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1. Report: Obama to Mediate Israel-PA Meeting
by Maayana Miskin
Talks between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas will begin in under a month with help from a new moderator – United States President Barack Obama. So reports the American television news network Fox News, based on an exclusive interview with President Shimon Peres.
Peres told Fox that the three-way meeting is expected to take place at the United Nations compound in New York.
In advance of the meeting, Israeli, American, and European officials continue to talk regarding the PA's demand that Israel freeze construction in Jewish communities in Judea, Samaria, and Jerusalem. The PA has warned that it will not begin negotiations as long as Jews are allowed to build in areas that the PA claims as the site of a future Arab state.
The PA is backed by the U.S. and the E.U., both of which have pressured Israel to halt construction.
When it comes to the proposed building freeze, Netanyahu “knows he must do it,” Peres said. The prime minister “is aware of the choice, and he knows there is no chance, no escape, no alternative to go ahead and make peace,” he stated.
If negotiations between Israel and the PA resume, they will not include Hamas, Peres said. Hamas became part of the PA leadership after winning the most recent PA elections, but later split from the Fatah-led PA after staging a violent coup in Gaza. Currently, Hamas rules Gaza, while the Fatah-led PA controls Arab towns in Judea and Samaria.
2. Gaza Heats Up: Rockets Fired, Shots at Sea
by Maayana Miskin
The “Color Red” rocket warning system sounded in Sderot and surrounding communities on Monday night for the second night in a row as Gaza terrorists resumed their attacks. Terrorists in northern Gaza fired two projectiles at communities in southern Israel.
It was not immediately clear if the weapons used in the attack were rockets or mortar shells. No injuries or damage have been reported.
Gaza terrorists have stepped up their attacks on Israeli civilians living near Gaza over the past several days. In addition, terrorists have targeted soldiers patrolling near the Gaza security barrier, and civilian workers in the area.
The increasingly frequent attacks follow months of relative quiet after the Cast Lead counterterror offensive in Gaza in December and January.
On Monday afternoon, an Israeli navy ship fired on a Gaza boat after it failed to heed repeated calls to stop. The shots caused a fire aboard the small ship.
Sailors and Gaza fishermen worked together to extinguish the blaze. Gaza Arabs reported that one man was injured in the attack.
Gaza residents said that the boat in question was a fishing vessel, and those on board were civilians. Israeli naval officers expressed skepticism, pointing out that similar “fishing boats” had been used in previous attacks, and that the blaze aboard the boat proved that it had been carrying some sort of highly flammable material.
3. Seven 'Cast Lead' Fighters to Get Medals
by Maayana Miskin
Seven soldiers who fought in the Cast Lead counterterrorism operation in Gaza will get medals for their bravery, IDF officials announced Monday. IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi has approved the list of awards to be given.
Of the seven men scheduled to get awards, three are captains and one is a civilian member of the IDF reserves.
The awards were given based on criteria including: commitment to the mission, seeking to confront the enemy, unusual courage and bravery, exposing oneself to danger, taking the initiative, demonstrating calm in the face of danger, demonstrating leadership under fire, and setting a personal example for others.
Commanders of troops that fought in Cast Lead submitted their recommendations for awards based on what they witnessed in battle. The recommendations were forwarded to a committee, which investigated the candidates and submitted a final list to Ashkenazi.
Two soldiers will receive their awards from their Command head, three others will receive awards from their Division Commander, and two will receive awards from their Brigade Commander.
Cast Lead began in December of 2008, and concluded three weeks later in January 2009. The operation began after years of terrorist rocket and mortar shell attacks on Israeli communities near Gaza. It targeted Hamas terrorists and infrastructure in Gaza.
4. Lieberman Warns: No Unilateral PA State Moves
by Maayana Miskin
Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman met with Quartet envoy Tony Blair and European Union representative Javier Solana on Monday. Lieberman expressed support for talks with the Palestinian Authority, but warned against unilateral attempts to establish a PA state in Judea and Samaria.
