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IDF forces patrolling the border with Egypt were targeted by fire from the Egyptian side on Monday. No injuries were reported in the incident, and further details are currently being investigated. The soldiers were just north-west of Be’er Milka, located right on the border with Egypt to the south of Gaza, when they were shot at.…

Turkey’s Prime Minister confirmed on Sunday that he was the one who gave the orders to shut down Twitter in the country, reports The Associated Press (AP). Speaking at a campaign event in Istanbul ahead of March 30 municipal elections, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he had given the order because Twitter was not…

Two Jewish organizations on Sunday condemned the statements of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has once again denied that the Holocaust took place. In a speech on Friday honoring the Iranian New Year, Nowruz, Khamenei said, “In European countries, no one dares to talk about the Holocaust, and we do not know if…

A lawmaker from Hamas recently called for a “massacre” of Jews, explaining that Koran indicates that this must be done. In a televised address the lawmaker, Yunis Al-Astal, also said that Jews must be forced to pay the “jizya” tax, which under the strict Islamic Sharia doctrine, non-Muslims living under Muslim sovereignty must pay in…

A court in Egypt has sentenced to death 529 supporters of ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi, reported the BBC. The convicts, members of the Muslim Brotherhood, are part of a group of 545 defendants on trial for the killing of a police officer, attempted killing of two others, attacking a police station and other acts…

Several members of a terror cell in Shechem, which opened fire on Israeli cars at Jit Intersection next to the Samaria community of Kedumim, were arrested in a joint mission between the IDF and Israel Security Agency (ISA, or Shin Bet). Permission was given today (Monday) to release details about the incident, which took place…

The Netivei Yisrael company has announced that a joint Israeli-German offer has defeated an offer by a French-Spanish-Israeli group for laying the rails. DB BahnBau, in a joint offer with Israeli firms Shikun Uvinui and Lesico, offered a 800 million shekel project, which was accepted. The competitor was French firm TSO, which made a joint…

The Jerusalem Municipality on Sunday authorized an initiative of United Jerusalem councilman Aryeh King, and altered the number 43 Egged bus line to expand transportation for Jewish residents in eastern Jerusalem. The bus line currently travels from Armon Hanatziv in the eastern part of the capital, to the Jewish community of Maaleh Hazeitim on the…

Ukraine’s interim President Olexander Turchynov ordered a withdrawal of all the country’s troops from the Crimean Peninsula, following Russia’s armed occupation of the formerly Ukrainian-held territory. “The National Security and Defense Council has reached a decision, under instructions from the defense ministry, to conduct a redeployment of military units stationed in the Autonomous Republic of…

Rose Gottemoeller, the US Undersecretary for Arms Control and International Security, will meet with Israeli counterparts, including several military leaders, to discuss regional security issues, arms control and nonproliferation policy, as well as missile defense cooperation and export control matters, according to Ma’ariv.  The State Department announced Sunday that Gottemoeller will head the US delegation to the 43rd…

Arab League foreign ministers discussed talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) Sunday, and called on Arab states to provide$100 million in financial aid to the PA every month, according to AFP.  The League also rejected recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, a key condition for Israel in talks. The official statement confirms a report by Al-Arabiya earlier this month…

Hilal Al-Assad, the cousin of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, was killed on Sunday along with seven of his fighters during fighting in the border town of Kasab in Latakia province, Al Jazeera reported. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported the death. It was confirmed by Syrian state television, which described Hilal as the…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu appeared on Sunday on the satirical television program Matzav HaUma (State of the Union), which airs on Channel 2. While much of the interview was funny, given the nature of the program, the Prime Minister also made some comments on serious issues, among which was a warning that Iran’s nuclear program…

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh threatened Israel Sunday it would pay dearly if it heeded the growing calls to retake Gaza, according to AFP.  “We tell the enemy and (Foreign Minister Avigdor) Liberman who is threatening to reoccupy Gaza that the time for your threats is over,” Haniyeh declared, at a rally in Gaza City.  “Any aggression or crime or stupidity…

Palestinian Arab terrorists rioted at Rachel’s Tomb on Sunday, next to Bethlehem, injuring two Border Policemen. One suffered moderate injuries and the second suffered light injuries, according to the Border Police spokesman.  Arabs from the village of Al Aida, next to the Tomb, hurled an improvised explosive device and firebombs at the policemen. The policemen…

Islamic law is to be effectively enshrined in the British legal system for the first time under guidelines for solicitors on drawing up “Sharia compliant” wills, reports the Telegraph. The “ground-breaking guidance” by The Law Society will allow solicitors able to write Islamic wills that deny women an equal share of inheritances and exclude non-Muslims…

Israeli Prime Binyamin Netanyahu vowed Sunday that the IDF would use force against anybody plotting attacks against the Jewish state, after troops killed two terrorists and a rioter during a raid in the Palestinian Authority-controlled city of Jenin.     “Over the weekend, our forces struck at a terrorist who had organised attacks on Israelis…

Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Saturday hit out at those on the Israeli right who say that a Palestinian state already exists and that it is located in Jordan, Army Radio reported, citing an interview the King gave to the Al-Hayat newspaper. The King said that anyone who thinks that Jordan is Palestine is living…

23 U.S. senators on Saturday sent a letter to President Barack Obama urging him to stand firm during talks with Iran, Reuters reported. The letter from Democratic senators and one independent was identical to one sent to Obama earlier this week by the House of Representatives, asking that he insist on a final agreement in…

Users of Twitter in Turkey, who had been able to get around the country’s blocking of the site, suffered a setback on Saturday, the Hurriyet daily newspaper reports. According to the report, the Turkish government blocked access to Google’s public DNS service, which many had been using in order to bypass the ban and publish…

American officials are very concerned that the talks between Israel and Palestinian Authority could break down totally. The two sides are deadlocked, and no progress has been made for weeks, the officials were quoted as saying by Israel Radio – and the administration of President Barack Obama is feverishly trying to come up with a…

At least one person has been killed and fourteen wounded in the Lebanese capital Beirut, in overnight gun battles between supporters and opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The initial fighting reportedly broke out at 3 a.m. on Sunday morning between the pro-Assad Arab Movement and fighters aligned with the Future Movement, which supports the…

Jerusalem prosecutors on Sunday filed an indictment against Aziz Awisat, a terrorist who carried out several attacks against Israelis. Most recently he was involved in attempts to cause gas explosions in Jerusalem, which he tried to do by cutting gas lines and causing leaks that he hope would be ignited. He was charged with attempted…

US lobbying group J Street has once again thrown its weight behind the Obama administration and the Palestinian Authority, urging Israel to drop demands for the PA to recognize the country as a Jewish state. Israeli leaders have been adamant on the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, saying that far from being a…

A Jewish teacher was savagely beaten by a group of Arab men in a brutal anti-Semitic attack in Paris, according to the Bureau for National Vigilance Against Anti-Semitism (BNVCA). The attackers – who shouted “death to the Jews” and “filthy Jew” during the assault – broke the victim’s nose and drew a swastika on his…

Hareidi soldiers from the Netzach Yehuda Battalion – part of the Nahal Hareidi unit – were vital to the IDF’s raid on a wanted Hamas terror cell in Jenin on Saturday night.  The unit was instrumental in surrounding the house where Hamza Abu Alheja, 20, a member of the Hamas military wing, was hiding. An Islamic Jihad terrorist and…

Further details have emerged about the IDF raid in Jenin on Saturday in which two terrorists were killed, among them one of Hamas’s high-ranking officials.  The operation in Jenin on Saturday was a joint effort by the SWAT (Yamam) team, IDF forces, and the Israeli Security Agency (ISA or Shin Bet). The raid led to the…

Russian forces stormed one of the last remaining Ukrainian air bases in Crimea on Saturday, taking it over after at tense standoff, according to video footage.  As of late Saturday night, one Ukrainian soldier has been killed as a result of the takeover. The live stream was taken down shortly after a Russian convoy broke…

Hundreds of Israelis, including many journalists, have been threatened – allegedly by Hamas – in the past several hours via text messages.  Among other things, the messages include warnings that Hamas is going to conquer Israel, and has threatened to shoot more rockets and kidnap civilians.   The text messages are appearing from private or…

Three Palestinian Arabs were killed in the Palestinian Authority-controlled city of Jenin in Samaria (Shomron) early on Saturday after Israeli soldiers launched an operation to arrest a terrorist, Palestinian Authority officials said.     Medical and security sources said two of those killed were terrorists and the third was a civilian. They said 14 rioters…

IDF soldiers were forced to shoot two Palestinian Arab rioters near the Gaza border fence late Friday, according to AFP, after they attempted to infiltrate Israel. “Ten Palestinians rioted adjacent to the security fence in the northern Gaza Strip,” an IDF spokesperson told the news outlet. “Two instigators attempted to climb over the security fence.”  “After they…

Economics Minister and Jewish Home Chairman Naftali Bennett strongly condemned the ongoing media and political tirade against Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who is under fire for criticizing the US’s policy toward Israel.  “The media attack on the defense minister and top IDF official is unnecessary and mostly false, and so far there is no one…

More members of Dutch anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders’ party abandoned his party on Saturday amid an unprecedented storm of protest after he vowed “fewer Moroccans’ in the Netherlands.     Three councilors quit his Party for Freedom (PVV) party in the northern Friesland province, after similar moves by the head of the party’s bloc in…

Chairman of the Palestinian Authority (PA) Mahmoud Abbas briefed officials in Ramallah on Saturday about the progress of ongoing peace talks with Israel.  Spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina stated at Saturday’s briefing that Abbas had told US President Barack Obama and US Secretary of State John Kerry, whom Abbas met this week, that he would not yield the…

The head of the IDF’s Southern Command promised on Friday that the IDF would locate and destroy all of Hamas’s terror tunnels. Speaking hours after the IDF confirmed that it had uncovered a “highly advanced” tunnel leading from Gaza into Israel, Major General Sami Turgeman said, “We monitored the tunnel for a long time thanks…

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) reported that roughly half of Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal has been removed from the war-torn nation. The announcement came the same day that the Syrian army maintained its belligerent stance, conquering a Crusader castle. Over the past week three consignments of “Priority 1” and less lethal…

The United States is dissatisfied with Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon’s clarification that he had not meant to insult the U.S. “We still have remaining concerns about Ya’alon’s pattern of behavior,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters on Friday. The United States harshly criticized Ya’alon this week, over his remarks that the United States “shows…

Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Friday congratulated the Iranian people on the occasion of the Nowruz holiday, the Iranian new year, wishing them continued prosperity and progress. Abbas took advantage of the opportunity to express his hopes that the ties between the PA and Iran could be strengthened. According to the Bethlehem-based Ma’an…

Turkey’s banning of Twitter was met with harsh criticism by the United States on Friday, AFP reported. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the order to prevent Turks from accessing the site was “contrary to Turkey’s own expressed desire to be a model of democracy.”  “The United States supports freedom of expression in Turkey and…

Russia on Friday accepted the deployment of an international monitoring team to Ukraine that officials said will have free access to regions throughout the country, The Associated Press (AP) reported. The development followed more than a week of stonewalling by Russia of a push by all other members of the 57-nation Organization for Security and…

Some 100 Palestinian Arabs tried to disrupt the annual Jerusalem Marathon on Friday, the Israel Police told AFP. “Around 100 demonstrators holding Palestinian flags tried, at two separate parts of the course, to disrupt the race,” police spokeswoman Luba Samri told the news agency. Police arrested four of them and dispersed the rest “with ease,”…

As events in Ukraine continue to escalate, the country’s roughly 60,000-strong Jewish community has been feeling the pressure. Already suffering from high levels of anti-Semitism and, in many cases, from grinding poverty, the ongoing power vacuum and tensions with Russia have markedly increased the sense of uncertainty on the ground. Perhaps of greatest concern is…

The Ministry for Immigration and Absorption will be launching a special program in the US on Sunday – the “Return Home” Project – encouraging Israeli emigrants to return to their homeland.  Native Israelis living in the US will be encouraged to move to the Negev and the Galilee, as part of efforts to boost development…

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, denied the Holocaust Friday in a speech honoring the Iranian New Year, Norwuz.  “In European countries, no one dares to talk about the Holocaust,” the Ayatollah claimed, “and we do not know if it’s real or not.”  According to the Ayatollah, Europe’s criminalization of denying…

As events in Ukraine continue to escalate, the country’s roughly 60,000-strong Jewish community has been feeling the pressure. Already suffering from high levels of anti-Semitism and, in many cases, from grinding poverty, the ongoing power vacuum and tensions with Russia have markedly increased the sense of uncertainty on the ground. Perhaps of greatest concern is…

Roland Kimeli Kurgat, a 28-year-old from Kenya, has been named the winner of Friday’s Jerusalem marathon, completing the 26 miles in just two hours and 16 minutes. Kurgat’s time beats last year’s finishing time by 19 seconds, making a new record.  Over 25,000 runners competed in the marathon; 2,500 of them flew in to participate…

Turkey has reportedly blocked access to popular social network site Twitter, just hours after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened he would do so. Reuters reported that Twitter users in Turkey were complaining of widespread outages. According to the news agency, some users trying to open the Twitter.com website were taken to a statement apparently…

U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday slapped sanctions on top Russian officials, and Russian President Vladimir Putin retaliated by hitting top U.S. officials with sanctions of his own. Fox News reported that Russia’s newest sanctions bar nine American officials from entering Russia. The list includes House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio; Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid,…

The United States and Britain on Thursday called for a UN investigation of Israel’s interception of an Iranian shipment of rockets headed for Gaza, according to The Associated Press (AP). UN officials have said that if Israel’s claims are true, Iran would be in violation of Security Council sanctions. U.S. deputy ambassador Rosemary DiCarlo urged the…

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has made it abundantly clear in recent months that not only does it not recognize Israel as the Jewish state — it doesn’t recognize Israel’s existence altogether. Official PA TV broadcast a cartoon in late February showing a math teacher pointing to a map of Israel, with the words “Palestine: a…

Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas demanded in talks with US President Barack Obama that Israel free the most senior Palestinian Arab prisoners, including Marwan Barghouti, a PA official said Thursday. Earlier this month, Abbas said Palestinians will not agree to extend peace talks with Israel beyond their April 29 deadline without Israel releasing more prisoners…

The Palestinian Authority (PA) and Fatah, the faction of PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas, didn’t let the peace talks with Israel deter their annual praising of the most lethal terror attack on Israel. Both groups reveled in the March 11 anniversary of arch-terrorist Dalal Mughrabi’s horrific massacre. In 1978, Mughrabi led a group of terrorists from Lebanon to…

Eight of 11 families of Iranian Jews missing since the 90s were told Thursday evening at the Center for Intelligence Heritage that their relatives were murdered on their way to Israel. The men were among 11 Iranian Jews whose disappearances in 1994 and 1997 have been cited by the U.S. State Department as pointing to…

An American congressional delegation visited Israel this week after a stop in Ukraine. Arutz Sheva got a chance to speak with the senior American politicians to discuss relations between Israel and the US. US Senators Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) and Joe Donnelly (D-IN), both members of the Armed Services Committee, and Congressman Stephen Lynch (D-MA) reinforced the strong connection between…

Despite the ongoing civil war, it seems to be business as usual in Damascus. On Tuesday, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad decided to establish a “space agency” to conduct scientific research, AFP reported, citing the state news agency SANA. According to the report, the Syrian cabinet had approved a project to create the so-called Syrian Space…

The organizer of a World War II-themed party that included Nazi flags and men in SS uniforms apologized on Wednesday after a photo of the event in Minneapolis provoked outrage on the Internet, reports The Associated Press (AP). The Nazi-themed party, which was held at Gasthof zur Gemutlichkeit, a popular German restaurant and bar in…

Officials in Australia said that they had observed debris in the Indian Ocean that could be part of the wreckage of the Malaysian airliner that disappeared 12 days ago with 239 people on board. The debris was sighted using satellite imagery in an area of the Indian Ocean, about 1,500 miles off the coast of…

Syria complained on Wednesday to the United Nations against Israel, after the Israeli Air Force launched airstrikes against Syrian targets on Tuesday night. The airstrikes, in which Syria claimed a soldier had been killed, targeted artillery batteries and a Syrian army training camp which had aided terrorists in the detonation of an explosive charge on the…

Russia warned the West on Wednesday that it may revise its stance in the Iranian nuclear talks in an act of retaliation over the West’s sanctions on it, The Associated Press (AP) reported. Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said, according to the Interfax news agency, that Russia did not want to use the Iranian…

Several thousand Hungarian Jews on Wednesday marked the 70th anniversary of Nazi Germany’s invasion of Hungary with a memorial service outside the Grand Synagogue in Budapest, AFP reported. The service, organized by Mazsihisz, the country’s largest Jewish organization, was the first in a series of events marking the Holocaust, which claimed the lives of some 600,000 Hungarian…

The Knesset on Wednesday authorized on its second and third readings a law that codifies the criminalization of transporting illegal workers from the Palestinian Authority within Israel. The law specifies fines and jail time for such offenses under certain circumstances. The law has actually been on the books for several years, but had the status…

If Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon does not follow through with his threat and resigns, he will be fired, sources close to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday evening. The comments came after Danon,  who met with bereaved mothers earlier Wednesday, said he would resign unless the fourth tranche of the release of terrorist…

The Israeli Air Force held a ceremony on Thursday to reveal its latest acquisition: two advanced M-346 jet planes from Italy. Each plane costs an estimated 20 million euros (roughly $27.5 million); the IAF plans to purchase 30 of them. They are capable of speeds of mach 1.15 (roughly 875 miles per hour). The plane,…

Two Arab rioters were arrested Thursday for attempting to attack MK Moshe Feiglin (Likud Beteinu) as he visited the Temple Mount. Hundreds of rioters threw stones at Feiglin and several individuals who accompanied him. Feiglin was forced to leave the site, and police took steps to break up the riot. As a result of the…

The name Porsche has long made sports car enthusiasts swoon, but the Nazi past of the famous brand’s founder has left his Czech hometown sorely divided over his legacy.   In 2010, Vratislavice opened an ultra-modern, million-dollar memorial to Ferdinand Porsche, who invented the Volkswagen Beetle – among the world’s top selling cars – and…

An EU parliamentary delegation on Thursday urged Israel to release long-term Arab terrorists, saying it was crucial to move a fragile Middle East peace process forward.   “We believe that the release of prisoners… is central to the peace process,” said Emer Costello, who headed the EU delegation on a three-day fact-finding mission on Palestinian…

Israel has advanced construction plans for over 2,000 new housing units in six Judea and Samaria communities, a defense official said on Thursday. The official, Guy Inbar, is a spokesman for the Civil Administration, the IDF unit tasked with approving construction in the region. Inbar told AFP that a Defense Ministry committee on February 19 pushed forward…

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon spoke to U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Wednesday evening and clarified that his remarks regarding the “soft” approach of the West toward the possibility of a nuclear Iran were not meant to insult the United States. A statement from Ya’alon’s office said that in a telephone conversation with Hagel, Ya’alon…

The Knesset passed a bill Wednesday extending an existing ban on citizens from enemy states using “reunification with family” as a reason to enter Israel. The bill, which passed by a landslide vote of 42 to 15, is based on an assessment by the General Security Services and recommend by Interior Minister Gideon Sa’ar. In…

The ugly legal battle between the family of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and former housekeeper Manny Naftali continues, Channel 2 reports Wednesday, after Naftali has filed a suit in the Jerusalem Labor Court asking for one million shekel ($288,834) from the Netanyahus.  Naftali claimed in the suit that he was employed under poor work conditions, that the…

In a rare move, Secretary of State John Kerry protested to Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Wednesday over Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon’s strong criticism of US foreign policy, according to AFP.  Ya’alon slammed the US and the West on Tuesday for its “soft” approach toward the possibility of a nuclear Iran.  “Everyone knows Iran is lying,” Ya’alon stated.…

Malaysian Defense and Transportation Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told reporters at a press briefing Wednesday that a new twist had been revealed in investigations over missing Malaysian Airlines Flight 370: the discovery that vital files had been deleted from the pilots’ flight simulators sometime before takeoff.  “Some data has been deleted from the simulator. Forensic efforts are on…

Acting Ukrainian President Arseny Yatseniuk has reportedly given officials in the Crimea three hours to free Ukraine’s navy chief, after pro-Russian militiamen detained him during a takeover of a naval base in the port city of Sevastopol. Sergey Gaiduk was seized by the group of roughly 300 armed men, in an attack which came just one…

Top-ranking government officials allotted ten billion shekel ($2.89 billion) to the IDF’s budget in preparation for an armed conflict with Iran, Ha’aretz reported Wednesday.  The report cites “senior military officials” and three unnamed Knesset MKs as stating that the huge sum – the same as in 2013 – has been relegated within the IDF treasury…

