Archive for month: July, 2022

News Update

Hundreds of Palestinian rioters threw stones, burning tires, and Molotov cocktails on a main road near the settlement Kokhav HaShahar, east of Ramallah. Security forces responded with live fire. Palestinian officials claim that a Palestinian teen was killed. Overnight, security forces conducted raids in several villages in the West Bank and arrested 4 terror suspects. Also last night, Palestinians fired at an IDF military post in Nablus. Troops returned fire. No troops were wounded.

Sales of electric vehicles are up by 70% this year over last year. The best-selling brand of electric vehicles is Chinese company Geely with 2,624 deliveries, followed by Tesla with 1,949 vehicles, Hyundai’s Ioniq with 1,433 deliveries, and the Hyundai Kona with 644 deliveries.

UAE carrier Emirates has announced that it will add a second daily flight between Dubai and Tel Aviv from October 30, 2022. Emirates low-cost unit flyDubai, which launched Dubai – Tel Aviv flights in November 2020, will continue to operate three daily flights on the route. Last winter El Al, Arkia and Israir all operated three daily flights between Tel Aviv and Dubai, and Wizz Air, Etihad and El Al operate flights between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi.

News Update

Security forces arrested 7 terror suspects in raids throughout the West Bank early today. On Sunday, gunfire broke out between terrorists and security forces who entered Nablus to arrest 2 terror suspects. Two terrorists were killed and 9 wounded. Also on Sunday, the navy destroyed a boat smuggling weapons from Egypt to Gaza.

Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett reportedly turned down current interim Prime Minister Yair Lapid’s offer for him to serve as interim Foreign Minister. Bennett is not running in the upcoming elections.

Israeli officials seem to have no idea as to why Russian President Putin is threatening to close down the Jewish Agency offices in Russia. They want President Isaac Herzog to get involved to find a solution for the situation. A special government delegation designated to go to Russia on Sunday has yet to get the required visas from the Russian government.

Israel is facing a severe shortage of teachers, anywhere from 6,000 to 10,000. For more, click here.

Since passing The Law for the Reduction in the Use of Cash, Israel has been enforcing a gradual cutback in the use of cash in everyday business and personal transactions. The purpose of the law is to move the country to the point where all financial transactions will be digital, which will reduce illegal activity and tax evasion. The cutback will get even steeper next month. To read more, click here.

Google Israel head of engineering Tzahi Zilbershtein has built an algorithm that can help calculate how long you’ll have to wait at Ben Gurion airport for your flight. The site, which is only in Hebrew, forecasts how busy the arrivals hall, check-in, and security checks in Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 are likely to be under five ratings: deserted, light, medium, heavy, and peak. For more, click here.

News Update

A 44 year old Palestinian terrorist from Ramallah stabbed a 41 year old Israeli man outside a bus in Jerusalem on Tuesday. Ynet photographer Meshi Ben Ami happened to be passing the scene when he spotted the terrorist lying on top of the victim and stabbing him with a screwdriver. Ben Ami brandished his personal handgun and ran towards the attack. The terrorist got up and approached Ben Ami with his weapon. Ben Ami ordered him to halt. When the terrorist continued towards him, Ben Ami fired one shot at the terrorist, neutralizing him. Ben Ami thwarted a similar attack in Jerusalem six years ago. The victim was treated on the scene and then evacuated to hospital in stable condition with moderate wounds. The terrorist was in moderate condition. He had a permit to work in Israel. Ben Ami was questioned by police but was allowed to keep his weapon. Prime Minister Lapid praised Ben Ami for “acting resolutely to neutralize the terrorist and preventing harm to more people.” Transportation Minister Merav Michaeli also congratulated Ben Ami.

IDF fighter jets attacked a Hamas post in northern Gaza after a bullet fired from Gaza hit an industrial building in an Israeli community near the border.

