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Hitler’s Remaining Relatives Living Secret Lives on Long Island

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Some of Adolf Hitler’s last surviving relatives have been living quietly right here on Long Island for decades. In a small town with less than 20,000 people, few of their unsuspecting neighbors know their true family origins. As reported by the NY Post, three brothers Alexander, Louis and Brian Stuart-Houston, are great-nephews of Hitler, and the sole living descendants from the Fuehrer’s paternal side. The middle-aged men are sons of Hitler’s nephew, William Patrick Hitler, who was born to the dictator’s half-brother, Alois Hitler Jr.

As per the New Yorker, Alois left home at age 14 to move to Dublin and worked there as a waiter. He was not present as a father for ‘Willy’, who was born in Liverpool, UK in 1911. Willy caught up with his dad though, meeting him in Germany in 1929, where he attended a Nuremberg rally. When he returned to the UK, Willy began giving interviews to the press, milking his status as Hitler’s “English nephew”. That went on until a furious Adolf Hitler suddenly summoned him to Berlin. “What did you tell the newspaper? Who gave you permission to appoint yourself an authority on my private affairs?” demanded the dictator, as per Willy’s mother, Brigid Dowling. “No one must drag my private affairs into the newspapers. I have never said one word they can use. And now there is a ‘nephew’ to tell them all the miserable little details they want to know, ”squirmed Hitler.

Willy ended up moving to NY, but he kept on telling his stories about his infamous relation. He later joined the US Navy to fight in World War II against the Germans. Following the war, he and his German wife moved to Patchogue. They changed their family name from Hitler to Hiller, and again later to Stuart-Houston. Willy died at the age of 76, in 1987. His three sons stayed in Patchogue, but neither of them gave any interviews or divulged any information, even though the media has come knocking on their doors over the years.

Germany’s Bild newspaper recently visited the brothers’ homes in hopes of getting interviews. Both homes were adorned with American flags on the lawns. Brian and Louis, who live together made no comments. Alexander, the oldest brother, whose middle name is Adolf, broke his silence, responding to questions regarding today’s politics.

The 68-year-old told the Bild that he likes German Chancellor Angela Merkel and would vote for her if possible. “I like her. She’s good. She seems to be an intelligent and smart person,” said Alexander, giving the interview from his home porch. He shared that he and his brothers are devout life-long Republicans. He said he hasn’t missed an election for decades, and “I always vote for the person who does the best job.” He also said that he is not keen on the current American President. “The last person I would say I admire is Donald Trump. He is definitely not one of my favorites,” Alexander told the newspaper. “It’s the way he does it that annoys me. And I just don’t like liars,” he added.

By: Hellen Zaboulani

DeBlasio to Meet with Homeless After Backlash Over Gym Dismissal

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Mayor Bill de Blasio is under fire again. This time, by a homeless advocacy group, which claims he has not done enough to keep his vow to address homelessness in New York City. On Friday, the Mayor was approached by 72-year-old homeless activist Nathylin Flowers Adesegun, while he was at the gym in the Brooklyn YMCA, near Park Slope. While he shook her hand, she asked him “why he wouldn’t do more for homeless New Yorkers like myself”. “Out of the 300,000 units in your affordable housing program, only 5 percent will go to housing the homeless,” said Flowers Adesegun, a member of grassroots group entitled Vocal-NY, addressing the Mayor.

“I’m not doing this here. I’m in the middle of a workout,” responded de Blasio, according to video footage of the encounter, which has been posted to YouTube. His bodyguard then stepped between them as the Mayor walked away. Another activist from Vocal-NY then shouted at him: “We need housing for homeless New Yorkers!”

The news of the Mayor’s dismissal traveled fast, as Ms. Flowers posted her complaint on twitter. “He made it clear that his morning workout was more important to him,” she tweeted on Vocal NY’s feed. “We’re not asking for much: commit 30,000 units out of your housing plan for homeless New Yorkers. Every time we ask him to do more for homeless New Yorkers, he changes the subject to prevention and the economy”, she wrote, “but am I just supposed to stay homeless?”

As per the NY Times, after the Mayor faced the backlash, he responded by inviting members of a homelessness advocacy group, Vocal NY, to City Hall for a meeting. Spokesman for de Blasio, Eric Phillips, defended the Mayor saying that the gym is “not the right venue” for political dialogues. “People working out at the gym shouldn’t be worried they will be recorded in highly publicized, videotaped political confrontations every morning,” he said. This was not the first time the Mayor was confronted while at the gym.

By: Hadassa Kalatizadeh

Report: 12 Students Molested by Administrator at Riverdale Jewish School

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Officials at a New York Jewish day school “knew of allegations against an administrator who abused at least a dozen of the school’s students, according to an investigation that was reported on by the JTA. “He was rehired a decade later.”

The report which was published on October 5th, according to JTA, reportedly found that “Stanley Rosenfeld sexually abused at least a dozen students at SAR Academy, a Modern Orthodox school in the Riverdale section of the Bronx. Another teacher, Rabbi Sheldon Schwartz, was found to have acted inappropriately with at least four students.”