Rabbi Yossi Eilfort, an assistant Chabad rabbi from San Diego, California, recently made news when he fought his first amateur MMA fight, winning by TKO in the second round. Several publications covered the story, but much of coverage focused more on the oddity of a man of God stepping in to the MMA ring and…

Yair Golan, the Major General of the Northern Command, has warned the world at large that Israel’s situation with Lebanon is extremely volatile.  “The situation on the border [with Lebanon] is explosive and the smallest spark can cause a border clash – even if neither side is looking to engage in fighting,” Golan told French…

The National Security Agency (NSA) has built a surveillance system capable of recording “100 percent” of a foreign country’s telephone calls and enabling the agency to rewind and review conversations as long as a month after they take place, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday. The report is based on sources with direct knowledge of…

Jordan’s Prime Minister on Tuesday rejected the possibility that his country would cut ties with Israel and expel the Israeli ambassador from Amman, despite demands to do so in the wake of the killing of a Jordanian judge by Israeli soldiers. AFP reported that Prime Minister Abdullah Nsur made the comments during a discussion on…

Deputy Transportation Minister Tzipi Hotovely (Likid-Beytenu) gave birth to a daughter Wednesday morning at Hadassah Mount Scopus in Jerusalem. The mother and daughter are both fine. Hotovely, 35, married Or Alon, a 31-year-old lawyer, last May. Alon grew up in Kochav Yair in western Samaria, and was a member of Bnei Akiva. Hotovely grew up…

The IAF airstrikes in Syria Tuesday night killed one soldier and injured seven, according to the Syrian army. Syrian President Bashar Assad’s army, which is engaged in a three-year bloody civil war, released a statement reading “these desperate attempts…endanger the security and stability of the region,” reports AFP. “This is new aggression and an attempt to divert…

Gaza’s Hamas terrorist rulers on Tuesday sharply criticized Egypt’s closure of the Rafiah border crossing, saying Cairo’s tightening of restrictions on Gaza was a “crime against humanity,” AFP reported. “The Egyptian authorities’ insistence on closing the Rafiah crossing and tightening the Gaza blockade… is a crime against humanity by all standards and a crime against…

IDF soldiers in the Yehuda Brigade are preparing for the annual concerts and events held in the holy city of Hevron for the Jewish holiday of Passover, which will occur in mid-April. As part of the preparations, a special drill was conducted successfully by the unit on Tuesday. The Brigade’s Operations Branch Captain, Major Amir Friedman,…

IDF soldiers reportedly shot and killed a local Arab resident near Hevron on Wednesday, as he attempted to breach Israel’s security fence with two accomplices. “Earlier today three suspects sabotaged the security fence in Deir al-Asal al-Tahta, southwest of Hevron,” an IDF spokeswoman told AFP. After the three ignored soldiers’ warnings to leave, as well as…

Germany has arrested several former Nazi war criminals this week, in an attempt to bring them to justice before they die. On of them, Gisela S, is a 90-year old charged of aiding in mass murder during her time in 1944 as a female guard at the Auschwitz death camp, when she was known by…

Israel Air Force planes opened fire on terror sites in Syria, where terrorists who are connected to the attack on an IDF jeep earlier Tuesday. Three soldiers were injured when an explosive device went off on the Golan Heights, as an IDF jeep was passing by. The incident occurred near the border with Syria, outside…

Following US State Department figures showing a steep 80% rise in US rejections of Israeli visa requests last year, Congresswoman Grace Meng (D-NY) demanded answers from US Secretary of State John Kerry. A whopping 9.7% of Israeli visa applicants were refused in 2013, a radical increase from the 5.4% of the prior year. As recently as…

The Palestinian Authority (PA) on Monday ended its punishment of Hamas and allowed Gaza’s lone power plant to resume operations. The Ma’an news agency reported that the Gaza power station, which had been shut off since Saturday due to a fuel shortage resumed generating electricity, a day after Israel allowed fuel deliveries into the region. Jamal Dardasawi, a public information officer…

We have all been taught at school that the Earth revolves around the sun, but, according to a senior Saudi cleric, we’ve been misled. In fact, Saleh Al-Fawzan, a member of the Saudi Council of Senior Scholars, recently claimed in a televised interview that not only does the Earth not revolve around the sun, the…

A senior diplomatic source told Voice of Israel public radio Tuesday that if it turns out, in the coming days, that talks with the Palestinian Authority (PA) have reached a dead end, Israel will reconsider the planned release of the fourth and last batch of terrorist murderers that it is planning to free as part…

The European Union’s (EU) foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, said on Monday that Europe is opposed to boycotts against Israel. At the same time, she also reiterated the EU’s objection to Israeli construction in Judea and Samaria. ”The European Union opposes a boycott of Israeli companies and businesses. We don’t want to see Israel isolated,”…

Leading Russian internet company Yandex has become the latest technology giant to invest in Israel’s “Silicon Wadi”, purchasing Israeli geolocation startup KitLocate. KitLocate provides an energy-efficient alternative to other mapping and navigation software by only requesting users’ locations when absolutely necessary, as opposed to on a consistent basis, thus saving battery-power. The deal was reportedly sealed…

The Ukrainian government continues to step up its defenses against a possible military invasion from Russia, the Kyiv Post reports Tuesday, after Moscow moved to annex the Crimean peninsula.  Kiev’s interim Finance Minister, Verkhovna Rada, allotted a whopping 6.88 billion Hryvianas (6.9 billion US dollars, approximately) to the defense fund Tuesday morning, after acting prime minister Artseniy Yatensyuk warned that…

Two Christian women were publicly beheaded by Islamist terrorists in southeastern Somalia, as part of a campaign to “wipe out” any Christian presence in the east African country. The Morning Star reported Friday that the two women – identified as mother-of-two Sadia Ali Omar, 41, and her 35-year-old cousin Osman Mohamoud Moge – were executed by the Al…

Russian President Vladimir Putin released an official statement recognizing Crimea as a “sovereign and independent state” on Monday evening, after a controversial referendum vote in the peninsula showed overwhelming support for Moscow over Ukraine.   The Russian presidential decree was issued “considering the expression of the will of the people of Crimea at the general Crimean…

An investigation into Friday night’s skirmishes between Israel and Lebanon – during which an explosive device was detonated on the Lebanese side of the border and the IDF retaliated with shells – has revealed that Hezbollah terrorists succeeded in entering Israel.  Walla! News reported Monday night that several Hezbollah terrorists successfully trespassed over the border into…

An Arab branch of the international hackers’ movement Anonymous is threatening to mount a large scale cyberattack on Israeli government websites on April 7. A similar attack took place last year on April 7. Israeli government web sites came under heavy attack on that day, but the hackers failed to bring down any Israeli sites, the…

More than one week after Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappeared without a trace, authorities have extended their search – and refocused investigations on the pilot and co-pilot as possible suspects.  Footage was released on Sunday evening showing the last known video of Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah, and Co-Pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid of Flight 370 before boarding the plane…

A prisoner serving a life sentence claims he has information on missing IDF soldier Guy Hever, who was last seen in 1997. The State Attorney’s Office said that it has been conducting contacts with the prisoner in recent months regarding his claims, but that the talks have never “ripened” for different reasons. The prisoner, Moti…

US President Barack Obama on Monday told Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas that both he and Israeli leaders must make tough political decisions and take “risks” for peace. Meeting Obama at the White House, Abbas said that Israel’s release of the fourth batch of terrorists by March 29 would show how serious Prime Minister Binyamin…

Ukraine’s Prime Minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, promised the Deputy President of the Rabbinical Council of Europe and the Rabbi of Ukraine, Rabbi Dov Bleich, to beef up protection of Jews in the country, where anti-Semitism has raised its head in the wake of the ouster of the former pro-Russian prime minister. “We denounce the anti-Semitic attacks…

Egyptian authorities have arrested a local resident for “loving Israel,” the Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper reported on Sunday. According to the report, the 24-year-old was arrested in the Sohag governorate in southern Egypt. He was arrested for allegedly writing to Israeli nationals through Facebook and criticizing Egypt and Egyptians as well as declaring his love for…

Amid a diplomatic row between Jordan and Israel over the killing of a Jordanian judge, Israeli doctors last week saved the life of a seven-year-old Jordanian-Palestinian Arab boy. The Israel Hayom daily reported on Sunday that the boy, who had suffered critical kidney failure, underwent a successful kidney transplant at the Rambam Medical Center in…

A suicide car bomb attack killed four people late Sunday in an area dominated by the Hezbollah terrorist group near the Syrian border, a Lebanese security source told AFP. The attack in the Bekaa Valley was claimed by the jihadist Al-Nusra Front in Lebanon, as well as by a little known extremist Sunni Muslim group…

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday “to make the tough decisions that will be necessary” before an April 29 deadline for a peace deal with Israel, Reuters reported, citing a U.S. official. Kerry’s comments were made during a meeting with Abbas in Washington, a day before…

Latvian veterans who fought on Nazi Germany’s side against the Soviets in World War II staged a march in Riga on Sunday, amid a heavy police presence and low-key protests, AFP reports. Around 1,500 people took part in the controversial parade through the capital’s Old Town, police told the news agency. Dozens of opponents, some…

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas will meet Monday with United States President Barack Obama. Analysts expect the meeting will be a tense one. According to previous reports, Abbas plans to agree to extend negotiations with Israel, but only if Israel frees terrorist leaders and agrees to freeze construction in Judea and Samaria (Shomron) – essentially…

Residents of Jerusalem are celebrating the holiday of Purim on Monday. While most of the country celebrated Sunday, in Jerusalem the holiday is held one day later, in commemoration of the fact that Jews living in walled cities at the time of the Purim miracle fought their enemies for one extra day. Among the celebrations,…

Five children’s lives were saved at Schneider Children’s Medical Center over the weekend, in a pre-Purim transplant marathon. The transplant operations – two liver transplants, two kidney transplants and a heart transplant – were carried out one after the other at the Center’s operating room complex. The first operation took place Thursday afternoon, on a…

Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas plans to demand that Israel release arch terrorists and freeze construction in Judea and Samaria in return for Abbas agreeing to extend peace talks, the Al-Hayat newspaper reported on Sunday. According to the report, Abbas plans to make these demands during his meeting with United States President Barack Obama…

