Category: Borders

Posted on

PACKERS CORNER: Did the PA Kill Rabbi Raziel Shevach?

As most are probably aware, the big news this week in Israel is quite tragic – a Father/Husband/Rabbi/Mohel/Paramedic was shot and murdered by arab terrorists near his home in Havat Gilad – an unauthorized community in the Shomron/Samaria/Northern West Bank.

I want to spend a little bit of time on this because it encompasses alot of different aspects of the current political situation.

-The terrorists have yet to be apprehended, but there is good amount of speculation that they are somehow connected to the Tanzim/Palestinian Authority. The main reasons being the quality of the weapon used and the quality of the shooting (unfortunately). This indicates that the terrorists were able to obtain quality weaponry and train to use it. This is very difficult for the more extreme groups, like Hamas and Islamic Jihad, in that area. More potentially damning, this attack could have come at the direction of PA leadership in response to how poorly things are going for the PA diplomatically as it concerns Israel and the US, under President Trump. One might question how they could be so stupid to think this would help things, however, its pretty much par for course. When diplomacy fails or stutters, terrorism is their default response.

-Havat Gilad: Havat Gilad is an extremely strategically located Jewish community. The community sits on privately-owned Jewish land but has not received official authorization from the Government. It would fit the category of an “illegal outpost”. (However most “illegal outposts” are on state-owned land, and this is privately-owned). The community sits right off the highway in between the Jewish communities of Kedumim and Yitzhar. Without Havat Gilad there would be a long stretch of hostile highway without any permanent Jewish presence. In short, the future of the Jewish presence in the Shomron relies greatly on the existence and development of Havat Gilad. Since the tragic terrorist attack, many government officials have pledged to work to recognize Havat Gilad as an official community. This would be a big deal. Remains to be seen if these promises will be kept (many are not). In the meantime, the victim of the terrorist attack, Rabbi Raziel Shevach, hy’d, was the first person to be buried in the outpost. I’m not aware of any other such situation in which someone is buried in an unauthorized community. Its a bold move and likely significantly strengthens the chances of the community continuing to exist in that location.

In other news, some not-so-important legislation has been passed in the Knesset and much actually important legislation has been further delayed. This continues a long-running trend and yet, as I have stated pretty much every week, the current Israeli Government coalition continues to be incredibly stable. (Today, Minister Kahlon stated that he wouldn’t bring the government down for any reason – that’s a pretty extreme thing to say).

There are published rumors that Saudi Arabia is considering buying weaponry from Israel. Not so surprising under the current sunni-shiite regional conflict.There is talk of President Trump pulling out/sabotaging the Iran nuclear deal. And there is talk of Prime Minister Netanyahu promising a state to the “palestinians” in northern Sinai in exchange for Israeli annexation of Judea and Samaria (the West Bank).

In short, there is a lot of talk. Not so much action. There is supposed to be an announcement soon about newly approved building in Judea and Samaria. Let’s see what is decided and discuss what it really means next week.

Posted on

Does the Terror Attack at Havat Gilad Mark the Beginning of Another Intifada?

Yesterday’s terror attack at Havat Gilad in which 35 year old Rabbi Raziel Shevach father of five was murdered seems to gave caught the security services off guard.  With none of the attackers found and the IDF scrambling to shut down the immediate area around the city of Shchem, calls have gone out from Israel’s right and many leaders in Judea and Samaria to clamp down hard on the Arab population to snuff out any thoughts of using this attack as a way to inspire more.

Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel said the following on Channel 2:

“These things are in the hands of the Defense Minister. These are his instructions to the military and Civil Administration. Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu) spoke in the past about ‘carrots and sticks.’ We are waiting for the Defense Minister to use the ‘sticks’ and maybe he should have done it before now.”

“We can exile the families from their homes, we can destroy the homes of terrorists who carried out attacks – and I trust that the Defense Minister will take action. He has widespread support from the Israeli public. No one agrees to or is ready to accept this terror.”

“We can exile the families from their homes, we can destroy the homes of terrorists who carried out attacks – and I trust that the Defense Minister will take action.”

