Category: Articles

Ruth Matar, Co-Founder of the Women in Green, passed away on Saturday.

Founded in 1993 with her husband and originally called “Women for Israel’s Tomorrow,” the group sought to destroy media stereotypes of those opposing land concessions by showing mothers, housewives, and career women who could intelligently articulate Israel’s cause.

Women in Green has been leading the discourse over the vision of full Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.

Nadia Matar, Ruth’s daughter-in-law, together with Yehudit Katzover, currently lead the Women in Green. Nadia recently recounted Ruth’s influence. “Ruth taught us all that we must not be silent and that when a Jew is in distress, you leave everything else aside and mobilize to help him…loyalty is the highest virtue – loyalty to the People, to the Torah, to the Land and to the family.

May the family be comforted among all those who mourn for Zion and Jerusalem and may they know no more sorrow.

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon is defending Israel against United Nations hypocrisy. Danon’s rebuke was included in a letter addressed to UN Security Council members ‎ahead of their weekly session on the Middle East.‎

Referring to the European Union and the PA supporting the residents who refuse to move, Danon stated. ‎“The intervention of these entities has only ‎exacerbated the situation. We see their actions as ‎an attempt to politicize a legal issued on which the ‎highest Israeli court ruled, and as a blatant ‎interference in Israel’s internal affairs.”

Read Ambassador Danon’s latest Newsletter in Israel Hayom,”Joining the Campaign of Lies.” In it he discusses the United Nations latest disgraceful act of allowing left-wing NGO and enemy of Israel, B’Tselem’s executive director Hagai El-Ad, to speak at an official meeting of the UN Security Council.

A Grad rocket fired from the Gaza Strip overnight Tuesday exploded in near a home in Be’er Sheva. Several people were treated for light injuries or shock. The residents of the home, a single mother and her three children ages 9-12 were not harmed.

The home is completely destroyed. The mother, Miri Tamano, stated, “I don’t have a home. Everything has been lost.”

In response, the IDF swiftly hit 20 Hamas positions in Gaza.

Scores of citizens and public figures active in Judea and Samaria gathered at the Oz veGaon nature reserve in Gush Etzion to mark the 25th anniversary of the Women in Green movement and the public activities of its leaders, Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar.

Prompted by the signing of the Oslo accords they started out as a grassroots movement protesting concessions and land withdrawals. Today Women In Green leads sovereignty discourse in policy.

AFSI is proud to partner with Women In Green in our shared goals for our beloved Israel. May the Women In Green go higher and higher as they spread the truth about A WHOLE AND SOVEREIGN ISRAEL.

An informative and fascinating article documenting this historic movement, from their formation – to their first vigil – to their work through the present day, can be found HERE.

At the Oz v’Gaon nature reserve in Gush Etzion a unique library comprising writings and books on Zionism and its founders was dedicated on Tuesday. AFSI applauds the continuing philanthropic work of our Board member Cherna Moskowitz, who made this library possible.

Established through an initiative of Women in Green, the library includes books and writings dealing with Zionism, its philosophers, and those who implemented it, spanning more than a hundred years.

Among the speakers were former Jewish Agency head and former Minister Natan Sharansky, World Zionist Organization acting head Yaakov Hagoel, and Gush Etzion Council head Shlomo Ne’eman.

Oz v’Gaon is a place very close to AFSI’s heart. We’ve contributed and supported it from the start and take pride in watching it grow and flourish.

Read about the inauguration of the library HERE.

Amichai residents, previously evacuated from Amona, are now responding to a ruling that is in their favor. Israel’s Supreme Court has rejected the petitions that were filed against their new town.

“Now it’s final – the community of Amichai has been established, and nothing will prevent us from developing and flourishing and bringing blessing to all the residents of the Shiloh Valley and the entire region.”

AFSI was in Amona before it was destroyed. Our officers were present in August to see the beautiful new playground (photo above), which was anonymously donated by an AFSI member. We were proud to be there for the opening ceremony.

Israel Ready to Help, But….

Israel is once again ready to turn the other cheek and bring aid to Gaza while the attacks coming from Gaza continue to escalate.

Israel has agreed to help solve the electricity crisis in the Gaza strip. The problem is that the PA is blocking workers from receiving delivery of fuel to the power plant.

Reports are surfacing that Abbas is furious at the move by Bulgarian UN envoy Nickolay Mladenov, who coordinated the transfer of Qatari money to Hamas, which went right past Abbas’s authority. In response, Abbas will stop the flow of all PA funds into Gaza, which would incite Hamas to launch another round of violence against Israel.

We think it’s obvious that the refusal to allow delivery of fuel is directly related to Abbas’ fury at Mladenov’s disregard of him and his “authority.”

A 23-year-old terrorist from the nearby village of Shweika, near Tulkarem, handcuffed and shot two employees Sunday morning at the Barkan Industrial Park in Samaria at close range with a Carl Gustav assault rifle.

The victims are Kim Levengrond Yehezkel, 28, a mother from the central Israeli city of Rosh Ha’ayin, and Ziv Hajbi, a 35-year-old father of three from Rishon LeZion, south of Tel Aviv.

Yossi Dagan, Head of Shomron Regional Council firmly demanded, “We must respond to such a serious terrorist incident with unprecedented military action against the terror nests in Judea and Samaria.”

“The incitement and atrocities must end,” said US Senator Ted Cruz who condemned the attacks.

Today was an important day for American students studying in Israel. Two weeks ago, a hero of the Jewish people, Ari Fuld, was brutally murdered by a Palestinian Arab in an act of terror. Ari was a champion of Israel both on the battlefield and on social media. A master educator, Ari was able to show his followers the truth about life in Israel, and in particular, Judea and Samaria.

AFSI’s new program, If Not Us, is dedicated to showing American students the truth about Israel’s rights to Judea and Samaria and its fair treatment of the Arabs who live under Israel’s control. By ignoring the narratives, If Not Us takes students into the heart of the land and shows that Israel has nothing to hide. Today, If Not Us led an educational and inspirational trip to the places most important to Ari.

The day started in Israel’s capital, where students heard from Ari’s father, Rabbi Yonah Fuld, and brother, Hillel Fuld. The students then traveled to the spot where Ari saved lives and stopped the terrorist who fatally wounded him. Hearing form Gush Etzion’s spokesman, Josh Hasten, the students understood what happened in this act of terror…and why. During a Q & A session with master advocate, Avi Abelow, the students sat in Oz V’Gaon, a park built to answer another tragic terror attack, and were able to ask the crucial questions to understand the conflict. Israel’s rights to Judea and Samaria and the need for Israeli sovereignty were discussed at length.

The day ended with a trip to Ari’s Synagogue in Efrat. The students joined the community for Mincha and sat in Ari’s row, looking at the majestic view he enjoyed while he prayed. The students were challenged to make up for the Jewish people’s lost voice and take on a part of Ari’s large efforts. With a Torah lesson to end the day, these American students left with a sense of pride and determination to defend their land.

Twenty-three year old Ofir Dayan is the only daughter of Israel’s Consul General in New York, Dani Dayan. Ofir Dayan is using her connections to push pro-Israel advocacy at Columbia University.

Read about what she is doing HERE.