Category: News

Ten years have passed since the end of the 39-day IDF siege of the Church of Nativity in Bethlehem, where 39 terrorists had holed up. The siege was ended through an agreement that involved exiling the terrorists to other countries. Bethlehem-based news agency Ma’an says the terrorists now feel “abandoned by the Palestinian Authority and…

National Union Chairman MK Yaakov Katz announced Thursday that he intends to bring the Outposts Law that he co-authored to a vote in the Knesset plenum Monday. The move will be coordinated with Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin. The law was sponsored by Katz along with MKs Yariv Levin and Ze’ev Elkin (Likud) and David Rotem…

The Palestinian Airlines, which had been suspended for seven years, has resumed operations with flights between Egypt’s El-Arish and Amman, its director general told AFP on Thursday. The renewal of operations was facilitated by an agreement reached between the Palestinian Transportation Ministry and the authorities in Egypt and Jordan. The airline was forced to shut…

The official IDF Blog has published a list of five bombing attempts foiled by the IDF in just the past four weeks. Under the heading “The 2012 Bombing Attacks You Never Heard Of,” it lists the following: April 11: IDF forces stopped a would-be bomber over Passover at a checkpoint east of Shechem, in northern…

A call to boycott the US-based Best Buy chain alleging the electronics store has ties to the Hamas terrorist organization is continuing its campaign to raise awareness about the issue. More than 10,000 people have signed the online petition set up on April 23 by Islamist Watch.org. The group alleged that Best Buy donated money to an event…

U.S. lawmakers from both parties sharply criticized on Wednesday leaks that revealed how the CIA disrupted an Al-Qaeda plot through a spy who infiltrated the terror group. Elements of the dramatic operation were shared with the American media only hours after a drone strike on a key Al-Qaeda figure and as FBI experts examined an…

Hamas security forces wearing masks and wielding batons and rifle butts forcibly “dissolved” a protest against the “suppression of freedom” in Gaza. Thursday’s rally was staged by Gaza residents and supporters from Egypt decrying the Hamas administration’s systemic repression of free speech and imposition of Islamic law in the coastal enclave. Witnesses say Hamas policemen…

The Shin Bet and Israel Police officially released Thursday that they plan to indict two Arabs arrested for the stabbing of a yeshiva student near the tomb of Shimon HaTzaddik during the Passover holiday. The arrestees are Muhammad Shawish, 24, and Adnan Rajabi, 20, who are said to be a part of the Shabab al-Aqsa…

The police gave official permission Wednesday to hold the annual Flagdance – “Rikudgalim” – march through Jerusalem on Jerusalem Day, reversing a previous decision to prevent the march from passing through its traditional route. The police relented after Bnei Akiva Yeshivas Center Chairman Rav Chaim Druckman and MK Uri Ariel met with Jerusalem District Police…

Vice President Joe Biden sought on Tuesday to ensure the Jewish vote in the upcoming presidential elections this fall by telling the Rabbinical Assembly of his friendship with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. CBS News reported that as Biden took the podium, the rabbi who introduced him told him, “You are with friends, sir.” Making an…

The success of the Birthright Israel trip, which has brought more than 200,000 young Jews to Israel from 52 countries over the past 12 years, has caused the parents of these young adults to want to go on a trip of their own. Now they can. The UJA-Federation of New York has created the “Birthright…

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday urged Israel to either charge or release Palestinian Authority Arab detainees “without delay,” according to a report in the Bethlehem-based Ma’an news agency. Ban reportedly expressed concern for several PA prisoners who have gone on a hunger strike in protest over their administrative detention and stressed “the importance of…

A Fatah delegation from Ramallah made a high-profile visit to Gaza on Wednesday to hold talks with local faction-members and other groups in the Hamas-run enclave. Ahead of the visit, Fatah Central Committee member Muhammad al-Madani told the Bethlehem-based Maan News Agency that he, and senior Fatah members Nabil Shaath and Amin Maqboul would form…

Iran’s fleet of twenty submarines poses a dangerous and unpredictable force in the Persian Gulf region. The United States – with its Fifth Fleet is based in Bahrain and carrier groups frequently deployed in the region – has not revealed what it knows about Iran’s capabilities. Military analysts believe the U.S. has been using aircraft,…

At least one Grad rocket was fired into southern Israel by Gaza on Wednesday night. The rocket reportedly landed in an open field in the Shaar HaNegev council region near Saad. The IDF Home Front Command’s emergency alert system also said warning sirens had been sounded near Ashkelon and in Netivot. No physical injuries or…

A French-Israeli filmmaker is producing a spy thriller loosely based on the daring 2010 assassination of a Hamas terrorist on Dubai starring Israeli supermodel Bar Rafaeli. The assassination of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh was widely blamed on the Mossad and led to speculation that Israel had reactivated the legendary Caesarea assassination unit purported to have pursued the perpetrators…

Greece’s Jewish community expressed alarm following the election of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn Party to parliament and warned their fellow citizens to oppose the return of fascism. The extreme-right political party, whose logo closely resembles a swastika, received seven percent of the vote, twice the minimum threshold level required to send representatives to parliament, giving…

Ten suspects linked to a white supremacist group were arrested for planning attacks on Jews, immigrants and minorities in Central Florida, authorities said on Tuesday.   The arrests were based on evidence from a confidential informant who infiltrated the neo-Nazi organization known as the American Front 17 months ago, according to an arrest affidavit. “The American…

Turkey is bailing out Iran and Arab Spring countries with huge amounts of gold exports that have boosted its trade balance. Iran and countries facing Arab Spring rebellions have bought hundreds of millions of dollars worth of gold from Turkey as they try to protect their wealth from depreciating currencies. The Iranian rial has plummeted following…

The IDF has begun to acquire a new computer tablet system that can be used in nearly any situation. The system, dubbed the Octopus, has been undergoing rigorous testing and received technical approval after operational activity in several units over a period of months. It’s a wearable computerized system, mounted on the soldier’s back as…

An explosion hit a Syrian military truck escorting a convoy of UN observers near the city of Deraa, just seconds after UN staff had passed by. Major General Robert Mood, the head of the UN monitors, was in the team’s convoy but there were no reports of any of the observers being wounded.  At least…

Smartphone apps may pose a security threat to the country, the IDF warns in a letter to soldiers and commanders. Military spokespersons said that security can be breached because of cell phone applications that utilize stored personal information stored on a cell phone. Security leaks are more likely if the phone shares information without the…

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday dismissed claims he and Kadima chairman Shaul Mofaz have secret deals the public knows nothing about. “This was the only agreement that was signed,” Netanyahu said, referring to the bombshell unity agreement with Kadima he dropped on Israel before dawn on Tuesday. Lawmakers were already voting on a bill…

President Shimon Peres said on Tuesday that science can be neither conquered nor defended by armies, and its advancement will change the way humans govern themselves. Peres, who is currently visiting Canada, spoke at a roundtable discussion in Ottawa on education and innovation. “Science cannot be controlled or arrested,” Peres said, according to a report…

More details emerged on Tuesday about the plot by Al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Yemen which was thwarted by the CIA. The plot involved a terrorist destroying a U.S.-bound airliner using a bomb with a sophisticated new design, around the one-year anniversary of the killing of Osama bin Laden. According to The Associated Press, last month U.S.…

Israel is hosting the three-day International Interpol Convention, which began on Tuesday in Tel Aviv. Some 200 senior delegates from law enforcement agencies across 40 European nations are attending the conference, which is headed by Interpol President Khoo Bon Hui and its Secretary-General Ronald Noble. The conference is being hosted by the Israel Police, with Police…

Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon met on Tuesday with China’s special envoy to the Middle East, Ambassador Wu Sike. It was Wu’s second visit to the region. The meeting dealt with different political-security issues and the Iranian nuclear issue was at the top of the list. Ayalon urged the special envoy to work to have…

The unity deal which brought Kadima into Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s coalition was criticized by the leftist parties in the Knesset and led to protests against MK Shaul Mofaz. Despite all this, however, a new poll shows that the move seems to have played in Netanyahu’s favor. The poll, which was conducted for Channel 10…

IDF forces on Tuesday raided the Ramallah offices of a group ostensibly dedicated to opposing the construction of the Israel’s separation fence in Judea and Samaria. According to the Bethlehem Maan News Agency, ten IDF jeeps raided the Stop the Wall campaign office. Soldiers seized two laptops, three hard drives and ten memory cards containing…

Terrorists on Tuesday evening opened fire on a Jewish motorist travelling on Route 60. The incident occurred near the Arab village of Sinjil, which is north of the Jewish community of Ofra. No one was injured in the incident, but an examination of the vehicle by police revealed damage from bullets. A large IDF force…

In their most recent onslaught, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) have been launching false accusations against those who sought to counter efforts promoting divestment from the State of Israel. Member of the student government, Ashton Shahyad, and pro-Israeli professor, Shlomo Dubnov, have been targeted by SJP…

The International Red Cross called on Israel on Tuesday to immediately hospitalize six Palestinian Authority Arab prisoners who have been on a hunger strike. According to a report on Kol Yisrael radio, the Israeli Prison Service said in response that all prisoners are under medical surveillance and any prisoner in need of further treatment than…

Vice President Joe Biden vigorously defended the Obama administration’s record on Israel on Tuesday, crediting President Barack Obama for strengthening America’s position in the region and for imposing “the most damaging sanctions in this century” to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Biden spoke before an annual convention of the Rabbinical Assembly. “We were…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu reportedly said Sunday that saving Beit El’s threatened Ulpana neighborhood is a “challenge the public can tackle.” Now, following the Supreme Court’s rejection on Monday of his government’s petition for a 90 day extension in which to determine a solution to the problem, the need for a solution is imminent. Arutz…

A spokesman for Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s 94-seat supermajority was an opportunity for peace. Israel must “use the opportunity provided by the expansion of its coalition government to expedite a peace accord,” Nabil Abu-Rudeineh said. “This requires an immediate halt to all settlement activity throughout the Palestinian…

Recently uploaded satellite images to Google Earth reveal what appears to be a Hizbullah terror training ground constructed after the 2006 Lebanon War. According to military analysts, the facility near Janta in the Bekaa Vaalley includes a suspected driver training course, a 100-meter firing range, and a possible urban terrain assault course. The Google Earth…

Yair Lapid on Tuesday welcomed Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s new 94-seat supermajority saying it was great news for his nascent Atid [Future] Party. “I know you are disappointed by what happened,” Lapid wrote to his supporters about the admission of Kadima under Shaul Mofaz into the ruling coalition. You have been “disappointed twice,” he continued.…

