Archive for Israel News

| March 26, 2014
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Twin sisters from Miami volunteer for the IDF

 

Identical twin sisters from the US, Rachel & Yarden Paul move to Israel, and join the IDF through the Garin Tzabar program.

Yarden Paul: ‘Our friends who went on to university don’t understand why we chose to come to Israel & join the IDF. They think it’s too dangerous.’

By Danny Brenner

 

Nine months ago, 19-year-old identical twin sisters Yarden and Rachel Paul made the decision to leave their comfortable lives in Miami, move to Israel and join the army.

Yarden and Rachel Paul moved from Miami to Israel to join the IDF – Photo: Tzvika Levy

They made the move with the Garin Tzabar program, a joint initiative of the kibbutz movement, the Israeli Scouts and the Immigrant Absorption Ministry.

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| March 26, 2014
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U.S. envoy to UN anti-Semite Falk: ‘Don’t let the door hit you on the way out’

U.S. Amb. Power was clear about Richard Falk’s term: “His publication of bizarre & insulting material has tarnished the UN’s reputation & undermined the effectiveness of the Human Rights Council.”

 

WASHINGTON – Richard Falk’s term as a U.N. human rights investigator “tarnished” the body’s reputation and the United States is looking forward to his imminent departure, U.S. envoy Samantha Power said.

Samantha Power testifies on Capitol Hill, July 17, 2013

Samantha Power testifies on Capitol Hill, July 17, 2013 – Photo: Reuters

Power said it was  Falk’s incessant focus on Israel and the Palestinians that caused the blot on the U.N.’s record.

“His publication of bizarre and insulting material has tarnished the U.N.’s

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| March 26, 2014
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E. Jerusalem residents petition High Court over lack of water, demanding it free

 

After years of water theft/piracy, illegal building with unauthorized connections to state water main, and the residents refusal to pay water bills, tens of thousands go dry for 3 weeks, with Water Ministry, Water Authority, Jerusalem municipality & the Hagihon utility passing blame.

By SHARON UDASIN

 

 

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel and east Jerusalem residents appealed to the High Court of Justice on Tuesday, petitioning against the lack of running water in several neighborhoods east of the security barrier for the past three weeks.

Palestinian woman carrying water

Palestinian woman carrying water – Photo: Nayef Haslamoun / Reuters

Most homes in the neighborhoods of Ras Hamis, Ras Shahada, Dahyat a-Salam and the Shuafat refugee camp have either had no water or very low water pressure, ACRI attorney Keren Tzafrir wrote in the petition. Continue Reading »

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| March 26, 2014
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4 Smugglers shot by Israeli Navy while heading to Gaza, boat explodes

 

Israel’s Naval troops said they heard secondary explosions after they fired on the 2 suspicious boats sailing from Egypt’s Sinai to the Gaza Strip.

By Yoav Zitun, Elior Levy

 

Israeli naval troops in the Mediterranean Sea opened fire in the early hours of Wednesday morning on suspected Palestinian smugglers traveling in two boats from Sinai to the Gaza Strip. The Palestinians said that four people on the boats had been wounded.

Israel Navy patrol vessels – Photo courtesy: IDF Spokesperson’s Unit

It is not clear what exactly the boats were carrying, but the IDF said that the boats were damaged, and that they had heard secondary explosions after they had opened fire. Continue Reading »

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| March 26, 2014
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Washington denies agreement to release Pollard for extending peace talks

Israel’s Army Radio reported U.S. suggestion of freeing the Israeli spy if timetable for peace talks extended & Israel releases more additional Palestinian murderers.

By  

 

 

Washington denied an Israeli radio report Wednesday that the Obama administration was planning to free Jonathan Pollard, who is serving a life sentence for spying on the United States for Israel, as a way of revving up stalled peace talks.

Pollard protest

Demonstrators holding placards of Jonathan Pollard during an Israeli protest for his release. – Photo: Reuters

“There are currently no plans to release Pollard,” said a statement issued by the U.S. National Security Council and the U.S.

