Scottish independence rejected, Jewish fears averted
(JNS.org) Scottish citizens rejected independence from the United Kingdom in a 55-45 percent referendum vote, a result that puts to rest the concerns of some Jews that independence would have been accompanied by a rise in anti-Israel sentiment.
“The Jewish community [leans] more towards the no vote than the yes vote,” said Paul Morron, president of the Glasgow Jewish Representative Council, before the vote, according to Israel National News.
Morron explained that because anti-Israel sentiment is more prominent in Scottish politics than it is in the United Kingdom as a whole, many Jews feared the escalation of that sentiment if Scotland chose to become independent. There were also fears regarding manifestations of anti-Semitism in Scotland that are often connected to anti-Israel sentiment, especially in the wake of this summer’s conflict between Israel and Hamas.
“The indication is that the Scottish government would be rather more hostile towards Israel, and there would be far more attention given to that hostility in the media, and I think that would put added pressure on the Jewish community here,” Morron said.
David Kaplan, who was born in Scotland, told Yedioth Ahronoth that “for more than 25 years, the country’s professional unions and the liberal left have been running a pro-Palestinian campaign. I have watched numerous speeches by Parliament Member George Galloway against Israel.”
Marc Livingston, a 26-year-old Jewish lawyer from Glasgow, told Yedioth that although the Scottish National Party, which was behind the independence bid, is “a liberal left-wing party, which has shown solidarity towards the Palestinian people, whether rightfully or not,” party leader Alex Salmond “has always treated the Jewish community well and respects our contributions to the Scottish society.”
“Unfortunately, the recent operation in Gaza led to a rise in the number of anti-Semitic incidents in Scotland, but that has nothing to do with the referendum,” said Livingston.
At the end of the day, “the [Jewish] community isn’t united” on the independence issue, according to Livingston, who added that the matter was “a Scottish rather than a Jewish issue.”
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‘Syrian Nelson Mandela’ praises Israeli aid for wounded Syrians
(JNS.org) Dr. Kamal al-Labwani, a prominent member of the Syrian opposition movement who is nicknamed the “Syrian Nelson Mandela,” praised the Jewish state while visiting Syrian patients at Ziv Medical Center in the northern Israeli city of Safed on Sept. 18.
“Israel treats wounded Syrians and saves their lives while [Syrian President Bashar] Assad continues to massacre his people,” said Labwani.
On his visit, Labwani was accompanied by Israeli-American businessman Moti Kahana, who is involved in humanitarian efforts for the victims of the Syrian civil war.
“I am filled with appreciation for the dedicated medical care the Ziv Medical Center has afforded wounded Syrians, my countrymen, who have been wounded in the war,” Labwani said, according to Israel Hayom. “This a touching humanitarian gesture, an opening for bringing people closer together and for the hope of peace in quieter days.”
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IDF beefs up security in the south ahead of High Holidays
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) The Israel Defense Forces placed soldiers and Iron Dome missile defense battery teams along the Israel-Gaza border on high alert Thursday ahead of Rosh Hashanah. Defense officials, however, stressed that Israel had no concrete indication that Hamas plans to violate the cease-fire over the High Holidays.
Five Color Red alerts sounded across the Hof Ashkelon and Shaar Hanegev regional councils on Thursday, placing the area’s residents on edge. The IDF confirmed that all five warnings were false alarms, most likely triggered by light weaponry fire within Gaza. Nevertheless, the military urged public vigilance.
In a meeting with mayors and community leaders on Thursday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “The Islamic State group, Hezbollah, Hamas—we are not without our challenges, but God willing we will overcome them all. We have proven that ability since the early days of Zionism.”
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Israeli official says Syria still has chemical weapons
(JNS.org) Syria is holding onto hidden stashes of chemical weapons despite publicly giving away its weapons after international pressure, an Israeli official said Thursday.
Some of the weapons that Syria still possesses are missile warheads, air-dropped bombs, and rocket-propelled grenades loaded with sarin and other toxins, according to Israeli intelligence.
