How Israel Obtained Iran’s Nuclear Secrets: David Rosenberg, Arutz Sheva, May 1, 2018
Israel Exposes Iran’s Nuclear Lies, and the Limits of U.S. Intelligence: Eli Lake, Bloomberg, Apr. 30, 2018
Hamas’ Warfare Tactics in the “Great Return March”: Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi, JCPA, April 30, 2018
Saudi Moderation? Prince Muhammad Is on Shaky Ground: Dr. James M. Dorsey, BESA, April 12, 2018
WEEKLY QUOTES
“These files conclusively prove that Iran is brazenly lying when it said it never had a nuclear weapons program.” — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Revealing a huge archive of stolen Iranian nuclear plans, Netanyahu accused Iran of lying for years about its efforts to build a nuclear weapon. Days before U.S. President Trump was to decide whether to pull out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, Netanyahu presented records from a secret warehouse in Tehran, making the case that Iranian leaders had deceived the international nuclear agency when they insisted their nuclear program was for peaceful purposes. Israeli spies seized the documents in an overnight raid in January. A senior Israeli official said that Israel’s Mossad intelligence service discovered the warehouse in February 2016, and had the building under surveillance since then. (New York Times, Apr. 30, 2018)
“The most significant thing is that this is a warehoused collection intended to be used later for reconstitution…They could have destroyed these documents. But these were being carefully protected and hidden with the intention to reuse them when they launch their weapons program.” — David Albright, the president of the Institute for Science and International Security. Albright said that the new intelligence, if verified, would fill many of the holes in the West’s knowledge of Iran’s weapons program. Albright said the intelligence also reveals Iran’s intention to eventually build a nuclear weapon. Beyond the fate of the nuclear deal, the Israeli intelligence also presents a crisis for the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, to which Iran is a member. If verified, it shows that Iran has systematically lied to weapons inspectors for nearly 20 years. (Bloomberg, Apr. 30, 2018)
“(Israel) humiliated the Iranian government by capturing all of this material.” — Harold Rhode, an ex-Pentagon Iran expert. The Iranian regime is “quaking in its boots,” after Netanyahu revealed secret nuclear-program documents appropriated by the Mossad, he said. Rhode spent 28 years at the Pentagon and studied in Iran before the 1979 revolution there. The fluent Farsi speaker, who is now associated with JCPA, said his view stems from a wave of recent Iranian infighting. While the global media stopped covering protests against the regime months ago, he noted, the protests are still churning. Rhode said the average Iranian “would like nothing more than to wake up and have this nightmare regime over with and again proudly be accepted as members of the international community.” In that light, he said, it is now “the time to reassure the Iranian people that we stand with them against their brutal rulers,” and reassure the Iranian people that “after their terrorist regime is overthrown, we will gladly welcome them back into the community of nations.” (Jerusalem Post, May 2, 2018)
“If you look at the history of arms control it’s very common for one deal to then be improved upon or supplanted by another deal…and so what we’re asking for has a lot of precedent historically.” — Brian Hook, the U.S. diplomat leading negotiations on the future of the nuclear deal with Iran. Trump faces a deadline of May 12 to recertify the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). There are strong indications that he will not do so without major changes to the deal. Hook stated, “What we are trying to do is to address the deficiencies of the Iran nuclear deal.” The administration, he added, is working “on achieving a supplemental agreement that the president has requested that would address a lot of the problems that we have with the existing deal.” One major issue, Hook said, is the agreement’s “sunset clause.” “Right now this JCPOA imposes limits on Iran’s nuclear program,” he said. “Those limits expire around 2025. So we want to extend those limits.” In addition, Hook added, “we also want to address Iran’s intercontinental ballistic missile program. And we need to deter Iran from its adventurism in the Middle East, which has destabilized the region.” (Algemeiner, Apr. 25, 2018)
