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 כ"ו באלול תשע"ז / Sunday, Sep. 17 '17 Subscribe to this Daily Israel Report -http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Subscribe Headlines
1. US intervening at UN in Israel's favorby Mordechai Sones The United States is stepping up moves within the United Nations to change the anti-Israel bias that characterizes many of the organization's member countries. Arutz Sheva has learned that Vice President Mike Pence is expected to hold a special session on Tuesday, the day Prime Minister Netanyahu addresses the UN General Assembly, on what a senior American official defines as "the faulty behavior of the various organizational bodies." The senior American official said that a main agenda item of the Vice President will be the UN Human Rights Council and its unfair treatment of Israel. "The Vice President intends to call during the discussion to change the discourse toward Israel, and especially to warn that the US will have to take unpleasant steps if the intensive preoccupation with the State of Israel continues while human rights issues in other places are completely neglected." At present, any Human Rights Council meeting must include a discussion on Israeli human rights violations. A precedent in this spirit was accepted in the past and implemented without question. Israeli diplomacy has been struggling with this for a long time, and now will gain a significant boost from the Vice President. A diplomatic source told Arutz Sheva that "this is another significant step by the United States that continues the line Israel is leading to change the discourse towards it in the UN ... To our understanding, the Vice President will make it clear that they will not suffer a hostile and obsessive attitude toward Israel." Pence's parley is not an official discussion with practical implications on the ground, but rather an event that has declarative, persuasive significance only. 2. Watch: Hundreds pray at graves of Aaron's sons in Awartaby Arutz Sheva Staff [video:2032913] Hundreds of people, observant and non-observant, last night arrived, in coordination with the Shomron Regional Council and directorate of Joseph's Tomb and holy sites, and with the approval and security of the IDF, to say selichot [prayers of repentance traditionally recited during the period leading to Rosh Hashanah] at the graves of Itamar and Elazar, sons of Aaron, who are buried, according to tradition, in the hostile village of Awarta, from which the murderers of the Fogel family came. Among those attending was the head of the Shomron Council, Yossi Dagan, who said: "We have the privilege to live in a generation that is fulfilling the dream of generations - the right to say selichot and pray at the graves of the nation's great figures. The contrast in the fact that these great and righteous people are specifically buried in the terrible village from which the despicable murderers of the Fogel family came illustrates the importance of guarding the site and continuing organized entries there, so as to protect sites holy to the Jewish people.” According to the Jewish, Samaritan, and Arab traditions, Elazar and Itamar, the sons of Aaron - the first High Priest of Israel - are buried in the village of Awarta, and the “70 elders” mentioned in the Torah as leaders of the Jewish people are buried in a cave nearby. In 1235, Rabbi Yaakov Hashaliach, who visited Israel, described in his book: “And the village of Awarta to the left ascending to Jerusalem - there is the gravesite of the priest Itamar, and it is a very pleasant place.” The biblical passage in the book of Joshua (24:33) relating, “And Elazar the son of Aaron died, and they buried him on the hill of Pinchas his son that was given to him on Har Ephraim,” is believed to be referring to the location of Awarta. The Shomron Council said that, on September 27, an organized entry to the tomb of Joseph will take place ahead of Yom Kippur. 3. IDF declares war on smokingby Tzvi Lev The IDF is attempting to wipe out smoking among troops and has decided to implement recommendations put forward by the Medical Corps. The move comes as recent studies found that 4 in 10 IDF soldiers start smoking by the time they finish their mandatory service. According to the new plan, the IDF will ban selling cigarettes at 56 bases where soldiers return home every night and are also considering extending the ban to bases where soldiers sleep for extended periods of time. The IDF will also significantly limit the designated smoking areas on bases and will enforce a harsh disciplinary policy for those caught smoking anywhere else. Soldiers smoking in non-designated areas can expect harsh consequences, such as restricting leave. Part of the IDF's new anti-smoking guidelines approved by IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eiznekot forbids tobacco companies from sponsoring IDF units and will prohibit cigarette donations to soldiers through the army's donation program. In addition, commanders will be forbidden from smoking near their subordinates. The IDF also intends to prohibit smoking in field vehicles which are used for training and operations and will extend the ban to army-issued personal cars. Besides for the new slate of prohibitions, the IDF will beef up programs to prevent smoking. Every soldier, both in mandatory service and in the career army, will be assisted to attend anti-smoking programs such as support groups. 4. Iran: 'Wrong move' by US will face Iranian 'reaction'by Tal Polon Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a threat to the US on Sunday, asserting that the US would “face the reaction” of Iran should it tamper with the Iran nuclear deal. "The Iranian nation is standing firm and any wrong move by the domineering regime regarding the [nuclear deal] will face the reaction of the Islamic Republic," Khamenei said, according to Iranian state television. US President Donald Trump has continuously criticized the Iran nuclear deal, describing it as “the worst deal I’ve ever seen negotiated.” On Thursday, he slammed Iran for violating "the spirit" of the nuclear deal, saying again, "The Iran deal is one of the worst deals I've ever seen, certainly at a minimum the spirit of the deal is atrociously kept.” "The Iran deal is not a fair deal to this country. It's a deal that should not have ever been made," he added. