Palestinian woman: I’ll be killed if deported to territories

West Bank woman tells Tel Aviv court she will be murdered for ‘disgracing’ her family after refusing to marry her cousin at young age

 

 

A 23-year-old Palestinian woman who was arrested more than a week ago for residing in Israel illegally said she would be killed if sent back to the Palestinian Authority for “disgracing” her family.

'Tough times.' The woman Photo: Gilad Morag

'Tough times.' The woman Photo: Gilad Morag

“I’m originally from the West Bank, but I’ve been living in Israel for the past three years,” she told the Tel Aviv Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday. “I refused to wed, and I tarnished the family’s honor by running away. Continue Reading »

Israeli researchers: Group of Colorado Indians have common Jewish ancestor

Sheba Medical Center geneticists find common genetic mutation, often called the ‘Ashkenazi mutation.’

Sheba Medical Center geneticists have found that a population of Indians in the U.S. state of Colorado has genetic Jewish roots going back to the expulsion of Jews from Spain.

 

Indian tribes - Reuters - May 30, 2012

Indian tribes meeting in Denver, Colorado. Some Indians from the state have a unique genetic mutation usually found among Ashkenazi Jews - Photo by Reuters

The common marker was a unique genetic mutation on the BRCA1 gene. This mutation, commonly known as the “Ashkenazi mutation,” is found in Jews of Ashkenazi origin and is associated with an increased risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. Continue Reading »

Elbit to Supply Finnish Army

Israeli firm awarded contract for Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance program.

 

Elbit Systems announced Monday that it was awarded a contract by the Finnish Army, to supply advanced dismounted soldier systems, in the first phase of a comprehensive ISTAR (Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance) program.

The solution offered by Elbit Systems includes enhanced observation soldier equipment (MARS), comprehensive situation awareness software, cutting edge combat soldier wearable radio (PNR1000) and computer systems intended to enhance the operational capabilities of the Finnish Army in the areas of reconnaissance, terrain dominance and dismounted soldiers.

Elbit’s solution will also assist the Finnish Army in developing new combat doctrines, and serve as a basis for developing the military’s future forward observation program. Continue Reading »

Did Syria’s Rebels Pass Israel Assad’s Secrets?

A Syrian newspaper claims Israel and the US have obtained the crown jewels of Damascus’ military intelligence secrets from the rebels

Syrian state news outlets claimed Tuesday rebels from the Free Syrian Army passed sensitive military secrets to Israel and the United States.

Syrian Rebels

Syrian Rebels - Reuters

“The insurgents in Syria and Israel and the U.S. gave military secrets,” a lengthy article in a Syrian newspaper said, citing a report of some 3,000 pages said to detail “some of Syria’s most sensitive military secrets.”

According to the report, the information mentioned in the report came from officers and soldiers who deserted the Syrian Army at the beginning of the popular uprising against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime over 14 months ago. Continue Reading »

Swiss chain won’t label settlement goods as Israeli

 

Switzerland’s largest retailer says the decision is in the interests of transparency

Switzerland’s largest retail chain announced Tuesday it would join a growing list of countries and sellers refusing to mark goods produced in the West Bank as “Made in Israel.”

 

A Migros location in Zurich. (photo credit: CC-BY lejoe, Flickr)
A Migros location in Zurich. – Photo: CC-BY lejoe, Flickr

The moves comes just weeks after South Africa and Denmark said they would stop labeling products made in the settlements as Israeli.

Migros said the decision is in the interests of greater transparency, and is designed to help the customers to make an informed choice. Spokeswoman Monika Weibel said Tuesday that Migros doesn’t support boycott calls by pro-Palestinian groups but does want to let customers decide which products they want to buy. Continue Reading »

Essay by Daniel Pipes: Counting Palestinian refugees

Only about 1% are real refugees who fit the agency’s definition of “people whose normal place of residence was Palestine between June 1946 – May 1948, who lost both their homes & means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict.” The other 99% are descendants of those refugees, or what I call fake refugees.

 

 

The fetid, dark heart of the Arab war on Israel, I have long argued, lies not in disputes over Jerusalem, checkpoints, or “settlements.” Rather, it concerns the so-called Palestinian refugees.

So-called, because of the nearly 5 million official refugees served by the U.N.

Continue Reading »

UN official criticizes Israel over ongoing Gaza blockade

UNRWA commissioner: ‘The people who really have been penalized are not the people in power in Gaza; it is the common people who are being impoverished by the blockade, but also the business community’

 

The UN official responsible for Palestinian refugees said Tuesday that Israel has been too slow to relax its blockade of Gaza, which has devastated the isolated economy and failed to achieve its security goals.

Israel and Egypt closed their crossings with Gaza to all but humanitarian aid after Hamas violently seized power in the coastal strip in June 2007, exacerbating poverty among the 1.4 million residents. Continue Reading »

Report: Iran sought to strike Jewish, U.S. targets in Azerbaijan

Plot linked to Iran was part of shadow war between Iran and West, unnamed officials tell Washington Post; Iran apparently suspended attempts ahead of current round of nuclear talks with six world powers.

Iran has been implicated in a foiled plot to attack foreign and Jewish targets in Azerbaijan, according to a report published by the Washington Post on Monday.

