US Secretary Mike Pompeo (L) and PM Benjamin Netanyahu Haim Zach (GPO)
The prime minister congratulated Pompeo, the former CIA director, upon his new position, saying, “We are very proud of the fact that this is your first visit as Secretary of State.”
Pompeo replied, “You’re an incredibly important partner [and] occupy a special place in my heart too.”
Pompeo, a fierce critic of the Iran nuclear deal, is on his first trip abroad as secretary of state. His first stop was Saturday in Saudi Arabia, and Iran is reportedly top on his agenda.
Watch the video and see the warmth between the Israeli leader and the top US diplomat!
Some 700 IDF officers and soldiers serving in reserve duty have signed a petition to Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman and to the Army’s Central Command, demanding immediate removal of left-wing activists and anarchists involved in inciting violence in Judea and Samaria.
“Permanent activists of Israeli anarchist organizations arrive every week to confront and clash with security forces in Judea and Samaria, inciting the populace and participating in setting up roadblocks and in violent disturbances,” the petition says.
The petition was initiated by the group Ad-Kan (which could be translated as both ‘no more’ and ‘up to here’), whose mission is to expose and document the leftist organizations’ criminal behavior in the field, including their paying Arabs to throw stones.
Ad Kan officially contacted the Defense Ministry in June and August of 2017 with the names of anarchists who are inciting to violence in Judea and Samaria, as well as rich documentation of their criminal in the field, but has yet to receive a response.
“The recent events in Nabi Salah (of teenage girls abusing soldiers who take it on chin, fearing punishment) indicate that the IDF’s forgiving policy in the friction areas is being interpreted as helplessness on the part of the soldiers, leading to attacks on soldiers and further corroding the IDF deterrence – which boosts the international delegitimization efforts against Israel, while presenting IDF soldiers as abusers of the civilian population,” the petition protests, arguing that the same IDF authorities that cut the soldiers’ legs out from under them also fail to provide effective tools to the soldiers in the field to deal with the violent and much publicized situations.”
The petition concludes with the call to the defense minister to exercise his authority and to remove the anarchists who are not residents of the area from Judea and Samaria administratively, “as has been done in the past and the present by the Central Command in many other cases (a reference to the removal of rightwing activists from their homes Judea and Samaria).”
“It would be appropriate for the military establishment that sends IDF soldiers to confront Palestinians who are trained and operated by Israeli activists to punish those activists or at least make sure they are removed them from the area – which is yet to be done to this day,” the reservists conclude their message to Defense Minister Liberman.
Ad Kan CEO Gilad Ach said in a statement: “There is no reason why people who pay money to Palestinians to throw stones that have to this day injured more than 150 soldiers, some of them seriously, would not be expelled from Judea and Samaria.
“We expect Minister Liberman and the chief of the Central Command to act justly and enforce the rules equally against the anarchists who try to ferment the area every day, as they are doing against the Jews living in Judea and Samaria.”
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh promised during the Gaza “March of Return” to embarrass the “Israeli occupiers.”
During the Friday riots, Haniyeh blessed the youth who took part in violent activities against the Israel.
“This march places our nation on the path to freedom….from here, from Rafah, the fortress of the south, until the farthest border of Palestine, we will continue. We will not hesitate and we will not be deterred, and we will continue forward,” he said.
“This land is our land, Al-Quds [the Arabic name for Jerusalem – ed.] is our holy place, return is our right, and anyone who fights us for this right – we will hit him with an iron fist.”
During the riots, Gazans burned tires, attempted to burn and breach the border fence, threw rocks at IDF soldiers, and threw firebombs attached to kites into Israeli territories.
One of these kites set a wheat field on fire, causing tremendous damage.
Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said on Friday that Israel is not concerned by Russia’s military presence in neighboring Syria because Moscow is a “pragmatic actor” with whom deals can be struck.
“What is important to understand is that the Russians, they are very pragmatic players,” said Liberman during a discussion on the alliance between Russia, Syria and Iran at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, as quoted by AFP.
“At the end of the day, they are reasonable guys, it’s possible to close deals with them and we understand what is their interest,” added the Defense Minister.
“Their interest is very different from our interest but we respect their priorities,” he said. “We try to avoid direct frictions and tensions.”
Liberman’s comments came days after Russia’s Defense Ministry said the country plans to deliver new air defense systems to Syria in the near future.
