Israeli defense minister to discuss ‘smart’ fence on Gaza border
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon was expected to discuss a plan to build specialized barriers as part of a “smart” fence system to protect Gaza-border communities on Thursday. The proposal is set to be presented for Israeli National Security Council approval on Monday.
“The full details of the plan have not yet been presented to the National Security Council, only a general outline,” said Ya’alon’s representative, Shalom Gantzer. “Today we have a complete and reasonable response to the security situation along the Gaza border, and there are those who are trying to create panic about the situation. Some 200 million shekels ($51 million) were invested in creating a fence and warning system after Operation Protective Edge.”
Gantzer said the new plan includes hidden components and cutting-edge barriers that cost billions of shekels, for which, he noted, the prime minister has promised to allot funds.
Tensions around the project are high after Gaza-border residents and representatives complained of foot-dragging and lack of funding for a fence they feel is essential to their security. Member of Knesset Haim Yellin (Yesh Atid), a Gaza-border-area resident and former Eshkol Regional Council head, said, “If we wait for all the complex and expensive barriers that cost billions of shekels, we won’t have security.” He called for 150 million shekels ($38.5 million) to be put aside for regular barriers along the border.
Current Eshkol Regional Council head Gadi Yarkoni said, “We were personally promised by the prime minister, defense minister, and chief of staff that the [advanced] barrier would be built.”
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Israel reportedly carries out airstrikes in Syria
(JNS.org) The Israeli Air Force reportedly carried out airstrikes in Syria on Wednesday evening.
According to reports, Israeli aircraft carried out strikes near the Damascus airport around 6 p.m. in the region, the Jerusalem Post reported. It was not yet clear if the airstrikes were aimed at a weapons shipment or other targets.
The Israeli military declined to comment on the reports. The most recent reported Israeli airstrike in Syria before Wednesday occurred in late October along the Lebanon-Syria border, targeting a weapons convoy for Hezbollah terrorist fighters.
The latest airstrike comes amid a Russian military buildup in Syria. In late September, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in order to discuss Russia’s involvement and to avoid any inadvertent clashes. The two sides set up a system of military-to-military communication to coordinate their Syrian efforts.
Israel has periodically launched airstrikes and artillery rounds into Syria, largely to prevent weapons transfers to Hezbollah or in retaliatory strikes to rocket fire on Israel in the Golan Heights region. But Israel’s foray into Syria has been limited due to concerns over becoming too heavily involved in the protracted conflict that has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.
84% of Israelis wouldn’t emigrate if given the chance, poll says
(JNS.org) Despite a decrease in the trust Israelis have in police, government, and political partiesin their country, a strong majority (84 percents) of Jewish Israelis and Arab Israelis would not choose to emigrate if given the opportunity, findings from the annual Israeli Democracy Index survey revealed.
In the Israel Democracy Institute think tank’s survey of 1,019 adults, Arab trust in Israeli police decreased from 56.9 percent last year to 43.7 percent, and Jewish trust was down from 45 percent to 42 percent. Trust in Israeli political parties and the Knesset legislature was also low amongst respondents, but both Arab and Jewish citizens had higher levels of trust than last year in the IDF, the media, the health care system, the Supreme Court, and the Israeli president.
Amid the current wave of terror, 67 percent of respondents believe there is a high level of tension between Arabs and Jews in Israel, which is actually a slight decrease from last year. Among those respondents, 64 percent are Arabs and 43 percent are Jews.
A majority of Jewish respondents (60.8 percent) favored limiting the right to vote in Knesset elections and to be elected to the Knesset to those who show allegiance to the State of Israel, reflecting respondents’ concern about the anti-Israel rhetoric coming from some lawmakers in the Joint Arab List political party. The survey showed that more than half of Israelis believe Arabs cannot identify as Palestinian and be loyal Israeli citizens at the same time.
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Munich mayor: no anti-Israel or pro-BDS events in municipal space
(JNS.org) The mayor of Munich, Dieter Reiter, said that the German city will not permit anti-Israel or pro-BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) events to be held in municipal space, the Jerusalem Post reported Wednesday.
Reiter on Tuesday reportedly told the head of Munich’s Jewish community, Charlotte Knobloch, that there will be “no more city support for such events.” His statement follows a request by Knobloch for Munich to stop a BDS lecture slated to be held in a municipal building.
Dieter refused to cancel that particular event and his spokesman, Stefan Hauf, said the mayor “does not have a basis to cancel the event. According to the cultural representative, the event is merely a lecture, and a call to boycott is not planned.”
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Netanyahu: EU should be ashamed about new guidelines for Israeli products
(JNS.org) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the European Union “should be ashamed” about its decision to approve guidelines requiring member states to stop carrying the “Made in Israel” label for products made in Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, eastern Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights.
“The EU decision is hypocritical and constitutes a double standard; it singles out Israel and not the 200 other conflicts around the world. The EU has decided to label only Israel, and we are not prepared to accept the fact that Europe is labeling the side that is being attacked by terrorism,” Netanyahu said in a statement Wednesday.
“The Israeli economy is strong and will withstand this; those who will be hurt will be those Palestinians who work in Israeli factories,” added Netanyahu.
The Palestine Liberation Organization said the EU’s decision is “a step in the right direction but insufficient,” adding that the Israeli products should be banned.
Meanwhile, the Israeli Knesset approved a preliminary bill that would reject visas or residency status to anyone publicly calling to boycott Israel.
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