June 12, 2018

18-Year-Old Woman Stabbed In Terrorist Attack In Afula

An 18-year-old woman was stabbed and seriously wounded in the northern city of Afula Monday (11th), in a terror attack authorities said.  The victim was able to take a few steps and then collapsed outside a local coffee shop.

She was taken to the nearby HaEmek Medical Center in serious condition according to the Magen David Adom ambulance service.

Police arrested her suspected attacker, who had fled the scene, after a brief manhunt.  The suspect was identified by police as a Palestinian man in his 30s from the city of Jenin, located in Samaria.

(ynetnews.com; worldisraelnews.com)

 

Palestinians Protest Abbas’ Sanctions Leveled Against Gaza

Hundreds of Palestinians demonstrated  in Ramallah on Sunday (10th) against Palestinian Authority head Mahmoud Abbas, calling on him to remove sanctions leveled against the Gaza Strip as part of the ongoing Fatah-Hamas feud.

The sanctions include the forced retirement of thousands of PA civil servants and the suspension of social assistance to hundreds of families.  In addition, Abbas has refused to pay Israel for electricity and fuel supplies to the Gaza Strip.

(worldisraelnews.com)

 

Iran-backed Fighters Switch To Syrian Uniforms To Avoid Israeli Strikes – Raja Abdulrahim

The Syrian regime is disguising Iran-allied militias as its own fighters, according to rebels, in order to try to avoid further Israeli air strikes against Iranian targets in Syria.  Military convoys of Lebanese Hizbullah fighters and other Iran-backed militias are advancing in both Daraa and Quneitra provinces in southwestern Syria near the Israeli border, dressed in Syrian military uniforms and under Syrian flags.  Israel sees an Iranian presence on its border as a potential existential threat.

(wallstreetjournal.com)

 

Israel Helps Syrians With Serious Health Problems – In Addition To Treating War Casualties

Four Syrian women recently brought their daughters to Jerusalem for heart surgery which has changed their lives.   Those brought were a 14-month-old, two two-year-olds and a 10-year-old. Syrian doctors had listened to their heart murmurs but could offer no solutions.

In addition to treating Syrian war casualties, more than 4,000 Syrians from villages or refugee tent camps near the border have been treated for serious health problems.  About 200,000 Syrians are clustered near the border on the Golan Heights.

Fortunately the girls didn’t need open-heart surgery, as others who come after them might.  They underwent a procedure in the cardiac catheterization lab to patch their hearts with umbrella-shaped implants.  The next morning, echocardiograms showed four hearts working better than they ever had before.

(jpost.com)

 

Hariri Says Iran Should Not Interfere In Lebanon’s Affairs

BEIRUT – Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri criticized a top Iranian general for comments he made recently in which he praised Iran-backed groups for making gains in last month’s Parliamentary elections in Lebanon.

The Iran-backed Hizbullah and its allies gained more than half the seats of the 128-member parliament in the May 6 elections.

Hariri told reporters later Monday (11th) that the comments are “regrettable,” adding that interfering in Lebanon’s internal affairs is “not in Iran’s interest, nor those of Lebanon or the region.”

(ynetnews.com; ap.com)

 

Report: U.S. To Provide Israel With Modern Weapons To “Face Possible War With Iran”

Security sources in Tel Aviv revealed the approval by President Trump of a broad plan to strengthen the capabilities of the Israeli army to meet the “threat of a possible war with Iran.”  In addition, Trump reversed a decision by the previous administration and agreed to supply the Israeli Air Force with additional Boeing KC 46 refueling aircraft, which would enable the Israeli army to operate longer and with more flexibility against targets far from Israel.

(aawsat.com)

 

Low Turnout For Al-Quds Day Demonstrations In Iran

Radio Zamaneh, an Amsterdam-based Persian language station, posted a number of clips showing the low, embarrassing turnout of people who were brought to Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day demonstrations in Tehran on June 8.  In one link, a young cleric can be seen carrying a sign saying: “Will the day come when we demonstrate for our homeland Iran and our nation, which is suffering, and not for others?”

(jcpa.org)

 

Hizbullah Flags Fly At Al-Quds Day Rally In London

Hizbullah flags, adorned with guns, flew in central London on Sunday (10th), carried by pro-Palestinian protesters in the annual Al-Quds Day rally.  Just yards away stood an equally loud counter-demonstration, including speakers who led the crowd in a shouted chorus of “terrorist flags off our streets” and “we want peace, they want war.”  The counter-demonstrators stood behind a blue and white banner which said “free Gaza from Hamas.”

(itv.com)

 

U.N. Official: World Should Rehabilitate Gaza Only If Hamas Halts Violence

The international community should trade measures to rehabilitate Gaza for a Hamas pledge to halt its violence against Israel, U.N. Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Nickolay Mladenov said on Monday (11th).

He suggested that these measures be used “to get from Hamas, who is responsible for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, a commitment to keep the situation quiet and to reduce the amount of rockets and attacks against Israel.”

“If we can do that, we might just turn the corner and avoid another escalation.  Otherwise the situation in Gaza will inevitably remain one of desperation,” Mladenov said.

(jpost.com)

 

Israeli Team Using Special Enzyme To Treat Volcano Burns In Guatemala – Herb Keinon

An Israeli medical team dispatched to Guatemala last week to treat victims of a devastating volcano are using a special enzyme developed at the Soroka-University Medical Center in Beersheba to facilitate the speedy recovery of burns and reduce the need for surgery, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Saturday (9th)

(jpost.com)