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Thursday, Jul. 14 '16, ח' בתמוז תשע"ו
HEADLINES:
1. PALESTINIAN DOCTOR RECOGNIZED FOR SAVING JEWISH TERROR VICTIMS
2. KERRY ON IRAN DEAL: THE WORLD IS A SAFER PLACE TODAY
3. THERESA MAY SPENT EVE OF PM APPOINTMENT DINING WITH CHIEF RABBI
4. RELEASED FROM IDF FOR 'VERY BAD BEHAVIOR'
5. ISRAELI RABBINATE: WE STILL RECOGNIZE LOOKSTEIN CONVERSIONS
6. FIVE YEARS IN PRISON FOR DIVORCE-REFUSING HUSBAND
7. 'JEWS ARE INFIDELS, AND YOU'RE ALLOWED TO KILL INFIDELS'
8. 'PANORAMA KILLER' CONVICTED OF MURDERING JEWISH WORSHIPPERS
1. PALESTINIAN DOCTOR RECOGNIZED FOR SAVING JEWISH TERROR VICTIMS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
A Palestinian doctor who helped save a Jewish family moments after they were targeted in a deadly terrorist attack has been honored by local Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria.
Dr. Ali Abu Sharach and his wife - who is a nurse - provided life-saving emergency treatment to the family of Rabbi Michael Mark, who was killed in a drive-by shooting two weeks ago near his Judean hometown of Otniel. Rabbi Mark's children had been extracted from the car by another Palestinian passerby.
The Hatzalah Yehuda Shomron volunteer paramedic organization and the Saving Without Borders (SSF) organization - both of which are based in Judea and Samaria - on Wednesday recognized Dr. Abu Sharach for his heroic actions.
Dr. Abu Sharach had been driving with his family to pray at Al Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, and ran over to give life-saving aid to injured members of the Mark family despite having no medical equipment on hand.
When the two Jewish organizations heard of Abu Sharach's actions at the scene of the attack, they decided to express their appreciation by awarding him with thousands of shekels worth of emergency medical equipment.
The gift was presented to him by SSF World Chairman Arie Levy.
Josh Hasten a spokesperson for Hatzalah Yehuda Shomron, noted that his organization never discriminates in providing emergency treatment, and hailed the Palestinian doctor for exhibiting the same medical ethics.
"Often, our volunteer emergency responders, in coordination with the IDF, are called in to treat Arabs in the area since they know Hatzalah Yehuda Shomron provides top notch lifesaving care.
"In this situation the shoe was on the other foot and we are grateful that a local Arab doctor was willing to fulfill his oath as a medical professional and try to save Jewish lives."
Unfortunately, this is not always the case. In several instances during the latest wave of Arab terrorist attacks, Arab doctors and paramedics have ignored wounded Jewish victims, in an apparently flagrant violation of their doctors' oath."
Hasten said he hoped others would take heed of Dr. Abu Sharach's noble actions.
"If only all of our neighbors would learn from Dr. Sharach's example," he said.
2. KERRY ON IRAN DEAL: THE WORLD IS A SAFER PLACE TODAY
by Shai Landesman
Senior officials in the Obama administration continue to double down in calling the President's foreign policy a success.
Secretary of State John Kerry, speaking on Thursday ahead of a trip to Moscow to try to convince the Russians to stop taking part in the Syrian inferno, praised the nuclear deal with Iran a year after it was signed.
"As of today, one year later, a program that so many people said will not work, a program that people said is absolutely doomed to be cheated and broken and will make the world more dangerous, has in fact made the world safer, lived up to its expectations and thus far produced an ability to create a peaceful nuclear program with Iran," Kerry told reporters.
"The world is safer today because conflict in the region is not calculated on the basis of the potential of nuclear confrontation and nuclear explosion, and because we have the ability to be able to work through some issues," he added, referring to Iran releasing US soldiers within 24 hours of their entering Iranian waters - though they made sure to publish humiliating pictures of the captured soldiers first.
The Secretary of State will make his way to Moscow - after a stop in Paris for Bastille day - to meet with Russian President Valdimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to discuss Russia's future actions with regard to the Syrian civil war.
