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Israel News for December 8, 2016

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Terror Attack
Early this morning an 18 year old terrorist got off a bus at the Tapuach junction in Samaria (West Bank) and began running towards soldiers brandishing a knife. After first warning him to stop, the soldiers opened fire and killed the terrorist. There were no other casualties.

For further reading click here.

Terrorists Busted
The Shin Bet and IDF arrested three terrorists who committed four shooting attacks over the past couple of months. The terror cell was planning another attack on the settlement of Ofra. Security forces also arrested family members who were involved in hiding weapons for the terrorists.

The Shin Bet commented that the “attacks the cell planned and committed, which were revealed during the course of the investigation, demonstrate the high level of threat that local terror activities pose, especially with the access to weapons and/or the means to produce them.”

For further reading click here.

Hamas Tunnel
Hamas has reported that two of its operatives were killed when the terror tunnel they were digging to infiltrate into Israel collapsed.

For further reading click here.

Germany Attacks
Germany strongly criticized Israel’s attempt to pass the “regulation bill”, which would legalize settlements built on privately owned Palestinian land, saying that it would break international law and undermine chances for a two-state solution. The regulation bill has already passed its first reading in the Knesset.

Asked whether Germany and the European Union should punish Israel with economic or diplomatic sanctions, a German spokesman said: “We don’t think that sanctions would be the right path in this case to make headway in the Middle East peace process.”

For further reading click here.

El Al Again
Just when you thought that EL Al’s problems were over, after reaching an agreement with its pilots, the airline is now having issues with its flight attendants. El Al Flight attendants are gearing up for a legal battle against the airline to fight for better pay and working conditions. They claim that most of them make less than minimum wage. So although your El Al flight might be on time now, the service you get on the flight might be a bit less than you expected.

For further reading click here.

Israel Funding Diaspora
The norm has been for the diaspora to fund programs in Israel. But that’s changing. For the first time, the Israeli government will be funding educational programs in diaspora schools.

Israel’s Education and Diaspora Affairs ministries, both headed by Bayit Yehudi MK’s, plan to spend as much as 136 million shekels ($35.8 million) over the next four years to develop programs for Jewish schools overseas. The funds will be used to develop programs on Israel, the Hebrew language and Jewish history as well as provide schools with expert advice, teacher training and pedagogical services. The program will initially be offered to 65 Jewish schools in Europe and countries of the former Soviet Union.

According to the ministries the goal of the program is, “to strengthen Jewish identity and connection to Israel on the part of students at Jewish schools around the world by building a systematic pedagogic strategy in these areas inside Jewish schools.”

For further reading click here.

Israel News for September 25, 2015

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Security Cabinet
The PM’s office announced that the security cabinet has decided in favor of setting a four year minimum sentence for stone and firebomb throwers. The new regulation will be in place for three years.

The Attorney General, Yehuda Weinstein, recommended issuing the order for one year, but the cabinet sided with Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked’s three year proposal.

The minimum sentence will only apply to adult suspects. Judges will also have the latitude to deviate from the minimum sentence. Currently, the maximum sentence for stone and firebomb throwers is 20 years.

The cabinet also took measures against the parents of stone throwers who are minors. The measures include revoking stipends of parents whose children are sentenced to prison. The cabinet will examine the legality of fining parents of minors aged 12-14, and imposing bail on parents of minors under the age of 12.

Regarding rules of engagement for police, security cabinet rules that police officers can open fire whenever their lives or the lives of civilians are in danger.

“Until recently, police officers would open fire when their own lives were at risk,” Netanyahu said. “From now on, they will be allowed to open fire – and they will know they have a right to do so – when anyone’s life is in danger.”

Further Reading: http://news.walla.co.il/item/2892455

No Calls Taken
Don’t you hate it when you know someone is not taking your calls? Well, that seems to be what’s happening when PM Netanyahu calls Jordan’s King Abdullah to discuss ways of defusing tensions on the Temple Mount.

According to Haaretz sources, the King has told guests in recent days that he refuses to take phone calls from Netanyahu, to prevent Israel from using them to give the impression that the two nations are coordinating their reactions to the ongoing violence on the Temple Mount (he didn’t say Temple Mount). The London-based Rai al Youm newspaper quoted sources from within Jordan’s royal palace who confirmed the phone snubbing.