Car bomb New Delhi

An injured person is carried from a burning car belonging to the Israeli Embassy as it is in flames after an explosion, in New Delhi, India - Photo by AP

The report quotes unnamed “U.S. and Middle Eastern security officials” who cited a six-page official report containing details of the investigation. Continue Reading »

Israeli Mountain Climber to Receive Medal of Honor

Nadav Ben-Yehuda, who saved the life of a Turkish climber during his excursion on Mount Everest, will receive Presidential Medal of Honor.

 

Israeli mountain climber Nadav Ben Yehuda, who saved the life of a Turkish climber during an excursion on Mount Everest, will receive the Presidential Medal of Honor at an official ceremony in Jerusalem next month.

Mountain climbing

Mountain climbing - Reuters

Ben Yehuda, who was only 300 meters away from reaching the peak of Everest before he noticed Aydin Irmak lying unconscious on the ground, abandoned his climb and risked his own life in order to save his fellow climber. Continue Reading »

Protests fail to disrupt Habimah’s London show

Israel’s national theater performs Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice; pro-Israel groups organize counter-protest.

LONDON – Habimah appeared at London’s world famous Globe Theater on Monday despite protests, after anti-Israel activists failed to persuade organizers to cancel their performance in an international festival celebrating William Shakespeare’s work.
The Globe Theater in London

The Globe Theater in London - Photo: Shakespearesglobe.com

Israel’s national theater was performing a Hebrew version of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice on Monday and Tuesday. Both performances are sold out.

There was a strong police presence outside the theater Monday evening to prevent any disturbances after anti-Israel groups called for protesters to demonstrate because Habimah “entertains colonists illegally settled on Palestinian land.”

Continue Reading »

‘Flame virus aims to gather intelligence’

Tehran admits being targeted by what could be most sophisticated malware yet; computer experts say only country capable of developing such complex virus

 

Iranian authorities have admitted that malicious software dubbed Flame has attacked it, and instructed to run an urgent inspection of all computer systems in the country.

While no one knows who is behind “the most sophisticated virus of all times,” the bottom line, computer experts say, is that only a state could have developed such a complex virus.

Illustration Photo: Shutterstock

(Illustration) Photo: Shutterstock

Flame can gather data files, remotely change settings on computers, turn on PC microphones to record conversations, take screen shots and log instant messaging chats. Continue Reading »

Israeli chess master’s tenth match in bid for world championship ends in draw

Championship will be decided in rapid games said to be Anand’s strength.

MOSCOW – Defending champion Viswanathan Anand forced challenger Boris Gelfand to think more deeply on Monday than during the previous 11 games, but the Israeli came up with a brilliant move that forced a 10th draw and sent the match into a tiebreaker.

The two grandmasters will now play four rounds of rapid chess, in which each player gets 25 minutes to make his moves, plus 10 extra seconds for every move. If that round doesn’t decide a winner, the pair will face off in several rounds of blitz chess – five minutes plus three extra seconds per move.

Continue Reading »

Three Dimensional Kits Make Israel’s Case Crystal Clear

A NY attorney creates a kit that shows Israel’s point of view, how Israel is crucial to world security and shows up the water theft lie.

 

Mark Langfan, a successful New York attorney and staunch supporter of Israel, came to the conclusion one day that the truth about Israel must become accessible and easily understood.

Not one for letting  things stop at the idea stage, the talented attorney created an original and easy to grasp visual method that can – in minutes – explain the problems Israel faces when it talks of “defensible borders”, expose the truth about the Palestinian Authority water resources canard and prove the way Israel’s safety affects the world.

Continue Reading »

Archaeologists find rare ancient jewelry at Megiddo

Stash of 3,000-year-old jewelry unearthed by archaeologists near site of biblical Armageddon in northern Israel. Co-director of dig says ‘jewelry offers glimpse into Canaanite high society’

 

Israeli archaeologists have discovered a rare trove of 3,000-year-old jewelry, including a ring and earrings, hidden in a ceramic jug near the ancient city of Megiddo, where the New Testament predicts the final battle of Armageddon.

Archaeologists who unearthed the jug during excavations at the site in 2010 left it in a laboratory while they waited for a molecular analysis of what was inside. When they were finally able to clean it, pieces of gold jewelry – a ring, earrings, and beads – dating to around 1,100 BC poured out. Continue Reading »

Anticipating INS Crocodile, More Submarine Crews Trained

 

Israel Navy prepares to receive its fourth submarine, the INS Tanin (Crocodile), motivates youth to join submarines.

By Gil Ronen

 

The Israeli Navy is preparing to receive its fourth Dolphin-class submarine by training a larger number of combat submarine crewmen and marine commando forces. The IDF Website quoted a reliable Navy source as saying approximately 10% more submarine crewmen will be trained at first.

Approximately two weeks ago, Israel Navy Submarine Tanin (Crocodile) was launched in the city of Kiel, Germany and officially handed over to the Ministry of Defense and the Israeli Navy.

“The submarine is currently undergoing tests, which only a limited number of officers participate in,” an Israeli Navy official told the IDF website. Continue Reading »