Archive for May 9, 2014

| May 9, 2014
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Former Arab League chief Amr Moussa: Hamas must recognize Israel

 

Former Arab League chief & Egyptian foreign minister Amr Moussa calls on Hamas to ‘declare acceptance of Arab initiative of 2002, which is map of normalization & recognition of Israel.’

By AFP

 

Hamas must recognize the existence of Israel if the Palestinians are to move forward with their hopes of establishing their own state, former Arab League chief and Egyptian foreign minister Amr Moussa said Wednesday.

former Arab League chief and Egyptian foreign minister Amr Moussa - Photo: The Associated Press

Former Arab League chief and Egyptian foreign minister Amr Moussa – Photo: The Associated Press

“It is normal for the Palestinians to reconcile,” Moussa said of a recent unity deal struck between the Hamas militants who run the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Liberation Organization. Continue Reading »

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| May 9, 2014
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Danish Lawmaker Demands Palestine Participation at Anual Eurovision Song Contest

 

Citing IDF’s mistreatment of Palestinians, Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen says having Palestine invited to song contest would send strong message to Israel.

By Gil Naveh

 

Every year, and this year’s event in Copenhagen is no exception, geopolitics play out in some way at the Eurovision Song Contest. This time, it’s the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen, a member of the Danish parliament, attacked the organizers of the competition at the opening ceremony for not inviting the Palestinian Authority to participate even though Israel is, Turkish newspaper the Daily Sabah reported.

Suzy representing Portugal performs during the first semi-final at Eurovision, 2014.

Suzy representing Portugal performs during the first semi-final at Eurovision, 2014.

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| May 9, 2014
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Greek Orthodox Church Sacks Priest who Supported Christian Arab IDF Enlistment

AFP reported Thursday that the Greek Orthodox church dismissed Father Gabriel Nadaf from his post in Nazareth without even bothering to summon him.

By Ari Yashar and Gil Ronen

 

An Israeli Arab Orthodox priest has reportedly been dismissed by the Greek Orthodox church in Israel, after publicly supporting IDF service for Christian Arabs.

PM Netanyahu meets Gabriel Nadaf, Aug. 2013 – Reuters

Church spokesman Essa Musleh told AFP on Thursday that the decision was made on Tuesday to fire Father Gabriel Nadaf from his post in Nazareth, and that the decision was only being made public now.

“We warned him before to keep to his priestly duties and not to interfere in matters of the army,” Musleh said.  Continue Reading »

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| May 8, 2014
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Israel navy has new maritime countermeasures for Hezbollah

 

Israel Navy’s newly installed “MF-STAR” radar has greater range than its predecessors, can distinguish between friendly & enemy ships and detect & respond to multiple targets simultaneously.

By Yoav Zitun

 

Israel’s navy has a new weapon in the fight against threats from Syria and Hezbollah. Its newly installed “MF-STAR” radar system is designed to counter the Yakhont (S-800) anti-ship missiles used by both.

Simulation of missile launch from ship (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit)

Simulation of missile launch from ship (Photo: IDF Spokesman’s Unit)

The IDF says that the radar, manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), has a greater range in comparison to the previous generation of systems, can mark more targets at once, and detect enemy ships hiding among dozens of friendly or non-combatant vessels. Continue Reading »

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| May 8, 2014
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Unseasonal rain across Israel causing flooding in south

Heaviest rain fell in Arad & Ra’anana, measuring 50 millimeters of rain since Wednesday night leaving hundreds of tourists stranded.

 

Heavy rain fell Wednesday night across most of the country. The rain is expected to continue through Thursday afternoon and there may be some isolated storms Friday as well.

Jerusalem.- Photo by Reuters

According to Meteotech, the largest quantities of rain fell in Arad and Ra’anana, the latter registering 50 millimeters of rain since Wednesday night. There are reports of flooding in the south.

Police in Israel say rescuers are evacuating dozens of American tourists who were stranded overnight in a parking lot in the Negev desert due to rare heavy rains.

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| May 8, 2014
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Israel Environmentalists Decree Eilat Railroad ‘A Big Waste of Money’

Environmental & civic groups have written to Israel’s Finance Minister, asking him to freeze further steps for construction of a rail line to Eilat.

By Moshe Cohen

 

Environmental and civic groups have written to Finance Minister Yair Lapid, asking him to freeze plans for construction of a rail line to Eilat. The groups say that the cost of the electric train line could reach NIS 30 billion ($700 million) – money that could be better spent on urban projects that will be less damaging to the environment.

High-speed trains - IsraelandStuff/PP

Will Eilat have high-speed trains? – IsraelandStuff/PP

The groups say that the line will serve only about 3 million people a year, and will constitute a hazard for desert animals, who may be injured or killed by the high-speed trains traversing the Negev desert. Continue Reading »

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| May 8, 2014
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Sculptures in the sand at Eretz Israel Museum

A dozen int’l sand sculptors make magic with 700 tons of sand.

By Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs

 

Give a dozen talented sand sculptors 700 tons of Israeli sand, and what do you get? Fifteen awesome works of art at Tel Aviv’s Eretz Israel Museum.

“Every sculpture was made by one sculptor in 16 days,” says artist Baldrick Buckle. “The sand is a mixture of some sand that’s close to the Dead Sea and some of the local quarry towns to give us the best formula for working in sculpture.”

Designs were inspired by the Bible, popular fairy tales and super heroes. Continue Reading »

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| May 8, 2014
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Alert IDF Soldiers Discover Illegal Weapons in Terrorist’s Possession

Late Tuesday evening, soldiers from the IDF’s Kfir Brigade discovered 2 automatic assault-rifles & a handgun while carrying out an arrest in the Judea & Samaria region.

