Archive for Mid-East News

| March 26, 2015
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Switzerland, Not EU Member, Bankrolls Hamas to Retain Control in Gaza

Even as the EU continues to sanction Hamas, the influx of Swiss financial support now bolsters the terrorist regime that was on its last legs.

By Israel Today Staff

 

Switzerland has put together a generous financial package to prop up the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip after billions in promised foreign donations following last summer’s Gaza war failed to materialize.

That according to Palestinian officials who spoke to Israel’s NRG news portal, which reported that as part of the deal, the Swiss government would pay the salaries of thousands of Hamas members – many of whom are known terrorists – thereby propping up Hamas rule.

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| March 26, 2015
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Palestinians protest when Egypt stops electricity supply to Gaza

Egyptian government cuts electricity to Palestinians as a result of their outstanding debt, leaving one Gazan to declare,  “Even when we had the war with the Zionists, they did not cut off our power supply and water like el-Sissi the criminal.”

By Daniel Siryoti

 

Residents of Khan Younis and Rafah took to the streets Tuesday after Egypt had cut off power to parts of the southern Gaza Strip.

The Rafah border crossing. Egypt has recently stepped up its counter-terrorism operations in the area – Photo: AFP

The protesters vented their anger at Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and his government in light of reports that the decision to take parts of those towns off the grid was made by high-ranking officials in Egypt’s Ministry of Electricity and Energy.

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| March 25, 2015
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Pulitzer Prize winner Bret Stephens slams Obama as ‘Orwellian’ in WSJ column

Wall Street Journal foreign affairs columnist Bret Stephens writes, “Under Mr. Obama, friends are enemies, denial is wisdom, capitulation is victory,” so Stephens advises Israel’s leaders to “repay contempt with contempt.”

By Israel Hayom Staff

 

In an exceptionally sharp critique published on Monday, Wall Street Journal foreign affairs columnist and Pulitzer Prize winner Bret Stephens ripped apart U.S. President Barack Obama’s foreign policy.

George Orwell – Photo: AP

The op-ed, titled “The Orwellian Obama Presidency,” detailed the flaws of Obama’s approach to foreign affairs. “To adapt George Orwell’s motto for Oceania: Under Mr. Obama, friends are enemies, denial is wisdom, capitulation is victory,” Stephens wrote.

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| March 22, 2015
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Hamas Pledges to ‘Liberate’ PA From Fatah ‘Traitors’

Gaza leader promises war on Judea & Samaria, for takeover of Jerusalem in their effort to ‘liberate Palestine.’

By Dalit Halevi & Tova Dvorin

 

Hamas has pledged a takeover of Judea-Samaria Saturday, after one of its leaders declared “the liberation of all Palestine” – including the Palestinian Authority (PA) – a  strategic area of ​​utmost importance in implementing long-term objectives of the terror group.

Mahmoud Al-Zahar – Reuters

Speaking from an event  to mark the release of terrorist Ismail al-Zahar from Israeli prison after a 12-year sentence, Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar stated that there are “a thousand courses of action” to break the Israeli travel and import restrictions on Gaza, and he vowed to force Israel to release more terrorists, similar to the way prisoners were released as part of the Shalit deal.(i.e.

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| March 18, 2015
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EU Already Pressuring Israel As They Ignore Plight of Assyrian Christians Just Miles Away

ISIS is systematically destroying the Christian Civilization in Syria and the world watches, as thousands of traumatized Assyrian Christians flee from their homes & villages, while being attacked.

By Arutz Sheva Staff

 

Waiting in an aid line outside Lebanon’s capital Beirut, Assyrian Christian Francie Yaacoub remembers the well-stocked home she left behind in Syria as she fled advancing Islamic State (ISIS) group jihadists.

Protest for Middle Eastern Christians (file)

“We left behind a house full of everything. Why do we now have to stand at the church door?” she asked quietly as she waited to receive aid at the Assyrian diocese of Sid al-Boushriyeh, reports AFP.