The King recently hosted Arab Israeli Knesset members to discuss the Temple Mount violence and the claims that Israel has been coordinating with the Hashemite kingdom. During the meeting, Abdullah said that Al-Aqsa Mosque was open for Muslims only and cannot be shared. “I’ll say once and for all, there is no partnership, no division, Al-Aqsa is a Muslim place of worship.

The king also spoke with US Vice President Biden and asked him to act against “the ongoing Israeli policies at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and end the aggression.”

Upshot
Although traditionally viewed as the protector of the Jerusalem holy places, Abdullah doesn’t really have any power to pressure Israel or the Palestinians to do anything. But having him on their side would be a huge PR victory for Israel, which is probably why Netanyahu keeps dialing his number. Will he ever answer? The chances of him choosing to partner with Israel in anything related to Al Aqsa and be seen as a traitor by the entire Muslim world are about as good as … fill in your own scenario.

Maybe the PM has the wrong number?

Further Reading: http://news.walla.co.il/item/2892395

No Refugees
PM Netanyahu’s policy of not accepting any Syrian refugees into Israel has some unlikely fans. The Druze living in the Israeli Golan, who used to be Syrian citizens and who never really made their peace with Israeli rule, are totally against Syrians leaving their homeland.

To quote Salah Abu Salah, 62, a Golan Druze elder whose words echo the sentiments of many here, “Anyone who abandons his land is not worth a cent in my eyes. Where you are born is where you should die. That is something I learned from my grandfather, who learned it from his grandfather. We must fight until our last breath for our land.”
So wherever they are, the Druze are there to stay.

Further Reading: http://www.haaretz.com/news/israel/.premium-1.677332

Pride Labels
While the European Union decides how to implement a policy of requiring Israeli products from East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Golan to be labeled as such, one Israeli winemaker is proudly getting a head start.

Bazelet Hagolan, a boutique winery in the Golan Heights, recently unveiled new labels bearing the Israeli flag for its bottles for export. “I’m proud of this flag, and I’m Israeli and I’m not ashamed,” said winery owner Yoav Levy, calling on other Israeli wineries to follow suit.

Levy’s winery manufactures 80,000 bottles a year, of which 20% is exported to North America and Europe. He says he’s been getting lots of positive feedback from customers and that business is looking up.

Is this a pro Israel message, or is the wine just too good to pass up? There’s only one way to find out.

Further Reading: http://www.haaretz.com/life/food-wine/1.677315

Happy Birthday Mossad
Yesterday the Mossad celebrated its 65th birthday with a good ol’ fashioned birthday bash. For some reason most of the attendants were kept anonymous, but we do know that Prime Minister Netanyahu, Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz and the Mossad Chief Tamir Pardu were there to celebrate.

Pardu revealed that the Mossad has more female employees than ever. Women comprise 40% of the agency, 24% of whom are in key positions. He also said that the Mossad employees are younger than ever, with 23% between the ages of 22-32.

In his speech the PM thanked the Mossad agents saying, “what has occurred over the past 100 years is nothing short of a miracle. But we know that miracles have their limits. God and history do not hand them out freely. We need to play our part in them time after time. And I trust in you to continue this work.”

Further Reading: http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-4703846,00.html

Israel News for September 18, 2015

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Bus Stoned
An Egged bus driving through the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Ras Al-Amud yesterday was stoned and later torched. The driver escaped unharmed. In another incident a bus driver was lightly wounded by shattered glass after stones were thrown at his vehicle near the Hizma checkpoint, at the northeastern entrance to Jerusalem.

Also that day, molotov cocktails were thrown at the Ofrit army base near Mount Scopus causing a fire, but no injuries.

In an attempt to prevent more violence on the Temple Mount during Friday prayers, the police will only be permitting men over the age of 40 to enter the area.

The general police presence will also be increased in East Jerusalem. Over 800 officers have been added to the existing force.

Let’s pray for peace in Jerusalem.

