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Trump Envoy: ‘We Can’t Judaize what History & Archaeology Show’

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From left, Ambassador David Friedman, envoy Jason Greenblatt, and Trump adviser Jared Kushner meet Prime Minister Netanyahu and Israel's Ambassador to the US Ron Dermer (Matty Stern/U.S. Embassy Jerusalem)

In response to PA criticism of U.S. attendance at a City of David event, Jason Greenblatt tells Palestinians: “We can acknowledge it and you can stop pretending it isn’t true!”

By: WIN Staff

In an additional sign of the Trump administration’s recognition of the Jewish people’s connection to Jerusalem, U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman and Special Representative for International Negotiations Jason Greenblatt attended a ceremony Sunday inaugurating archaeological finds at the Path of the Pilgrims.

“On the slope of the City of David south to the Temple Mount, where the Kidron valley and the Hinnom Valley meet, a 2,000-year-old road was discovered just a few years ago,” writes Travelujah, a Holy Land travel group.

The event has been organized by the Ir David (City of David) Foundation, also known as El-AD, which refers to itself as a non-profit organization “dedicated to the preservation and development of the Biblical City of David and its environs.”

Greenblatt rejected criticism leveled by the Palestinian Authority (PA) that the U.S. government was cooperating with Israeli efforts to Judaize Jerusalem.

The U.S. envoy tweeted that the event is “historic” and that the PA accusation is “ludicrous,” adding that “we can’t ‘Judaize’ what history/archeology show. We can acknowledge it and you can stop pretending it isn’t true!”

“This magnificent pool was constructed 2,000 years ago during the days of King Herod, in Jerusalem’s glorious building tradition,” says Travelujah.

“This grand pool served as an important meeting point for Jerusalem’s pilgrims, who would arrive in the city to visit the Temple Mount on the three major Jewish holidays: Passover, the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkoth), and the Festival of Weeks (Shavuot),” it adds.

On Friday, Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Saeb Erekat condemned a statement by Greenblatt, in which he said that he prefers to call Israeli settlements “neighborhoods and cities,” reports WAFA, the official PA news agency.

“During a meeting with a delegation of U.S. academics, clerks and representatives of civil society, Erekat said Greenblatt’s statement was incitement against all those who attended the recent Manama workshop for Middle East peace,” according to WAFA.

The PA boycotted the workshop, though it was aimed at economically developing the Palestinian territories. (World Israel News)

Read more at: worldisraelnews.com

Syria Claims Israel Attacked in Damascus and Homs

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Syria’s air defense systems intercept missiles south of the capital. Four reported dead, including a baby

By: Elad Benari

Syrian state television reported on Sunday night that the country’s air defense systems intercepted several missiles south of Damascus.

A Syrian military source said the anti-aircraft systems were activated in response to Israeli air strikes originating from Lebanese airspace.

Syria’s official news agency, SANA, reported that four people were killed in the attack, including a baby, and several others were injured.

According to the report, the missiles targeted the outskirts of the Syrian capital and the city of Homs.

The Al-Mayadeen television network, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, reported that one of the targets attacked by the missiles was al-Kisswa, which according to foreign reports has been attacked several times by Israel and which reportedly houses Iranian warehouses.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the attacks were carried out by Air Force and Navy vessels.

According to the report, the attacks targeted the Syrian army, Iranian militias, and Hezbollah in the suburbs of Damascus and Homs. It was also reported that at least ten targets were attacked in the Damascus area.

Several weeks ago, Syrian media reported that the country’s defense systems intercepted a number of missiles fired from Israel into southern Syria.

According to reports, the Israeli attack targeted the town of Tell al-Hara, located in the Daraa region, an area considered a strategic point overlooking the Golan Heights.

It was also reported that there were no injuries in the attack but that damage was caused to buildings. In addition, Syria claimed that Israel used technological means to disrupt radar systems during the attack. (INN)

Trump Meets Kim at DMZ, Crosses Into North Korea

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Wikimedia Commons

Donald Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to enter North Korea Sunday, stepping across the border during a meeting at the demilitarized zone with Kim Jong Un.

By: William Gallo

After shaking hands with Kim at the Panmunjom border village, Trump walked across the military demarcation line separating the two Koreas. Kim and Trump then crossed the border back into South Korea.
 
“Good to see you again,” Kim told Trump. “I never expected to see you in this place.”
 
“Stepping across that line was a great honor,” said Trump, who invited Kim to the United States for another meeting.

Trump had said Saturday the meeting would only last two minutes. But what was expected to be a brief meeting turned into an impromptu summit lasting about 50 minutes.
 
When Trump emerged from the meeting, he announced he and Kim had agreed to form teams to restart working level talks.
 
“They will meet over the next few weeks and they’re going to start a process and we’ll see what happens,” Trump said. “Speed is not the object…we want a really a comprehensive, good deal.”

Later on Twitter, Trump referred to his meeting with Kim as “wonderful” and said standing on the “soil of North Korea” was a “great honor.”

It is the third meeting between Kim and Trump, following talks in Singapore last June and in Vietnam in February. Though the DMZ summit raises hopes of revived nuclear talks, it is not clear how much progress was made.