With all of Kerry's talk about the success of Obama's foreign policy, the Americans have as yet been unable to convince the Russians to make Syrian President Bashar Assad stop bombing civilians, or to allow food and supplies through to a stranded and besieged population.
A senior State Department official commented on the situation in Syria, where the ceasefire negotiated and supposedly agreed upon months ago has failed to hold on the ground.
"The reality is the Syrian regime has violated every commitment it has made - or that Russia has made on its behalf - and has squandered every opportunity to build confidence with the Syrian people," said the official, speaking anonymously, "In the meantime, the Assad regime continues to destroy its own country and people in order to cling to power."
3. THERESA MAY SPENT EVE OF PM APPOINTMENT DINING WITH CHIEF RABBI
by Shai Landesman
New UK Prime Minister Theresa May officially took office yesterday (Wednesday) afternoon after an audience with the Queen, and following an extremely hectic few weeks in which the British public shockingly voted to exit the European Union, David Cameron resigned as Prime Minister, analysts' favorite for the job Boris Johnson withdrew from the running, and rival Andrea Leadsom decided to end her campaign so as not to drag the country through a long election process. This unexpected series of events catapulted May into one of the most important political positions in Europe in an extraordinarily short period of time.
Yet, Prime Minister May still found the time to dine with UK Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and his family, on the night before she was installed in the office.
"Today, Theresa May becomes Prime Minister at a time of great political, social and economic uncertainty," the Chief Rabbi said in a statement, "Few people are more talented or better qualified to tackle these immense challenges. I recall the speed and the sensitivity with which she reached out to the Jewish community following the terror attacks on Jewish targets in Europe last year. As she made clear then - 'Without its Jews, Britain would not be Britain'. She has proved herself to be a friend and champion of our community and of other faith communities who share her values of tolerance and understanding."
Rabbi Mirvis went on to reveal May's whereabouts on the night before her appointment.
"Last night, on the eve of her becoming Prime Minister, Theresa May kept a longstanding arrangement to join Valerie and me at our home for dinner. The fact that she did this in the midst of critically important preparations before taking up office is a reflection of her strong desire to keep to her commitments and the esteem in which she holds the British Jewish community. I was delighted to have the opportunity to give her my blessings at this very auspicious time."
The Chief Rabbi also took the opportunity to praise outgoing Prime minister David Cameron, noting his work to promote Holocaust remembrance and education, and thanking Cameron for "his deep friendship and for his unwavering commitment to promoting the values of decency, respect, liberty and responsibility."
4. RELEASED FROM IDF FOR 'VERY BAD BEHAVIOR'
by Shlomo Pyotrokovsky
Ta'ir Kaminar, a young left-wing activist who refused to serve in the IDF, claiming that it is an "army of occupation," was released from the IDF on Thursday after serving several terms in military prison.
Kaminar served a total of 170 days. This is the longest an term in jail that has been served for refusing to serve in the IDF.
Last month, Kaminar requested to be released with the status of a "conscientious objector," such that she could receive a legal exemption from military service; however, this request was rejected.
The reason given for the rejection was that a political objector cannot be classified as a conscientious objector - the latter definition only being applicable if the person in question is sworn to complete pacifism.
Therefore, it was decided to release Kaminar on grounds of "lack of fitness." The reason given was "very bad behavior."
5. ISRAELI RABBINATE: WE STILL RECOGNIZE LOOKSTEIN CONVERSIONS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Israel's Chief Rabbinate will continue to recognize conversions performed by Rabbi Haskel Lookstein despite Wednesday's ruling by the Supreme Rabbinical Court which held such conversions were invalid.
The storm centers around a case involving a female convert from the United States whose conversion was performed under the authority of Rabbi Lookstein.
A prominent Manhattan rabbi and former principal of the Ramaz school, Rabbi Lookstein performed the conversion of Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump's daughter, Ivanka, prior to her marriage to Jared Kushner.
On Thursday the Israeli Chief Rabbinate issued a formal statement reaffirming its recognition of Lookstein's conversions.