IDF chief of staff Lieutenant-General Aviv Kochavi met with the Inspector General of the Royal Armed Forces of Morocco Belkhir El Farouk in Rabat on Tuesday. He also met with Morocco’s defense and intelligence chiefs. The meetings discussed opportunities for military cooperation, both in exercises and training, as well as in the operational and intelligence fields.

French President Emmanuel Macron will meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss the peace process today in Paris.

According to a recent poll conducted by Israel’s Aliyah and Integration Ministry, more than 80% of Russian and Ukrainian Jews who arrived in Israel after the breakout of the war in Ukraine on February 24 intend to stay in the country. According to the Integration Ministry, over 28,000 Jews from Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus have immigrated to Israel from the beginning of this year until June. This figure is more than double that of the same period last year. Meanwhile, Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman is looking for ways to enable Russian immigrants to access their bank accounts in Russia and transfer money to Israel. There are currently 57,000 retired immigrants who cannot transfer their Russian pensions in Israel due to economic sanctions imposed against Russia. For more, click here.

News Update

US President Biden is wrapping up his trip to Israel and heading off to Saudi Arabia. On Thursday, Biden and Prime Minister Lapid signed the “Jerusalem Proclamation”, which includes a pledge by the US to deny Iran nuclear weapons and to use “all elements of its national power to ensure that outcome.” The US also pledged to, “to work together with other partners to confront Iran’s aggression and destabilizing activities, whether advanced directly or through proxies and terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.” The proclamation also refers to the rise in global anti-semitism and an American commitment to combat “all efforts to boycott or de-legitimize Israel.” President Isaac Herzog presented President Biden with Israel’s prestigious Presidential Medal of Honor.

Earlier today President Biden met with Palestinian Authority President Abbas in Bethlehem. Biden reaffirmed his support for a Two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He said, “Even if the ground is not right at this moment to restart negotiations, the United States and my administration will not give up on trying to bring the Palestinians, Israelis and both sides closer together.” Biden also visited the Augusta Victoria Hospital in east Jerusalem, where he announced $100 million in US assistance for Palestinian hospitals. The funding is subject to approval by the U.S. Congress and would pay out over several years.

The Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) announced that Saudi airspace was now open to all carriers that meet its requirements for overflights, in line with international conventions that say there should be no discrimination between civil aircraft. Israeli aircraft will now be able to fly over Saudi Arabia, which will shorten flight times and cut down fuel costs. For more, click here.

A group of four Israelis who went to pray at Joseph’s Tomb near Nablus (Shechem), without a military escort, were attacked by Palestinian gunmen as they were leaving. The Israelis attempted to escape in their vehicle, but it overturned, forcing them to leave the car and exit the city on foot. They were picked up by IDF troops who administered first aid.

The Israel Air force has completed a training drill in Romania.

The price of bread in Israel is set to rise by 36%. The price is set by the government.

The first Lego store in Israel has opened in Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Center. For more, click here.

News Update

Justice Minister and leader of the New Hope party Gideon Sa’ar and Defense Minister and leader of the Blue and White party Benny Gantz have decided to join forces and run as a single ticket in the upcoming election. According to the latest polls, a joint run could bring them more than double the votes than if they were each to run separately. Both leaders have said they would not join a Netanyahu led government under any circumstances.

The IDF arrested several terror suspects in raids in Judea and Samaria over the weekend.

Prime Minister Lapid and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi spoke on Sunday ahead of U.S. President Biden’s visit to the region this week. The Egyptian president asked Lapid to investigate a report about a mass grave of Egyptian soldiers killed in the 1967 Six Day War, discovered in central Israel. Lapid instructed the IDF to begin an investigation.

The Biden administration is discussing the possible lifting of its ban on U.S. sales of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia. Saudi officials are reportedly pressing the Americans to lift the ban.

Israel has reported a fiscal surplus of 0.4% for the 12 months ending June 2022. This is the first time since 2007 that Israel has ended 12 months with a cumulative fiscal surplus instead of a cumulative deficit. For more, click here.