Trump announced U.S. special envoy for North Korea Steve Biegun will continue to lead his negotiating team. Trump said North Korea “was also putting someone in charge who we know and who we like,” though he did not elaborate.
 
After the Singapore summit, Trump also announced his deputies would soon start working level negotiations. But those talks soon broke down over disagreements about how to pace sanctions relief with North Korean steps to dismantle its nuclear weapons.
 
“It’s where we were about 15 months ago,” says Vipin Narang, a nuclear expert and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “One step forward, two steps back. But this is one step forward.”
 
“Given where we were last week, it’s not nothing,” he added.

The disagreements between the U.S. and North Korea remain vast. Not only has North Korea not provided a list of its nuclear sites, Washington and Pyongyang have not even agreed on what the idea of denuclearization means.
 
In recent weeks, North Korea expressed increasing levels of anger at U.S. refusal to ease sanctions. Trump prefers a “big deal” under which North Korea commits to completely abandoning his nuclear weapons before relaxing any sanctions.
 
In their public comments Sunday, neither Trump nor Kim gave any indication of softening their stances.
 
“There was no sign that the two sides were prepared to address the underlying substantive problems, like differences over sanctions relief, that have made diplomacy so difficult,” says Mintaro Oba, a former State Department official and Korea specialist.  

“Unless the working-level negotiators have a mandate to try new, more constructive approaches to these problems, it’s hard to see what they can achieve,” he adds.

U.S. officials have given mixed signals about whether they are open to an incremental approach, whereby Pyongyang would give up its nuclear program in stages in exchange for reciprocal steps by Washington.

Trump visited the DMZ with South Korean President Moon Jae-in. Though the three leaders did not make any public statement together, they briefly appeared together before Trump and Kim met for private talks.

At an earlier military briefing with Moon at a DMZ lookout point, Trump said the demilitarized zone used to be “very, very dangerous…but after our first summit, all the danger went away.”

Trump also defended his North Korea policy and blasted media that have questioned whether he should meet with Kim, given that talks with North Korea are stalled.  

“I say that for the press, they have no appreciation for what we’ve done,” Trump said.

While many warn the latest summit could look like the U.S. is moving toward normalizing friendly relations with a brutal dictator, South Korea’s President Moon said the meeting was an important step toward building trust with North Korea.

“We have taken one big step forward,” Moon said. “The…Korean people have been given hope thanks to today.”

But Bonnie Glaser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies said that for Trump, stepping inside North Korea might not signify any change in policy.

Trump, she said, delights in doing things no president has done before.” (VOA News)

Ethiopian Israeli Youth Shot Dead by Cop in Haifa

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Salomon Tikka
Salomon Tikka

This morning, a police officer who was shot Salomon Tikka in Kiryat Haim, near Haifa, will be brought before a judge. He was arrested and questioned yesterday following the shooting, and the police said that the policeman got caught up in the middle of a fight between youths.

Tikka’s friends said he was shot by a policeman who was chasing him. Police said the policeman was not on duty and was with his wife and three small children in a playground when he noticed a fight in the street between several young men. According to the police, the officer tried to separate the sides. After identifying himself as a policeman, the youths began to throw stones at him. He felt threatened and fired his gun. According to the police, the policeman was injured in the upper part of his body and had to be taken to the hospital. Police internal investigators arrived at the scene, gathered findings and decided to arrest the policeman.

Neighbors said the police arrived at the scene following a complaint about youths who threw stones at civilians. According to them, a policeman who was not in uniform came to the boys, introduced himself and pulled out a police officer’s card. Some of them said that the boy assaulted the policeman and so he fired his weapon.

The severe incident, which was reported at 8:00 pm to the Magen David Adom headquarters, took place near the Nirim club, where young Ethiopians are employed under the Beit Yatziv Youth Center, two of whom reported that two policemen approached them, “The policeman aimed the gun at me but I moved and the bullet hit my friend,” said the boy.

Sami Broka, director of the youth center who knew Salomon Tikka well, said: “It’s hard for me to talk, I know him from the youth center since he was a small boy, and then to get a phone call and to hear that he was shot. I hope that they will really investigate this case properly, because it is not right that a boy is so easily shot. ”

Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan referred to the shooting in Haifa, in which a young Ethiopian member was shot to death by a plainclothes policeman after he felt the danger to his life. Minister Erdan expressed regret over the incident, which adds on to a series of cases in which it was claimed that the police are exercising excessive force against members of the community, and called on the Department for the Investigation of Police to investigate it quickly and with full transparently.

In a series of tweets published by the minister, he expressed “deep shock and great sorrow at the difficult incident in Kiryat Haim, where a Ethiopian teen was killed as a result of the gunfire of a policeman.” The minister added that “an incident in which a person finds his death by a policeman is difficult and severe, And to ensure that all necessary steps are followed and that all lessons will be learned. ” Arden said that he “was informed by the police commissioner that the Police Investigation Department in the Ministry of Justice received a report from the police immediately that its representatives arrived at the scene of the incident and opened an investigation.” In response, the minister added that he expects the Police Investigation Department and the Justice Ministry to conduct the investigation and reach conclusions In connection with the details of the difficult incident with full transparency and transparency to the public. “Finally, Erdan expressed regret over the young man’s death.