"The position of the Rabbinate remains the same as was written [in recent letters by the Chief Rabbis], that it recognizes the conversions performed by Rabbi Haskel Lookstein."
In the statement the Chief Rabbinate downplayed Wednesday's ruling, saying it likely was directly solely at the specific conversion in question, and not all conversions performed by Rabbi Lookstein.
"It seems that the courts decision regarding the conversion was only in reference to that specific case brought before the court; the court was not asked to judge generally about the conversion certificates of Rabbi Lookstein."
The convert in question spoke out regarding the controversy surrounding her conversion, which has called into question her Jewishness.
"I feel humiliated, they're basically saying they don't recognize my Jewishness. I love Rabbi Lookstein. He is my rabbi. He brought me into the Jewish world, and I don't want his conversions to be invalidated."
6. FIVE YEARS IN PRISON FOR DIVORCE-REFUSING HUSBAND
by Yedidya Ben Or
The Supreme Rabbinical Court recently sentenced a haredi man to five years in prison for refusing to give his wife a Gett (divorce document required for divorce by Jewish law).
Rabbinical judges Rabbi Elyahu Heishrik, Rabbi Aaron Katz and Rabbi Michael Amos upheld the wife's request to force her husband's hand by imprisonment.
The Court ruled a year ago that the husband must give a Gett in a extensive ruling in which the legal reasoning was spelled out. The husband was summoned to expedite a divorce but refused to give his wife the Gett.
Four months ago, the Court issued rulings for punitive measures including the revoking of the husband passport and freezing his assets. This was not enough to overcome the husband's spitefulness, as he said "I will never give her a Gett. Even if she gives me all the money and the apartment she'll never have a Gett from me."
In the new ruling, the Rabbinical judges again spelled out their reasoning from precedents in Jewish and general law for issuing the 5-year prison sentence.
At the end of the ruling the judges sent a message to all "Gett refusers": "Sending someone to jail is not easy and is considered a harsh action. We certainly did not sign this ruling lightly, we do it with a heavy heart. Imprisoning a man means not only taking away his physical freedom but also his mental and spiritual freedom. The Court has taken this very seriously into account."
"However, the husband has not left the Court any choice, because set against the pain of imprisoning him is the tradition given down to the wise men of Israel, that obligates the Court to do everything to save the wife from her untenable situation. There is no doubt that such a woman is characterized as a prisoner already. Extracting her from this situation certainly falls under the commandment of "redemption of captives", and the obligation to fulfill this commandment falls squarely on the shoulders of the Court. The same Torah that mandates giving a Gett and prohibits baseless coercion of the husband, commands us to take action in cases where the woman is in such a state, and as soon as possible, even at the price of coercing the husband," the judges added.
The ruling is summarized as follows:
1. By the authority vested in the Court by Jewish and Israeli law, the Court hereby orders the incarceration of the husband for 5 years, as long as he doesn't give his wife a Gett.
2. The ruling will be suspended for 10 days in order to give the husband one last chance to hive his wife a Gett with no preconditions. In the event that he will continue to refuse the incarceration ruling will take effect automatically with no need for any further hearings or decisions.
"The Court calls on the husband to end this affair during the 10 days allocated for him to do so, and thus to go in the path of the Torah," the ruling concluded.
7. 'JEWS ARE INFIDELS, AND YOU'RE ALLOWED TO KILL INFIDELS'
by Shai Landesman
Transcripts from the interrogation of the two terrorists who perpetrated the Sarona market attack in Tel Aviv have been released, revealing the motivations of the two murderers and their radical Islamic ideology. The new information comes a month after the attack, in which four people were murdered when the terrorists opened fire with improvised rifles.
In the interrogation records, first published by Channel 10, the terrorists give a chilling blow-by-blow account of their preparations and the attack itself, and discuss their motives for committing such a heinous act.
The terrorists, referred to in the reports as simply "Khaled" and "Mohammed", began by recounting how they bought expensive suits so that they would look like respectable businessmen. "We left our house in the morning to get haircuts and prepare ourselves."
