Archive for Israel News

| October 25, 2013
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IDF soldier from Australia was surprise to have parents appear in Masada

 

 

At an elite Shaldag Unit ceremony on top of Masada, IAF combat fighter was surprised by his parents attendance who came from Australia thanks to anonymous donation.

By Matan Tzuri

L. (21), a fighter in the Israeli Air Force elite unit Shaldag who recently made aliyah from Australia, already accepted the fact that his parents will not stand beside him in his unit’s training graduation ceremony, which was held in Masada this week. Yet moments before receiving the fighter pin he had been dreaming about for two years of exhausting training, he discovered his parents came to surprise him from across the planet. Continue Reading »

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| October 25, 2013
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Tanzania’s 1st Pediatric Heart Surgeon Returns Home

 

First pediatric open heart surgery performed in Tanzania by medical team trained in Israel.

By Adam Ross

 

The South-Eastern African state of Tanzania now has its first pediatric heart surgeon, after Dr Godwin Godfrey returned home following five years of training in Israel.

Joint team performs surgery in Tanzania – Photo: Save a Child’s Heart

The Israel based humanitarian project Save a Child’s Heart (SACH), organized Dr Godwin’s training in a landmark achievement that also saw it train a complete surgical team from a foreign state for the first time.

Since being established in 1995, SACH has trained doctors and nurses from all over the world and brought over 3,000 children to Israel from countries in Africa, South America, Europe, Asia, and throughout the Middle East, including the Palestinian Authority (PA), for life saving surgery at Holon’s Wolfson Medical Center. Continue Reading »

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| October 25, 2013
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Israel’s Knesset to vote on bill prohibiting prisoners’ release

 

Naftali Bennett’s party, Habayit Hayehudi, announces it will propose bill forbidding political prisoners’ release to vote on Sunday, shortly before 2nd group of murderous Palestinian prisoners to be freed.

By Attila Somfalvi

 

Habayit Hayehudi announced Thursday that on Sunday the party intends to raise to vote a bill prohibiting the release of terrorists, shortly before the scheduled second release of terrorists, as agreed under the renewed talks.

“Releasing terrorists in return to Tzipi Livni‘s right to meet with (Saeb) Erekat is very severe,” a Habayit Hayehudi official said about the peace talks, which are at an impasse.

The party official referred to the reports that Netanyahu will promote settlement development beyond the green line, saying: “The attempt to bind building in the settlements with releasing murderers is cynical and morally wrong. Continue Reading »

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| October 25, 2013
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Druze Colonel to be next Commander of IDF’s Golani Brigade

Col. Rassan Alian fought (& was wounded) in the 2nd Lebanon War as Commander of the Rotem Battalion.

“Rassan is also a brother: we went through Officers’ Training Course in the same company,” reports Naftali Bennett.

By Gil Ronen

 

Economics Minister Naftali Bennett, Chairman of the Bayit Yehudi faction, expressed satisfaction Thursday with the planned appointment of Col. Rassan Alian to head the Golani Brigade. Alian will be the first Druze to command the brigade.

Col. Rassan Alian – IDF Spokesman

The appointment will be formalized once Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon signs it.

“Rassan is a Druze,” Bennett told his Facebook friends. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| October 24, 2013
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IDF, Hamas ‘ping-pong’ on Twitter, inadvertently creating dialogue

 

 

IDF Spokesman tweets regarding successful mission, dragging response from Hamas, to which he in turn he replies on the IDF’s social media website. Lerner insists, ‘It’s not dialogue.’

By Michal Margalit

IDF accidentally broke its policy of non-negotiation with terror groups such as Hamas, in an online incident Tuesday, when IDF Spokesman Major Peter Lerner tweeted the news of a successful hit and was replied by Hamas, leading to back-and-forth tweets.

