Author: AFSI Staff

A group of about 20 activists of the left-wing Combatants for Peace movement arrived in the Hemdat area of ​​the Jordan Valley on Saturday to harass local Israeli farmers.

They cut a 500-meter-long barbed wire fence and hung signs in its place. After a resident of the area identified the vandalism and called the police, forces arrived on the scene.

A complaint was filed against the vandals.

Combatants for Peace activists have been recorded inciting violence against Israelis. One activist encouraged a third intifada. Another one was documented accusing Israelis in Judea and Samaria of causing cancerous diseases in the Arab villages, as they flow their sewage, transport pigs in trucks and more.

The organization’s activists also said that the organization receives funds indirectly from the New Israel Fund so that it does not appear that the Fund supports the organization directly.

The DMU Project, an organization that monitors anti-Israel activities, said that incidents of Israeli anarchists harassing the residents of the Jordan Valley have become commonplace.

“We have warned many times about illegal actions carried out by the Combatants for Peace organization in the Jordan Valley and other places in Judea and Samaria. The case today is particularly serious, and it is an escalation,” DMU stated.

“Combatants for Peace prides itself on committing vandalism and agricultural crime under the auspices of an ideological act. The authorities must handle the case severely and take action against the recurrence of the case and the organization must compensate for the damage it has done,” DMU demanded.

Source:
Left-Wing Org Harasses Israeli Farmers in Jordan Valley, by TPS. Tazpit Press Service, February 14, 2021

Hundreds of people, including Settlement Minister Tzahi Hanegbi, MK Ariel Kallner and candidates Amichai Shikli and Simcha Rothman, attended a protest rally near Nokdim.

The protest event was against the PA takeover of state lands and Jewish community property and against the environmental destruction in the areas of the “Agreement Reserve” (a nature reserve in the northern Judean Desert) led by the PA together with the European Union.

The decision to hold the demonstration in this location stems from the establishment of a PA outpost in the lands of the Nokdim community.

Source:
Hundreds demonstrate against PA takeover of land in ‘Area C’, by Hezki Baruch. Arutz Sheva, February 10, 2021

Israeli military estimates Tehran is at least two years from an atomic bomb from the moment it decides to ‘break out’, says Islamic Republic is desperate for a deal with US.

Military Intelligence believes that a new nuclear agreement that prevents Iran from ever enriching uranium up to the 90 percent level needed for a nuclear weapon is feasible. It would also alleviate some of Jerusalem’s primary concerns.

This view, presented as part of the Israel Defense Forces’ annual intelligence assessment, comes as the Biden administration considers a return to the 2015 nuclear deal or, potentially, the negotiation of a new accord. The Israeli military, Times of Israel has learned, regards an eventual US return to the deal as a near-certainty.

At this stage, the Israeli military assesses that Iran is still roughly two years away from being able to create a working, deliverable nuclear weapon. This is roughly the same timeframe it estimated last year despite the Islamic Republic’s stockpiling and enrichment.

The current US administration is determined to return to the negotiating table with Iran, and Israel remains open to that possibility but steadfast that its demands be met.

Iran has reached a historic low point thanks to the campaign the IDF (and the previous US administration) has been waging against it in recent years.

AFSI remains troubled by the delusional position of the Biden administration. The truth has not changed: Iran remains the number one state sponsor of terror. It seeks the total destruction of Israel (and the Great Satan – the US). They cannot be trusted, nor should they be appeased, with any offer of a re-negotiated “deal.”

Sources:
IDF sees permanent ban on weapons-grade uranium as essential for Iran nuke deal, by Judah Ari Gross. Times of Israel, February 9, 2021

‘Iran at historic low, but still developing nuclear program’, by Arutz Sheva Staff. Arutz Sheva, February 9, 2021

Late Monday night, the Israel Police and IDF began a joint chase for multiple suspects who broke into the Nevatim Israel Air Force Base. The vehicle is believed to have been driven by two or three Bedouins.

Regavim in Israel commented on the matter:

The State of Israel has been ignoring the cracks in law and order in the Negev for so long, they’ve become a “grand canyon” – and tonight’s events in the Negev prove the point.

In the last two weeks alone the Negev has seen horrific and varied forms of criminal behavior: The shocking sexual assault of a little girl in her home, the break-in at the Israel Air Force base at Sde Teiman that included a stun grenade attack on our soldiers, a string of robberies in Be’er Sheva that were caught on film and uploaded to social media, the desecration of a Jewish cemetery, a massive ammunition heist, and now, a break-in at the Nevatim base, where Israel’s top-secret aeronautical technology is housed.