A new documentary about the iconic and heroic Jewish figure, Yonatan Netanyahu, is making its theatrical premiere at the Avalon Theatre in Washington D.C., on May 18. Directed by Jonathan Gruber and Ari Daniel Pinchot of Silver Spring, “Follow Me: The Yoni Netanyahu Story” recounts the courageous Israeli rescue mission to Entebbe, Uganda on July…

The United States has been secretly releasing captured Taliban fighters from a detention center in Afghanistan as part of negotiations with insurgents to curb ongoing violence in the country, the Washington Post reported Monday. The “strategic release” program of high-level detainees is designed to give the US a bargaining chip in some areas of Afghanistan…

The embarrassment he suffered in Sunday’s hectic Likud conference pushed Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to rethink early elections, political sources have told Arutz Sheva. Netanyahu failed to convince the assembly to conduct an open vote on the personal makeup of key positions that would have enabled him to control the conference. Feiglin supporters were prominent…

Al Qaeda has released a video of a kidnapped elderly American Jew pleading to President Barack Obama to save his life by freeing terrorists. Warren Weinstein was kidnapped in Pakistan last summer, and is the first American citizen kidnapped by terrorists there since the 2002 abduction and subsequent murder, of  Daniel Pearl, also a Jew.…

For the third time in recent weeks, IDF forces have discovered explosive devices in the northern Jordan Valley, reports the IDF Website. Early Tuesday morning, IDF forces conducted an operation in the Arab village of Tamun, near Bekaot. Based on intelligence information, the forces conducted searches during which five hidden explosive charges were found. The…

A senior Israeli military officer warned that any Hizbullah retaliation to an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities would prompt Israel to launch a war in Lebanon. The officer, who spoke to the British Telegraph on Sunday, said the war would be so ferocious that it would take a decade to rebuild the villages it destroys.…

Despite the prevalent allegations and misconceptions that Israel discriminates against its Arab population, the Jewish state, in fact, goes above and beyond in ensuring the success and happiness of its Arab population. Israel’s Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor, in conjunction with the government-owned telecom company Bezeq, has launched a new initiative to incorporate Bedouin…

A ‘Palestinian’ journalist, reacting to March’s Toulouse murders, in which a Muslim extremist shot and killed three Jewish children and a rabbi, said that France’s measures against radical Islam are justified. According the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), Ahlam Akram, a female Palestinian journalist living in London, wrote: “Wouldn’t any mother [prefer] for her…

The New York Times has termed Brooklyn’s orthodox Jewry a rising power in the city, with the help of the Internet, while the influence of the Catholic church is dwindling. In a feature article under the headline “The Powers of New York,” journalist Liz Robbins wrote, “It is not as if the Jews of Brooklyn…

PLO chief negotiator Saeb Erakat underwent surgery after suffering a heart attack on Tuesday. According to Erekat’s wife, Naama, he “woke at dawn with chest pains and decided to go to the Palestine medical complex in Ramallah where he underwent medical tests.” “It turned out he had suffered a heart attack, so they performed an…

Airline fees for various items once were included in the ticket price or that were simply never charged for have become the latest method of milking passengers for more money. But El Al Airlines — already fairly pricey due to the need to maintain a high security profile — managed to drive away one of…

Israeli trauma experts are expected soon to fly to Toulouse to help residents there cope with the aftermath of the terror attack at a Jewish day school that left four dead and a teenager critically wounded earlier this year. An Israeli delegation of trauma experts is expected to arrive in the coming weeks to help…

Ten United Nations peacekeepers have been kidnapped by Bedouin Arabs in the Sinai Peninsula. The hostages, who were part of a contingent from Fiji, were released after being held for several hours. The kidnappers had taken their prisoners in order to demand that Egypt release members of their Bedouin tribe who were imprisoned. The United Nations…

A U.S. House panel has voted to allocate $1 billion for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system. Each of the intercepting missiles that is launched to knock out an incoming Grad Katyusha missile fired at civilians in southern Israel by Palestinian Authority Arab terrorists in Gaza costs $50,000. The House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee appropriated $947…

In a surprise move, just hours after the Knesset approved the first reading of a bill to dissolve itself and hold elections, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Opposition leader MK Shaul Mofaz announced they had reached an agreement to form a national unity government. According to a report on Kol Yisrael radio, the Likud and Kadima…

According to Jewish law, there is little a woman can do if her husband refuses to grant her a ‘get,’ or divorce. However, Facebook, Twitter and other social networking sites may be providing dispairing wives with the answer for which they have been desperately searching. Such is the case in the divorce between Yomin Postelnik and Leah…

The head of one of the most notorious and violent cocaine cartels in the world has turned himself in to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Authority (DEA). Javier Antonio Calle, who heads the Colombian group known as the “Calle Cartel,” surrendered to authorities Friday on the Caribbean island of Aruba. The 43-year-old drug kingpin was flown…

Israel’s national airline has resumed flights to Cairo, according to Egyptian media. Flight 443 arrived in the Egyptian capital at 1:00 a.m. Monday, according to the Al-Masry Al-Youm daily newspaper. There were 59 passengers aboard the flight, which brought 12 passengers back to Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport within three hours. The airline has had…

Canadian Governor-General David Johnston welcomed President Shimon Peres to Canada on Monday. The two men followed protocol by reviewing the ceremonial honor guard that greeted Peres with a 21 gun salute and issuing joint statements, before holding a working meeting. “I thank you for your invitation to visit your special country,” Peres said, speaking in…

Kadima chairman Shaul Mofaz is mulling whether to cancel party primaries to establish a new party list despite preparations being underway to do so. The Knesset TV channel reported on Tuesday that Mofaz has been advised by senior faction members to instead establish a committee, “which will establish the party list and positions ahead of…

Last year, crime cost the State of Israel some NIS 14.4 billion – less than it had a year earlier, but still a sizable chunk of money. The sum represents the amount paid for damages incurred by crimes, according to data released Monday by the Public Security Ministry. For example, the cost to the Israeli…

The Israel Defense Forces launched a new campaign on Sunday aimed at urging soldiers to refrain from hitchhiking, in an effort to prevent abductions. Billboards with the campaign’s slogan, “Don’t catch a hike. The hike might catch you,” [the Hebrew expression for hitchhiking is “litpos tremp” literally “catching a hike”, ed.] will appear at military bases, on trains,…

British Airways first landed in Israel with seaplanes in the Kinneret in 1932, when it was known as Imperial Airlines. Now it flies Boeings twice a day to Tel Aviv. Instead of transferring passengers to boats to reach shore, BA operates Boeing 767 and 777s twice a day to and from London. Celebrating 80 years…

Palestinian Authority, Syrian and Algerian flags were waved in a Paris celebration of Socialist Francois Hollande’s victory over French President Nicolas Sarkozy.    Thousands packed Bastille Square and broke out champagne bottles with shouts of victory. Hollande promised during his campaign he will visit Israel if elected and added he backs “two neighboring and sovereign…

The government officially submitted to the Knesset Monday a bill for elections on September 4, immediately after the summer vacation and less than two weeks before the Rosh HaShanah holiday. Ironically, the government headed by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has been one of the most stable in recent years, but the sudden storm over the…

The Palestinian Authority provides parents with cartoons that teach children to destroy Israel, even though PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has said that evidence of incitement against Israel is outdated. The Palestine Media Watch (PMW) has published and translated a recent article from the official Palestinian Authority daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida,   complete with a cartoon of a…

Born in New York and raised in Israel, Itamar Gelbman seeks to bring a Jewish and Israeli voice to the United States Congress by running in the May 29 Republican primary race in Texas’s Sixth Congressional District. Gelbman, grew up in Herzliya, studied business management at Tel Aviv University and served in the Israeli army.…

Hundreds of prominent Muslim clerics in India have demanded that India break off diplomatic ties with Israel, the Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) reported Monday. Defense trade between Israel and India has developed rapidly and is valued in billions of dollars. Shi’ite Muslim clerics also called for shutting down Indian’s embassy in the United States. Relations…

The IDF is preparing for the possibility that the government will decide to expand the recruitment of hareidi-religious Jews, and is preparing accordingly, the IDF website reported on Sunday. The preparations were decided upon following the recent controversy over the Tal Law, which regulates the recruitment of hareidim to the IDF and which was recently…

Yemeni Al-Qaeda leader Fahd al-Quso, who was wanted in connection with the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole, was killed in an air raid in eastern Yemen on Sunday, according to a report by AFP. Al-Qaeda, which has strongholds in southern and eastern Yemen, confirmed Quso’s death in an SMS text message sent to reporters…

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that President Bashar Assad’s grip on Syria is getting weaker by the day and “victory is close,” according to a report in The Associated Press. Erdogan’s remarks were made in an address to thousands of cheering Syrians who fled a brutal crackdown on an anti-regime uprising.…

Having taken back the French presidency after 17 years in exile, the French Socialists must be regarded as heavy favorites to complete a political sweep in June when France votes in legislative elections. The French 5th Republic may not have exactly worked out the way its architects Charles DeGaulle and Michelle Debre intended, but it…

The Rabbinical Centre of Europe (RCE) congratulated Francois Hollande on his winning the presidential election in France, while alerting him of the resurgence of anti-Semitism and intolerance of religious freedom in the country. The RCE is an organization, dedicated to serving the needs of European Jewry, which represents over seven hundred rabbis and Jewish communities throughout the European…

The ban on new construction in Judea and Samaria officially ended in 2010. In practice, however, many communities remain unable to build. In Ofra, north of Jerusalem, a freeze on construction is hitting the most vulnerable residents: handicapped children from the Binyamin region. Mali Shtrigler, head of the Lev Binyamin organization for children and adults…

Socialist Francois Hollande has been elected as France’s new president, according to early estimates cited by the BBC. According to projections based on partial results, Hollande got about 52% of the votes in Sunday’s run-off, against 48% for center-right incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy. Hollande would be France’s first socialist president since 1995. The Associated Press said…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu kicked off the election campaign Sunday in a speech at the Likud convention in Tel Aviv, in which he took credit for making people feel safer in Israel. “We have systematically struck those who planned to strike us,” Netanyahu said. “We took the initiative and we responded resolutely to every attack…

The Irish band “Dervish” has caved in to Palestinian Authority Arab cultural terrorism, canceling its tour in Israel after threats online. The band pulled out of a three-date concert tour scheduled in Israel, citing on its Facebook page an “avalanche of negativity” and “venom” aimed at them from social networking sites. Members of the Ireland…

A planned terror attack in Israel was thwarted on Sunday evening, for the third time in several days. According to a report on Channel 2 News, Border Polices officers arrested a 17-year-old Palestinian Authority Arab teen at a checkpoint near the Tapuach junction in Samaria. Upon inspection, the teen was found to be in possession…

