Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
Subscribe to this Daily Israel Report:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Subscribe/
Tuesday, Nov. 01 '16, ל' בתשרי תשע"ז
HEADLINES:
1. TRUMP SURGES PAST CLINTON WEEK BEFORE ELECTION
2. WHAT IS OBAMA PLANNING FOR ISRAEL IN HIS FINAL MONTHS?
3. ARAB INDICTED FOR RAPING MATERNITY WARD PATIENTS
4. ANCIENT GOLD COIN DISCOVERED IN KAFR KANA
5. MK DICHTER: STATE OF ISRAEL MUST FIND SOLUTION FOR AMONA
6. ANTHONY WEINER COOPERATING WITH FBI IN CLINTON PROBE
7. GATHERING FOR UNITED JERUSALEM AND SUPPORT FOR DONALD TRUMP
8. 'BDS POGROM WAS LIKE STORMTROOPERS DURING 1930S'
1. TRUMP SURGES PAST CLINTON WEEK BEFORE ELECTION
by David Rosenberg
Exactly one week before Election Day, polling continues to shift in favor of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, whose campaign has been buoyed by the October 28th announcement by FBI director James Comey that the investigation into Hillary Clinton's handling of classified emails had been reopened.
In the latest survey, the ABC/Washington Post tracking poll, Trump now leads his opponent by one point – 46% to 45%.
This represents a massive shift since October 23rd, when the same poll gave Clinton a stunning 12-point advantage over Trump. The poll was touted at the time by Democrats, who jumped on it as proof that Clinton's election was a shoe-in.
After weeks of leaked Clinton campaign emails and the FBI announcement, however, Clinton's lead has declined sharply.
According to the RealClearPolitics average of polls, Clinton's 7.1% lead from just two weeks has collapsed to just 2.4%. But even that average underplays Clinton's decline, with most of the polling having taken place prior to Comey's bombshell announcement. If polls taken entirely before the announcement are removed, Clinton's average falls further, to just 1.2%.
Trump has also gained momentum in battleground states like New Hampshire, Virginia, North Carolina, Colorado, and Pennsylvania.
According to the latest New Hampshire Journal/Inside Sources poll, for instance, Trump now leads in the Live Free or Die state by 2 points, 45% to 43%.
In Pennsylvania, which has consistently gone Democrat in every presidential election since the 1990s, Trump has narrowed the gap in recent polls, trailing Clinton by just 2 points according to separate ESA/Pulse Opinion Research, Remington, and Reuters/Ipsos polls, and by 3 points according to Gravis.
With its 20 electoral votes, Pennsylvania has long been part of the so-called "Democratic firewall," and is a must-win state for Clinton.
2. WHAT IS OBAMA PLANNING FOR ISRAEL IN HIS FINAL MONTHS?
by David Rosenberg
With less than three months left in the White House, rumors abound that outgoing President Barack Obama could use his remaining time in office to push for a final status agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
President Obama, who has long championed the cause of Palestinian statehood and made an ambitious effort towards a two-state solution early on in his presidency, raised the issue again during his United Nations address on September 20th, calling upon Israel to end "the occupation".
"Israel must understand it can't permanently continue to build on Palestinian land," Obama said.
With a relatively high approval rating – 52.5% according to the RealClearPolitics average - for a lame-duck president, due in part to this year's rancorous presidential election, some suggest the president is ready to expend some that political capital in a last-minute push towards a two-state solution.
In August, senior US officials told the Wall Street Journal was considering a number of options for rebooting the stalled final status negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, including unprecedented moves like a United Nations Security Council resolution forcing the framework for a treaty upon the two parties.
On Monday the rumors of a "November surprise" continued, with the Wall Street Journal writing that sources inside the Obama administration had confirmed that the White House had requested an options menu from the State Department in pushing for a final status agreement.
Among the options being considered, the Wall Street Journal wrote, are a UN Security Council resolution – which unlike General Assembly resolutions are binding upon member states – against Israel and Jewish construction in Judea, Samaria, and Jerusalem.