Major Shai Kedem, deputy commander of the battalion responsible for the operation, explained how his soldiers uncovered the weapons.

By IDF Blog

 

 

“The incident started as a routine arrest that we carried out after receiving intelligence information,” said Maj. Shai Kedem, an IDF commander whose soldiers uncovered several weapons south of Jenin late Tuesday. During the arrest, the soldiers performed searches and found concealed weapons in the house of a Palestinian terror suspect.

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| May 8, 2014
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Opinion: A humorist’s observation to the Arab-Israel Conflict

 

 

As a service to all Americans who still don’t get it, I now offer you the story of the Middle East in just a few paragraphs, which is all you really need.

Whosoever Blesses Them – The intifada and its defenders

By LARRY MILLER • Apr 22, 2002

 

 

I WAS WATCHING Greta Van Facelift on Fox the other night, and she and her guests made me talk back to the TV. Shout back, actually. Nothing witty or trenchant, you understand, just something like, “Oh, come on!” Now, to be honest, it was late, and I was downstairs alone, and I was a little, what’s the word .

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Category: Israel News, Video's worth Viewing |
| May 8, 2014
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Close Up: IDF Paramedic on Israel’s Border with Syrian

On the Syria-Israel border, a field hospital is saving lives of Syrian who got injured and their lives are at risk. Earlier this morning, Noga Erez, a paramedic who saves lives on the border, received The President’s Award for Excellence for her outstanding service. Now, for the first time she shares her experiences from the field.

 

 

 

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| May 8, 2014
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Susan Rice meets Peres & Netanyahu separately on Iran & the Palestinians

 

US National Security Advisor Rice met both Israeli P.M. & the President in separate meetings in Jerusalem today.

By i24news

 

 

United States National Security Advisor Susan Rice met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem today, reporting on the progress made in the negotiations over the Iranian nuclear program, Israeli media reported Wednesday.

Shimon Peres & Susan Rice ( Yonathan Rykner pour i24news )

Shimon Peres & Susan Rice – Photo: Yonathan Rykner/ i24news

Israeli newspaper Jerusalem Post cited Rice as stressing to Netanyahu the “critical importance of pursuing a comprehensive solution that assures… that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful”.

Rice also reiterated that the US continues to believe in the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, echoing the words of US President Barack Obama in a statement congratulating Israel on its Independence Day, released earlier this week.

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| May 8, 2014
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Christian Youths Respond With Act of Kindness to Jewish Vandalism

 

Group of Arab youths in Galilee Christian village restore ancient synagogue in response to escalating vandalism by radical religious Jewish youths to “show that there is a better way.”

By David Lazarus

 

Dozens of Arab youth have made a most unexpected and surprising response to “price tag” hate crimes — they restored the ancient Jewish synagogue in their town. Youth from the Arab Christian town Shefaram in the Galilee renovated the 250-year-old synagogue in order to “show that there is a better way.”

Arab Youth Respond With Act of Love to Jewish Vandalism

Organizers of the synagogue renovation project, which included Arab and Jewish youth, want the government to take action against the “price tag” criminals. Continue Reading »

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| May 8, 2014
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Israel’s Minister of Defense: Let’s not delude ourselves, there is no Palestinian partner

Defense Minister Ya’alon tells Knesset committee that Jerusalem opposes Fatah-Hamas reconciliation, says it probably won’t come to fruition anyway.

By LAHAV HARKOV

 

 

The Palestinians are not a partner for peace, Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Wednesday.

Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon

Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon – Photo: Ariel Hermoni, Defense Ministry spokesman

“There is no partner on the other side. That is the reality. Our soldiers are intelligent enough to understand the complex situation on the field and to know how to deal with it. There’s no immediate solution. We can’t delude ourselves,” he stated.

Israel opposes Hamas-Fatah reconciliation, but it probably won’t come to fruition anyway, he added. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , ,
| May 7, 2014
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Ex-ICC prosecutor warns Palestinians of ‘boomerang’ if turning to the Hague

 

Former chief prosecutor warns PA that Hamas could face investigation for rocket fire  & suicide bombings against Israeli civilians, should Palestinians accept war crimes court’s jurisdiction.

By AP, The Media Line

 

A former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Wednesday Palestinians should proceed with caution as they consider pursuing war crimes against Israel.

File:Netherlands, The Hague, International Criminal Court.JPG

The Hague, International Criminal Court. – Photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Since winning upgraded status at the United Nations in 2012, the Palestinians have threatened to turn to the ICC to press charges against Israel at the world’s first permanent war crimes court if peace efforts fail. Continue Reading »

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| May 7, 2014
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Syrian brown bear undergoes spinal surgery for slipped disc in Israel

 

Mango, the 19 year old Israeli born brown bear, was treated at the Ramat Gan Zoological Park for a painful slipped disc.

By

 

 

Mango the brown bear was clearly in pain, as his keepers at Israel’s Ramat Gan Zoological Park observed some three weeks ago. He was eating well, but his walk had slowed and he clearly didn’t like getting up. Sure, there was clearly a problem, but just try asking a bear where it hurts.

Mango the bear undergoes surgery in Ramat Gan

Mango the bear undergoes surgery in Ramat Gan – Photo: AFP

After a few days with no improvement, the zoo called in the A-team: a team of experts from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, headed by Merav Shamir, an expert on veterinary neurology and neurosurgery. Continue Reading »

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