A group of Arabs activists removed Israeli flags from main bypass roads between cities in the northern Binyamin region early Saturday, the Ma’an news agency reported. The activists replaced Israeli flags with Palestinian Authority flags, according to Ibrahim Burnat, one of the participants. Burnat told Ma’an that a group of young men left Ramallah at 3 a.m. to complete the task.  “On one…

Detroit Tigers’ outfielder Delmon Young apologized today during a pre-game interview inside the Detroit Tigers’ dugout at Comerica Park for attacking tourists while drunk and hurling anti-Semitic slurs. “I would like to apologize to everyone that’s been affected by this situation that happened in New York,” Young said. “I put myself in a bad situation…

Chabad rabbis burst into tears on the Sabbath after discovering that thieves stole six Torah scrolls from their 160-year-old Tzemach Tzedek synagogue in the Old City area of Tzfat. A new Torah scroll is worth approximately $60,000. The thieves broke into the building on Friday night, and worshipers discovered the theft when they arrived early…

The special children of the SULAM organization went last week to pay their condolences to Prime Minister Netanyahu on the death of his father. Professor Benzion Netanyahu, who passed away at the beginning of the week at the age of 102, was known for his right-wing views and for his Zionism. The prime minister “sat…

President Shimon Peres is flying to Canada Sunday for a five-day visit with the pro-Israel government and Jewish leaders, with the Iranian nuclear threat tops the agenda. Canada is considered one of Israel’s best friends, and Ottawa has been solidly behind the Netanyahu government  even when the Obama administration has been at odds with Israel.…

Disaster was narrowly averted twice on the Sabbath as Jews in Yitzhar prevented Palestinian Authority Arabs from destroying their community with fire. Some grazing land was set alight, but homes in the area were saved. The attacks mark the beginning of the annual PA “arson season,” residents told Arutz Sheva. Attacks are often timed to…

Japan’s final active nuclear plant was switched off on Saturday with fanfare, banner-waving and celebration by anti-nuke activist marchers in Tokyo. For the first time in 40 years, the country is using electricity generated solely by non-nuclear power plants, following the shutdown of the last reactor at the Hokkaido Tomari plant by the Hokkaido Electric…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is expected to call Sunday night for elections September 4, one year before his term is to expire. Current polls show the opposition has no chance of forming a coalition. Prime Minister Netanyahu concludes the seven-day mourning period for his father, Benzion Netanyahu, on Sunday The popularity of the Prime Minister…

The ongoing hunger strike among Palestinian Authority terrorists in Israeli prisons could spark a third round of “intifada” violence against Israel, Arab MK Jamal Zahalka said Saturday. Zahalka spoke at a rally in support of the prisoners held in the Israeli Arab city of Kfar Kana. He said Israel is now experiencing “the calm before…

Magicians from all over the world got together in Holon, just south of Tel Aviv, this week for the International Magicians Convention. Part of the convention was the Magic Show Festival, featuring magic shows with some of the best magicians and telepathy artists from Israel and overseas. The convention and shows were all part of…

The threats by European leaders to boycott the Euro 2012 competition between national football teams, due to the imprisonment and maltreatment of former Ukrainian Prime Minister and Orange Revolution leader Yulia Timoshenko,has placed Poland, the cohosts of the tournaments, in a bind. As a host country that has invested preparations and money to make its…

An Israeli-Arab woman from Taibe who was fired from her job at a supermarket in Raanana has filed suit against the Mega chain, Channel 2 reports. The woman says she was fired for refusing to stand in respect as a siren sounded in memory of fallen IDF soldiers – and claims that the expectation that…

At least five people were killed in Aleppo, Syria on Saturday when a bomb exploded at a car wash. The rebel group Free Syrian Army was initially said to have claimed responsibility for the attack, but the group later denied having made a statement in the matter. A local activist told Associated Press that the…

A Be’er Sheva man was murdered on Friday night after asking a group of young men to speak more quietly. The victim, 36-year-old Gadi Vichman, was killed on his daughter’s birthday. His wife Michal witnessed the murder. She reported that Gadi was killed the minute he went downstairs, just minutes after he had politely asked…

AP: Final results for many Iranian parliamentary constituencies announced Saturday show supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad relegated to a small fraction of the legislature, hugely outnumbered by the conservatives who once backed him but then turned against him after he was perceived to challenge the authority of top clerics. It also represents another blow against…

Egyptian troops blasted protesters in Cairo with water cannons, tear gas and live ammunition, trying to prevent them from marching on the Defense Ministry Friday in clashes that left one soldier and two demonstrators dead and scores of people injured just three weeks ahead of presidential elections. The fierce street battles raised fears of a…

A Hamas leader warned Israel on Friday there would be consequences if any of the Palestinian Authority Arab prisoners on hunger strike dies in jail. “You must realize that the hunger strike isn’t a party, and we could be surprised by the death of some of them,” the leader, Khalil al-Haya, was quoted by AFP…

The European Jewish Parliament (EJP) and The European Jewish Union (EJU) strongly condemned on Friday the incident on a Belgium train in which Jews were “asked to get off at Buchenwald.” The announcement was made on the speaker during a train trip on the Brussels-Namur line. A railroad employee who heard the announcement ran to…

French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday rejected as “grotesque” claims by lawyers for former Libyan premier Baghdadi al-Mahmudi, that Muammar Qaddafi regime funded his 2007 election campaign. In a statement quoted by AFP, Sarkozy’s spokeswoman dismissed Mahmudi’s claim, as did a French-based lawyer who also claimed to be representing Mahmudi. “How can one for one…

Egyptian armed forces and protesters clashed Friday in Cairo, with troops firing water cannons and tear gas at demonstrators who threw stones as they tried to march on the Defense Ministry. According to a report in The Associated Press, hardline Islamists were in the forefront of street fighting with the troops, a shift for groups…

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah ordered on Friday to reopen the Saudi mission in Egypt, after it was shut last week in the wake of angry protests. The SPA state news agency, quoting an unnamed official, said that the king “instructed the kingdom’s ambassador to Cairo to resume his post on Sunday, and ordered the reopening…

Thousands of Jordanians took to the streets on Friday demanding an end to the country‘s 18-year-old peace treaty with Israel. According to a report by the dpa news agency, in a series of nationwide protests, demonstrators urged Amman to cut ties with the Jewish State. The protesters burned Israeli flags and chanted “death, death to…

Adam Yauch, a founding member of pioneering hip-hop group the Beastie Boys who captivated fans with their brash style in early hits like “Fight for Your Right (To Party)”, died on Friday after a long battle with cancer. He was 47. “It is with great sadness that we confirm that musician, rapper, activist and director…

Al-Qaeda is calling on its followers to attack America using methods identical to those used by terrorists targeting Israel. In the latest issue of its English-language magazine, the group calls for large-scale arson attacks. Inspire magazine articles explain how to use firebombs to start forest fires, and suggests locations within the United States that could…

Palestinian Authority Arab gangs continue to make frequent efforts to steal Israelis’ cars, often in violent attacks. An attempted robbery was reported Thursday night in the western Binyamin region. Several PA Arabs worked together to trap multiple Israeli drivers. PA criminals in one car circled around the intended victims, while another car drove up behind.…

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Thursday that the international community will block Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. “The current Iranian nuclear program represents an enormous danger, not only to Israel but to the region as a whole,” Westerwelle told Jewish Global Forum in Washington. “We cannot and will not accept an Iranian nuclear…

Passengers on a train in Belgium got a shock this week as the following announcement came over the speaker, “Welcome to the train to Auschwitz. The Jews are asked to get off at Buchenwald.” More than 55,000 were murdered at the Buchenwald concentration camp during the Holocaust. A railroad employee who heard the announcement ran…

Jewish journalist Mark Deitch, 67, drowned late Thursday evening during the rescue of a girl in Bali. Deitch was renowned in Russia, where he worked for the “Svoboda” radio station, as well as with “Izvestia,” “Moskovsky Komsomolets” and “Literaturnaya Gazeta.” “We were on a holiday in Indonesia with kids and friends,” Ksenia Deitch said. “My…

It was reported on Friday that IDF chief of staff Benny Gantz decided this week not to end Lt. Col. Shalom Eisner’s military career. Eisner’s career has hung in the balance since he was filmed striking a Danish ISM activist in the face with his rifle at the end of a heated two-hour confrontation on…

The IDF foiled two attempted terrorist attacks in Samaria on Thursday night. In the first incident, Border Police officers arrested two terrorists in their 20s at the Tapuach junction in Samaria. The terrorists were found to be carrying explosives and knives. Sappers detonated the explosives, and no one was hurt. The two suspects were transferred…

The Palestinian Authority is continuing its attempts to take over the land in Area C, which is under full Israeli control, and is being assisted in this by no less than the Civil Administration. According to figures presented on Thursday by the Coordinator of Government Activities in Judea, Samaria and Gaza (COGAT), in 2011 a…

Swiss officials are expected to select a new UAV for its army before the end of the year. The two front contenders are Elbit’s Hermes 900 UAV and the Heron-1 UAV by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Israel Defense reports. Both are large UAVs capable of carrying payloads for day-and-night photography, laser marking, electronic warfare systems,…

One aspect of the continued European financial crisis that will take another turn on Sunday, with the expected victory of Francois Hollande in France – a victory that could overturn EU fiscal policy – is the emerging challenge to the EU itself. What was originally a crisis of the euro currency is increasingly becoming a crisis of…

The Israeli public believes that both wars and social protests can lead to economic growth, according to a survey conducted by the Orot Israel College, ahead of a conference on growth and crisis to be held next Monday. Rabbi Prof. Neria Gutel, President of the Orot Israel College, told Arutz Sheva on Thursday that the…

Among the numerous people who came to offer condolences to the grieving Netanyahu family this week was the Prime Minister’s challenger for leadership of the Likud, Moshe Feiglin. The Netanyahus are sitting shiva for the Prime Minister’s father, Prof. Benzion Netanyahu, at the Netanyahus’ home in the Katamon section of Jerusalem. Feiglin described the occasion…

The IDF on Thursday launched the fourth Dolphin-class submarine – the INS Tanin [Crocodile] – to enter the service of Israel’s Navy. The ceremony, held in the German shipyards at Kiel near Hamburg, comes as Israel looks to built up its deterrent power on the seas. Maj. Gen. Ram Rothberg, Navy Commander, said at the launching: “We…

IAF Commander Maj. Gen. Iddo Nechushtan awarded a citation to the air crew members of a Yasur CH-53 helicopter that extricated elite IDF fighters from Baalbek, Lebanon, in the 2006 Second Lebanon War. Lt. Col. Emanuel Moreno was killed in this operation. His photograph may not be published to this day, for security reasons. Among…

