February 6, 2018
Jewish man murdered in stabbing attack in Ariel
An Arab terrorist stabbed an Israeli man to death in the city of Ariel in Samaria Monday afternoon (5th).
The victim has been identified as 30-year-old Itamar Ben-Gal, a resident of the community of Har Bracha in Samaria. Ben-Gal, a father of four, was an educator who taught 8th graders, and also taught at the Har Bracha Yeshiva.
The attack occurred at a popular hitchhiking spot near Jerusalem Boulevard in Ariel.
MDA paramedics and IDF medics treated the victim before evacuating him to Beilinson Medical Center, where the victim was declared dead shortly after arrival. His death was due to stab wounds in the chest.
(israelnn.com; worldisraelnews.com)
Hamas welcomes Ariel murder
The Hamas terror organization has praised the stabbing at the entrance of Ariel, of Itamar Ben-Gal of Har Bracha. He was murdered Monday afternoon (5th) in an act of terrorism.
A Hamas statement said, “The attack adjacent to Ariel is proof the intifada continues.”
(ynetnews.com; isralenn.com)
Danon: UN Security Council should condemn Ariel attack
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, called on the Security Council to condemn Monday’s (5th) terror attack in Ariel, Israel.
“The Palestinian leadership must be held accountable for today’s horrific murder in Israel. This terror attack is the direct result of incitement and payments to terrorists by the Palestinian Authority,” Danon said.
Instead of inviting Mahmoud Abbas to address the Security Council to disseminate lies and hate, the Council should unequivocally condemn this attack and demand that he stop paying stipends to terrorists,” the Ambassador concluded.
(timesofisrael.com)
Ariel terrorist has Israeli citizenship, lived in Jaffa
The terrorist who stabbed to death an Israeli father of four near Ariel Monday (5th) holds Israeli citizenship and lives in Jaffa, defense officials confirmed.
19-year-old Abd Al Karim Assi managed to evade capture following the attack, even after an IDF officer hit him with his car while in pursuit. When Assi fled the scene, he left his backpack containing his blue Israeli ID card with his identification and address.
IDF soldiers and other security officials are currently searching the area for Assi.
(timesofisrael.com)
Minister: Stop paying money that goes to terror
Minister Gilad Erdan responded to the fatal terror attack in Ariel by noting “Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas insists that the payments to terrorists will continue. This act of terrorism is in his hands.”
Speaking at the Israel Bar Association Lawyers Network Initiative Conference on the Delegitimization of Israel, Erdan continued, “This, must stop. All countries must stop paying the Palestinian Authority because the money is going to terror.”
(israelnn.com)
Report: Hizbullah to store weapons at sites Israel likely won’t strike
Terrorist group Hizbullah has recently purchased over 100 acres of land adjacent to the Lebanese Chouf Mountains for the purpose of storing missiles and weapons it has amassed with Iranian and Syrian assistance in special fortified compounds there, according to a report in Kuwait newspaper Al-Jarida on Sunday (4th).
Senior Arab officials told the newspaper the lands purchased by Hizbullah are located in an overwhelmingly Druze area of Lebanon, which Hizbullah believes the Israeli Air Force would not attack.
(israelhayom.com; aljarida.com)
Top Iranian official tours Israel-Lebanon border – Brig. Gen. Dr. Shimon Shapira
On January 30, 2018, Sayyed Ebrahim Raisi, a member of Iran’s Assembly of Experts, who is thought to be Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s successor, toured the Lebanon-Israel border, escorted by Hizbullah military commanders and Iranian officers. In 2017, Raisi lost the elections for the Iranian presidency to Hassan Rouhani. During his visit, Raisi proclaimed that “Jerusalem’s liberation is near.”
It would appear that this visit by a senior Iranian figure close to Khamenei was meant to convey to Israel that Iran is determined to help Hizbullah strengthen its military capabilities in Lebanon.
(jcpa.org)
Israeli Navy on high alert over upgraded Hamas underwater terror threat
As the war drums beat on Israel’s southern front, Israel’s navy sees an increased threat from the serious developments by Hamas in the underwater domain.
“Hamas sees potential in the sea like they saw potential in their tunnels,” a senior naval officer said on Monday (5th).
Israel’s navy has in recent years understood that sea-based terror attacks can also come from under the water, a threat that has grown since the last conflict with Hamas in 2014.
In 2015 the Israeli navy began deploying dozens of sensors from a new system named “Aqua Shield” which can detect and alert the navy to suspicious underwater movement. The sensors were placed on the Mediterranean Sea floor near Gaza and Lebanon’s water borders with Israel.
“The importance of the sea for Israel is very clear. Everything in the country comes via the sea. Israel can never be in the position where its waters are not protected,” the senior naval officer said.
(jpost.com; reuters.com)
Guardian article on terror in cities omits Israel – Adam Levick
An expansive Guardian article published on January 29th on the history of terror attacks in cities around the world included a diverse array of examples. Yet it somehow managed to avoid any mention of the thousands of Palestinian terror attacks against Jews in Israeli cities, or Palestinian attacks on Jewish targets in Western cities. Modern Palestinian terror “innovations,” such as the widespread use of suicide bombing were not mentioned.
(ukmediawatch.org)
Walmart coming to Israel?
Could the world’s biggest retailer be coming to Israel? According to a report in Bloomberg, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with senior Walmart executive John Furner on the sidelines of last month’s World Economic Forum in Davos and urged him to open up a branch in Israel.
Netanyahu’s economics advisor Avi Simhon confirmed the meeting, saying that “we made it clear we are ready to ease regulatory burdens wherever possible to make the market more accessible to them. The door to Netanyahu’s office is open,” added Simhon.
The mega-retailer is the world’s largest employer, with 11,703 stores in 28 different countries.
(bloomberg.com)