If the PA tries to make unilateral moves without reaching a diplomatic agreement with Israel, “Israel will respond,” the foreign minister said.
Lieberman also cautioned Blair and Solana regarding deadlines in Israel-PA negotiations. Setting target dates has led to disaster in the past, he said, as missed deadlines create disappointment and frustration, which lead to conflict.
Previous internationally backed peace initiatives, such as the 2002 Roadmap for Peace and the 2007 Annapolis conference, have attempted to solve the conflict between Israel and surrounding Arab nations within one or two years.
To read the rest of this important story, click here!
5. Second Generation Teenage Terrorist Killed in Attack at Beit El
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
A teenage terrorist, son of a senior member of the Al Aqsa Brigades terrorist branch of the Fatah party, was killed and two others were wounded in an attack near Beit El in Samaria late Monday night. No Israelis were wounded.
Border Police spotted the trio approaching the David neighborhood in Beit El, located north of Jerusalem, with firebombs. The policemen opened fire, killing the young terrorist and wounding the other two, who escaped.
The “second generation” of terrorists includes tens of thousands of youth who were born during or after the first Intifada in the late 1980s and the 1990s. The young terrorists have learned in PA schools that teach incitement against Israel, and that all of Israel should be under Arab sovereignty.
Palestinian Authority sources identified the teenager in Monday night’s attempted attack as Mohammed Naif, age 17. The youth's father, Ridayh Naif, was an Al Aqsa terrorist leader who was killed at the beginning of the Oslo War, also known as the Second Intifada, nine years ago.
An IDF helicopter evacuated the young attacker to the Hadassah Ein Karem Medical Center in Jerusalem, where he later died of his wounds. The International Media East Media Center (IMEMC) reported that the other two terrorists suffered bullet wounds in their legs and arms but managed to escape.
Residents of Beit El have been under constant attacks by neighboring Arabs who hurl rocks and firebombs despite the impression of quiet reported in Israel’s mainstream media, which generally plays down or doesn’t report attacks unless they cause injuries or heavy property damage to Jews.
Residents of the David neighborhood said that the frequent attacks occasionally include rifle fire aimed at their homes.
An escalation of attacks also was reported in western Samaria on the highway between Kfar Saba and Ginot/Karnei Shomron and Kedumim. One security official in the area said that four firebombs were thrown at a Jewish vehicle last week and that rock-throwing terrorists hit his car recently and narrowly missed his wife’s car twice.
6. Jihadist Chatter Focuses on Attacking UN Troops
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
New jihadist chatter focuses on the vulnerability of United Nations personnel in Syria and Lebanon, as well as Westerners in Saudi Arabia. The online discussion is over whether opening a new jihad front against "Crusaders" in relatively peaceful Muslim countries is advisable at this time.
According to a report released Monday by the Institute of Terrorism Research and Response (ITRR), the communications discussed targeting options regarding the U.N. troops on peacekeeping missions in Syria and Lebanon. The jihadists pointed out that the U.N. personnel move about freely in Syria, in the region of the Golan Heights and the Lebanon-Israel border, and that they are easily identifiable by their uniforms and marked vehicles. The communications also discussed "Crusader" military personnel "spread throughout" Saudi Arabia, probably in reference to foreign contractors.
ITRR analysts noted that the "targeting communications," ostensibly asking for input as to which targets are best, are not new. This type of communication is sometimes used to elicit useful targeting details from responsive jihad supporters on the ground, as well as to gauge support for certain attacks.
In this case, ITRR said, the terrorists are in a position to act on any intelligence shared privately in the wake of a discussion and that they are battle-tested and have military-level armaments. Aside from the named U.N. forces, ITRR said that Lebanese government facilities, Western organizations and NGOs are likely to be targets of terror.