JTA continued, “Rosenfeld, a convicted sex offender, has admitted to molesting hundreds of boys throughout his life, including at SAR, according to the report. JTA has reached out to Schwartz through his attorney seeking comment on the accusations against him.”

T&M Protection Resources, an external firm with experience investigating sexual assault allegations, conducted the probe that examined allegations of child sex abuse by Rosenfeld, an assistant principal at SAR in the 1970s who also taught English there a decade later, according to the Sales story. The school reportedly commissioned the investigation in January, soon after learning of the allegations.

JTA’s report continued, “The firm interviewed nearly 40 witnesses, as well as both Schwartz and Rosenfeld. T&M was able to interview Schwartz, however, only before hearing allegations of his inappropriate behavior.”

“We want to extend our most sincere gratitude to the individuals who came forward to report instances of inappropriate behavior and abuse,” SAR’s leadership wrote in an email sent Friday linking to the report, according to JTA. “We remain heartbroken that our alumni suffered abuse while in SAR’s care, but we also are deeply inspired by their bravery.”

The respective principals of SAR Academy and SAR High School, Rabbis Binyamin Krauss and Tully Harcsztark, “wrote in the email that the school instituted a sexual harassment policy in 2014,” Sales writes. “The policy requires reporting credible allegations of sexual misconduct to law enforcement, as well as guidelines for reporting allegations within the school and investigating them. In a separate email to JTA, Krauss wrote: “We strive to create a learning environment in which students feel comfortable coming forward with concerns or reports of misbehavior of any kind. “Nothing is more important than the safety of our students. If we were to learn of a report of abuse, we would work quickly to begin an investigation and ensure, throughout the process, that students are safe.”

SAR Academy defines itself as “a Modern Orthodox co-educational day school dedicated to the belief that every child possesses a divine spark, has unique worth as an individual and should be encouraged to achieve according to his or her ability.” In its approach to academics, the school says, “we nurture students to develop intellectual curiosity, critical thinking skills and a lifelong love of both Torah and Secular studies. We have created a program committed to excellence in every aspect of our educational goals.”

By: Kenneth Robeson

Landlords Battling Over Development Group’s Plans to Build LES Megatower

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Plans for a megatower on the lower east side are being stymied by landlords who control a small building by a crucial court decision that prevent the tall structure from overlooking the smaller edifice.

Gary Spindler and Roy Schoenberg are fighting in Manhattan state Supreme Court to keep Michael Stern’s JDS Development Group from building an incredibly tall edifice roughly 1,000 foot-tall apartment tower above their empty 1-story building they lease at 325 Cherry Street.

The court refused an attempt by JDS to dismiss the suit and while the case in ongoing the opinion by Judge Andrea Masley has sided with Shoenberg and Spindler stating that they have the right to prevent a merger of their site with a neighboring property that JDS is scheming to do to build to provide its base for the megatower.

Judge Masley’s decision has not amounted to a final decision in the case but possibly mean that JDS’ development plans can eventually be thwarted. The case has been going on since August 2016. Both Schoenberg and Spindler have accused JDS of “hijacking’ air rights that they we’re in contract to buy. According to the complaint, both Schoenberg and Spindler signed a contract to purchase the Cherry Street location from two nonprofits, Two Bridges Neighborhood Council and the Settlement Housing Fund back in 2012 with the idea of building affordable housing. The organizations canceled the contract and sold the rights to JDS instead.

The attorney for the landlords, Raymond Hannigan from the law firm of Herrick Feinstein LLP remarked that “the court addressed the facts and legal issues and ruled very clearly Spindler and Schoenberg are a party of interest.”

Despite the setback, JDS is going ahead with a plan and is due to go before the City Planning Commission on October 17 as part of the approval process. Several years back, JDS presented a synopsis of a 800 page document which promised, if the tower were built, neighborhood improvements like a new elevator at the East Broadway Subway Station and the renovation of three local parks. Despite this, residents were less than impressed responding that this wasn’t sufficient for what was to come with the tower: reduced light, more traffic and overcrowded schools.

This is a particularly unusual case with regard to building a large tower because it is located in a unique development area what is commonly referred to the Two Bridges neighborhood because it is located between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridge. As such, JDS only needs the CPC’s thumbs up instead of full environmental review to secure the requisite zoning adjustments.

If Schoenberg and Spindler are able to hold of JDS, it isn’t clear what will happen down the road to the property. Winning the case may be just a way of delaying the inevitable. Eventually it might come down to a single person: Margaret Chin. Councilwoman Chin has pressed to put in regulatory changes that would require the project to go through a full review process, giving her full power to approve or disapprove the project.

