Israel reportedly strikes Syria for first time under new defense minister
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) The Israeli Air Force carried out an airstrike over the weekend against a military installation south of Homs, according to a report on Tuesday by the Syrian website Zaman Al Wasl, which identifies with the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The report said the installation is a base for the Syrian army’s air defense division and is also the location of its air-defense training school.
The Israeli planes bombed storage warehouses for Syrian surface-to-air defense missiles, destroying a considerable number and causing a great deal of damage, the report said. It also said the Israeli planes avoided targeting other air-defense systems located on the base.
The planes reportedly flew at a low altitude, likely to avoid being detected by radar, and were exposed to being hit by Syrian air-defense systems. According to the report, the Syrian defense establishment chose not to respond to the attack and did not try to shoot the Israeli jets down.
Aside from the report by Zaman Al Wasl, no other sources in Syria or Arab media outlets reported the event. The alleged airstrike would mark the first such move by Israel under newly appointed Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who on Tuesday visited the Israel Defense Forces GOC Northern Command headquarters.
Following the visit, Lieberman said, “Today I heard briefings about this area, which is always a sensitive area. I can say that our northern border is in good, secure hands.”
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U.N. funds Hamas regime in Gaza, Likud lawmaker says
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) The Hamas terrorist regime in the Gaza Strip receives United Nations funding, new Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman Avi Dichter (Likud) said on Tuesday at an Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Israel conference in Eilat.
Speaking of the funding sources for U.N. activities in Gaza, Dichter said, “Every year, the U.S. gives $350 million and the EU (European Union) gives $450 million. A clear majority of this money ends up in the pockets of Hamas.”
He added, “In our area, there are Israel, the Palestinian Authority (PA) of Mahmoud Abbas, and the Hamas regime. Abbas has not visited Gaza in nine years. And unfortunately, PA leaders do not have the courage to take steps toward peace.”
On the Palestinian refugee issue, Dichter said, “It is no less the PA’s problem than it is ours. Half of the residents of the PA are refugees.”
Dichter took over as chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee last week, replacing fellow Likud MK Tzachi Hanegbi, who was appointed a minister without a portfolio in the Prime Minister’s Office.
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Israel to supply electricity to Gaza sewage treatment plant
(JNS.org) Israel is set to increase its supply of electricity to the Gaza Strip in order to help enable the Palestinians to operate a new sewage treatment plant there and to reduce water pollution affecting Israel.
Israeli Minister of National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Yuval Steinitz recently approved the new initiative to supply Gaza with electricity, according to Yedioth Ahronoth. Large amounts of raw sewage have been flowing into the Mediterranean Sea recently that has forced one of Israel’s largest desalination plants in the southern city of Ashkelon to shut down numerous times due to high water pollution levels.
Through the assistance of international donors such as the World Bank, a $100 million sewage treatment plant was built in Gaza. But Hamas, the Palestinian terror group that controls Gaza, has failed to allocate the necessary electricity to operate the facility and instead has let raw sewage to be periodically dumped in the Mediterranean or seep into the ground, leading to pollution in underground aquifers.
Further, infighting between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority has hampered efforts to expand Gaza’s electricity supply.
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Netanyahu meets Russia’s Putin, visits Israeli technology exhibit in Moscow
(JNS.org) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday, marking the 25th anniversary of resumed diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Netanyahu met with Putin to discuss implementing previous “understandings” reached during the prime minister’s last trip to Russia in April, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said. Tuesday’s meeting covered issues including the fight against global terror, the Syrian civil war, and the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
Additionally, Netanyahu participated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the “Open a Door to Israel” exhibit at Moscow’s Manege exhibition hall. The exhibit showcases groundbreaking Israeli technology.
“We certainly feel at home,” Netanyahu said. “Israel’s doors are open to Russia and Russia’s doors are open to Israel. We are marking 25 years since the resumption of relations between us, and not only in culture and technology, but in so many other fields as well. All of these things are being shown here in this innovative exhibit.”
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