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 כ' בתשרי תשע"ח / Tuesday, Oct. 10 '17 Subscribe to this Daily Israel Report -http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Subscribe Headlines
1. 'Whoever says this is not an improvement-misleading the public'by Nitzan Kedar A senior government source responded to charges that the government will build far fewer houses in Judea and Samaria than the 3,829 units announced earlier this week. On Sunday, it was reported that a total of 3,829 housing units in Judea and Samaria would be approved next week. However, the overwhelming majority of the 3,829 units in question will not receive final approval, while some have already been constructed and will merely be receiving retroactive approval. Of the 3,829 units which are expected to receiving approval at next week’s Higher Planning Committee meeting, only 870 are slated to receive permits – the last step before the projects can be put on the market. According to the government source, the Judea and Samaria council leaders don't appreciate the increase in construction. "The government will approve 12 thousand housing units in various stages of planning and construction - four times the amount that was approved in 2016," the source told Arutz Sheva. "Whoever claims that this is not a significant improvement is misleading the public...Housing units will be approved for discussion throughout Judea and Samaria, including in Hebron, Migron and Beit El, places where construction has not been approved for many years," the source continued. The source also rebuffed criticism that Prime Minister Netanyahu was surrendering to overseas demands not to build in Judea and Samaria, saying that "whoever thinks that we shouldn't take these considerations into account is mistaken. There is no one who works harder and with more determination to build than Netanyahu." The leaders of the Judea and Samaria Council were hoping for a wave of construction following an almost total freeze on building during the Obama administration and were mistrustful of the latest building announcement. On Monday, Samarian Regional Council head Yossi Dagan called the recent announcement of new construction a "spin", accused the Prime Minister of "throwing sand in the public's eyes", and attacked Netanyahu for "missing a historic opportunity". A senior official in the Judea and Samaria Council concurred with Dagan and attacked Netanyahu for approving a lower number of units than publicized. "Netanyahu, unfortunately, is not really building the settlements," said the official. "His intentions are good, but the results are indeed poor." "After eight years of 'construction drought', half a million people are expected to stand and applaud the approval of only 3,000 construction units, and these numbers are inflated as each stage of authorization," he complained. "A house in Judea and Samaria is counted five times, it seems, because if you actually divide the publicized number into five, only then do you get the actual number of issued building permits." Translated by Tzvi Lev 2. Haredi soldier accused of weapons traffickingby Tzvi Lev A driver serving in the haredi Netzach Yehuda-Nahal Haredi battalion was arrested for allegedly stealing and selling weapons he stole from the IDF. The soldier was caught after an IDF military police agent posed as a buyer and caught the soldier in the act. According to the IDF, the soldier stole gas grenades and stun grenades from IDF vehicles that he had access to due to his position as a driver. The soldier also stole magazines and 4,810 bullets. The soldier claimed that stealing these items was easy, as IDF officers in charge of them during practice maneuvers wouldn't report them missing out of fear of getting punished. The soldier was caught after a long sting operation by IDF military police. A military police agent pretending to be from a crime family called up the soldier, who used code words in an attempt to cover his tracks. According to Ynet, the two used the words "girls" instead of weapons, fragmentation grenades were called "tank tops", and gas grenades were substituted with "the things that make us cry". The soldier also promised to obtain a Jericho pistol for the agent from criminals that he knew from the Arab-Israeli city of Tayba. While the soldier admitted to stealing the weapons, he claimed that he had only done so in order to help pay off a NIS 100,000 debt that his family owed to loan sharks. "My mother has serious debts, she owes money to people and has taken large loans. Any day she's going to start crying. I'll do whatever I can to help her," the soldier told the agent. The agent planted by military police testified that the soldier had told him that he would often steal money and cigarettes from cars that were confiscated from Palestinians, but the agent was unable to provide evidence that the soldier had participated in looting. The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said that "the military police decided to open an investigation following intelligence information of arms trafficking. The soldier's arrest was extended by the military court until October 24, 2017. The soldier can defend himself in the trial that will be held against him." The IDF has been upgrading its weapons storehouses in response to a recent spate of thefts from IDF bases. In early October, thieves broke into an IDF base and stole anti-tank explosive devices, thunder bombs, anti-tank mines, explosive bricks, and bullets. Last May, 33 M-16s were stolen from an IDF armory on the Sdeh Teiman base in southern Israel. After an investigation, a renovations contractor working on the base turned out to be accomplice and police rounded up the criminal ring. In response, IDF chief Gadi Eizenkot ordered the military to invest NIS 15 million in safeguarding the IDF's weapons storehouses. The measures will include biometric scanners, additional cameras, and improved locks. Netzach Yehuda, also known as Nahal Haredi, is a battalion in the Kfir Brigade that enables haredi soldiers to serve in the IDF. Woman are forbidden on base, and soldiers receive special food that conforms to a more stringent standard of Jewish dietary laws than is necessary to keep kosher halakhically. 