No exact date was provided and it was unclear whether the comments referred to the advanced S-300 system which was developed by Russia.
Russia and Syria signed a deal in 2010 for the S-300 system but the missiles have not been delivered because of Israeli pressure. The Russians have deployed the S-300 around their own Tartus naval base on Syria’s Mediterranean coast and the more advanced S-400 at their Hmeimim air base in western Syria.
Liberman said on Friday that the expanded Russian presence in Syria was “not our business. We try only to protect our own security interests.”
Earlier this week, the Israeli Defense Minister said that Israel may strike the Russian-made S-300 anti-aircraft defense systems in Syria if they are used against Israel.
His comments followed a report in the Russian newspaper Kommersant which said that Moscow could soon start to deliver S-300 systems to Russia.
“One thing should be clear – if someone fires on our planes, we will destroy them,” Liberman told the Ynet news website. “What’s important to us is that the weapons defense systems that the Russians transfer to Syria are not used against us. If they are used against us, we will act against them.”
Even though Israel has insisted it will not get drawn into the Syrian civil war, it has been accused of carrying out dozens of air strikes on regime positions and of having targeted weapons that were coming from Iran and were destined for the Lebanese terrorist organization Hezbollah.
While standing alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday, US President Donald Trump said that he “may go” to Jerusalem for next month’s embassy opening. He stressed that he is “very proud” of the embassy transfer and that even though his predecessors promised to do it, they “never had the courage to carry it out.”
Trump in Jerusalem Photo Credit: Yonatan Sindel/Flash 90
On Friday, US President Donald Trump said that he might travel to Jerusalem next month for the American embassy opening. Trump made this remark at a press conference following his meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the White House.
“I may go,” Trump said after a Christian Broadcasting Network reporter asked him who would be in Jerusalem for the ceremony. “Very proud of it.” Trump added that he almost signed the original embassy construction proposal, which stood at $1 billion. However, when he noticed the large figure, he called American envoy to Israel David Friedman, who said that the construction could be done for much less.
“The embassy in Jerusalem has been promised for many, many years by presidents,” Trump stated. “They all made campaign promises and they never had the courage to carry it out. I carried it out.”
Also at the press conference, Trump vowed that he would not let Iran develop a nuclear weapon. “I don’t talk about whether or not I’d use military force. It’s not appropriate to be talking about. But I can tell you this, they will not be doing nuclear weapons, that I can tell you,” the president said. “They’re not going to be doing nuclear weapons. You can bank on it.”
In January, Trump waived US sanctions against Iran but warned that it was the “last time” he would be doing so if the Iranian nuclear deal’s “terrible flaws” are not fixed. As the May 12 deadline for changes in the deal approaches, America’s European allies who signed the deal with the US are urging Trump to remain in the deal.
Earlier this week, Trump met with his French counterpart in Washington. Before their meeting, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke with Fox News about the deal. During the interview, he stressed that there is no “plan B” if the agreement is annulled. “My point is to say don’t leave now the JCPOA as long as you have not a better option for nuclear, and let’s complete it with ballistic missile and regional containment,” he told Fox News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace, referring to the nuclear deal by its official acronym.
Israel Air Force (IAF) aircraft on Friday night attacked six military targets belonging to the Hamas terror organization’s naval force in Gaza, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said.
The strikes were in response to the terror activity and mass infiltration attempt from Gaza earlier in the day. Palestinian Arab media reported four injuries in the air strike.
“For several weeks now, the Hamas terrorist organization has been leading violent disturbances that constitute a cover for a series of terrorist attacks against terror infrastructures, security forces and civilians,” the IDF statement said.
“At the height of the events today, a large scale violent incursion was carried out, in which Hamas terrorist operatives led hundreds of violent rioters, including terrorists, towards Israel, while throwing explosives, hand grenades and firebombs, and even damaging the fence.”
“The IDF views with great severity the ongoing attempt by the Hamas terrorist organization to turn the fence into a space of violence and terrorism under civilian cover, with repeated attempts to damage and destroy the security and defense infrastructures,” the IDF said.
“The IDF will not allow cynical use of civilians, including children, women and persons with disabilities, as a cover for ongoing terrorist activity against Israeli citizens and IDF forces, and will continue to respond harshly to any such terrorist attempt. The response to the continuation of such incidents will not be confined to the area of the fence and the Hamas terrorist organization will bear its consequences even deep inside the Gaza Strip,” it warned.