“The Iranian nation has successfully resisted bullying attempts by America and other arrogant powers and we will continue to resist… All Muslim nations should stand united against America and other enemies.” — Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran’s top authority criticized Trump for saying some countries in the Middle East “wouldn’t last a week” without U.S. protection. “Such remarks are humiliation for Muslims … Unfortunately there is war in our region between Muslim countries. The backward governments of some Muslim countries are fighting with other countries,” Khamenei said. Iran and Saudi Arabia have long been competing for regional supremacy. (Yahoo, Apr. 26, 2018)
“The actual information that the Americans have about us is much less than what they think they have. When will they figure this out? When it is too late…They will definitely figure it out when their ships are sunk, or when they find themselves in a catastrophic situation…We have been present in Gulf water and Sea of Oman for a long time, and in the future we will have presence in international waters.” — Ali Fadavi, the commander of Navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran, according to a translation by MEMRI. Fadavi has threatened the US Navy in the past. In May 2014, he announced that his navy had been training for this purpose and could sink a US aircraft carrier in less than a minute. Fadavi received the Fath medal for arresting U.S. sailors on January 12, 2016 after two riverine command boats became disabled in the Persian Gulf. (Breaking Israel News, Apr. 26, 2018)
“Abbas is drenched in anti-Semitism and racism from head to toe…He continues the tradition of his predecessors, the grand mufti [of Jerusalem] who was friends with Hitler, and [former PA President Yasser] Arafat, a mass-murderer of Jews…He infuses the poison of antisemitism into the minds of the next generation…Peace will come from the grassroots, not from a corrupt and antisemitic Palestinian Authority.” — Education Minister Naftali Bennett. Israeli leaders condemned PA President Abbas as an anti-Semite for a speech in which he suggested that the Holocaust was caused by the “social behavior” of European Jews. On Monday in Ramallah, at a session of the Palestinian National Council, the PA leader alleged that the Holocaust was not caused by antisemitism, but rather by Jews’ “social behavior, [charging] interest, and financial matters.” (Times of Israel, May 2, 2018)
“We urge you to immediately suspend all aid payments to the Palestinian Authority…Further, we urge you to make the cessation of this abhorrent practice that incentivizes terrorism a pre-condition for any U.S.-brokered peace talks between the sovereign state of Israel and the Palestinian Authority.” — Letter from U.S. Members of Congress. Members of Congress hope to compel the State Department to disclose the amount of U.S. aid money the PA has given to convicted terrorists and their families, and call for a complete freeze in U.S. aid to the Palestinian government. Reps. David McKinley (R., W.V.) and John Ratcliffe (R., Texas) are circulating a letter to Republicans urging them to join an effort to compel the State Department to detail the amount of taxpayer money that has been used to pay terrorists under a longstanding policy known as “pay to slay.” The lawmakers also demand the State Department outline in detail, “how many foreign aid dollars went to the PA that were then used to fund terrorists prior to passage of the Taylor Force Act?” (Washington Free Beacon, Apr. 25, 2018)
“For the past 40 years, the Palestinian leadership has missed opportunities again and again, and rejected all the offers it was given. It’s about time that the Palestinians accept the offers, and agree to come to the negotiating table — or they should shut up and stop complaining.” — Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Bin Salman lashed out at the Palestinian leadership for rejecting opportunities for peace with Israel for decades during a meeting with Jewish leaders in New York last month. Bin Salman noted that the Israeli-Palestinian peace process was not a top priority for the Saudi government, which is more focused on Iran’s growing influence in the region. (The Tower, Apr. 30, 2018)
“In the history of weaponizing the mundane, no one beats the Palestinians. When they have been unable to acquire conventional weapons, they have resorted to the unconventional — such as kitchen knives and screwdrivers. When unable to acquire conventional vehicles of war, they have resorted to the unconventional — such as cars, truck, and even bulldozers. In the latest round of attacks against Israel — the “March of Return” — they have yet again demonstrated ingenuity by weaponizing the simplest of children’s toys: the kite. Their method involves fashioning a wire tail onto a kite, with an explosive attached to it. The kite is then flown from the relative safety of the Gaza side of the border into Israel. Once it has reached far enough into Israeli territory, the string is cut and the kite — explosive attached — falls into Israeli territory. Recalling the success of the November 2016 fire jihad, some of the kites have been used to deliver incendiary devices, while others have used explosives. Some of the weaponized kites are made to resemble the Palestinian flag, while others more ominously feature swastikas.” — A.J. Caschetta. (Algemeiner, Apr. 24, 2018)