Electricity Arrears
Talk about falling behind on your electric bill. According to the chairman of the Israel Electric Company (IEC) General (res.) Yiftah Ron-Tal, the Palestinian Authority owes the electric company around 1.7 billion shekels. That’s a shocking amount (excuse the pun), and the IEC is getting close to turning off the lights in the PA.

Ron-Tal made it clear that he intended to limit the flow of electricity to the PA soon, as has already happened before, saying, “As a government company, we have to coordinate what we do with the government, but I intend – already in the coming weeks – to again limit the flow of electricity to the PA until it pays, or until the problem is solved by government decisions. This will not continue at the expense of the citizens of Israel; it’s a scandal.”

Israeli Nukes
Everyone knows that Israel has nuclear weapons, but Israel has never publicly admitted to or denied that assumption. At this year’s annual conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN agency responsible for monitoring nuclear arsenals, nineteen predominantly Arab states wanted the agency’s member states to express concern over Israel’s nuclear capabilities, call on it to join the 1970 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and have the agency regularly report on Israel’s nuclear program. That would not be good news for Israel.

Yesterday, 61 countries voted against the Arab-drafted resolution, 43 in favor and 33 abstained. Among those voting against the resolution were the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, all European Union members, Ukraine, Moldova, Albania, as well as South American countries such as Uruguay and Panama. Kenya and other countries in Africa and the Pacific also opposed the resolution. Many others abstained, including Brazil and India.

Russia, China, Turkey and South Africa joined the Arab countries in backing the resolution.

Last year, 58 countries voted against the initiative.

Nice to see that Israel still has a few friends out there in the world.

Iceland Warms Up
Yesterday we reported that the Reykjavik city council passed a motion to boycott Israeli goods. Well, the government of Iceland came out against the decision saying that it isn’t in line with the country’s foreign policy and doesn’t reflect Iceland’s relationship with Israel.
Iceland rocks!

Tel Aviv Tops List
Israelis love coming out on top (who doesn’t). Well, they’ve done so again, but this time they aren’t too happy about it. According to a report just released by UBS bank, Tel Aviv is the most expensive city in the Middle East. Second place went to Dubai.

Tel Aviv was rated as the 22nd most expensive city in the world. But when it comes to wage levels, Tel Aviv is down in thirty-third place, meaning that salaries don’t keep up with what Tel Avivians have to pay for goods and services.

On average, a worker in Tel Aviv has to work 21 minutes to buy a Big Mac, 12 minutes to buy a kilo of bread, 12 minutes to buy a kilo of rice and 75 hours to buy an iPhone 6.

On the bright side, rents in Tel Aviv are 40% lower than those in New York City. But since NYC boasts the highest rents (and high salaries), that discount might not be so bright after all.

Hey, let’s not forget the awesome beaches!

Sick Chicks
According to the testimony of the senior veterinarian at the Shufersal supermarket chain to a Knesset committee, most of the chickens sold in Israel have salmonella. That certainly ruffled the feathers of some Knesset members. The Ministry of Health agreed with his claim. So everyone agrees: make sure you cook your chicken really well in Israel.

Art Exhibitionists
A group of Spanish artists decided to demonstrate their solidarity with Palestinians and their opposition to the security wall separating Israel from the PA by posing for photographs in front of the wall in Jerusalem. Did I mention that they were naked and wearing clown noses, with their pants and underwear around their ankles? Yup, it’s true.

Well, the Palestinians were not pleased, to say the least. They considered it an insult to Islam and their cause. You try to do something nice and that’s the thanks you get. That’ll probably be the last time those Spaniards drop their pants and bare their souls (and other stuff) for the Palestinians.

Israel News for September 11, 2015

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Iran and Russia
According to Israeli defense officials, hundreds of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have arrived in Syria over the last few days to help the Assad regime fight rebel forces. They’ll most likely deploy near the Lebanese border to assist Hezbollah fighters there. Russia already has military advisors and security forces operating in Syria, and is planning to bring in combat aircraft and helicopters.

Israel believes that the commander of the Revolutionary Guards met with Russian President Vladimir Putin last month in Moscow to coordinate military activities in Syria.

Upshot
Has Russia found, in Iran, its ideal partner to counter US influence in the Middle East? The possibilities are frightening. On the bright side, they’re both bent on destroying ISIS, and they’re the only ones who are willing to use ground troops to do so.

