Tuesday, November 25, 2014
Eugene Kontorovich: A Palestinian ICC gambit would reach far beyond parties to the conflict
An ICC investigation into Hamas will place both Qatar and Turkey in the international spotlight, and will lead to intense international pressure on their senior leaders, including the Emir and increasingly belligerent and paranoid President Erdogan, to assist in the ICC’s investigation and deliver wanted persons to the ICC. These countries will doubtless react with hostility to such efforts, leading to diplomatic tension between them and the ICC’s Western supporters.Coverage of Israel should be accurate and impartial, but it's not
In other words, an ICC investigation could pull in much of the Middle East, in a way that is likely to be obnoxious and destabilizing, and will pit Western interests in diplomatic quiet with their commitment to justice.
Moreover, Israel sees a Palestinian turn to the ICC as the ultimate betrayal of the diplomatic process that created the Palestinian government itself. It may react by spreading the love. Thus it would have little to lose by joining the ICC itself, and forcing an investigation of Turkish settlements in Cyprus, and, if the Court allows for retroactive jurisdiction, perhaps Lebanese rocketing of Israel. It could also perhaps refer Iran for its incitement to genocide, which as I explain, could be understood as relating to the territory of Israel.
In other words, not only would a Palestinian turn to the ICC not be limited to Israel and the Palestinians – it would also sweep in much of the Middle East.
One cannot argue that the recent mistakes and misinformation are simply the result of the information age, the social networking sites, and the pressure to release reports about rolling events as quickly as possible. We've witnessed them before, when there was no Internet, too, and they occur in one direction only – Israel's.The Nazi Romance With Islam Has Some Lessons for the United States
For quite some time now, the Western media's coverage of Israel has suffered from mistaken reporting, exaggerations, double standards, the unbalanced use of sources, baseless associations, ridiculous analogies, selective and tendentious interviews and significant omissions.
The shortcomings stem from a sense of solidarity with the "underdog," the adoption of the Palestinian-victim narrative, intimidation and threats on the part of the Palestinians, the widespread conflicting and critical voices within Israel, and anti-Semitism. From the perspective of the Western media, Israel alone is to blame for the absence of a solution and the violence.
This puts Israel in a very difficult spot; but its spokespersons must make more of an effort to demand a higher level of professionalism and responsibility from the journalists, and to denounce and shame them when they slip up. The Western media's consumers expect accurate, reliable and impartial reporting. They need to be shown that when it comes to reports they are fed about Israel, this is often not the case.
Both Hitler and Himmler had a soft spot for Islam. Hitler several times fantasized that, if the Saracens had not been stopped at the Battle of Tours, Islam would have spread through the European continent—and that would have been a good thing, since “Jewish Christianity” wouldn’t have gone on to poison Europe. Christianity doted on weakness and suffering, while Islam extolled strength, Hitler believed. Himmler in a January 1944 speech called Islam “a practical and attractive religion for soldiers,” with its promise of paradise and beautiful women for brave martyrs after their death. “This is the kind of language a soldier understands,” Himmler gushed.
Surely, the Nazi leaders thought, Muslims would see that the Germans were their blood brothers: loyal, iron-willed, and most important, convinced that Jews were the evil that most plagued the world. “Do you recognize him, the fat, curly-haired Jew who deceives and rules the whole world and who steals the land of the Arabs?” demanded one of the Nazi pamphlets dropped over North Africa (a million copies of it were printed). “The Jew,” the pamphlet explained, was the evil King Dajjal from Islamic tradition, who in the world’s final days was supposed to lead 70,000 Jews from Isfahan in apocalyptic battle against Isa—often identified with Jesus, but according to the Reich Propaganda Ministry none other than Hitler himself. Germany produced reams of leaflets like this one, often quoting the Quran on the subject of Jewish treachery. (h/t Elder of Lobby)
Netanyahu: Recognition of Israel as nation state of Jews is basis for future peace accord
Recognition of Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people is the basis of any future peace accord, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday, responding to critics both domestic and abroad claiming that the controversial “Jewish state” legislation will water down the country's democratic character.Bennett rejects US comments on ‘Jewish state’ bill
“Israel is the nation state of the Jewish people,” Netanyahu said during a meeting with Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka as part of the annual government-to-government meeting between Israeli and Czech cabinet ministers. “Israel is an exemplary democratic country – that is the way it was and the way it will be. A country that anchors personal equal rights for each of its citizens.”