The Twitter debate

The Twitter debate

Major Lerner, the spokesman and Head of the International Media Branch of IDF, tweeted news of a successful hit of terrorist Mohammad Assi, who was behind a 2012 bus bombing in Tel-Aviv.

Continue Reading »
Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| October 24, 2013
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Video: Arabs Exploit ‘Olive Harvest’ for Terror Preparation

Local Jews catch Arabs ‘farmers’ filming adjacent Jewish town and making throat-cutting gestures on video – all as part of the ‘olive harvest.’

By Maayana Miskin

 

Jews living in Judea and Samaria (Shomron) have argued for years that many Arabs in the region use the olive harvest as a pretext to prepare the ground for attacks on Israeli communities.

Threatening gesture – Screenshot

The annual harvest often leads to conflict as Arabs and foreign left-wing activists insist on entering Jewish communities to pick olives – including communities where the olive harvest formerly led to fatal terrorism. The IDF provides them with security. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , , ,
| October 24, 2013
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Texas A&M University will open a campus in Nazareth, Northern Israel

 

For the 1st time, a renowned American university will open a new branch in an Arab city.

Education Minister Piron: ‘Significant step towards integrating Arabs in Israeli society’

By Tamar Trabelsi-Hadad

 

 

The prestigious Texas A&M University will open a new branch in the city of Nazareth in northern Israel, “Hashalom” Campus, in which some 2,500 students are expected to enroll.

Student - Photo: Reuters

Student – Photo: Reuters

The Council for Higher Education in Israel noted that this is the first time that a leading foreign university is opening a branch in an Arab city.

Students who will successfully complete their academic duties will receive a degree from Texas A&M. Continue Reading »

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| October 23, 2013
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Kuwait Report: Israeli warplanes destroy Syrian missiles headed to Hezbollah

 

Kuwaiti newspaper quotes unidentified Israeli security official reporting that the IAF targeted a missile shipment along Syrian-Lebanese border. This report follows local Lebanese reports suggesting Israeli activity in its airspace.

IDF declines to comment.

By Israel Hayom Staff

 

The Israel Air Force once again prevented a shipment of advanced missiles to Hezbollah along the Syrian-Lebanese border, a Kuwaiti newspaper reported on Wednesday.

Israel Air Force F-16I sufa – Photo courtesy: IDF’s Spokesperson’s office

The Kuwaiti newspaper Al Jarida quoted a senior Israeli security source as saying that on Monday Israeli warplanes targeted a missiles shipment. The report did not say whether the attack occurred in Syria or Lebanon.

Continue Reading »
Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| October 23, 2013
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7th Quake in a Week – This Time in Eilat

Israel’s unusual week of mini-earthquakes continues. Unlike previous tremors, this latest earthquake was felt in southern Israel.

By Ari Soffer

 

Israel’s unusual period of seismic activity continued today (Wednesday), as yet another small earthquake was felt – this time in the southernmost Israeli city of Eilat.

Although epicenter of the quake, which registered 3.3. on the Richter Scale, was located in the Egyptian town of Taaba, tremors were registered in the Israeli resort city. No damage or injuries occurred.

This is the seventh such mini-earthquake in a week, and Israel has been abuzz with speculation as to whether such a rare string of tremors could portend a much larger earthquake. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| October 23, 2013
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State comptroller: Jewish Marriage Protocols a Disaster

 

Israel’s State comptroller finds a hornet’s nest of irregularities in the marriage process for Jewish citizens, with rabbis double-charging, religious councils overcharging couples,  bookkeeping & receipts lacking, and almost no objective oversight.

By Israel Hayom Staff

 

The marriage registration process is all tied up in knots, characterized by missing records, financial irregularities and lack of enforcement of laws and regulations, the state comptroller’s annual report has found.

Groom ready to break wineglass in Jewish ceremony – Photo: Yehoshua Yosef

The Knesset State Control Committee will hold a hearing on Wednesday morning to discuss the sorry state of marriage registration in Israel.