It’s time for the State of Israel to draw a line in the sand. For the sake of each and every citizen of Israel, we demand that the government formulate a comprehensive, non-negotiable solution to the problem of Bedouin crime in the Negev.

Sources:
Suspects steal car, break into Nevatim IAF base, escape on foot, by Udi Shaham, Tobias Siegal. Jerusalem Post, February 9, 2021

Bedouin bandits infiltrate IAF base at Nevatim, by Regavim. February 9, 2021

The pretrial chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday determined that The Hague has jurisdiction to open criminal investigations against Israel and the Hamas terrorist group for alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip, the “West Bank,” and east Jerusalem.

The 2-1 decision has cleared the way for Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda to open a war crimes probe into IDF actions.

Back in 2019, Bensouda argued that there was a “reasonable basis” to open a war crimes probe into Israeli military actions in the Gaza Strip as well as Israeli “settlement” activity in Judea and Samaria. Since Israel is not a signatory of the Rome Statute from which The Hague draws its power, Bensouda asked the court to determine whether she has territorial jurisdiction before proceeding with the case.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the ruling as grossly biased. “The ICC has again proved that it is a political body – not a judicial institution. The ICC ignores the real war crimes and instead pursues the State of Israel, a state with a strong democratic government that sanctifies the rule of law and is not a member of the ICC.

The IDF was not surprised by the ICC’s decision and has been preparing for such a scenario for a few months. The military has even appointed an “ICC czar” to coordinate all aspects of the legal battle. Maj. Gen. Itai Veruv is serving as head of a team that includes an expert in international law.

What a disgrace the ICC is. The action it has taken against Israel is destructive to its own mandate. The ICC was established to be a court of last resort for prosecuting serious international crimes. The ICC needs to be instructed on Sovereignty 101. Israel is a Sovereign nation that has been protecting itself 24/7 from terrorism – and for decades. Now you’re charging her with “war crimes”? Politicization and misuse are on full display here, not to mention blatant anti-Semitism.

Sources:
ICC asserts jurisdiction to investigate Israel, Hamas for war crimes, by News Agencies and ILH Staff. Israel Hayom, February 5, 2021

Operation Hague: IDF appoints commander to oversee battle against ICC, by Lilach Shoval and Yair Altman. Israel Hayom, February 8, 2021

Israel rejects the ICC’s decision regarding the scope of its territorial jurisdiction on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict – Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs Official Statement. February 7, 2021

The B’Tselem rights organization received funds from foreign governments to engage the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. For what, you might ask. In the probe against what they define as Israel’s “occupation” in Judea and Samaria, Member of Knesset (MK) Ariel Kallner charged.

Kallner, head of the Knesset’s Lobby for the Fight Against Delegitimization and Anti-Semitism, revealed Saturday that B’Tselem received 290,000 euros from foreign governments. This enabled B’Tselem to ‘prove’ that the Israeli legal system is enlisted to support Israel’s “occupation policy,” pushing the ICC to intervene.

He published the data following the ICC’s ruling on Friday.

The ICC’s ruling is “a direct result of the subversive activity of delegitimization and legal warfare organizations operating with foreign funding in Israel,” he charged.

“The activity of these subversive organizations is destructive,” he stated, noting that he submitted in the previous Knesset a bill for heavy taxation of foreign-state funding, which was shot down, and which he hopes to introduce again in the next Knesset.

“The time has come to put an end to this despicable and subversive phenomenon,” Kallner declared.

Based on financial information submitted to the Israeli Registrar of Non-Profits, in accordance with the Israeli NGO Transparency Law, B’Tselem received NIS 46,258,659 (approx. $14,027,000) from foreign governmental bodies in 2012-2020.

AFSI hosted a Zoom meeting in August 2020 with MK Ariel Kallner who spoke to us on The Politics of Sovereignty.

Source:
Israeli Lawmaker: B’Tselem Received Foreign Funding to Aid ICC Against Israel, by Aryeh Savir/TPS. Tazpit Press Service, February 7, 2021

UNRWA spokesman Sami Masha’a announced that the UAE has slashed its annual payments to UNRWA from $51.8 million in 2019 to only $1 million in 2020. That’s a reduction of over 98%.

