who is on a hunger strike at Kaplan Medical Center in Rehovot. Ben Gvir was there to complain that the prisoner was being treated in an Israeli hospital. Ben Gvir said that he will press charges against Odeh for pushing him. To view a video, click here.

Justice Minister Gideon Saar has drafted a proposed law that would prevent a Knesset member who is indicted for an offense punishable by three years or more in prison from forming a government. The law would therefore prevent Netanyahu from ever forming a new government. The law is opposed by the right-wing faction of the government, including Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked, but the law can still be passed with the support of the Joint List.

The Health Ministry reported that there were 1,130 new daily COVID-19 on Tuesday. The infection rate now stands at 1.28%.

The first case of the highly contagious AY.4.2 Delta sub-variant of coronavirus has been identified in Israel, in an 11 year old boy returning from Moldova. It is not clear yet whether the new strain is more contagious or dangerous than the Delta variant.

Israel’s State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman found that Israelis overpay billions of shekels in taxes annually because they are ill-informed about their tax entitlements.

News Update

An IDF force shot at two terrorists who threw Molotov cocktails at the road connecting Gush Etzion and Jerusalem. One of them was killed and the other was arrested.

Syria’s official SANA news network reported that the IAF carried out an air attack from the direction of the Al-Tanf area towards the Palmyra area in the countryside of Homs on Wednesday night. The airstrikes hit several Iranian-backed militias’ centers, including a training center and a communications tower located several kilometers east of T4 airbase and west of Palmyra city. One soldier was reportedly killed and 2 others wounded. The IDF is on high alert for possible Syrian or Iranian retaliation.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that “there is no alternative to the two-state solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” He added that Russia is “interested in continuing consultations with our Israeli partners on security and stability issues in the Middle East” and that “comprehensive solutions to the problems of the region must necessarily take into account the security interests of Israel.”

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the US will move forward with opening its consulate in east Jerusalem, which will primarily serve Palestinians. Blinken did not set a date for the reopening.

Sudan’s justice minister Nasredeen Abdulbari, and Israeli Cabinet ministers Idan Roll and Edawi Frej met in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

An IDF officer and another soldier were attacked by settlers, who sprayed tear gas into their vehicle, after the soldiers were called in by an Arab farmer who claimed that the settlers were perpetrating a hate crime on his property. While the soldiers were questioning the farmer, a group of settlers arrived and demanded that the soldiers remove the farmer from the area. An altercation ensued and the soldiers placed the farmer in their vehicle for his protection, and then tried to drive off. The settlers chased their vehicle, and one of them managed to reach into the car and spray tear gas into it. Police are investigating the incident.

The international aerial military exercise, codenamed “Blue Flag”, will begin this coming Sunday at the Ovda Air Force Base in southern Israel. Dozens of air force crews from Germany, Italy, the United States, India, Greece, France and the United Kingdom will participate in the exercise.

The Health Ministry reported that there were 1,325 new daily COVID-19 on Thursday. The infection rate now stands at 1.47%. At least 385 patients are in severe condition, of whom 164 are ventilated. The official death toll now stands at 7,976.

The number of new homes sold in Israel in the first eight months of 2021 has already exceeded the total number of homes sold last year and in every year since 2007. To read more, click here.

News Update

Syrian media reported that Israel launched a missile strike on a military airbase in central Syria last Friday night. Two foreign fighters were killed and 6 Syrian army soldiers were injured.

Addressing a conference about the Golan’s future, Bennett said the internal Syrian strife had “persuaded many in the world that perhaps it is preferable that this beautiful and strategic territory be in the State of Israel’s hands. But even in a situation in which – as could happen – the world changes tack on Syria, or in relation to Assad, this has no bearing on the Golan Heights.” The PM said that his government will approve the establishment of two new settlements on the Golan Heights during a special cabinet meeting that will be held in the Golan next month. He said that the population of the Golan Heights that now numbers some 27,000 residents, must be increased to 100,000 and that his government will allot the funds for that purpose.

The government today approved the appointment of Ronen Bar as the new director of the Shin Bet domestic security agency. Bar served in the elite IDF commando unit Sayeret Matkal before joining the agency after his army service. He was tapped to lead the Shin Bet’s Operations Division in 2011, became head of the service’s resource development department in 2016 and was appointed the deputy head in 2018. Bar, 55, is married and the father of three. He has a bachelor’s degree in political sciences and philosophy from Tel Aviv University and a masters in public management from Harvard. PM Bennett said that Bar “is a brave soldier and commander, who throughout his life worked on the most important task of all – protecting Israel.” He added, “Bar grew from among the agency’s ranks, where he made enormous contributions to the security of the country and its citizens. I’m sure his appointment will raise the Shin Bet to new heights.”

Israeli archaeologists announced today that they have unearthed a massive ancient winemaking complex in the town of Yavneh in central Israel, that dates back 1,500 years to the period of Byzantine rule. To read more, click here.