In late July, it was noted, Al-Qaeda of Al-Sham (an area known as "Greater Syria" and encompassing Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Jordan) called for the unification of all jihadist groups in the region under the command of Osama Bin-Laden. The overarching goal, the Al-Qaeda affiliate organization said, would be to fight Israel and the United Nations.
ITRR concluded that increased terror activity aimed at Western interests can be expected inside Lebanon specifically, in "Greater Syria" more generally, as well as in Saud Arabia.
7. Rabbis: No Land Sales to Arabs
by Maayana Miskin
Several rabbis from both the hareidi-religious and religious-Zionist communities met in Jerusalem on Monday night to discuss the growing phenomenon of Jews selling property and land to Arabs. In Jerusalem, some Jewish neighborhoods are already 20 percent Arab, said organizer Aryeh King, and in the Galilee, foreign Arab investors have been buying valuable farmland.
[weJe Email readers, please click here to view the video report.
Others who spoke noted that the problem of Arab influx into Jewish cities is present throughout the country, from towns near the Lebanon border to Israel's south.
Who is Wiser than G-d?
Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the Chief Rabbi of Tzfat, said that the Torah clearly prohibits selling property in the land of Israel to non-Jews. “What will happen if I sell? Hashem said it's forbidden to sell!” Rabbi Eliyahu said. “Who is wiser than G-d?”
Those who criticize the refusal to sell to Arabs are hypocrites, he continued. They profess liberal values, but select neighborhoods without residents born in Ethiopia or Russia, and without religious neighbors, he said. Kibbutzim (cooperative communities) do not allow Arab members, he noted.
The State of Israel itself recognizes that it is dangerous for Jews and Arabs to live together, and therefore built the Judea and Samaria separation barrier, he added.
Rabbi Eliyahu told those present not to be afraid to voice their beliefs openly. He himself was investigated by Attorney General Menachem Mazuz for telling residents of Tzfat not to sell or rent property to Arabs, he said. However, after questioning, Mazuz determined that he had the legal right to give rulings according to Jewish law.
"It is permissible to give rulings in Jewish law... Ladies and gentleman, we have a verdict from the Attorney General, we are allowed to rule according to Jewish law,” Rabbi Eliyahu joked.
There is no need to break the law or to cause upset in order to keep Jewish law, he said. There are ways to convince Jews not to sell to Arabs, and to convince Arabs who come to Jewish towns to make trouble to leave, all in “an intelligent and legal manner,” he said.
Arabs who have already purchased Jewish property must be told politely that they should leave, he said. The Koran explains that the land of Israel is meant for the Jews, and Arab Muslims in Israel should be told to respect that, he said.
Not a Question of Desperation
Organizer Aryeh King shared examples of Jews who sold property to Arabs. The sellers did not act out of desperation, but rather, wanted to make more money in order to become rich, he said.
In one case, he said, a Jewish family in Pisgat Zeev in northern Jerusalem was one of the first in that neighborhood to sell to Arabs. A short time later, they lost all of the money they had earned from the sale in the collapse of the Heftzibah construction company.
Another seller sold his Jerusalem apartment to an Arab before leaving for a different Jewish neighborhood, King said. The man in question sells property in religious communities, he added.
Arab buyers are able to give better offers than their Jewish counterparts due to foreign backing, King explained. He named specific Saudi organizations involved in buying Jewish land in Israel, and said that such organizations make no attempt to conceal their activities.
A Critical Hour
Rabbi/Knesset Member Michael Ben-Ari (National Union) warned that the Jewish people is facing “a critical hour for our presence in the land of Israel.” Israelis are not the only ones facing a coordinated attempt to buy land, he said. “It's a worldwide problem.”
Arab Muslims are not buying Jewish properties at random due to their own need for housing, he said. “Let's not delude ourselves,” he told the audience. The buyers are part of an organized campaign to buy the land of Israel for Islam.
Jews have no right to sell the land of Israel to foreigners, he said, as the land of Israel is public property, shared by the Jewish nation.