Israel’s National Security Council Counter-Terrorism Bureau has decided to reiterate its existing travel advisory regarding Tunisia ahead of the upcoming Jewish holiday of Lag B’Omer. The holiday commemorates the death of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, and the ending of a massive plague that took the lives of thousands of his students and those of Rabbi…

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will receive a copy of a historic letter written by Dimitar Peshev, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Bulgaria and Minister of Justice during World War II, who is credited with rescuing approximately 50,000 Bulgarian Jews during the Holocaust. The letter will be handed to Netanyahu by Petar Paunov, Mayor of Peshev’s hometown of Kyustendil in Bulgaria, according to…

An Egyptian delegation led by the heads of Cairo’s two houses of parliament will meet with Saudi King Abdullah on Friday in hopes of easing tensions between the two countries. According to Egypt’s semi-official al-Ahram the delegation will be comprised of 150 lawmakers and prominent writers making a bid to thaw Egyptian-Saudi ties, added the…

Jerusalem police have ruled that activists cannot hold a march to the Temple Mount this Sunday. Some 200 right-wing activists allegedly planned to lead approximately 20 sheep to Judaism’s holiest site. The march, beginning at Jerusalem’s central bus station and culminating in the Old City of Jerusalem, was to be held in protest over the…

Five people, including a two-year old baby, were shot and killed inside an Arizona home on Wednesday by a neo-Nazi militia leader, who then shot himself. Jason “J.T.” Ready, a former Marine, was a well-known reputed neo-Nazi who was running for Pinal County Sheriff, FOX news reported. Police say four adults were found dead at…

Despite a worldwide arms embargo, Iran has been able to import over a half billion dollars’ worth of weapons over the past several years, while Syria was able to get nearly $200 million in imported weapons in recent years. The figures came from a report submitted to the United Nations Thursday by international aid agency…

Hamas said on Wednesday that it has been holding secret political talks with five European Union member states in recent months, according to a report in The Associated Press. In an interview Wednesday, Beirut-based Hamas official Osama Hamdan told AP his group has been talking to government officials from five major EU member states, but…

Egyptian presidential candidate Ahmed Shafiq said on Wednesday that he would be ready to visit Israel, Channel 10 News reported. Shafiq, who served as deposed leader Hosni Mubarak’s last prime minister, said, “I am ready to visit Israel, provided it gives something to show it has good intentions.” He made the comments during an appearance…

The Anti-Defamation League has slammed Noway’s prime minister over failing to condemn anti-Israel slogans at the country’s May Day event. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, head of the governing Labour Party, was silent in the face of official anti-Semitic and anti-Israel banners. Marchers at the event’s parade held banners proclaiming 11 official slogans, including “Israel =…

Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Wednesday swore in a cabinet tasked with pushing for reforms, AFP reported. The new cabinet is led by Prime Minister Fayez Tarawneh and includes 30 people, 20 of whom are newcomers. One woman, Nadia Hashem, was appointed state minister for women’s affairs, the report said. In the cabinet, which no…

A senior Iranian official said on Wednesday that Israel’s undeclared nuclear weapons pose the greatest threat to Mideast peace. According to The Associated Press, Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammad Mahdi Akhondzadeh accused the United States and other nuclear powers of hypocritically ignoring their disarmament commitments. Akhondzadeh made the comments to a 189-nation nonproliferation meeting, reflecting Iran’s…

Twenty were killed and scores were wounded in Cairo clashes that erupted on Wednesday outside the Egyptian Defense Ministry after a group of “unidentified assailants” attacked demonstrators protesting continued military rule. A military junta took interim control of Egypt following a popular uprising that led to the ouster of long-time president Hosni Mubarak on 11…

Senior security officials said Wednesday that early elections will have no impact on Israel’s decision on whether to strike Iranian nuclear sites. Former IDF chiefs of staff, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Minister of Strategic Affairs Moshe Yaalon (Likud), issued statements on Wednesday that the Jewish state’s policy toward Iran will be based solely on…

There have been speculations, even outrage from amongst the Jewish Blogosphere, as to whether President Barack Obama has sent his condolences to the Israeli Prime Minister following the death of his father, Ben-Zion Netanyahu. Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney immediately extended his message of consolation to the Israeli Prime Minister and his family calling Ben-Zion’s…

A Jewish woman fought off a pair of Arab carjackers late Tuesday night near Neria in the Samaria region. The incident occurred as the woman drove home to the community of Neria. Two residents from a nearby Palestinian Authority enclave blocked the road with two cars. The men then ran toward the woman and attempted…

Ehud Barak announces he is leading his new Independence party in the upcoming election and adds, “This is not a reality show.” Dr. Einat Wilf, chairman of the party’s caucus and who followed Barak after he quit the Labor party last year, told reporters, “We made it very clear we are running independently against all…

Toni Morrison, the Nobel-winning author who has accused Israel of perpetrating genocidal policies, is to be awarded the presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States. Morrison is one of 13 recipients of the prize this year, alongside Israeli President Shimon Peres and former Secretary of State Madeline Albright. In 2006…

A bus filled with children ages 3 to 13 was suddenly pelted with rocks and concrete cinder blocks hurled by Arab teens in Jerusalem’s mixed Jewish-Arab neighborhood of Abu Tur.  Rivka and Eilat, two eighthgrade students living in the area who were on the bus at the time, told Arutz Sheva about the experience. The…

The Likud is way head of the pack in the first pre-election poll, carried out for the Knesset, while Ehud Barak is behind the “eight ball,” without enough votes to win Knesset representation. The figures are bound to change by the time of the elections, which have not yet been scheduled but are expected to…

The blossoms of the “Arab Spring” uprising in Egypt last year have wilted under a reign of terror in the Sinai, where Al Qaeda and other jihadi cells have carried out 50 terrorist attacks on police since the beginning of the January 25 uprising. Israel has frequently posted warnings to tourists not to visit the…

Is the War on Terror over? The Obama administration doesn’t seem able to decide. “The war on terror is over,” a senior State Department official told the National Journal in light of the Arab spring uprisings and the killing of Osama Bin Laden. “Now that we have killed most of al Qaeda, now that people have…

Israel’s Counter-Terrorism Bureau on Tuesday lowered its threat warning for Israelis travelling to Turkey. The decision came after Ankara in recent days ordered a series of raids on groups targeting Israelis in Turkey. The raids were reportedly possible due to Israeli cooperation with Turkish security officials “behind the scenes.” While the raids did not eradicate…

The Palestinian Authority is planning to open a duty-free shop in Jericho, a senior Fatah official said Tuesday. The official, Muhammad Shtayeh, told the Bethlehem-based Ma’an news agency that PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has approved the project, adding that its profits will support a fund for students in refugee camps in Lebanon and underprivileged areas.…

Journalist-turned-politician Yair Lapid held on Tuesday evening the first conference of his new party, Yesh Atid. During the conference, Lapid outlined his version of the alternative to the Tal Law, which exempts hareidi-religious soldiers from service in the IDF, and is at the heart of a controversy which will lead to early Knesset elections. In…

Gaza-based terrorists fired a Qassam rocket at southern Israel on Tuesday evening. The rocket exploded in an open area in the Ashkelon Coast Regional Council. There were no reports of physical injuries or damages. On Monday, terrorists in Gaza launched a rocket at the town of Sderot. The rocket landed in an area about a…

IAF aircraft struck a terror tunnel in northern Gaza on Tuesday night, according to a statement by the IDF Spokesman. The statement said that direct hits were identified and that all aircraft safely returned to their bases. The attack came in response to recent rocket fire from Gaza at Israeli territory. Earlier on Tuesday, Gaza-based…

During the week of the anniversary of the death of PLO arch-terrorist Abu Jihad, the Palestinian Authority held events and broadcast TV programs celebrating him and his terror attacks. The programs as well as newspaper articles glorifying Abu Jihad were monitored and translated by the Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) research organization, which presented them on…

UN observers in Syria on Tuesday found themselves under pressure to curtail 13-months of violence and buttress a UN-brokered ceasefire deal as at least clashes continue. Rights activists in the violence-rocked country say at least 23 people were killed on Tuesday, but the day is not yet complete. According to activists, rebels killed 12 soldiers…

The British National Health Service cancelled a workshop on conflict resolution that was scheduled to be led by an Israeli lecturer, following protests of trade union members who objected to Israeli involvement. Professor Moty Cristal, an Israeli expert on negotiating skills and crisis management, had been invited to lead a workshop in Manchester next week…

IDF forces carried out a series of contingency maneuvers along the Blue Line on Tuesday to prepare for a possible attack as it constructs a 6-meter high separation wall between Israel and Lebanon. According to Lebanese sources, tens of Israeli soldiers were deployed in the defacto border region and were visible from the border town…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is expected to announce early elections at Likud’s scheduled faction meeting on Sunday. According to sources within the Likud, September 4 is being discussed as Election Day. In such a case, the Likud would hold primaries to establish its party list in mid-June. Netanyahu recently won the Likud election for party leadership,…

Rep. Mike Turner on Tuesday charged that President Barack Obama was trying to be “a better John Wayne” than Mitt Romney. “The important aspect here is discussing what we’re going to do in the future, not the president claiming that somehow he’s a better John Wayne than Mitt Romney is. It’s deplorable to politicize this,”…

Investigators tasked with investigating the deaths of 21 civilians in Gaza during Operation Cast Lead in 2009 concluded IDF soldiers were not reckless or negligent. “The investigation has completely refuted the serious accusations leveled against the IDF by various groups that forces directly targeted non-combatants during hostilities, or made hasty or reckless decisions in regards…

Visiting Democratic Sen. John Kerry told President Shimon Peres Tuesday preventing a nuclear-armed Iran is part of American efforts “to keep the world free from terror.” The senator, chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told the President, “If I can just say to you and to the people of Israel: I hope there is no…

Four weeks after she was trounced by MK Shaul Mofaz in Kadima’s primaries, former Kadima chair Tzipi Livni resigned Tuesday from the party. In her farewell speech, she prided herself on “refusing to surrender to political blackmail.” However, a handwritten note apparently says otherwise. “I am not sorry that I refused to engage in profiteering…

A South Carolina middle school teacher has been accused of dragging a student under a table during class, saying, “This is what the Nazis do to Jews,” police said Monday, according to the Associated Press . The 12-year-old student affirmed that his teacher, Patricia Mulholland, grabbed him by the collar and said, “Come here, Jew,” when…