Gaza’s lone power plant, shut off since Saturday due to a fuel shortage, will remain off until Monday according to the terror organization Hamas’s government. The responsible party for the extension appears to be the Palestinian Authority (PA), Hamas’s rival. The power station will restart on Monday at 6 a.m., Deputy Chief of the Gaza…

In the wake of “conclusive” suspicions of hijacking in the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which vanished without a trace along with its 239 passengers last Saturday, Israel has decided to tighten its security measures for foreign aircraft entering Israeli airspace. Security and airport officials discussed the changing security situation in light of the…

A research study presented recently by an Ariel University team shows a distinct generational difference in the integration into Israeli society of immigrants from the former Soviet Union. According to the study, immigrants under 30 years of age tend to have a more liberal attitude to “moral” issues that are generally considered “victimless crimes,” such…

An IDF soldier has complained that three men tried to force him into a car at the Hamra Junction in the Jordan Valley Sunday. According to the soldier, he was standing at the junction when a white car stopped near him, and the men got out of it and attacked him. The soldier said that…

Film star Scarlett Johansson told the Observer that she has no regrets over her decision to promote SodaStream, a company headquartered in Israel, with a factory in the Biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria. The actress stepped down from her role as Oxfam ambassador a month ago, when the international relief organization wrote to her…

A passenger tragically passed away on an El Al flight from Los Angeles to Tel Aviv last week. Fellow passengers note the 60-year old man passed out several times while waiting in the terminal during a three hour delay for the flight, which took off from California last Thursday, reports Yedioth Aharonot. Medical personnel who checked…

An Israeli couple in Ukraine’s capital city of Kiev were rescued from a near-lynching last Friday, right before Shabbat. Zalman Hetzklovich and his wife were walking in Kiev’s Independence Square in the center of the city, when eight Ukrainians wearing uniforms and holding sticks suddenly leaped out of a van at them. The Ukrainians pointed…

Last week, already married with several children, Ovadia and Rachel Oved got married, for the second time – this time in a Jewish ceremony. Both of them are former fighters in the South Lebanese Army, who came to live in Israel when the Christian-controlled bastion in South Lebanon fell to Hezbollah after Israel withdrew from…

Further evidence that the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight 370 last week may have been a planned terror attack has surfaced on Sunday, according to the Telegraph, after a British court heard testimony from Al Qaeda terrorist Sajid Badat that islamists had been planning a “9/11 style” attack for weeks. Four to five Malaysian islamist terrorists…

The Kiev police are investigating a severe anti-Semitic incident that occurred Thursday, in which Rabbi Hillel Cohen, Chairman of the Kiev Hatzala emergency rescue organization, was stabbed. The rabbi had told Arutz Sheva three weeks earlier that he feels safe. The rabbi was assaulted by a group of men who yelled anti-Semitic insults and struck…

The front-runner in the close race for Republican presidential nominee leaves some questions for Israel, CNN reports Sunday. In a new poll, 16% of Republican Party members and independents who lean toward the GOP answered they would “be likely to support” Kentucky Senator Rand Paul for the 2016 presidential race, narrowly edging out Representative Paul Ryan…

Hamas cracked down on a Gaza demonstration supporting rival Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday, a day before Abbas is to meet US President Barack Obama in Washington DC. Thirteen demonstrators were arrested. Abbas’s Fatah party, which holds power in Judea and Samaria, organized the aborted demonstration in Hamas-stronghold Gaza. Fatah official Mohammed Nahal…

Nearly three years since the US Navy Seals operation which killed Al Qaeda founder Osama Bin Laden, new and gruesome details have emerged of the circumstances of his death – and suggest a new possible reason for why photos of his body were never released. The Daily Mail has revealed that US commandos involved in the raid…

Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas left for the United States on Saturday, ahead of his meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday. Abbas’s spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, said that Abbas plans to speak with Obama on all issues related to the realization of a two-state solution and the establishment of a just and…

American intelligence officials are leaning toward the theory that the pilots of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 were deliberately responsible for the mysterious disappearance of the jetliner, a U.S. official with direct knowledge of the latest thinking told CNN on Saturday. The revelation followed news that Malaysian authorities searched the home of the lead pilot, a…

A senior official in Iran announced Saturday that authorities identified and neutralized a sabotage attempt at Arak heavy water nuclear reactor. Details of the sabotage remain unclear.  The official, Asghar Zarean, heads security at the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran. “Several cases of industrial sabotage have been neutralized in the past few months before achieving the intended…

An Arab motorist crashed into a border police checkpoint Saturday night at the entrance to Beit Ummar in Judea’s Gush Etzion district, north of Hevron. Four border police were manning the checkpoint at the time, and were injured by the speeding car. All four were evacuated for medical treatment for their light wounds at the…

A Sinai-based terrorist group has acknowledged that one of its founders, who took part in the 2011 coordinated attack on Eilat that killed eight Israelis, died last Tuesday. The terrorist was involved in a car crash, which detonated the explosives he was transporting. The terrorist, identified as Tuwafik Mohammed Frij or “Abu Abdallah,” was part of…

IDF soldiers fired at suspected terrorists who approached the Israeli-Lebanese border on Saturday. “A certain number of suspects approached the Israel-Lebanon border. Soldiers fired in the air to warn them away, and they moved off,” reported an IDF spokeswoman, adding that no one was injured in the exchange. A local Arab resident claimed to AFP that the suspects…

An explosive device was detonated on Friday evening near an IDF patrol that was on the border with Lebanon. No one was physically hurt, but three soldiers were taken to the Ziv Hospital in Tzfat where they will be examined to ensure they did not suffer shock from the explosion. The IDF retaliated and shelled…

Residents of the Jewish community in Tatabanya, Hungary, were shocked to discover on Friday that unknown vandals had desecrated the local Jewish cemetery. The vandals spray-painted anti-Semitic graffiti on the tombstones, including swastikas and statements such as, “Smelly Jews” and, “The Holocaust didn’t happen, but it will.” “They spray-painted swastikas and the black cross which…

Jordan’s Prime Minister said on Friday that his country cannot cut its ties with Israel. According to Kol Yisrael radio, Prime Minister Abdullah Nsur explained that the peace treaty with Israel was important for Jordan’s national security. He further said, according to the report, that the two countries share interests including water issues, borders, the…

The mysterious disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which disappeared nearly a week ago, remained unsolved on Friday, as sources familiar with the probe said the investigation was now focusing more on a suspicion of foul play. Two sources told the Reuters news agency that an unidentified aircraft, that investigators suspect was missing Flight MH370,…

Tunisia’s tourism minister denied on Friday that Israeli tourists aboard a cruise ship who were prevented from entering the country had been discriminated against, saying there had been a procedural problem, according to an AFP report. The Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) said on Monday a “small number” of Israeli passengers on one of its…

Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi David Lau visited the beleaguered city of Sderot on Friday morning. The city, and its surrounding region, has been pummeled by roughly 100 rockets from Gaza since Wednesday, with the most recent hitting Friday morning. “The whole country is behind you and prays for your peace. We hope the Purim holiday will…

Thousands of Jews from from America’s east coast flocked to the Nefesh B’Nefesh Aliyah Mega event in Times Square this week, as part of the series of Aliyah Fairs in seven major cities across North America. Arutz Sheva spoke to participants in the event to gather their thoughts on moving to the Jewish homeland. Potential immigrants came…

Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday that the United States had yet to present a framework for a Middle East peace deal, AFP reported. “Until now, we haven’t received the framework agreement we were promised,” Abbas said at news conference with British Prime Minister David Cameron in Bethlehem. “When the framework is presented…

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is frustrated with the National Security Agency’s (NSA) use of his social network to spy on people. In fact, Fox News reported, Zuckerberg called President Barack Obama on Thursday to express his frustrations and concerns over the spying. “I’ve called President Obama to express my frustration over the damage the government…

An American official said on Thursday that a Malaysia Airlines plane sent signals to a satellite for four hours after the aircraft went missing, an indication that it was still flying for hundreds of miles or more, reports The Associated Press (AP). The comments echo ones made by United States investigators on Wednesday night. These…

Attorney Yoram Sheftel told Arutz Sheva Friday morning that the barrage of rocket fire from Gaza is a reminder of the “idiocy,” in his words, of the current government.  “This conflict illustrates the full nakedness of negotiations, which are the most foolish and freakish in history,” Sheftel fired, calling Gaza “Hamasstan.”  “Israel’s main demand in negotiations has…

Terrorists in Gaza continued the barrage of rockets Friday morning, with a lone rocket being launched at the Jewish state in the late morning. “Moments ago an additional rocket hit,” declared an IDF statement, released at 11:47 am on Friday. An army spokesperson told AFP it was the first attack in the last 12 hours. Since Wednesday,…

Israel is the best country in the Middle East for women’s rights and freedoms, the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap survey concluded this week.  The survey, which has been conducted since 2006, ranks 110 countries in terms of gender equality and inequality, using a variety of factors including demographic data, socioeconomic figures, and a…

An arrest has been made in the Anne Frank diary vandalism case, Tokyo police announced, and the suspect is being cooperative.  “The suspect is a 36-year-old unemployed man who lives in Tokyo,” the Tokyo metropolitan police department said, in a statement translated by SBS news. “The suspect allegedly got into libraries in Suginami Ward on February 5, 2014,…

Ministers slammed US Secretary of State John Kerry for saying Thursday that Israel’s demand for recognition as a Jewish state by the Palestinian Authority (PA) is a “mistake.” The statement, which was announced as rockets fired on Israel from Gaza rocket, has seen Kerry criticized for being disconnected from reality. Deputy Education Minister Avi Wortzman…

Fans gathered earlier this month at the Nokia Arena in Tel Aviv – not for basketball, but for the First Robotics Competition.  The regionals event, which hosted competitions both for teens and for adults passionate about robotics, drew hundreds of spectators and technology enthusiasts. Arutz Sheva interviewed the event’s organizers to see what the fuss was all…

Aircraft of the Israeli Air Force (IAF) attacked seven terror targets in Gaza on Thursday night, shortly after midnight. In a statement, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said that three targets in northern Gaza and four targets in southern Gaza were hit. “The IDF will not tolerate any attempt to harm Israeli citizens and IDF soldiers…

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry thinks it is a “mistake” for Israel to demand that the Palestinian Authority (PA) recognize it as a Jewish state in order to achieve peace. “I think it’s a mistake for some people to be raising it again and again as the decider of their attitude towards the possibility…