Breaking: After Months of Debate Netayahu and Smotrich Decide to Close Down Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv

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Sde Dov Airport: Shutterstock
Sde Dov Airport: Shutterstock

Following in-depth discussions with Transportation Minister Bezalel Smotrich, legal advisers and professional elements, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today decided that there is no way to halt the evacuation of Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv. Any attempt to do so would cost the State of Israel billions of shekels and cause the state heavy damage.

At the same time, out of responsibility for the development of Eilat, Prime Minister Netanyahu – in conjunction with Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon and Transportation Minister Smotrich, and with the approval of the Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit – directed that a NIS 400 million development plan be submitted to the Cabinet within three weeks. Finance Minister Kahlon and his staff promised to designate the budgetary source for the plan.

It was also decided that a ministerial team, to be chaired by Prime Minister Netanyahu, will verify implementation of the plan to develop Eilat.

The Ministers agreed on ensuring the continuity of air transportation to Eilat via Ben-Gurion International Airport at the same frequency that previously existed between Eilat and Sde Dov. After extensive discussions with the Minister of Transport, the legal advisors and the professionals, it was determined that there was no way to stop the evacuation of Sde Dov and that any attempt would cost the state billions of shekels and cause the state heavy damages.

These decisions join a series of decisions and benefits formulated for the benefit of passengers and special incentives for doctors to work in Eilat.

Benefits for patients from Eilat who must travel to  the center region to receive medical treatment will include funding for free taxi from Ben Gurion Airport to the hospital and back to the airport. Chronic patients – funding a complete coverage that will include costs of taxi from their homes to Ramon Airport, cost of the flight and taxi to the hospital and accommodation during their treatments.

Netanyahu on Bahrain Break-Though for Israel’s Normalization in the Middle East

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Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa Netahyahu

Jerusalem – Days after historic “Peace to Prosperity” conference at Bahrain capital city Manama which was attended by over 300 business leaders from Middle East Arab states as well and from Israel and the Palestinian Authority, Prime Minister Netanyahu notes ground breaking statements made by Arab officials who openly acknowledge the Jewish State and a permanent and integral part of the region.

At the start of this morning’s weekly Cabinet meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this morning made the following remarks: “I would like you to hear what the Foreign Minister of Bahrain, Khalid Al Khalifa said last week: ‘Israel is a country of the Middle East. Israel is part of the heritage of this whole region. The Jewish People have a place amongst us. The Israeli public needs to trust that there are countries in the region that do want to have peace and do encourage the Palestinians to do it.’ This is a very important statement. It is the direct result of our policy, which is turning Israel into a rising regional and global power.

At a time when we are drawing closer to the Arab states, and are gradually normalizing relations with them, and a time when we praised the Bahrain conference that was designed first and foremost to lead to economic prosperity for the Palestinians and the entire region, at the same time, the Palestinian Authority repeatedly attacked the conference in contradiction of their own interests.

Recently, the Palestinian Authority has even arrested a Palestinian businessman who dared attend the conference in Bahrain. They later released him due to American pressure. His only crime was that he attended an economic conference designed to advance the Palestinian economy.

One thing is clear from all this. The Palestinian Authority is determined to continue the conflict at any price, including that of the well-being of the Palestinians themselves. This is not how those who want to advance peace should act. In contrast, we are continuing to advance ties with the Arab world, including today, and this serves everyone.

Regarding Gaza, we well understand the plight of the residents of the area adjacent to the Gaza Strip and we are working to ease conditions for them as much as possible. Last week we imposed heavy sanctions on Hamas including halting fuels. If we need to, we will employ much harsher measures. We are taking these actions in consultation with all security elements.

I am not impressed by the propaganda of so-called experts. Many of them are offering us advice that they themselves would not implement if they were in power. Let us not be confused, they would be the first to criticize us after we set out on a wide-ranging military operation, which we may yet have to do. Therefore, I am guided solely by one thing – the security of the State of Israel.

 

Read more on death threats and arrests of Palestinian businessmen who took part in the Peace to Prosperity conference in Bahrain.

Palestinian Stands Trial in Germany for Murder of ‘Rich Jew’

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A witness in the trial of the Palestinian accused of killing Michael Riecher testified that the suspect accused the victim of “annihilating his country.”

By: WIN Staff

In Baden-Württemberg, Germany, a Palestinian identified only as “Iyad B.” in the media stands trial for the brutal murder of Michael Riecher, a German real estate investor whom the suspect reportedly referred to as a “rich Jew” who “annihilated [his] country,” reported the Jerusalem Post.

According to a report in the German newspaper Schwarzwälder Bote, the witness who testified to these comments on Wednesday claimed that the Palestinian suspect’s hatred of Jews was his motive for the murder, which occurred in November. Investigators identified Riecher’s cause of death as strangulation.