“The Hamas terrorist organization is solely responsible for what is happening in the Gaza Strip both above and below the ground,” concluded the statement.
Earlier on Friday, the riots in Gaza as part of the so-called “March of the Return” continued. The IDF said hundreds of Palestinian Arab rioters attempted to infiltrate Israel and burn the security fence adjacent to the Karni Crossing in northern Gaza.
The rioters approached the security fence, hurled rocks and firebombs, and tried to light the fence on fire. In response, IDF troops operated in accordance with the rules of engagement and thwarted the attempted infiltration.
Gazans began their violent riots, under the name “the March of the Return”, on March 30. 44 Arabs have been killed since the riots began, the health bureau in Gaza said Friday.
(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)
The State Department’s omission of the word ‘occupied’ when referring to the territory of Judea and Samaria may ultimately facilitate a solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict.
A US State Department report recently dropped the word ”occupied” in reference to Judea and Samaria for the first time since 1979. In isolation, this move may seem insignificant, but it may also indicate a new US Middle East policy in the making that could facilitate a solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Ever since the Arab countries failed to destroy Israel during the Six-Day War in 1967, the international community has increasingly framed the conflict as an “Israeli occupation of Palestine.” However, the international term “Occupied Palestinian Territories” is political and not rooted in international law or documented history. “Palestine” is the Roman name for occupied Judea, and no “Palestinian” Arab state has ever existed in the Land of Israel.
In his monumental work “The Legal Foundation and Borders of Israel under International Law,” late scholar Howard Grief argued that the legal title of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel was recognized by the international community at the San Remo Peace Conference in 1920.
Judea is not French Algeria
The implications of this recognition are that Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria are legal under international law even if regularly condemned by the politicized United Nations and the European Union. Unlike formerly French-occupied Algeria, Judea and Samaria constitute the ancestral heartland of Israel. Israel won the territories in a defensive war after being attacked by Arab forces. Since “Palestine” is fiction, Judea and Samaria should legally be defined as disputed rather than “occupied” territories. This means that Israel has legal rights in Judea and Samaria that the French colonialists in Algeria or Vietnam did not have.
This does not mean that Israel will annex the entire disputed territories anytime soon. It is not in the Jewish state’s interest to add another 2 million Arabs to its population. However, parts of Jewish-populated areas of Judea and Samaria could eventually be annexed by Israel in a future Arab-Israeli peace deal. This is consistent with the spirit of the key UN resolution 242, which envisions that Israel will retain some of the disputed territories.
Core of the Arab-Israel conflict
This brings us back to the State Department report’s omission of the word “occupied” when referring to Judea and Samaria. This is important because the core of the Arab-Israel conflict was never about “occupation,” but a deeply entrenched Muslim Arab opposition to a reborn Jewish state within any borders. It is the Arabs, not the Jews, who have systematically rejected a two-state solution since it was first suggested by the British Peel Commission in 1937.
Israel is not an “occupier.” Nor was it established as a “haven for refugees from the Holocaust,” as recently claimed by Hollywood actress Natalie Portman. Israel’s final borders are yet to be defined. However, what is beyond any doubt is the fact that modern Israel is the historical and legal realization of the Jewish people’s return to its ancestral homeland. The path to genuine peace requires a recognition of this fundamental truth.
Aerial photograph of the Iranian induction and recruitment center in Syria presented by Ambassador Danny Danon to the UN Security Council.
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon addressed the UN Security Council debate on the Middle East and presented new information about Iran’s presence in Syria, including an aerial photograph of an induction and recruitment center for Shia militants.
“There are over 80,000 extremists from all over the Middle East who are members of Shia militias in Syria under Iranian control,” he said. “What you see here in this image is Iran’s central induction and recruitment center in Syria. We are presenting this image to the world so you can understand the depth of Iran’s involvement in Syria. It is at this base, just over five miles from Damascus, where these dangerous extremists are trained and then assigned their missions of terror throughout Syria and the region.”
On the Iranian nuclear deal, Danon noted that in two and half weeks the United States will announce its decision regarding the fate of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). “President Trump is focused on these important changes because he knows it will make the world safer. All the signatories of this agreement must now make a choice. Do you support these necessary changes? Or, will you choose to enable the Iranian regime that supports terror and is attempting to take over the Middle East?,” he asked.