A one-year-old baby was killed in Jerusalem on Thursday, after a fire broke out in an apartment in the hareidi neighborhood of Geula. United Hatzalah and Magen David Adom crews arrived at the apartment on Tzefania Street, where they attempted to resuscitate the baby before sending him in a mobile care unit to Jerusalem’s Shaarei…

At least eight rockets were fired on Israel’s south Thursday night by terrorists from Gaza, a continuation of the escalated rocket barrage, in which roughly 100 rockets have been fired since Wednesday. Fortunately none of the eight  caused injuries or damage. Most of the rockets exploded in open areas, several of them being shot down by…

Sderot and its environs may have come under terrorist missile fire in the past few days, but preparations for Purim at the Hesder Yeshiva at Sderot continue unabated. Over 700 students are expected to be present at the yeshiva Saturday, to mark Shabbat Zachor – the Sabbath service that precedes Purim, in which Jews are…

Amid the chaos in Ukraine, Chabad on Wednesday announced a new donation initiative for the holiday of Purim. The money will help Ukraine’s estimated 350,000 to 500,000 Jews “survive in these terrible times,” Chabad said. The unrest which led to Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s ouster in February has been accompanied by an upsurge in anti-Semitic attacks.…

US Secretary of State John Kerry said Wednesday that the level of mistrust between Israelis and the Palestinian Authority was the highest he had ever seen. But he insisted that he was hopeful of reaching “some kind of understanding of the road forward” as he seeks to nail down a framework to guide the stuttering Middle East peace talks, according…

The lower house of Jordan’s parliament, incensed over the shooting death of a Jordanian judge by Israeli soldiers, on Wednesday demanded that the government free a terrorist who murdered Israeli schoolgirls in 1997, AFP reported. In a non-binding resolution, all 150 members of the lower house said “we demand that the government release Jordanian soldier…

British Prime Minister David Cameron reiterated on Wednesday night that he was a staunch supporter of Israel and that he opposes any boycotts of the Jewish state. Cameron and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu held a press conference ahead of their bilateral meeting, which came several hours after Cameron’s speech in the Knesset. “Prime Minister Cameron,…

Russia has signed a preliminary agreement to build at least two more nuclear power plants in the Iranian port city of Bushehr, AFP reported on Wednesday, citing Iran’s official IRNA news agency. The deal was reached during a visit to Tehran on Tuesday by a senior official of Russia’s state atomic energy agency Rosatom, IRNA…

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday condemned the rocket attacks by Gaza-based terrorists on southern Israel, but also urged Israel to show “restraint” in its response to the attacks. “The Secretary-General strongly condemns the multiple rocket attacks today on Israel from Gaza, for which Islamic Jihad has claimed responsibility,” said a statement from Ban’s…

Gaza terrorists fired on major Israeli cities on Thursday morning, setting off the Red Alert rocket sirens in Ashdod and Ashkelon. The Iron Dome defensive system shot down at least one rocket that was on course to hit Ashkelon. Two other rockets were later found near the city. Both had hit open areas. The rockets…

President Shimon Peres reacted Thursday to Gaza terrorists’ ongoing attacks on southern Israel. Hamas is responsible for the rocket fire, he charged, and it will get “fire for fire.” “Tonight, the IDF did what needed to be done – it attacked dozens of targets in Gaza,” Peres stated. The IDF hit 29 targets belonging to…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Wednesday night instructed the defense establishment to do whatever necessary to restore the quiet to Israel’s south. Netanyahu held a security consultation following his meeting with visiting British Prime Minister David Cameron. Participating in the phone consultation were Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, Deputy IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot and…

As tensions continue to mount in the Gaza Region following last night’s barrage of more than 60 rockets fired by Islamic Jihad, and the IDF’s response, leaders on both sides of the Israel-Gaza border are bracing themselves for the potential of a larger-scale Israeli military operation. In anticipation, the Iranian-backed terrorist group responsible for last…

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon had harsh words for Hamas on Wednesday, following the barrage of rocket fire into Israel.  “We will not ignore the barrage of rocket fire tonight,” Ya’alon stated. “We will not allow Islamic Jihad or any other entity in the Gaza Strip to disrupt the lives of Israeli citizens.” Ya’alon continued: “when…

The United States on Wednesday denounced as “reprehensible” a volley of rocket attacks launched by Islamic Jihad terrorists in Gaza into southern Israel and called for such “terrorist attacks” to stop immediately.     “The United States condemns in the strongest terms today’s rocket attacks into Israel by terrorists from the Gaza Strip,” State Department…

Terrorists in the Gaza Strip have battered towns and villages in southern Israel with at least 50 rockets, in the largest-scale attack since the 2012 Pillar of Defense counterrorism operation. IDF Radio is reporting that over 60 rockets have landed in Israel so far, after initial reports put the number at closer to 25. Of those, at…

The Jewish holiday of Purim will occur next week. One group warns that young Jewish girls face a serious danger on the day of drinking and celebrating the Jewish people’s rescue from destruction in ancient Persia. Patty Kupfer, Director of Learn and Live, a group focused on saving Jewish girls from abusive relationships, notes one…

The controversial Enlistment Law passed in the Knesset plenum Wednesday morning, in the second and third readings. The opposition boycotted the vote. MK Yoni Chetboun (Jewish Home) voted against the law. He angered his party and the Coalition with the surprise declaration Tuesday that he plans to vote against the Enlistment Bill. Chetboun explained what led him to vote against the bill on drafting hareidi…

The terrorist, Aziz Awisat of Jabal Mukabar, intended to cause deadly explosions by this method. He also admitted to an axe attack two years ago that seriously injured a Jewish man. Two sets of gas balloons in Armon Hanatziv were damaged last Tuesday. Dozens of residents were evacuated from the two affected buildings on the streets Shlomo Ben…

Jihadists from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) executed at least 22 people, including 12 rebels, in the north of the country on Tuesday, a monitoring group told the AFP news agency. “ISIS members executed at least 22 persons with firearms or knives, after taking control of Shuyukh outside the town of…

The mysterious disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 on Saturday along with its 239 passengers has deepened, with new reports that families of the missing travelers have gotten ringing tones while calling their missing loved ones. While waiting at Beijing’s Metropark Lido Hotel for news on Monday, several relatives of the missing reported they were able…

A home-made bomb exploded in front of the Israeli embassy in Cairo on Tuesday, Reuters reported, citing security sources and the website of the local Al-Ahram newspaper. Security sources said the explosion targeted a police car parked near the embassy, rather than the embassy itself. No one was hurt in the explosion, according to the…

The U.S.-based operator of a cruise ship whose Israeli passengers were prevented from entering Tunisia, announced on Tuesday that it would no longer call at Tunisian ports, AFP reports. The Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line said Monday that a “small number” of Israeli passengers were not allowed to disembark  in Tunis “because of a last-minute decision…

The Syrian army has been using starvation as a “weapon of war” in its siege of the Yarmouk camp for “Palestinian refugees” outside Damascus, Amnesty International said on Monday, according to AFP. In a report on the plight of Palestinian and Syrian civilians in Yarmouk, the group said nearly 200 people have died since an…

Three people were killed in an Israeli Air Force (IAF) strike in southern Gaza, according to medics quoted by AFP Tuesday. Al Arabiya said that the strike took place in southern Gaza.  “Three martyrs have died in a Zionist (Israeli) strike east of Rafah,” Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra told AFP. The IDF Spokesman’s Unit…

The IDF insisted Tuesday that Raed Zeiter, a Jordanian citizen who was shot dead Monday morning at the Allenby crossing into Israel, had attacked soldiers and tried to grab a weapon before he was shot dead. Arab MK Ahmed Tibi called on Israel to release security camera footage of the incident, but it appears the…

The interim agreement between Iran and Western powers last November is a “farce,” according to Lieutenant General (ret.) William G. “Jerry” Boykin. The former senior military official warned that the US has only one option left — to take out Iran’s nuclear program militarily. Boykin ended his successful 36 year career in the US military,…

Israel’s Ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer told the Israeli American Council (IAC) last night that Israel will never allow a nuclear Iran and will take any necessary measures to defend itself. Iran “is the single most important issue facing Israel,” Dermer said. “We need to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapons capability…

Hareidi army enlistment will be good for hareidi society and for the yeshiva system, MK Ayelet Shaked (Jewish Home) declared Tuesday. Those who oppose the bill either do not understand it, or are actively holding the hareidi community back, she accused. Shaked addressed the Knesset as debate began over a bill on hareidi army recruitment…

Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces spread a false story on Tuesday, claiming to AFP that IDF forces had opened fire on a car driven by Arab residents near the western Samaria town of Tulkarem, killing one. The death turned out to have simply been a traffic accident. The initial report claimed IDF bullets or a car crash resulting…

As the search for the 239 missing passengers of Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 continues, the names of the Iranians involved in the plane’s disappearance have been revealed on Tuesday.  CNN reports that Interpol revealed the names of the two men who boarded the flight last week using stolen passports – one Austrian, one Italian. The two…

The U.S. Defense Department announced it was providing $429 million to Israel for further development of its aerial defenses, specifically the Iron Dome system. In a statement, the Defense Department said that the funding would provide increased security for Israel, as well as “significant co-production opportunities” for Israeli and American companies. The system, designed in…

Israel is displaying the weapons cache from the Iranian shipment to Gaza on Monday, in a bid to show the international community the ‘true face’ behind the Islamic Republic.  The IDF spokesperson’s office announced Sunday that the Klos C ship, which docked in Eilat over the weekend, has been unloaded and all the contents examined.…

The mystery of the disappearing Malaysian Airlines plane deepened on Monday, as authorities announced that very little debris had been found.  “The fact that we are unable to find any debris so far appears to indicate that the aircraft is likely to have disintegrated at around 35,000 feet,” a source, who is involved in the…

If new statistics released today are anything to go by, 2014 looks set to be another record-breaking year for the Israeli tourism industry. 2013 was a record year, with a 3% increase in both international and domestic tourism alike compared to 2012.  According to the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), the upward trend looks set to…

The White House on Monday condemned Iran over the weapons ship it sent to Gaza and which was intercepted by Israel in the Red Sea. “We were very clear about our views on the ship that was interdicted and the fact that we condemn in the strongest terms Iran’s efforts to supply terrorist organizations operating…

The Revolutionary Council of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party on Monday unanimously endorsed his rejection of demands to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, officials at the meeting told AFP. “President Abbas has reaffirmed his refusal to recognize the Jewishness of the State of Israel and council members stood up to hail this…

