Germany: Egypt must affirm treaty with Israel

Westerwelle, Germany’s foreign minister, says he expects Cairo to avoid elevating gas crisis to political level.

 

In the first international comment on Egypt-Israel gas dustup, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Tuesday that Egyptian leaders, present and future, must affirm the country’s peace treaty with Israel.
BEDUIN man looks at a gas pipeline in Sinai - Photo: REUTERS
BEDUIN man looks at a gas pipeline in Sinai – Photo: REUTERS

Westerwelle said that he expects the relevant parties in Egypt to take a clear stance on peace and to not let the gas issue reach a political level.

Egypt on Sunday terminated a long-term gas deal with Israel, prompting a diplomatic spate between the two countries.

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True heroes of Israel

Op-ed: Israel must rectify mistakes in way it treats widows of IDF soldiers who have fallen in battle – by MK Danny Danon

There is one day in the year when all Israelis feel the excruciating pain endured by our heroic bereaved families. On Remembrance Day the anguish, the sorrow, the sense of loss envelopes all of us, yet also pride that these families feel on a daily basis, evident on the faces of all Israelis.

We Israelis know how to argue and debate with one another in a fashion that sometimes seems overly wrought with emotions to outsiders, but when it comes to the honor and respect we feel for these brave families, our unity knows no bounds. Continue Reading »

El and Al? Israeli airline mulls splitting into two companies

One of the two companies would specialize in premium long-haul flights to destinations such as the U.S. and the Far East, while the second would compete against low-cost airlines on European routes.

El Al Israel Airlines is considering splitting into two companies as part of a new strategic plan – a low-cost carrier and a premium carrier.

Indeed, the airline needs efficiency measures and might face new competition due to the open-skies agreement that Israel signed with the European Union.

One of the two companies would specialize in premium long-haul flights to destinations such as the United States and the Far East, while the second would compete against low-cost airlines on European routes.

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UN Amb. Prosor Explodes ‘Myths’ of PA-Israeli ‘Struggle’

Amb. Prosor explodes myths. ‘How can Israel-PA conflict be the key to stopping Assad and Ahmadinejad? Jerusalem not Jewish

Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Ron Prosor broke down several myths Monday in an “Open Debate on the Situation in the Middle East” in the United Nations Security Council.

UN Security Council

UN Security Council - Photo by Reuters

After quoting Winston Churchill’s statement, “In the time that it takes a lie to get halfway around the world, the truth is still getting its pants on,” Prosor methodically brought up and broke down myths that he said have fertile ground in the Middle East. “Facts often remain buried in the sand. Continue Reading »

Israel housing prices rising 3rd-fastest in world

Prices fall 1.2% in 2011 but social justice protest fail to make significant dent in prices; global housing prices continue to fall around the world.

 

Despite the recent social justice protests, Israel has held on to its spot as the third-hottest housing market in the world, according to a survey by CNBC, based on data from real estate agents Knight Frank. The survey found that housing prices in Israel jumped more than 21percent in 2009 and16% in 2010.

Israel ranked third with a five-year growth of 54.5%, bumping Singapore into fourth place with five-year growth of 50.5%, but well behind China in top spot with five-year growth of 110.9% and Hong Kong in second place with growth of 93.7%.

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Gaza’s Hamas rulers will begin teaching Hebrew in schools

Education Ministry official says students should be introduced to as many languages as possible. PA: Shame Hamas-Fatah row affecting education

 

A senior Hamas official in Gaza said the territory’s terrorist rulers intend to begin teaching Hebrew for high school students beginning next year.

Students in Gaza Photo: AP

Students in Gaza - Photo: AP

Ziad Thabet, the Education Ministry undersecretary, said Monday the government is trying to find and train teachers. He says students should be introduced to as many languages as possible.

Hebrew, the chief language of Israelis, is now only offered as a university course.

Thabet says the Gaza government still needs to approve the decision, but it is likely to go ahead. Continue Reading »

Netanyahu was briefed on efforts to stop ’60 Minutes’ report on Israel’s Christians

PM was fully updated by Israeli ambassador to U.S. Michael Oren on his attempts to halt an investigative report on Israel’s treatment of its Christian community which he thought would harm Israel’s interests.

 

The attempts by Israeli ambassador Michael Oren to halt the broadcast of a “60 Minutes” investigative report on the Christian community in Israel and the West Bank were carried out after a series of consultations with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his political adviser Ron Dermer.

Benjamin Netanyahu

Benjamin Netanyahu - Photo by: Reuters

It is unclear whether Netanyahu or Dermer were the ones who instructed or suggested that Oren directly address the president of CBS in an attempt to prevent the broadcast, but the two were fully informed on the affair almost since its start.

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New Technology Turns Any Mirror Into a 3D Display

Microsoft Israel Innovation Labs invents Alice, which creates a compelling and interactive three-dimensional effect.

Arutz Sheva attended Microsoft Israel R&D Center’s fourth annual Think Next 2012 conference in Tel Aviv and met the (Innovation Labs) iLabs team, which has developed a new technology.

The technology, called Alice, creates a compelling and interactive three-dimensional effect using a screen and a Kinect camera.

Mirror Mirror on the Wall – are These Virtual Elements or Physical?

Mirror Mirror on the Wall - are These Virtual Elements or Physical?