By: Michael Rosenthal

Govt to Seize Manafort’s Hamptons Home & Trump Tower Condo in Plea Deal

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On Saturday, prosecutors filed the official papers to allow the federal government to take possession of two of the real estate properties negotiated during Paul Manafort’s plea deal. As per the Real Deal, as early as October 20th, the government plans to complete the seizure of Manafort’s home in the Hamptons, as well as his condo in Trump Towers. The Trump Towers apartment #43G at 721 Fifth Avenue, which spans 1,509-square-feet, is valued at $3 million. The 5,574-square foot Hampton’s home is valued at approximately $7.3 million. The 10-bedroom, six bathroom home in Watermill features a pool house, pergola, “waterfall pond”, and hundreds of red and white flowers planted in the shape of an M, as per Bloomberg News.

Manafort’s Trump Tower condo is going to be seized in two weeks

Manafort, former campaign chairman for President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty in mid-September to two criminal counts, namely federal conspiracy and conspiracy to obstruct justice. As part of his plea deal, Manafort gave his consent to cooperate with Robert Mueller’s special council investigation. He also agreed to forfeit five of his properties, bank accounts and his life insurance policy.

The other properties he will be forfeiting to end his prosecution are: a seven-bedroom, four-bathroom brownstone at 377 Union Street in Brooklyn, estimated to be worth $4.1 million; in lower Manhattan a 2,133-square-foot, three-bedroom apartment at 123 Baxter Street worth about $4.7 million; and a boutique condo in SoHo at 29 Howard Street. The total value of his forfeited NY Real estate assets is estimated to be $21.7 million, as per NBC News.

The 69-year-old Republican will still have some assets to his name when he is freed from prison. As part of the negotiation, he will keep one of his bank accounts,which he opted to keep in lei of the Trump tower condo. He also still has three or more properties outside of New York, valued at a total of roughly $6 million. Among the properties he will be keeping is Manafort’s estate in Virginia. He also pleaded to keep is his Florida home in Palm Beach valued at $1.25 million.

By Hadassa Kalatizadeh

NYC Artists May Eventually Get Affordable Housing; Roadblocks Persist

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Rendering by Goldstein Hill & West

New York is a hotbed for artists and all other creative types, but being an artist and being able to still pay the bills can be challenging. It’s not unusual to see artists also working other jobs in order to get by, at the expense of living in voluntary poverty. The importance of art to the city and the resources and opportunities for artists are hard to ignore, which is why politicians have talked in the past about making sure art and artists aren’t ignored.

A few years ago, Mayor Bill de Blasio suggested making 1,500 units of affordable housing that would be set aside for all types of artists.

At the 2015 state of the city, the mayor spoke about the importance of not letting artists slip through the cracks. ”We know that New York is the city it is today in part because of the contributions from generations of artistic visionaries who at one point struggled to make ends meet.”

More than three years later, de Blasio’s vision seems to be harder to make a reality when push comes to shove. Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Alicia Glen talked at a Crain’s event about how the federal Fair Housing Act interferes with de Blasio’s goal because setting aside housing for only one group of people could go against the act. Landlords are not allowed to discriminate against people on most grounds, like race or religion. Even though the intent in de Blasio’s proposal is to take care of a group in need rather than discriminate against a group or groups of people to make sure they can’t get housing, it could still fail to comply with the act. The city in the meantime is using a task force it created that spans a few different agencies in order to try coming up with some way to make this idea work without violating any rules.

“This is something I wish we had made more progress on,” Glen said, adding “and we are committed to doing so.”

Even if New York can find a way to make the plan work, the city would then have to decide how it determines who is and is not an artist. There needs to be a way to assess eligibility, make sure all types of artists are included, and make sure nobody games the system in order to score an undeserved affordable apartment unit. The city could try cleaning its hands of this potential mess by outsourcing the job to an organization existing beyond the city government.

“I don’t think every person who was cool and hip who moved to the Lower East Side in the early ’80s necessarily has a right to live there forever,” Glen said. “The flip side of that is, if you moved to the Lower East Side in the ’80s and you were an artist and live in a rent-stabilized apartment, you cannot be harassed out of there.”

By: Morgan Humes

Hamptons Crowd Builds Panic Rooms in Mansions to Hide from MS-13

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(Photo by Owen Hoffmann/Patrick McMullan)

Fearing for their safety, well-to-do millionaires in the Hamptons build panic rooms to hide from the terroristic MS-13 group.

The rooms come with bulletproof glass and guns and other weaponry.

Billionaires like John Catsimatidis owner of Gristides Foods have become unnerved over the vicious Salvadorian gang MS-13 being coming too close to where they live and are beginning to fear for their safety.

Last April, members of the gang executed four young men behind a soccer filed in Central Islip. Two other incidents occurred in a Hampton Bays brothel which was raided by police and found to be labeled with an MS-13 sign. Two years ago, a man with connections to the group sexually assaulted a woman after breaking into her Southhampton home.

Southampton Town Police Chief Steven Skrynecki last year, openly expressed concern that the gang might spread further east. Locals noticed when Skyrnecki installed police equipped with antiterrorism gear, including automatic weapons, along the perimeters of summer 2017 charity galas.

One anonymous Southampton homeowner recently adorned her East End manse with bulletproof glass and hidden cameras throughout.

