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Israel News for May 9, 2017

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Wild Turkey
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met with Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah in Istanbul last night. The meeting came after Erdoğan admonished Israel for its attempt to pass a bill curtailing the Muezzin calls to prayer via loudspeaker, and called for Muslims to go to the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the hundreds of thousands to show solidarity with the Palestinians and protect the site’s Muslim character.

According to the Palestinian Ma’an news agency, Hamdallah updated Erdoğan on the Palestinian political situation with Israel and about “Israeli violations.” He also provided details on the ongoing hunger strike of Palestinian security prisoners.

Hamdallah said that Erdoğan “confirmed the necessity of unifying efforts to protect Jerusalem against attempts of judaization,” and that he called on Muslims to increase their visitation to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

Erdoğan stressed that the only solution to the Israel Palestinian conflict was to pressure Israel to establish a Palestinian state in the “occupied territories”.

He slammed Israel saying, “Israel keeps getting away from punishment which leads it to escalated aggression against Palestinians,” and that all peace making attempts will fail “unless Israel is held accountable for its crimes.”

After the meeting, Erdoğan spoke with Israeli Foreign Ministry Director General Yuval Rotem and Turkish Amassador to Israel, Kemal Okem to “clarify” his comments.

Israel issued an official statement in which it said that it was “worried” about Erdoğan’s anti-Israel statements that, “we don’t want an escalation. We can end this crisis.”

Don’t forget, Israel and Turkey signed a reconciliation agreement last year, normalizing diplomatic and economic relations.

For further reading click here.

Embassy Omission
The US Embassy in Saudi Arabia posted a State Department video on its website highlighting President Trumps upcoming Middle East trip to Saudi Arabia and Israel. But then it apparently removed the video and posted an edited version which left out any mention of Israel.

Representative Elliot Engel (NY), a senior Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee, sent a letter to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson complaining. In the letter Engel wrote, “At a time when the United States should be encouraging the governments of the region—and their people—to promote tolerance, respect and mutual recognition this video implies that the US accepts Saudi Arabia’s public rejectionist position toward Israel.”

He also wrote, “This video plays into a rejectionist narrative and thus has no place in any social media—or any other form of communication—associated with the United States government.”

The video was subsequently taken down and the original video, including Israel, was reposted.

A State Department official said that the embassy had taken the video from the social media account of a private Saudi citizen without realizing that Israel had been edited out. He said,“Upon learning this, the U.S. Embassy immediately corrected the error, took down the video, and loaded the correct version to its social media accounts. The Embassy expresses its regret for this inadvertent mistake.”

For further reading click here.

Abbas Willing
PA President Abbas told reporters in Ramallah today that he would be willing to meet with PM Netanyahu if the meeting was organized by President Trump. He said, “We told him [Trump] that we were ready to collaborate with him and meet the Israeli PM under his auspices to build peace.”

For further reading click here.

IDF Shabbat
According to Israeli law, the IDF must observe the laws of Shabbat and Kashrut (kosher), unless there is a pressing military reason not to do so. Religious soldiers on a tank base in the Golan have complained that two weeks ago, on Shabbat, a group of tourists led by an influential tour guide arrived at the base. The base commander, after speaking with the tour guide, ordered a tank to maneuver outside of the base as a show for the tourists. This violates the Shabbat rules.

Also on the same base, all of the Shabbat food was negligently left out and spoiled. So the kitchen staff entered the kitchen, locked the door, and cooked new food — on Shabbat (cooking on Shabbat is prohibited).

One of the religious commanders on the base complained to the base commander and to the base rabbi. The IDF is investigating the incidents.

For further reading click here.

Fidget Peace
If you have young kids you know what a fidget spinner is. For those who don’t know, it’s a small propeller-like spinner that kids hold with two fingers and spin. And spin…and spin. Pretty simple concept. The toy is said to apparently reduce stress. It turns out that the inventor, Catherine Hettinger, came up with the idea during a trip to Israel in the 1980s, during the First Intifada, as a way to distract the “young boys throwing rocks at police officers.” She first considered designing a “soft rock that kids could throw,” saying that, “It started as a way of promoting peace.”