Though it is unclear if Riecher was even Jewish, he played a major role in renovating the sanctuary of a synagogue in Germany.

In 2014, Free Democratic Party MP Michael Theurer was quoted as saying, “If Michael Riecher had not taken over the financial risk of the property developer, we would not be sitting in a rock-solid, renovated sanctuary today.”

The murder plot was allegedly hatched by Mohammed Omran Albakr, a 28-year-old from Syria. Schwarzwälder Bote apparently hailed Albakr in 2016 as a model refugee after his 2015 arrival in Germany.

Riecher’s murder comes amid growing anti-Semitism in Germany and Europe at large. (World Israel News)

Read more at: worldisraelnews.com

 

 

 

U.S. Warning: Iranian Hackers Hitting Gov Agencies With Cyber Attacks

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The American government sent an internal warning to federal agencies on Friday disclosing a rise “in malicious cyber activity” by Iranian regime hackers who are threatening sensitive computer systems, according to a copy of the warning obtained by the Free Beacon.

By: Adam Kredo

“The US Government has confirmed a recent rise in malicious cyber activity directed at US industries and government agencies by Iranian regime actors and proxies,” an e-mail sent to employees of the Environmental Protection Agency reads. “Rising tensions between the US and Islamic Republic of Iran has resulted in targeted cyber campaigns that use destructive ‘wiper’ attacks.  These attacks are designed to delete and wipe data rather than the more common ransomware tactics of stealing data or money.”

The hack attacks come as tensions between the U.S. and Iran hit a boiling point following Tehran’s downing of an American drone in the Persian Gulf region. While Iran has always attempted to hack American systems, the government-wide warning could signify the Islamic Republic is becoming more emboldened on the cyber front.

“The ‘wiper’ attacks can be carried out through spear phishing, password spraying and credential stuffing. What initially appears as an account compromise and data loss, can quickly turn into the entire network being compromised or destroyed,” according to the government warning.

“The Environmental Protection Agency, which sent out a warning to its employees, is working with the Department of Homeland Security and other Intelligence and Cybersecurity communities to obtain and share information and to identify ways to protect EPA,” the e-mail states.

The U.S. also has conducted cyber espionage operations against Iran with varying degrees of success. Following President Donald Trump’s decision to abort a military strike on Iranian targets as payback for the drone incident, the U.S. reportedly launched a series of cyber attacks on Iran, which the country’s military leaders claimed had been thwarted.

Government agencies have warned employees to be aware of the threats and take appropriate precautions. (Washington Free Beacon)

Trump to Be First US President to Enter North Korea as He Prepares to Meet Kim Jung Un at DMZ 

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Donald Trump may become the first U.S. president to set foot in North Korea when he visits the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas on Sunday.

By: William Gallo

Trump has invited North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for a quick meeting at the DMZ’s Panmunjom border village. Before landing in Seoul, Trump said he would feel “very comfortable” stepping across the border into North Korea.

“Virtually a handshake,” Trump said of the possible meeting. “But that’s OK. A handshake means a lot.”

Though it isn’t clear the meeting will go beyond a photo opportunity, many hope a DMZ handshake could restart stalled nuclear talks.

Speaking alongside Trump on Sunday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said “he could truly feel the flower of peace was blossoming on the Korean peninsula” when he saw Trump’s invitation to Kim.

“I believe that picture in itself would represent a historic event and also would be a significant milestone in terms of the peace process,” Moon said of a DMZ meeting. 

Kim has not publicly responded to the invitation, which Trump sent via Twitter. North Korea’s vice foreign minister on Saturday called Trump’s offer an “interesting suggestion.”

It would be the third summit between Kim and Trump, following meetings in Singapore last June and in Vietnam in February. Whereas those meetings were held at hotels, Panmunjom would provide a much more dramatic setting.

With its iconic light-blue buildings that straddle the North-South border, Panmunjom is the only place along the 250-kilometer-long DMZ where North and South Korean soldiers can stand face-to-face.

Since the meeting in Hanoi, North Korea has not responded to U.S. requests to resume working-level talks. North Korea is unhappy with the U.S. refusal to relax sanctions in exchange for limited steps to dismantle its nuclear program.

Given that neither side has publicly softened their negotiating position, progress may be unlikely for now.

“It’s hard to see much more coming out of this other than showing the world that Trump and Kim are still on speaking terms after Hanoi,” said Vipin Narang, a nuclear expert and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Though international attention may focus on a possible Trump-Kim meeting at the DMZ, a key indicator of progress will be whether North Korea agrees to meet with Steve Biegun, the U.S. special representative for North Korea.

U.S. officials, including Biegun, have given mixed signals about whether they are open to an incremental approach, whereby Pyongyang would give up its nuclear program in stages in exchange for reciprocal steps by Washington.

Trump wants Kim to agree to a “big deal,” under which Kim agrees to completely abandon his nuclear program.

The U.S. refusal to relax sanctions on North Korea has prevented South Korean President Moon from implementing inter-Korean projects.