Palestinian media is claiming that this came as a result of pressure from the Trump administration. Perhaps, but the Abraham Accords were announced in August and the UAE didn’t pay anything beyond the token amount all year.

It isn’t only the UAE, though. The entire Arab world pledges very little to UNRWA – and pays even less. According to an expert in UNRWA, Essam Adwan, the Arab world pledges to pay only 7.8% of UNRWA’s budget yet pays less than 5%.

How is it the Arab world isn’t funding UNRWA the way other countries are? Maybe they know UNRWA needs a house cleaning and numbers audit.

Source:
Arab states pay less than 5% of UNWRA’s budget, by Elder of Ziyon. Elder of Ziyon Blogspot, February 8, 2021

Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman yesterday criticized Biden’s decision to improve U.S. ties with the Palestinians. He listed a host of reasons opposing the move, including corruption and incitement against Jews.

A day earlier, acting U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Richard Mills told the Security Council that Biden plans on reopening the Palestinian diplomatic mission in Washington. Biden also plans to reinstate some aid to the Palestinians in a bid to restore “credible engagement” with them and work towards resurrecting the long-dead two-state solution.

Former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman tweeted, “Not so fast guys! PLO mission in DC is against Federal law, Pals still paying terrorists and UNRWA is corrupt and incites hatred of Jews. Please don’t go there!”

Needless to say, AFSI does not applaud the Biden administration’s decision to restore ties with terrorists whose only goal is to wipe Israel off of the map. May Biden’s dream of resurrecting the delusional two-state solution remain dead and buried forever.

Separately, but certainly related, a senior US State Department official announced earlier this week that the Biden administration “embraces and champions” the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) working definition of anti-Semitism. If Biden is to “embrace” this definition then he needs to have a better understanding of the PLO/PA goals to destroy Israel. Israel is a Jewish State where Jews live. Biden’s support of the PLO/PA cancels out any acceptance of the IHRA working definition of anti-Semitism.

Sources:
Fmr. Ambassador David Friedman Slams Biden Decision to Renew Palestinian Ties, by Deborah Brand. Breitbart, January 27, 2021

Biden admin ’embraces’ IHRA anti-Semitism definition shunned by progressives, by Jacob Magid. Times of Israel, February 2, 2021

At the largest illegal dump in Judea and Samaria, untreated waste continues to pollute the entire ecosystem. Worst of all is that no indictments against the perpetrators have been issued.

Under the cover of the first corona shutdown, the Ramallah Municipality dumped thousands of truckloads of untreated refuse into an abandoned quarry at the headwaters of Nahal Makoch. The Civil Administration admits: Only three trucks were impounded, and no indictments were filed against the criminals. Regavim stated: “The mountain of waste remains, despite the Civil Administration’s claims to the contrary.”

“Almost a year has passed, and not one of the authorities responsible for dealing with hazards of this nature has taken responsibility,” said Eitan Melet, Regavim’s Field Coordinator for Judea and Samaria. “The criminals got off virtually scot-free, without any criminal indictments, no clean-up costs, no punitive fines – while the entire ecosystem is paying a heavy price.”

Why is this matter allowed to persist? Time is wasting away – no pun intended. An answer is needed now along with swift action to clean up this illegal dumping ground on Jewish owned land.

Source:
Arab ‘Mount Trashmore’ Dump Fast Becoming a Permanent Fixture in Jewish Samaria, by Jewish Press News Desk. Jewish Press, February 2, 2021

The Psagot Winery sits on the peaks of the Binyamin region mountains in Judea and Samaria, north of Jerusalem and just east of Ramallah. Yaakov Berg and his wife are owners of Psagot Winery. Recently, Yaakov expressed his hope that “peace with the Emirates will change our relationship with Palestinians.”

Israel – UAE relations are slowly changing thanks to the Trump administration having brokered the Abraham Accords. Could we be starting to see less politics and more of what mutually benefits both sides?

Miri Ovadia, Binyamin regional council spokesperson said, “we are now having conversations about business, technology, tourism and culture—not just political conversations. In Judea and Samaria, we have been saying for years that it is possible to live side by side with Arabs.” The normalization agreements have “contributed a lot to people’s feelings that this is how the world should be.

There is so much work to be done before a real and lasting peace between Israel and her Arab neighbors is achieved. Nevertheless, stories like this one give us a cautious glimmer of hope for the future.

Source:
UAE embraces trade with Israeli-owned businesses in Judea and Samaria, by Eliana Rudee. Jewish News Syndicate, February 3, 2021