Kerry says time is running out on peace process
(JNS.org) U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry warned that time is running out on the peace process during a speech at the American Jewish Committee’s Global Forum in Washington, DC.
“We’re running out of time. We’re running out of possibilities. And let’s be clear: If we do not succeed now… we may not get another chance,” said Kerry in his first speech to American Jewish leaders as secretary of state.
Meanwhile, a report on Monday quoted a U.S. official as saying America may eventually abandon the peace process if it determined that Israelis and Palestinians were not serious about negotiations.
“There are too many things going on in the world… You could bang your head on this for years and years and years,” the U.S. official told Reuters.
A senior Israeli official told Israel Hayom that he “refused to be moved” by the Reuters report. The official said Kerry has not presented a formal peace plan yet.
Kerry has been to the Middle East four times since taking over as Secretary of State in February. His fifth trip is planned for next week.
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Al-Qaida control of Syria preferable to Assad, Israeli officials say
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Senior Israeli officials told Army Radio that al-Qaida control of Syria “would be preferable to a victory by Assad over the rebels.”
This view is based on the assessment that a victorious President Bashar al-Assad would be much more dependent on Iran than in the past. In such a scenario, Iran would have greater ability to threaten Israel than it does today. Also, the ties between Iran, Syria and Hezbollah would become even tighter, increasing the dangers facing Israel.
Israeli officials said one country in the world was openly seeking the destruction of Israel—Iran.
“Assad is now Iran,” the officials said, making any other group preferable to govern Syria, even al-Qaida or other radical Islamists.
“Any of these groups would be less problematic for Israel than an Assad regime that is a puppet of Iran,” Army Radio quoted the officials as saying.
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Hamas man released in Shalit deal masterminds more kidnappings from Qatar
(JNS.org) The Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) revealed Monday that a Hamas operative from the West Bank was arrested last month on suspicion of planning kidnapping and shooting attacks against Israelis, Israel Hayom reported.
The detained man, Bakr Sa’ad, a 26-year-old resident of Mazraa Sharqiya near Ramallah, allegedly met in Jordan in April with Hesham Ibrahim Hijaz, a convicted Hamas terrorist who was released as part of the Gilad Shalit swap deal in 2011 and deported abroad. Hijaz was originally from Mazraa Sharqiya himself and currently lives in Qatar. Before his release, Hijaz had been serving 10 life sentences for being part of a terrorist cell that carried out attacks between 2001 and 2003 in which 10 Israelis were killed.
According to the security agency, during the meeting in Jordan, Sa’ad agreed to carry out shooting and kidnapping attacks against Israeli settlers and soldiers in Judea and Samaria.
The agency said this case was further evidence of the trend of Hamas terrorists released in the Shalit deal, particularly those who were deported abroad, returning to terrorist activities.
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Frank Lautenberg remembered by Jewish groups
(JNS.org) Longtime New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg, who died Monday at 89 from complications from viral pneumonia, was praised and remembered fondly by Jewish groups for his support of Israel and long record of public service.
The American Israel Public Affairs committee called Lautenberg a “tireless champion for the US-Israel relationship and the human rights of Jews and persecuted peoples throughout the word,” a message echoed by both Democratic and Republican Jewish groups.
“The late Senator leaves behind a distinguished record of public and Jewish communal service that distinguishes him as a giant among American Jewish political leaders,” National Jewish Democratic Council Chair Marc R. Stanley said.
“Frank Lautenberg was a staunch supporter of Israel and a leader in Jewish communal life. He served his country during World War II and in decades of dedicated public service,” Republican Jewish Coalition Executive Director Matt Brooks said.
Lautenberg was praised by Jewish groups for his work in facilitating the immigration of Soviet refugees, including many Soviet Jews, under the 1989 Lautenberg Amendment.
“Senator Lautenberg was a dynamic activist on behalf of freedom,” said American Jewish Committee Executive Director David Harris. “The landmark Lautenberg Amendment was a major step in turning the tide for the exodus of Soviet Jews. As we heard him say at several AJC gatherings, this was among his proudest achievements.”
The Jewish Federations of North America said the Lautenberg Amendment “continues to ease the immigration of refugees to this day.”
B’nai B’rith International praised Lautenberg’s patriotism and concern for Jews across the world.
“Lautenberg was a World War II veteran and a dear friend of the Jewish community. As a senator from New Jersey for more than 28 years, he was a staunch supporter of Israel, a champion of free emigration for Soviet and Iranian Jews, and a booster of the rights of Jewish refugees from the Middle East,” B’nai B’rith said.
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NGO Monitor head says anti-Semitic NGOs funded by official authorities
(JNS.org) Gerald Steinberg, the head of the watchdog group NGO Monitor, accused world governments of funding anti-Semitic NGOs in an interview with Israel National News at the Global Forum for Combating Anti-Semitism in Jerusalem.
Steinberg singled out a group called MIFTAH, a Palestinian Authority-based NGO, as an example of a group that uses old Christian blood libels. He said that they use Jews of using blood of Christians to bake matzah on Passover as part of its anti-Israel propaganda.
Steinberg said that the European Union has refused to cut off funding to groups like MIFTAH because it “funds projects and not organizations.” Meanwhile, Steinberg mentioned that the U.S. has been more diligent in cutting off funding to these groups.
“The Americans are much more serious about their obligation to ensure that their funding is not being used for precisely the opposite of the purposes which they claim to support,” Steinberg told Israel National News.
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