They then explained how they had prepared for transportation into Tel Aviv from their hometown of Yatta near Hevron. "The day before we spoke with a cab driver who transports people without work permits illegally. We went with him until Segev Shalom (a Bedouin town near Be'er Sheva) and there we showered and changed clothes in someone's house. We then traveled to the central station in Be'er Sheva and saw that there was an entrance with a metal detector, but they didn't suspect us because we were wearing suits so we were able to go in."
Describing the plans for the attack during the interrogation, one of the terrorists explained that they had originally wanted to target a train. "Trains are good targets because the moment they start moving there's no security on them and people can't get out. But we saw that we wouldn't be able to get in because of the heavy security around the train station, so we started walking the streets looking for a place where there would be a lot of people. We asked a Jewish guy where there are cafes and restaurants and he directed us."
The other terrorist explained the next step. "We saw a cafe selling ice cream and drinks and we decided to go in. We sat in chairs opposite one another, and both put the bag with our weapons on the floor near our legs. Several minutes later a waitress came and started speaking to us in Hebrew. We told her we only speak Arabic and she started speaking Arabic with us, even though she was Jewish. When she left I told Khaled not to hurt her because she spoke Arabic."
Five minutes after that, they opened fire. "I shot the man on my right," Mohammed explained, "he wasn't breathing and I don't know where I hit him. I then shot five bullets or so into a woman, after which I dropped my weapon. I picked it up to try to shoot again but it jammed so I threw it at somebody. Khaled was just shooting indiscriminately."
After Khaled was caught, Mohammed managed to get away from security personnel. He described what happened next. "I was running, and I saw a man and three women running away towards a building. I joined them and someone opened the door and let us in. So I, the man, and the three women sat on a wooden bench in the house. The man left the house, came back quickly, pointed at me, tackled me to the ground and put a gun to my head. The women called the police."
Both terrorists admitted they had declared allegiance to ISIS and continued pledging their support for the group throughout the interrogation. They said that they had even tried to establish contact with ISIS operatives in Syria and Iraq. When asked about their motives, one of the terrorists said that he did it to avenge "the degradation of Muslim's honor."
"In 2011 I admired Osama Bin Laden, and then in 2013 I started supporting ISIS," he said.
Later he was asked if he supports the killing of Jews. "Anyone who is against Islam is against me, and everyone who occupies my land is against me. I started by admiring Sheikh Bin Laden and (current Al Qaeda leader) Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, so I started reading about their agenda online. Later on, when Bin Laden died, I started learning about ISIS. When I finished University in Jordan I thought about going to Syria to help them build rockets, but it didn't work out."
When asked why he perpetrated the attack specifically in Tel Aviv at that specific time, Khaled said: For religious motives. God preferred the Jews over the other nations and the Jews believed in (golden) calves. They are Kuffar (infidels), and you're allowed to kill Kuffar. I also did it for nationalistic reasons because the Jews are occupying Muslim lands in the Al Aqsa area and it should be (part of) greater Syria.
"I think Islam should control Syria and the world in general so I did my part for God and my religion. I wanted to die a martyr's death, the highest form of death."
8. 'PANORAMA KILLER' CONVICTED OF MURDERING JEWISH WORSHIPPERS
by Shlomo Pyotrokovsky
A Tel Aviv district court convicted on Thursday the terrorist responsible for a deadly attack in the Panomama building in Tel Aviv last November that left two dead and one wounded.
Raed Khalil, a resident of the town of Dura near Hevron, entered the Panorama building in Tel Aviv on November 19th, 2015, and began stabbing Jews during afternoon prayer services.
In the course of the terror attack, 51-year old Reuven Aviram and 32-year old Aharon Yesayev were killed and a third victim wounded before Khalil was subdued.
Khalil confessed to the killings and plead guilty to two counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder.
Witnesses say the attacker entered an improvised synagogue on the second story of the Panorama, where he carried out his gruesome attack, targeting worshippers as they prayed.
Khalil then fled the scene, hoping to barricade himself inside a storage area on the first floor. He then stabbed a third victim before being overpowered by passersby.
[youtube:2009728]
Aharon Yisayev, one of two murdered in Panorama attack
Courtesy of family
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