Netanyahu said he did not know a more vibrant, democratic country than Israel in the world, “certainly not in our region.”
The Prime minister said that while the country's democratic character was ensured, what is being challenged constantly is it being the nation-state of the Jewish people. “And for that reason we will anchor in law the national rights of the Jewish people, alongside with assurances of the personal rights of each citizen,” he said. “That combination is what is important, and what I will promote in the principles of this law. We will continue to do this to make clear the fact that Israel is a Jewish democratic state.”
Economy Minister Naftali Bennett of the right-wing Jewish Home party on Tuesday rejected perceived American criticism of a bill that would enshrine in law Israel’s status as a Jewish nation-state.Defending the Right to a Jewish State
“I say to the Americans that we will manage the affairs of the State of Israel. We have to deal with the ramifications of what sort of state we want,” Bennett told Army Radio. “In the end, this is our problem, an internal problem, and I don’t think anyone has the right to wade into it.”
In a press briefing the day before, State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke said the US understood that the proposal was only at the “beginning of a process, and so I don’t want to speculate on the outcome,” but added that the US “would expect any final legislation to continue Israel’s commitment to democratic principles.”
He added: “The United States position, which is unchanged, has been clear for years – and the president and the secretary [of state] have also reiterated it – is that Israel is a Jewish and democratic state in which all citizens should enjoy equal rights.”
For far too long, those who have spoken up for Israel in international or media forums have downplayed the question of the rights of the Jews in the conflict and instead spoke only of the nation’s security needs. But when placed against Palestinian claims of their rights to the same country—when Hamas talks about resistance to the “occupation” they are referring to Israel within its pre-1967 borders—such talk inevitably seems inadequate. Friends of Israel are right to seek to promote the idea of a nation state for the Jews not so much because Israel’s laws need to be altered but because Zionism is itself under attack and must be vigorously defended.Times of London again falsely alleges Israeli bill will make Arabs 2nd class citizens
Lastly, those who consider this some kind of colossal blunder on the part of Netanyahu don’t understand what is going on here. If Livni and Lapid blow up the government and force new elections, it is likely that both of them will lose ground while Netanyahu—who has no viable rival for the role of prime minister—is likely to emerge even stronger in a Knesset where the right-wing parties may be even more dominant and so-called moderates are marginalized.
Livni and Lapid would do well to lower the rhetoric and back down if they want to avoid going into an election having repudiated a measure that is, in the context of a country that is already a Jewish state, an anodyne proposal.
Israel won’t be any more Jewish or less democratic no matter whether or not this bill eventually becomes one of the country’s basic laws. But those casually weighing in on this debate from afar need to understand that at a time when the legitimacy of a Jewish state is increasingly under attack, Israelis are within their rights to make it clear they won’t give up this right.
As we noted in two posts yesterday, Times of London editors chose a headline for a Nov. 24th article by Gregg Carlstrom which mischaracterized a proposed bill designed to enshrine Israel as “the nation-state of the Jewish people” as one which would make Arabs “second class citizens”.Israeli envoy Prosor says 'J'accuse' to UN, slamming the body's hypocrisy
The article with the erroneous headline – based merely on a characterization of the proposed bill by some critics – appeared in the print and online editions of the paper.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Ron Prosor lashed out at the hypocrisy displayed toward Israel at the world body on Monday as the UN marked “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.”Khaled Abu Toameh: PA denies postponing statehood bid at Security Council
"To the nations that continue to allow prejudice to prevail over truth, I say J’accuse. I accuse you of hypocrisy. I accuse you of demanding concessions from Israel, but asking nothing of the Palestinians," Prosor said, drawing inspiration from Jewish writer Emil Zola's famous open letter written in response to the anti-Semitism of the Dreyfus Affair.