Detroit Tigers’ outfielder Delmon Young will lose $250,000 in pay and has been banned from the field for seven days after being charged with assaulting a man and yelling anti-Semitic hate statements in New York last week. The ban is retroactive to last Friday, allowing Young to return to the field this Friday, subject to…

B’nai Brith has attributed the increasingly high number of anti-Semitic incidents in Canada to a “sustained undercurrent of anti-Jewish bias,” said an organization official.   The League for Human Rights of B’nai Birth Canada issued a report stating that there were 1,297 anti-Semitic incidents in 2011, a “negligible decrease” of 0.7% from the previous year,…

Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned on Monday that as long as Iran poses a threat to Israel with its nuclear program, all options are on the table. Speaking with journalists from the Foreign Press Association and quoted by The Associated Press, Barak said, “I believe it is well understood in Washington, D.C., as well as…

Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said that if international efforts to halt Iran’s nuclear program fail, any military action against Tehran should be led by the United States and not by Israel. In an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour which was recorded on Sunday and aired on Monday, Olmert said, “The last resort is…

New Jersey governor Chris Christie implied on Monday that he would be open to the possibility of being Mitt Romney’s vice presidential nominee. During a visit to a high school in Plainsboro, New Jersey, Christie said he could be convinced to join the Republican presidential ticket. “He might be able to convince me,” Christie said of…

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas called Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu a partner for peace on Monday, but repeated his demand that Netanyahu choose “between peace and settlements.” Abbas, who spoke before the parliament in Tunisia and was quoted in a report in the Israeli Ma’ariv newspaper, said, “I choose you, Netanyahu, because you are our…

Amr Moussa, a frontrunner in the Egyptian presidential race, criticized the peace agreement between Israel and Egypt on Monday and said that “the Camp David accords were dead and buried long ago.” Moussa, who spoke during a meeting with voters in the Sohag region in southern Egypt, said, “The Camp David agreements do not exist anymore.…

Turkey said it will block EU participation in an upcoming NATO summit unless the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is also allowed to participate, reported Today’s Zaman. EU member states had proposed participation of a number of top EU officials, who are now unsure whether they will be able to attend the upcoming summit…

A hospital in eastern Jerusalem hospital is at risk of being shut down due to financial difficulties, which it blames on the Palestinian Authority, according to a statement released Sunday. The hospital administration and employees union is accusing the Palestinian Authority of failing to pay for patients’ medical treatment, which is leading to a large…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said Monday that a decision on whether to hold early elections will be made by the end of the next week. Netanyahu, whose father died at the age of 102 on Monday, will be restriciting his official appearances for the next week as he observes the traditional Jewish first week of…

An Iranian envoy voiced hope on Monday that talks with the UN nuclear watchdog in mid-May would help resolve “outstanding issues.” However, Iran’s ambassador to the Vienna-based IAEA, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, again ruled out any halt to Tehran’s controversial uranium enrichment program. The International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] said on Saturday it would resume discussions…

Israel and Egypt are set to conduct a prisoner exchange on Sunday in which 63 Egyptians will be swapped for an Israeli national convicted of spying for Israel, Israeli sources say. Egyptian authorities have yet to formally accept the deal, but Israeli political sources were quoted by Israel’s state Arabic-language radio station saying the deal…

The latest Palestinian Authority tactic for United Nations sympathy is the prisoners’ hunger strike, which it now says is a humanitarian disaster. Hamas’ supreme leader Khalid Mashaal said Sunday that the Arab League has agreed to bring the issue to the United Nations as the hunger strike by 1,350 terrorists and security prisoners approaches the…

Israel began building a wall that will run several kilometers along part of its border with Lebanon, a military spokeswoman told Agence France Presse on Monday. “This construction, which began on Monday, is being carried out in coordination with UNIFIL (the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) and the Lebanese army. The wall is intended…

The Palestinian Authority’s Minister of Communications, Mashour Abu Daqa, has announced his resignation following the PA’s censorship of numerous websites, the Palestine News Network (PNN) reported. Last week, the PA, under the authority of Mahmous Abbas, ordered Internet providers to block access to at least eight websites that are critical of Abbas’ leadership or PA…

Syrian President Bashar Assad’s brutality, including starvation of his enemies, has driven rebels to fight back with suicide bombs. Twenty men were killed in attacks on security forces in northwest Syria Monday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The presence of United Nations observers in the country has not deterred the violence as…

Lawmakers in the US House of Representatives have agreed to invest millions of dollars in the Iron Dome anti-missile weapon for Israel, as long as the United States can acquire the development rights to the weapon system, The Hill reported. Members of the House Armed Services Strategic Forces subcommittee reportedly elected to set aside $680…

The U.S. war on terror begins at home. Majid Khan was a nice kid from Baltimore who was learning in university until he met up with the wrong guy and later found himself employed by Osama Bin Laden. He once wore a suicide vest in an attempt to blow himself up along with the president…

The Knesset’s Labor and Welfare Committee approved on Monday a bill sponsored by MKs David Rotem and Robert Ilatov (Yisrael Beitenu) that cuts by half the National Insurance benefits to terrorists who are citizens of Israel. Terrorists who served at least ten years in jail will lose half of the benefits for unemployment, disability, old…

Public figures from both sides of the political spectrum eulogized Prof. Benzion Netanyahu, the prime minister’s father, after he passed away on Monday. Knesset Speaker MK Reuven Rivlin, said, “I have known Benzion Netanyahu ever since my young adulthood. This is a man who tied his life to Jerusalem and Zionism, who was an assistant…

Egyptian security forces detained two Palestinian Authority Arab militants on Sunday, after they entered the Sinai Peninsula through smuggling tunnels, the Bethlehem-based Ma’an news agency reported. Egyptian security officials told the news agency that forces seized the 34-year-old and 37-year-old as they approached a police checkpoint in the northern Sinai by taxi. It was not…

Amid speculation that elections for the Knesset are imminent, a poll released Sunday found that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will retain his leadership after the next elections and will even receive more seats than he currently has. The New Wave poll, which was carried out for the Yisrael Hayom newspaper, is in line with other…

A group of about 40 journalists from leading media outlets around the world visited the Ulpana neighborhood in Beit El on Sunday. The neighborhood is under a threat of being demolished under a Supreme Court ruling, which was issued after the left-wing group Yesh Din filed suit, claiming the buildings in the neighborhood have been…

Air Force Commander Maj. Gen. Ido Nechushtan arrived at the Hadassah-Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem on Sunday, where he awarded a certificate of merit to First Sergeant Hagar Zohar, who was injured in the collapse of the lighting bridge on Mount Herzl, which killed Lieutenant Hila Bezaleli. The accident occurred during rehearsals for the opening…

Opposition leader MK Shaul Mofaz (Kadima) said on Sunday that the real battle in the next election will be between him and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Channel 2 News reported. Speaking at a Kadima conference in Petah Tikva, Mofaz said, “All the other parties, even Yisrael Beytenu and Labor, do not have candidates for prime…

Ben Zion Netanyahu, father of the Prime Minister, passed away in his Jerusalem home early Monday morning, He was 102. His funeral will begin at 5 p.m. at the Har Menuchot Cemetery in the Givat Shaul neighborhood in Jerusalem. The senior Netanyahu was the aide to Ze’ev Jabotinsky, the “father of Revisionist Zionism,” and was…

Former Mossad head Meir Dagan came out Sunday with a statement of support for successor Yuval Diskin. Diskin was roundly criticized Sunday for calling Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak “messianic” and suggesting that social protests in Israel be modeled on riots in Egypt. Diskin “is a good young man, he is serious…

Police in Tehran are conducting a new crackdown on women wearing the mandatory headscarves improperly or who are seen dressed in a “vulgar” fashion, the city’s police chief said, according to media reports on Saturday. Police monitor pedestrian and vehicle traffic at major junctions and shopping centers quite often in Iran. The most recent operation…

Almost a year after U.S. special forces killed Osama bin Laden, Saudi Arabia has decided to allow the infamous terrorist’s family into the kingdom on humanitarian grounds, state media reported on Saturday. Pakistan deported the family this week, ending months of speculation regarding the fate of his wives and children who were detained by Pakistani…

Fifth graders from Beit Hinuch Ramon School in Samaria held a virtual meeting through the Internet with pupils of the same age from Los Angeles’ Tifereth Israel congregation’s Hebrew school. The meeting was held with the aid of video cameras and the Skype application, to honor Israel’s 64th Yom Ha’atzmaut celebration, which was marked on Sunday…

Young national service volunteers had hoped to show their Independence Day spirit with a sign saying “Proud to be Israeli” at the train station in Akko. However, managers said the sign could not be put up due to concern that it would offend Arab passengers. Batsheva Moshe, one of the young national service volunteers behind…

A nine-year-old Israeli girl was nearly abducted from her parents at Disney World, in Orlando, Florida, during the Pesach holiday. Channel 10 news reported that two Israeli parents and their two children were standing in line for one of the rides in the huge theme park when they discovered that their daughter had disappeared. They…

Saudi Arabia dropped a “diplomatic bomb” on post-Mubarak Egypt by closing its embassy after huge protests of the arrest of an Egyptian civil rights lawyer who allegedly insulted King Abdullah. The diplomatic snub came after demonstrators at the embassy demanded the release of the lawyer, Ahmed el-Gezawi, who had filed a lawsuit in Egypt against…

A prominent Iranian lawmaker said the reported basing of America’s most sophisticated stealth jet fighters in the United Arab Emirates is a U.S.-Israel plot to create regional instability, the semi-official ISNA news agency reported. Kazem Jalali was reacting to media reports of the recent deployment of F-22 Raptors at the UAE’s Al Dafra Air Base.  Air Force…

If Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu calls early elections, Ehud Barak, a thorn in the coalition’s official backing of Judea and Samaria, could be left out in the cold. The trigger for possible elections later this year is the movement for changing the military draft system, whose critics have targeted exemptions or shorter terms of service…

The State of Israel is doing its bit to promote “green living” by offering tax breaks to those who buy clean energy cars. The government on Sunday authorized special benefits to consumers who purchase electric cars, dropping the sales tax to 8 percent from its previous 10 percent. In addition, Cabinet ministers approved a proposal not…

Approximately one year after the assassination of Osama bin Laden, a memo written by former CIA Director Leon Panetta has been obtained, revealing that President Obama was not, in fact, in charge of operation strategy in the hunt for the terrorist mastermind. Panetta received a call from National Security Officer Tom Donilon confirming that President…

Former Libyan dictator Muammar Qaddafi helped fund French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s 2007 campaign, according to documents revealed by the French website Mediapart. The report comes as Sarkozy is trailing Socialist candidate Francois Hollande one week before the final round of voting. Qaddafi allegedly contributed $65 million to Sarkozy’s campaign coffers, according to a document written…

