Israel News

Israelis prepare their homes for Rosh Hashana….and for war

Supermarket chain reports rise in sales of canned goods, bottled water & adhesive tape for gas-proofing rooms.

In addition to war preparations, Israelis are buying food & gifts for the Jewish New Year.

By Hili Yacobi

With tension in Syria rising and Rosh Hashana rapidly approaching, Israeli shoppers have been busy in recent days.

Shoppers at a Rami Levy supermarket branch in Nesher, near Haifa, on Thursday – Photo: Michel Dot Com

On the one hand, Israelis are filling their shopping carts with food for holiday meals and gifts for their hosts. But at the same time, they’re grabbing adhesive tape for creating sealed rooms in case of chemical attack.

Category: Israel News | Tags: Rosh Hashana

israelandstuffcom | August 30, 2013

Healthier food for the IDF

IDF Technology & Logistics Branch are changing their soldiers’ diet from processed meats to grains, less fat & no preservatives.

By Reuven Weiss

The iconic IDF hotdogs are being replaced: The IDF’s Technology and Logistics Branch is overhauling soldiers’ diets, Yedioth Ahronoth reported. “This change, that has already begun, is meant to improve soldiers’ nourishment and make it healthier,” said Lieutenant Colonel Sandra Moshe, head of the branch’s food division.

Illustration Photo: Shutterstock

“The changes include using healthier products, such as whole grain cereal, less fat and more olive oil, using low fat foods, and introducing foods with no preservatives.” Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: food, IDF

israelandstuffcom | August 30, 2013

Interior Minister Saar: Returning to ‘1967 Borders’ Are Out of the Question

Interior Minister Saar said that Israel will never agree to the Abbas’ demands that Israel withdraw to the indefensible 1949 Armistice Line, the ‘Auschwitz borders’.

By Elad Benari

Interior Minister Gideon Saar (Likud) said on Thursday that Israel will never agree to pull back to the indefensible pre-1967 borders as part of a peace agreement with the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Saar made the remarks during a toast in honor of Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) which he hosted in Tel Aviv. The event was attended by ministers, Knesset members and mayors.

Saar explained that Israel was obliged to resume negotiations with the PA in order to maintain a series of security and international interests, but stressed that this time around it was necessary to negotiate using a different approach. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: 1967 Lines, Gideon Sa'ar, peace talks

U.S. Report: Intel tying Assad directly to chemical weapons attack is ‘no slam dunk’

American Intelligence officials say they haven’t been able to pinpoint the exact locations of Assad’s supplies of chemical weapons’ depot, assessing that Assad may have moved them in recent days.

By The Associated Press

The intelligence linking Syrian President Bashar Assad or his inner circle to an alleged chemical weapons attack that killed at least 100 people is no “slam dunk,” U.S. intelligence officials say.

Men search for survivors amid debris of collapsed buildings after what activists said was an air raid by forces loyal to Syria’s President Bashar Assad in Raqqa province, Syria, August 10, 2013. – Photo: Reuters

President Barack Obama declared unequivocally Wednesday that the Syrian government was responsible, while laying the groundwork for an expected U.S. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: chemical weapon, Syrian unrest

Kuwaiti Report: Israel Agreed to ‘Act With Restraint’ If Attacked By Syria

An article in a Kuwaiti newspaper reported that Arab leaders from the Gulf states have asked that Israel act “with restraint” if attacked by Syrian missiles, and Jerusalem agreed.

By David Lev

A Kuwaiti newspaper reported Thursday that Gulf leaders have been in touch with Israel, and have asked that Israel act “with restraint” in the event of an attack by Western nations on Syria. That restraint would be necessary if Bashar al-Assad responds to an attack against him by attacking Israel.

Scud launcher – Photo courtesy: US Navy

Earlier this week, Syrian officials said that if Syria was attacked, a coalition of nations and terror groups, including Syria, Iran, Lebanon, and Hezbollah, would respond with an all-out attack on Israel. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Gulf states, Kuwait, Syrian unrest

IDF Drafts Reservists as Precaution

There’s a ‘low probability’ that Syria would strike Israel, but the draft reflects the gov’t’s responsibility to prepare for all scenarios, “no matter how unlikely.”

By HERB KEINON, YAAKOV LAAPIN

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu called on Israelis to carry on with their daily routines Wednesday in light of a possible US strike on Syria, even as the security cabinet approved a limited call-up of reservists in vital military capacities.

Israeli soldiers evacuate a mock victim during a drill simulating a chemical attack May, 2013. – Photo: REUTERS

The dual message of “stay calm but be prepared,” one government official said, reflected the continued assessments in Jerusalem that there was a “low probability” that Syria would actually strike Israel, but also reflected the government’s responsibility to prepare for all sorts of scenarios, “no matter how unlikely.”

Category: Israel News | Tags: draft, IDF response, Syrian unrest

Interior Minister: Thousands of migrants will be deported after Jewish holidays

Thousands of asylum seekers & migrants will be deported from Israel within the coming month as part of a two-stage plan, says Interior Minister Sa’ar.

By Omri Efraim

Israel will deport thousands of illegal migrants and refugees from Sudan and Eritrea after the holiday season, Interior Minister Gideon Sa’ar revealed yesterday.