"I accuse you of speaking about Israel’s right of self-defense in theory, but denying it in practice. I accuse you of lending legitimacy to those who seek to destroy our state. Our conflict has never been about the establishment of a Palestinian state. It has always been about the existence of the Jewish state," Prosor stated.
"Among 193 flags at the UN there is one flag with a Jewish Star of David. There is just one small nation state for the Jewish people, and for some people, that is one too many. Today’s debate is not about speaking for peace or speaking for the Palestinian people – it is about speaking against Israel," he accused.
"We will not return to the times of the world’s ignorance and indifference towards the Jewish people.We will never apologize for being a sovereign state," Prosor vowed.
The Palestinian Authority on Monday denied that it has decided to postpone its plan to ask the UN Security Council to issue a resolution calling for a full Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 lines.UN chief: Palestinian recognition gaining momentum
The denial came after the Bethlehem- based Ma’an news agency quoted PA Foreign Minister Riad Malki earlier that day as saying that the Palestinian leadership has decided to delay its intention to go to the Security Council.
A senior PA official in Ramallah said that the plan, which calls for a Security Council resolution that considers all the territories captured by Israel in 1967 as the lands of a future Palestinian state, would be presented to the council on November 30, and described the Ma’an report as a “rumor designed to defame the Palestinian Authority.”
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday the international community's failure to advance a political solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is spurring governments and parliaments to take action to recognize the state of Palestine, and that this "momentum will grow."UN Chief: Israel, Palestinians 'Standing at the Precipice'
At the U.N. commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, Ban said the international community must assume "a collective failure" for not being able to achieve a peace deal.
"Indeed, as we see around the world, governments and parliaments are taking action," Ban said.
UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged Israel and the Palestinians on Monday to "step back from the brink" and return to peace talks for a "two-state solution."UN marks ‘International Day of Solidarity’ with Palestinians
"The Israeli and Palestinian people face a shared fate on shared land. There is no erasing the other," Ban told a UN committee on "Palestinian rights."
He called "on the parties to step back from the brink and find the path of peace before hope and time run out."
Monday featured a special meeting of the UN General Assembly to discuss the “Question of Palestine,” and a convening of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, to mark the occasion.Largest American Lobbying Firm Hired By Palestinian Authority
In his remarks to the committee, Ban reiterated his condemnation of Hamas rocket attacks, saying they “brought nothing but suffering to all sides.”
“At the same time,” he continued, “the scale of the destruction by the Israeli military has left deep questions about respect for questions of proportionality and generated wide calls for accountability.”
Ban encouraged donors to continue to support UNRWA and the reconstruction efforts in Gaza, which he was pleased to announce were going forward.
He also said he was “deeply troubled” by the situation in Jerusalem and the West Bank. He again condemned “attacks on worshipers” and added that he felt “extremists on both sides are dictating the agenda.”
The largest lobbying firm in the United States, Squire Patton Boggs, has been hired as of November 15, 2014 by the Palestinian Authority for the fee of $55,000 dollars per month for a 1-year contract which will automatically renew. The company has been tapped to work with the Palestinian Authority to ensure that the PA continues to receive funding which has been committed to by the United States. U.S. aid to the Palestinians is approximately $500 million annually.Ya’alon: US Defense Secy Hagel is ‘True Friend’ of Israel
Undoubtedly, the subtext is due to the fact that there is now a “Palestinian unity government” between Fatah and Hamas – and Hamas is recognized as a terrorist organization in the United States. American law states that U.S. aid to the Palestinians may not benefit Hamas "or any entity effectively controlled by Hamas, any power-sharing government of which Hamas is a member, or that results from an agreement with Hamas and over which Hamas exercises undue influence."
Disclosure forms which have been filed note that “Patton Boggs will assist the PA in assessing US funding promises to date and help ensure that further commitments of financial assistance are fulfilled and received by the Palestinians.” Gassan Baloul is the partner at Patton Boggs running the Palestinian Authority account, and has previously represented clients in the Middle East against allegations of violations of the Anti-Terrorism Act, and money laundering violations. He recently worked on a high-profile case working with a Lebanese bank accused of working with terrorists.
Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon was unstinting with his praise of outgoing U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Monday in response to the news that Hagel is stepping down.Michael Lumish: A Note to Ceylan Özbudak
Ya’alon called Hagel a “true friend” of Israel, commenting that in recent years, his relationship with the defense secretary had been “very open and honest.”
The U.S. security establishment under his command, said Ya’alon, “is an example of uncompromising support and exchange of information.” Ya’alon also referred to the “extensive and valuable military assistance that the U.S. has provided Israel.”
He thanked Hagel “in the name of the government of Israel and on behalf of its citizens” for his “contribution to the empowerment of Israel and his friendship and willingness to help at any time.
Ceylan Özbudak is a political analyst on Turkish television and an executive director of Building Bridges, an Istanbul-based NGO associated with the Harun Yahya organization.Campus Anti-Semitism: Where Are The Christians?
I know next to nothing about Harun Yahya and therefore cannot speak to its nature, but I know that Ceylan wrote this to me in a personal email:
"Whoever is using al-Aqsa mosque for provocation, whoever starts a fight in the mosque is shameless, this is not an action Muslims should support. On the contrary, this is an action Muslims should shun. Israel may have malpractices. But I experienced personally many times that whenever we ask them about the details of an incident, they give us detailed explanations and they are open to agreement, they are usually civil people.
The system is also democratic in Israel."
This is a friend of the Jewish people and I am going to acknowledge her as so.
We are a tiny minority.
We represent 2 percent of the American population and .2 percent of the world population.
The pro-Israel / pro-Jewish on-line community has accepted both African-American Chloe Valdary and Indigenous-American Ryan Bellerose as great friends.
I have been getting letters from some of these students. They want to get it off their chests; the willies they’ve been getting.Academic body votes to be open forum on Israel boycotts
Going to class has become a nightmare. The campus has become a recruitment center for Arab fundamentalism. Hatred stalks the corridors.
There is nothing arbitrary about campus anti-Semitism sweeping the country. Rather it is a systematic approach by fanatical Islamists to break the Jewish spirit. They come here as students but that is only a pretext. To reason with them is pointless because their fanaticism is robotic.
Their bigotry is deep-seated and their racism and their grievances travel with them wherever they go. Jewish kids are no match.
So where are the Christians who’ve been taught to love their neighbor – who’ve been raised to serve as shelters to those who suffer? Silence?
Yes you are your brother’s keeper. But where are you? Your fellow students could use a helping hand. Your fellowship is urgently needed.
Of Jewish students attracted to the scoffers, lighting Hanukkah candles isn’t enough and running with BDS won’t protect you from their scorn.
Your coreligionists in Israel count on your support. Where are you?
A key U.S. organization of Middle East scholars voted Monday to protect the rights of members who support a long-standing Palestinian call for academic boycotts of Israeli institutions, but stopped short of taking a stand for or against such activities.Detroit Lions Running Back Compares Ferguson to Palestinian People
By a vote of 256-79, members at an annual meeting of the Middle East Studies Association in Washington agreed to send the resolution to the general membership for a vote in the coming months.
The organization resolved to remain an open forum for discussion of academic boycotts of Israel and deplored attempts to intimidate those taking part in such activities. The issue arose from the 2005 Palestinian civil society call for boycott, divestment, and sanctions against Israel.
MESA President Nathan Brown emphasized that the organization was not taking a stand on the moves by many organizations worldwide and in the United States to boycott, disinvest in or sanction Israel or Israeli institutions for the failure of Middle East peace talks.
Detroit Lions running back Reggie Bush just compared Michael Brown and the Ferguson protestors to the Palestinian people.Britain says it is reviewing arms exports to Israel again
Bush suggested via a photo he posted on his Instagram account that Israelis are shooting unarmed Palestinians the same way Darren Wilson shot Mike Brown.
The photo shows a man holding a sign that reads:
The Palestinian people know what mean to be shot while unarmed because of your ethnicity. #ferguson #justice.
