News Digest — 8/24/22
US Airstrikes Target Areas Controlled By Iran’s IRGC-Backed Militias In Syria
The US military said early Wednesday morning (24th) it carried out airstrikes in Deir Ez-Zor in eastern Syria that targeted areas used by militias backed by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
There was no immediate acknowledgement by Syria’s state-run media of the strikes hitting Deir Ez-Zor. Iran as well did not acknowledge the attack.
The US military’s Central Command said the strikes “took proportionate, deliberate action intended to limit the risk of escalation and minimize the risk of casualties. It did not identify the targets nor offer any casualty figures from the strikes.
“Today’s strikes were necessary to protect and defend US personnel,” Central Command Spokesperson Col. Joe Buccino said in a statement, adding that the attack was in response to an Aug. 15 targeting of US forces.
That attack saw drones allegedly launched by Iranian-backed militias target the al-Tanf Garrison used by American forces. US Central Command described the assault as causing “zero casualties and no damage” at the time.
Deir Ez-Zor is a strategic province that borders Iraq and contains oil fields. Iran-backed militia groups and Syrian forces control the area and have often been the target of strikes attributed to Israel.
US forces entered Syria in 2015, backing allied forces in their fight against the Islamic State group.
(ap.com; israelhayom.com)
PA Security Forces Raid Bir Zeit University Dorms, Threaten Students
Palestinian Authority security forces on Tuesday (23rd) raided student dormitories at Bir Zeit University, north of Ramallah, as part of an ongoing crackdown on Hamas supporters in the West Bank.
The pre-dawn raid, which drew sharp criticism from students and other Palestinians, is seen by them in the context of the dispute between the PA and Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007.
“The Palestinian General Intelligence officers raided the dormitories in the early morning hours and searched some of the rooms,” one of the students told the Ultra Palestine website. “They searched my room and asked me about posters of slain anti-corruption activist Nizar Banat and other banners. One of the officers said to me, ‘Take care of yourself and don’t cause trouble.’”
Banat, a resident of Hebron, was beaten to death by PA security forces during a raid on his home in June 2021. He was famous for posting videos on social media in which he accused PA officials of corruption.
The student who was not identified by name said he heard the screams of other students who were apparently beaten by the PA officers.
A representative of the Hamas-affiliated Islamic Bloc at Bir Zeit said two of his colleagues were severely beaten by the officers during the raid while others were taken away for interrogation.
Bir Zeit University Student Council chairman Tahya Qarout strongly condemned the raid by PA forces saying it was totally unjustified.
In May, Hamas scored a landslide victory in elections for the Bir Zeit Student Council. Hamas supporters won 28 seats on the council, while their rivals in the ruling PA Fatah faction won only 18 seats.
Meanwhile, PA security forces spokesman Talal Dweikat denied allegations that Palestinians in the West Bank were being arrested because of their political affiliation.
He accused Hamas of arresting and imposing restrictions on dozens of Palestinians who are affiliated with Fatah in the Gaza Strip.
Commenting on claims by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad regarding the PA security crackdown in the West Bank, Dweikat said it was “painful that such statements are being made by Hamas and Islamic Jihad at a time when the Palestinian people and their leadership are under attack,” following PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ remarks in Germany in which he accused Israel of committing “50 Holocausts” against the Palestinians.
Recently, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad called on the PA to unite all forces, halt security coordination with Israel, walk away from the Oslo Accords and allow all Palestinians in the West Bank to carry out “resistance attacks” against Israel.
Russia Slams Israel For Strikes In Syria
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday (23rd) slammed Israel for carrying out military strikes on Iranian targets in Syria, in comments that highlight increasingly frosty ties between Moscow and Jerusalem.
“We strongly condemn the dangerous practice of Israeli strikes on Syrian territory,” Lavrov said at a press briefing in Moscow alongside his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad.
“We demand that Israel respect the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council and, above all, respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria,’ he said in remarks carried by the Reuters news agency.
In the most recent raid, Israel hit targets in western and central Syria on August 14, killing three soldiers, according to the Putin-backed Syrian military.
Mekdad also expressed his support for his Russian counterpart over Moscow’s actions in Ukraine.