Shots were fired on Monday evening towards a home in the Binyamin region town of Beit El. No one was hurt but damage was caused to one of the home’s windows. The shots were likely fired by Arabs from the nearby Palestinian Authority village of Jilazun. IDF soldiers are searching for the perpetrators. Earlier on…

A Saudi court on Sunday jailed an Islamist for eight years on charges of inciting protests, mocking the monarch and criticizing the security services on Twitter, AFP reported citing the official Saudi Arabian news agency SPA. The defendant, who was not identified, had been convicted of inciting “families of those arrested for security reasons to…

A group of nuns who were kidnapped by rebels in the Syrian town of Maalula in December were released on Sunday night, thanks to Lebanese-Qatari mediation and handed to the Syrian authorities, AFP reported. A monitoring group said the release was secured in exchange for some 150 women prisoners who were being held in Syria’s…

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party is not ruling out a violent struggle against Israel, a senior member of the party recently said. “None of us, especially in Fatah, has ruled out the military options,” declared Fatah Central Committee member Abbas Zaki in an interview which aired on February 26 on Hezbollah’s Al-Manar television.…

The Tel Aviv District Court sentenced terrorist Muhammad Faraj to 25 years’ imprisonment Monday, for his involvement in a 2012 Tel Aviv bus bombing.  Faraj, a 19 year-old Taibe resident and Hamas terrorist, personally placed a suitcase loaded with a bomb on the number 142 bus line on November 21, 2012. The attack injured 26 people.  “It is…

The Arab League on Sunday backed Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, Al-Arabiya reports. The head of the Arab League, Nabil Elaraby, reportedly urged Arab countries to take a “firm stand” against Israel’s demand for the PA to recognize it as a Jewish state. Speaking at the…

Shomron Regional Council head Gershon Mesika took part Sunday in a memorial for the five murdered members of the Fogel family Hy”d, at the Itamar Yeshiva. At the event, Mesika called on the Israeli government to legislate the death penalty for terrorists accused of murder. “Today, moments before an additional release of terrorists, it wouldn’t…

An Arab terrorist was shot to death Monday morning at the Allenby Bridge crossing to Jordan, after he attacked an IDF soldier. The bridge, which is not open to Israeli Jews, was closed due to the incident as an investigation was carried out. The confrontation apparently started when the terrorist attempted to wrestle the soldier’s gun away from him, leading the soldier…

More than 1,000 Jews and Israelis from across the Tri-State area jammed the Nefesh B’Nefesh Aliyah Mega event in Times Square on Sunday, part of a week of Aliyah Fairs in seven major cities across North America. Organizing the events in conjunction with Nefesh B’Nefesh are Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Immigrant Absorption, The Jewish…

If it works in Belgium and the Netherlands, could it also work in the Middle East? Channel 2 News reported on Sunday that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is looking into the option of applying a Dutch-Belgian enclave model to the peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA). According to the report, Netanyahu has…

In his first comments on interviews given by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu over the weekend, Economics Minister Naftali Bennett said that despite what Netanyahu said, all Jewish towns in Judea and Samaria would remain under Israeli sovereignty. In the interviews, Netanyahu said that no Jews would have to leave their homes in the context of…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu reiterated Sunday that he is opposed to imposing a construction freeze on Judea and Samaria as part of the ongoing talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. “We imposed one in the past and it brought no results,” Netanyahu noted, in an interview with IDF Radio. ​He added that a framework agreement from the…

The United States believes there is no need for the Palestinian Authority (PA) to recognize Israel as a Jewish state as part of a peace agreement, State Department Spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Saturday. Psaki, who spoke to the PA-based Arabic-language Al-Quds newspaper, said, “The American position is clear, Israel is a Jewish state. However, we…

Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin suggested on Saturday that the United States should stop Russia’s invasion of Ukraine with nukes, AFP reported. Palin, who spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), offered unsolicited advice to President Barack Obama on containing Russian aggression, saying that “the only thing that stops a bad guy…

The Ministerial Law Committee on Sunday approved for Knesset legislation a bill that would require employers to pay workers who are put on “hold,” required to set aside work hours without actually working or getting paid for their time. The law, proposed by MK Yoni Chetboun (Jewish Home), seeks to put an end to a…

The Summit was co-sponsored by Breitbart News and EMPact America, an NGO established to raise public awareness of the threat posed by electromagnetic pulse (EMP) weapons to America’s domestic energy infrastructure. Serving as moderator was Frank Gaffney, founder and president of conservative think tank the Center for Security Policy. Held just days after this year’s…

Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas clarified his positions regarding the issues of Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria and the so-called “right of return” of Palestinian “refugees” in an appearance broadcast by PA TV, translated by MEMRI (Middle East Media Research Institute). It is worth watching, for anyone who harbors any doubts regarding what…

Jewish and Muslim clerics continue to fight against the push to ban ritual slaughter (shechita for kosher meat and Zabiha for halal) by John Blackwell, incoming president of the British Veterinary Association (BVA).  Last week, Blackwell threatened government action if calls for the Jewish and Muslim communities to abandon their religious practices were left unheeded, citing concerns for “animal…

The Knesset State Control Committee visited the building site for the Tel-Aviv-Jerusalem express train Sunday, where Israeli Railways CEO Boaz Tzafrir announced that the line will be up and running by March 2018.   Project Manager Dror Supro explained that the new line will feature trains with a top speed of 160 kilometers per hour (99.4…

Internal Security Minister Yitzchak Aharonovich on Sunday announced that the government would set up an external committee to investigate the recent security breach at Rimonim Prison, in which Samuel Sheinbein, an American-Israeli convicted murderer serving his sentence in Israel, was able to obtain a gun and shoot three security guards, wounding one seriously. The committee…

The motivation of draftees to serve in combat units appears to have stabilized at 74.7%, after hitting a record high of almost 80% in 2011, and then dipping to 72% in 2012. The number measures the proportion of fresh draftees who want to serve in combat units, out of all the draftees who are eligible…

While Kiev and its environs have been relatively peaceful since the bloody clashes of February 18 and 19, hundreds of people are still suffering from wounds they incurred in the confrontation with forces loyal to then-president, Victor Yanukovych. But according to JTA news, the efforts of volunteers in both Kiev and Israel made it possible…

An explosion Saturday in the southern Gaza Strip killed at least one terrorist and wounded nine more, medical sources said. “The explosion occurred during a training session in bomb-making,” said a statement from the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamist Hamas movement that controls Gaza. Source have identified the dead man as…

An explosion Saturday at Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip killed at least one suspected terrorist and wounded six more, medical sources said. It was not yet known what caused the blast in a house in the town that straddles the border with Egypt, the sources said. Witnesses claimed, without elaborating, that most of the…

A Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 reportedly crashed into the sea off Vietnam with 239 people on board on Saturday. It took off from Kuala Lumpur and was bound for Beijing. Terrorism is being investigated as a possible cause in the mysterious disappearance, after it was discovered that two passengers had apparently been traveling on stolen…

Saudi Arabia on Friday blacklisted the Muslim Brotherhood and two Syrian jihadist groups as terrorist organizations, ordering citizens fighting abroad to return home within 15 days or face imprisonment, AFP reports. The move represents a major escalation against the Brotherhood of deposed Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi and indicates rising concern in Riyadh over the potential…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu says that not all the communities in Judea and Samaria will be part of Israel in a peace agreement, but will do his utmost to ensure that as many as possible do remain under Israeli control. In an interview with Channel 2 News, which will air in full on Saturday night…

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Thursday congratulated Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon for the successful operation to capture the Klos C ship, which Israel intercepted in the Red Sea and which was caught with a weapons shipment from Iran to Gaza. According to a statement from the Defense Department, Hagel and received a briefing…

Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas stood his ground on Friday and reiterated that he will not recognize Israel as a Jewish state. Speaking to youth activists of his Fatah party and quoted by The Associated Press (AP), Abbas unequivocally declared that there is “no way” he will recognize Israel as a Jewish state and…

Egypt on Friday deported dozens of women activists who had flown in to Cairo but been barred from entering the country in their bid to reach neighboring Gaza, an airport official told AFP. About 100 women, most of them from Europe and the United States, had hoped to enter the Palestinian enclave through Egypt’s Rafiah…

US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Jordan on Friday for talks with King Abdullah II on the ongoing talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA), a US spokeswoman travelling with him announced. AFP notes that the trip to Aqaba, where he was to meet with King Abdullah II, had not been previously announced. “We are arriving in Aqaba, Jordan,…

A group of 100 European and American activist women were stopped by Egypt on Thursday, as they attempted to cross Sinai to spend International Women’s Day on Saturday in Gaza. Egyptian authorities stopped the women at the Cairo airport. Among the group, Northern Irish Nobel Laureate and anti-Israel activist Mairead Maguire was already deported on Wednesday; the…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu ended his three-day trip to California on Thursday, with a message for Iran and its proxy terrorist groups: “We will expose, and we shall fight them. And I’ll tell you the other thing: We shall beat them.” Jared Sichel of the Jewish Journal reported that Netanyahu gave an eight-minute speech at…

In yet another setback to the operation to destroy Damascus’ chemical weapons arsenal, sources at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said on Thursday that Syria will miss a major deadline next week. Reuters reported that Syria has until March 15 to destroy 12 declared production facilities. “That will definitely be missed,”…

A month after she blasted Israel for criticizing Secretary of State John Kerry, the White House announced Wednesday that U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice will travel to Israel in May. AFP reported that Rice will head an American delegation for wide-ranging bilateral talks. The announcement came two days after President Barack Obama met with…

Turkey’s embattled prime minister warned on Thursday that his government could ban websites such as YouTube and Facebook after a raft of online leaks added momentum to a spiraling corruption scandal, reported AFP. “There are new steps we will take in that sphere after March 30… including a ban (on YouTube, Facebook),” Prime Minister Recep…

Interpol said on Thursday it was studying a request by Ukrainian authorities to issue an international wanted persons alert for the arrest of President Viktor Yanukovych for abuse of power and murder. In a statement quoted by The Associated Press (AP), the international police organization said it received a request a day earlier from Ukrainian…

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) was deployed Friday afternoon after Syrian warplanes approached the Israel-Syrian border, according to Channel 2.  The Syrian warplanes were within just a few hundred kilometers to Israel Friday, according to the daily, as it struck rebel outposts near Al Quneitra.  The two air forces did not come into contact with one…