With increased incitement by the Abbas regime since Trump’s Jerusalem announcement and the slashing of US funds to UNRWA many are worried that this attack if not responded to in full force may lead to another intifada.

The Derech Chaim Movement which focuses on imbuing Israeli government with Torah leadership released the following statement regarding the murder of Rabbi Raziel:

“The spilled blood of Rabbi Raziel Shevach screams out for revenge against the murderers, their emissaries, and their supporters. The blood of thousands of victims murdered since the Oslo Accords screams, ‘It is our obligation to dismantle the Palestinian Authority, which is the embodiment of murderous enemies in the heart of our land.'”

“Instead of speaking about allowing the death penalty for terrorists, it’s time the security policies included elimination of terror organizations and effective deterrence, born of the recognition of our rights to this land.”

“We feel the family’s horrific pain, which is the pain of the entire nation. G-d will put an end to our sufferings, and give us true leadership.”

“Instead of speaking about allowing the death penalty for terrorists, it’s time the security policies included elimination of terror organizations and effective deterrence, born of the recognition of our rights to this land.”

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman who has often touted his tough guy persona as way of ensuring the public that security will remain in place may be pushed against the wall after this attack.  His tepid response that the IDF is looking for the terror cell coupled with the possibility of legalizing Havat Gilad appears more of the same as opposed to the fresh approach he promised.

Posted on

Israel Strikes Near Damascus

According to Syrian sources, the Israeli airforce attacked targets just outside of Damascus early on Tuesday morning (Jan. 9th) .  The official statement by the Syrian government said “that at 2:40 local time Israeli warplanes launched few missiles at targets near Damascus from the Lebanese airspace. The missiles were intercepted and one Israeli warplane was targeted by air defense forces.”

Despite damage to the military base in Syria, the government was able to utilize its new Russian made defense systems and intercepted most of surface to surface missile strikes.

Following the initial attack, at 4:00 local time, two surface-to-surface missiles were launched from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. They were also intercepted.

At 4:15 local time, Israeli forces launched 4 other missiles from the Golan Heights. One missile was intercepted and the others hit a target causing damage to positions of Syrian force

The damaged base was a known warehouse of scud missiles and other deadly weapons the Israeli government has vowed to keep from being used against its citizens.

The Israeli government has yet to issue an official response.

Despite this, the attack demonstrates that either Putin is allowing these sorts of pinpoint strikes according to his personal agreement with Bibi Netanyahu or the Israeli military has continued to find a soft spot in the upgraded Russian defense system.

Posted on

Iran Infiltrates Israel’s Heartland

The Shin Bet officially confirmed that an advanced Iranian espionage network has been operating in Judea and Samaria, Israel’s Biblical heartland.

Iran enlisted the help of Muhammad Maharma, 29-year-old computer science student from Hebron. Despite being the lead in Israel, the Shin Bet said Maharma received his directions from an Iranian operative in South Africa.

The network had two other members named Dia’a Sarahnehand  Nour Maharma, both 22 and both also from Hebron.

“The operation demonstrates the Iranian involvement in encouraging terror attacks against Israel and also shows the forces being sent by Iran to countries around the world, in order to advance enemy activities against Israel,” the Shin Bet said in a statement.

“The operation demonstrates the Iranian involvement in encouraging terror attacks against Israel.”

According to the Shin-Bet, Muhammad Maharma was enlisted to work for Iran in 2015, by his cousin, Backer Maharma. Backer Maharma moved to South Africa from Hebron where he started working for Iranian intelligence.

“Backer even introduced Muhammad, on a number of occasions, to Iranian officials, some of whom visited [South Africa] from Tehran in order to meet him,” the Shin Bet said.

The Shin-Bet’s  investigation uncovered that South Africa has become  a “significant front for finding, enlisting and deploying agents to Israel and the West Bank” for Iranian intelligence.

The Iranian network based in Hebron was given a various directives by Iranian intelligence servises.  These included recruiting people to carry out shooting and suicide bombing attacks.

