Israel News for May 9, 2016
Iranian Missile Test
The Iranian news agency Tansim reported that Iran has successfully tested a medium range ballistic missile with a range of over 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles). That puts Israel well within striking distance. According to the Iranian military, the missile was fully accurate.
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Trial Begins
The trial of Elor Azaria, the soldier charged with manslaughter for shooting an incapacitated terrorist in the head in Hebron, began today in the Jaffa military court. According to the indictment filed against him, Azaria shot terrorist Abdel Fattah al-Sharif contrary to the rules of engagement and with no operative justification, when Sharif was lying wounded on the ground and did not pose a clear and immediate danger. The prosecution is also charging Azaria with inappropriate conduct.
The judges have denied a request for Azaria to be granted leave for Israel Independence Day.
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Israeli Flag Flying
Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev is drafting a proposal to require all State funded institutions or facilities built by the State to fly the Israeli flag. The proposal would include sports centers, soccer fields, cultural institutions and theaters in both Jewish and Arab municipalities.
Regev said, “It is unfathomable that flying the flag in cultural institutions and in sports arenas that were built by the state be left to the discretion of one person or the other. The institutions that Israel builds should wave the flag with pride.”
The new flag proposal comes on the heels of Regev’s controversial “Loyalty in Culture” bill, proposed earlier this year, which would give the Culture Minister the authority to withhold state monies from cultural institutions that incite to racism, violence or terrorism, or support armed conflict against Israel. That bill has been widely criticized by opposition MKs, Israeli artists and foreign governments including the EU and the US.
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Get Ruling
The Jerusalem rabbinical court recently ordered the father of a husband who is refusing to give his wife a Get (Jewish divorce), to pay child support for his grandchildren. The husband is currently hiding in Uman, Ukraine, near the tomb of Rabi Nachman of Breslov. The man’s father appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, which yesterday rejected his appeal and ordered him to pay.
The Supreme Court judges have made it clear that they would rather not be involved in cases under the jurisdiction of the rabbinical courts (as all divorce cases are), but will rule if presented with these cases. The Supreme Court is currently reviewing another similar case, where the Tel Aviv Rabbinical Court ordered the father of a “refusing” husband to be jailed for 30 days to “persuade” his son to give his wife a Get, which he has withheld for over a decade. The husband is currently living in the US.
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Jerusalem from Home
Thanks to a new Panomex device recently installed on the rooftop of the Inbal Jerusalem Hotel, you can now view real time video of Jerusalem and interact with the video and photos in many different ways.
To check it out for yourself, click here.