“[MS-13 is] in Suffolk County,” she fearfully said. “What’s an hour car ride? They are near.”

There’s a growing concern among all Long Island residents particularly moving east that MS-13 is headed toward them. Gary Blum who is the president of Armored Entry who installs bullet-proof widows. Said that the “home-security business is very event- and news-driven.” “We get business when there is a tremendous amount of fear being generated.”

It’s a good thing the Long Island residents are wealthy because the products that Blum sells are expensive to most. Starting at $6,000 for a single window “that you can beat with a sledgehammer without making a dent.”

Chris Cosban, a Long Island contractor who installs panic rooms in the area’s mansions, believes “if people want it they have it.” Cosban’s company, Covert Interiors, charges between $25,000 and $200,000 for a standard space with high-tech add-ons, like as fingerprint recognition, cost extra.

Managing director of the personal-security firm Sage Intelligence Group, Herman Weisberg, said that not only do the buyers look at the panic rooms as protective areas, he says that they also function many of his like amenity spaces — doubling as home theaters, wine cellars or even gun vaults where weapons can be safely displayed.

For instance instead of showing of “their Lamborghinis,” Weisberg said, , “they [rather] take guests to the wine bar in their safe room.”

Catsimatidis who has spent a fortune due to his concern about MS-13, especially since he has had his house broken into and has resorted to installing infared sensors at his home, is nothing in terms of the expense that others have gone to secure their safety. Al Corbi, president of SAFE (Strategically Armored & Fortified Environments) has provided to safety for customers with costs that literally go through the roof.

“I finished a system for $100 million,” he said of one West Coast project. “That sounds like a lot but there is nothing I know of, human or manmade, that could possibly harm this family for three generations, including global nuclear holocaust, a pandemic or a second Ice Age.” Plus, he added, “It’s like a Ritz-Carlton underground.”

Still, some East Enders feel their neighbors are going overboard. Whether they are or not, times have changed and the safety of Long Island residents, the crown jewel of southern New York has transformed into fear and paranoia.

By: Anton Kulevsky

Reflecting on #MeToo One Year After Weinstein Allegations

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Just over a year ago, stunning allegations of rampant and systemic sexual misconduct by movie mogul Harvey Weinstein shook not just the country but most of the world, helping to spark the #MeToo movement. Simply put, women want to be treated as equals, as human beings and not objects of entertainment to be controlled and manipulated by powerful men like Weinstein.

In the wake of the news, not only did more reporting continue shedding even more light on Weinstein and his other victims, but it led to a number of other high-profile men being outed as enemies of women, enemies of anyone with any sense of decency and a desire for fairness and humanity. The victims also extend beyond women, with a number of men also coming forward to accuse other famous men, like actor Kevin Spacey, of sexual misconduct. In Spacey’s case, at least one alleged incident happened with someone who was a minor at the time. Even the president and two Supreme Court justices stand accused by multiple women of sexual misconduct.

A lot of the focus remains on Hollywood, an industry ripe for exploitation. While most Hollywood elites would suggest they are socially liberal, people like Weinstein were able to allegedly get away with serial sexual misconduct and all sorts of intimidation and retaliation tactics against women.

The Associated Press went out and interviewed people in the business to see how things have changed and where they stand one year later.

“Definitely there’s been a seismic shift,” British actress Carey Mulligan said. “I feel like if I was walking down the street and someone said something or did something outside the bounds of appropriate, I would feel so much more empowered to tell them to f… off while before I probably wouldn’t. Those sort of gray area things are now no longer gray areas.”

It appears that Hollywood is increasing its efforts to find women to put in important roles.

“Everybody’s looking for their female content,” Parks and Recreation actress Rashida Jones said, whose documentary Quincy was recently released by Netflix. “They’re starting to understand that content that’s created by and shepherded by women and people of colour is super under represented in the business. And everybody’s scrambling to try to fix that.”

For all of the movement’s triumphs, it may only be able to take society so far along the path of progress.

“It’s a great thing when you’re on the red carpet and people are talking about sexual assault. At least it’s out in the open,” actress Viola Davis said. “My fear is that people feel like the focus of sexual assault is just on actresses in Hollywood and studio execs like Weinstein.”

She wants to make sure that all of the most vulnerable women, the ones without any power and money, aren’t overlooked. She worries that by focusing only on these high-profile cases, society could miss the larger picture, saying that “outing the men, putting them in the court of public opinion and just destroying their careers. It’s way bigger than that. One out of every four women–and there’s some statistics that say it’s one out of three–will be sexually assaulted by the time they’re 18.”

