Israel News

ONLY IN ISRAEL: Town of Sderot inaugurates 1st rocket-proof train station

Now that their city is connected to the country’s national rail network, residents of Sderot will be able to reach Tel Aviv in just under 60 minutes.

PM Benjamin Netanyahu: This is a milestone in the realization of the vision of connecting all of Israel.

By Gadi Golan & Israel Hayom Staff

A new train station in the southern city of Sderot was inaugurated on Tuesday in a festive ceremony attended by top government officials.

Israel’s New Rocket-Proof Rail Station Opens in Sderot

By linking up to Israel’s national railway system, Sderot residents will be able to reach Tel Aviv in just under an hour. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Public Transportation, Sderot, trains

IDF deploys Iron Dome over Ashkelon, Ashdod, Sderot & Beersheba

Gaza rocket lands in open area near Ashkelon 00:30 Thursday.

IDF’s missile defense system deployed out of concern for additional attacks.

Def. Min.Ya’alon blames Hamas and PA for heightened tensions.

By JPOST.COM STAFF

The IDF on Thursday deployed the Iron Dome missile defense system over Ashdod, out of concern over potential rocket attacks amid heightened tensions.

Iron Dome anti-missile system – Photo courtesy: IDF Spokesperson’s Unit

In the early hours of Thurday, shortly after 12 a.m, a rocket was launched toward Israel from the Gaza Strip. According to Israel Radio, the Kassam rocket landed in an open area near Ashkelon. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Gaza, Gaza rockets, Iron Dome, Rockets, West Bank

REPORT: Netanyahu & Abbas Holding Secret Back-Channel Diplomacy

Israel’s Daily Yedioth Ahronoth, reveals Israeli Prime Minister, Palestinian President have been engaging in back-channel dialogue through their perspective representatives in London for several years now.

By Nahum Barnea

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have been maintaining a secret channel of talks for several years now, Yedioth Ahronoth reported Thursday.

Netanyahu and Abbas. Informal dialogue – Archive photo: Reuters

Attorney Yitzhak Molcho, Netanyahu’s confidant, has been traveling to London from time to time and meeting with one of Abbas’ associates. This back-channel diplomacy includes an exchange of messages and ideas and is aimed at solving problems troubling both sides. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Benjamin Netanyahu, diplomacy, Mahmoud Abbas

Continued Terror From Gaza Could Mean Higher Grocery Bills

Farmers in the Negev warn that continuing danger along Gaza barrier is damaging the local economy.

By Maayana Miskin

Terrorism from Gaza could mean higher grocery prices for Israelis, farmers from the Gaza belt area warned Thursday morning, speaking to Maariv/nrg.

Illustration: Iron Dome anti-missile system – IDF Spokesman

Farmers near Gaza were told Tuesday to stay out of fields near the Gaza security barrier. The warning followed a fatal terrorist shooting in the area.

Terrorists have targeted agricultural workers in fields near Gaza in the past.

Farmers argued that the fields in question – those located within one kilometer of Gaza – are used for some of their most valuable crops. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: agriculture, farmers, Israel economy, Negev

Canadian Prime Minister Harper to Address the Knesset

Canadian PM Stephen Harper will address the Knesset during his upcoming visit to Jerusalem in January.

By Elad Benar

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper will speak at the Knesset during his upcoming visit to Israel, which will begin on January 20, Shalom Toronto reported on Wednesday.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper – Reuters

Harper will lead a delegation of some 200 people, including Canadian journalists, the report said.

During the visit, Harper will also visit Ramallah and Jordan. This is Harper’s first visit to the Middle East since he was elected as Prime Minister in 2006.

The Canadian Prime Minister announced his visit to Israel during a speech he gave at the Jewish National Fund (JNF) annual fundraising gala Negev dinner which was held in Toronto earlier this month. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Israel Canada, Knesset, Stephen Harper

Israeli Official: PM Netanyahu plans announcing new settlement construction

Israeli official says the Prime Minister, contrary to EU demands, is likely to announce plans for new settlement construction next week, coinciding with expected release of 3rd group of imprisoned Palestinian terrorists.

By AP

Israel likely will announce new plans for construction in Jewish settlements next week, an official said Wednesday, a move that is likely to trigger an international uproar and threaten peace talks with the Palestinians.

Settlements in the Samarian mountains – Photo:Tamar Lavmor Shlomovitz

The timing of the announcement would coincide with the expected release of a group of Palestinian prisoners. The government has announced new settlement construction plans during previous prisoner releases to blunt domestic criticism. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: new construction, settelments

Gilad Shalit Calls for U.S. to Release Jonathan Pollard From Prison

Former captive IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, urges Israelis to petition Americans: ‘We have already freed scores of murderous terrorists with blood on their hands at your request – now it’s your turn to make a gesture to us.’

By JTA

Former captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit wrote in an open letter on Tuesday that all Israelis should demand that the United States free jailed Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard.

Jonathan Pollard during an interview, May 15, 1998.

Jonathan Pollard during an interview at the Federal Correction Institution in Butner, North Carolina, May 15, 1998. – Photo: AP

Israeli officials have said that the revelation over the weekend that the United States spied on at least two sitting Israeli prime ministers opens the door for Israel to demand the release of Pollard, who has served 29 years of a life sentence in a U.S. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Benjamin Netanyahu, Gilad Shalit, Jonathan Pollard

Egypt Military Reports They Prevented a Hamas Car-Bomb Attack

Egyptian army report claims they arrested a Hamas terrorist who admitted his planning to plant a car bomb near undisclosed security target.

