Netanyahu welcomes Romania’s stand on Jerusalem embassy
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked his visiting counterpart from Romania on Wednesday (25th) for her government’s stand on possibly moving Romania’s embassy to Jerusalem.
Netanyahu welcomed the Romanian government’s approval of a draft decision on initiating the transfer of the Romanian embassy.
Earlier this month, Liviu Dragnea of the Social Democratic Party which effectively runs Romania’s government, said Bucharest is ready to follow the US and move its embassy to Jerusalem.
(ap.com)
Lieberman praises Czech Republic President after he says he will move embassy to Jerusalem
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman praised Czech Republic President Milos Zeman after he pledged to move his country’s embassy to Jerusalem “in stages” on Wednesday night (25th).
“I congratulate Czech President Milos Zeman on his decision to transfer the Czech Embassy to Jerusalem. The leadership step of US President Donald Trump signals a change in attitude of the countries of the world to Jerusalem. Jerusalem is our eternal and beloved capital, we will continue to strengthen it and build it,” Lieberman tweeted.
(israelnn.com)
Internal Hamas rift blocks deal to end Gaza border marches – Daniel Siryoti
A rift has erupted between Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar and Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh, senior Hamas sources said. Haniyeh has rejected Egyptian proposals for a possible prisoner swap deal with Israel and an easing of the blockade on Gaza in exchange for a cessation of the border demonstrations.
A senior Egyptian intelligence official said Sinwar was furious with Haniyeh and accused him of coordinating Hamas policy with Tehran rather than with the group’s own leadership.
(israelhayom.com)
Greenblatt: Hamas uses Gaza protests ‘as cover to attack Israeli troops’
NEW YORK – Jason Greenblatt, President Donald Trump’s chief Middle East negotiator, said Hamas uses protests at Israel’s border with Gaza to attack the Jewish state.
“Hamas and other terrorist groups have spent their energy and resources encouraging Palestinians in Gaza to stage protests and throw rocks and Molotov cocktails at the border fence,” Greenblatt said Tuesday (24th) in a speech in New York before the American Jewish Committee’s Women’s Leadership luncheon. “In many cases Hamas uses the protests as cover to attack Israeli troops and plant bombs along the border fence,” he added.
(jta.org)
Iranian moves in Syria threaten Israel – Brig.-Gen. Yossi Kuperwasser
The Iranians are trying to turn Syria into a base from which they can threaten Israel in a much easier way than they can from far away in Iran. They are trying to introduce elements to make it possible to threaten Israel in three ways: First is by improving the capabilities of Hizbullah. The main focus in this respect is to try to enable Hizbullah to have weapons that are more precisely guided. Israel is trying to prevent that from happening.
Second, they were trying to build, until recently, a base for carrying out terror attacks against Israel from the areas adjacent to the border in the Golan Heights. Third, the Iranians are trying to build a base inside Syria itself from which they can attack Israel using their various military capabilities, and use Syria as a place for the production of weapons that they cannot produce in Iran. All of these are direct threats for Israel.
(jcpa.org)
Two killed in flash floods as storm and hail batter Israel
Two teenagers were killed in separate incidents after they were swept away in flash floods, as parts of the country were pounded Wednesday (25th) by rare April hail and thunderstorms.
A young boy was swept away in the Negev, and a young woman drowned near the West Bank settlement of Ma’ale Amos.
Magen David Adom services treated 42 high-school students suffering from hypothermia after they were trapped in flooding while on a school trip in southern Israel.
The stormy weather was also felt in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
The rains will continue in Israel through Thursday (26th) with concern for further flooding in southern Israel and the Jordan Valley.
(timesofisrael.com)
Algeria sentences 8 ‘spies’ for Israel
An Algerian court on Tuesday (24th) sentenced a Liberian national of Lebanese origin to death and another seven African nationals from Guinea and Mali to 10 years in prison over espionage for Israel, the Turkish Anadolu news agency reported.
The eight were arrested in an operation carried out by the Algerian police in 2015, south of Algiers, and were found with documents and communications equipment related to espionage for Israel.
(aa.com.tr)
Some of Israel’s minorities are grateful to be Israeli citizens – Ariel Ben Solomon
With the rise of Islamists and the persecution of minorities in the Middle East, especially Christians, gaining steam in recent years, some of Israel’s minorities say they are thankful they are Israeli citizens and not living elsewhere in the region.
Atta Yemini Farhat, chairman of the Druze Zionist Council for Israel, says, “We lived here under the occupation of the Arabs before 1948, and we are blessed and love Israeli independence….The Druze don’t want to rule the country and feel themselves to be an integral part of the state.”
Shadi Halul, an Israeli Aramean Christian and a captain (RES.) in the IDF, heads the Christian IDF Officers Forum, which helps recruit and support Christians serving in the IDF. “Israel’s independence is also my independence; I feel part of the country,” he said. “Thank God that…the Jews returned to their homeland and created freedom for the Jews and the Christians in Israel…since the Arabs even today do not recognize our Christian existence.”
(jns.org)
950 US rabbis condemn ‘alarming’ rise in NYC anti-Semitic violence
An organization representing more than 950 US Orthodox rabbis has condemned an “alarming” increase in violent attacks on Jews in New York City, saying it would work with authorities to provide protection to “neighborhoods under siege” after at least two anti-Semitic attacks within a week.
The Rabbinical Alliance of America said in a statement this week that it, “categorically condemns the alarming increase of horrifying physical attacks on Jews throughout New York City and calls on all civic and political leaders to denounce this violent Jew-hatred.”
(timesofisrael.com)
Germans joined Jews for ‘kippah-wearing protest’ against new wave of anti-Semitism
BERLIN, Germany – Germans joined with Jews wearing kippahs at several protests across Germany on Wednesday (25th) in a sign of solidarity after a spate of shocking anti-Semitic incidents raised pointed questions about Berlin’s ability to protect its burgeoning Jewish community seven decades after the Holocaust.
On Wednesday night (25th) there was a special “Berlin Wears a Kippah” event where Jews and non-Jews alike donned the traditional skullcap in a shared show of defiance.
“We must never allow anti-Semitism to become commonplace in Germany again,” Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told news media. “Every attack on Jewish life is an attack on us all,” he added.
(afp.com; timesofisrael.com)