By: Lynn Clary

Kraft Heinz Passes on Making Takeover Offer for Campbell’s Soup

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Dan Loeb, hedge fund manager and CEO of Third Point, has his focus on soup. The 56-year-old, with a reported net worth of about $3.1 billion, has for some time now been pushing Campbell’s Soup to sell itself. Third Point, which manages $18 billion in assets, owns a 5.7 percent Campbell stake. As reported by the NY Post, he has been telling investors that rival Kraft Heinz was willing to pay nearly $50 a share for Campbell, but that Campbell’s board was unresponsive. The Shareholder activist sent a letter to Campbell last Wednesday, demanding to see the company’s records, as well as documents regarding its just-completed strategic review. The next day, Campbell’s shares rose 1.9 percent, to $37.19, giving the company an $11.2 billion market cap. In Third Point’s letter, it criticizes Campbell’s disregard to the offer, writing, “potential acquirers of all or a meaningful portion of the company were not contacted nor was a sale pursued — which is flatly inconsistent with the board’s public promise that it was reviewing a “full slate” of options”.

The harsh words, however may be unjustified. According to an unidentified source with direct knowledge of the situation, “Kraft Heinz looked, but is not interested.” The source added, “I think Campbell was open to talking to people.” The source says that the Warren Buffett-backed Kraft Heinz company did consider buying Campbell in recent weeks, and was invited by Campbell to review the data, but that it took a look at the financials and reconsidered. “There was some kicking of the tires but it did not get very far,” the source said. Back in August, the Post had already reported that Kraft Heinz, which would seem the most logical buyer for the company but which is having trouble of its own with its dwindling stock price, was looking into Campbell but was not keen to pay much of a premium. Currently, over 40 percent of Campbell’s stocks are held by descendants of John Dorrance, the inventor of condensed soup.

A Campbell spokesperson said, “We do not comment on rumors or speculation,” adding “The board remains committed to evaluating all strategic options if any of those options can demonstrably enhance value for all shareholders.” Kraft Heinz declined to comment on the story.

In August Campbell also announced that it is looking to sell its non-core businesses, including Arnott’s and the Kelsen Group, and the Campbell Fresh business, which consist of Garden Fresh Gourmet, the refrigerated soup business, and Bolthouse Farms, purchased six years ago. Last Thursday, the WSJ reported that Campbell was in preliminary negotiations to sell Bolthouse Farms to Jeff Dunn, its former President.

By Hellen Zaboulani

Scaramucci’s Hedge Fund Fights For Laid-Off Toys ‘R’ Us Workers’ Severances

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The Mooch is back in the news again. The man who lasted only about a week in the White House yet managed to still be one of the most memorable staffers of this administration is gearing up for the holiday season already. At least in spirit he is, and the spirit he’s channeling isn’t that of greed and gifts but more like the Meek from the classic Twilight Zone Christmas episode.

Anthony Scaramucci made his millions with hedge funds, but he’s still looking out for the little guy. The hedge fund he runs, SkyBridge, has a stake in a company which made an investment in debt held by the once-giant kids’ retail store Toys ‘R’ Us, but at the same time he stands to make money from the situation, Scaramucci is making sure former employees of Toys ‘R’ Us get severance payments from their old employer. The money would be put in a special hardship fund and would ensure that the workers aren’t forgotten and caught up in the bankruptcy. The money will also help keep these people on their feet as they search for a new job.

Scaramucci started to push Solus Alternative Asset Management last week to start setting aside some of that money for the laid-off workers, according to an e-mail exchange between him and Jim Baker of the Private Equity Stakeholder Project that The New York Post reviewed. The project looks to help out 33,000 former employees.

“Please encourage Solus to support laid-off workers,” Baker wrote in an email.

“We have,” Scaramucci said in response.

Scaramucci did not respond for comment when reached by The New York Post.

Bain Capital and KKR are involved in the handling of the debt left behind by Toys ‘R’ Us, and both investment companies already seem onboard with helping former workers. The two investors will put $20 million into the fund, although from the point of view of the Stakeholder Project, Bain and KKR could actually do much better. The project wants its full $75 million, which a bankruptcy court originally promised to the workers.

The New York Post details the specific back-and-forths and negotiating among the involved parties, saying “Baker’s group has been pressuring debtholders including Solus, and others, arguing that they were responsible for pushing the retailer into liquidation. Solus, according to reports, says it is not responsible for the retailer’s liquidation or obliged to contribute to severance package.”

Solus took on a $308 million debt obligation from Toys ‘R’ Us debt last June, and that number is the most recent one available. Laid-off employees are pushing the states of New Jersey and Virginia to take the pension investments that each state makes from Solus and remove them.

The Jewish Voice reported on how a decision earlier this year kept Scaramucci in a position to be able to fight for these laid-off workers. He announced he wouldn’t sell his hedge fund company to a Chinese conglomerate, HNA Group.

By: Keyser Jaconetta

Wharton Prof. Amir Yaron Named as Next Governor Of Bank of Israel

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Professor Amir Yaron, a professor of finance at the Wharton Business School, was named Tuesday as the next governor of the Bank of Israel.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon announced the appointment at a joint press conference at the Prime Minister Office.

“It is our duty to always seek out the greatest talents in the field, and I was happy that Prof. Yaron accepted my request and that of the Minister of Finance to come to Israel,” Netanyahu said.