 

According to Rotem Bennet of Innovation Labs, the technology allows for any mirror to become a three-dimensional display.

The technology can be used for window shopping, he added, since any window has some reflective material. Continue Reading »

Druze professor appointed ambassador to New Zealand

FM Lieberman chooses Hebrew Literature Professor Naim Araidi to represent Israel in New Zealand

 

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has appointed Druze Professor for Hebrew Literature Naim Araidi as Israel’s ambassador to New Zealand, Yedioth Ahronoth reported Sunday. This is the first time a member of the Druze community is appointed an ambassador in a political appointment.

Naim Araidi Photo: Courtesy of the Araidi family

Naim Araidi Photo: Courtesy of the Araidi family

Born in Kfar Maghar, Araidi, 62, wrote his doctorate on the poetry of Uri Zvi Grinberg. He gives regular classes at the Haifa and Bar-Ilan universities, serves as the dean at the Arab Academic College for Education and is a member of the Sapir Prize board. Continue Reading »

Termination of Israeli-Egyptian natural gas agreement serves dangerous precedent

Move may be intended to pressure Israel to give up lawsuit for $8 billion in compensation for damages.

Mohamed Shoeb, head of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company, announced Sunday evening, that the company will terminate the agreement to provide natural gas to Israel, after a decision had been made on Thursday, due to what he had termed “Israel’s repeated breaching of the agreement.”

Shoeb, in interview on Al-Hayat television, stressed that the deal termination was due to failure on the part of the Israeli side to transfer the payments owed by Israel for some months and “had nothing to do with the repeated attacks on the pipeline.”

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Saudi Hacker who Hit Israel Dies at 28

A top Saudi hacker who targeted Jews and Israel has died at age 28 of an asthma attack.

A top Saudi hacker who targeted Israel and Jews has died at age 28, Saudi media reported Sunday. The man, who was not named, died of an asthma attack brought on by summer sandstorms.

The hacker, who called himself “Cyber Terrorist,” was known for hacking well-protected sites including Microsoft. He targeted Jewish and Israeli sites in particular, as well as a site belonging to Danish cartoonists who drew cartoons of Mohammed.

A fellow Saudi hacker calling himself “hell cyber” told the media that “Cyber Terrorist” had put “defending Islam and the Prophet” as his top priority. Continue Reading »

IDF boards ship allegedly smuggling arms to Gaza

Israel Navy vessels intercept ‘HS Beethoven’, detected about 160 miles from Israel flying a Liberian flag.

 

Commandos from the navy’s Flotilla 13 unit boarded a cargo ship, the HS Beethoven, in the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday night on suspicion it was trying to smuggle weapons to the Gaza Strip.

illustrative photo - Photo: Andreas Manolis / Reuters

illustrative photo - Photo: Andreas Manolis / Reuters

The ship, which was flying a Liberian flag, was intercepted by Israel Navy vessels approximately 260 km. from Israel’s coast. Commandos boarded the ship with the captain’s consent and began searching cargo containers for arms.

IDF officers said that searches aboard the ship could continue until the morning. Continue Reading »

Egypt ends gas deal with Israel, stakeholder says

Egypt’s energy companies inform EMG they have terminated agreement to supply gas to Israel. Source: Deal’s termination will set Egypt 30 years back, ‘both economically and politically’

 

Egypt‘s energy companies have terminated a long-term deal to supply Israel with gas after the cross-border pipeline sustained months of sabotage since a revolt last year, a stakeholder in the deal said on Sunday.

Blast at Egypt gas pipeline (archives) Photo: EPA

Blast at Egypt gas pipeline (archives) - Photo: EPA

Ampal-American Israel Corporation, a partner in the East Mediterranean Gas Company (EMG), which operates the pipeline, said the Egyptian companies involved had notified EMG they were “terminating the gas and purchase agreement.” Continue Reading »

New Yorkers seek new Zionist high from Israeli gas mask bongs

Israeli model 4A1 gas masks on display in the East Village might not protect you from a chemical weapons attack. That’s because their protective filters have been removed and replaced with foot-long acrylic bongs meant for smoking marijuana.

Israel has a shortage of civilian gas masks, but you wouldn’t know it from walking down Manhattan’s St. Mark’s Place, where the masks are on sale in half a dozen stores for a mere $25 each.

Gas masks with bongs

Israeli gas masks on display in Manhattan, with bongs attached to them - Photo by: Claudio Papapietro, The Forward

The Israeli model 4A1 gas masks on display in the East Village — where storefront noodle shops bump up against vintage clothing stores — might not protect you from a chemical weapons attack.

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‘Lebanese-Style’ Terror Ambush Near Hevron

Sophisticated roadside explosive targets civilians who escape unhurt miraculously. Israeli press ignores the story.

Two Jewish civilians were targeted by a sophisticated Arab roadside bomb Wednesday night near Hevron but escaped unhurt miraculously. The serious incident was hardly reported at all in the press, which was busy counting the number of blows dealt to anarchists who tried to block a major thoroughfare.

Combat soldiers in live-fire drill

Combat soldiers in live-fire drill - Israel news photo: IDF spokesman

Chaim Siton, a resident of Avigail in southern Mount Hevron, was driving home with a friend on the dark and largely deserted road, when he saw a piece of black fabric waving in the wind and thought it was a dog running toward the road. Continue Reading »