Israel News

Israel, Greece & U.S. Hold Joint Naval Exercise in Mediterranean

The trilateral exercise, from April 27 until May 14, will include from Israel, dolphin class submarines, Sa’ar missile ships and a naval helicopter.

By YAAKOV LAPPIN

The Israel Navy took part in a trilateral exercise with the US and Greek navies this week.

Israel holds naval drill with US & Greece. – Photo: IDF SPOKESMAN’S UNIT

The exercise, the largest of its kind, dubbed Noble Dina, involved air-sea maneuvers and the use of a variety of naval vessels. It began on April 27 and will reach its conclusion on May 14, the IDF Spokesman’s Office said.

Three Israeli missile ships – the INS Lahav, a Sa’ar-class ship, and the INS Keshet and the INS Romah, both Sa’ar-4.5 class missile ships – took part. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: cooperation, Israel Greece, Israel Navy, Israel US, Military exercises, NATO

israelandstuffcom | May 7, 2015

Intel Expert: Oil Industry Has Technology to Deal With Israel’s Tunnel Problem

IDF’s technology department creator says Israel’s land borders are vulnerable to terror-tunnel attacks, but the oil industry may have solutions.

By Yaakov Levi

Yossi Langosky, the IDF officer who established the technology department of the army’s Intelligence Unit, said Wednesday that all of Israel’s land borders – north, south, and east – were vulnerable to “tunnel attacks” by terrorists, similar to the ones conducted by Hamas before and during Operation Protective Edge last summer, according to NRG. The IDF can develop solutions to defend the country against such attacks – but it is going to take a revision of policy and outlook.

Category: Israel News | Tags: hamas, Hezbollah, oil industry, Operation Protective Edge, Terror tunnels, terrorism, tunnels, Yair Naveh, Yossi Langosky

israelandstuffcom | May 6, 2015

2 wounded UN peacekeepers from errant mortar strike inside Syria treated in Israel

In apparent spillover from ongoing civil war, 2 wounded UNDOF peacekeepers stationed in Quneitra, a man & a woman from Nepal, were sent to an Israeli hospital for treatment.

By Danny Brenner, Lilach Shoval, Israel Hayom Staff & Reuters

Two United Nations peacekeepers stationed on the Israel-Syria border in the Golan Heights were wounded on Monday when a mortar shell struck their position in Quneitra.

A wounded U.N. peacekeeper is treated at Ziv Medical Center in Safed, Monday – Photo: Ziv Medical Center

It is believed the mortar fire was spillover from the ongoing civil war inside Syria.

The wounded peacekeepers, a man and a woman from Nepal, were transported to an Israeli hospital for medical treatment. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News, Mid-East News | Tags: medical attention, Quneitra, Syrian unrest, Tikon Olam, UNDOF, Ziv Medical Center

israelandstuffcom | May 6, 2015

Jerusalem to become film & TV hub to attract international filmmakers

Noting major Hollywood projects by Richard Gere & Natalie Portman in Jerusalem, Mayor Barkat says time has come to incorporate the Jewish capital into a global production destination.

By DANIEL K. EISENBUD

On the heels of several high-profile Hollywood productions filmed, or filming, in the capital, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat announced on Tuesday his intention to build a major film and television complex in the city to attract more international filmmakers.

Old city of Jerusalem – Photo: IsraelandStuff/PP

“After Richard Gere and Natalie Portman made Hollywood films in Jerusalem, and NBC filmed here last summer for the series ‘Dig,’ now it’s time to move to the next stage in the development of the film industry in the capital,” Barkat said in a statement. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Hollywood, Jerusalem, Nir Barkat

israelandstuffcom | May 6, 2015

Israeli Arabs Enraged Probe of Police Shooting of Kafr Kanna Resident Dropped

Israel Police closes internal investigation into fatal shooting of 22 year-old Khair Hamdan last November, saying evidence demonstrates officers acted in self defense.