“There is, to my mind, still in the hands of Syria a significant residual capability… that could be used in certain circumstances and could be potentially very serious,” the anonymous Israeli official told Reuters.
This week, international diplomats said Syria revealed an undeclared research laboratory equipped to produce the ricin poison.
The Israeli official gave no indication that there is a current possibility for the Islamic State terror group to obtain such chemical weapons. But the official said, “I would not be surprised if they are interested, though, in receiving them.”
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‘Impressive’ remains of Byzantine monastery unearthed near Jerusalem
(JNS.org) Israeli archaeologists said they unearthed an “impressive” monastery that produced industrial-sized outputs of olive oil and wine in the foothills south of the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh near Jerusalem.
According to the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), during a survey of cisterns found in the area, archaeologists came across a cave opening and the tops of several walls. After the excavation, they found a large compound that was divided into two regions—industrial and residential areas. In the industrial area, remarkably well-preserved olive and wine presses were discovered, and in the residential area a colorful mosaic adorned with grapes and flowers was found.
While a church has not yet been found by the archaeologists, all the evidence seems to indicate that the compound was inhabited by monks who made a living from producing olive oil and wine on an industrial scale.
“The impressive construction, the dating to the Byzantine period, the magnificent mosaic floors, window and roof tile artifacts, as well as the agricultural-industrial installations inside the dwelling compound are all known to us from numerous other contemporary monasteries,” said Irina Zilberbod, an IAA archaeologist.
“It is possible to reconstruct a scenario in which monks resided in a monastery that they established, made their living from the agricultural installations and dwelled in the rooms and carried out their religious activities,” she said.
According to the archaeologists, the monastery closed around the beginning of the Islamic period in the 7th century CE.
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Pope Francis, Jewish leaders mark Rosh Hashanah and discuss Mideast Christians
(JNS.org) Pope Francis on Wednesday hosted a delegation of 40 Jewish leaders to mark the upcoming Rosh Hashanah holiday and to discuss pressing issues for the Jewish and Christian communities.
“We want to share with the pope our message of peace and prosperity for the New Year,” said Claudio Epelman, executive director of the Latin American Jewish Congress and the World Jewish Congress (WJC) official in charge of relations with the Vatican, according to Vatican Radio.
During the meeting, the pontiff brought up the persecution and mass slaughter of Christians in the Middle East.
“Christians are being expelled from the region. They are persecuted, not liked, discriminated against. You (the Jews) suffered from that in the past, and we (the Christians) are suffering from it today in parts of the world,” Pope Francis said.
In a press conference following the meeting, WJC President Ronald S. Lauder said the Islamic State terror group’s tagging of Christian houses in Iraq and Syria with the letter N for “Nassarah”—a term used for Christians in the Koran—is “no different from the yellow star of David which the Nazis obliged Jews to wear to separate them from the others.”
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Jewish group partners with IsraAID to help Iraqi Christians, Yazidis
(JNS.org) The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is partnering with the Israeli international relief organization IsraAID to help deliver urgent humanitarian aid to beleaguered Christian and Yazidi refugees fleeing the Islamic State terror group.
“As American Jews, we are proud to assist, together with our Israeli partner, IsraAID, in offering relief to the thousands of Christian and Yazidi refugees fleeing the brutality of ISIS and seeking shelter among Iraqi Kurds,” said AJC Executive Director David Harris.
AJC said it will provide funds to help cover the expenses associated with the distribution of hygiene kits, mattresses, blankets, kitchen utensils, and clothing.
Founded in 2001, IsraAID is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that has provided disaster and long-term relief to threatened communities in places such as Jordan, Haiti, Japan, and South Sudan.
According to Iraqi Chaldean Catholic leader Patriarch Sako, more than 10,000 Christians have been killed in Iraq by Islamic State and some 170,000 have been expelled from their traditional homeland in the Nineveh Plains region.
In August, the United States launched airstrikes against Islamic State and provided logistical and humanitarian support to persecuted Christians and Yazidis. The U.S. is currently attempting to forge a regional and international coalition to confront the jihadist threat.
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