Interior Minister Gideon Sa’ar – Photo: Nir Keidar

The minister told the Knesset’s House Committee that Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein approved a few days ago an agreement signed between Israel and a country that agreed to absorb asylum seekers from Sudan and Eritrea.

Sa’ar said his office is expected to launch the operation to deport illegal migrants after the holidays. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: illegal migrants, Interior Minister

Dancing With the Enemy

Army investigating incident were IDF soldiers left patrol and began dancing to Psy’s Gangnam on the shoulders of young Palestinian clubbers in Hebron.

View the Video that is going viral.

By JPOST.COM STAFF

The Israel Defense Forces has launched an investigation after Israeli soldiers from the elite Givati Brigade were captured on camera dancing with young Palestinians at a club in the Jabara neighborhood of Hebron, Channel 2 reported Wednesday.

IDF soldiers deal with protesters in Hebron – Photo: Reuters

According to the report, the soldiers entered the club while on patrol on Monday, after hearing the song Gangnam Style by Psy coming from the building.

Category: Israel News | Tags: Hebron, IDF soldier

israelandstuffcom | August 28, 2013

Unlike 1st Gulf War, IDF deploys Israeli defensive missile technology against Syria

Additional Iron Dome batteries deployed in north including Israel’s Hetz defensive system.

‘IDF is prepared for any scenario, so no reason to change our routine,’ reports IDF spokesman.

By Yoav Zitun

Hetz (Arrow), the IAF’s missile interception system, has raised its alert level amid reports of a looming American attack in Syria in the coming days.

Iron Dome, Hetz, Patriot (Photo: Reuters, Defense Ministry)

Iron Dome, Hetz (Arrow), Patriot – Photo: Reuters, Defense Ministry

The IDF has also decided to deploy an additional Iron Dome missile defense system in the north. It will join a battery placed in Haifa a number of weeks ago. The IDF is considering deploying an additional battery in central Israel. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: Arrow 3, IDF, Iron Dome, Syrian missiles, Syrian unrest

israelandstuffcom | August 28, 2013

Norwegian FM: World refuses to bankroll Palestinians with blank-check forever

Espen Barth Eide praised Israelis for taking a very ‘difficult’ step in releasing prisoners, saying now the PA must also make concessions, and if progress is not made, ‘donations’ will stop.

By HERB KEINON

Both the Palestinians and Israel should know that the world will not bankroll Palestinian Authority state-building forever, and that if progress is not made the donations will stop, Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told The Jerusalem Post Tuesday.

Espen Barth Eide meet with PA President Abbas August 27, 2013. – Photo: REUTERS

“The donors will not be ready to keep funding Palestinian state-building much longer if we are not seeing a political horizon,” said Eide.

Category: Israel News | Tags: Norway, Palestinian Authority, Peace Process

Israel’s homefront on ‘alert’ for possible Syrian attack

PM Netanyahu convenes security cabinet as IDF announces major drill on the Golan Heights & Patriot anti-missile batteries in Haifa are put on alert.

Education Minister Shay Piron: School system ready for any deterioration of security situation.

By Gideon Allon, Hili Yacobi, Daniel Siryoti, Yael Branovsky, Nitzi Yaakov & Israel Hayom Staff

With U.S.-led military action in Syria potentially imminent, the Knesset Homefront Preparedness Subcommittee will hold a special meeting on Wednesday to examine the homefront’s readiness for a Syrian attack against Israel.

A Patriot anti-missile battery in Haifa – Photo: Herzl Shapira

“The state’s duty is to be ready for any scenario,” MK Eli Yishai, the subcommittee chairman, said.

Category: Israel News | Tags: Patriot missiles, Syrian unrest

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Justice Minister Livni ‘Undermining Israel’s Interests’ in Peace-Talks

PM Netanyahu reportedly concerned over Livni’s independent “promises” to Abbas’ negotiators & the U.S., including dividing Jerusalem.

By Gil Ronen

Daily newspaper Maariv reported Tuesday that there are differences of opinion and approach between the two heads of Israel’s negotiating team in talks with the Palestinian Authority (PA) – Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, and Attorney Yitzhak Molcho, who represents Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

While Livni wants large negotiation teams and a signing of a permanent status deal at the end of the nine months allotted to the “peace process” negotiations, Molcho is opposed to this approach and at this point is interested only in reaching an agreement on principles regarding the core issues. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: peace talks, Tzipi Livni

Leaders from Israeli Arab communities learn fair policing techniques in Northern Ireland

The Abraham Fund Initiatives for Integration & Equality of Arab citizens organized a trip to N. Ireland for 15 Israeli-Arab community leaders.

By ARIEL BEN SOLOMON

The Abraham Fund Initiatives for the integration and equality of Arab citizens organized a trip last week for 15 Arab-Israeli community leaders to Northern Ireland, to learn from its police force.

Leaders watch work of local civilian ‘Advisory Committee’ to a N. Ireland police station commander – Photo: Courtesy

The goal of the trip was to expose the Arab-Israeli participants to the drastic reforms that took place within the police of Northern Ireland which now provide more equitable services to the minority community.

Category: Israel News | Tags: Arab Israelis, Ireland, Israel Police