Britain is undertaking a second review of arms export licenses to Israel to ensure equipment could not be used in a way that would breach international law, the government said on Monday.Congressman Henry Waxman, State Senator Ted W. Lieu, and State Senator-Elect Ben Allen Condemn BDS Vote By UCLA Student Government
The British government has already conducted one such review, in August, in response to the Jewish state's conflict with Hamas in Gaza, after which it said it would suspend 12 licenses to export military items to Israel if hostilities resumed.
"To ensure that new information is taken into account, and in light of the fact that a cease-fire has been in place for more than two months, ministers decided earlier this month to carry out a further review," a government spokeswoman said in a statement.
The August review found that the "vast majority" of exports licensed for Israel were not for items that could be used by Israeli forces in Gaza, she added.
Congressman Henry Waxman, State Senator Ted W. Lieu, and State Senator-Elect Ben Allen issued a statement in response to the passing of the anti-Israel BDS resolution by the UCLA student government. They condemned the resolution and praised the UCLA Chancellor and the Board of Regents for their public rejection of its presence in administrative decisions.UCLA Chancellor Rejects Divestment From Israel
"In response to the UCLA student government passing a non-binding resolution calling for divestment of school funds from American companies with a presence in the West Bank or whose products are used by the Israeli military, Rep. Henry Waxman, State Sen. Ted Lieu, and State Sen.-elect Ben Allen issued the following statement:
We are deeply disappointed by the UCLA student government’s passage of a resolution in favor of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel."
UCLA Chancellor Gene Block issued a strong statement rejecting a student attempt to have the university divest from Israel. Block's statement reads as follows:UCLA Donor Reverses Decision To Pull Funds After Administration Bucks BDSe to Chancellor's rejection of divestment resolution
"UCLA’s Undergraduate Students Association Council has debated and approved a resolution that calls for disinvestment in companies that engage in business with Israel. As an institution of higher education, the university recognizes that our students have a right to engage in open dialogue and share opinions on complex issues. Divestment from a foreign government or companies doing business with a foreign government, however, is a serious action that requires careful, fair deliberations. UCLA and the UCLA Foundation share the Board of Regents conviction that divestment decisions should not hold any one organization or country to a different standard than any other. The Board of Regents does not support divestment in companies that engage in business with Israel and UCLA agrees with that position."
UPDATE: After the passing of the anti-Israel BDS resolution by UCLA’s student government last Tuesday, major UCLA donor and political leader Gary Aminoff had released a statement pledging to pull funds unless the University administration publicly denounced the resolution. Aminoff was pleased to hear the news of UCLA Chancellor Gene Block’s immediate public response rejecting divestment from Israel. He applauds the Chancellor and the Board of Regents for their statement and revokes his original decision of withholding donations to UCLA.BDS’ Biggest Victory Yet Is the Triumph of Zimbolism
Twice this past August, the Israeli freighter Piraeus, run by Israel’s ZIM Integrated Shipping Services, was driven away from the Port of Oakland by picket lines which dissuaded longshoremen from unloading the ship. More recently, it’s been reported that protests in Long Beach, south of Los Angeles, prompted ZIM to suspend operations there, though ZIM denied this was so, citing technical reasons why their freighters were staying away. BDS organizers claimed victory. Zimbolically, anyway."Rupert Murdoch ... Is A Zionist Jew" & Other Fables: As told by a British party leader
The immediate occasion, of course, was anger at the IDF assault on Gaza, a military operation that, however justifiable in its beginnings as a response to Palestinian rocket attacks often launched from and at civilian communities, ended up killing more than 2,000 people. (Some protesters consider it “genocide,” though neither the actual Israeli military operations nor their results seem to have much to do with the intention of killing everyone in Gaza.) But the objection to ZIM claims a much deeper rationale in a history for which no remedy is available. It wants to repeal the past, so it is a protest without conceivable end.Now one of the largest shipping container companies in the world, ZIM was, in this view, conceived in original sin, because it helped establish the State of Israel. Leaders of the BDS movement may proclaim that they are agnostic on the question of whether there should be one state or two states, but the Block the Boat wing of the BDS movement, at least, would seem to have a more definite idea. Israel, it says, was the product of “settler-colonialism.” One supporting statement reads: “Palestinians throughout Gaza, the West Bank and 1948 Palestine have demonstrated their unity in the struggle against Apartheid Israel.”