By Hassan Shaalan

The Police Investigation Unit announced Tuesday that it would close the investigation into a police officer who shot and killed Khair Hamdan, a resident of Kafr Kanna, last year – an incident which led to major rioting and violence in the area.

Video footage showing police officer pointing gun at Hamdan.

The police found during the investigation that an officer who was driving the police patrol vehicle was the one who shot Hamdan, 22, and not another officer who was seen in a video of the incident holding a gun pointed at Hamdan.

Category: Israel News | Tags: Israel Police, Kafr Kanna, knife attack

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Pamela Geller: ‘To Not Offend Savages, We’re Giving Up Our Freedoms’

WATCH: After the Texas attack, anti-Islamist activist Pamela Geller speaks out, slamming ‘media elites’ for denigrating those who offend Islam.

By Ari Soffer

Pamela Geller, the outspoken head of the American Freedom Defense Initiative, has spoken out after her group’s Mohammed Cartoon event was targeted in a shooting attack by Muslim terrorists on Sunday night.

Pamela Geller – Reuters

In an interview with CNN, Geller lashed out at the media “elites” for criticizing her group – the attackers’ intended victims – as opposed to radical Islamists responsible for such violent attacks.

The event had offered a $10,000 award for the best cartoon depicting the founder of Islam, Mohammed, and featured a speech by Dutch MP Geert Wilders, among other prominent critics of Islam. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: anti-Islam, free speech, Freedom of the Press, Geert Wilders, Pamela Geller

Israel’s Defense Ministry successfully conducts ballistic missile propulsion system test

Israelis were surprised when a rocket designed to propel satellites into space shot across the morning rush hour skies of central Israel, in a successfully planned launch by the Defense Ministry.

By Israel Hayom Staff

Israel conducted a test launch of a rocket propulsion system on Tuesday morning, the Defense Ministry announced. The test took place at a military base in central Israel.

A smoke trail is seen over central Israel, Tuesday morning – Photo: Beni Jajati

The Defense Ministry said the test was scheduled far in advance and was carried out as planned.

The system tested on Tuesday is designed to propel ballistic missiles that can carry satellites into space. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ballistic missiles, Defense Ministry, rocket

Israeli Arab arrested for transferring funds for Hamas agents in West Bank

Malik Khatib from Kafr Kanna was indited for transferring funds from Hamas militants in Gaza to Palestinians in the West Bank and driving illegals from Gaza to Israel.

By Hassan Shaalan & Yoav Zitun

An indictment was filed Tuesday morning in the Nazareth District Court against Malik Khatib, 31, a dentist from the village of Kafr Kanna in northern Israel on suspicion he made contact with a Hamas agent and transferred funds to Hamas in Ramallah. He was also charged with illegal transportation and fraud under the Income Tax Ordinance.

Malik Khatib in court Tuesday. – Photo: Mohammad Shinawi

At his court hearing Tuesday, Khatib said: “I have no connection to Hamas, I have no connection to any of the allegations – everything is a lie. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: arrested, District Court, hamas, Kafr Kanna, spy, terror arrest

REPORT: Arab Foundation Including Terrorist Organization Funded IDF ‘Tattle-Tales’

Im Tirtzu says the Ramallah-based fund that includes the PFTP terrorist group, paid for the ‘Breaking the Silence’ report against IDF practices during Operation Protective Edge.

By Arutz Sheva staff

Grassroots Zionist students’ group Im Tirtzu has responded to a report blaming the IDF of misdeeds in Gaza by pointing to the fact that it was paid for by a Palestinian-Arab fund.

The report by Breaking the Silence is based on alleged testimony from 60 officers and soldiers who served in Operation Protective Edge. The “evidence” includes allegations of indiscriminate fire on civilian targets by soldiers who took part in the fighting against terrorist organizations Hamas, Islamic Jihad and others in the summer of 2014.

Category: Israel News | Tags: Breaking the Silence, Im Tirtzu, Operation Protective Edge

After #BDSfail with Robbie Williams, movement uses social media to pressure Lauryn Hill

The anti-Israel BDS movement has been putting pressure on singer Lauryn Hill by intimidating her with a social media campaign incorporating memes, hashtags and YouTube video clip.