Continue Reading »
Category: Israel News | Tags: , , ,
| October 23, 2013
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5th earthquake hits Northern Israel in past week – 3.3 this time

IDF’s Home Front Command releases earthquake guidelines amid recent tremors; latest quake centered northeast of Lake Kinneret.

By JPOST.COM STAFF, LAHAV HARKOV

 

 

 

A 3.3 magnitude earthquake struck in Israel’s North on Tuesday morning, the fifth tremor to hit the area in the last week.

Richter Scale [file photo]

Richter Scale [file photo] – Photo: Pichi Chuang/Reuters

No injuries or damage were reported in the earthquake.

The Geophysical Institute of Israel said that the quake’s epicenter was some five kilometers northeast of Kibbutz Ginosar near Lake Kinneret.

In light of the recent rash of earthquakes to hit the North, the IDF on Monday sent out a statement, calling on citizens to refresh their knowledge of earthquake procedure.

Continue Reading »
Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| October 23, 2013
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Latest Round of Palestinian-Israeli Peace Talks Deal with Water Rights

 

Newest round of peace talks opens in Jerusalem as Israel & Palestinians discuss the core issue of water rights.

By AFP

Palestinian and Israeli negotiators have held a new round of peace talks in Jerusalem, a Palestinian official said, saying it had focused on the issue of water resources.

Renewed Talks - Ynet

Monday’s session was attended by Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and Palestinian negotiators Mohammed Shtayeh and Saeb Erakat, the official said.

The official did not elaborate, but the question of water rights is one of the core issues that must be settled in any peace deal.

Israel controls most of the underground water resources in the West Bank, and the Palestinians want a more equitable share of them. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| October 22, 2013
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Rihanna set to wow Tel Aviv after Abu Dhabi mosque controversy


Tel Aviv is one of the last stops on Rihanna’s int’l tour which marks her 2nd visit to Israel.

Just prior to landing in Israel, she was asked to leave a mosque in Abu Dhabi due to her ‘sultry’ photo shoot there.

By Haaretz Staff

Tens of thousands of fans of pop singer Rihanna are currently flocking to Tel Aviv’s Park Hayarkon to see the Barbados-born star’s sole offering in Israel during her “Diamond Tour.”

Singer Rihanna performs at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California April 8, 2013.

Singer Rihanna performs at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California April 8, 2013 – Photo: Reuters

Israel is one of the last stops on Rihanna’s international tour, which began in March in New York. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| October 22, 2013
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Israeli Druze Join Assad vs. Israeli Arabs Join the Rebels

Israeli citizens are volunteering on both sides of Syria’s civil war. Golan Druze mostly support Assad while Israeli Arabs largely favor the rebel forces.

By Maayana Miskin

 

There are Israelis fighting on both sides of Syria’s civil war. While it has been known for months that some Israeli Arab men have entered Syria to join  rebel armies, Walla news is now reporting that several Druze men have snuck into Syria as well, to fight alongside President Bashar Assad’s forces.

Among them is 24 year-old Nadim Kadmani, who entered Syria illegally in 2012. Israeli police searched for him for weeks, until he phoned his parents and revealed that he was in Syria, and had been unable to make contact because he was being questioned by Assad’s forces. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| October 22, 2013
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IDF Proud of its 1st Bedouin Tank Commander

Cpl. Mustafa Tabash, who is still two weeks away from completing the Tank Commanders’ Course. says, “When soldiers have a hard time they look at me, who as a Bedouin did not have to enlist to the military,”

By Arutz Sheva

 

The IDF is about to receive its first Bedouin tank commander. While about 1,000 Bedouin Arabs serve in the IDF, most of them serve as trackers, or in the Bedouin reconaissance battalion. Cpl. Mustafa Tabash will become the first Bedouin tank commander in two weeks’ time, once he completes the Tank Commanders’ Course, reports the IDF Website.

Cpl.

Continue Reading »
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