Pippa Bartolotti is the fanatically anti-Israel leader of the Wales Green Party. She stood unsuccessfully for leadership of the Green Party of England and Wales in 2012 in succession to the equally anti-Israel Caroline Lucas, and, again unsuccessfully, for the European Parliament in this year's May elections.Who Is UK Labour’s Ed Miliband A Friend Of?
Ms Bartolotti's speeches to the Welsh Greens (see the opening words of one in the link above, for instance) often include references to Israel, despite that having absolutely no relevance to green issues in Wales.
In the video at the foot of this post (a video which consists of a 65-minute demonisation of Israel) Ms Bartolotti centres the narrative of her recent address to an audience in Newport, Gwent, as a "fundraiser evening" for the Gwent Greens, entitled "Why Gaza?" largely on her participation in the "Viva Palestina" convoy of 2010.
On Wednesday night Ed Miliband, the leader of the UK’s Labour party, is the guest of honour at the “Labour Friends of Palestine & the Middle East”. The second speaker is His Excellency (I’m not kidding, that’s what they call him) Manuel Hassassian, the Palestinian Ambassador to the UK.World Vision Issues Vague Statement About Violence in Jerusalem
LPFME support BDS and boycotts of (only) the Jewish State. Ed Miliband claims that BDS is not legitimate against Israel. Make up your mind Ed.
World Vision, a $2 billion Christian charity that promotes child welfare in poor countries throughout the world, has recently issued a putatively “balanced” press release about the escalating violence in Jerusalem. The undated release (which does not appear to have any links to it on World Vision's media page) is not as hostile toward Israel as WV materials have been in the past, but it is problematic nonetheless. It reads in part as follows:ADL slams Hagee for calling Obama ‘anti-Semitic’
"Less than a week ago, a village mosque north of Ramallah was burned down and believed to have been a settler attack on Palestinian Muslims. On Tuesday, five Israelis were killed, and several others wounded, by two Palestinians armed with a pistol, axes and knives at a synagogue in West Jerusalem during a time of prayer. World Vision condemns such acts of terror and religious violence, and shares the grief of those who mourn the passing of all who have died in the violence of recent weeks."
To people unfamiliar with the events of the past week, this passage above appears to be a responsible, even-handed response to violence in Jerusalem, but in reality, it serves to obscure what responsible commentators would confront head-on: The role the allegedly “moderate” Palestinian Authority has played in encouraging violence against Israel and Jews prior to the synagogue attack.
World Vision does not address reality but instead, offers a chronology that suggests that the attack against the synagogue was in retaliation for the act of arson against the mosque.
This should not come as a surprise, however.
World Vision bills itself as an “advocacy” organization, but does not direct its advocacy at the misdeeds of Palestinian leaders who have engaged in a campaign of incitement against Israel and Jews that has undermined the ability of Arabs to live peacefully next door to Jews.
The Anti-Defamation League slammed the founder of Christians United for Israel Monday for calling US President Barack Obama “anti-Semitic.”Israeli Tourist in Berlin Hospitalized After Beating – Police Probing Motive
Pastor John Hagee’s “remarks about President Obama were offensive and misplaced,” Abraham Foxman, the ADL’s national director, said in a statement.
“One can agree to disagree about the president and his administration’s record in dealing with Israel, but to apply the label of ‘anti-Semitic’ is a serious denigration and distortion of the term.”
Hagee made his remarks on Sunday at the annual dinner in New York of the Zionist Organization of America.
A group of unknown assailants set upon and severely beat an Israeli visitor to Berlin’s Charlottenburg neighborhood Saturday night, according to German police.Rudolf Hess’s grandson speaks at Budapest Holocaust event
In the attack, which took place at 6:30 p.m. at Lotte Lenya-Bow near one of the district’s train stations, the group first passed the 22-year-old on the street, and then doubled back to attack him.
“All four offenders punched and kicked him repeatedly, and then fled,” according to the police report.