The Cabinet Sunday approved a nearby temporary housing site for residents of Migron, over whose heads hangs  an expulsion order. Nationalist Knesset Members in the coalition have insisted that Migron must remain in its current location, and the High Court has rejected a government petition to defer the scheduled expulsion beyond a July 15 deadline. The unanimous vote by the…

Gershon Mesika, the head of the Shomron Regional Council, was a guest of honor this week in the British House of Lords in London. The visit marked the first time that a leader of the settlement enterprise in Judea and Samaria visited the House of Lords, the members of which have in the past made…

As the talks about a possible upcoming election in Israel continue, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said for the first time on Saturday night that he will not hesitate to go to elections if the coalition partners try to blackmail him. According to a report on Channel 2 News, Netanyahu said that Israel’s economy and security…

A British supermarket chain is extending a boycott of goods from Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria and will now shun any supplier known to source from these areas. In a statement released Saturday and quoted by AFP, the Co-Operative Group said, “Following an audit of the Group’s supply chain, it will no longer do…

Hevron Arabs targeted 20 Jewish children in a playground Saturday night with huge building blocks and rocks intended to kill. The children in the Beit Hadassah neighborhood escaped the attacks without injuries, but by the time security forces arrived, the Arab attackers had escaped. The onslaught originated from the rooftops of two houses occupied by…

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Saturday that he will present a universal national service law to the Knesset in ten day’s time. The law is to replace the Tal Law that regulated the exemption from service for hareidi yeshiva students. Lieberman threatened that his party would leave the coalition over the matter of the Tal…

Coalition ministers and Knesset members hit back Saturday night at former Shin Bet head Yuval Diskin, after he mounted a frontal attack on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Saturday, calling them “messianic.” Several responders asked why Diskin, whose term as head of the Shin Bet ended almost a year ago,…

  Four Arab youths from the A-Tur neighborhood in Jerusalem have been arrested by the Minorities Department of the Jerusalem Police’s Central Unit, on suspicion of brutally attacking a Jewish family outside the Old City on Yom Haatzmaut. The attack took place at the Ben-Hinnom Valley, located outside the walls of the Old City.. Two…

IDF troops nabbed a Palestinian in possession of two explosive devices near the Hawara roadblock. The bombs were blown up in a controlled detonation. The terror suspect was taken in for interrogation.

Saudi Arabia’s deputy foreign minister says Gulf Arab states must integrate key affairs such as diplomacy and defense to counter perceived threats including Iran’s nuclear ambitions and Arab Spring spillover. The Western-allied bloc has increasingly discussed closer coordination to battle Arab Spring-inspired opposition and confront regional rival Iran. Last year, a Saudi-led military force came…

Members of the Jewish community in Geneva, Switzerland, woke up on Friday morning and discovered that anti-Semitic symbols had been sprayed overnight on a monument to Holocaust victims who had lived in the city, according to a Channel 2 News report. The report said that symbols had also been sprayed on the outer wall of…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has recently held discussions with the leaders of some of the factions of the coalition and discussed with them the possibility of holding the elections in the coming months, Channel 2 News reported on Friday. According to the reports, Netanyahu is seeking to hold the elections next September or October, though…

At least 27 people were hurt after four blasts hit Ukraine’s eastern city of Dnipropetrovsk on Friday, AFP reported. Nine children were injured in the succession of explosions and 25 of the 27 injured were hospitalized, emergency officials told AFP. President Viktor Yanukovych vowed a firm response to the explosions, which came weeks before the…

China’s prime minister paid homage on Friday to the victims of the Nazi Auschwitz death camp, The Associated Press reported. Wen Jiabao paid the visit to the Auschwitz memorial on Friday, following two days of political and business talks with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President Bronislaw Komorowski in Warsaw, the report said. At…

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) has released a special video in honor of Israel’s 64th Independence Day, which was celebrated this week. The video features a series of pictures from Israel’s 64-year history with an emphasis on combining older pictures with recent pictures. Playing throughout the video is Hatikvah, Israel’s national anthem.

500 Jewish students from all over the United States participated on Friday in an event called the “Race of Life”, a five-kilometer race in the Valley of the Cross in Jerusalem. Held for the second year in a row, the “Race of Life” is dedicated to the Ichud Hatzalah rescue organization, which works 365 days…

President Barack Obama has bypassed a Congress block and signed a waiver declaring that aid to the Palestinian Authority is “important to the security interests of the United States,” AFP reported on Friday. In a memo sent to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, published by the White House, Obama said it was appropriate to release…

The Special Branch of the Dehli police deported Iranian national Hamid Kashkouli, 40, who was pursuing his PhD from the University of Pune (UoP) in India, Pune Mirror reported. Kashkouli was found spying on the Chabad House in Koregaon Park, the Rasta Peth Synagogue and other Jewish and Israeli targets. Kashkouli was on the payrolls…

On the same day that Islamabad deported the widows of late Al-Qaeda arch-terrorist Osama Bin Laden, the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency released intelligence data showing he had planned “indiscriminate attacks” inside Pakistan before he was killed. The intelligence released was culled from from documents and electronic data seized during the raid on the slain…

Vladimir Katriuk, 91, whose name appears on the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s list of the world’s 10 most-wanted Nazis criminals, has been found to be living a quiet life keeping bees and selling honey in rural Quebec. Justice Minister Rob Nicholson and Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney told a group of Holocaust survivors last week…

The Arab League was set Friday to approach the United Nations Security Council to take immediate action to protect the civilians in Syria. “The Arab League will assign its Arab representatives in the UN Security Council in the meeting set to take place May 5 to ask the Security Council to protect Syrian civilians immediately,”…

Iran is busy acquiring the technical know-how to launch a potentially crippling cyber-attack on the United States and its allies, experts told a congressional hearing on Thursday. “Over the past three years, the Iranian regime has invested heavily in both defensive and offensive capabilities in cyberspace,” Ilan Berman, vice president of the American Foreign Policy…

President Shimon Peres said on Thursday that there is currently no need to threaten Iran with an attack on its nuclear facilities. Peres, who was interviewed by both Channel 2 and Channel 10 in honor of Israel’s Independence Day, emphasized the fact that there are other ways to deal with the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program.…

It is no secret that the Hispanic vote is going to be very important in the 2012 elections. In 2008, Hispanics broke heavily in favor of Barack Obama. Given the strong sentiments in the Republican Party against accommodating illegal immigrants, many of whom are Hispanics, it was expected that the Hispanics would remain strongly in…

Nearly a year after Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed in a U.S. raid, the members of his family were deported from Pakistan to Saudi Arabia on Thursday, officials told AFP. The 9/11 mastermind’s three widows and their children were detained by Pakistan after he was killed on May 2 of last year in…

French President Nicolas Sarkozy sent a letter to President Shimon Peres on Thursday, on the occasion of Israel’s 64th Independence Day. In the letter, Sarkozy expressed France’s commitment to Israel and its security, and promised to fight anti-Semitism. “Following the disaster in Toulouse, which so cruelly hit our two nations, I want to assure you…

As the state of Israel celebrates its 64th Independence Day, volunteers older than the state itself continue to arrive and help out IDF soldiers. Arutz Sheva recently met with a group of volunteers from the Sar-El organization as they arrived at the Ben Gurion Airport. Sar-El was founded after the summer of 1982 when, in…

U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said on Thursday he hopes that statements from Israel’s military chief describing Iran’s leadership as rational were “correct,” AFP reported. He was referring to comments made by IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz to the Haaretz newspaper on Wednesday. Gantz said that the Iranian leadership “is composed of very…

The Grand Mufti of Syria, Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, has described the battle that is currently taking place in Syria as a “battle against our roots” and has claimed that the Arab Spring is nothing but a Western plot. According to a report on Thursday in the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, Hassoun said that “if Syria collapses,…

The IDF opened up several camping sites in Israel for families to come and see its weaponry. One such site is in the Samaria Brigade Headquarters. Brigade Commander Col. Nimrod Aloni told Arutz Sheva: “We decided to celebrate Independence Day inside the brigade, along with all of the residents. There are many soldiers here and…

US president Barack Obama has approved a new policy allowing the Central Intelligence Agency and the US military to launch drone attacks in Yemen even when the specific identities of the targets are not known. The Washington Post, quoting administration officials, said on Thursday that the Obama approved the use of “signature strikes” this month.…

A new Israeli assault rifle features a twin barrel – the first such gun to be made in Israel, writes Israel Defense. Silver Shadow, the firm that manufactures the Gilboa assault rifle, will soon unveil a new member of the Gilboa family with a double barrel, meaningfully increasing fire power and enhancing the effect of…

  First Sergeant Moshe Naftali of Ofra, who was killed in the terror attack on Route 12 near Eilat last August, will receive a posthumous citation from the Head of Southern Command, IDF Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz has confirmed. First Sgt. Naftali, who was 22 when he was killed, was part of…

Jordan’s King Abdullah II accepted the resignation of his Prime Minister, Awn Khasawneh, on Thursday, the Al-Arabiya network reported. The report said that the King has asked ex-premier Fayez al-Tarawneh to form the new government. Khasawneh’s resignation comes barely six months after he formed a government to bring in much-needed reforms. Khasawneh, 62, an International…

Arab youths attacked a Jewish family in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, outside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem, on Thursday. Two members of the family were wounded moderately and one was lightly wounded. They were evacuated to Hadassah Ein Karem hospital. Other Arab youths hurled rocks at Jews near the Lions’ Gate…

In one of the main state Independence Day ceremonies, President Shimon Peres welcomed 120 of the IDF’s best and brightest at a formal reception in the President’s House. Attending the ceremony were top politicians and IDF officials, including IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz. The soldiers received special certificates of merit for their contributions to…

The 49th International Bible Quiz for Jewish youth – one of Independence Day’s noble traditions – was held on Thursday morning at the Jerusalem Theater. Israel’s Elehanan Bloch – a student from the Yeshiva High School of Yeruhuam – was this year’s winner.  Elhanan’s parents, Ido and Orit, came to Yeruham within the Bnei Akiva…

In an interview with the New York Times Thursday, IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz said that Iran’s leadership was “rational,” and that he did not believe Tehran would use its nuclear technology to build a nuclear weapon. Referring to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Gantz said that he probably realizes that build a nuclear bomb would…

Gaza Arab terrorists fired a rocket at the Ashkelon area Wednesday night, as residents of the city celebrated the opening ceremonies of Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israel Independence Day. No one was injured, and no damage was reported. The “Red Alert” warning system was activated. The attack occurred shortly after midnight, as residents were in the midst…

Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper on Thursday published a statement wishing Israel well during its 64th Independence Day celebrations. “On this special day, I would like to extend warm wishes to those celebrating Yom Ha’atzmaut in Canada, in Israel and around the world,” Harper wrote. “On this anniversary, we remember all that Israel and its…

Israel’s traditionally dovish President Shimon Peres offered a stark warning to Israel’s enemies on the Jewish state’s 64th Independence Day. “To those who are now threatening Israel, I say: Don’t repeat the mistakes of your predecessors,” Peres said during an annual ceremony at the President’s residence. “You threaten out of a hunger for conquest. We…

The Egyptian army on Wednesday prevented a local radical group from defacing an IDF memorial in the Sinai Peninsula. According to a report on Army Radio, the military deployed forces in armored vehicles near the memorial, to prevent the radicals from reaching it. Earlier on Wednesday, the group, which calls itself ‘The Sinai Revolutionaries’, threatened…

The European Union called on Israel on Wednesday to reverse its decision to legalize three Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. “I am extremely concerned about the decision of the Israeli authorities regarding the status of the settlements of Sansana, Rechelim and Bruchin in the occupied Palestinian territory,” EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton was…

In a surprise move, Egypt’s election commission reinstated deposed leader Hosni Mubarak’s last prime minister in the presidential race on Wednesday, according to a report in The Associated Press. The commission reinstated Ahmed Shafiq just one day after disqualifying him. Shafiq was disqualified after the Islamist-dominated parliament passed a law barring former senior officials from…

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday called on Muslims and Christians from all over the world to visit Jerusalem and to set aside the ban on normalization with Israel. “It’s good to see brothers from Arab countries visiting Palestine and learning about its condition, because we really need them,” Abbas said, according to a…

As Israelis celebrated the Jewish State’s 64th Independence Day, terrorists from Gaza fired a rocket at the Ashkelon Coast Regional Council late on Wednesday night. The rocket exploded in an open area. No physical injuries or damages were reported. The rocket attack comes after terrorists fired a pair of rockets into southern Israel on Monday…

With Vladimir Putin moving back towards the presidency. he and outgoing Russian President Dimitry Medvedev completed their swap to the last detail. Putin has to reassume the “above politics” role of the Russian president. so he has shed his affiliation with the United Russia Party and recommended that Dmitry Medvedev assume the chairmanship of the…

The Fitch credit rating agency announced Wednesday that it had ratified Israel’s credit rating and set it to A with a stable outlook, the Globes financial newspaper reported. In a statement, the agency noted Israel’s macroeconomic performance and indicated that it left the outlook as stable despite the crisis with Iran and the talk about…

Film maker Aviv Vana produced a moving video entitled ‘Our Brothrs, Our Home’ to honor the soldiers of the IDF on Yom Hazikaron [Memorial Day] and Yom Haatzmaut [Independence Day]. “To celebrate the 64 years of Israel’s Independence I filmed the IDF, the Israel Defense forces, and captured our amazing soldiers -creating this piece to…

A hard hitting video that focuses on the Iranian threat to the U.S. is a hit on the Internet, garnering over 2.3 million views in less than a week. Created and narrated by Ari Abramowitz and Jeremy Gimpel of TheLandofIsrael.com, the video’s message is that while Iran poses a mortal threat to the U.S. and…

Liberal journalist Michael Tomasky, in a column for the Daily Beast / Newsweek, voiced concern Tuesday that President Barack Obama has lost 16% of his support among U.S. Jews and may lose the elections in key states like Florida, come November. Tomasky, who is also the editor-in-chief of Democracy, analyzed Obama’s first term vis-à-vis Israel…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu released a special greeting on Wednesday, in honor of Israel’s 64th Independence Day. “Israel’s Independence Day is a time for us to consider what makes Israel truly unique,” said Netanyahu. “Israel is unique in restoring sovereignty and the capacity for self-defense to a people that had been stateless and powerless for…

Remembrance Day for the Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terror has ended, and Independence Day has begun, with fireworks displays going off countrywide. The celebration of Israel’s 64th birthday began with the traditional ceremony at Har Herzl in Jerusalem. The main speaker at the ceremony was Knesset Speaker MK Reuven Rivlin. Rivlin’s speech began with…

A book containing the records of people buried in the Jewish cemetery in Deutschkreutz Austria may finally inform families where their ancestors were put to rest, the Austrian Times reported on Tuesday. All records were lost after the cemetery was destroyed by the Nazis in the 1940s. However, a copy of the book of funeral records, listing every row of graves and…

The Palestinian Authority may seize Israel’s intention to legalize three Jewish towns in Samaria and ask the United Nations Security Council for a condemnation.  The PA’s official WAFA website reported Wednesday that Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)  Executive Committee member Saeb Erekat mentioned the possibility of going to the Council. The Palestinian Authority’s ploy last year…

German authorities announced on Tuesday that when the copyright to Adolf Hilter’s notorious Mein Kampf expires in three years’ time, an ‘annotated’ version will be made available to students across the country. The state of Bavaria, which became the beneficiary of Hitler’s works, property and money following the dictator’s suicide in 1945, said it was…

As Israelis in Ramle joined the rest of the country, standing in memory of fallen IDF soldiers at the opening of Memorial Day commemorations Tuesday night, they heard an atypical sound not usually associated with that solemn moment. Instead of just the sounding of the siren, Ramle residents heard explosions. They weren’t the sounds of…

“Terrorist kills, and we build,” Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told relatives of terror victims at the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery Wednesday. “The atrocities of terror against our people know no moral bounds or political borders,” said on Memorial Day for Fallen Soldiers and Terror Victims. “The cruelty and hate of terrorists is insatiable,” he added.”…

Former Councilman Simcha Felder has announced a bid for the state Senate in a newly created district, which includes Borough Park and Flatbush, and is expected to receive a majority Jewish vote. Assemblyman Dov Kikind and Councilman David Greenfield, fellow Orthodox Democrats, endorsed Felder for the new “Super Jewish” state seat at a press conference…

Egypt’s election commission on Tuesday disqualified an ex-premier from running for president, The Associated Press reported. Ahmed Shafiq, who was former President Hosni Mubarak’s prime minister during the 18-day uprising last year, was disqualified because of a law, passed on Monday, that bans senior officials from the Mubarak regime from running for office. The disqualification…

IDF Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, offered words of consolation to bereaved families on Tuesday, and also underscored the security threat which Israel is constantly facing. Gantz, who spoke at the opening ceremony in honor of Memorial Day at the Western Wall plaza, told the bereaved families, “The pain which beats in the…

The United States on Tuesday joined those condemning Israel for its decision to legalize three Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. AFP quoted State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland as having reiterated Washington’s opposition to settlement activity in Judea and Samaria. According to the report, Nuland said the United States asked Israel, through its embassy in…

When Memorial Day sirens sound, “We will all become one family,” Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said as Israel remembers fallen soldiers and terror victims. A one-minute siren sounded at 8 p.m. Tuesday and a two-minute siren will sound at 11 a.m. Wednesday. The Prime Minister recalled his brother Yoni, who was the commander and the…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, and Israel’s Chief Rabbis on Tuesday attended a flag-lowering ceremony in Jerusalem as Memorial Day is set to begin. “For bereaved families, time stops when you get the terrible news… it cuts your life in two: what was before, and what will never be again,” Prime Minister…

A special tribute to Michael Levin, a Jewish-American who moved to Israel to join the Israel Defense Forces was held Tuesday evening in Jerusalem. Levin was killed while fighting Hizbullah terrorists during the Second Lebanon War in 2006. The Jerusalem Soul Center, which Levin used to frequent often, held a special tribute including reflections by friends and the screening of the…

Knesset speaker Reuven Rivlin spoke at the opening Yom Hazikaron ceremonies at Yad Lebanim in Jerusalem saying “Even today we wake up to find our enemies seeking our destruction.” “We have assembled here to remember our children who have fallen for Israel,” Rivlin said. “And, to embrace the world for them by carrying on with…

France and Jordan rushed on Tuesday to condemn Israel’s decision to normalize the status of three communities in Judea and Samaria. The communities of Rechilim, Bruchin, and Sansana were built in the 1990’s with government approval. The Foreign Ministry in Paris issued a statement that the move “sends a negative message, which is an obstacle…

For the third time in the past month a pair of terrorists was nabbed Tuesday night trying to smuggle explosives through a checkpoint in northern Samaria. The two Palestinian Authority residents were arrested after soldiers manning the checkpoint discovered four pipe bombs. The bombs were destroyed by sappers in a controlled explosion, and the men…

Israeli drama “Policeman” topped the international competition at the Buenos Aires Independent Film Festival (BAFICI), which began April 11 and closed Sunday. “Policeman,” which made its debut last year, is a tragicomic take on counter-terrorism military forces and a group of young upper-class revolutionaries. The film’s director, Nadav Lapid, also took home the award for best…

State owned Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company’s (EGAS) cancellation of the gas supply and purchasing agreement with East Mediterranean Gas Company (EMG) will have little effect on Israel, says Citi Capital Markets. The company added that the agreement is likely to impair Egypt more than Israel, Globes reported. Citi says that the disruptions in Egyptian gas…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu quoted a passage from the Prophet Isaiah – “be comforted, be comforted, my people” (Isaiah 40:1) – in a message for Remembrance Day for the IDF’s Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terror. “My brothers and sisters, sons and daughters of the bereaved families, our loved one’s consciences are what led them…

The U.S. State Dept. refused on Monday to stand up for Israel against a Turkish statement that it vetoed Israel’s participation in a NATO summit. State Dept. spokeswoman Victoria Nuland fended off a round of questions on the Obama administration’s support of Israel by a persistent Associated Press reporter  who went so far as to…

The Palestinian Authority (PA) under Fatah’s Mahmoud Abbas has instructed Internet providers to block access to news websites that criticize Abbas, Bethlehem based Ma’an News reported. As many as eight news outlets have been rendered unavailable after technicians at the Palestinian Telecommunications Company, or PalTel, used software called Squid to cause the sites to return…

As Israel prepares to begin its Yom Hazikaron [Memorial Day] observance on Tuesday evening many bereaved families are reminded their lives contain a vacuum. One such famlily is that of former Lt. Colonel Yehuda Ben Shabbat, who served in the IDF Northern Command until he unexpectedly died of a heart attack eight years ago. Father,…

Tablet Magazine’s Lea Zeltserman examines the fine line between propaganda and history as it relates to the dissemination of knowledge through technology and “the smartphone world.” Now, there are applications available through the Apple Store titled “iMussolini,” “iStalin” and “Hitler,” espousing hate-ridden and fascist ideals. Appealing to potential buyer of the 99 cent “Hitler” app,…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu conducted a special meeting with his senior ministers on Monday evening. The purpose of the meeting was to find a legal solution that would prevent the destruction of the Ulpana neighborhood in Beit El. Five homes in the neighborhood are scheduled to be demolished on May 1, following an order by…

