Israel News for 7-30-18
Security Failures
A review of the deadly terror attack by a 17 year old Palestinian in the settlement of Adam, which claimed the life of 31-year-old Yotam Ovadia last Thursday, has revealed the presence of malfunctioned security cameras and an almost 40 year old fence that did no have any infiltration alerts. The terrorist entered the settlement by climbing over the fence. Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot visited the settlement after the attack and committed to improving the security systems there.
The West Bank Division’s security officer Shlomo Vaknin said, “Today, 60 of the west Bank’s communities have the same fences as in Adam. The communities are not protected, despite that as opposed to other communities in Israel, the infiltration threat here is the most critical one.” He added that the security maintenance cost for each settlement is estimated at NIS four million per year. Based on the current amount provided by the government, “all the existing security systems will be upgraded only within a decade.”
Today, US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman visited Ovadia’s wife and two children, ages 2 and 7 months, as the family is sitting shiva.
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Teen Terror Released
Yesterday Israeli prison officials released Ahed Tamimi, the 17 year old Palestinian woman who was caught on video kicking and slapping an Israeli soldier in the village of Nabi Saleh last December. She was charged with 12 different counts for six different incidents in January, including aggravated assault, hindering a soldier in the line of duty, incitement, threatening a soldier’s life and stone-throwing. Her mother was also indicted for her involvement in the assault, as well as for another incident she was involved in along with her daughter. She was also charged with incitement to terrorism on Facebook.
After her release, Tamimi went to Ramallah, where she met with Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas, who said that “the Palestinian young woman Ahed Tamimi is an example of the Palestinian struggle for freedom and independence and for the establishment of our independent Palestinian state.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Tamimi to congratulate her and praise her “bravery and determination to fight”.
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Egyptian Offer
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi appealed directly to the Israeli public yesterday, calling on it to seize “a great opportunity” for peace. He said, “We have a great opportunity to achieve peace in the region and solve the Palestinian issue. This solution will not take away from your security or stability.”
On the other hand, el-Sissi said, “Egypt’s policies are clear,” he added. “We support all UN decisions, the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital and [an Israeli withdrawal] to pre-1967 borders.”
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Military Modesty
In order to ensure that religious soldiers can serve in the military without compromising on their beliefs, the IDF has the ‘Joint Service’ order which regulates interaction between troops of the opposite gender. The regulations include forbidding physical contact between the sexes, mandatory separate sleeping quarters, and rules defining appropriate attire while on base.
The IDF clarified its modesty guidelines for its female conscripts amid increasingly louder calls attacking the regulations as discriminatory. It made clear that individual commanders may not modify the rules by ordering additional prohibitions, such as prohibiting women soldiers from wearing a white shirt or prohibiting wearing bathing suits in pool areas.
IDF Human Resources Directorate Commander Moti Almoz said, “the orders regarding appearance, dress and the common service are binding orders, and they must be acted upon as they are written. No commander may decide on his own to harshen or lighten them.”
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Food Deal
European online food delivery company Takeaway.com has announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Israeli online food company 10bis in Tel Aviv from TA Associates and its founder Tamir Carmel for €135 million.
Founded in 2000, 10bis operates an online food marketplace that provides employee meal benefits plans to corporations. The Israeli company’s technology allows businesses to replace their canteens with not only a delivery service, but also with local restaurants. 10bis serves thousands of corporations, representing hundreds of thousands of employees.
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