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| March 17, 2015
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Jordan worried over Iranian Revolutionary Guard & Hezbollah fighters on its border

Al-Hayat reports: Jordanian foreign minister warns Tehran that the deployment of thousands of Iranian Revolutionary Guard troops & Hezbollah fighters along the Jordanian-Syrian border could undermine regional stability & spark a military clash.

By Daniel Siryoti, News Agencies & Israel Hayom Staff

 

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard along with Hezbollah operatives have recently begun deploying along the Syrian-Jordanian border, the London-based Al-Hayat newspaper reported on Monday.

A Jordanian soldier stands guard on the Jordan-Syrian border [Archive] – Photo: Reuters

According to the report, the Iranian force deployed near the border, which mostly arrived directly from Iran, comprises between 10,000 and 15,000 soldiers.

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| March 16, 2015
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Netanyahu’s predictions actualizing as Saudi prince says deal with Iran risks local arms race

In warning that a nuclear deal with Iran will spur nuclear proliferation in the Gulf, former Saudi intelligence chief says, ‘If Iran is allowed the ability to enrich uranium… we’ll want the same.’

By Ynet

 

Any terms that world powers grant Iran under a nuclear deal will be sought by Saudi Arabia and other countries, risking wider proliferation of atomic technology, a senior Saudi prince warned on Monday in a BBC interview.

US Secretary of State John Kerry in Riyadh – Photo: AFP

“I’ve always said whatever comes out of these talks, we will want the same,” said Prince Turki al-Faisal, who has previously served as head of Saudi intelligence and Riyadh’s ambassador to Washington and London but is no longer a government official. Continue Reading »

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| March 12, 2015
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Report: Islamic Jihad-mediated reconciliation between Egypt and Hamas

According to the report, Egypt agreed to open the Rafah border crossing with Gaza twice weekly under PA control & Hamas agrees to refrain from inciting against Egypt or interfere in Egyptian affairs, especially in the Sinai.

By i24news

 

Egyptian authorities on Wednesday agreed to an Islamic Jihad-mediated reconciliation with the Islamist group Hamas, the Palestinian news agency Ma’an reported.

Young Palestinians waving Hamas flags February 5, 2015 – Photo: Said Khatib/AFP/Archives

“Egypt has called on Hamas to renege on its ideology that comes from the Muslim Brotherhood,” senior Egyptian security officials told Ma’an.

According to the report, as part of the agreement Egypt agreed to open the Rafah border crossing with Gaza twice weekly to start with before opening it on a permanent basis. Continue Reading »

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| March 10, 2015
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Israel sends 4 truckloads of cement to Gaza as Qatar begins rebuilding 1,000 homes

Qatari official begins project to rebuild 1,000 homes as part of their $1 billion aid pledge, saying little of the world’s $5.4 billion that was pledged, has reached Gaza.

By REUTERS

 

A Qatari official visiting a Gaza neighborhood heavily bombed in last summer’s war with Israel said on Tuesday the Gulf Arab state had begun a project to rebuild 1,000 homes as part of a $1 billion aid pledge.

Trucks at the Kerem Shalom Crossing in Gaza [file]- Photo: Ibraheem Abu Mustafa-Reuters

Mohammad al-Amadi, head of the Qatari Committee to Rebuild Gaza, said that earlier in the day Israel had allowed four truckloads of cement into the Gaza Strip so that the planned construction of the dwellings could begin. Continue Reading »

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| March 10, 2015
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President Abbas has PA arrest 100 Hamas members after Fatah official arrested in Gaza

Abbas’ Palestinian Authority forces round up dozens of Hamas suspects in massive punitive sweep against the Gaza terror group, after they arrested a senior Fatah official in the Strip.

By Elior Levy

 

The Palestinian Authority’s security forces arrested over 100 Hamas members in the past two weeks, a senior Palestinian defense official told Ynet.

The operations reached a climax on Sunday night when – in an unusual step – the forces arrested 40 Hamas members, including released detainees, academics, and students in a coordinated effort conducted in multiple cities across the West Bank.