While Israel has been cautious about taking sides in Russia’s war with Ukraine because of its interests in keeping Iran at bay in Syria, in his former post as foreign minister, Prime Minister Yair Lapid came out with strong condemnation of Moscow. Since taking over as Israel’s premier, Lapid has tried to soften his stance, and last month he hailed Jerusalem’s “long history” with Moscow.
In June, an Israeli strike knocked Damascus International Airport out of service for two weeks after Israel discovered Iran was smuggling advanced missile components for Hezbollah into Syria on civilian flights. The destroyed terminals were said to have been designated as VIP areas for Iranian personnel and for storing the smuggled technology.
In May, Lavrov said Hitler had “Jewish blood,” a comment that enraged Israel and forced Russian President Vladimir Putin to apologize.
Tel Aviv Hangs Maps In Schools Showing Pre-1967 Borders
Ahead of the new school year, the Tel Aviv-Jaffa municipality is hanging maps of Israel in classrooms – showing the 1949 Armistice Line, popularly known as the Green Line, Israel media reported.
The maps are in contradiction to Education Ministry guidelines, which prohibit such maps from being displayed in classrooms.
According to Ynet, the maps are being hung in accordance with instructions from Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai.
The site quoted the municipality as saying that the maps are being hung as part of a “serious and in-depth work process.” The municipality also said that during this process, they turned to the Education Ministry and to the Survey of Israel, and requested a map and data, “but these were not provided.”
Ynet reported that the creation of the map took two years, “as well as in-depth work which researched every single part and brought reality as it is, without brokers or censors, and allows boys and girls to accurately understand the area.”
Israeli media noted that the Education Ministry slammed the Tel Aviv municipality’s decision, calling the map “amateur and unprofessional, and invented by the Tel Aviv municipality.”
According to the Education Ministry, “The map was not brought for our approval, and therefore it is not approved for studies and not even for use as a placard on the walls.”
“The only one authorized to create maps of Israel is the Survey of Israel (SOI),” the Ministry said.
(ynetnews.com; isnn.com)
Israeli Technology To Be Used In NASA’s First Moon Mission In 50 Years
Israeli technology will be used onboard NASA’s first Moon mission in 50 years, according to the Israel Space Agency.
The deep-space flight via Orion spacecraft in the mission called Artemis I, will last for six weeks and aims at traveling to the Moon and beyond.
Its crew consists of mannequins named Zohar and Helga. Zohar will wear an AstroRad radiation protection vest developed by the Israeli company StemRad. The vest is meant to protect astronauts from harmful radiation and cosmic rays in space.
“We are honored to be one of the very few countries that have managed to introduce original technology for Artemis I. The fact that the Israeli flag will wave on top of Zohar’s suit in space fills us with pride,” the Israel Space Agency said.
Thousands of monitors will test Zohar’s level of protection during the Matryoshka AstroRad Radiation Experiment (MARF). If successful the experiment may lay the foundation for humans’ long-term presence in space. The Israeli technology in turn could be used in future space missions to the Moon and Mars.
Earlier in April, Israeli investor and former fighter pilot Eytan Stibbe became the second Israeli in space participating in the first all-private astronaut team launched to the International Space Station.
The first Israeli in space was Ilan Ramon who perished with six NASA crewmates in the 2003 space shuttle Columbia disaster.
(afp.com; ynetnews.com)
Brooklyn Holocaust Memorial Vandalized With Swastikas
The NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force has launched an investigation after a Holocaust monument was vandalized in Brooklyn, ABC7 reported.
The monument at Holocaust Memorial Park in the Sheepshead Bay Area of Brooklyn was defaced with a permanent black marker.
Below the sections dedicated to Russian and Ukrainian victims of the Holocaust, the vandals drew swastikas, curses, and antisemitic graffiti in Russian.
Many Holocaust survivors moved to Sheepshead Bay after the Holocaust.
The incident came less than a week after a synagogue in Sheepshead Bay, whose congregation includes many Holocaust survivors, was vandalized with Nazi graffiti and the name “Hitler” emblazoned on the side of the building.
Brooklyn Councilor Inna Vernikov, who is Jewish and lives near Congregation Beth Shalom Of Kings Bay, organized a cleanup of the graffiti.
“There are Holocaust survivors who attend this shul,” Vernikov said. “And after the atrocities they had seen during World War II they now have to come to a synagogue in the United States of America in 2022 and see a Hitler sign on the wall.”
(isnn.com)
