Preventing ramming attacks in Judea and Samaria
Protective barriers have been erected at many bus stops in the Etzion region, as part of the IDF Central Command’s program to prevent vehicular terror attacks. The concrete barriers and metal poles are designed to protect pedestrians waiting for their bus, from terrorists who attempt to carry out ramming and stabbing attacks.
The IDF noted that “this is a joint project of the Regional Defense System, the Home Front Command and the Engineering Directorate, during which special yellow protection posts have been placed in stations whose purpose is to prevent attacks on pedestrians. A vehicle which accelerates quickly with the intent of mowing down pedestrians will now be stopped and will not be able to continue on.”
(israelnn.com)
Palestinians resume security ties with Israel, eye Gaza enforcement
Palestinian Authority head Mahmoud Abbas’ administration said on Wednesday (8th) it had resumed security coordination with Israel in the West Bank, frozen in July, and sought sole security control of the Gaza Strip where Hamas Islamist forces dominate.
Remarks by the Palestinian police chief, Wednesday (8th), left open the question of how Abbas might bring his former rivals in Hamas to heel given their refusal to disarm as demanded by Israel and the United States.
(reuters.com)
Border Police arrest Palestinian with knife at Cave of the Patriarchs
Border Police arrested a 17-year-old Palestinian armed with a knife at the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron on Wednesday (8th).
The youth was caught by metal detectors when trying to enter a secured area. The local security force implemented safety measures and the suspect was brought in for questioning.
The youth was from the Hebron area.
(jpost.com)
Five-year-old tries to smuggle cell phones to terrorist father in prison
Israel Prison Service officers foiled an attempt to smuggle SIM cards and cell phones to a terrorist jailed in the Kyzi’ot Prison in the Negev, using the prisoner’s five-year-old son as an intermediary, according to Israeli media reports.
Officers noticed the boy moving suspiciously during a family visit to the prison.
A search of the child’s body revealed that he held ten small cell phones and three SIM cards in his underwear.
The prisoner, a resident of the village of Yatta, is serving 12 years in prison for plotting to manufacture explosives and murder innocents.
(jpost.com)
Gaza factions say UNRWA made changes to curriculum to undercut Palestinian national identity
Gaza’s national and Islamic factions said on Tuesday (7th) that they will not agree to the changes in school textbooks introduced this year by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinian refugees that undercut the Palestinian national identity.
They said UNRWA introduced new terms that weaken the students’ understanding of the Palestinian identity and culture.
They called on UNRWA to not introduce anything in the schools they run that would harm the student’s relationship to his land, identity and culture.
(imra.org.il)
Report: Israel tells its envoys to back Saudis, Hariri against Hizbullah, Iran
The Foreign Ministry has instructed Israeli ambassadors around the world to begin in earnest a diplomatic campaign against Iran and Hizbullah that includes backing Saudi Arabian claims that the two Shiite allies were behind a missile attack on Riyadh International Airport over the weekend.
Israel’s Channel 10 reported Wednesday (8th) that the ministry sent a classified memo to Israel’s envoys around the world urging them to contact government officials and plead the case for reigning in Iran and its Lebanese proxy.
(timesofisrael.com; ap.com)
Iran’s president calls on Saudis to switch sides – abandon U.S and Israel
As Sunni-Shiite tensions in the Middle East mount, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said he wants Muslim states to come together and help each other instead of seeking friendships with the United States and Israel.
In a cabinet meeting Wednesday (8th), Rouhani called for an end to hostile relations with Saudi Arabia, adding that the Sunni Kingdom is wrong to put its trust in Israel and the U.S.
“You are mistaken if you think Iran is not your friend and the U.S and Israel are. This mentality is a strategic mistake and miscalculation,” Iran’s Press TV reported Rouhani as saying.
(presstv.com; afp.com)
Two more IAF F-35 fighter jets delivered to Israel
Two F-35 fighter jets landed in Israel’s Nevatim air base Wednesday (8th) from the U.S., after making a short stop in Italy, according to the army.
With their reception, Israel’s fleet of the fifth generation stealth fighter, known in Israel as the Adir, grows to nine aircraft. The first of the planes reached Israel in December of last year, and are in the process of becoming fully integrated into the Israeli Air Force.
Israel has agreed to purchase 50 F-35 fighter jets from the U.S. firm Lockheed Martin. They are due to be delivered over the course of the next few years.
(timesofisrael.com)
ADL reports 67% hike in U.S. anti-Semitic incidents
The American Anti-Defamation League unveiled a worrying report this week according to which 2017 has thus far seen a 67% increase in the number of anti-Semitic incidents in the United States compared to last year.
Between January 1 and September 30, 1,299 anti-Semitic incidents took place in the U.S., including physical assaults, destruction of property and attacks on Jewish institutions. The number of incidents reported over this nine-month period already exceeds the entire number of incidents reported during 2016, which was 1,266.
(ynetnews.com)
UK Minister sought to help fund IDF Humanitarian Aid to Syrian war casualties
UK International Development Secretary Priti Patel is under fire for holding unauthorized talks with Israeli officials while on a family vacation in Israel in August.
She discussed providing UK aid to help Israel’s efforts to treat wounded Syrians in the Golan Heights.
On Monday (6th) Patel issued a full apology. “In hindsight, I can see how my enthusiasm to engage in this way could be misread, and how meetings were set up and reported in a way which did not accord with the usual procedures.”
Priti Patel resigned her position as UK international Development Secretary on Wednesday (8th).
(ynetnews.com)
