Kerry says Netanyahu’s reaction to Iran deal is ‘way over the top’
(JNS.org) U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s comments on the Iran nuclear deal were “way over the top” and that Israel is “safer” because of the deal.
“This is under attack by people who really don’t know the terms of the agreement,” Kerry told NBC News.
“What the critics of this plan never offer… is a realistic alternative,” Kerry added. “It’s wrong for people to think this [deal] doesn’t have long-term accountability.”
Shortly after the agreement was announced on Tuesday, Netanyahu called the deal a “historic mistake,” saying that “far-reaching concessions” were made by world powers to Iran that will lead to Iran receiving “hundreds of billions of dollars with which it can fuel its terror machine and its expansion and aggression throughout the Middle East and across the globe.”
Kerry rejected those comments, saying that Netanyahu “said the same thing about the interim agreement, and he was wrong.”
“Israel is safer,” Kerry said.
President Barack Obama called Netanyahu on Tuesday to speak about the Iran deal, saying that it “will not diminish our concerns regarding Iran’s support for terrorism and threats toward Israel,” according to a description of the call provided by the White House.
The White House announced that Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter will travel to Israel next week as a “reflection of the unprecedented level of security cooperation between the United States and Israel.”
Israel also faced criticism from other allies for its response to the deal. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that Israel “needs to take a closer look at it” and should not “criticize the agreement in a very coarse way.”
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Iran’s Rouhani: ‘warmongering Zionist regime’ failed to stop nuclear deal
(JNS.org) Iranian President Hassan Rouhani ridiculed Israel for its “failed” effort to thwart his country’s newly announced nuclear deal with world powers.
“Do not be deceived by the propaganda of the usurper Zionist regime,” Rouhani said Tuesday in a broadcast on Iran’s Press TV, adding that “today major world powers recognized Iran’s nuclear program.”
“The Zionist state has failed in its efforts,” he added, in reference to Israel’s staunch opposition to the nuclear deal.
Rouhani continued his remarks against Israel on Twitter in an attempt to calm regional fears over a resurgent Iran.
“To our neighbours: Do not be deceived by the propaganda of the warmongering Zionist regime. #Iran & its power will translate into your power,” Rouhani tweeted.
Israel and leading Arab states in the Middle East fear that the removal of economic sanctions on Iran will allow the country to provide more funding to terror groups like Hezbollah and Hamas, as well as to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, leading to further destabilization in the region. Rouhani tried to dismiss those claims in his televised speech.
“Today, we are at an important juncture in the history of our country and our revolution, and the situation in the region,” Rouhani said.
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ADL denounces Jewish stereotypes in South Korean media
(JNS.org) The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has denounced several news stories published in South Korea that utilized anti-Semitic stereotypes.
One news story from the South Korean outlet Money Today reported that a merger between Samsung C&T, a construction company, and Cheil Industries is being challenged by two New York-based financial companies “whose key shareholders are Jewish.”
“According to the finance industry, the fact that Elliott (Associates) and ISS are both Jewish institutions cannot be ignored. Elliott is led by a Jew, Paul E. Singer, and (International Shareholder Services) is an affiliate of Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI), whose key shareholders are Jewish. According to a source in the finance industry, Jews have a robust network demonstrating influence in a number of domains,” the South Korean newspaper stated.
Two other South Korean publications made statements such as “Jews are known to wield enormous power on Wall Street and in global financial circles,” “It is a well-known fact that the U.S. government is swayed by Jewish capital,” and “Jewish money has long been known to be ruthless and merciless.”
ADL National Director Abraham Foxman said in a statement that “these malicious myths are among some of the most widely held stereotypes about Jews, and are far from harmless.”
ADL’s 2014 Global 100 poll of anti-Semitic attitudes around the world showed that 53 percent of South Korean adults agreed with a majority of 11 classical stereotypes about Jews.
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14th European Maccabi Games will be first Jewish sporting event in Germany
(JNS.org) More than 2,000 Jewish athletes will participate in the 14th European Maccabi Games, which will open later this month in Berlin.
The competition will be first Jewish-organized sporting event to ever take place in Germany, Haaretz reported.