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| March 26, 2014
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White House Offers Israel Pollard for Israel’s 4th Terrorist Release

If Jerusalem does not renege on releasing the 4th batch of Palestinian murders from prison, and continues ‘peace talks,’ Washington says Pollard will go free, according to IDF Radio.

By Shimon Cohen, Tova Dvorin

 

The United States has offered to release longtime captive Jonathan Pollard from jail if Israel agrees to release the fourth tranche of terrorist murderers that it is supposed to free as a “gesture” to the Palestinian Authority (PA), reports IDF Radio‘s Ilil Shahar. In addition, Israel has to agree to continue “peace talks” with the PA. 

Jonathan Pollard – Yehuda Glick

The decision was reportedly made after Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told the US that many of his his government’s ministers executing the fourth tranche of releases, and that he will not be able to carry out the release. Continue Reading »

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| March 26, 2014
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Israel’s largest healthcare firm bought by Chinese

Chinese group buying Naftali Healthcare Solutions expected to be worth $100 million.

By  

 

Guangzhou-based Jinpeng Group, a Chinese conglomerate focusing on information technology and services industries, will reportedly acquire Natali Healthcare Solutions, Israel’s largest private healthcare and homecare service provider.

Elderly patients at Haifa’s Rambam Hospital.

Patients at Haifa’s Rambam Hospital. – Photo:Hagai Fried

The deal, worth about $100 million, is expected to be finalized soon, China Daily news reported Tuesday.

Naftali Healthcare Solutions was established in 1991, and holds a 60 percent stake in Israel’s elderly care market. It provides services such as doctor’s house calls, first aid telephone services and retirement solutions.

According to China Daily daily, the number of Chinese aged over 60 is expected to increase by 30 percent by the year 2050.

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| March 25, 2014
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Tel Aviv mayor facilitates grocery stores opening on Shabbat

 

‘We cannot turn this issue into a religious war… We are all Jews, and Judaism has many faces.’ said Mayor Ron Huldai, who was slammed by a religious councilmen, who called the move ‘a black day for Jews’ while bursting into tears.

By Gilad Morag

 

A limited number of grocery stores and kiosks would be allowed to operate in Tel Aviv on Saturday and holidays, the city’s municipality approved Monday.

Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai – Photo: Dan Keinan

The decision, an amendment to the municipal by-law, still depends on the approval of the Interior Ministry. If passed, it would allow any grocery store that meets the criteria to request permission to open on Saturday. Continue Reading »

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| March 25, 2014
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REPORT: Israeli Arab Population exchange to future Palestine legal under int’l law

According to Foreign Minister Lieberman’s legal study, moving Israel’s border would require agreement of the Palestinians, can not leave individuals without citizenship & would require a mechanism for compensation.

 

 

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman received a few weeks ago a classified legal opinion that paves the way for making Arab areas of Israel part of a future Palestinian state.

Avigdor Lieberman

The document’s authors concluded that the move would comply with international law on condition that it were done with the consent of the Palestinians, did not leave anyone without citizenship and included a mechanism for providing compensation, similar to the one used with Jewish settlers during Israel’s 2005 disengagement from the Gaza Strip.

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| March 25, 2014
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Tel Aviv Hosts ‘Largest Shabbat Dinner’ Attempt for New Guinness World Record

In an attempt to inspire world Jewry to connect to Shabbat in Israel’s largest city, a non-profit aims to host world record setting meal in Tel Aviv on June13th.

By Tova Dvorin

 

White City Shabbat, a non-profit organization dedicated to building Jewish life in Tel Aviv, has announced Monday that it will attempt to set the Guinness World Record for the World’s Largest Shabbat Dinner.

The dinner, which is scheduled for June 13, 2014, will be held at the Tel Aviv Port. The organization aims to host 1,000 people at the dinner, including Israelis, new immigrants, and public figures.