The extensive arrests are being carried out at a time even as Israel continued to hold the PA’s tax funds – for the third consecutive month. Continue Reading »

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| March 9, 2015
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Unreliable Obama forcing Saudi Arabia to seek Pakistani nuclear technology

Just as Netanyahu predicted: Fearful over a ‘bad deal’ brokered by the White House & Iran, Riyadh is reportedly drafting a nuclear “back-up plan” to counter dangerous P5+1 agreement, with Pakistan ready to convey their nuclear technology.

By Eli Leon, News Agencies & Israel Hayom Staff

 

Saudi Arabia has stepped up efforts to pursue its own nuclear program, Fox News reported Sunday. Riyadh’s interest is said to be a result of its anxiety over the nuclear deal being negotiated between Iran and world powers, which the Saudis do not believe will halt Iran’s race toward a nuclear weapon.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif arriving in Riyadh [Archive] – Photo: AFP

According to the report, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, ahead of a visit by U.S.

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| March 6, 2015
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French Foreign Minister: Tehran’s nuclear commitments are ‘bad deal’

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Friday that far more work needs to be done, Iran’s commitments simply do not go far enough.

By REUTERS

 

Commitments offered by Iran in talks with six world powers on its nuclear program do not go far enough and more work needs to be done, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Friday.

Snowflakes fall as Republican Guards stand in formation in the courtyard of the Elysee Palace. – Photo: REUTERS

Fabius said he had invited US Secretary of State John Kerry, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and the foreign ministers of Germany and Britain to Paris on Saturday to review the state of the Iran nuclear negotiations. Continue Reading »

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| March 4, 2015
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Al-Arabiya Editor Suggests Obama Heed Netanyahu’s Counsel

In an unexpected op-ed posted by the editor-in-chief of a fiercely anti-Israel newspaper, Faisal Abbas admits ‘this time’ Netanyahu is right, and Iran must be dealt with.

By Ari Yashar

 

Al-Arabiya‘s English edition editor-in-chief Faisal J. Abbas wrote a surprising op-ed on Tuesday, calling on US President Barack Obama to listen to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu after the latter addressed Congress on the dangers of an Iran nuclear deal being formulated.

Netanyahu – YouTube screenshot

Abbas, whose paper is openly anti-Israel and Saudi-owned, began by scornfully conceding “it is extremely rare for any reasonable person to ever agree with anything Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says or does. 

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| March 3, 2015
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Saudi Columnist Supports Netanyahu, Condemns Obama’s “Foolish Behavior”

Top Saudi government-controlled paper says Israeli PM Netanyahu’s speech will serve Gulf interests “much more than the foolish behavior of one of the worst American presidents.”

By Hillel Fendel

 

A look at Saudi Arabia’s news media shows that the Persian Gulf monarchy stands squarely behind Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s efforts Tuesday in Congress.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman – Reuters

In an article in Monday’s edition of the Saudi daily Al-Jazirah (no relation to the Qatar-based television network), columnist Dr. Ahmad Al-Faraj comes out strongly against U.S. President Barack Obama. “I believe that Netanyahu’s conduct will serve our interests, the people of the Gulf,” he writes, “much more than the foolish behavior of one of the worst American presidents.”
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| March 3, 2015
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Hamas: Int’l Siege of Gaza Won’t Deter Production of Rockets to Attack Israel Again

Completely ignoring the rehabilitation of the strip and the suffering of the Gazans, Hamas has focused on rebuilding missile arsenal and it’s tunnels construction despite the int’l siege.

By Arutz Sheva Staff

 

A senior Hamas terrorist said Monday his Islamist group which controls Gaza is rebuilding its heavily depleted rocket arsenal to prepare for a new terror war against Israel.

“Any regional or international attempt to lay siege to Hamas or its armed wing is bound to fail,” said Marwan Eissa, a commander of Hamas’s “military branch,” the Al-Qassam Brigades, reports AFP.

Hamas is “not looking for confrontation” with Israel, he said, as quoted by Hamas-run news agency Al-Ray. 

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