LLX News

By: Lazar Berman – The Times of Israel; timesofisrael.com

‘The only way to stop them is a credible military threat,’ PM argues; US president publicly disagrees, saying dialogue is still the best way to counter Tehran

In their joint comments Thursday on Iran’s nuclear program, visiting US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Yair Lapid expressed a public disagreement over the best way to tackle the threat, with Lapid telling the American leader that “words will not stop them, Mr. President,” and urging him to “put a credible military threat on the table.”

The two leader’s interaction at the Jerusalem press conference was warm (full text here), and Lapid made clear that there was no daylight between the two countries regarding the ultimate goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

But the two did air their differences before the cameras as to the best way to handle Tehran.

“Words will not stop them, Mr. President,” said Lapid. “Diplomacy will not stop them. The only thing that will stop Iran is knowing that if they continue to develop their nuclear program, the free world will use force. The only way to stop them is to put a credible military threat on the table.”

“It should not be a bluff, but the real thing,” Lapid continued. “The Iranian regime must know that if they continue to deceive the world, they will pay a heavy price.”

cont’d…

https://www.timesofisrael.com/diplomacy-wont-stop-iran-from-going-nuclear-lapid-tells-biden-in-press-conference/

By: Yaakov Lappin – Jewish News Syndicate; jns.org

Israeli observers say if Israel Defense Forces were not in the West Bank, there is no doubt that another Hamas coup would occur, much like the fateful events that occurred in June 2007 in the Gaza Strip • Is Hamas preparing to make its move on the day after the departure of Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas?

Fifteen years ago, in June 2007, the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict underwent a seismic shift. The Islamist terror faction Hamas seized power in the Gaza Strip through a series of deadly raids, firing rockets and mortars at Fatah-run Palestinian Authority bases and storming their positions. In brutal executions, Hamas hurled P.A. personnel to their deaths from rooftops and conducted shootouts in hospitals, forcing many of the remaining P.A. personnel to flee to the West Bank.

Looking back at the Palestinian arena over the past generation, Col. (res.) David Hacham, a former Arab-affairs adviser to seven Israeli defense ministers and a senior research associate at the MirYam Institute, told JNS that “there is no doubt that the main, most significant and dramatic development has been Hamas’s takeover of the Gaza Strip and its forceful expulsion, through the use of violence, of the Palestinian Authority and its personnel from the area.”

This event had a long-term impact on all subsequent internal Palestinian developments, particularly on the balance of power between Hamas and Fatah, and on the nature of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, he said.

cont’d…

https://www.jns.org/15-years-since-hamas-took-gaza-most-dramatic-development-in-palestinian-arena/

By: Jordan Cope – The Jerusalem Post; jpost.com

The UN appears to have come to Hamas’s aid when it comes to absolving the group of wrongdoing and scapegoating Israel.

When retired British Col. Richard Kemp took the floor at the United Nations Human Rights Council on June 14, he did something controversial. He dared to accuse the UNHRC’s Commission of Inquiry (COI) on Israel and its disinformation campaign of furthering Hamas’s illegal war against Israel.

It’s unsurprising that the Palestinian Authority sought to interrupt Kemp by raising a point of order. Kemp’s comments triggered the representative for the PA, clearly Hamas’s rivals. By shifting the perceived paradigm of conflict from between Israel and the PA ruling the West Bank, to between Israel and Hamas, Kemp stole the spotlight from the PA, which has increasingly struggled to remain relevant as more Palestinians have entrusted Hamas to champion their cause.

Most importantly, Kemp exposed the UNHRC for seeming to advance Hamas’s agenda. However controversial his comments, Kemp is surely correct in his assessment that the UN and its agencies appear to be furthering Hamas’s agenda. By delegitimizing both Israel and the PA – Hamas’s sole competitor for power – while absolving Hamas of culpability, the UN has afforded Hamas the moral high ground and has paved the way for it to terrorize, rule and dictate with impunity.

cont’d…

https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-711010

by JNS | Jul 8, 2022 | Middle East

Ahead of U.S. President Joe Biden’s planned visit to the Middle East mid-month, it appears that Saudi Arabia is setting the stage for closer relations with Israel.

According to a report by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), intellectuals, journalists and social-media activists in Saudi Arabia have begun openly expressing a more tolerant and even positive attitude towards Israel. They see peace with Jerusalem as inevitable and vital to halting threats to the region by Iran, including a nuclear one.

Many have also directly criticized the Palestinians for not adopting a realistic policy conducive to resolving the conflict with Israel.

cont’d…

https://israel365news.com/353985/saudi-jorunalists-slam-palestinians-call-for-religious-edict-approving-normalization-with-israel/

By: Ryan Jones – Israel Today; israeltoday.co.il

Evil flees before and is defeated by truth and light. But it is given free rein when we sit idly by and do nothing, or worse, cower in the corner.

The tepid response to Iran coming from America and Europe only serves to further embolden the ayatollahs in their demonic quest to put the entire region under the repressive thumb of Islam.

It’s been rightly compared to the initial response of Britain and France to Nazi aggression in the lead-up to World War II. Sure, they weren’t happy about it. But they also weren’t prepared to do anything about it.

Israel, on the other hand, has learned its lesson. At first similarly blind to what the Nazis were truly capable of, the Jews of Europe failed to fully grasp what was happening until it was too late.

