Middle East Roundup: February 21, 2017

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Netanyahu declares pivot to Asia during Singapore visit

(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel is “pivoting toward Asia” during an official visit to Singapore.

Netanyahu enjoyed a state dinner Monday with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, with both leaders praising the nation’s strong bonds and similarities.

Lee praised Israel’s assistance in building Singapore’s armed forces, and said his country believes a two-state solution is the only way to achieve peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

“Israel is pivoting toward Asia in a very clear and purposeful way,” Netanyahu, who was making the first-ever visit to Singapore by an Israeli prime minister, told Lee at the state dinner. “Next month I’ll go to China; somewhat later this year Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi of India will come to visit Israel. Perfectly poised between China and India is Singapore, and I’m not [saying this] merely in the geographic sense, I’m saying that as a gateway to Asia, Singapore is a perfect partner.”

In the past, Israeli-Singaporean relations were relatively discreet, partly due to Singapore’s large Muslim population. Netanyahu’s visit, therefore, marks a significant warming of relations between the countries.

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Israeli soldier gets 18 months in prison over Hebron shooting amid calls for pardon

(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldier Elor Azaria, convicted on manslaughter charges for shooting and killing an incapacitated terrorist in Hebron last March, was sentenced Tuesday to 18 months in prison and was demoted from sergeant to private.

Around 100 protesters went to the military court at the IDF’s headquarters in Tel Aviv to show support for the soldier.

Military Court Judge Maya Heller said in her sentencing of Azaria, “The standard punishment for manslaughter is 20 years in prison, to teach us about the gravity that the legislature attributes to the crime of manslaughter. But in the state of Israel, punishment is individual….The defendant was drafted to the IDF in July 2014 as an infantryman in the Kfir Brigade; he successfully passed a paramedics’ course. The defendant has no disciplinary past.”

Before the sentencing, the prosecution had asked to have Azaria spend between three and five years in prison. Immediately after the sentence was announced, Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett tweeted, “The security of the citizens of Israel depends on an immediate pardon for Elor Azaria, who was sent to protect us.”

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New app helps Jewish students find roommates who meet their needs, interests

(JNS.org) The Jewish pluralistic teen movement BBYO introduced a mobile app to help Jewish high school seniors or current college students find roommates.

Joomie—which was launched during the BBYO International Convention in Dallas last weekend—prompts users to answer questions on their Jewish youth group affiliations, levels of Shabbat and kosher observance, music preferences, sleeping habits and more. After answering the questions, students can view profiles of other users who have downloaded the app, are planning to attend or currently attend the same institution, and might match their needs and interests.

“We believe that usage of Joomie will help facilitate the transition to college for many students, and ultimately promote a greater engagement in Jewish life in campuses across North America,” said Matt Grossman, BBYO’s CEO.

The idea for the app was formulated during a “hackathon” event sponsored by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation’s ROI Community, in which teenagers brainstormed ways to use technology to connect with BBYO or summer camp friends while they transition to college. Joomie can be downloaded in the Apple app store or Google Play.

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Israel indicts Arab man over plans to form Islamic State terror cell

(JNS.org) An Israeli-Arab man was indicted Monday for his alleged links to the Islamic State terror group and his plans to orchestrate attacks in Israel.

The Shin Bet security agency and the Israel Police had arrested Anas Haj Yehiye, 35, in late January following intelligence-gathering on his suspected terrorist ties and activities. Haj Yehiye swore allegiance to Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and was recruiting others for the formation of an Islamic State terror cell within Israel, according to the Shin Bet.

In particular, the security agency said Haj Yehiye was planning attacks on a bus in Tel Aviv and against Israeli soldiers, and that he distributed instructions to potential fellow terrorist operatives on the production of explosive belts, explosive devices connected to cellphones and lethal substances such as sarin gas. Islamic State’s “Detailed Guide for the Jihadist” was seized at Haj Yehiye’s home in the village of Taibe.

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Report: Netanyahu participated in secret peace summit in Jordan

(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participated in a secret diplomatic summit a year ago in Aqaba, Jordan, with then-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Jordan’s King Abdullah and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Haaretz reported Sunday.

At the meeting, Kerry reportedly presented a regional peace framework that included recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and the renewal of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations with the support of Arab nations. Netanyahu responded that he would have trouble garnering support for Kerry’s proposal within Israel’s governing coalition.

Several months later, Kerry presented Netanyahu with a framework to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including a demilitarized Palestinian state based on the 1967 lines with land swaps, with Jerusalem serving as the capital of both Israel and the Palestinian state. Netanyahu rejected the proposal.

When the subject was raised Sunday at a Likud party ministers’ meeting, Netanyahu did not deny the existence of the Jordan summit.

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Islamic State proxy fires 2 rockets at southern Israel

(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Two rockets fired from Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula hit southern Israel Monday morning. The projectiles exploded in open areas in the northwestern Negev’s Eshkol Regional Council, causing no harm. Sinai Province, the Islamic State terror group’s regional proxy, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Monday’s rocket fire followed reports by the Islamic State-affiliated Amaq news agency that four Islamic State terrorists were killed Saturday night in an Israeli drone strike in the northern Sinai. The report said the strike targeted a cell preparing to fire rockets at Israel.

Sinai Province had fired four rockets at the southern Israeli city of Eilat Feb. 8.

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