A ministerial team that had been appointed by the government on Sunday announced on Monday that three communities in Judea and Samaria will be legalized. The three communities are Sansana, Rechelim and Bruchin. All three communities were built in the 1990s based on decisions of previous governments. The announcement means the communities will receive a…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu today met on Monday with the contestants of the International Bible Quiz, which will be held on Thursday.  53 young people from countries around the world, including four contestants from Israel, will compete in this year’s Quiz which is held every year on Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israel’s Independence Day. Netanyahu wished the…

As part of its ongoing campaign to delegitimize and demonize Israel, a Palestinian Authority TV children’s program recently featured a child reciting a poem promoting Pan-Arabism. The poem, by an Egyptian writer, included words “Our enemy, Zion, is Satan with a tail.” The children’s program, entitled “The Best Home”, aired on April 7 on a…

Organizers of Wednesday night’s Yom Ha’atzmaut ceremonies searched high and low for an Arab to accept the honor of holding one of the lit torches that open the official Independence Day celebrations in Israel, Knesset speaker Reuven Rivlin said Monday. Not one was interested, he said, either because they did not want to take part in…

In recognition of the impending Memorial Day (Yom Hazikaron) ceremonies set to take place Wednesday, the National Insurance Institute (Bituach Leumi, NII) released the statistics on the number of Israelis who have been killed in terror attacks. Since January 1, 1950, a total of 2,357 Israelis have been killed in terrorist attacks. An additional 120…

An IDF court Monday rejected appeals by two Arab security prisoners from Palestinian Authority enclaves who have been refusing food for 55 days. “We just confirmed with Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahleh’s families that both their appeals were rejected today,” a spokeswoman for the Addameer NGO told AFP. Diab, 27, and Halahla, 34, began refusing…

An Egyptian minister on Monday said the Egypt was willing to begin selling gas to Israel again – at more favorable prices to Cairo. Her remarks came after it was reported late on Sunday night that Egypt planned to unilaterally terminate its 2005 natural gas export contract with Israel. “From Egypt’s point of view there…

Sudanese Muslims torched a Catholic church Sunday in the capital of Khartoum, part of clashes between Sudan and South Sudan over control of an oil town. Sudanese warplanes bombed a key South Sudanese town Monday. Khartoum media said that church was part of a school complex used by South Sudanese Christians and Ethiopian refugees, and…

Anti-Zionists sprayed hate slogans on Ammunition Hill and tried to burn an Israeli flag, two days before Remembrance Day for Fallen Soldiers. The site was the scene of one of the bloodiest battles in the Six-Day War in 1967. The pre-dawn vandals sprayed, “Guenther Grass was right,” referring to the German poet. Another slogan stated…

Sixth-grade students of Gesher Hebrew School in suburban Buffalo have begun the task of collecting six million pennies to try and grasp the reality of the six million Jews slaughtered by the Nazis during the Holocaust, WIVB news reported.   The students were motivated by the Paper Clips Project that took place in Whitwell Tennessee…

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s visit to Israel this month left him with a stronger view of Israel’s need for land for security. He may be Mitt Romney’s running mate. Notably, Gov. Christie did not visit the Palestinian Authority during his trade mission visit, a fact that was not overlooked by Arabs. Aref Assaf, president…

A four-year-old boy shot and killed his father after he did not buy him a PlayStation, Arabic language media reported Monday. “The boy pulled the trigger and a bullet hit his father in the head, killing him instantly,” the Sabq newspaper said in a report quoted by the Emirates247.com website. Another paper, Sharq, said the boy is…

The South African Israel Public Affairs Committee (SAIPAC) is calling for Stephen Goodson, director of the South African Reserve Bank, to be fired following reports of his pro-Nazi views and statements calling the Holocaust a “huge lie”. Goodson, who was elected as a non-executive director in 2003, expressed his beliefs last year in a radio…

The technologically advanced army program “Tzayad,” meaning “hunter,” enables units in the Israel Defense Forces to share information on the location of friendly and hostile units, much like a GPS program is able to easily locate home addresses, restaurants, and other entertainment sites, the IDF blog reported. Older versions of the operating system were employed…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Monday said Egypt’s decision to cancel the Egypt-Israel gas deal was “a business dispute” rather than being political in nature. “We don’t see this cutoff of the gas as something that is born out of political developments. It’s actually a business dispute between the Israeli company and the Egyptian company,”…

Iran has confirmed that a cyber attack hit its Oil Ministry data systems. It claims there was no damage, but the National Iranian Oil Company website was inaccessible as of Monday. Oil ministry spokesman  Alireza Nikzad told the government-run Fars News Agency, “This cyber attack has not damaged the main data of the oil ministry…

Google officially announced on Sunday the launch of “Street View” in Israel, allowing users from around the world to view and explore streets and sites across the country via 360-degree street-level imagery. While the official launch was Sunday, internet users were able to access Israel Street View already on Thursday. In the first stage, Google…

French President Nicolas Sarkozy will face socialist Francois Hollande in a runoff election for France’s presidency, according to partial official results in Sunday’s vote. The Associated Press reported that with 75 percent of the vote counted, Hollande had 27.9 percent of ballots cast and Sarkozy 26.7 percent, according to figures released by the Interior Ministry…

A senior official in the Egyptian army said on Sunday the agreement of supply of gas between Egypt and Israel was not cancelled but only suspended. According to a report on Army Radio, the official said that the suspension came about following a dispute regarding the transfer of funds. Earlier, Channel 2 News reported that…

Minister of Information and Diaspora Yuli Edelstein stated on Sunday that the option of demolition of the Ulpana neighborhood in Beit El is not on the agenda. “This option is not on the agenda,” Edelstein told Arutz Sheva. “The Israeli government has expressed its position. The Likud ministers expressed their opinion on this last week,…

Movie star Sylvester Stallone is suing an Arab-American contractor born in Nazareth for alleged shoddy work. Contractor Mohamed Hadid, a wildly successful businessman, fled Israel with his family during the War of Independence and is now among those who would be termed “Palestinian refugees” – except he settled in another country rather than staying in a refugee…

Palestinian Authority conmen in Hevron have managed to use the Jewish community’s desperation for housing to make a quick profit, while giving nothing in return. Criminals have forged papers showing ownership of abandoned buildings in order to sell the buildings to Jews. After money has traded hands and Jewish families have moved in and done…

Soldiers from the Shayetet 13 Naval Commando boarded a ship in the Mediterranean Sunday, after a routine naval patrol suspected that it is carrying weapons. The ship, the HS Beethoven, is reportedly flying the Liberian flag and was headed to Gaza. Its cargo is being examined, but as of 9:00 p.m. no weapons were found.…

Egypt informed Israel Sunday afternoon that it is unilaterally cancelling the agreement of supply of gas to Israel. The announcement was made to EMG, the firm that receives the gas from Egypt, and reported on Channel 2 news. The peace treaty with Egypt includes a financial appendix, in which Egypt agrees to supply Israel with…

A synagogue in Colorado was the target of an apparent hate crime after swastikas were reportedly found painted on the Jewish building early Friday marking Adolf Hitler’s birthday, FOX news reported. Caretaker Stan Peters, who lives next door to the synagogue, told the Colorado Springs Gazette that the words “Happy 4:20” were found painted on…

Two Jewish civilians were targeted by a sophisticated Arab roadside bomb Wednesday night near Hevron but escaped unhurt miraculously. The serious incident was hardly reported at all in the press, which was busy counting the number of blows dealt to anarchists who tried to block a major thoroughfare.  Chaim Siton, a resident of Avigail in southern…

Minister Gilad Erdan visited an IDF reservists’ protest tent Sunday and expressed sympathy with the reservists’ cause. The Likud-led government is making efforts to ensure an equal distribution of the burden of service, he declared. The protesting reservists are calling to end the Tal Law, which allows hareidi-religious young men to avoid IDF service if…

Indian experts say Iranian terrorists used TNT in the February 13 attack on an Israeli diplomat’s car, seriously wounding Tal Yehoshua. She was flown to Israel, where she was treated for her wounds. India’s Central Forensic Sciences Laboratory (CFSL) experts said the TNT explosives, first used by Germans in 1902, can be transported with little risk…

A top Saudi hacker who targeted Israel and Jews has died at age 28, Saudi media reported Sunday. The man, who was not named, died of an asthma attack brought on by summer sandstorms. The hacker, who called himself “Cyber Terrorist,” was known for hacking well-protected sites including Microsoft. He targeted Jewish and Israeli sites…

Is the state finally taking action to stop illegal Bedouin construction in the Negev? A 250-man new police unit is in the process of being established in the police’s Southern District, with the specific purpose of enforcing the law against illegal construction in the Negev. The vast majority of illegal construction is carried out by…

The United Nations Security Council on Saturday approved the expansion of the UN ceasefire observer force in Syria from 30 to 300. The council also demanded an “immediate halt to the violence,” which has escalated rather than abated since Syria’s government and opposition agreed to halt hostilities more than a week ago. The resolution is…

Five unarmed UN monitors toured Homs, the battered city at the heart of the Syrian uprising, on foot on Saturday, The Associated Press reported. The report noted the monitors encountered unusually calm streets after weeks of shelling. The observers, members of an eight-member advance team that has been on the ground in Syria for a…

Following the brutal and tragic murders in Itamar last year of Rabbi Udi Fogel, his wife Ruth and three of their children, Mizrachi UK, a branch of the national religious World Mizrachi Movement, decided to raise funds to help in the costs of caring for the remaining Fogel children; Tamar, 13, Roi, 9 and Yishai, 3. A…

One million people are expected to visit 44 military cemeteries after the 8 p.m. siren Tuesday, Remembrance Day for Fallen Soldiers. Another siren will sound at 11 a.m. Wednesday. Immediately following the end of the day on Wednesday evening, the People of Israel will beginning celebrate the 64th years since the re-establishment of the State of…

US lawmakers are considering an aid allotment of $680 million to strengthen Israel’s Iron Dome short-range rocket shield. The move by Republican lawmakers comes in the face of previous attempts by the Obama administration to prune defense aid to Israel. Senior Republicans Howard McKeon (R-CA) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) criticized Obama for his lack of…

Border Police on Saturday arrested two terrorists from Shechem at the Tapuach Junction in northern Samaria. The two young Arab men, aged 17, were carrying four pipe bombs, a makeshift firearm, ammunition, and knives. Suspicions of Border Police officers at the junction were aroused when the two young men exited their vehicle before it could…