President Obama may also choose to unilaterally recognize Palestinian statehood, or rescind the US veto on other anti-Israel resolutions at the Security Council.
Other possible moves being weighed include use of the IRS to strangle funding of tax-exempt groups with ties to Jewish communities over the Green Line.
3. ARAB INDICTED FOR RAPING MATERNITY WARD PATIENTS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The Jerusalem district prosecutor filed an indictment on Tuesday against Hazem Rasheq, a resident of the Arab village of Anata, near Pisgat Zeev in northeast Jerusalem, for a series of alleged sexual assaults.
According to the indictment, Rasheq, 29, came to the Shaarei Tzedek hospital in Jerusalem earlier this month after stealing from a nearby supermarket.
Upon entering the hospital, Rasheq, dressed as a doctor, found his way into the maternity ward, where he stole a cellular phone.
While in the maternity ward, Rasheq also sexually assaulted a number of women.
Each of the victims independently identified him as the perpetrator.
During the incident, Rasheq roamed from room to room, stealing personal belongings and sexually assaulting women staying in the maternity ward. Some of the women struggled against him and cried for help.
While Rasheq escaped the hospital, he was later captured by police, who identified him using recordings taken from hospital surveillance cameras.
4. ANCIENT GOLD COIN DISCOVERED IN KAFR KANA
by Yoel Domb
Members of the Upper Galilee Leadership Academy rubbed their eyes in disbelief when on their first day at the Kafr Kana archaeological excavation, they discovered a valuable item. "While shoveling soil into the pan I saw a shiny coin. When I realized what it was I cried out and everyone was excited," says Dor Yagev, a pupil at the academy.
The pupils had discovered a gold coin from the early Islamic period, dating to 776-77 C.E. the coin contained Arabic inscriptions portraying the belief in one god and the name of the prophet Muhammed. Additional silver coins were also found.
In the last few weeks the Antiquities Authority has been conducting excavations together with pupils from paramilitary academies, before the construction of a new car park at the entrance to Kafr Kana.
Dr. Robert Cole, a coin expert at the Antiquities Authority added that "The excitement was not just reserved to the pupils, it also affected the archaeologists as it is very unusual to find a gold coin during excavations. Just as today one doesn't just find a 100 euro note in the street, people guarded their gold then and it was passed down the course of time. When we find gold coins during an excavation, they usually are part of a treasure trove. One gold coin like this for an ordinary person was a huge amount of money. It was worth a hundred kilos of wheat and with just 4.5 dinar like these one could buy a house in the village."
The excavations, as well as similar ones which took place in Kafr Kana over the last fifty years demonstrate the existence of early villages in the area from the time of the Middle Bronze period (2000 B.C.E). as well as from Roman and Byzantine periods.
5. MK DICHTER: STATE OF ISRAEL MUST FIND SOLUTION FOR AMONA
by Yoel Domb
MK Avi Dichter (Likud) says that the problem with Amona's legality is the state's responsibility and not that of the residents. He adds that the solution to the problem must set a new legal precedent for such issues.
"The State of Israel is responsible for finding a solution for Amona residents just as it is responsible for residents of any other community. This responsibility is not something which is up for discussion. The community is legal and was erected on state land," said Dichter in an Arutz Sheva interview.
He says that "Any solution which will be proposed must be legal, whether within the present framework of the law or requiring new legislation by the Knesset which could be upheld in the High Court. We owe this solution to ourselves and not just to the residents of Amona."
Dichter says that the solution must be an overall one and not just relate to Amona. "This is not just Amona's problem. There are many houses which have been legally constructed on land which later is discovered to be in dispute. We shouldn't come with complaints to the residents but rather to ourselves as a state. This problem is not endemic to Judea and Samaria - it exists in other areas of the country - and the state of Israel is obligated to provide an innovative solution.
"The regulation law could be the conduit in which we can direct the process (of legislating these properties) since one should not just look at the houses of Amona, one should see them as a precedent for future cases."