“We, the signatories of this appeal, would first like to express our compassion for all our fellow citizens who have been directly or indirectly affected by terrorism and by the antisemitic crimes that have blindly struck our country.” — Statement published by Le Monde from thirty prominent French imams. The imams described themselves as “indignant…at the confiscation of our religion by criminals.” The declaration referred to the rash of Islamist attacks in France over the last decade that have struck targets from a Jewish school to the country’s leading satirical magazine, as well as the violent hate crimes that have compelled thousands of Jews to move out of their homes. “Some imams unfortunately contributed, often unconsciously,” the imams continued. “Courage compels us to recognize it.” The declaration added that “many imams” had still not grasped “the harmful psychological effects on vulnerable minds” that their incendiary sermons had produced. (Algemeiner, Apr. 24, 2018)
SHORT TAKES
DEATH TOLL IN DEAD SEA FLASH FLOODS RISES TO 10 (Jerusalem) — The death toll from flash floods that hit a group of teenage hikers in southern Israel Thursday rose to 10. The ten victims, nine girls and one boy of around 18 years old, were killed when they were swept away by flash floods during a hike at Nahal Tsafit, south of the Dead Sea. The trip was part of a pre-army program and its director has been arrested for suspected negligent manslaughter. The incident is the most lethal of such accidents in Israel’s history: In 1976, six people were killed in a flood in the Dragot Stream near the Dead Sea; in 2007, four were killed in mountain climbing accident in Qumran. (Haaretz, Apr. 27, 2018)
IRANIANS KILLED IN ALLEGED ISRAELI STRIKE IN SYRIA (Damascus) — The Syrian army confirmed Sunday that several military bases in northern Syria were struck in an attack blamed on Israel. A military source said that “some military sites in the countryside of Hama and Aleppo provinces were exposed…to a new aggression with hostile rockets.” The explosions following the strike registered as a 2.6 magnitude earthquake, but the weapons used did not cause the quake. Over 18 people were killed and 60 were wounded. Al Akhbar reported the targets of the strike were Syrian army bases being used by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps and Shi’ite militias. (Jerusalem Post, Apr. 30, 2018)
3 GAZANS SHOT DEAD, 3 ARRESTED, IN FLURRY OF BORDER BREACHES (Gaza) — IDF soldiers shot to death two Palestinian terrorists on Sunday who infiltrated into Israeli territory from Gaza, while a third was shot dead in an earlier incident while attempting to breach the southern end of border with another Palestinian, who was taken in for questioning. Two Palestinians armed with knives and wire cutters were arrested after they managed to cross the border from central Gaza into Israel. In the second incident involving the death of two Palestinians at the same time, the pair reportedly and threw explosive devices at an IDF force. At the end of last month, an IDF force arrested three Palestinians armed with knives and grenades after they had infiltrated Israel from the Gaza Strip. (Ynet, Apr. 29, 2018)
PARAGUAY PLEDGES TO MOVE EMBASSY TO JERUSALEM (Asunción) — Paraguayan president Horacio Cartes pledged to relocate his country’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem at a special celebratory event in Asunción to mark Israel’s 70th anniversary. Guatemala is the only other country who definitely plans to follow through by opening its embassy in the capital in May just a day or two after the US. A few other countries have spoken of doing so, but final approvals for such a move have not been given. This includes Czech Republic, Romania, Honduras and Paraguay. The Czech Republic does intend to open an honorary consulate in Jerusalem but not an official embassy. (Jerusalem Post, Apr. 29, 2018)
CAMBRIDGE MAYOR BLOCKS ANTI-ISRAEL RESOLUTION (Boston) — The mayor of Cambridge, MA, announced that a proposed resolution calling on the city to boycott a company doing business with Israel will not appear on the agenda of the next city council meeting. The resolution, put forward by Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), called on Cambridge not to renew its participation in a program to receive Hewlett-Packard products at a discount and to terminate their relationship with HP. The coalition accuses the software company of helping Israel “maintain their occupation of Palestinian land” through its technology used by the Israeli government and military. (United With Israel, Apr. 24, 2018)