Maybe the fidget spinner is the answer we’ve been waiting for to bring peace to the world?

For further reading click here.

Israel News for January 4, 2017

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Soldier Convicted
After a nine month trial in a military court, IDF Sgt. Elor Azaria was convicted of manslaughter this morning for shooting a seriously wounded terrorist in the head last year in Hebron. The terrorist had just committed a stabbing attack and was shot and wounded by soldiers. As he was lying on the ground face down, surrounded by soldiers, Azaria approached and shot the terrorist in the head, allegedly killing him.

On the one hand the defense attempted to claim that the terrorist was already dead before Azaria shot him. On the other hand the claim was made that Azaria saw the terrorist move and thought that he was still a threat. In any case, the judges wrote, “He opened fired in violation of orders, the terrorist did not pose any threat.”

Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman expressed regret at the verdict but urged everyone to respect it. “We are all obligated to show restraint. What is important is that despite the verdict, the security apparatus will assist the soldier and his family in any way possible.”

Hundreds of protesters rioted outside of the courtroom in front of the IDF military headquarters in Tel Aviv directly before and after the verdict.

Education minister Naftali Bennet and Culture Minister Miri Regev both called for the government to grant Azaria immediate amnesty.

Azaria’s legal team said that it will appeal the verdict.

For further reading click here.

Motorbike Attack
Palestinians on four motorbikes attempted to break through a checkpoint near Jenin yesterday. One of the bikes rammed into two Border Police officers, injuring them. The other three motor bikes escaped through the checkpoint.

For further reading click here.

Gaza Casualty
Over two and a half years after Operation Protective Edge (Gaza War), an Israeli soldier critically wounded in the operation has died. Major Hagai Ben Ari, a highly regarded paratroop officer, was shot in the head by a sniper in Gaza on July 21, 2014. Over the next 2 years he remained unconscious. Ben Ari leaves behind a wife and 3 young children. He is the 68th IDF soldier killed in Protective Edge.

For further reading click here.

PA Austerity
The Palestinian Authority is planning to implement some deep spending cuts as a result of a huge budget deficit. The reason for the deficit is a sharp drop in foreign funding, primarily from Saudi Arabia and the US and EU.

Saudi Arabia normally pays about $20 million a month into the budget, but it stopped making regular contributions last April – in part to apply pressure on President Mahmoud Abbas to implement political changes. The EU and the US have also reduced direct budget support, preferring instead to fund specific development programs.

More than half of the PA budget goes for paying salaries of government employees. The PA also pays stipends to families of terrorists.

For further reading click here.

Underwater Lighting
Even though Hanukkah is over, we thought you had to see this video, in which two Chabad emissaries light a huge menorah under the shark infested waters of Playa Del Carmen in Mexico. Chabad really does go everywhere! To watch video click here.

israeli border police

Israel News for October 14, 2015

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Security Measures
Last night, the government’s security cabinet approved several measures in response to the recent wave of terror.
– It gave police the power to impose lock-downs on violent areas of Jerusalem.
– It prohibited the rebuilding of the homes of terrorists destroyed by the IDF.
– It ordered revoking the permanent residency or citizenship of terrorists (subject to authorization of the Attorney General).
– It authorized expanding the police force, using IDF forces to reinforce the police, and hiring 300 security guards for the public transit system, at a cost of more than 80 million shekels. Initially, IDF troops will be used to secure buses until the security guards are trained.

The cabinet will meet again later today to continue discussion.

For further reading: http://news.walla.co.il/item/2897174

Rabbis and Terrorists
The recent terror attacks by Palestinians have spurred debate among Israelis about how to treat terrorists who have already been subdued. Is deadly force against a terrorist permitted if he or she is no longer a threat? How about non deadly violence, like beating?