“A person with great ability and independence must lead the Bank of Israel. Yaron meets these criteria,” the prime minister added.

Netanyahu thanked the outgoing governor Karnit Flug for her “dedicated and excellent service.”

Kahlon added Yaron was chosen between excellent candidates to “ meet the future economic challenges,” and that was sure Yaron is the “right person for the mission.”

Yaron, 54 years old, holds Israeli and American citizenship and has lived in the United States for the last 20 years where he is a finance professor at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a research associate at the US National Bureau of Economic Research.

He grew up in Ramat Hasharon, a suburb of Tel Aviv and after he graduated with an MA from Tel Aviv University he completed his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago, specializing in asset pricing, investments, risk-return strategies, macroeconomics, and finance.

The appointment will be first presented to the Goldberg Committee, which vets senior public service appointments, and then will have to be approved by the government.

Yaron will replace Karnit Flug, who has been in office since 2013 and announced in July that she would not seek a second term following a dispute with Kahlon over government fiscal and housing policy.

“I will be happy to be at his disposal and assist him in entering into the position as required,” Flug said in a statement shortly after the appointment was announced. She also added that Yaron will find a professional and dedicated team of management and employees at the Bank of Israel that “will help him to continue to conduct a successful policy in favor of the Israeli economy.”

Other candidates for the position included Bar Ilan University professor Ben-Zion Zilberfarb, Tel Aviv University professor Efraim Sadka and Mario Blejer a former head of Argentina’s central bank.

By: Mara Vigevani
(TPS)

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat Boots UNRWA from City

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Jerusalem’s outgoing mayor Nir Barkat on Sunday urged the international community to consider his proposal to end the local operations of UNRWA, the UN agency for “Palestinian refugees”. Photo Credit: Hillel Maeir/TPS

Barkat announced that the city is in the process of removing the Palestinians’ UN agency from the municipality for “creating a false sovereignty.”

Jerusalem’s outgoing mayor Nir Barkat on Sunday urged the international community to consider his proposal to end the local operations of UNRWA, the UN agency for “Palestinian refugees”.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Barkat, who last week unveiled a plan to remove UNRWA from the Israeli capital, said there is “no such thing” as a refugee in the city.

Barkat told the news agency he was inspired to make his proposal after the US cut off $300 million in funding to the agency last month.

Barkat accused UNRWA schools of using textbooks that promote anti-Israel incitement, and said Israel can provide much better education and health care services to Palestinians who rely on the agency. The US funding cuts will only widen those gaps, he said.

“I look at all of my residents as residents. There’s no such thing as residents that live in the city of Jerusalem that are defined as refugees,” he explained to AP. “We will treat them like any other residents in the city and provide the best services we can.”

Barkat encouraged the UN and others to consider his proposal with “an open mind.”

He said that during his term he has made great strides toward improving education and other services in eastern Jerusalem, noting the UNRWA crisis is another “opportunity” to serve Palestinian Arabs.

The Jerusalem mayor accused the Palestinian Arabs and UNRWA of forcing “refugees” to suffer in poor conditions while turning them into “a negotiating chip in a future potential deal.”

Barkat’s plan would remove UNRWA from eastern Jerusalem and replace the services it provides with municipal services.

In his announcement of the plan last week, Barkat said it would “put an end to the lie of the ‘Palestinian refugee problem’ and the attempts at creating a false sovereignty within a sovereignty.”

Barkat said that under his plan all UNRWA schools in eastern Jerusalem will be closed by the end of the current school year. Health centers will likewise be shut down.

The municipality will also lobby Israeli political leaders and press them to exercise their “authority to remove UNRWA (headquarters) from Israel’s sovereign territory” in Jerusalem.

On Friday, UNRWA expressed concern over Barkat’s plan, saying it was “determined to continue to carrying out” its services in eastern Jerusalem.

Created in 1949, UNRWA supplies aid to more than three million of the five million registered Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and territories assigned to the Palestinian Authority.

However, it is also notorious for its anti-Israel activities. During the 2014 counterterrorism Operation Protective Edge, Hamas rockets were discovered inside a school building run by UNRWA.

Likewise, a booby-trapped UNRWA clinic was detonated, killing three IDF soldiers. Aside from the massive amounts of explosives hidden in the walls of the clinic, it was revealed that it stood on top of dozens of terror tunnels, showing how UNRWA is closely embedded with Hamas.

In a more recent incident, the director of UNRWA operations in Gaza expressed his support for the anti-Israel marches along the Israel-Gaza border and pledged that the organization’s medical centers will provide care for “Palestinian refugees” who might sustain injuries during them.

Since the US announced it would stop its funding to UNRWA, the agency has received pledges of $118 million from donor countries in a bid to help it overcome a crisis triggered by the US cut.

By: Ben Ariel
(INN)

NASA, Israel Space Agency Partner for Lunar Launch

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NASA announced last Wednesday that it has signed a cooperation agreement with the Israel Space Agency (ISA) to help get a local nonprofit’s spacecraft to the moon within several months

In a first-of-a-kind agreement, the veteran American space agency will partner with a private Israeli nonprofit in landing its unmanned module on the moon in early 2019.