REPORT: JORDAN TO REVOKE CITIZENSHIP OF ABBAS (Amman) — The Kingdom of Jordan began the process of revoking the Jordanian citizenship of about 30 PA and Fatah officials and their families. The officials who are slated to lose their citizenship include President Mahmoud Abbas and Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat. Many Senior PA and Fatah officials were given Jordanian citizenship over a decade ago, an official disclosed in early 2011. With a population of 9.5 million, out of which more than two million are Palestinian refugees, the Jordanians long saw the Palestinian majority in the kingdom as a demographic threat. The report did not disclose any information as to why Jordan decided to begin the process of revoking the Palestinian leaders’ citizenship now. (Jerusalem Post, Apr. 25, 2018)
PA SETTLES ELECTRICITY DEBT WITH ISRAEL, SIGNS NEW POWER DEAL (Jerusalem) — The PA has settled its electricity debt of NIS 1 billion with the Israel Electric Company. The Israeli company has been unable to collect debt payment from residents of the PA because all connection was through the Ramallah government. Now the PA has provided bank guarantees for future debts, in a 15-year agreement worth an estimated NIS 2.8 billion per year. The agreement also settles the long-standing PA debt to the IEC, with Ramallah commencing payment of the NIS 915 million debt still owed – NIS 500 million was written off, and NIS 600 million was paid in October 2016 – for consumption of electricity prior to September 2016, to IEC Jerusalem District Ltd. (Jewish Press, May 1, 2018)
IRAN ORDERED TO PAY BILLIONS TO 9/11 VICTIMS (New York) — By court order, Iran is to pay billions of dollars to the families of the September 11 terror attacks. A US District Judge ruled that Iran must pay $12.5 million per spouse, $8.5 million per parent, $8.5 million per child and $4.25 million per sibling killed in the incident. The lawsuit accused Iran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Central Bank of Iran for aiding the 2001 hijackers although the 9/11 Commission never found direct evidence for Iran’s involvement. The ruling will probably be largely symbolic, as Iran is very unlikely to ever pay the damages, which in total amount to 6 billion dollars. (Jerusalem Post, May 2, 2018)
IMAM WHO ENDORSED SUICIDE BOMBING TOURS U.S. MOSQUES (Boston) — A Syrian imam who sanctioned Palestinian suicide bombings and who was banned from Denmark last year as a “hate preacher” is visiting several mosques in the U.S. “All the Jewish people are combatants” acceptable as targets for attacks in Israel, Sheikh Mohammed Rateb Nabulsi wrote in his 2001 “ruling on martyrdom operations in Palestine.” Nabulsi, who endorsed the death penalty for homosexuals, also suggested in a 2010 post on his website that same-sex marriage was a reason for Muslims to wage violent jihad against the West. Nabulsi spoke at the Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center in Falls Church, Va., and last week near Orlando and at the Islamic Center of Boca Raton. (IPT, Apr. 25, 2018)
GERMAN JEWS, NON-JEWS HOLD KIPPAH-WEARING PROTEST (Berlin) — Non-Jewish Germans joined with Jews wearing kippahs at several protests across Germany last week in a sign of solidarity after a spate of shocking antisemitic incidents. One day after the head of Germany’s Central Council of Jews warned against wearing religious symbols on city streets for fear of attack, some 150 protesters came to a rally in the eastern city of Erfurt. More than 2,000 people — Jews, Christians, Muslims and atheists — put on kippas in Berlin. Jewish community leaders said it was the biggest such display in public since before World War II. (Times of Israel, Apr. 25, 2018)
PARALYZED MAN FINISHES LONDON MARATHON AIDED BY ISRAELI ROBOTIC SUIT (London) — Simon Kindleysides of Norfolk, England became the first paralyzed man to finish the London Marathon, an astonishing feat which took him 36 hours to complete. He was able to walk the entire 26.2 mile course with the help of the the ReWalk robotic exoskeleton suit, a wearable device developed in Israel that allows paraplegics to mimic the function of the legs and hips. ReWalk was originally created two decades ago by mechanical engineer Amit Goffer. He began working on the device after a road accident left him paralyzed in 1998. The bionic suit has since helped people around the world regain relative independence and autonomy over their bodies. (Jerusalem Post, Apr. 25, 2018)