“If Trump really wanted to send a signal to Kim that progress is still possible, he would cooperate with Seoul and allow for some of the inter-Korean economic cooperation to move forward,” says Jenny Town, a Korea specialist at the Stimson Center.

Moon on Sunday confirmed he would accompany Trump at the DMZ.

Some speculate that Kim may not show up at the DMZ to meet Trump.

“I think Kim has much more to gain with a no-show than showing up for another photo op, with nothing substantive gained,” says Sung-Yoon Lee, a Korea expert at Tufts University’s Fletcher School.

Instead, Lee speculates Kim may choose to have his sister Kim Yo Jong deliver a letter to Trump.

“Kim can dictate the terms and pace of engagement better with a no-show,” he says.

But Narang, the MIT professor, disagrees, saying Kim could exploit such a meeting to further bolster his reputation with his domestic audience.

“For Kim, the fact that Trump reached out — in some ways desperately on Twitter — may help him considerably at home,” Narang says.

If Kim does show up, Trump’s visit to the DMZ could well make history.

Though U.S. presidents frequently visit the DMZ during stops in South Korea, none has ever stepped across the border into North Korea. Though such a move would be historic, it’s not clear what it would mean practically, some analysts warn.

“President Trump delights in doing things no president has done before,” says Bonnie Glaser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. But for Trump, “a step inside North Korea might not signify any policy intentions whatsoever.” (VOA News)

Death Threats and Arrests of Palestinians Who Went to Bahrain

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Death Threats and Arrests of Palestinians Who Went to Bahrain
Social Media Poster Death Threats and Arrests of Palestinians Who Went to Bahrain

Hebron – Death threats and arrests of Palestinian businessmen who attended the Peace to Prosperity conference in Bahrain.

The Palestinian Authority and other terrorist groups are hunting private Palestinian business people who accepted invitation from the US administration to attend the Peace to Prosperity conference in Manama, capital of Bahrain last week.

In the early hours of the morning Palestinian police raided the home of businessman Salah Abu Miaala in Hebron and took him in for questioning. His crime – last week he flew to Manama to attended the Peace to Prosperity conference to which he was invited by U.S. White House organizers.

Not only are Palestinian businessmen who attended the Manama event being hunted down by the PA. Muhammad Massad who was invited, but, decided not to go, has now learned that the PA has hired professional hit-men to assassinate him in Haifa where he now resides with his family.

The head of the delegation of Palestinian businessmen to the Bahrain conference, Ashraf Jabari, strongly criticized the Palestinian Authority, which arrested members of the delegation: “There is no cause for detention, this is a violation of human rights…

“This detention and the conduct of the Palestinian Authority is illegal,” Jabari said. “There is no reason for arrest for participating in a conference, any conference. Abu Mazen is looking excuses to clash with the Americans and with Netanyahu and he wants the entire Palestinian people to line up with him. ”

The Palestinian businessman from Hebron also stated that Abu Miaala, who was arrested by the PA’s intelligence apparatus, is a cancer patient and his body is too weak to be held in detention. Jabari himself lives in Hebron in an area under Israeli control but intends to continue to enter Palestinian-controlled areas without fear of being arrested. “I am only afraid of Allah,” he stressed.

The Palestinian delegation to Bahrain included 12 Palestinians, some from the West Bank and some from Jerusalem. Since last night, Jabri has been sheltering in his home another businessman in Hebron, Ashraf Rhanem, whom the PA also tried to arrest when he returned to Bahrain. The Palestinian intelligence officers called him and and told him that he is wated for questioning, he called me and invited him to come and stay with me,” Jabari said.

Other Palestinian businessmen who took part in the workshop said they felt “very much in danger” and that they were experiencing threats from the Palestinian Authority and the social networks. “Salah came to the wedding of a family member yesterday, and then he disappeared,” Abu Miaala’s brother told Reuters news agency.

In recent days, anonymous Palestinian social networks have published the names of ten Palestinians who participated in a workshop initiated by the Americans.

Flyers circulating on Social Media Against Members of Palestinian Business Delegation
Flyers circulating on Social Media Against Members of Palestinian Business Delegation

Arab Affairs Expert Yoni Ben Menachem writes on his blog www.arabexpert.co.il

Following the criticism on the Palestinian street, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas ordered his security forces to take action against members of the Palestinian business delegation who went to the economic conference in Bahrain. The delegation returned to their homes in the West Bank at the end of the week.

General Majed Faraj’s general intelligence apparatus raided the home of businessman Salah Abu Miaala in the morning in the city of Hebron, arrested him and confiscated documents. Later, members of the General Security Service surrounded the house of another businessman Ashraf Ranem for three hours and were unable to arrest him. Following the intervention of IDF forces, they were forced to withdraw.

Sheikh Ashraf Jabari, head of the Palestinian delegation to Bahrain, also lives in Hebron, his home near the Tomb of the Patriarchs in the area under IDF control, and therefore the PA has refrained from trying to arrest him because it is a violation of the Hebron agreement.