Dichter added that the postponement requested by the state was designed to allow a creative solution which will enable Amona residents to live in these or other houses and will enable the state to provide them with the best possible conditions.
6. ANTHONY WEINER COOPERATING WITH FBI IN CLINTON PROBE
by Guy Cohen
Fox News reports that former Congressman Anthony Weiner is cooperating with FBI agents, and that he gave them the portable computer that has sparked renewed interest in a separate FBI investigation into Hillary Clinton's handling of classified government material.
Because the computer, which is jointly owned by Weiner and his now estranged wife and top Clinton aide Huma Abedin, was handed over for another investigation, the FBI does not require a special search warrant to scan the content of the computer.
Given Weiner's cooperation thus far, media outlets have debated whether Weiner will testify in the matter of the e-mails against his estranged wife Huma Abedin.
Some analysts are going one step further and asking whether Abedin herself might testify against Clinton in order to save herself from criminal charges.
In the meantime, it has now been partially clarified how the emails could have gotten to Weiner's computer. Abedin told her associates in the last few days that she has no idea how they got there - and she may be telling the truth.
Fox News reporter Catherine Herridge stated that Abedin may have used the computer to backup her phone lists from her cellphone. During the course of backing up she may have unwittingly backed up all of the correspondence in her phone including Clinton's mail correspondence.
Herridge explained that FBI agents who examined Wiener's computer during a separate investigation of his indecent conduct discovered hundreds of thousands of mails and scanned the mails' meta-data. The scan revealed that tens of thousands of mails with State Department addresses, some of them stemming from Hilary Clinton's private server.
Investigating all of these mails will take a number of weeks and it is unlikely that it will be completed before the elections take place.
7. GATHERING FOR UNITED JERUSALEM AND SUPPORT FOR DONALD TRUMP
by Larry Domnitch
Hundreds gathered upon the scenic terrace of the David Harp restaurant on Mount Zion to express their support for a United Jerusalem, in the wake of the UNESCO votes denying any connection to Jerusalem, and in the context of the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
The event also dealt with the overtly pro-Israel and pro-Unified Israeli Jerusalem stances of Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates Donald Trump and Mike Pence. The crowd ranged from haredim to the secular. Some participants were sporting Donald Trump hats and T- shirts, bearing the Trump campaign slogan, "Make America great again." Facing the Mount of Olives and overlooking the Biblical City of King David, it was a scene from the Bible transformed to modern times: A modern day political rally on behalf of an everlasting possession-Jerusalem.
At the gathering of mostly American Israelis, old friends met and exchanged greetings but the atmosphere was underscored by the seriousness of the coming elections. This was their chance to speak out.
There were the speakers.
Marc Zell, the co-chairman of Republican Overseas Israel which organized the gathering, called the event a "Rally for Jerusalem," and added, "Tonight we are all united for Jerusalem."
Marc Zell, the co-chairman of Republican Overseas Israel
Yonatan Sindel/Flash90
"Just as there is no other land (for the Jews) there are not two 'Jerusalems,'" said Jerusalem Deputy Mayor, Chagit Moshe, who also stated that over one and a half million Jews visited the Western Wall over the holiday over the Jewish holidays last month.
"These are Troubling times. Nations are collapsing," warned Caroline Glick of the Jerusalem Post.
Glick discussed the decline of America in the world and decried the poor leadership that America has "sided with their enemies empowering them on every level." Glick continued, "Countries once fighting terror became the epicenter of Jihad." Glick also cited the Iran deal and given the whole world situation stated, "This was unthinkable eight years ago. "
Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who served as Secretary of State under the Obama administration, was described by Glick as "A full partner to these policies."
Via a huge screen, Donald Trump began his message with the words, "I love Israel." He declared to thunderous applause in a recorded statement specifically for the event, "My administration will stand side by side with the Jewish people and Israel's leaders to continue strengthening the bridges that connect not only Jewish Americans and Israel but also all Americans and Israelis...Together we will stand up to the enemies like Iran bent on destroying Israel and your people. Together, we will make America and Israel safe again."