The guest list will reportedly include Mayor Ron Huldai, former Chief Rabbi of Israel Rav Yisrael Meir Lau, and Deputy Minister of Religious Affairs, Rabbi Eli Ben-Dahan. Continue Reading »

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| March 25, 2014
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Injured Syrians in Israel call on the IDF to bomb Syria

Ziv Medical Center in northern Israel is currently treating 16 Syrian patients who call Hezbollah ‘Satan’s organization’ and express their gratitude for the treatment they are given.

By Hassan Shaalan

 

“I’ve always thought of Israel as an enemy state that is not willing to help us. My case changed my thinking entirely. Israel is a good country that saves our lives, while the Syrian regime murders its citizens,” said one of the Syrian patients currently treated at the Ziv Medical Center in Safed.

Of the 16 Syrian patients in the Israeli hospital, three are in serious condition. Among them are children and rebels who fought against Syrian President Bashar Assad’s army. Continue Reading »

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| March 25, 2014
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Striking Israeli diplomats may be discipline by Finance Ministry

 

The Finance Ministry’s director of wages dept. said he would take harsh actions against all Foreign Ministry workers who locked gov’t ministry buildings or advanced pay to strikers.

By

 

The Finance Ministry is threatening to file disciplinary charges against striking Foreign Ministry employees and diplomats worldwide.

Foreign Ministry, closed on strike

Foreign ministry, closed on strike, March 24, 2014. – Photo: Olivier Fitoussi

In a letter sent to the Foreign Ministry union Monday, Kobi Amsalem, director of the treasury’s wages department, threatened disciplinary action against any worker involved in locking the gates of the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem or embassies and consulates overseas or paying salary advances to the striking diplomats.

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| March 24, 2014
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Israeli Arabic-speaking Christians to EU: Israel is Our Safe Haven

 

Israeli Christians demand that the world’s gov’ts stop wasting time demonizing Israel out of political agendas, and start focusing on the real problems by lifting “a finger against the ethnic cleansing of Christians in the Middle East.”

By Ryan Jones

 

Some 150 Israeli Arabic-speaking Christians on Sunday demonstrated outside the European Union mission in Tel Aviv, demanding that the international community stop nitpicking against Israel and start combating the severe persecution of Christians everywhere else in the Middle East.

Christians to EU: Israel is Our Safe Haven

Young, proud Arabic-speaking Israeli Christians demonstrate in Tel Aviv – Photo source: Israel Today

“Nations, organizations and international missions are quick to raise an accusing finger against Israel at every opportunity,” said Father Gabriel Nadaf, spiritual father of the Israeli Christian Recruitment Forum, which organized the rally. Continue Reading »

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| March 24, 2014
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Israeli-German group to build new Haifa-Beit Shean & Acre-Carmiel rail lines

 

German & Israeli companies win 800 million shekel ($230 million) tender for construction work on Acre-Carmiel & Haifa-Beit Shean rail lines & terminals.

Also under construction will be a new line linking Kfar Saba with Herzliya.

By Shlomi Diaz

 

The National Transport Infrastructure Company announced on Sunday that an Israeli-German group has beaten a French-Spanish-Israeli group for the tender to construct almost 100 kilometers (60 miles) of railroad tracks in northern Israel.

A train in Acre [Archive] – Photo: Herzi Shapira

The winning bid was submitted by the German company DB BahnBau and a number of Israeli construction companies. Continue Reading »

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| March 24, 2014
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‘Price Tag’ Attack: Tires of 34 cars punctured in East Jerusalem neighborhood

 

After 2 Israel Policemen were hospitalized from an unprovoked Arab rock-throwing mob at Rachel’s Tomb yesterday, a ‘price tag’ (pay-back) attack in Jerusalem’s Arab neighborhood of Beit Hanina was discovered early this  morning.

By Noam (Dabul) Dvir

 

The tires of 34 vehicles in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina were punctured overnight Sunday, and the writing “Goyim in the country = enemies” was sprayed in Hebrew on a bus.

Graffiti that says 'Goyim in the country = enemies'

Graffiti that says ‘Goyim in the country = enemies’

Police opened an investigation into the alleged “price tag” incident.

This is not the first time a “price tag” attack strikes the neighborhood. Continue Reading »

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