The Jews of Israel won’t make that same mistake twice. Which is why on Sunday Israel’s dovish interim Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yair Lapid, uncharacteristically slammed his European Union counterpart, Josep Borrell, for once again trying to bring Iran back to the negotiating table despite recent overwhelming evidence that the Islamic Republic has continued its nuclear weapons program in defiance of all previous agreements.

cont’d…

https://www.israeltoday.co.il/read/our-lukewarm-and-fearful-responses-to-iran-are-not-biblical/

CBN News; cbn.com

JERUSALEM, Israel —A baby formula shortage triggered by a global supply chain crisis has sent parents across the United States scouring supermarket shelves in search of nourishment for their babies. 

With many families still unable to get their hands on infant formula, Israelis are stepping up to help.

The Genesis 123 Foundation, a non-profit that seeks to build bridges between Christians and Jews, recently delivered 200 pounds of baby formula to two churches in Texas.

“I was troubled to hear about the major shortage of baby formula, and people turning to every means to get the precious powder that keeps their children nourished and even alive,” says Jonathan Feldstein, an orthodox Jew and president of the Genesis 123 Foundation. 

Initially, Feldstein planned on bringing a few cans of formula from Israel in his suitcase during a trip to the US. Then he decided to enact the help of a major Israeli grocery store and his neighbors to bring even more.

cont’d…

https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/israel/2022/june/lis-step-up-to-deliver-baby-formula-to-christians-in-texas

By: Julie Stahl – CBN News; cbn.com

A political earthquake is rocking Israel after Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid announced on Monday they are dissolving the Knesset, putting an end to their struggling coalition government. The move likely brings the country to its fifth national election in three and a half years.

The joint statement on national television pre-empted a Knesset vote scheduled for Wednesday that may have brought down the government anyway. 

“My friend, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid and I, decided to work together, to dissolve the Knesset, and to hold elections at an agreed time, at the same time transferring the power in an orderly manner and ensuring the national interest of the State of Israel. Even during the transition period, the state continues,” Bennett said in the primetime address.

Over the last month, the coalition destabilized with the withdrawal of coalition members. Bennett said he had fought hard to maintain the coalition.

“In recent weeks we have done everything that could be done to preserve this government, which, in our eyes, its continued existence is in the national interest. Believe me, we have turned every stone upside down, not for our sake, but for the sake of our beautiful country, for you, citizens of the State of Israel,” Bennett said.

cont’d…

https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/israel/2022/june/israeli-government-collapses-calls-for-new-elections-could-it-lead-to-a-return-for-netanyahu

By: Yaakov Lappin – Jewish News Syndicate; jns.org

Maj. (res.) Tal Beeri of the Alma Center tells JNS that “the attacking party” behind a series of reported strikes on Damascus is sending a clear message to the Bashar Assad regime.

The Syrian regime led by President Bashar Assad risks losing its Damascus International Airport if Iran continues to use the site to smuggle advanced weapons to Hezbollah, the head of research at an Israeli defense research center has warned.

Speaking just days after international media reports said Israel struck its latest blow against Damascus International, Maj. (res.) Tal Beeri, head of the research department at the Alma Center, told JNS: “The message is clear. So long as Iran’s air corridor for smuggling weapons from Iran to Syria and Lebanon continues, the Syrian state will be seen as responsible by the attacking party. So long as Syria won’t act, the airport will continue to be a target.”

Future attacks could include a “roof knock”—dropping empty munitions to serve as a warning—on the airport’s control tower and destroying it after it is evacuated, assessed Beeri, or strikes on the airport’s radars.

“If the message isn’t received, attacks could escalate further, to the point that serious damage is caused to the airport, and it will take more than a few days to repair,” he said. “The messaging is not aimed at Iran—that is a lost cause. It is determined to continue trafficking arms to Hezbollah. It is aimed at Syria.”

cont’d…

https://www.jns.org/israeli-defense-expert-if-syria-continues-to-let-iranian-weapon-planes-land-it-risks-losing-airport/

By: Ian Giatti – The Christian Post; christianpost.com

Nearly half a century after his father visited the region, Rev. Franklin Graham held a historic outreach on the beaches of Brazil over the weekend, drawing thousands to hear the Gospel despite some rainy weather.

The Esperança Rio — or “Hope” Rio — event at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro resulted from years of prayer, planning and training. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) partnered with more than 4,000 churches to make it all come together.

Umbrellas in hand, almost 70,000 turned out to hear the 69-year-old Evangelical leader’s message of God’s love.

Graham told The Christian Post there’s a “great hunger for the Gospel, no question,” as evidenced by the commitment of the thousands who showed up in the rain.

cont’d…

https://www.christianpost.com/church-ministries/franklin-graham-preaches-hope-to-68k-on-brazilian-beach.html

By: Tamir Morag – Israel Hayom; israelhayom.com

“Scooper Series: Social Mission” series of videos include one by leading BDS activist Omar Shakir of Human Rights Watch, as well as videos about racism in the United States. Ben & Jerry’s parent company Unilever faces investor class action suit over ice cream giant’s boycott decision.

All new employees of ice cream maker Ben & Jerry’s are now required to attend a series of four lectures by activists on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Jewish Insider reported this week.

This includes one by Omar Shakir of Human Rights Watch, a leading BDS activist expelled from Israel for supporting the boycott of the Jewish state.

Last year, Ben & Jerry’s caused an uproar when it announced it would no longer sell its products in the “occupied Palestinian Territories,” referring to Judea and Samaria and east Jerusalem.

Jewish Insider reported that the company makes new employees watch videos about racism in the United States and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict under the title “Scooper Series: Social Mission.”

cont’d…

https://www.israelhayom.com/2022/06/16/ben-jerrys-forces-new-hires-to-watch-videos-on-israeli-palestinian-conflict/