“Israel has a very clear policy and it has been so since the administration of Prime Minister Menachem Begin. We will not allow regimes that seek our destruction to acquire nuclear weapons. Period.”
Earlier in his remarks, Danon spoke about the Hamas-driven violence being carried out at the security fence along Israel’s border with Gaza, and how the terrorist group is once again exploiting the most vulnerable of its population as human shields.
“Throughout the riots of the past month, Hamas has used innocent Palestinian women and children as human shields, while they cowered behind in safety,” he pointed out. “The terrorists are hiding while allowing, even hoping, for their people to die. This is evil in its purest form,” he said.
“Israel has an obligation to protect our citizens and we will do so while minimizing civilian casualties to the other side, but let me be clear: Israel will never apologize for defending our country. It is Hamas that is fully responsible for every Palestinian injury and death that has resulted from these incidents.”
Herewith i will pay my deepest respect for the bravery and offering from this battalion .(JK)
Generations of Battalion Commanders IDF Spokesman
Since its establishment, commanders of the Oz 77 Battalion have gathered together at Kibbutz Al-Rom, reminisced, shared photographs, and recalled shared experiences of the 7th Brigade.
7th Brigade Commander Col. Roman Gofman attended the latest meeting and spoke with gathered commanders of the 7th Brigade’s spirit, the brotherhood among the fighters, brigade operations, and today’s increased motivation to enlist in the IDF.
Current Battalion Commander Lt. Col. Shaul Yisraeli said “the Oz Battalion is an ethos that expresses the sense of responsibility and mutual accountability in the cleanest possible manner. A power that stems from the joy of giving and love of the Land.
Valley of Tears Flash 90
“I could feel the concern, the love, and the deep connection to the battalion, the 7th Brigade, and the IDF, as if everyone was really still the Commander,” related Lt. Col. Yisraeli.
From Kibbutz Al-Rom, the commanders continued to tour the Valley of Tears, where the battalion fought in the battles of the Yom Kippur War.
Golan Heights, Israel iStock
During the difficult battle, the Battalion’s soldiers demonstrated colossal courage and resourcefulness, blocking the attack of some 160 Syrian tanks. Later, the Battalion penetrated the Syrian border and assisted in the conquest and possession of an enclave on Syrian soil. Many of the battalion commanders received different medals for their performance in the war.
Today the battalion is deployed in the same sector as that difficult battle with unified commanders and fighters, and with best in technology and resources, standing in constant readiness.
Here soldiers are seen collecting remains of a rocket fired from Syria into Israel, landing near Kibbutz El Rom in the Golan Heights:
Soldiers collecting remains of rocket fired from Syria into Israel, Golan Hts
צילום: Flash 90
Soldiers collecting remains of rocket fired from Syria into Israel, Golan Hts
צילום: Flash 90
Soldiers collecting remains of rocket fired from Syria into Israel, Golan Hts
French President Emmanuel Macron told a joint session of the U.S. Congress on Wednesday that France will not leave the Iran nuclear deal and urged Washington to remain committed to the agreement.
“There is an existing framework called the JCPOA to control the nuclear activity of Iran,” Macron said, using the official acronym for the deal. “We signed it, at the initiative of the United States. We signed it, both the United States and France. That is why we cannot say we should get rid of it like that.”
“It is true to say that this agreement may not address all concerns and very important concerns—this is true,” Macron added. “But we should not abandon it without having something substantial and more substantial instead. That’s my position. That’s why France will not leave the JCPOA, because we signed it.”
During his address, Macron also vowed that “Iran shall never possess any nuclear weapons,” prompting loud applause from both Republicans and Democrats.
“As for Iran, our objective is clearer: Iran shall never possess any nuclear weapons,” Macron said. “Not now, not in five years, not in 10 years, never.”
Macron said that he and President Donald Trump should work on a “more comprehensive deal” addressing all of the concerns about the nuclear deal. The French president explained that four pillars should serve as the foundation for this plan: “the substance” of the existing nuclear deal; the JCPOA’s sunset clauses, key restrictions on Tehran’s nuclear program that are set to expire in about a decade; containing the Iranian regime’s military influence in the Middle East; and monitoring Iran’s ballistic-missile program.
France was a party to the nuclear deal, which it, the U.S. under the Obama administration, and four other world powers struck with Iran in 2015. The deal curbs Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
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