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has also been a vocal critic of the deal. Last week, during a visit to Argentina, he told Argentinian President Mauricio Macri, "Our position is straightforward - this is a bad deal. Either fix it or scrap it. This is Israel's position.” On Saturday, Channel 2 reported that Netanyahu intends to propose an outline for significant changes in the Iran nuclear deal when he meets Trump in New York this week. According to the report, the Prime Minister is not only going to speak out and warn against the danger from Iran, but also present a plan that will prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power. Netanyahu also plans to discuss this topic at his address at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday. The report did not provide details about Netanyahu’s plan, but did note that after many years in which every meeting with an American president was accompanied by tension and apprehension, this time Netanyahu will meet a sympathetic president and an administration that sees eye to eye on most of the issues. 5. Muhammad most popular baby name in Israelby Tzvi Lev The Population and Immigration Authority released on Sunday the most popular names chosen for babies born in Israel over the past Jewish year of 5777. The list includes both Jewish and non-Jewish names. Muhammad was the most popular male name, followed by Yosef/Yussuf, Dovid, Daniel, Udi, Omer, Eitan, Ariel, Noam, and Adam. The most popular exclusively Jewish male names were Uri, David, Ariel, Noam, Eitan, Yosef, Daniel, Yonatan, and Lavi. The most popular female name was Tamar, followed by Adel, Miriam, Avigail, Noa, Shira, Talia, Yael, and Leah. The most popular female names in the Jewish sector were Tamar, Avigail, Adel, Noam, Shira, Taliah, Yael, Shira, Leah, and Esther. Overall, 166,450 babies were born in 2017, down from 176,230 in 2016, while 42,172 Israelis passed away. The report said that 23,770 Jews moved to Israel, while 2,431 Israelis emigrated to a foreign country. In addition, 62,821 Israelis married this past year, down from last year's 75,848, and 22,644 divorced, slightly down from the 23,419 who divorced in 2016. [twittervideo:2032931] 6. 'The only place in the world a Jew is commanded to go'by Mordechai Sones [twittervideo:2032930] MK Yehuda Glick (Likud) tweeted a photo of students and faculty of the Makor Chaim yeshiva in Gush Etzion on the Temple Mount in preparation for the Jewish New Year. The yeshiva is closely linked to prolific author, Jewish thinker, and commentator of Talmud and Hasidism, Rabbi Adin Even Yisrael (Steinsaltz), who inspires staff and students with his persona and broad teaching. Glick captioned the photo: "50 students of Yeshivat Makor Chaim are charging up their souls for the New Year, at the only place in the world a Jew is commanded to go. 'The people of Israel ascended the mountain'." 7. Arab terrorist to be deported from US on Tuesdayby Tzvi Lev Convicted terrorist Rasmea Odeh will be deported from the US to Jordan this Tuesday, after being found guilty of immigration fraud. Odeh, 48, was convicted in 2013 for concealing her arrest, conviction, and imprisonment in her application for United States citizenship in 1995. Odeh had killed 2 Israelis in a 1969 supermarket bombing she carried out for Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). Odeh received a life sentence for her role in the murder, but was released in 1980 in exchange for an Israeli soldier captured in Lebanon. Odeh immigrated to the United States in 1996, and became a prominent anti-Israel activist. In April, she was keynote speaker at the pro-Palestinian Jewish Voices for Peace Conference, where she implored the crowd to "stop the Zionist land grab in Palestine". Odeh will depart Chicago's O'Hare Airport for Jordan on Tuesday, and is expected to be escorted by a large crowd of anti-Israel activists. A notice promoting her send-off read that "we now have the departure date for our dear Rasmea Odeh. She will be leaving the U.S. for Jordan on Tuesday, September 19th, 2017. "This is our last opportunity to say goodbye before she is forced to depart the U.S. after an almost four-year legal and political struggle, a struggle in which the defense committee organized day and night for #Justice4Rasmea, educated thousands about her case and the cause of Palestinian liberation, and made the name Rasmea synonymous with all of the other major social justice fights in the country." 8. 'We have got to get away from these racial identity politics'by Tzvi Lev [twittervideo:2032929] Alan Dershowitz, a famed defense attorney and professor emeritus at Harvard Law School, says that the United States needs to overcome "identity politics" in order to unite the nation. Dershowitz blames both the extreme-left and extreme-right for dividing America through its focus on race. Dershowitz told Fox News that "both the hard right and the hard left engage in identity politics. For the left, they will only listen to you if you're black or transgender. Your identity determines the quality of your ideas. "For the hard-right, they say the same. If you're Jewish, they won't listen to you unless you're white. We have to get away from these racial identity politics. Move us all towards the center," he said."I'm a centrist liberal, many of you are centrist conservatives, we can talk. We can have a rational argument." Dershowitz congratulated Trump for working with Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi to put the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program into law, calling it an example of the unity that Americans needed. "The president is working with Democrats - that is a very good sign. I want to congratulate Pelosi and Schumer for working together to solve this difficult problem," said Dershowitz. DACA is a program instituted by Obama that halted the forced deportations of illegal immigrants that arrived as children. Trump announced last week a bipartisan deal with Democrats that would enshrine it into law. Subscribe to this Daily Israel Report - http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Subscribe | |
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