Even as the Palestinian Authority (PA) remains in the ongoing peace talks with Israel, the entity has continued to glorify terrorist murderers. This glorification recently was speared by PA Ministry of Prisoners’ Affairs Issa Karake, who recently honored terrorists in Israeli jails for their “heroic sacrifice.” Karake visited the family of Ahmad Sa’adat last December…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu hinted on Friday that a building freeze may not be on the agenda for Judea and Samaria.  “We have already had a building freeze and seen that it does not give us [positive] results,” Netanyahu stated, in an interview with Channel 10. “We froze [construction] for a year, ten months. Did anything come…

NYPD police officer Mark Schwartz recently brought cookies to his precinct to celebrate a great achievement. No, he hadn’t caught a famous criminal or stopped a large crime — the 27-year-old finally realized his dream by having a bar mitzvah. Schwartz, who grew up in and patrols the borough of Queens, noted he had felt…

Both Iran and the terrorist groups which operate in Gaza denied on Wednesday that they had any connection to the Klos C, the ship that the IDF intercepted and which was carrying weapons for Gaza. “We completely deny this report which is totally without foundation,” AFP quoted an unnamed Iranian military official as having told…

U.S. President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry are at odds over Israel, NRG/Maariv reported on Wednesday. According to the report, the reason for the tension is Obama’s remarks in the interview this week with Jeffrey Goldberg, which Kerry saw as being too critical of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. In the interview, which…

Last month’s gas explosion at an Akko apartment building that killed five people – including an eight year old – was deliberately caused by criminals, police announced Thursday. Police announced that they had “definitive evidence” that the explosion was caused by criminal elements. The investigation, opened immediately after the explosion at the 3-story Akko apartment…

Jonathan Pollard, who has served nearly three decades in an American prison for passing classified information to Israel, was hospitalized Wednesday night. Pollard has suffered from multiple health problems for some time. His condition recently worsened, leading to the hospitalization outside the prison. Top activists in the campaign to release Pollard confirmed that his health…

Echoing comments made by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu earlier in the week, Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said Thursday that it was the Palestinian Authority that was preventing progress on talks to formulate the negotiation framework being developed by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. In an interview on Israel Radio Thursday, Liberman said that “the…

Egyptian newspaper Alyoum Alsaba has reported that Egyptian security forces intend to take away the citizen status of 13,757 Palestinians because of their support for Hamas. The report is quoted by Israeli daily Maariv. The Palestinians affected by the move received citizenship during the year in which Islamist Mohammed Morsi was in power. It comes…

Residents of the Jerusalem neighborhood of Armon Hanatziv are struggling to come to terms with an apparent attempted attack this week. Gas lines were cut in what appears to have been a deliberate attempt by terrorists to cause an explosion. The gas line sabotage followed fatal explosions involving cooking gas balloons in Jerusalem and in…

The Beit Hillel rabbinic organization has printed its fifth pamphlet on halakhic (Jewish legal) issues, 60,000 copies of which will be in synagogues this week. In the latest edition, the rabbis of Beit Hillel tackled the issue of taxes, and the controversial subject of gender separation in the religious Jewish community. Not only are Jews…

The United States intelligence services and military worked with Israel to track the Iranian ship carrying missiles to Gaza, which was apprehended Wednesday, according to AFP.  White House spokesman Jay Carney said Washington started to work with Israel through intelligence and military channels and at the national security advisor level as soon as it knew the shipment was on…

Israel has begun providing Ukrainian citizens – victims of ongoing unrest and anti-Semitism – with much-needed medical treatment, Walla! reports Wednesday.  Alexander, aged 20, landed at Ben-Gurion Wednesday morning, then rushed to Kaplan Medical Center in Rehovot for wrist surgery. Six others wounded in the Ukrainian unrest – which has seen violent protests, police brutality, and anti-Semitic…

Gaza-based terrorists fired a rocket at the southern Israeli city of Sderot on Wednesday night. The rocket exploded in an open field, causing no physical injuries or damages. Earlier on Wednesday evening, Gaza terrorists fired a rocket at southern Israel, but that rocket exploded within Gaza. On Monday, a Gaza rocket was fired into the…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu denounced Iran’s “charm offensive” on Wednesday, in light of the news that the IDF had intercepted an Iranian weapons ship carrying missiles to Gaza. “Israel captured a ship on the high seas, stocked with weapons destined for terrorist groups,” Netanyahu stated. “These weapons were going to be used against Israel.” “This…

The IDF’s elite Shayetet-13 naval commando raided a ship off the shores of Sudan before dawn Wednesday. The ship, which flew a Panamanian flag, carried dozens of B-302 missiles that have a range of up to 200 kilometers. The raid took place in the Red Sea, between the waters of Sudan and Eritrea. According to…

The screening took place at Hollywood’s Paramount Studios, and was attended by some 500 people. The program is a mammoth production by journalist-producer Peter Greenberg, who hosts international tourism shows on PBS. Filmed over the last two years, it features Netanyahu at tourist spots from Rosh Hanikra in the north, through Jerusalem and Tel Aviv,…

A video has been released and titled the “official clip” of the massive hareidi protest Sunday, that blocked the entrance to Jerusalem and brought together hundreds of thousands to demonstrate against new hareidi IDF enlistment laws. Along with footage from the rally, the video features the song “We Get up Early” by Shlomo Cohen. The…

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann Bachmann has accused American Jews of having “sold out Israel” by voting for President Obama in 2008 and 2012. “The Jewish community gave him their votes, their support, their financial support,” Bachmann told Tony Perkins on the Family Research Center’s radio channel, “and as recently as last week, 48 Jewish donors…

IDF forces clashed with terrorists on Tuesday night in the northern Golan Heights. Soldiers opened fire on terrorists who placed an explosive on the border fence with Syria. “Earlier today, two Hezbollah-affiliated terrorists were identified attempting to plant an explosive device near the Israel-Syria border in the northern Golan Heights. IDF forces… fired towards the suspects (and) hits…

U.S. President Barack Obama committed to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu he would push the Palestinian Authority (PA) to match any Israeli concessions as he seeks to negotiate a framework for peace talks, AFP reported on Tuesday. A senior Obama administration official told the news agency that the issue of the Israeli-PA peace talks was the…

AIPAC’s 2014 annual Policy Conference came to a close Tuesday, having seen a record 14,000 supporters of Israel travel to Washington D.C. for the two-and-a-half day mega-event. The conference was an unequivocal display of support for the alliance between the United States and the State of Israel, and the list of speakers was typically impressive.…

The Lebanon-based Hezbollah terror group was blamed on Tuesday for a bombing in Bahrain a day earlier. According to NOW Lebanon, the Deputy-Chairman of Dubai Police and Public Security Dahi Khalfan Tamim, said that a Hezbollah-trained operative perpetrated the blast on Monday that killed three police officers outside Bahrain’s Manama. “The criminal who carried out…

The anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement was unfazed on Tuesday over the criticism leveled at it by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in his AIPAC speech. BDS spokeswoman Rafeef Ziadah brushed off Netanyahu’s words as a “desperate attack,” according to the AFP news agency. She further noted that governments were beginning “to take action…

Russia on Tuesday carried out a successful test-launch of an advanced intercontinental ballistic missile, AFP reported, citing state news agencies. “The purpose of the launch is to test the advanced payload of the intercontinental ballistic missile,” Russia’s three main news agencies quoted a top defense official as saying. The same defense official said the launch…

Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform religious leaders put aside their differences at AIPAC’s annual policy conference Monday for a joint presentation over their shared love for Israel. The presentation included a series of touching, and sometimes humorous anecdotes illustrating what Israel means to each leader, and what experiences influenced their appreciation of the Jewish state. 

The Israeli Air Force struck a terrorist target in northern Gaza Monday night, after a rocket was fired at the Ashkelon region, according to the IDF.  AFP reports that the target was a terror cell preparing another rocket launch into Israel.  Palestinian Arab media sources claim that at least one person has been killed and three…

Some 20 Israelis who were making their way to India on Monday found themselves for a short time in Tehran. Channel 2 News reported that the incident occurred when a Turkish Airlines flight, which made its way from Istanbul to Mumbai, was forced to make a temporary landing in Tehran when one of the passengers…

The first independent emergency evacuation center in Judea and Samaria (Shomron) opened its doors Sunday, according to Walla! News, after a historic ribbon-cutting ceremony with Home Front Minister Gilad Erdan (Likud).  The center itself, located in the Talilei Orot school building in the northern Samaria community of Tal Menashe, will only hold about 1,000 evacuees. Beyond…

British Prime Minister David Cameron will speak before the Knesset next week during a visit planned for last month but postponed due to floods in England, AFP reported. “British Prime Minister David Cameron is scheduled to address the Knesset plenum next Wednesday, March 12,” the Knesset said in a statement quoted by the news agency,…

The United States has suspended all military engagements with Russia because of the crisis in Ukraine, including military exercises and port visits, as part of Washington’s response to Moscow’s seizure of Crimea, reports Reuters. Monday’s announcement from the Pentagon came hours after President Barack Obama warned that the U.S. would look at a series of…

Arab terrorists hurled a firebomb Tuesday at the community of Beit El, in the Binyamin region, north of Jerusalem. No one was hurt and no damage was caused. A similar attack took place on Monday, too. Tuesday’s firebomb landed close to the community’s perimeter fence, just a few meters away from some houses. IDF forces…

The Judea and Samaria (Shomron) District Police, along with IDF and the Border Patrol, arrested 14 Arabs overnight (Monday/Tuesday) on suspicions of stone-throwing, illegal weapons hoarding, drug-dealing, and carjacking.  Police investigation into recent carjackings in the Shomron led the forces to arrest at least one suspect in the Arab settlement of Hawara. Another man was…

An Egyptian court outlawed the terror group Hamas on Tuesday, much like it banned the Muslim Brotherhood earlier this year, and ordered all of its assets seized.  The judge explained that the decision stems from the risks Hamas poses to Egyptian security. He accused the organization of terrorist activities in cooperation with the Islamist group called…

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered troops training near the Ukrainian border to return to their permanent bases, according to AP and Interfax. It is unclear what meaning, if any, should be ascribed to the move. The news surfaces mere hours after the Washington Post reported that Moscow had presented Kiev with an ultimatum overnight: accept Crimea’s pro-Russian government now – or…

Egypt’s military chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has widely been expected to run for president and win the mid-April elections. Those rumors came closer to confirmation on Tuesday as Sisi declared he could not ignore the calls of the people for him to run. Sisi revealed to Egyptian state news agency Mena that “official procedures” regarding his presidential…