By LIOR PHILLIPS

It’s been a problematic month for R&B singer Lauryn Hill.

SINGER LAURYN HILL performs at the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival California in 2011. BDS activists are pressuring Hill to cancel her upcoming performance in Israel, scheduled for this Thursday. – Photo: REUTERS

On Friday, the famed ex-Fugees superstar was set to perform in Lagos, Nigeria, but bowed out after travel delays forced her to cancel. Though the singer has since apologized by filming an acoustic version of her pop classic “Doo Wop (That Thing),” titled “A Message to Nigeria from Ms Lauryn Hill,” this isn’t her first cancellation misdemeanor. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: BDS, Israel boycott

European Antisemitism Sending Scandinavia’s Jews Into Israeli Real Estate Market

Following in the footsteps of the Jews from France, Belgium & England, anti-Semitic attacks in Sweden and Denmark are motivating their Jewish communities to seek safety in Israel.

By Yael Darel, Calcalist

Foreigners purchasing real estate in the center of Israel is nothing new. Over the past year, however, the familiar buyers, from France, Belgium and England, have been joined by new players in the market – Scandinavian Jews, primarily from Sweden and Denmark, who have conducted dozens of real-estate deals in the country of late, focusing on apartments in high-rise buildings in Tel Aviv and Herzliya.

Prime real estate: Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv

Some of the buyers have moved into their new apartments, and some are buying for investment purposes or in preparation for a possible move to Israel in the future.

Category: Israel News, Jewish News, The Diaspora | Tags: anti-Semitism, European Jews, Real Estate

Rocket Fired At Israel – Lands Short, Explodes in Gaza

In a separate terror incident, two Palestinians arrested Sunday after foiled stabbing attack on IDF soldiers in West Bank.

By i24news

A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip Sunday evening towards Israel landed within the
Palestinian enclave and exploded just meters from the border fence, the Israeli army said.

A rocket is launched from the Gaza strip towards Israel on July 12, 2014 – Photo: Jack Guez/AFP/File

No sirens warning of incoming rockets sounded in Gaza border communities, however
soldiers stationed in the area reported hearing a loud explosion.

Two weeks ago, Israeli military forces struck a target in Gaza, hours after a rocket fired
from the coastal enclave struck southern Israel, violating an already shaky truce between
the sides.

Category: Israel News | Tags: arab terrorism, Gaza rockets, Stabbing Attack

Mid-East Christian Arabs Praising Israel More Openly on Social Media

Young Arabs throughout the Mideast have begun posting their love for Israel, and a Christian from Nazareth says that’s also true in Israel.

By David Lazarus

Young people from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Yemen and many other Arab countries are turning to social media to tell the world that they love Israel.

Declaration of love for Israel from Yemen. – Photo: Courtesy

The trend began, according to Al-Monitor, a popular pan-Mideast media outlet, when an Israeli Arab Muslim who served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) wanted to convince other Israeli Arabs that the (IDF) are not an “army of evil” and that its soldiers are not as bloodthirsty as they tend to be portrayed in Arab propaganda films. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Arab Christians, pro-Israel

israelandstuffcom | May 3, 2015

Israel Shipyards to Transport Goods to Arab World Via Jordan

Israel’s largest privately owned port seeks to replace Syrian port, closed due to the civil war, as a Mediterranean port for goods bound for Jordan, Syria & Iraq.

By Linda Gradstein, The Media Line

The captain peered over the side of the Turkish-flagged ship at his cargo of long metal rods that have come from Turkey and are headed to an unspecified Middle East country. The crew piled into a van at the Israel Shipyards, bound for the duty-free shop at the nearby Haifa port. On a recent afternoon, ships from all over the world were docked at this Mediterranean port, carrying goods bound for Jordan, Iraq and Syria. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Haifa Port, Israel Shipyards, transportation

israelandstuffcom | May 3, 2015