Palestinian businessman Mohammed Massad from Jenin said he had received a warning from the Israeli security service that Majed Faraj’s general intelligence apparatus had tried to hire an Israeli criminal from Haifa to assassinate him while he was working in the city. Maדsad canceled his trip to Bahrain following a falling out and differences of opinion with the other members of the delegation, but the PA declared him a collaborator with Israel and a traitor.

Among the members of the Palestinian delegation did who travel to Bahrain, there is great disappointment with the US administration who invited them to take part in the conference knowing that this could place real threat on their lives. A member of the delegation said that the Americans promised members of the delegation protection against the PA’s harassment and attempts to harm them, and they expect the United States to keep those promises.

Sources in Fatah say that all the Palestinian businessmen who went to Bahrain in spite of the PA boycott of the conference are traitors and that they will be prosecuted and punished.

On the Palestinian street, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, who was unable to prevent the participation of the Arab states in the meeting in Bahrain and the travel of the Palestinian delegation there, is criticized for “we had to stop them before the trip and not after the facts,” a senior Fatah official said.

Fashion Designer Andrew Rosen Sells NYC Penthouse for $18.5M After Leaving CEO Slot

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Designer Andrew Rosen sold his penthouse in Manhattan for $18.5 million, after leaving his coveted job as CEO of the New York-based contemporary fashion label, Theory. Photo Credit: Shutterstock

Designer Andrew Rosen sold his penthouse in Manhattan for $18.5 million, after leaving his coveted job as CEO of the New York-based contemporary fashion label, Theory. Rosen sold his Greenwich Village apartment, at 130 West 12th Street, to Justin Korsant, Long Light Capital financier. He had purchased the home for $13 million in 2012, and listed it for $21.5 million in September 2018. Although he didn’t receive the full asking price, he did manage to profit over 42 percent on his investment.

As reported by The Real Deal, the handsome gain Rosen made on the sale can be attributed to the general increase in luxury residential prices in the Big Apple over the past seven years. Also, Rosen did a major renovation in the home, adding value, thanks to his interior designer wife Jenny Dyer.

Rosen retired as CEO of Theory in April, being replaced by the company’s chief operating officer, Dinesh Tandon. Rosen will, however, continue working with Theory as an advisor. Rosen had worked as the former CEO of Anne Klein and a Calvin Klein executive, when in 1997, he launched Theory with co-founder Elie Tahari. The company grew internationally and experienced so much success that in 2003, Link International purchased an 89% stake in Theory for $100 million. By the beginning of 2016, Theory had a total of 489 stores, with its headquarters still in NYC’s Meatpacking District.

Rosen’s penthouse boasted terraces connecting to all eight of the rooms. The terrace off the master suite was surrounded by tall trees, allowing for privacy, according to the listing. The home also featured a gym and a wood-burning fireplace in the living room.

The apartment is part of a posh five-building complex of condos and townhouses, named Greenwich Lane, where the former St. Vincent’s Hospital once was. The prewar building, developed by The Rudin Family, has been awarded the 2012 Sustainable Design Award by Global Green USA, as well as the LEED-NC Gold Certification from the US Green Building Council. Other well-known Greenwich Lane residents include Michael Kors, British fashion entrepreneur Tamara Mellon and German model Toni Garrn.

Now that Rosen has sold his Manhattan residence, it is not known if he will stay in the city and search for a new pad or move to one of his other homes. The retired CEO owns another house in Southampton, as well as a condo at the Four Seasons Residences at the Surf Club Miami, which he purchased in 2017 for $5 million.

Rosen’s listing agent was Leonard Steinberg of Compass. Brett Mitchell, also from Compass, represented the buyer. A spokesman for Rosen did not immediately comment.

Governor Andrew Cuomo visits the Western Wall

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Andrew Como Photo by The Western Wall Heritage Foundation
Andrew Como Photo by The Western Wall Heritage Foundation

Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo came with his daughters to visit the Western Wall and the Western Wall tunnels today.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo arrived this morning with his daughters to visit the Western Wall and the Western Wall Tunnels, during his visit to Israel.

Como, who lasted visited the Western Wall in March 2017, took part in a guided tour of the Western Wall Tunnels and the new excavations that the director of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, his guide Mordechai (Soli) Eliav, spoke of the history of the place and its importance to the Jewish people as the center of longing and yearning for Jerusalem.

The governor expressed his interest in the history of the Jews and their connection to this place and its heritage. The governor noted that his deep connection to the Jewish people passed from generation to generation and that his father, Mario Cuomo, was a true friend of the Israel.

The rabbi of the Western Wall and the holy sites, Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, received the governor and read with him chapter 21 of the Psalms and the governor placed a note between the stones of the Western Wall.

The rabbi of the Western Wall noted that New York is one of the most prominent Jewish centers in the world and expressed his appreciation to the Governor for his friendship with the Jewish people and the State of Israel.

The governor of New York signed the Guest Book of the Western Wall again, with his signature from two years ago: “I wish to pray for peace and brotherhood to all my friends.”