Police have revealed the name of the Palestinian Arab terrorist who stabbed an Israeli man in Bnei Brak on Sunday evening. The terrorist has been identified as Fahdi Alrouda, 28, of the town of Bir Zeit, outside Ramallah. Alrouda attacked a 31-year-old Jewish man near a gas station at the Geha junction. The victim suffered…

Minister of International Relations, Intelligence and Strategic Affairs,Yuval Steinitz, who is accompanying Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu n his trip to the United States, said Tuesday that Isrtael’s positions on the Iranian nuclear weapons threat, as well as in “peace talks” with the Palestinian Authority (PA), enjoy wall-to-wall support in the US Senate. The PA’s demands…

Anonymous criminals damaged two sets of gas balloons in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Armon Hanatziv on Tuesday, apparently in an attempt to cause a lethal explosion. Dozens of residents were evacuated from the two affected buildings on the streets Shlomo Ben Yosef and Robovitch after the leaks were detected. As a result of the attack,…

The United States has quietly instituted a policy of denying visa requests from members of Israel’s security services, Maariv/nrg reports. Senior security personnel who spoke to the paper said that over the past year they have seen hundreds of cases in which members of the Shin Bet and Mossad, and workers in Israel’s defense industries,…

The new government in Ukraine said Monday that Russia’s navy ordered two of its ships off the shores of Crimea to surrender. Ukrainian defense ministry spokesman Maksim Prauta said that four Russian navy ships were blocking Ukraine’s anti-submarine warship Ternopil and the command ship Slavutych, which are currently near the port of Sevastopol. The head of…

The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) revealed Monday that new construction in Judea and Samaria (Shomron) increased by 123.7% in 2013. The announcement surfaces several hours before Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is due to meet with US President Barack Obama to discuss a possible building freeze in the area.  The high number is due to…

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said Monday that events in the Ukraine are directly related to President Barack Obama’s “feckless” policies. The people of the Ukraine demanded to no longer be a part of Putin’s Russia, McCain explained, and the Russian occupation of Crimea, in response to that demand, is “a blatant act” by Putin that…

A rocket slammed into the Ashkelon coast Monday evening, according to 0404 News.  The ‘Color Red’ siren was sounded in several communities within the Hof Ashkelon region, forcing families into shelters.  The rocket did not strike a populated area, and no damage or injuries are reported.  Rocket fire from Gaza has increased over the past month.…

The IDF’s Legal Advisory for Judea and Samaria came under fire Monday during a heated session of a Knesset committee specializing in Judea and Samaria, which is chaired by MK Moti Yogev (Jewish Home). The meeting of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee’s Subcommittee on Judea and Samaria was held to address waves of illegal…

Russia’s foreign ministry said Monday that warnings by United States Secretary of State John Kerry over Russian military intervention in Ukraine were “unacceptable” threats, according to AFP.  “We consider the threats against Russia made in a series of public statements by US Secretary of State John Kerry over the latest events in Ukraine and in Crimea to be unacceptable,” the Russian foreign…

Two members of Libya’s interim parliament were shot and wounded by protesters who stormed the General National Congress (GNC) in downtown Tripoli on Sunday, officials and witnesses said, according to Al-Jazeera. “Two (GNC) members were hit by bullets when they tried to leave the venue in their cars,” Nuri Abu Sahmein, the parliament speaker, was…

In the latest anti-Semitic attack in the Ukraine, vandals on Friday sprayed swastikas and graffiti reading “Death to the Jews” on a synagogue in Simferopol in the Crimea region, reported the Israel Hayom daily newspaper. “There is no doubt that it was important to anti-Semites to commit this crime,” Anatoly Gendin, head of the Association…

Israeli opposition leader and head of the left-wing Labor Party Isaac Herzog addressed delegates at AIPAC’s annual policy conference Sunday, and took the opportunity to promote his political vision for Israel. After noting his own personal connection to AIPAC – his uncle and legendary Israeli diplomat Abba Eban helped found AIPAC during his tenure as…

An Egyptian court on Sunday adjourned the murder trial of deposed president Mohammed Morsi to Tuesday, after “bad weather” prevented him from being transported from prison to court, AFP reported. Morsi, who was ousted by the military in July, is accused of inciting the killings of opposition protesters outside the presidential palace in December 2012.…

While hareidi groups demonstrated in Jerusalem Sunday against the law that would require yeshiva students to serve in the army, IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz visited with troops of the Nachal Hareidi, the unit designed to allow hareidi and religious soldiers to serve in the IDF while maintaining their lifestyle. Speaking to Nachal Hareidi…

South Africa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) has officially endorsed the annual Israel Apartheid Week, which is held annually on campuses and is used to delegitimize Israel. According to the Turkish Anadolu news agency, the decision was made on Sunday. In a statement to the agency, ANC said it was “unequivocal in its support for…

Hezbollah was likely behind a rocket attack near an IDF post in Mount Hermon early Saturday morning, security and military sources told Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star on Sunday night. The officials said that the attack was Hezbollah’s retaliation for alleged Israeli airstrikes on Hezbollah targets near the Lebanese-Syrian border. Two rockets were fired at…

Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to a proposal from German Chancellor Angela Merkel to set up a contact group on Ukraine, the German government said Sunday, according to AFP. Merkel put the proposal to Putin in a telephone conversation late Sunday in which she also “accused the Russian president of violating international law with…

One day ahead of his meeting Monday with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, U.S. President Barack Obama is urging the Israeli leader to make peace with the Palestinian Authority (PA). Speaking to Bloomberg’s Jeffrey Goldberg in an interview published Sunday, Obama warned that time was running out to negotiate a peace agreement. Obama further claimed that…

BBC News reports Sunday that Ukraine has called up its reservists to defend against neighboring Russia.  Secretary of the National Security and Defense of Ukraine Andriy Parubiy stated Sunday that the reservists will be trained immediately to defend the embattled country’s borders. “It is essential to train all combat forces to full readiness,” Parubiy urged. “We…

Masked Palestinian Arabs broke into a IDF checkpoint near the Palestinian Authority (PA) settlement of Beit Furik, northeast of Shechem, after they cut through barbed wire fence surrounding the post.  A video surfaced on YouTube over the weekend showing masked men, who were armed with a chainsaw and hammers, sawing through checkpoint gate, smashing the…

Female mikvah facilitators (Hebrew: balaniot) have expressed outrage over a new law that would impose a 50,000 shekel fine for unwanted questions. The balaniot are responsible for supervising Jewish women’s immersion in the mikvah (ritual bath). Some women who use the mikvah have complained that female staff asked them unwanted or what they termed prying…

Libyan officials recently caught several members of a Muslim extremist group as they attempted to send deadly chemical weapons to Syria, Channel 2 reports. The report quoted Colonel Mansour al-Mazini as saying that the extremists had been caught with a container of mustard gas. The gas was confiscated by Libyan soldiers. The collapse of Muammar…

Shamir: Palestinian State? Forget It Inside Israel 6:19 AM 3/2/2014

Hundreds of thousands of hareidi protesters gathered Sunday afternoon at the entrance to Jerusalem, for a prayer rally protesting the law that the Knesset intends to pass which would place financial and criminal sanctions on hareidi men who refuse to enlist to the IDF. The organizers estimated that 500,000 people took part in the protest.…

A suspected terror stabbing took place in Bnei Brak, near Tel Aviv, Sunday evening. A man aged 31 was stabbed on Jabotinsky Street, next to the Dor Alon gas station. Medics and paramedics from Magen David Adom emergency services evacuated the victim to Beilinson Hospital. He was in moderate condition, with stab wounds in the…

As of Sunday afternoon, a meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu set for Monday is still on. Netanyahu left Israel on Sunday for Washington, where he is to meet Obama and speak at the AIPAC Conference on Tuesday. However, Israeli officials said that they were preparing for the possibility that Netanyahu’s meeting…

Netanya is set to grow significantly in the coming years. The city’s planning commission on Sunday voted to authorize construction of 50,000 housing units, expand land appropriated for industrial and business purposes, and increase the number of hotel rooms along Netanya’s coast. The expansion will come gradually over the next two decades, the commission said.…

Acting Ukrainian President Olexander Turchynov has placed the Ukrainian armed forces on “high alert” Saturday night after Russian forces stormed the Crimean peninsula over the weekend, Fox News reports.  Turchynov reportedly ordered increased security at nuclear power plants, airports and other strategic infrastructure, because of the threat of “potential aggression” from the Russian troops.  Arutz Sheva‘s Russian-language sources noted…

Jewish players will be allowed to don kippahs (yarmulkes) at world soccer games, after FIFA officially authorized on Saturday the wearing of head covers for religious purposes during matches. “It was decided that female players can cover their heads to play,” said FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke at a meeting of the International Football Association…

The amputation of a hand was live-tweeted on Friday, courtesy of the jihadist Syrian rebel group the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). According to The Washington Post, the amputation took place in the remote rural town of Maskanah in the northern province of Aleppo. It was documented in a series of tweets…

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon (Likud) is the minister with the highest approval rating in Israel, according to a poll by Millward-Brown. 58.9% of Israelis polled approve of Ya’alon’s leadership so far, Channel 2 notes Saturday night. Rounding out the top three in public approval are Education Minister Rabbi Shai Piron (Yesh Atid) at 57.2% and Communications and Home…

Russian parliament issued a de facto​ military takeover of Crimea, Ukraine, on Saturday, according to the Washington Post, despite the US warning Moscow on Friday not to intervene in the embattled country.  At least 6,000 Russian troops stormed Belbek airport in Crimea – a Russian area of Ukraine – on Friday, leaving the newly-elected Kiev government powerless to…

U.S. President Barack Obama on Saturday threatened Russian President Vladimir Putin with political and economic isolation” over Russia’s military incursion in Ukraine. AFP reported that the warning came in a 90-minute phone call between the two leaders. Obama reportedly told Putin that Russia had violated international law with its incursion into Ukraine. The White House…

Representatives of 22 nations pledged their support for the Palestinian Authority (PA) Saturday, but the UN urged more action for refugees “in need of aid” in an “increasingly dire” situation, according to AFP.  The Conference on Cooperation among East Asian Countries for Palestinian Development (CEAPAD) in Jakarta ended with Japan – one of the world’s biggest donors to the PA –…

Over 200 Palestinian Arabs hurled stones at the IDF after a funeral in the Palestinian Authority Friday, resulting in five injuries, according to AFP.  The clashes came after Motazz Washaha, a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine suspected of being directly involved in terrorism,  was found dead in his home in Birzeit following a Thursday morning raid…