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LET'S FIGHT BACK
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Monday, November 30, 2015

Palestinian terrorists carry out two attacks in Jerusalem





Palestinian terrorists carried out two terror attacks in a span of a few hours on Sunday, wounding two victims.
By: Aryeh Savir, World Israel News
Terror attack
Israeli security forces and ZAKA personnel near the body of the Palestinian terrorists at the Damascus Gate. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
One terrorist was shot dead during an attack, while another one was apprehended after a manhunt.
In the first incident, a Palestinian terrorist stabbed and moderately wounded a Border Policeman at the Damascus Gate at the entrance to Jerusalem’s Old City.
The terrorist was shot and killed by the victim’s colleagues.
According to a police report, the terrorist, Bassm Salah, 38 from Shechem (Nablus), attacked the Border Police who were patrolling the area with a drawn knife while shouting “Allah Akbar” (“God in greatest” in Arabic). After being shot, Israeli security forces found another knife on his body.
The victim, in his early 20’s, was taken to Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital in Jerusalem with wounds to his upper body.
The Damascus Gate was the site of several recent terror attacks, and most notably the site where Aharon Benita and Nechemia Lavie were murdered at the beginning of October.
Doron Turgeman, police commander of the area in which the attack occurred, lauded the officers’ “quick, professional and decisive response, which prevented a much larger attack. The policemen continue to serve as human body armor for the residents of Jerusalem.”
A short while after a Palestinian terrorist stabbed and wounded a woman in the capital as she was waiting for a bus.
The terrorist escaped, and security forces launched a broad manhunt. He was located and captured shortly after at a nearby building site.
He was identified by police as a 17 year-old Palestinian who tied himself to the attack during his initial questioning.
Two other Palestinians were detained for questioning by police.
terror victim
Terror victim Hisorai Tflia. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
The victim, Hisorai Tflia, 30, a foreign national from the Nepal, sustained light wounds in the attack and was taken to Shaare Zedek hospital for treatment.
She later related that she was listening to music while waiting for a bus when she was suddenly stabbed in the back. She understood it was a terror attack because of the news she had heard in recent days.
She escaped to the other side of the street, where she received initial treatment from Israeli by-passers, whom she later thanked from her hospital bed.
These incidents were the latest in a long series of Palestinian terror attacks that have plagued Israelis over the course of the past two-and-a-half months, claiming the lives of 21 victims and wounding 190.

Israeli Defense Minister: Russia has breached our airspace





Close coordination between Israel and Russia will prevent a Turkey-like debacle. The IDF appears to have a clear policy of avoiding downing a Russian plane, even if it has entered Israeli territory since its pilots have no intentions of attacking Israel.
By: JNI Media and World Israel News Staff
Russia has breached Israel’s airspace while flying sorties against Islamic terror groups in Syria, but Israel does not feel threatened by this, and close cooperation with the Russian army will prevent a possible confrontation between the two armies. Israeli security officials said over the weekend.
Against the background of the Russian military presence in Syria and in the aftermath of the downing of a Russian jet by Turkey last week and possible fighting in the northern front, on Thursday the Israeli Air Force concluded its second annual exercise, which introduced the entire corps to current combat systems and battle scenarios.
As part of the exercises, a senior Air Force officer clarified that when it comes to Russia, Israel will try its best to avoid friction, despite the increasing Russian military presence in neighboring Syria.
According to the senior officer, the IDF has forged a clear policy of never downing a Russian plane, even if it has entered Israeli territory, the Israeli Walla news site reported.
“Russia is a major player and can’t be ignored, so we’re making a separation—they’re minding their business, we’re minding our business,” the officer explained. “Our policy is that we do not attack or shoot down any Russian plane. Russia is not our enemy. We are trying to avoid going near them, so as not to force pilots into questionable situations, we don’t come near each other — they avoid us, and we avoid them.”
The officer added that the two sides, Israel and the Russians, maintain telephone contact. “We don’t inform them and we don’t ask for information,” he quickly emphasized. “We just do the work that needs to be done.”
However, the IAF exercise that began last Sunday and ended on Thursday was designed to maintain combat readiness in the northern arena, regardless of Russia’s presence. Air crews are preparing for combat in areas where various players in the Syrian civil war have positioned air defense systems, anti-aircraft missiles and shoulder-fired missiles.
“I fear the things I do not know about,” said the senior officer, noting that “the ease with which we’ve been able to fly over enemy territory has been decreasing, and each system that tries to knock me down — is a challenge.”
Netanyahu and Putin.
PM Netanyahu (R) with Russian President Vladimir Putin. (Marc Israel Sellem/POOL/Flash90)
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said on Sunday that a Russian plane had breached Israeli airspace once. “Russian planes have no intention of attacking us, so there is no need to automatically shoot them down, even if they accidentally [breached our air space],” he explained while speaking to Kol Israel Radio.
“We immediately got on our communication channel, and the pilot immediately returned to Syrian territory. Ahead of time, they of course let us know when they approach our territory. This is part of the coordination channel, and as we don’t interfere with them as a policy, the same happens in Syria, and it is good that they do not interfere with us flying and acting in accordance with our interests.”
A coordination mechanism in place between Moscow and Jerusalem has prevented any misunderstandings, he added.
This mechanism was established by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin when the former visited in Moscow in September.