NASA announced last Wednesday that it has signed a cooperation agreement with the Israel Space Agency (ISA) to help get a local nonprofit’s spacecraft to the moon within several months. The pact was signed during the 69th International Astronautical Congress on the occasion of World Space Week.

The SpaceIL organization announced in July that it will be sending a small, unmanned spacecraft to the rocky astronomical body in December, with an expected landing date of February 13, 2019. The nonprofit built its 1.5x2m. spaceship in the hopes of getting the $20 million Google Lunar X prize, for which there was no winner at the end as no group met the requirements and deadline in time.

SpaceIL, which is funded by several Israeli universities and high-tech companies besides the ISA and private philanthropy, nevertheless decided to go ahead with the project due to its stated desire to make a major educational impact and inspire schoolchildren with their mission. The decision seems to have been a worthy one, as NASA came on board to assist with certain technical issues.

“As a private venture born as a brave idea against all odds, it is a great honor for us that NASA sees us as a worthy player in the deep space arena,” SpaceIL CEO Dr. Ido Anteby commented at the signing. “We all hope that our spacecraft is only the first step and that space missions and other technological challenges in the field will follow. I believe that Israel has great potential for development in the field of space.”

The American space agency will contribute a retroreflector array, which reflects laser beams to enable NASA to precisely locate the spacecraft on the lunar surface after the landing. NASA will also give SpaceIL access to its Deep Space Network communication services, which will improve its staff’s ability to communicate with the spacecraft from Earth.

In addition, NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), which was launched almost a decade ago and currently orbits the Moon, will try to capture images of the Israeli spacecraft during its landing.

In exchange, NASA will have access to data gathered by the magnetometer installed aboard the spacecraft. Developed in collaboration with the Weizmann Institute of Science, the device will measure the magnetic field on and above the landing site, according to SpaceIL’s statement.

US-Israel Collaboration ‘Keeps Getting Stronger’

Science Minister Ofir Akunis reacted with pleasure to the agreement.

“American-Israeli collaboration keeps getting stronger in all fields, as is the relationship between NASA and the Israeli Space Agency. Israel is proud to be part of the renewed journey to the moon and to advance our technological capabilities – everywhere,” he said.

NASA recently announced that it will direct more attention to Earth’s only permanent natural satellite, and this decision is seen as part of its revitalized efforts.

“I’m thrilled to extend progress in commercial cooperation we’ve made in low-Earth orbit to the lunar environment with this new agreement with the Israel Space Agency and SpaceIL,” said NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine. “Innovative partnerships like this are going to be essential as we go forward to the moon and create new opportunities there.”

By: Batya Jerenberg
(WIN)

Israelis Overwhelmingly Support Trump, New Poll Shows

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A new 25-nation Pew survey revealed that while Trump’s international image has suffered, his ratings among citizens of the Jewish state remain high.

Leading nonpartisan think tank the Pew Research Center recently released results from a 25-nation survey exploring America’s global image and international opinion of President Donald Trump.

While a summary of the results described “widespread opposition to his administration’s policies and a widely shared lack of confidence in his leadership,” the poll demonstrated that the U.S. president enjoys a 69 percent positive rating in Israel, up from 56 percent in 2017.

The summary attributed this jump to the Trump administration’s decision to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, Israel’s capital.

In addition to the embassy move, Trump has also taken a number of other steps aimed at incentivizing Palestinians to work toward a peace deal with Israel, including ending financial support for their United Nations agency (UNRWA) and vowing not to extend any more aid until the Palestinians return to the negotiating table with Israel.

The poll also showed that Israelis, along with Nigerians and Kenyans, are “particularly likely to think the U.S. is more important than it used to be.”

In comparison to Barack Obama, Trump received substantially higher ratings than his predecessor got near the end of his second term, “although they are very similar to the high ratings for Obama in 2014, before tensions rose between his administration and Netanyahu over the Iran nuclear deal.”

The poll summary explained, “As has been the case in recent years, around eight-in-ten Israelis express a favorable opinion about the U.S. At 52%, Israelis are more likely than any other public surveyed to say the U.S. is doing more to address global problems than a few years ago. Israel also tops the list in terms of the share of the public (79%) saying that relations with the U.S. have improved in the past year.”

Notwithstanding strong criticism from nations such as Russia and Germany, “[O]n balance the U.S. still receives positive marks – across the 25 nations polled, a median of 50% have a favorable opinion of the U.S., while 43% offer an unfavorable rating. However, a median of only 27% say they have confidence in President Trump to do the right thing in world affairs; 70% lack confidence in him.”

By: WIN Staff
(World Israel News)

Barkan Terrorist Still at Large as IDF Sweeps Samaria; PA to Pay Monthly Salary 

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Kim Levengrond-Yehezkel, 28, and Ziv Hajbi, 35, were the victims of the Palestinian terror attack in Samaria.