Discriminatory Labeling
The European Parliament passed a resolution calling on the European Union to issue labels for products imported to Europe from areas occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War, including East Jerusalem, the Golan and the West Bank settlements.

The European Parliament motion also encouraged the EU to step up its role in promoting a peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinians, and emphasized that “only non-violent means and respect for human rights and humanitarian law can achieve a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon said that the EU motion was “discriminatory with a sharp smell of boycott,” and added that “under the guise of a technical step, this is an attempt to force a diplomatic solution instead of encouraging the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table. Europe is acting with hypocritical sanctimoniousness toward Israel when it does not consider proposing similar solutions to northern Cyprus or Western Sahara.”

PM Netanyahu has tried to block the implementation of the motion in private meetings with several European leaders including British Prime Minister David Cameron. In a statement the PM said, “The European Parliament decision is unjustified, it is just a perversion of justice and a distortion of reason, and I think that it also harms peace, it doesn’t advance it. The roots of the conflict are not territories and the roots of the conflict are not the settlements. We already have a historical memory as to what happened when Europe marked products of Jews.”

France Wants Jews
Last year 7,000 Jews emigrated from France to Israel. Another 8,000 are expected to leave this year. But the French want their Jews back.

According to a recent report in the Wall Street Journal, the French government is concerned that the large number of educated and professional Jews leaving the country is causing a brain drain. They’ve sent their economic minister, Emmanuel Macron, to Israel to try and convince French immigrants to return.

While anti-semitism is assumed to be the main reason for increased Aliyah, the weak French economy seems to be playing a significant role too. In any case, France’s loss is Israel’s gain.

Israeli Wealth
Forbes Magazine has released its list of the top 100 wealthiest people in Israel. Every one of them is a billionaire, in shekels ($1 = close to 4 Shekels). The aggregate wealth of the top 100 equals 500 billion shekels.

The top position on the list went to Patrick Drahi at 60 billion shekels. A distant second went to Eyal Ofer with 34.3 billion. It’s doubtful that anyone who made the list is complaining. Well, in Israel, you never know.

Mission Impossible Accomplished
A married woman left her abusive husband and fled to Israel. She wanted a divorce. But there was a problem: the woman fled from a Muslim country that has no diplomatic relations with Israel. The husband was still there.

It took five years, but due to the incredible efforts of a special unit of the Bet Din (rabbinical court) in Israel that deals with obtaining divorce documents in difficult situations, she has finally received her Get (divorce).

After long and difficult secret negotiations through intermediaries in a third country, the Bet Din sent in three undercover rabbinic emissaries to the Muslim country who obtained a signed document from the husband directing them to write and deliver the divorce document. They made it back to Israel, and the woman is now free to remarry.

Drivers Don’t Pray
The Rosh Yeshiva (dean) of the Ponevich Yeshiva in Bnei Brak, one of the most prestigious in the world, has ruled that students in the yeshiva who have a driver’s license will not be allocated a seat in the yeshiva for Rosh Hashanah prayers. In the past every student got a seat in the Yeshiva without exception.

The affected students received phone calls from the administration over the last few days informing them of their predicament. Most of them happen to be 25 yrs. or older, and they aren’t taking this sitting down (literally). They claim that it’s really not the Rosh Yeshiva but the gabbai (facilities manager, sort of) who is responsible for the ruling, because he needs more available seats. The students plan to ignore the order and come to services anyway. Should be a fun service.

Israel News for September 8, 2015

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Third Duma Victim
Just over a month ago Jewish assailants threw firebombs into a house in the Arab village of Duma in the West Bank, killing an 18 month old boy and wounding his parents and brother. Soon after, the boy’s father succumbed to his wounds.

Yesterday, the mother, Rihad Dawabsheh, 27, died in an Israeli hospital. Thousands of Palestinians attended her funeral. Some threw rocks at Israeli soldiers afterwards.

PM Netanyahu issued a statement expressing his condolences and saying “security forces are doing their utmost to apprehend the assailants and bring them to justice.”

The four year old brother is still undergoing treatment in Israel.

The Russians are Coming
While the US and the Europeans continue to be reluctant to put “boots on the ground” to combat ISIS or to put an end to the fighting in Syria, the Russians don’t seem to have the same reservations.

