85,000 attend Tel Aviv rally for kidnapped Israeli teens
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Some 85,000 people flocked to Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square on Sunday evening, uniting in prayer and hope for the safe return of abducted Israeli teens Gilad Shaar, Eyal Yifrach, and Naftali Frenkel. Radio and TV personality Avri Gilad, who hosted the rally, said the tone for the event was “not about tears or lamenting.”
“Our enemies feed off of Jewish tears and there is no need for us to nourish them,” he said.
The boys’ mothers embraced each other in tears, visibly moved by the mass attendance at the rally.
“These are difficult days for you, for us, and for all Israelis,” said Bat-Galim Shaar, addressing her son Gilad. “But we are not alone. There is an entire people with us, waiting for you to come home. When you do, you’ll find that our family has added many new members.”
*
Israel needs security fence along Jordan border, Netanyahu says
(JNS.org) In light of recent changes in the Middle East, Israel needs to construct a security fence along the length of its border with Jordan, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday.
Speaking at the Institute for National Security Studies conference in Tel Aviv, Netanyahu said that in any future peace deal with the Palestinians, the Israel Defense Forces would be the entity protecting Israel in Judea and Samaria, including the Jordan Valley.
Israel “must stabilize the region west of the security line in Jordan,” Netanyahu said, adding that the territory of a future Palestinian state, up to the Jordan River, would have to remain under full Israeli security control for many years.
The prime minister said the Palestinians should have “political and economic control in the territories they control, but simultaneously there must be a continuation of Israeli security operations in these territories to ensure the disarmament of terrorist groups.”
*
Palestinian terrorists fire 20 rockets at Israel in escalation of weekend attack
(JNS.org) Palestinian terrorists in Gaza fired at least 20 rockets toward Israel overnight Sunday into Monday morning. Most of the rockets exploded in open fields in the Eshkol region, but two hit Sdot Negev, causing minor damage to two buildings.
Meanwhile, Israeli Air Force planes struck a terrorist cell Sunday night as it was preparing to fire rockets at Israel. Previously, an Iron Dome anti-rocket battery intercepted two rockets fired at Netivot.
After months of relative calm in the southern Israeli city of Sderot, 13 Gaza rockets had been fired into the area over the weekend.
“The residents of Sderot are not discouraged by the despicable, cowardly actions of terrorists, who fire rockets from Gaza into populated areas,” Sderot Mayor Alon Davidi said Saturday, according to Israel Hayom. “We are standing strong in efforts to give full support for the prime minister, defense minister, and IDF to respond forcefully.”
*
Israel’s Leviathan strikes $30 billion gas deal with U.K.’s BG Group
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Partners in Israel’s Leviathan natural gas field have signed a non-binding letter of intent to supply the U.K.’s BG Group with an estimated $30 billion worth of natural gas for its facility in Idku, Egypt.
The preliminary agreement, announced Sunday, comes after supply agreements signed with Jordan and other local countries, making Israel a major local exporter of natural gas. Once the deal is signed and authorized, the natural gas will be sold directly to BG’s Egyptian facility, which has the necessary infrastructure to liquefy it.
BG will receive the gas via a special outlet that will be installed adjacent to the Leviathan field. An underwater pipe will connect the outlet to the BG liquefaction facility in Idku. The draft terms of the deal call for Israel to supply 7 billion cubic meters of natural gas over the course of 15 years.
*
Israeli Arab demonstrators call for more kidnappings
(JNS.org) Some 200 Israeli Arab demonstrators hoisted Palestinian flags on Friday at the entrance to the city of Umm al-Fahm, clashing with policemen who were trying to keep order.
The demonstrators were protesting Israel’s use of administrative detention, when arrestees are held without trial, in Judea and Samaria following the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers. Some demonstrators called for more kidnappings, particularly of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers, Israel Hayom reported.
At his cabinet meeting on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the calls for more kidnappings in Umm al-Fahm “outrageous.”
“Most Israeli Arab citizens don’t share such opinions, and I call on their leaders to stand boldly, resolutely, and to denounce such statements, for Israelis cannot accept or reconcile with such outrageous statements calling for the kidnapping of IDF soldiers,” Netanyahu said. “IDF soldiers protect all of us.”
*
Preceding provided by JNS.org, which is sponsored on the pages of San Diego Jewish World through the generosity of Dr. Bob and Mao Shillman.