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1. After Katyusha: ‘We’re Not Ready for the Next Clash Here’
by Hillel Fendel
The mayor of the northern town of Kiryat Shmonah warns, after the firing of a Katyusha rocket from Lebanon on Tuesday: "We are unprepared."
The day after the rocket was fired by Hizbullah terrorists into northern Israel, Israel found four more such rockets in southern Lebanon, ready for launching. The Tuesday night rocket landed near Kiryat Shmonah, but caused no casualties or major damage; a small fire broke out at the site.
Nissim Malka, the mayor of the long-beleaguered northern town, says, “Israel is not ready for the next, inevitable clash with Hizbullah. Funding for shelters, sirens and other security measures has been cut; ever since the Second Lebanon War [in, we have gradually lost funding in many areas.”
Speaking with Arutz Sheva’s Hebrew news magazine’s Benny Toker on Wednesday, Malka said, “It’s ironic that Defense Minister Ehud Barak visited here on Tuesday and said that our city’s social problems are more acute than the security problems – and then just hours later, the rocket landed and confirmed what I and others have long felt. We are all exposed to the almost daily reports of the massive quantities of weapons being stored up by Hizbullah just over the border. The rocket gave Barak a painful reminder of our true situation.”
“We currently don’t have the money to pay for problems that constantly crop up,” Malka said. “For instance, after this last rain, two public shelters were flooded and the pumping system didn’t work. It will cost 150,000 shekels to get these important shelters, used by entire neighborhoods, back up and running. Without money, we simply can’t prepare for the next clash.”
Mayor Malka said that in recent months, “there has been relative quiet [from the direction of Lebano, and the emergency warning system was even turned off because there had been a few false alarms that caused unnecessary tensions among the residents. We have been trying, during this period, to recover financially, but this last rocket has taken us several years backwards.”
2. New Turkish Envoy: Israel Must Understand Ankara's Mideast Role
by Hana Levi Julian
Turkey's new ambassador to Israel has appealed for Jerusalem's "understanding" in his first statement to the media since taking the position earlier in the week.
Tensions have mounted between the Jewish State and Turkey since January, when Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan passionately criticized Israel for its counterterrorist military incursion into Gaza, Operation Cast Lead. Erdogan, an observant Muslim, has periodically continued his verbal sniping at the Jewish State since that time.
"I arrived here a few days ago," Ahmet Oguz Celikkol pointed out, adding, "I am new in this position, although the politics of the region and the Turkish-Israeli relations are not new to me."
Celikkol told a conference at Bar-Ilan University on Thursday that although his country's relations with the Jewish State are important, it is equally essential for Israelis to be clear about Turkey's relations with others.
"Everyone knows how important the relationship is between Israel and Turkey. But it is also essential to understand Turkey's role in the world and the region as well," the new ambassador said.
Celikkol's statement came on the heels of a call by his country's leader, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, for Western powers to stop pressuring Iran to abandon its nuclear development activities.
Turkish PM Cozies Up to Iran
Erdogan arrived in the Islamic Republic Monday night for an official state visit, just about the same time that Celikkol took up his new duties in Israel. The Turkish prime minister told reporters at a news conference Wednesday in Tehran that Ankara's main goal in foreign policy is "attracting friends and having no enemies," which he called "our basic thinking at national and international levels."
According to the Fars news agency, Erdogan also said that Turkey and Iran "share common views" on settlement of regional issues. He added that on economic issues, "we can also perform some works jointly."
On Tuesday, Erdogan had called for closer ties between Iran and Turkey in a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki. He also insisted that it is the "legitimate right of all world countries, including Iran," to pursue the development of nuclear technology "for peaceful purposes."
Turning Away from the West?
Turkey appears to be strengthening ties with its Muslim neighbors -- Erdogan was recently in Syria for similar talks, which ended with open borders and elimination of visa requirements -- and is slowly moving away from Western influences. The trend may be grounded in more than simple religious politics, however; Turkey's application for admission to the European Union has been dragging on for months.
One opponent is French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who insists that Turkey should not be admitted to the EU because it is not geographically located in Europe. Another European leader who has expressed reservations about the application is German Chancellor Angela Merkel. An additiona; reason for the delay has to do with Turkey's long-standing dispute with Cyprus, which has created numerous difficulties in various negotiations on other issues.
The European Union's unwillingness to admit Turkey into its family of nations, however, is of great concern to the United States, which worries that Russia will fill the void. Turkey is strategically located between the East and West, making it an excellent distribution hub for Russia's vast supply of energy resources. Closer economic ties would bring closer political ties as well.
3. Labor Blocks Bill Defining Jerusalem ‘Capital of Jewish People’
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
The Labor party, using its power as a government coalition partner, blocked an attempt by Jewish Home Knesset Member Zevulun Orlev to bring to first reading a bill aimed at strengthening the status of Jerusalem.
His proposal, which requires a change in the Basic Law, declares the city to be the “Capital of Israel and the Jewish People” and was designed to strengthen ties with the Diaspora. The bill would also make it more difficult to surrender parts of the city to foreign rule.
However, it was not clear that Labor MKs would back the proposal, and the party exercised its veto power. The coalition agreement states that any change in the Basic Law must have the agreement of all partners in the government. The Jewish Home’s three MKs are also coalition members.
MK Orlev expressed his disappointment at Labor's “cynical” move. He charged that the party is a “traitor to its own values." The veto by Labor was all the more surprising to MK Orlev because the request to place the measure for a vote came from Prof. Shimon Sheetrit, a veteran and senior Labor party member.