[youtube:2020301]
Vice Presidential candidate Governor Mike Pence, also via the big screen, spoke of Jerusalem as "that special holy place which is the eternal home of the Jewish people, adding, "Israel's cause is our cause. Israel's fight is our fight. Her values are our values. Israel is America's most cherished ally in the world."
[youtube:2020303]
Senior Israeli advisor to Trump, David Friedman, quoted Trump who had told him that there will be "no daylight between us and Israel." Friedman explained that "when Israel is disrespected, this energizes the enemies of Israel. Differences must be handled discreetly."
To rousing applause Friedman reassured the audience, "Trump will never pressure Israel to a two-state solution or any solution against the will of the Israeli public."
Acclaimed Israeli singer Shuli Natan sang "Yerushalayim shel Zahav." (Jerusalem of Gold).
Several speakers spoke of the contrast between Trump and Clinton who has on several occasions called for Israel to make far reaching concessions. They also mentioned her close advisor Huma Abedin, her associations with anti-Israel activist Sidney Blumenthal, her support for the Iran deal, and the ill-fated Islamic-inspired Arab Spring which occurred while she was Secretary of State.
Clinton also chose Tim Kaine as Vice Presidential candidate, who strongly supported the Iran nuclear deal and joined other Democratic members of Congress who boycotted Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's address to the US Congress opposing the deal. Clinton had also embraced Suha Arafat right after she leveled spurious accusations that Israel was poisoning Palestinian women and children.
The Israeli government has carefully avoided taking a stance on the American elections. On November 8, a decision will be made by the American people with far reaching implications for the U.S. and the world.
8. 'BDS POGROM WAS LIKE STORMTROOPERS DURING 1930S'
by David Rosenberg
[youtube:2020515]
Anti-Israel protesters who crashed a pro-Israel event in London last Thursday targeted female students planning to attend the event, physically attacking Jewish girls both on the way to and inside of the venue.
The event, held at the University College London, featured a talk by former IDF soldier Hen Mazzig.
As previously reported, BDS activists stormed the event, trapping participants in a room. Police ultimately intervened, warning those trapped not to attempt to leave the room before officers gained control of the situation.
The protesters, however, apparently did far more than merely trap those participating in the event.
According to The Algemeiner, the pro-BDS activists targeted female students both outside of and inside the event, physically attacking them in a scene a senior official at the Simon Wiesenthal Center said was reminiscent of pogroms by Nazi street gangs in the 1930s.
The guest of the event, Hen Mazzig, a former IDF officer and veteran who served in Judea and Samaria, said he was shocked by the assault.
"I don't think that even in my days in the IDF it was as bad as it is right now. It's really scary. I hear that they have been attacking some girls, Jewish girls that came to support and to [hear] my talk."
Several female students, including Devora Khafi, director of the local Stand With US branch, and Liora Cadranel, co-president of the local Israel Society, told the Jewish Chronicle that protesters "weren't afraid to hurt girls."
Khafi said while she was accustomed to aggressive opposition by anti-Israel groups, the incident on Thursday "was unbelievable."
"I go to a lot of Israel events. This one was very different. These people are not afraid to do anything. It was unbelievable. This was the worse experience I've ever had at an Israel event on campus."
Later, in a letter obtained by The Algemeiner, the Simon Wiesenthal Center international relations director Shimon Samuels described the attacks to the UCL's Vice Chancellor, writing that the scene was "redolent of a 1930s Nazi storm-trooper 'pogrom,' or of budding Jihadi volunteers serving ISIS on a British university campus."
"The thugs first attacked female students on their way to the event…Their screams. 'Intifada, Intifada, from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,' bore witness to their violent intent in championing the cause of a 'Palestine' built on the ruins of the state of Israel."
------------------------------------------------
Subscribe to this Daily Israel Report:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Subscribe/