Most shockingly, the network was supposed to recruit Israeli Arabs specifically high level journalists to spy on and take pictures of sensitive locations.

Three were charged in a military court for attempting to join an illegal organization. Maharma was charged additionally with contacting an enemy agent, and receiving money from an enemy nation.

The Shin-Bet’s report comes at a sensitive time in the Palestinian Authority’s relationship with the Israeli government.  As the PA shops around for new benefactors due to the Trump administration’s threat to cut them off, Iran becomes the most likely address.  Of course the Iranian people might have second thoughts on their government wasting even more money on failed Arab initiatives.

Posted on

Iran Says the Protests Are Dying Down, but these Tweets Suggest Otherwise

The regime in Iran is now trying to suggest the protests that had been sweeping the country are now dying down. While there is certainly an ebb and flow to the protests as well as a lack of cohesion and leadership to the growing movement, protests are still raging and more and more people are joining.

The regime in Iran has been trying to put a confident face on about the situation and has even suggested that the worst is over.  The problem for the Ayatollahs is that the protests are not going away. Here are some Tweets that suggest that the protests are growing.

While the continueing protests do not have the energy level the first protests had, they show that the opposition to the regime is widespread and turning into a a permanent feature. This may make the movement far more dangerous than originally believed.

Posted on

John Bolton: “These people are calling for the end of the Islamic Revolution”

Former UN Ambassador John Bolton gave an excellent interview on Sunday concerning the spreading protests in Iran.

“I think it’s important to understand that that these demonstrations are very different than
the demonstrations that took place in the summer of 2009 after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stole the presidential election that year what with the blessing of the Ayatollahs running the country. Those demonstrations were really
led by elements within the government itself and so they brought people into the streets to protest the election but
they were not by and large protesting the regime itself some people were, but not the leaders and that’s why those
demonstrations started in Tehran that’s where the center of the government is and only spread,” Ambassador Bolton said, describing the difference between the Iranian protests those in 2009.
In 2009, upper class Iranians in Tehran as well as students were led by members of the Iranian elite against what they saw as a stolen election.  This protest movement was known as the Green Movement.  When it became obvious Obama declined from supporting the movement while supporting similar protests throughout the Arab world, the Green Movement fizzled and fell apart.
Bolton continued: “These demonstrations are very different. We’ve seen from even the limited press coverage that’s out there that these people are calling for the end of the Islamic Revolution itself and that their economic complaints are not new. These are things that have gone back for a long time. I think it shows that regime is in trouble and that’s why I think the United States could play an important role here. Not by use of force or anything like by supporting the legitimate opposition and frankly by declaring that it’s American policy to see the Ayatollahs overthrown you know you’re talking about the opposition.”
John Bolton lost no time in showing the difference between former President Obama’s approach to the Iranian regime and that of President Trump and his team.
“I think the most dramatic change has already occurred. You have President Trump, members of his administration taking the side of the demonstrators; a hundred and eighty degrees the opposite of what Barack Obama did in 2009. We know from former Soviet prisoners that when Ronald Reagan spoke out about their descent from the communist government, it gave them hope. It said the rest of the world was watching and I think the opposition inside Iran and in the vast Iranian diaspora outside of the country can see that this is a very different American Administration.”
Posted on

While Putin and Bibi Speak, Syria Installs Latest Russian Air Defense System Near Damascus

According to the Israeli media, Prime Minister Netanyahu and Russian President Vladamir Putin held a phone conversation in order to ensure that Russia was kept abrest of Israel’s security needs despite the latter being a part of the Iranian axis.  These types of conversations have been going on for over a year in order to minimize friction between the IDF/IAF and Russian forces in Syria.

These conversations have been promoted to the Israeli public as a way assuage fears by claiming to use Russia to help mitigate the forward movement of the Iranian axis towards the border with Israel.  The challenge with this sort of thinking is that we see that after the fall of Beit Jinn, Russia has done little to keep Iran and Hezbollah outside the deconfliction zone.