Welfare Minister Yitzchak Herzog, a senior Labor minister, said the party “loves” Jerusalem but that the proposed law could be misinterpreted and damage the country.
4. Jerusalem Official: PA has De Facto Control Parts of Capital
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Israeli control over eastern Jerusalem is a "fiction” while the Palestinian Authority has a presence in many areas, a Jerusalem official charged. Municipal council member Yakir Shegev, who oversees issues concerning eastern Jerusalem, told Arutz Sheva that the PA issues building permits in parts of the Old City and “is slowly taking control of the eastern part of the capital.”
Shegev also revealed that the Education Ministry pays the salaries of Arab teachers in eastern Jerusalem, where the PA administers students’ matriculation examinations. “It is absurd that the tests are checked in Ramallah while teachers receive money from us,” he added.
The official charged that the Netanyahu government, similar to previous administrations, has ignored the needs of the Arab community “as if the future of eastern Jerusalem is not clear…and that these problems will be someone else’s concern in a few years. The PA serves most of the Arab residents and repairs roads, giving it more de facto control.”
Shegev maintained it is not too late for Israel to regain authority over the entire capital and that demolitions of illegal buildings, such as those carried out on Wednesday, are a small step against massive illegal construction.
“If there is not supervision over illegal building and if we do not hand out parking tickets and collect taxes [and take care of Arab need, it won’t be surprising if riots break out similar to those earlier this month.”
Shegev also expressed concern over this week’s resignation of Meretz City Council member Meir Margalit, who protested demolitions of illegal Arab homes and warned they will "end up with an explosion.” Shegev pointed out that previous permits to tear down illegal Arab houses were authorized in cooperation with left-wing council members and that he “fears other elements will try to take political advantage” of Margalit’s resignation.
5. Gov't Demolishes EU-Funded Illegal Arab Construction in Judea
by Hana Levi Julian
The Civil Lands Administration operated Thursday morning against illegal construction and demolished in Kfar Sa'ir, next to Givat HaHarsina, a suburb of the Jewish city of Kiryat Arba-Hevron.
The pools and terraces were independently built without permits by "Oxfam," an organization in Judea (Yehuda) and Samaria (Shomron) and operating under sponsorship from the European Union.
The construction, which encroached upon an area that was included within the municipal boundaries of Kiryat Arba, indicated an attempt at a land grab by local Arab residents who are receiving funds from the European Union.
After repeated calls from local Jewish residents and members of Movement for the Protection for National Lands, the Oxfam signs were removed; IDF soldiers and police officers arrived with an inspection unit from the Civil Administration and destroyed the illegal pools and terraces.
Oved Arad, coordinator of the Movement, welcomed the action: "The law must be enforced equally in Judea and Samaria," he said. "The army and the Civil Administration must act more forcefully against the hundreds of thousands of illegal structures built throughout the region. Today's demolition was a small step to demonstrate the will to enforce the law."
6. Nearly Half of US Supermarket Foods Are Kosher
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
The annual KosherFest expo served up a full course, from kosher popcorn to pomegranate mints, at its exhibition and trade fair in New Jersey on Tuesday and Wednesday. For those who want to improve mental focus, a kosher Brain Toniq, “the only non-caffeinated think drink’” was introduced there as well.
The burgeoning kosher food industry now accounts for 40 percent of food products on American supermarket shelves, according to the Mintel research organization.
Popcorn and chili sauce are also among the 120,000 kosher items on American supermarket shelves as the dominance of kosher food in the American marketplace grows. "Sales of kosher foods in the past year have increased by double digits, significantly higher than the U.S. food market in general,” according to Menachem Lubinsky, founder of KosherFest.
Orthodox Union (OU) official Rabbi Eliyahu Safran noted that producers of beverages, baking and organic foods are leading the increased requests for certification that their products are produced according to strict Jewish dietary laws.
The KosherFest show offered visitors free culinary demonstrations by the only kosher U.S. culinary school. The fair debuted exotic products such as kosher bovine that is “parve,” meaning it is made without milk or meat ingredients, beef jerky in four flavors, cookies for sufferers of allergies, gluten-free challah rolls, spicy salmon stuffing and none other than frozen salmon burgers.
Industry officials estimate that more than 10 million Americans, approximately double the number of Jews in the country, buy kosher items.
7. Akko Kids Join Prayers for Rain
by Maayana Miskin
Schoolchildren from the Noam Herzog in Akko (Acre) held a special ceremony early this week in which they prayed for rain. The ceremony was held on the seventh day of the Jewish month of Cheshvan, the day on which Jews in Israel begin praying for rain.
Akko's chief rabbi, Rabbi Yosef Yashar, attended the event and sang along with the children. He later termed the occasion “particularly moving.”
Principal Binyamin Buskila explained that the prayer ceremony was the culmination of weeks of learning regarding rain, water, and the significance of rain in Jewish tradition. Students have been studying rain in science class as well as learning what Jewish sages had to say on the subject of rain, he related.
The school's main objective is to teach children about prayer, Buskila said. “Israel's water crisis will not be solved solely by saving water, or by using water treatment or other important new technologies,” he stated. “Rather, we must pray, the entire Jewish people must cry out for rain.”
The students will bring what they have learned to the general public in Akko by distributing stickers calling for everyone to join the prayers for rain, Buskila said. “And we hope that in the near future, our city will be blessed by an abundance of rain,” he concluded.