Lumber Liquidators Just Penalized Millions for Lying about Cancer-Causing Chinese-Made Floors

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The Democratic National Committee threw a Thursday fundraiser at the Miami home of the founder of Lumber Liquidators, which earlier this year was ordered to pay millions for lying to investors about selling formaldehyde-laden flooring imported from China. Photo Credit: Shutterstock

The Democratic National Committee threw a Thursday fundraiser at the Miami home of the founder of Lumber Liquidators, which earlier this year was ordered to pay millions for lying to investors about selling formaldehyde-laden flooring imported from China.

By: Brent Scher

The fundraiser at the home of Thomas Sullivan, a longtime Democratic donor who founded Lumber Liquidators, took place in between the DNC’s two presidential primary debates this week in Miami. It also takes place just four months after Sullivan’s former company agreed to pay a $33 million penalty to the Department of Justice for lying to investigators in the aftermath of an undercover 60 Minutes investigation into the “astonishingly high levels” of cancer-causing formaldehyde in its Chinese-made flooring.

Sullivan led Lumber Liquidators from 1994, when he founded the company, through 2017, when he resigned from the board of directors. He was featured in the 60 Minutes exposé, telling host Anderson Cooper that the many tests indicating formaldehyde in its Chinese-made products far above the legal limit were wrong.

The show’s investigators tested laminate flooring from stores across the country and found nearly all of it to be loaded with formaldehyde. They also traveled to China, where factories openly admitted using boards with high formaldehyde levels and falsely labeling them as compliant.

Sullivan was played footage from China by Cooper showing his suppliers admitting they were lying—Sullivan insisted he was completely unaware of the practice.

A 2016 Consumer Product Safety Commission investigation found that the company’s laminate flooring “gave off enough formaldehyde to irritate the eyes, nose and throat of many people” and “increased cancer risks.”

Lumber Liquidators agreed under Sullivan to pay out $36 million in a class-action lawsuit from the 760,000 customers who had bought the Chinese-made flooring.

The Department of Justice settlement says the company, under Sullivan’s leadership, lied about actions it took to make sure its product was safe. It “knowingly filed a false and misleading” report to the Securities and Exchange Commission denying allegations made on 60 Minutes, even though its own internal test results confirmed many of them.

The Department of Justice was also assured Lumber Liquidators “placed its executive management team with experienced executives who have displayed a commitment to building an ethical corporate culture.”

The full 60 Minutes investigation can be viewed on the show’s YouTube page.

Sullivan now runs competing company Cabinets To Go, which is being sued by Lumber Liquidators for violating an existing non-compete agreement.

The cash-strapped DNC said it’s hoping to raise “multiple hundreds of thousands of dollars” at the Sullivan-hosted fundraiser.

In 2013, Sullivan hosted a private $32,400-a-plate dinner with former president Barack Obama for the DNC. He has personally donated at least $94,000 to the national party in recent years.

The DNC did not respond to a request for comment on its relationship with Sullivan. (Washington Free Beacon)

Senate Approves Funds to Address Border Crisis; Ocasio-Cortez Blasts Decision

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The Senate on Wednesday approved bipartisan legislation to address the humanitarian crisis along the U.S.-Mexico border with more than $4 billion in supplemental funds and new requirements for the care of detained migrants, especially children.

By: Michael Bowman

The 84-8 vote came amid renewed scrutiny of the Trump administration’s treatment of minors in its custody and amid widespread revulsion over the deaths of a father and daughter from El Salvador who perished trying to cross the Rio Grande River into the United States.

“There is no longer any question that the situation along our southern border is a full-blown humanitarian and security crisis,” Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama said, adding that there was “no excuse” for delay in addressing the situation.

“Inaction is simply not an option for those who care about alleviating the suffering of desperate children and families seeking refuge in the United States,” Vermont Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy said.

The Republican-led Senate approved the bill after voting down a House version that also boosted funds for U.S. Customs and Border Protection and other federal agencies stretched to the breaking point by border arrivals totaling more than 100,000 a month, the highest numbers recorded in more than a decade.

Although broadly similar, the Senate version is less extensive in regulating the care of detained children. Unlike the House version, it provides $145 million for the Pentagon to assist in border operations.

To reach President Donald Trump’s desk, the Senate bill would need to pass the House. But majority-Democrats in the House have signaled they want changes to the bill and plan to introduce them Thursday. As a result, a bicameral committee is expected to be formed to try to hammer out a version that can pass both chambers. Time for swift action is growing short, as Congress will be in recess next week for America’s Independence Day holiday.

Speaking with reporters before departing the White House, Trump hailed legislative movement on border funding.

“I believe the House is going to be getting together with the Senate. Hopefully, they can get something done,” Trump said.

Earlier in the day, the president once again blamed Democrats for the border crisis, tweeting: “The Democrats should change the Loopholes and Asylum Laws so lives will be saved at our Southern Border. They said it was not a crisis at the Border, that it was all just manufactured.’ Now they admit that I was right – But they must do something about it. Fix the Laws NOW!”

On the Senate floor, Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer fired back.

“We can do something about this [crisis] if the president would stop playing the political game of blame, blame, blame,” Schumer said. “Mr. President, you are the president of the United States. You are head of the executive branch. You control what’s happening at the border.”