The games are taking place from July 27-Aug. 5 at the Olympiastadion, the same Olympic stadium built and used for the Summer Olympics of 1936 during the Nazi era. At that time, Jews were discouraged from participating. Participants in this month’s competition will come from 36 countries and compete in 19 disciplines.
“I doubt any games anywhere will be as emotionally charged as this one; thousands of Jewish people parading in the Olympic stadium, which houses such meaning, not only to the world’s Jewish community, but to the world’s sporting community,” Daniel Collins, head of Great Britain’s delegation to the European Maccabi Games, told The Guardian.
The previous European Maccabi Games were held in Vienna in 2011, which marked the largest Jewish gathering in the Austrian city since the Holocaust.
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In early reaction, Republicans threaten to kill Iran nuclear deal
(JNS.org) Republican leaders and presidential candidates have already begun expressing their skepticism on the freshly announced nuclear deal between Iran and the P5+1 world powers, with many threatening to kill the agreement.
Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) said in a statement that the deal will only “embolden” Iran and trigger a nuclear arms race.
“Instead of stopping the spread of nuclear weapons in the Middle East, this deal is likely to fuel a nuclear arms race around the world,” Boehner said, adding that Congress will “review every detail of this agreement very closely.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that the deal showed the Obama administration’s “flawed” approach and that Congress’s job is to now “weigh why a nuclear agreement should result in reduced pressure on the world’s leading state sponsor of terror,” Politico reported.
According to the Iran Nuclear Review Act of 2015, Congress will have 60 days to review the nuclear agreement.
“The American people are going to repudiate this deal, and I believe Congress will kill the deal,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) told MSNBC.
Presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said that President Barack Obama “consistently negotiated from a position of weakness, giving concession after concession to a regime that has American blood on its hands, holds Americans hostage and has consistently violated every agreement it ever signed.”
Another GOP presidential hopeful, Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.), told Bloomberg News that the deal has “no chance” of Congressional support and that it is “akin to declaring war on Sunni Arabs and Israel” by allowing Iran to re-arm its conventional weapons.
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U.N. chief calls for safe return of missing Israelis in Gaza
(JNS.org) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday called on Palestinians in Gaza who may have knowledge of two missing Israeli citizens to provide information on their whereabouts and condition.
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that Ban is calling for the safe return of Avraham Mengistu, a 28-year-old Ethiopian Israeli, and an unidentified Bedouin Arab from southern Israel.
Dujarric said that the U.N. leader “underscores the responsibility of all parties to protect and respect the rights of civilians,” and that they will continue to closely monitor the situation, the Associated Press reported.
There have been conflicting reports on the current location of Mengistu, who has a history of mental illness and apparently jumped the border fence into Gaza. Hamas claims that it has questioned then released Mengistu after it determined he was not a soldier. Others have speculated that he may have crossed into Egypt through a Gaza tunnel, Haaretz reported.
Nevertheless, Israel has officially called on Hamas to release Mengistu. Israel considers both cases to be humanitarian and has said it will not swap Palestinian prisoners for their release.
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Israel’s natural gas sparks Russia’s interest
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Russian Deputy Energy Minister Anton Inyutsyn arrived in Israel this week to explore possible collaborations between the Israeli and Russian natural gas industries.
Inyutsyn is heading a delegation of Russian natural gas companies seeking business opportunities in Israel. Shraga Brosh, president of the Israeli Manufacturers Association (IMA), was scheduled to meet with Inyustyn and the other members of the delegation to share information on natural gas harvesting and transportation and to promote bilateral Israeli-Russian trade relations.
The Russian delegation includes representatives from various companies, such as Russian energy giant Gazprom, the largest extractor of natural gas in the world, and the Energo Group, which develops natural gas infrastructure and equipment.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry, the IMA, and the Russia-Israel Business Council will host a roundtable forum for the delegation to discuss business opportunities with Israeli companies. Israel Natural Gas Lines, which overseas the nationwide gas pipeline grid, and the gas distributor Supergas are among the local companies participating in the event, alongside senior Israeli government officials.
Russia is a potential export market for Israel, particularly in alternative energy services fields.
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