May 16, 2018
Netanyahu Again Defends Response To Gaza Protests – Blames Hamas
WASHINGTON – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu again defended his country’s response to protests in Gaza and blamed the territory’s ruling Hamas party for the violence, according to excerpts from a CBS News interview on Tuesday (15th).
“They’re pushing civilians – women, children – into the line of fire with a view of getting casualties. We try to minimize casualties. They are trying to incur casualties in order to put pressure on Israel, which is horrible,” Netanyahu told CBS News.
“If Hamas had not pushed them there, then nothing would happen, Hamas holds responsibility for doing this, and they are deliberately doing it,” Netanyahu added.
The full interview aired Tuesday evening (15th).
(cbsnews.com; reuters.com)
One Palestinian Killed, Hundreds Injured In Clashes Along Gaza Border
One Palestinian was killed and more than a hundred were injured by IDF troops along the Gaza border on Tuesday (15th), the second day of clashes.
4,000 Gazans took part in the second-consecutive day of demonstrations in five spots along the fence.
Also protests took place in the West Bank on Tuesday (15th) for Nakba Day – with a siren blaring in Ramallah for 70 seconds to mourn the 70th year since Israel became a state.
(jpost.com)
Hamas’ March Of Folly – Ron Ben-Yishai
Hamas failed on Monday (14th). Palestinians in the West Bank and Jerusalem didn’t rise up to clash with Israeli security forces en masse. In Gaza, barely 40,000 protested at the border, nowhere near the 100,000 Hamas wanted.
The Palestinians are talking about a “massacre,” but EU politicians know the difference between a massacre and legitimate fire in self-defense. A massacre is a situation in which the helpless victims had no choice. But the Gazans had a choice – they could have not tried to breach the border fence, and then they wouldn’t have been killed. They were also warned in advance in every possible way.
The Gazans who were killed were not defending their homes from an Israeli invasion, they were trying to invade Israel.
(ynetnews.com)
List Of Palestinian Attacks On Israel’s Border on Monday
Monday’s (14th) violent clashes on the Gaza border occurred at 13 different spots.
The following Palestinian attacks were recorded:
— 12:53pm, five pipe bombs exploded.
— 12:58pm, bomb exploded.
— 1:15pm – A terror cell sought to plant explosives by the border fence and opened fire at IDF forces.
— 1:30pm – Fire opened at IDF forces.
— 1:45pm – Fire opened at IDF forces by 8 terrorists.
— 2:09pm – Three bombs exploded.
— 3:10pm – Bomb exploded.
— 7:02pm – Terrorists opened fire at IDF troops.
17 kites carrying flammable materials were flown from Gaza into Israel, causing fires in 23 locations.
(ynetnews.com)
Australian PM: Hamas To Blame For Deaths Of Civilians On Gaza Border
Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull on Monday night (14th) blamed Hamas for the death of dozens of Gazans who violently rioted near the Israel-Gaza border.
“Any loss of life like this is tragic, but Hamas’ conduct is confrontational. They are seeking to provoke the Israel Defense Forces,” Turnbull told a local radio station, adding, “If they’re pushing people to the border in that context, in that conflict zone, you’re basically pushing people into circumstances where they are very likely to be shot at as Israel seeks to defend itself.”
(israelnn.com)
US Foils Anti-Israel Security Council Move Over Deadly Gaza Riots
The United States on Monday (14th) blocked a Kuwait-drafted UN Security Council statement that sought to express “outrage and sorrow at the killing of Palestinian civilians” in riots on the Israeli-Gaza Strip border and called for an independent and transparent investigation, UN diplomats said.
(israelhayom.com)
IDF: At Least 24 of Palestinians Killed Monday Were Terrorists
A probe by the Shin Bet and IDF has turned up that at least 24 of the mortalities at Monday’s (14th) Gaza Strip border riots were terrorists in the midst of carrying out terror acts.
Most of the terrorists belonged to Hamas but some were aligned with Islamic Jihad.
Both Hamas and Islamic Jihad released the names and photos of the dead operatives on their websites.
(timesofisrael.com)
Druze IDF Veterans Chairman: ‘Jerusalem Is Israel’s Eternal Capital’
According to Israel’s Jewish and Druze Public Council, “The covenant of life and blood between the Druze sector and the Jewish people in Israel began even before the State of Israel was established. Lately the need has arisen to implement and strengthen the covenant among the second generation on both sides due to the growing erosion of the recognition of its importance to both the Druze and Jewish sectors. This concerns the Druze contribution to the establishment of the State of Israel and its strategic significance for the security and strength of the state and society.
Koftan Halabi, chairman of the Druze Veterans’ Association said following the transfer of the US Embassy to Jerusalem on Monday (14th) that “Jerusalem is Israel’s eternal capital.”
(worldisraelnews.com)
Iranian Group Offers $100,000 For Bombing US Jerusalem Embassy
An Iranian group said it will pay a $100,000 reward to anyone who destroys the newly transferred American Embassy in Jerusalem.
The “Iranian Justice Seekers Student Movement” distributed leaflets calling to attack the embassy. The flyers, written in English, Arabic, and Farsi, say the group, “will support anybody who destroys the illegal American Embassy in Jerusalem.”
(israelnn.com)
Greek Jewish Community Holds Protest After Desecration Of Cemetery
The Jewish community of Athens on Sunday (13th) formed a human circle around the Jewish cemetery of the city in a silent protest to say that anti-Semitism will not be tolerated in Greece. Last week many Jewish tombstones there were found totally broken and smashed.
Vandalism of Jewish sites and anti-Semitic attacks has increased in Greece in recent years.
Most of Greece’s pre-war Jewish population was deported and murdered in Nazi death camps by German occupation forces toward the end of World War II.
There are now 6,000 Jews living in Greece.
(jns.org; worldisraelnews.com)