Schumer spoke alongside a blown-up photo, widely distributed by news organizations, of the drowned Salvadoran father and daughter, as reaction poured in across Capitol Hill and beyond.

“I don’t want to see another picture like that on the U.S. border,” Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said. “I hope that picture alone will catalyze this Congress, this Senate … to do something.”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has faced renewed criticism on Capitol Hill after news reports emerged earlier this week of squalid living conditions at a CBP facility in Texas that houses detained migrant children.

A Senate panel on Wednesday pressed administration officials on the subject.

“What are you doing to actually make sure that children are getting the care and the sanitary conditions and the food that they need?” New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan asked.

The Border Patrol’s chief of law enforcement operations, Brian Hastings, responded that detention facilities are being upgraded with shower facilities and increased medical care. He added that more funds are being devoted to basic supplies, such as diapers and baby formula. (VOA)

Trump, Putin Meet Friday to Discuss ‘Issues of Strategic Stability’

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Iran, Syria, North Korea, Afghanistan and Venezuela will be the likely topics of discussion between the world leaders.

By: Batya Jerenberg

President Trump will be meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Japan, Kremlin sources confirmed on Wednesday.

In their first get-together in almost a year, the world leaders will discuss an array of global hot spots, said Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, according to the Interfax news agency. These include as many as five countries which are “issues of strategic stability,” he said, listing Afghanistan, Venezuela, North Korea, Syria and Iran.

Iran and Syria were the subject of Tuesday’s trilateral meeting in Jerusalem between the American, Israeli and Russian national security advisers.

At a press conference following the discussions, Russia’s national security secretary Nikolai Patrushev defended Iran, calling the Islamic Republic “an ally and partner of ours” and saying it was “helping to stabilize the situation” in Syria. He also flatly rejected the American labeling of Iran as the main threat to global security.

Trump’s antipathy towards the Iranian regime is well-known, and tensions have been on the rise over recent weeks between the two administrations.

Most recently, the Iranians shot down an American surveillance drone which it claimed had infringed upon its airspace, a claim the U.S. denied. On Monday, Trump signed an executive order slapping sanctions on senior Iranian figures, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The Russians and Americans do agree with Israel that Iran should get out of Syria – just as all foreign parties should. This includes Turkish forces as Ankara is holding onto a chunk of Syrian territory along its border.

A senior American administration official confirmed to The Moscow Times that the meeting between the two leaders would focus primarily on “regional security issues.” The official also threw Ukraine into the mix of “Iran, Syria and the Middle East” as expected topics of discussion.

The Ukraine, a U.S. ally, has fought for the past five years with two separatist regions backed by Moscow. 

“They should also touch on arms control issues and on improving the bilateral relationship,” the U.S. official said, although according to the current timetable, the meeting is supposed to take only an hour. (World Israel News)

Read more at: worldisraelnews.com

 

1 in 5 Americans Say Small Businesses Should be Allowed to Refuse Service to Jews 

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Nineteen percent of Americans think small businesses should be allowed to refuse service to Jews if serving them would violate their owners religious beliefs, a new poll shows.

Edited by: JV Staff

According to survey results published Tuesday by the Public Religion Research Institute, the proportion of Americans who say small businesses should be able to refuse to serve Jews on religious grounds is up seven percentage points (19% in 2019 vs. 12% in 2014). Republicans (24%) are more likely than independents (16%) and Democrats (17%) to say small businesses should be allowed to refuse service to Jews. Support is up from 2014, when only 16% of Republicans and 9% of Democrats supported this sort of service refusal.

Men are also more likely than women to say small business owners should be allowed to refuse service to Jews (22% vs. 16%). Support for all of these refusals is up for both men and women, with only around one in ten each for men and women endorsing these types of religiously based service refusals in 2014. Though there are no substantial differences by age in support for religiously based service refusals that target Jews, support has increased across all age groups since 2014.

Support for these religiously based service refusals has also increased among most major religious groups since 2014. Support for denying service to Jews has roughly doubled among white evangelical Protestants (up to 24% from 12% in 2014), white mainline Protestants (up to 26% from 11%), and Catholics (up to 20% from 10%), while the religiously unaffiliated (11% vs. 11%) and nonwhite Protestants (19% vs. 14%) have remained mostly stable in their attitudes on these issues.

There is also a distinct pattern across religious traditions.

White Protestants are the most likely to support religiously based service refusals in every case, with white evangelical Protestants and white mainline Protestants showing similar numbers in most cases. Both white evangelical Protestants (24%) and white mainline Protestants (26%) are more than twice as likely to support religiously based refusals to serve Jews than the religiously unaffiliated (11%).

The same is true of support for religiously based refusals to serve African Americans when comparing the white Protestant groups (22% each) to the religiously unaffiliated (11%). Catholics and nonwhite Protestants tend to be more aligned with the religiously unaffiliated than the white Protestant groups, with the exception of religiously based refusals to serve Jewish people, where Catholic support (20%) and nonwhite Protestant support (19%) are close to the white evangelical Protestant (24%) and white mainline Protestant (26%) numbers.