(JNS.org) Israel currently does not have, and is unlikely to have in the future, any top-tier political ties with the Egyptian regime so long as Mohammed Morsi is in power, the head of the Israeli Defense Ministry’s Diplomatic-Security Bureau Amos Gilad said Nov. 2, Israel Hayom reported.
“If there is one thing that worries me, it is the Muslim Brotherhood,” Gilad said at an academic gathering on strategic issues in Herzliya, referring to the Islamic movement that has effectively sidelined all other power brokers in the populous Arab country. Gilad has had a long history of working with the Egyptian military and political class and is well-versed with the politics of the region owing to his past service as the head of the Research Division of the Israeli Intelligence Corps. Gilad holds the “Egypt file” at the ministry of defense.
Gilad, who called Islamic President Mohammed Morsi’s rise to power a “tectonic shift,” lamented the adverse developments in Egypt in the wake of former President Hosni Mubarak’s overthrow in Feb. 2011. “A desire to create a democracy resulted in a terrible dictatorship,” Gilad said, referring to the Muslim Brotherhood’s strong showing in the parliamentary and presidential elections over the past year. “They are driven by ideology that Israel doesn’t have a right to exist, and this ideology won’t change.”
Saudi cleric calls hurricane punishment for U.S. support of Israel, Jews
(JNS.org) Saudi cleric Nasser Al-Omar called Hurricane Sandy “divine punishment” for the U.S. due to the fact that America is “an infidel and tyrannical nation that is hostile to Allah and His Messenger, and fights the Muslims.”
Saying America “defends terrorism in the world,” the cleric specifically pointed out U.S. support for the Jewish state, the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) reported. He asked: “Who supports Israel? Who endlessly defends the Jews?”
Muslims “must be glad and thank Allah” for the hurricane, Al-Omar said.
Christian-Arab youths targeted over support for IDF
(JNS.org) Several Christian-Arab youths are being targeted and slandered by Arab media and leadership for their participation in an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) conference.
Two weeks ago, over 120 Arab Christian high school students in the Nazareth area came together for an event sponsored by the Israel Defense Ministry’s Youth and Community department on IDF enlistment and national service.
The Christian Arab youth who participated in the event were depicted as traitors, and journalists wrote articles promising to “take care of them” and hunt them down, Israel Hayom reported. One writer said, “We will uproot you from the source. The mission that failed 50 years ago will fail now, too.”
Even Arab Knesset members joined in the criticism of the youths and claimed that the conference was designed to slander and attack Islam.
Meanwhile, one of the local Christian Orthodox priests, Jobrail Nadaf, who participated in the event and supports enlistment of Arab Christian youth, had been suspended from his duties as priest and excommunicated from his church by a local council.
Nadaf also asked for protection by the local police after several threats were made against him.
“This is an act of grave incitement and racism by the Arab media and Knesset members from the Arab sector,” said Alex Gadalkin, deputy mayor of upper Nazareth and one of the conference organizers.
According to Israel Hayom, each year over 50 Arab-Israeli Christians enlist in the IDF.
OTZMA Israel program to end after 26 years
(JNS.org) The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) has announced that it is ending the long-running OTZMA Israel program after the completion of its current year program.
OTZMA, founded in 1986, has brought over 1,400 young Jewish adults to Israel for a 10-month period to learn Hebrew, do volunteer work and gain professional internships in partnership with their local Jewish federation.
“Today, there are more than 200 Israel programs for young Jewish adults, built upon OTZMA’s shoulders, and many offer similarly extraordinary experiences. As a result, at the end of this academic year, JFNA has decided to stop implementing OTZMA as a stand-alone Jewish Federations’ Israel experience program,” JFNA CEO Jerry Silverman said in a letter announcing the decision.
Jason Oifer, who participated in OTZMA in 2007-2008, called the program “was one of the best years of my life.”
UK funds salaries for PA terrorists in Israeli jails
(JNS.org) Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) director Itamar Marcus presented evidence to British politicians this week showing that the UK contributes to the Palestinian General Budget, from which the Palestinian Authority (PA) pays a total of £2.8 million ($4.5 million) every month in salaries to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
This means that British taxpayers are contributing to salaries as high as £2,000 ($3,226) per month for the longest-serving terrorist prisoners.
UK Minister of State for International Development Alan Duncan rejected this testimony, saying, “We have investigated the matter fully and can confirm that the allegations in Palestinian Media Watch’s report are both inaccurate and misleading.” The payments were not salaries but “social assistance programs to provide welfare payments,” he said, according to the Wall Street Journal.
However, the PA refers to salaries earned in Israeli jails by Palestinian prisoners, including mass murderers, by using the Arabic word “Ratib,” which means “salary,” not welfare. The longer prisoners remain incarcerated, the more money they receive, according to PMW; additionally, the more serious the crime they committed, the more money they receive. Family need has no impact on the amount of money prisoners receive, and they are not required to share this money with their families.
At the “same time as Britain is drawing down its defense spending, and as the government is eviscerating the armed forces it still relies on, it is increasing the spending on salaries for terrorists and others who attack our allies,” wrote Douglas Murray, associate director of the Henry Jackson Society, a think-tank based in London.
New kosher sweeteners made from agave plant
(JNS.org) Two new kosher products that can be seen as healthy alternatives to sugar, corn syrup or other artificial sweeteners are making their debut this month.
The sweeteners—made with organic inulin extracted from the agave plant—will be featured in an exhibit from Sheil Foods at KosherFest, an international kosher food festival to be held in Secaucus, NJ from Nov. 13-14.
One product is the Vivente Zero Calorie Functional Organic Sweetener, and the other is the Vivente organic agave nectar. The nectar is available in nine flavors and is sweeter than sugar, making it fit to use for beverages such as coffee, tea or any other drinks, as well as waffles, pancakes, toast, yogurt and cereal, according to the products’ introductory press release.
Inulin is a natural dietary fiber thought to have probiotic effects, including helping with weight control, strengthening the immune system, improving digestion and strengthening bones. The new products contain zero calories and are suitable diabetics, the press release said.
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Preceding provided by JNS.org