The other pervading theory is that Israel has a deal worked out with Putin that the IAF is allowed to attack Hezbollah, Iranian, or even Syrian positions within Syria if they are deemed a threat to Israel. Yesterday’s installation of the Russian S-125 Pechora Batteries (a Soviet-designed system originally built in the 1960s) in the Marj Ruhayyil airbase located south of Damascus puts to rest this line of thinking.

According to AMN the modernized variant in question is reportedly the M2 version of the S-125 Pechora, “which in addition to having an improved kill probability record, is technically capable of tracking and intercepting low-flying cruise missiles.”

Why is this important? The assumption has been that the IAF would be able to attack Syrian-Hezbollah-Iranian forces with impunity.  The Russians clearly have other ideas.

Does Putin Want to Destroy Israel?

Not at all. He wants to use the Iranian axis he has been tacitly covering for to hold Israel at bay and force its government to turn to him for its needs. While the situation is not at that point yet, it is rapidly approaching.  The Trump administration of course understands this and appears to be ready to back up Israel.  The Jerusalem announcement was as much part of Trump’s calculus in relation to Russia’s moves as it was a declaration of support that flowed from his own beliefs.  For Trump the two aligned.

With more and more IDF forces quietly being moved North, the stakes are high on both sides of the Golan.  Russia’s play at attempting to militarily isolate Israel by using forces hellbent on its destruction is a gamble that could trigger a far wider war.

Posted on

Obama, Hezbollah, and the End of Israel

As I currently sit in my house South of Jerusalem, there is a storm rising on Israel’s Northern border.  The storm is the Iranian axis made up of the Syrian regime, Hezbollah, and Iranian special forces.  This grouping is now a mere 4km from the Israeli Golan, an unthinkable situation just a few months ago.

It has become increasingly clear that the most potent menace out of the three antagonists is the Lebanese Hezbollah.  What was once just an Iranian proxy, has become a battle heartened army over the last few years of fighting to save Assad’s regime in Syria.  The Hezbollah now boasts over 100 thousand rockets aimed at Israel.  Their armed forces are not only situated North of Israel, but now buttress the Hermon, a strategic mountain that overlooks Israel’s Hula valley and Northern coastal areas.

How did this happen?  How did Hezbollah become such a threat to Israel?  Now, before I write further, I want to make it clear that the Israeli government going back to former Prime Minister Ehud Barak who hastily pulled out of Southern Lebanon, thus ceding control to Hezbollah deserves some of the initial blame for Israel’s current strategic situation.

Yet, it is becoming apparent thanks to Josh Meyer at Politico that the Obama administration had willfully shut down and blocked key parts of Project Cassandra, a secret program started in 2008 under the auspices of the DEA to target Hezbollah’s billion-dollar criminal enterprise and in many cases block it.  Hezbollah’s financing has been critical in allowing what was once just a terrorist organization to grow into a political movement and formidable army.

Meyer’s piece, which has become the focus of a cross-section of politicians and pundits since its publication on the 18th of December, essentially blew the lid off the fallout of Obama’s Iranian appeasement policy.

“In its determination to secure a nuclear deal with Iran, the Obama administration derailed an ambitious law enforcement campaign targeting drug trafficking by the Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah, even as it was funneling cocaine into the United States, according to a POLITICO investigation,” Meyer starts his article.

“The Obama administration derailed an ambitious law enforcement campaign targeting drug trafficking by the Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah.”

Meyer’s article is thick with investigative research.  Despite push back by former Obama and Clinton officials, it is hard to dismiss his findings. There is no need to reproduce in this article what Meyer wove together over at Politico.

What is important to understand is that Israel’s most determined enemy was allowed to grow and build its army and weaponry with full knowledge and acceptance by former President Obama. This is not a small matter and the decision to allow this was clearly not taken without the understanding that doing so would essentially put Israel into mortal danger as it may very well be now.

The Iranian axis may still have captured Beit Jinn this past week, but its ability to inflict blow after blow against Israel would not be as potent if it were not for Obama’s reckless determination to reach a deal with the Iranian regime on the back of Israel’s safety.