3. Will pro-Israel senator lead the CIA?by Arutz Sheva Staff US President Donald Trump is reportedly considering appointing Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) to lead the CIA instead of current agency head Mike Pompeu. According to the report, Pompeo is being considered to replace US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Cotton is one of the most outspoken supporters of Israel in the US Senate. "The president's senior advisers are discussing with the president the move of Mike Pompioo to the State Department and Senator Tom Cotton to the CIA, " senior radio broadcaster Hugh White said on NBC News' 'Meet the Press' Sunday. Earlier this year, Senator Cotton told Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic that "Jews are called Jews, because they’re from Judea ... It is a homeland to which the Jews have been attached for many millennia." Cotton was the only senator to vote against the bill that allowed the nuclear agreement with Iran to be approved in July 2015. The bill passed by a vote of 98 to 1. Cotton also said to Congress in 2014 that the US should consider selling B-52 bombers to Israel, as well as bunker buster bombs capable of destroying underground Iranian nuclear facilities. Senator Cotton has called on the Trump Administration to cut funding to the Palestinian Authority until it ceases paying terrorists in Israeli prisons and the families of terrorists. [youtube:2033761] 4. Police: World cup stadium invader did not carry knifeby AFP Israeli police dismissed on Tuesday local media reports that a pitch invader who ran towards Spanish attacker Isco at a World Cup qualifier in Jerusalem was carrying a knife. Israeli news website Ynet cited security officials in the stadium as saying six fans entered the field as the game was ending late Monday, with one of them carrying a small knife in his sock. He approached the Real Madrid star but did not threaten to attack him, the report said, before being arrested. Other Israeli media reported the allegation, but police and football officials denied it. Police spokeswoman Luba Samri told AFP no knife was found inside the stadium. A spokesman for the Israeli Football Association confirmed a fan ran towards Isco but said "no knife has been found." Spain won the game 1-0 to finish five points clear at the top of their group and qualify for next summer's World Cup. Asier Illarramendi scored the only goal of the match, a spectacular 75th minute volley, ensuring Spain finished the group unbeaten with nine wins and a draw. 5. Watch: Hundreds of Jews visit Temple Mount on Sukkot[youtube:2033775] 6. Liberman: In next war, Syria and Lebanon will be 1 frontby AFP Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said Tuesday that Lebanon and Syria would constitute "one front" against his country if a new war were to break out. Hezbollah terrorists and Israel fought a devastating conflict in 2006, and the Lebanese Shiite group is currently backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime in the Syrian civil war. Both countries border Israel to its north. "In the next war in the north of the country, Lebanon will not be the only front," Liberman said in a speech to soldiers. "There is now only one front in the north composed of Lebanon, Syria, Hezbollah, the Bashar al-Assad regime and all those who help his regime." Liberman added that the Lebanese army had lost "its independence by becoming an integral part of Hezbollah, which gives it its orders." Israeli leaders frequently warn Lebanon that the country's army and civilian infrastructure would be overwhelmingly targeted if Hezbollah attacks from civilian areas. Hezbollah is also supported by Iran, Israel's arch-enemy, which backs Assad in Syria as well. Israel's military believes Hezbollah has between 100,000 and 120,000 short- and medium-range missiles and rockets, as well as several hundred long-range missiles, with the medium-range missiles capable of reaching Tel Aviv. Liberman evoked the possibility of a simultaneous conflict in the north and in the south with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. "The battle will take place on the northern and southern fronts," he said. "There is no longer war on one front. It's our basic assumption and it is what our military is preparing for." Since 2008, Israel has fought three wars with the Hamas terrorist organization, which also receives support from Iran. Israel has sought to avoid becoming involved in the Syrian civil war, but acknowledges carrying out dozens of air strikes there to stop what it says are advanced weapons deliveries to Hezbollah. 7. Report: Iran tried to acquire nuke, missile technology 32 timesby David Rosenberg The Iranian regime made dozens of attempts to acquire technology critical for its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, Fox News reported Monday night, a possible violation of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), better known as the Iran nuclear deal. Fox News cited three German intelligence reports which indicated that agents working on behalf of Tehran made “32 procurement attempts… that definitely or with high likelihood were undertaken for the benefit of proliferation programs.” The attempted acquisitions, aimed at technology useful for advancing Iran’s military nuclear program and efforts by the regime to manufacture effective medium-to-long-range delivery systems for a future atomic weapon, reportedly took place in 2016 – after the JCPOA took effect in January of that year. Efforts to obtain such technology are prohibited under the JCPOA. All of the procurement attempts took place in Germany’s North Rhine-Westphalia – a state in western Germany including major population centers like Cologne, Dusseldorf, and Essen. In addition, German intelligence officials noted that not only Iran, but Pakistan, North Korea, and Sudan used “guest academics” to attempt to obtain uranium enrichment technology. “An example for this type of activity occurred in the sector of electronic technology in connection with the implementation of the enrichment of uranium,” one of the German intelligence documents read. The German intelligence reports also warned that Iranian efforts to acquire long-range ballistic missile technology continued “unabated”, and if obtained would enable Tehran to directly threaten Europe. 8. Watch: Yonina does 'happy' remix for Succotby Tzvi Lev [youtube:2033776] Subscribe to this Daily Israel Report - http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Subscribe | |
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