The Israelis killed in a Palestinian terror attack on Sunday at the Barkan Industrial Park , (close to the town of Ariel in northern Samaria) were identified as Kim Levengrond-Yehezkel, 28 of Rosh Ha’ayin, and Ziv Hajbi, 35 from Rishon Letzion.

Levengrond- Yehezkel was the mother of a year-and-a-half old baby boy. She began working at the site a year ago. She last saw her baby when she left him off at the daycare center Sunday morning. She is survived by her husband Gai, her baby boy Kai, her parents and her sister Shahar.

Hajbi, a father of three children, was the second person killed in the attack. His family decided to donate his organs to others.

A third victim, a 54-year-old woman, is being treated in Beilinson hospital for her wounds. She is said to be in a non-life threatening and stable condition.

The terrorist, reportedly a 23-year-old accountant from a Palestinian village near Tulkarem, fled the scene with an automatic weapon. Israeli security forces have launched a manhunt for him. He is described as armed and dangerous.

At the beginning of the weekly Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the incident was “a very severe terrorist attack in which two Israelis were brutally murdered.”

“On behalf of myself and all government ministers I would like to send condolences to the families of the two people who were murdered and our hopes and prayers for a swift recovery for the woman who was wounded,” he added.

“The security forces are in pursuit of the reprehensible murderer. I am certain that they will apprehend him and I am also certain that we will deal with him to the fullest extent of the law and quickly,” he said.

The terrorist attack reportedly took place in management offices in one of the factories. Security footage released from cameras at the factory shows the shooter fleeing the site holding an automatic rifle. The deceased female victim was bound with plastic cable ties.

The industrial zone is known as a place where Israelis and Arabs work together in coexistence, and this is the first such attack in the zone. According to a statement from the IDF, the terrorist had a permit to work in the park and had been employed at the factory where the shooting took place.

According to initial reports, the suspect, a 23-year-old Palestinian from the village of Shweika near Tulkarem, who fled the scene, had been fired by the Alon Metal factory, leading to speculation that the attack was a revenge killing. However, the IDF later clarified that it was a terrorist attack, although he may have had other motives.

Later in the day, the Palestinian branch of Islamic Jihad took responsibility for the attack. It claimed that it was “a response to Israel’s crimes in Gaza, Jerusalem, Khan al-Ahmar and al-Aqsa.”

A spokesperson for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement said: “We call upon our people to rise up against the settlement terror until they are evacuated, and the West Bank is freed of settlements and settlers.”

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said that “the IDF and security forces are conducting a wide scale search for the terrorist … it is only a matter of time before we lay our hands on him.”

By: Jack Gold
(WIN & TPS)

Controversy Swirls as Cabinet Moves to Bring 1000 Falash Mura to Israel

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Some 1,000 members of Ethiopia’s Falash Mura community with children in Israel , will be allowed to immigrate, after the Cabinet on Sunday ratified a proposal put forward made by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.

Some 1,000 members of Ethiopia’s Falash Mura community with children in Israel , will be allowed to immigrate, after the Cabinet on Sunday ratified a proposal put forward made by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon.

The Interior Minister will be assigned the responsibility of evaluating and approving the entry of candidates who meet the criterion of having children who entered Israel as per previous government decisions regarding the Falash Mura community. Those who meet the criteria will be able to bring with them their partners and their unmarried children who do not have children.

“The decision is a right one. These dear people, who will soon make aliyah have been waiting for over eight years to come here and live with their families,” Kahlon said. “In the Declaration of Independence it says that ‘The State of Israel shall be open to Jewish Aliyah,” and when it comes to Aliyah there are no budgetary, bureaucratic or political considerations. I am reminding you that we are all children and grandchildren of Olim, just as like the sons and grandchildren of these Olim. The State of Israel is proud to take in all who are entitled to make Aliyah.”

However, the decision was not unanimously welcomed: Jewish Home MK Betzalel Smotrich sent a letter to Prime Minister Netanyahu on Sunday morning urging him not to allow the Falash Mura to make Aliyah as they do not meet the sufficient criteria and the decision would thus set a legal precedent for anyone with distant Jewish family ties to demand to be allowed to make Aliyah.

“They are not Jewish, they are not married to Jews, are not children of Jews and not grandchildren of Jews. By the same logic, we can make government decisions to allow Aliya for every single person on the face of the globe,” wrote Smotrich, adding that “widening the gap for parents, brothers and grown sons [poses new challenges] to the maintaining of the Jewish identity of the state.”

The Falash Mura are descendants of the Beta Israel Ethiopian Jewish community who converted to Christianity in the 19th and 20th centuries. They are not eligible to make aliya under the Law of Return which gives automatic eligibility for Israeli citizenship to people recognized as Jewish, people with one Jewish grandparent or people married to a Jew. There are some 8,000 recognized Flash Mura in Ethiopia, most of them in the capital Addis Ababa and in Gondar, in the north.

By: Yona Schnitzer
(TPS)