Hamas denies allegations.

By Dalit Halevi, Tova Dvorin

The Egyptian Army announced Wednesday that it had apprehended a Hamas terrorist in the northern Sinai Desert, Al-Arabiya reports.

The terrorist was named as Jumaa Khamis Mohammed Brayha, who claimed to stem from a family powerful in Hamas’s ranks.

During interrogation, according to the Egyptian army, the young man admitted that he was intending to blow up a Mercedes parked near a crucial security target.

Hamas has denied that the detainee was among its ranks and says his name is not even included in the register of residents of the Gaza Strip. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Egypt, hamas, Hamas terrorist. Egypt, Muslim Brotherhood, Sinai

More & More Christians Serving In the IDF & Israel Police: A Growing Community

Today, as people around the world celebrate Christmas, Christian soldiers serving in the IDF are off duty and at home with their families for the holiday. The growing community of Christian IDF soldiers recently gathered for a special forum to recognize their contribution to the State of Israel.

By IDF Spokesperson’s Unit

Nearly 90 Christian soldiers from all over the country and from all IDF units came together earlier this week in Nazareth Illit for an event organized by the Israeli Christians Recruitment Forum. Although it has only been around for a little over a year, its impact has been astounding. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Christmas, IDF, Israeli Christians

Number of Christian conscripts rose in 2013 for the IDF

84 Israeli Christians have volunteered for the IDF since June, representing a noticeable spike in the recruitment rate, which normally average about 50 new annual recruits in past years.

By YAAKOV LAPPIN

The IDF has observed a rise in the number of Christian-Arab Israelis enlisting in the IDF this year.

Elinor Joseph, was born 1991 into a Christian family from the Arab village of Jish, is the first Arab woman ever to serve in a combat role in the I.D.F. – Photo: IDF Spokesperson Unit

Since June, 84 Christians have volunteered the military, representing a spike in the recruitment rate, which has averaged 50 new annual recruits in past years. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Arab Christians, IDF, Israeli Christians

2 Videos: PM Netanyahu & President Peres Give Blessings to Israeli Christians

PM Netanyahu commends Christian citizens for joining the IDF & defending country, stops in the nick of time from uttering ‘Jewish’ state.

President Peres, in his own Christmas message, urges peace.

By Haaretz

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered his holiday blessings to the Christian citizens of Israel on Tuesday, in which he stressed the importance of the community’s contribution to the Israel Defense Forces – accidentally stopping just short of uttering the word “Jewish” state.

Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu

The video, released on the prime minister’s official channel, was widely distributed to Christian communities around the country. Calling them “loyal citizens”, Netanyahu commended the efforts of those active in recruiting Christians citizens to serve in the army. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Benjamin Netanyahu, Christmas, IDF, Israeli Christians

2 Jerusalem Arabs Run Over Cop in Latest ‘Trickling of Terror’

In latest of series of Palestinian terror attacks, 2 Jerusalem Arabs were arrested after car chase for running over a police officer.

The policeman, was evacuated to nearby Hadassah Mt. Scopus Hospital.

By Ari Yashar, Arutz Sheva

In the latest attack in what MK Yoni Chetboun (Jewish Home) has termed “trickling terror,” two Arab residents of the Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawiya ran over a police officer who stopped them following a car chase Tuesday night.

The driver had ignored police orders to stop while driving near Issawiya. In the ensuing car chase a police car managed to stop the car at the southern entrance to the neighborhood. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Israel Police, Issawiya, Jerusalem, Palestinian attack, terror attack, terrorism

4 American universities divest from ASA over its academic boycott of Israel

2 additional American universities officially withdrew their memberships from the American Studies Association after voting for an academic boycott of Israeli institutions of higher education.

By JTA

Two more American institutions of higher learning officially withdrew their memberships from the American Studies Association after its membership voted in favor of an academic boycott of Israel.

Kenyon College & Indiana University joined Brandeis University to condemn Boycott – Photo: U.S. News

Kenyon College and Indiana University on Monday joined Brandeis University and Penn State Harrisburg in canceling their memberships in the association. Dozens of other universities also have condemned the ASA boycott, including Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Brown, Cornell, the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, the University of Maryland and New York University.

Category: Israel News | Tags: academic boycott, BDS, Israel boycott

Tel Aviv Researcher Discovered Protein That Could Serve as Powerful Antibiotic

Israeli Researcher at Tel Aviv University’s Department of Clinical Microbiology and Immunology, Discovers Protein That Could Replace Conventional Antibiotics & Kill Bacteria.

By By NoCamels Team

In the frantic “arms race” between bacteria and modern medicine, bacteria have gained an edge. In recent decades, bacterial resistance to antibiotics has developed faster than the production of new antibiotics, making bacterial infections increasingly difficult to treat. Scientists worry that a particularly virulent and deadly “superbug” could one day join the ranks of existing untreatable bacteria, causing a public health catastrophe comparable with the Black Death.

Bacteria spheres 3d illustration – Photo: Bigstock

Now research led by Doctor Udi Qimron of Tel Aviv University’s Department of Clinical Microbiology and Immunology at the Sackler Faculty of Medicine has discovered a protein that kills bacteria.

Category: Innovations & Discoveries, Israel News | Tags: innovations, Medicine, Tel Aviv University