Three major Israeli Zionist rabbinic leaders have offered rulings on the issue.

Rabbi David Stav, the Chief Rabbi of Shoham and head of the Tzohar rabbinic organization, has ruled that it is NOT permitted to harm a terrorist who is subdued and poses no further threat. R. Stav said that the primary reason for his decision is so that Jews do not damage their moral compass and sink to the level of the terrorists. He also thinks that photos of Jews beating subdued terrorists will damage Israel’s standing in the world community. R. Stav said, “even though the terrorists deserve it, it is not our way.”

Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, the head of the Ateret Cohanim yeshiva in the Old City of Jerusalem, agreed that civilians must not take action against subdued terrorist who are no longer a threat. He is, however, in favor of the death penalty for terrorists, as long as it is administered by the court. He believes that prison is not a sufficient deterrent.

On the other side of the debate Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the Chief Rabbi of Safed, ruled last week that “it is forbidden to leave a terrorist alive after he has committed a terror attack. If he’s left alive there’s a possibility that he will go free and kill more people.” He said that only in special situations where shooting the terrorist could cause explosives to detonate or if they need to interrogate him can he be taken alive.

R. Eliyahu went so far as to demand a special investigation into the circumstances which lead to terrorists being taken alive to determine if the security forces had been negligent in their duties.

For further reading: http://news.walla.co.il/item/2897134

Ex Chief Rabbi Indicted
R. Yona Metzger, the former Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel, was indicted yesterday. The charges included accepting bribes of up to 8 million shekels (of which he personally kept 5 million), theft, fraud and tax evasion. Metzger’s attorneys tried to reach a plea bargain but the prosecutor refused.

One of the most serious, and disturbing, charges against him are related to conversions. It seems that Metzger made a deal with a Los Angeles rabbi, Gabriel Cohen, whereby he would send foreigners who wished to convert (who were either unable or unwilling to do so in Israel) to the rabbi who would do the conversion in exchange for payment, giving Metzger half.

In one case, from 2011, Metzger referred to Cohen a Russian businessman who had immigrated to Israel and wanted his two children converted. After the conversion, Metzger and Cohen allegedly split the $360,000 the man paid.

Metzger is also accused of getting kickbacks from money he raised for charity organizations and yeshivas as well as for receiving gifts and bribes and concealing funds from tax authorities.

He denies all of the charges and pledges to fight for his vindication.

For further reading: http://www.haaretz.com/news/israel/1.680292

Jews in Yemen
If you thought Yemen was a bad place for Jews, it seems like it just got a lot worse. According to a Jew who recently escaped from Yemen, by pretending to be a Muslim, and arrived in Israel, the government of Yemen recently issued a warning to the Jews in the country: “Get out of Yemen or convert to Islam.”

Over 150 Jews fled Yemen between 2009 and 2013. Those remaining were under the protection of Yemen’s president Ali Abdullah Saleh, until he was ousted in 2012. Now they are effectively under the control of the Houthi rebels who took over the capital, Sana, earlier this year.

The remaining 80 to 100 Jews in Yemen are living in a protected compound in Sana called Tourist City and in the town of Raida in the north. Despite their often precarious existence, most of the Jews don’t seem eager to leave. They continue to practice Judaism and live much as they have for over 2000 years and they’re set on continuing, at least for now. Hard to believe that Jews would choose to live in Yemen, but who are we to judge?

In an interesting twist, the Israeli Knesset member advocating for their rescue is a Druze member of Likud.

For further reading: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/10/12/israeli-politician-says-yemens-last-jews-need-help-to-get-out/

Believe It
Yes, it’s true. The Gulf States, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, UAE and Qatar are in talks to purchase the Israeli made Iron Dome missile defense system. They won’t be buying it directly from Israel, because how would that look? But they’ll still be using Jewish technology to protect against potential Iranian missile attack. Sweet.

For further reading: http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.680291