Intelligence sources report that the Russians are building bases in Syria and providing military support, including commando troops, to boost President Assad’s dwindling control over his ever shrinking territory.

The Russians have their only Mediterranean naval base in the Syrian port of Tartus. They sell weapons to Syria and vote against UN condemnations of Syria. With most of the Middle East under US influence, Syria could be the Russians great hope to get back into the Mideast power game.

US Secretary of State Kerry warned the Russian Foreign Minister that Russian involvement could potentially lead to a confrontation with coalition forces.

Upshot
How does this affect Israel? If the Russians can bring stability to Syria and get rid of ISIS, there will be some lively Vodka toasts in the Knesset. And with over a million Russian-Israelis, there could be a lot of people toasting Russia’s success in Syria.

More Fencing
Israel already has security fences along its borders with Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. Now it’s building one on its border with Jordan. The reason seems to be to prevent Syrian refugees from entering the country via Jordan.

The PM has empathized with the “human tragedy” of the Syrian civil war, but has made it clear that Israel is too small to start taking in refugees. Opposition leader Isaac Herzog has said that Israel should take in a limited number of Syrians.

Upshot
Are Syrian refugees really so anxious to resettle in Israel? Doubtful. But the southern portion of the fence which is being constructed first and which will stretch from Eilat to Timna (18.6 miles) will probably be used to prevent African migrants from crossing into Israel. And the Africans are seen as the main threat to Israel’s demographic balance. So far, the Sinai border fence has been extremely successful at stopping the Africans.

More Time for South
The IDF’s “Color Red” early warning radar system has done an excellent job in warning Israelis about incoming rocket attacks. Israeli communities near the Gaza border get about a full 15 seconds to find shelter before the rockets hit. Not a lot of time, but better than the warning they get for mortar attacks. Currently, when a mortar shell is fired from Gaza, residents get maybe 5 seconds or less of warning. That’s hopefully going to change.

The IDF announced a new tactical radar system that will give residents a full 15 seconds of warning for mortar attacks. About 25 of the new systems have been deployed in communities along the Gaza border. They’re set to become operational in October.

See what you can do in 15 seconds. Go.

Swiss Snub BDS
The Swiss has given the BDS movement a slap in the face. Last night, both houses of the Swiss parliament approved a massive deal to purchase six Israeli made Hermes 900 unmanned military aircraft for $256 million.

The Swiss approved the deal after months of deliberations despite protests by pro Palestinian BDS supporters. The Swiss defense minister claimed that they were buying the planes from a private company, Elbit Industries, and not from the State of Israel. Not a very convincing argument in BDS land.

Upshot
The hope is that more European countries will now follow Switzerland’s lead and choose Israeli weapons over BDS threats. After all, business is business.

New Year’s Gift
Israel’s Public Utilities Authority is giving Israelis a special Rosh Hashanah gift: lower electric bills. On Sunday the average household electric bill will drop by 6.2%, making the total price cut for this year 15.6%. If you’ve ever gotten an electric bill in Israel, you’ll know that that’s a nice chunk of change that Israelis will be able to hold on to.

The price cut was made possible by the electric company’s increased use of coal to produce their power. Coal prices have plummeted over 17% this year.

But wait. This is Israel, so there’s got to be someone who’s complaining. The IEC (Israel Electric Corporation), which is the publicly traded company that actually produces the electricity and is regulated by the Public Utilities Authority, thinks that cutting prices isn’t the right fiscally responsible decision to make. They’ll be appealing the decision.

I guess they haven’t heard of: never look a gift horse in the mouth.

Israel News for September 4, 2015

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Jews Attacked in Hebron
Five Chassidic yeshiva students visiting Israel from America decided to pray at the Ma’arat Hamachpela (Cave of the Patriarchs) in Hebron yesterday. They used Waze for driving directions. Unfortunately for them, Waze doesn’t always take politics into account when it gives directions. In Israel that can be deadly. The directions took them into an Arab area of Hebron, where they were attacked by rock throwers.

The five found refuge in the nearby home of Fayez Abu Hamdia for about 40 minutes until IDF forces rescued them. Two of the men were injured. Their car, along with some of their personal possessions, was torched.