Defense Minister Ya’alon: Israel will be victorious in century-old war on terror





Israel’s struggle against Palestinian terrorism is a century-old conflict which has yet to end, but Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon is confident Israel will ultimately prevail.
By: World Israel News Staff
IDF rioters
IDF forces respond to Palestinian rioting. (STR/Flash90)
Minister of Defense Moshe Ya’alon rejected calls for a broader IDF operation in Judea and Samaria or targeted killings to stem the wave of Palestinian terror attacks saying they were not necessary, while stating he was confident that Israel would prevail in the war on terror.
Speaking to Kol Israel Radio on Sunday, Ya’alon traced the origin of the current wave of terror to the days before the establishment of the state, saying Israel was still in the midst of its struggle for independence.
The wave of terror attacks “did not start today and won’t end [in the near future],” he clarified, saying this has been an ongoing battle for the past 120 years.
He stressed that the IDF was operating every night and arresting dozens of terrorists on a daily basis, while operating in any area the terrorists were hiding, including areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority (PA).
“There is no need for [full military] divisions. Undercover forces move in, make the arrest, and exit. Dozens of such operations occur in a day,” he explained.
Ya’alon again said that the cause for the endless string of terror attacks which have been plaguing Israel for the past two-and-a-half months is incitement by the Palestinian leadership, pointing to the fact that a 13-year-old boy takes a knife and commits an attack because of the “poison he absorbs” in the Palestinian educational system. “Children don’t carry out attacks due to the lack of diplomatic expectations,” he added.
“Our test is not one of immediate results. In these types of conflicts, there is a need for endurance and determination, as well as creativity, and we are doing this. This won’t end immediately, and all of the various ideas or natural expectations for some sort of military maneuver that will deal with the situation and finish it [instantly are wrong],” Ya’alon said.

Israeli security forces carry out weekend counter-terrorism raids





Israeli security forces are fighting Palestinian terrorism on all fronts, most recently catching a weapons smuggling ring.
By: Aryeh Savir, World Israel News
Israel police
Police force in action. (Police spokesman)
Israeli security forces arrested an Arab suspected of running a large-scale weapons trading and smuggling operation, the police announced Sunday.
The man, identified by police as a 45-year-old resident of the Shuafat refugee camp in Jerusalem with Israeli citizenship, was under surveillance for several months before his arrest, the police said.
He was arrested on November 19 in a joint operation carried out by Israel’s elite Yamam counter-terrorism unit and Border Police.
Police found in his possession a bag containing three handguns, a Kalashnikov assault rifle, ammunition and parts for various firearms.
During his investigation, the suspect incriminated and tied himself to the allegations, the police said.
He was remanded until December 1.
Eight additional suspects were arrested in connection with the guns-running ring, and more arrests are expected, the police announced.
In related operations, Israeli security forces arrested Palestinian terrorists over the weekend, 11 of them suspected in taking part in attacks and riots.
The arrests included the capture of four Hamas members from Nablus, Beit Awa and Adna, in the Hebron area. Most of the terrorists who have perpetrated the recent terror attacks have come from the Hebron area.
During a weapons raid in Hebron, soldiers seized an M-16 assault rifle, a handgun, and ammunition.
Early Sunday morning, The IDF raided a Palestinian radio station in Hebron and confiscated equipment that was being used to broadcast incitement and calls to attack Israelis.
The IDF stated it shut down the “Dareme” radio station overnight, marking the third time in recent months Israel has closed a Hebron station for inciting violence.
The military said the station “repeatedly broadcast content that promotes and encourages terror and acts of violence” against Israelis.

Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Leader Makes Rare and Historic Visit to Israel



Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Church Pope Tawadros II in Jerusalem. (AP/Mahmoud Illean)
Coptic Orthodox Church Pope Tawadros II in Jerusalem


Despite a ban on visiting Israel, the head of Egypt’s Coptic church made an historic visit to the Jewish State.
The leader of Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Church is making a rare visit to Israel to attend the funeral of a senior Coptic official in Jerusalem.
Pope Tawadros II broke a ban on pilgrimages to take part in Saturday’s funeral of Archbishop Anba Abraham, the head of the Coptic Church in the Holy Land, at a church at the Holy Sepulcher compound, where the Coptic Church has maintained a presence since early Christianity.
The travel ban to Israel was imposed by Tawadros’s predecessor, the late Shenouda III, who opposed the normalization of ties between Egypt and Israel.
A 1979 Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty ended hostilities between the two neighbors, but anti-Israel sentiments still run high in Egypt and many there have accused Tawadros of betrayal.
Tawadros insisted he was not making an official visit and was merely there to “bid farewell to a very important person.”
Despite the ban, hundreds of Egyptian Copts have reportedly visited Israel over the past years during Easter.
By: AP and United with Israel Staff

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