April 11, 2018
Netanyahu assures Sderot residents: Security is number one concern
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke reassuringly Monday (9th) to residents of Sderot, a town of about 25,000 people situated near the southern part of the Gaza Strip. Having suffered many terror attacks over the years, Sderot is one of the communities currently threatened by the violent Hamas protests, including attempted infiltrations into Israel through the border fence.
During a signing ceremony for an umbrella agreement between government ministries, the Israel Land Authority and the municipal authorities that will allow construction work to begin on a new infrastructure in the city, Netanyahu put the ongoing clashes just a few kilometers away into perspective.
“The first thing that is happening here may be summarized in one word,” he stated. “Security, security for Sderot, security for the area adjacent to the Gaza Strip, security for the Negev, security for Israel, security in the future.”
(worldisraelnews.com)
Palestinian journalist killed in Gaza was Hamas security officer
Yasser Murtaja, the Palestinian journalist shot near the Gaza border on Friday (6th), had been an officer in the Hamas security apparatus for years, the Israeli Walla news site reported Tuesday (10th), citing Israeli security officials. “We were dealing with someone who was active in the security apparatus’ work on a daily basis and did much to help them,” a defense official said.
(walla.co.il; jpost.com)
As Fatah-Hamas feud deepens, PA withholds salaries from workers in Gaza
The Palestinian Authority has paid salaries to its West Bank employees this month, but not those in the Gaza Strip, officials said Monday (9th), amid an ongoing split with the Strip’s Islamist rulers – terror group Hamas.
The move comes as relations between Fatah and Hamas have hit rock bottom.
Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has been threatening to step up sanctions against Hamas.
(timesofisrael.com)
Report: Iranian drones target of Syrian base strike
According to Israeli news outlet Ynet, Iranian drones were the target of the air strike on Monday (9th) at the T-4 airbase in Syria.
In February, an Iranian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) launched from the airbase was shot down by Israel when it entered Israeli airspace. In response to the illegal incursion, IAF jets flew deep into Syria striking twelve targets, including the drone’s launch and control center at the T-4 base.
The IDF, in keeping with its long standing policy, has remained silent regarding its role, if any, in Monday’s (9th) attack.
(worldisraelnews.com)
Top Iranian official says Israel to face ‘response’ over air base attack
The top advisor to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Tuesday (10th) described a strike on a military air base in Syria as “Israel’s crime” and said it would “not remain without response,” Lebanese TV reported.
Ali Akbar Velayati was speaking on arrival in the Syrian capital of Damascus. Seven Iranian military personnel were killed in the strike, according to Iranian Tasnim news agency.
(reuters.com)
Despite chemical weapons attacks, Syria to chair UN conference on disarmament
The Syrian regime is to preside over a UN conference on disarmament next month, despite its consistent use of chemical weapons during a seven-year-old civil war – most recently on Saturday (7th), when at least 42 people, including children, were killed in a toxic gas attack on the town of Douma that left many struggling to breathe and foaming at the mouth.
(algemeiner.com)
Lieberman: ‘We’ll do our utmost to stop Iran in Syria’
Israel will do whatever it takes to prevent Iran from establishing permanent military bases in Syria, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Tuesday (10th) during a visit to the Golan Heights.
“No matter what the price, we will not allow Iran to have a permanent military foothold in Syria. We have no other choice,” Lieberman said.
Such a situation is akin to a “noose around our neck,” Lieberman said, adding that there was no better way to describe the situation.
(jpost.com)
Christian Arabs hardly receive any support from the Arab world – Ray Hanania
Overall, I think Christian Arabs tend to get more support from Israel than they do from Arabs. Arabs tend to pay lip service to Arab Christians, parroting the line that Christians and Muslims have shared the same suffering and challenges. But Christians are not equal to Muslims in the eyes of Arab activists.
There are only a few places Christian Arabs can turn to for support. One of those places is Israel, which constantly addresses their needs.
Christian Arabs say, “Israelis talk about us; Arab activists want us to disappear.”
(arabnews.com)
Israel to build more desalination plants to fight five-year drought
With its natural water sources at their lowest in a century, Israel plans to build two new desalination plants, Energy and Water Minister Yuval Steinitz said Monday (9th). Israel has built five desalination plants along the Mediterranean coast over the past 13 years.
(reuters.com)
Holocaust survivors sue publisher over Nazi-era books
Two Holocaust survivors and a Polish anti-Nazi resistance fighter have filed a lawsuit against the publisher of books praising Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler in a civil case that the plaintiffs’ lawyer said on Monday (9th) is the first of its kind in Poland.
The lawsuit, filed on Friday (6th) in a Warsaw court, alleges that the Katmar publications violate the plaintiffs’ rights, including their dignity as persons who suffered under the Nazi German regime in occupied Poland.
One of the plaintiffs fought the Nazis in the doomed 1944 Warsaw Uprising, while the two Holocaust survivors were both saved from the Warsaw Ghetto as children. Their family members were killed by the Nazis.
(afp.com)
