Israel News for 6-11-18
Stabbing Attack
An 18 year old woman in Afula was stabbed and seriously wounded by an Arab from Jenin today. Police shot the suspect in the legs as he was fleeing the scene. It is still unclear whether the attack was nationalistically motivated.
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Kite Fires
Ten different fires broke out on Saturday in Israeli communities on the Gaza border—mostly in the Be’eri and Kissufim area—as a result of incendiary kites flown from the Gaza Strip. Firefighting forces, security coordinators and farmers were able to gain control of all of the fires, and no one was hurt. However, damage was caused to crops and wooded areas.
In response to the recent terror fires, residents from Gaza border communities gathered this week in Kibbutz Or HaNer for a tree-planting ceremony. Ofir Libenstein, a member of Kibbutz Kfar Aza who is leading the initiative, “The kites phenomenon completely destroyed a lot of forests and groves in our area, and we decided, as a community activity, to give back to nature what has been taken from it. “Beyond the financial damage, there’s also damage to the Gaza border residents’ morale, and we have decided to come together as a community and change this reality. The residents are coming together—families and children—to plant the trees.” He added, “This is the first of the activities, and in the coming days we will continue planting trees. We’re motivated by the slogan: ‘They’re burning, and we’re planting.'”
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Kite Killer
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, a premier Israeli arms company, has developed a new drone to counter the threat posed by incendiary kites. The Z’vuv HaEsh (Firefly) drone, which has been developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, will be presented for the first time at the Eurosatory exhibition in Paris next week, where the latest land and air defense and security gear goes on display.
The Firefly, which weighs only 3 kilograms, can be armed with a warhead weighing up to 350g and can remain in the air for up to 15 minutes before crashing and exploding into an enemy outpost or anti-tank missiles depot. It can also be flown through a window of an enemy building and detonated there. Its electric engine gives it the strategic advantage of silence, enabling it to creep up on its target until the moment it explodes.
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Austrian Visit
Austrian Chancellor Sebastion Kurz arrived in Israel yesterday for his first official visit. He met with Holocaust survivors and invited them to visit Austria this year, saying his government would pay for the trip. He also invited them to visit the chancellor’s office in Vienna. Kurz visited Yad Vashem and laid a wreath at the Hall of Remembrance. He tweeted, “I visited Yad Vashem together with Holocaust survivor Victor Klein and with the president of Vienna’s Jewish community, Oscar Deutsch. It’s always exciting to be there. We have a responsibility not to forget the Nazis’ horrible acts and to fight any form of anti-Semitism.” He also visited the Jerusalem’s Old City, the Western Wall and the cemetery on Mt. Hertz.
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Dedication
Today’s issue is dedicated to the commemoration of the Yahrzeit (anniversary of passing) of my grandfather Chaim Ahron ben Abraham Aba (Singer). He was born in the town of Mosciska (Galicia) in 1900, led his family into hiding during the Holocaust and then brought them to Toms River, NJ. He passed away on this Hebrew date in 1962. May his soul be elevated and may his memory serve as a blessing.
