Hezbollah agent accused in plot on Shimon Peres
(JNS.org) An Israeli-Arab man has been indicted on charges of operating as an agent for Hezbollah, Israel Hayom reported. Among the activities he was alleged to have carried out was collecting information on security arrangements for Israeli President Shimon Peres during the latter’s visit to an Arab village in the Galilee.
The indictment against Milad Khatib, 26, a resident of Majd al-Kurum in the Galilee, was filed in the Haifa District Court. The gag order on the case was lifted Thursday. Khatib was charged with contacting a foreign agent, espionage, conspiring to aid the enemy during time of war and illegal association.
According to the indictment, Milad Khatib was in contact with Hezbollah agent Borhan Khatib, who was operating in Europe. Between 2007 and 2009, Milad Khatib visited his Hezbollah handler at his home in Denmark and all of his travel expenses were paid for by Hezbollah. During the visit, the two allegedly discussed the Israel-Palestinian conflict and Hezbollah missile attacks on the Israeli home front during the Second Lebanon War. The indictment said that Milad Khatib was allegedly asked about location of missile strikes and the damage they caused.
According to the indictment, the two met again in Turkey, where Borhan Khatib disclosed that he was a Hezbollah operative and asked Khatib to carry out missions for the Shiite terror organization.
Quakers divest from Israel in ‘absence’ of definitive information
(JNS.org) Friends Fiduciary Corp.—a nonprofit managing assets for American Quakers—divested from its holdings in Caterpillar and Hewlett-Packard due to questions over whether the products they sell Israel can be considered “weapons components,” the Associated Press reported.
Using the narrative of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) advocates as the basis for their divestment decision, Friends Fiduciary Executive Director Jeffrey Perkins wrote, “In the absence of that information [on those companies’ sales to Israel], we chose to sell our holdings based on the peace testimony.” BDS activists claim that Caterpillar and Hewlett-Packard profit from non-peaceful uses of their products against the Palestinians, such the bulldozing of homes in Gaza, and the Quaker religion is against weapons usage.
Friends Fiduciary, which is based in Philadelphia, divested from a third company doing business with Israel, Veolia Environment, due to “environmental and social concerns,” according to Perkins. BDS activists protest investment in Veolia because it has contracts for the transferring of garbage from Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria.
Survey: 93% of Ohio Jewish voters concerned about a nuclear Iran
Incumbent President Barack Obama holds a 64-29 percent advantage over Republican challenger Mitt Romney in that swing state, the survey said. The 238 voters reached by telephone self-identified as 54 percent Democrat, 19 percent Republican and 26 percent Independent.
Fifty-four percent of respondents approved of Obama’s handling of U.S.-Israel relations, and 36 percent disapproved. Regarding the Iranian threat, 45 percent said it is unlikely “a combination of diplomacy and sanctions can stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons,” while 41 percent said that combination is likely to work.
The Obama administration has repeatedly emphasized that there remains time for diplomacy and sanctions to work in stopping Iran’s nuclear development, and has so far resisted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s call to set “red lines” that will prompt the U.S. to take military action if Iran crosses them.
The Jewish native of Connecticut, who struck out against New York Mets pitcher R.A. Dickey, got his second chance from the Marlins after an online petition (http://www.change.org/petitions/give-adam-greenberg-his-one-at-bat) urging an MLB team to give him one at-bat garnered 25,000 signatures.
In July 2005, Greenberg—playing for the Chicago Cub against, of all teams, the Marlins—was hit in the back of the head by a 92-mile-per-hour fastball from Valerio de los Santos and has suffered from the effects of a concussion ever since. Now 31, Greenberg signed a one-day contract with the Marlins for $2,623, funds that will be donated to the Sports Legacy Institute for brain trauma research.
This September, Greenberg played for Israel’s team in the World Baseball Classic qualifying round. Now, he will seek a spring training invite from an MLB team for next season.
“It’s changed my life and it’s afforded me the opportunity to dedicate myself back to the game,” Greenberg told CBS regarding his second chance in the major leagues.Office for Civil Rights to investigate UC Berkeley anti-Semitic incidents
Louis D. Brandeis Center legal advisors Neal M. Sher and Joel Siege alleged that the UC Berkeley had violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 “through a deliberate indifference to the development of a dangerous anti-Semitic climate on its campuses,” a press release from the Brandeis center said.
The alleged anti-Semitic incidents occurred on campus during an “Israel Apartheid Week” theatrical performance organized by student activists from the Muslim Student Association (MSA) and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP).
“The OCR investigation sends a strong signal not only to Berkeley officials and trustees, but to all other college administrators as well, putting them on notice that ‘Apartheid Week’ demonstrations, including Passion Plays, mock check points, mock guns, mock walls, instances where Jews are depicted using racist anti-Semitic stereotypes and intimidation of Jewish students will be subject to OCR investigation,” Sher said. “Schools which violate Title VI run the risk of forfeiting federal funds.”
Tel Aviv in running for ‘Most Innovative City’ title
(JNS.org) Tel Aviv is competing for the title of “World’s Most Innovative City” in an online survey conducted by the Wall Street Journal and Citibank.
Tel Aviv, Israel’s second largest city and largest metropolitan area, was selected for its strength in technology and research.
According to the website, Tel Aviv, also known as the White City, “has been honored by UNESCO as an example of modern architecture and town planning.” The profile also noted that Tel Aviv University and CA Technologies are partnering to build a multi-million dollar innovation center.
“I am proud that Tel Aviv has been chosen to run against the leading cities in the world; cities that have created the DNA for high tech and innovative leadership,” Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai said, according to Israel Hayom.
Tel Aviv is the only Middle Eastern city competing out of the 25. Other cities include San Francisco, London, New York, Shanghai, Sao Paulo and Singapore.
Palestinian threats cause cancelation of peace walk with Israelis
(JNS.org) A Bethlehem event aimed at fostering more peaceful Israeli-Palestinian relations as well as broader interfaith dialogue was canceled due to Palestinians’ anger about the Israelis’ involvement, the Jerusalem Post reported.
The “Bethlehem Walk,” planned for Oct. 5, was nixed after Palestinian youth activists condemned the event as “normalization” with Israel and threatened to prevent the Jewish state from “desecrating our holy city and sites,” according to the Post. Organizers said they called off the march “out of respect for the feeling of all those who were outraged” by it.
The march’s mission was to “change and acknowledge basic common grounds and sow the seeds of understanding and acceptance.”
*
Preceding provided by JNS.org and reprinted with permission