Netanyahu to Macron: Read the Bible – Jerusalem is our capital!
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris Sunday (10th), days after President Donald Trump declared that the United States recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital city, and announced that the State Department would begin the process of relocating the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The announcement Wednesday (6th) drew criticism from France and other European allies.
“Where is the capital of Israel, but in Jerusalem? Where is out Knesset – Our parliament? Where is our Supreme Court? The seat of our government? The Prime Minister’s Office? The President’s Office? It’s not in Beersheba, it’s not Ashdod – these are wonderful cities, but it’s in Jerusalem,” Netanyahu said.
“You can read about it in a very fine book – It’s called the Bible,” Netanyahu said. “After the Bible, you can hear it in the history of Jewish communities throughout our diaspora – ‘Next year in Jerusalem,’” continued Netanyahu, referencing a phrase from the Passover Seder.
(israelnn.com)
Rocket fired from Gaza damaged entrance to Israeli kindergarten
One of a series of rockets fired at southern Israel from Gaza damaged the entrance of a kindergarten in the town of Sderot.
The rockets were fired Friday evening (8th) when school was not in session. Another rocket landed in a street damaging a car and a home. A third was intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system.
In response, Israel late Friday night launched air strikes on Hamas military installations in Gaza, killing two operatives.
(jta.org; jpost.com)
COGAT warns Hamas of testing IDF’s resolve
The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, Maj.-Gen. Yoav Mordechai, addressed the Hamas terror organization on the backdrop of recent clashes, telling them on a Facebook post to “wake up, because time is working against you.”
He added that “the continuation of rocket fire incidents will lead to harsh and painful response by the IDF – do not try to test our resolve.”
(ynetnews.com)
Israeli security guard in Jerusalem, severely wounded
An Israeli security guard in his 20s was stabbed and seriously wounded outside Jerusalem’s central bus station early Sunday afternoon (10th).
United Hatzalah EMS first responders said the victim was stabbed in the upper chest. He was evacuated to Shaare Zedek Hospital for treatment.
Security forces neutralized the attacker, who was wounded in the head.
The terrorist, 24, was a resident of a PA village near Nablus. Police recovered the knife used in the attack.
(worldisraelnews.com)
IDF destroys another terror tunnel on Gaza border
The IDF neutralized an attack tunnel on Saturday night (9th) that had been dug under Israel’s border with Gaza, the military announced Sunday (10th).
The tunnel, believed to have been dug by Hamas, was about 900 feet into Israeli territory from the Khan Younis area of Gaza.
The latest tunnel, like its predecessors, was uncovered by the Israeli military with the help of advanced technological tools complemented by intelligence and operational efforts.
The tunnel was not detonated like the last tunnel, but was neutralized in a “quiet” manner, to avoid being heard in Gaza.
(israelhayom.com; timesofisrael.com)
Trump tells the story of Hanukkah at White House celebration
At Thursday’s (7th) White House Hanukkah party, President Donald Trump said: “At the birth of Hanukkah is the miracle of Israel, that descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob have endured unthinkable persecution and oppression, but no force has ever crushed your spirit and no evil has ever extinguished your faith, and that is why the Jewish people shine as a light to all nations.”
(c-span.org)
250 Israeli Rabbis send thank you letter to Trump for Jerusalem recognition – Kobi Nachshoni
250 Israeli rabbis, including Sephardi Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, sent a thank you letter to President Trump for his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
“You have a rare privilege to be the first president to recognize Jerusalem as the eternal capital of the State of Israel,” they said.
(ynetnews.com)
65 MKs, Hoenlein call to protect Mount of Olives – Lahav Harkov
The Knesset Lobby for the Protection of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem was launched this week with members from every party except the Arab Joint List.
The Mount of Olives Cemetery is 3,000 years old, and contains the graves of 150,000 Jews, including leaders and rabbis from throughout Jewish history.
The site has been plagued by vandalism and rock-throwing by east Jerusalem Arabs.
Malcolm Hoenlein, executive vice-chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, attended the launch.
(jpost.com)
Israeli aid to Syrians, warm clothing, heating oil, and a maternity hospital – Ben Lynfield
The IDF has facilitated the opening of a maternity hospital on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights – part of a significant expansion of Operation Good Neighbor, which provides Israeli assistance to war-ravaged Syrian villages near the Israeli border.
Lt.-Col. E., commander of the operation, explained, “You can’t stand from the side and see your neighbor dying and living in hard conditions and know that you can help them, and not do so.” The hospital opened two weeks ago in Bariqa in the Quneitra region. It is staffed entirely by Syrian doctors, while the incubators, beds, and ultrasound equipment come from Israel.
The operation is expanding and reaching villages over 12 miles from the border in an area with 200,000 people. “We are…literally every day saving people’s lives,” Lt.-Col. E. said. In preparation for winter, the IDF has provided 30 tons of warm clothing and a massive supply of diesel fuel so villagers can heat their houses. IDF supplies of flour have brought the price of bread down by at least half in the assisted villages. Lt.-Col. E. said, “The flour is free, the diesel is free, the vehicle [for transportation] is free. They just have to pay for the worker in the bakery.
(jpost.com; reuters.com)
No place for anti-semitism in Germany, minister says after Israeli flags burned
German Justice Minister Heiko Maas said there was no place for anti-Semitism in Germany after demonstrators angered by US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel burned Israeli flags in Berlin.
Hundreds of people gathered outside the US embassy in the German capital for “Day of Rage” protests on Friday (8th). Police later said on Twitter that they had detained 10 people during the protest for burning Israeli flags.
Maas told Bild newspaper’s Monday (11th) edition: “Any kind of anti-Semitism is an attack on everyone. Anti-Semitism must never be allowed to have a place in our society again.”
(reuters.com)