The victim, who had to be briefly hospitalized due to the extent of his injuries, was later released as an outpatient.
Rainer Hoess, the grandson of Auschwitz death camp commander Rudolf Hess, was among the speakers at a Holocaust commemoration event in Budapest.3D Systems acquires Cimatron for $97 million
Hoess, an activist against European neo-Nazism, spoke at Friday’s event marking the 70th anniversary of the start of the Holocaust in Hungary. He was invited by the March of the Living-Hungary Foundation, which organized the commemoration.
“It was strange to come to Hungary after what my grandfather did — especially here,” he told the crowd.
His grandfather was responsible for the extermination of roughly 400,000 Hungarian Jews in the Auschwitz death camp in June 1944.
3D print maker, 3D Systems (3DS), has acquired the Israeli design software maker Cimatron for a reported $97 million to strengthen its position in the fast-growing 3D design and manufacturing space.Israeli company aims to recharge mobile phones in 30 seconds
Cimatron is a leading provider of integrated 3D CAD/CAM software products and solutions for manufacturing and its products are used by companies worldwide for their 3D production molds and tools in a wide variety of functional end-use manufacturing applications. The company is ranked among the top six CAD/CAM suppliers in every global region.
“We believe that the perfect strategic fit between our businesses, combined with expanded capabilities in product development, channel coverage and marketing, could present sizeable synergies that together offer significant long-term customer benefits and shareholder value,” said Avi Reichental, President and CEO of 3DS.
An Israeli company says it has developed technology that can charge a mobile phone in a few seconds and an electric car in minutes, advances that could transform two of the world's most dynamic consumer industries.Israeli judoka wins gold medal in China
Using nanotechnology to synthesize artificial molecules, Tel Aviv-based StoreDot says it has developed a battery that can store a much higher charge more quickly, in effect acting like a super-dense sponge to soak up power and retain it.
While the prototype is currently far too bulky for a mobile phone, the company believes it will be ready by 2016 to market a slim battery that can absorb and deliver a day's power for a smartphone in just 30 seconds.
"These are new materials; they have never been developed before," said Doron Myersdorf, the founder and chief executive of StoreDot, whose investors include Russian billionaire and Chelsea soccer club owner Roman Abramovich.
Israeli judo sensation Yarden Gerbi won first place in the Qingdao Grand Prix Thursday, an international judo competition held in Qingdao, China.Senators, Reps Pledge To Stand With Israel At Iron Dome Tribute On Capitol Hill
Gerbi, who competes in the under 63-kilo category, won all four of her matches in less than four minutes on her way to the gold.
The victory marks Gerbi’s third gold medal in less than six weeks, having also won international grand prix tournaments in Tashkent and Astana.
“This medal is very important to me, I was able to prove to myself that even on an off day I can beat any rival,” Gerbi said, according to a Ynet news report. (h/t Yoel)
The US administration’s contribution to the security of Israel by funding the Iron Dome defensive shield was highlighted by US Senators, Congressmen, community leaders, as well as administration officials, during a luncheon at the US Capitol and at an off-the-record briefing at the White House last Wednesday.
The “Tribute to the U.S. Israel Security Alliance,” at the Russell Senate Office Building, was co-chaired by Elliot Gibber, Stanley Tate, Simcha Lyons and Jason Lyons and organized by Ezra Friedlander, CEO of The Friedlander Group, in honor of the U.S. Israel relationship and special appreciation for Iron Dome funding.
At the start of the event, some 75 attendees and elected officials stood for a moment of silence and recited Tehilim in memory of the 4 kedoshim and the druze police officer, who were brutally murdered during a terror attack while praying at a synagogue in Jerusalem’s Har Nof neighborhood Tuesday morning.
The speakers all made reference to the bloody massacre, while highlighting the significance of the special relationship between the United States and the State of Israel. Almost every Senator vowed to pressure the Palestinian Authority to stop the incitement, and promised to stand with Israel as the P5+1 inch towards a deal on Iran’s nuclear program.
“We tragically received yet another reminder of the importance of this very relationship, of this very alliance that we have to both countries,” remarked Senator Mike Lee of Utah.