According to IDF data, last year 538 Israelis found themselves in Area A (PA controlled) of the West Bank and were returned by Palestinian security personnel.

Upshot 1: Check your Waze directions when traveling near Arab areas.

Upshot 2: High five to the Arab man who saved the men from the mob. There is hope for a better future.

Upshot 3: The terror needs to end.

Funding with a Catch
If you want government funding for your cultural institution or program, you’ll need to follow the new regulations released by Israel’s Culture and Sports Ministry. That means you won’t be allowed to: deny Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish and democratic nation, incite terror, violence or racism; express support of an armed struggle or acts of terror by enemy states or terror organizations against the State of Israel, present Israel’s Independence Day as a day of mourning, and defame state symbols, like the flag. If you do any of these the state can decide not to fund you.

Makes a lot of sense. Why should the State of Israel fund organizations that work against it? At least that’s what Culture Minister Miri Regev believes, which is why she created the regulations. The Attorney General seems to feel differently. He doesn’t think it’s legal to condition state funding on cultural content.

Upshot
When the government attempts to enforce the new regulations and withhold funding, they’ll have to get approval from the Attorney General. That means the case will probably end up being decided by the courts. Business as usual in Israel.

Tax Collectors on Fire
It looks like Israel’s tax collectors are performing their jobs amazingly well. In July and August, tax collections were 5 billion shekels above projections. What is the government going to do with all that cash? No, they aren’t going to give it back. But they are going to lower taxes.

PM Netanyahu and Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon announced yesterday that they would drop the VAT (Value Added Tax) from 18% to 17% and the corporate tax from 26.5% to 25%.

The PM said, “I think this will help growth. I think it will give us exactly the encouragement that the economy needs when we hear of a global slowdown and a slowdown here. We want an engine for growth and lowering taxes is one means to do so.”

The Bank of Israel is not happy. It wants to raise taxes, fearing that the current surplus is just a one time event stemming from higher home sales or increased capital gains. It would rather use the extra cash to pay down national debt. “A reduction in VAT will make it tough to stand by fiscal targets in coming years and is not consistent with tax policy that aims at achieving long-term goals,” the central bank said.

Kahalon’s response to the central bank’s fears is simple: if tax collection slows down, we’ll call a “do over”. But for now, live for the moment!

Israeli Fences for Sale
Israel isn’t involved in the tragic refugee crisis unfolding in Europe, but it might play a part in helping the Europeans control it. According to an exclusive Reuters report, Hungary and Bulgaria have made inquiries into purchasing the kind of security fence that Israel built along its 143 mile border with Egypt. They would install the fencing along their northern and western borders, to prevent migrants from crossing into Germany and other Western European countries.

Bulgaria has already built a security fence on their border with Turkey, and Hungary is completing one on their border with Serbia. But the Israeli designed fencing will be taller, more fortified and contain sophisticated electronic defenses.

Frontex, the EU agency responsible for border management, is opposed to fences and has made clear the European Union will not help member states finance them.
“When you talk about the management of migratory flows, the fence itself is not the solution, just as border control is not the panacea for migration flows,” said spokeswoman Izabella Cooper. “You have to stabilize the countries of origin from which the refugees flee.”

Upshot
Destroying ISIS would go a long way in stabilizing Syria and Iraq and stemming the flow of refugees, but the Europeans don’t seem eager to send troops in to get the job done. Instead, they’ll spend their Euros building fences and dealing with refugees.

PM Claims US Support
Despite losing the battle to nix the Iran nuclear deal, PM Netanyahu told participants at a pre Rosh Hashanah reception at the Foreign Ministry yesterday that, “the overwhelming majority of the American public sees eye-to-eye with us on the danger emanating from Iran.” The statistics don’t exactly back him up.

According to a Sept. 1 Reuters poll, 30 percent of Americans were in favor of the agreement, 30.7 percent against it, and 39.4 percent were undecided. If you break that down along political lines, about 60 percent of republicans oppose the deal while only 19 percent of non-Republicans are against it.

So really, the PM should have said that the majority of Republican Americans see eye to eye with him. Is that what he meant, or is he engaging in some wishful thinking?