April 4, 2018
Future Saudi King appears to unofficially recognize Israel
Israel and Saudi Arabia still have no official diplomatic relations, but the future monarch of the oil-rich kingdom appeared to unofficially recognize the Jewish state in remarks to American media this week.
In an interview with the US magazine The Atlantic, Prince Mohammed bin Salman was asked if he believes the Jewish people have a right to a state of their own on their ancestral homeland.
Now, it’s already something for liberal mainstream media outlets to refer to this land as the “ancestral homeland” of the Jewish people, which both the Atlantic and Reuters did. This demonstrates that the Palestinian narrative, which denies any Jewish connection to this land, is losing ground.
But Prince Mohammed’s response was even more telling.
“I believe the Palestinians and the Israelis have the right to have their own land. But we have to have a peace agreement to assure the stability for everyone and to have normal relations,” he said.
Prince Mohammed still wants a Palestinian Arab state in the West Bank and Gaza, but has no problem with the State of Israel existing on the rest of the land as the nation-state of the Jewish people.
It’s a major breakthrough for a top Arab leader to be saying such things publicly.
(israeltoday.co.il)
Gazans renew violence on border – 1 dead
Palestinians threw rocks at the IDF forces along the Gaza border Tuesday afternoon (3rd) as clashes erupted for the first time since last week’s violent riots.
Tuesday’s incident followed a warning by Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman that Israel has no intention of changing its method of operation in regards to the protesters.
One Palestinian man, 25 was shot dead by IDF forces.
Lieberman said, “We’ve set clear rules – it is the IDF’s policy to shoot protesters who approach the fence.”
(worldisraelnews.com)
On Monday protesters used mirrors to blind IDF troops
Hamas on Monday (2nd) urged Palestinians to hold another mass protest on the Israel-Gaza Strip border to show solidarity with those killed Friday (3/30)
Protesters who showed up held mirrors in an attempt to blind Israeli soldiers, and to impede their ability to fire their weapons.
Meanwhile the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said, “IDF forces are following clear orders tailored to deal with the current scenario. The tools used by the IDF include warnings, crowd control measures, and, as a last resort only, live fire in a precise and measured way.”
(israelhayom.com)
IDF found bag of Molotov cocktails in Gaza near security fence
The IDF found a bag containing Molotov cocktails near the security fence in the Gaza Strip on Monday (2nd), and other weapons, according to the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit.
The Molotov cocktails were ready to be used against IDF forces during the protests at the Gaza border on Friday (3/30).
(jpost.com)
Palestinians’ new “Human Swarm” technique isn’t generating much global support – Zev Chafets
Friday’s (3/30) Gaza march unveiled a new Palestinian tactic, mass swarming, designed to force Israeli troops at the border to commit mass killings or flee. But the IDF forces used snipers to pick off individual leaders in the putatively civilian crowd (at least 11 of the dead were later identified as Hamas or other terrorists).
The Netanyahu government got nearly wall-to-wall support from its opposition. Avi Gabbay, leader of the Zionist Union (Labor Party) praised the IDF for its restraint. Yair Lapid of Yesh Atid said he was “proud” of the IDF.
(bloomberg.com)
Hamas fails to breach Israeli border – Liel Leibovitz
Is “protests” really the right word for attempts by masses of people organized and incited by a terrorist organization to breach the border of a sovereign country using plastic explosives? No. Hamas again used innocent civilians in its cynical quest to score propaganda points against Israel.
Israel no longer occupies even one inch of Gaza. Every Israeli settlement in Gaza was uprooted in 2005. Israel no longer has any territorial claims on Gaza; but Gaza still has territorial claims on Israel. Hamas’ singular goal is the utter and absolute destruction of the Jewish state. It wants all of the land, not peace or coexistence. Until the Palestinians abandon the futility of their ongoing and senseless violence, and come to terms with Israel’s right to exist, we’re likely to see more mindless bloodshed, all of it the fault of their leadership.
(tabletmag.com)
As tensions with Turkey rise, minister calls for Israel to recognize Armenian genocide
With tensions between Israel and Turkey on the rise, Public Safety Minister Gilad Erdan has called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to recognize the mass murders of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman government in 1915 as genocide.
While Turkey denies that the mass killings constitute genocide, 29 countries, and 48 of the 50 US states have officially recognized them as such.
Erdan’s call to recognize the Armenian genocide follows a war of words between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in which Erdogan accused Israel of being a “terrorist state” and for using “disproportionate force” against protesters during the Hamas-orchestrated mass-march in the Gaza Strip.
(israelhayom.com)
23 Palestinians killed in Syrian civil war in March – Khaled Abu Toameh
23 Palestinians were killed in Syria during March, the London-based Action Group for Palestinians of Syria said Sunday (1st). According to the group, 3,685 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of the civil war seven years ago. Another 1,673 Palestinians remain in government-controlled prisons. Human rights groups say tens of thousands of Palestinians have fled Syria since the beginning of the war.
(timesofisrael.com)
Iranian President Rouhani: US and Israel interfere in Syria
“There’s interference from Zionist forces in Syria which has increased problems in the area. They don’t respect Syria’s national sovereignty – they bomb areas in Syria – and they support terrorists,” said Iranian President Rouhani as he boarded a plane for Turkey on Tuesday (3rd) to meet With Turkish President Erdogan and Russian President Putin.
“The Americans are against the Syrian government establishing its authority throughout the whole country,” Rouhani added.
The leaders of the three countries (including Bashar Assad) are meeting in Ankara for a summit on Syria, bringing together two powers which have been Syrian President Assad’s most forceful supporters, Iran and Russia, with one of his strongest opponents, Turkey.
(reuters.com; ynetnews.com)
Israeli team builds Intel’s ‘best ever’ laptop processor
According to Intel, its eighth generation “Core19” processor is the highest performance model it has ever developed for a laptop. Its Haifa-based team led the development of the new generation of processors.
Intel also announced that its researchers are working to provide 360 degree video content and virtual reality to fulfill the need for higher performance in both desktop and laptop computers.
Intel began operations in Israel in 1974 and currently employs 10,000 workers in its Kiryat Gat production center. The research center in Haifa is Intel’s largest outside the United States.
(worldisraelnews.com)