The coming war between Israel and its mortal enemies is a direct consequence of the policy decisions in the Obama administration.  Without the chaos of the Arab spring, which Obama championed, nor the overtures to the Iranian regime, by the President himself, Iran would have never been able to reach to the Levant. Iran made the progress it did in large part due to the help of a well-financed Hezbollah.

The coming weeks are critical for Israel as war seems to be a foregone conclusion.  It is important that the truth be uncovered concerning the Obama administration’s role in railroading a program that was designed to weaken one of Israel’s and the USA’s most diehard enemies. It is also imortant that writer’s like Josh Meyer are championed instead of attacked as is happening now by public agents close to the Obama and Clinton teams.

 

Posted on

Russian Foreign Minister: US Military Must Leave All Of Syria

In a statement sure to raise tensions between Russia and the USA, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated on Thursday that US forces must leave all of Syria.

“Speaking to Interfax news agency on Thursday, Lavrov stated that the UN Security Council has not approved the work of the United States and its coalition in Syria, nor has been invited by the Syrian legitimate government.”

Of course, pulling out of Syria is not an option for the US.  With major operations against ISIS underway by the Kurdish majority SDF in the North and the US forces at Al-Tanf crossing there to protect Jordan from militants, the idea that the US will just up and leave is a non-starter.

Is Assad Legitimate?

Russia has for a while insisted that any long term presence of foreign troops must be in accordance with the legitimate government of Syria.  For Russia this means Assad.  The problem with this line of reasoning is that large areas of Syria are clearly not under his control.  This is does not refer to pockets of ISIS or Jihadists, but rather indigenous people such as the Kurds of Rojava or Arab Sunnis in the North. These groups along with ethnic Turkmen had been kept down by the minority Allawite regime for decades.

It would seem that any decisions on who gets to stay in Syria should be decided by the most democratic elements in the country.  That is, if you consider Syria an actual country at this point.  Syria, like many of its Arab counterparts across the Middle East are artificial creations that sprang into being after World War One.  given the fact, that Syria has been ruled by dictators for a good part of the last 100 years, it make sense why Russia would view this as trait to determine who is legitimate.  Afterall, Russia is currently ruled by an ex KGB chief who snuffs out opposition.  This point of commonality between Russia’s Putin and Syria’s Assad would be reason enough for the two to work together, but the truth is Russia doesn’t care about legitimacy just control over Syria in order to press against the West and drain energy from it while Russia pushes against Eastern Europe.

How Does this Affect Israel?

With the US not leaving Syria anytime soon and Russia digging in its heels throughout the country, the stage is set for a serious confrontation between the two super powers’ proxies.  Iran-Syria-Hezbollah forces will be used by Russia to push against the US proxies of Israel and the SDF.  This will be done under the Russian protective umbrella and threatens to spill out into a far greater war.

In the weeks ahead Israel and the Syrian regime will move beyond tit for tats and go directly against one another while the big powers push from behind.

Posted on

Bibi Warns Iran and Hamas Not to Mess With IAF’s ‘Tremendous Firepower’

“The air force is as its peak today, with the best tools, technologies, planes and pilots in the world. With defensive and offensive capabilities and tremendous firepower, the air force has the ability to reach short distances and faraway destinations as required,” the Prime Minister said at an Israel Air Force Flight Academy graduation ceremony at the Hatzerim Air Base outside Beersheba.

Thirty-six officers, received their pilots wings after completing the three-year pilots course on Wednesday. The graduation ceremony was attended by Netanyahu, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gadi Eisenkot and IAF Commander Maj.-Gen. Amikam Norkin.

“We are an island in this stormy region… “

“We are meeting major challenges in the north, in the south and in the east. On all the fronts there are centers and branches of radical Islam that have already caused a heavy calamity in our region, but nowt to our country. We are an island in this stormy region and have a clear policy of protecting our security,” the prime minister said.

Israel has carried out at least 100 attacks targeting Hezbollah terrorists, weapons convoys and infrastructure in Syria since January 2013.  Tens of other strikes have not yet been confirmed by Israel, but include a recent strike on an Iranian base outside Syria’s capital Damascus.