DEAD SEA SCROLL FRAGMENT MAY POINT TO AN UNKNOWN MANUSCRIPT (Jerusalem) — Previously unseen Dead Sea Scroll fragments, which had been stored in cigar boxes since the 1950s, were identified and unveiled at an international conference on Tuesday in honor of the 70th anniversary of the scrolls’ discovery in Jerusalem. The tiny fragments, all thought to be taken from Qumran’s Cave 11, are game changers and provide new puzzle pieces towards completing the picture of known published scrolls, experts said. One of the fragments, unusually written 2,000 years ago in anachronistic First Temple script, may even point to a wholly unique, previously unknown manuscript. (Times of Israel, May 2, 2018)
THOUSANDS EXPECTED ON TEMPLE MOUNT ON LIBERATION DAY (Jerusalem) —Jerusalem Liberation Day, May 13, will see a record rise in the number of Jewish visits to the holy site, the largest since the destruction of the Temple. According to the Headquarters of Temple Organizations, the past year—the jubilee year for the liberation of the Temple Mount in 1967, has already seen a record in both quantity and quality of Jews’ return to their Temple. By quality, the group means ascents to the Temple Mount following a dip in a ritual bath, in keeping with Jewish law. Last year on the celebrated day, more than a thousand Jews arrived at the Temple Mount. This year, the headquarters say, “we aim to double the number of Jews, and bring 2,000 Jews to the Temple Mount.” (Jewish Press, Apr. 25, 2018)
TRUMP MAY ALLOW POLLARD TO MAKE ALIYAH (Washington) — President Trump may allow former Israeli agent Jonathan Pollard to immigrate to Israel, according to reports. The president has said it is possible that he personally may join the celebrations for the opening of the American Embassy in Jerusalem on May 14, the secular date of Israel’s 70th anniversary. Israeli media reported that the president is “seriously considering” allowing Pollard, who is still on very restricted conditions after receiving parole, to leave the country to move to Israel. Pollard served 30 years in prison after being convicted of espionage after passing classified documents to Israel. (Jewish Press, Apr. 29, 2018)
OPENING OF US EMBASSY TO INCLUDE MEZUZAH-HANGING CEREMONY (Jerusalem) — As part of the May 14 ceremony to mark the official opening of the U.S. Embassy, a mezuzah will be affixed to the embassy building. Organizers decided to hold a religious ceremony to install the mezuzah as a gesture to Israel and following the recommendation of U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman. The U.S. Embassy will be situated in what is now the U.S. Consulate building. According to reports, the U.S. later intends to build a larger facility to serve as the embassy on an adjacent property. (Jewish Press, Apr. 24, 2018)
TED BELMAN: “THE JORDAN OPTION: THE ULTIMATE ALTERNATE SOLUTION FOR THE ARAB/ISRAELI CONFLICT” (Toronto) —Ted Belman will speak in Toronto on May 15, 2018 at Aish Hatorah Shul, 949 Clark Ave West, Thornhill. The topic is “The Jordan Option: The Ultimate Alternate Solution for the Arab/Israeli conflict.” Belman will inform the audience how it will solve the Arab/Israeli conflict once and for all. For further information write to tbelman3@gmail.com or call Lloyd Duckman at 416 402 1963. (Israpundit, Apr. 30, 2018)
How Israel Obtained Iran’s Nuclear Secrets: David Rosenberg, Arutz Sheva, May 1, 2018—In a dramatic televised address Monday evening, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu revealed to the public information gathered from Iran’s nuclear weapons program, proving that the Tehran regime had lied about its efforts to acquire atomic weapons.
Israel Exposes Iran’s Nuclear Lies, and the Limits of U.S. Intelligence: Eli Lake, Bloomberg, Apr. 30, 2018—Since Iran and six world powers reached an agreement to pause Iran’s enrichment of uranium and allow weapons inspectors into declared facilities, Israel’s prime minister has argued the deal would give Iran a glide path to a nuclear weapon. On Monday he announced that he had proof.
Hamas’ Warfare Tactics in the “Great Return March”: Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi, JCPA, April 30, 2018 —“The Great Return March” is the Hamas codename for its campaign that is striking against Israel’s existence. The campaign includes assemblies, demonstrations, and violent weekly disturbances against public order in several locations along the border fence between the Hamas-ruled Gaza and Israel. Attempts are being made to tear down the fences to enable infiltration into Israel.
Saudi Moderation? Prince Muhammad Is on Shaky Ground: Dr. James M. Dorsey, BESA, April 12, 2018—No doubt, Prince Muhammad’s recent reforms have benefitted women and created social opportunity with the introduction of modern forms of entertainment, including the opening this month of Saudi Arabia’s first cinema as well as concerts, theater, and dance performances. Anecdotal evidence testifies to the popularity of these moves, certainly among urban youth.
