Today’s Top Stories
1. We now know that yesterday’s Israeli airstrike in the Syrian Golan killed Jihad Mughniyeh, a Hezbollah commander, and six Iranians, most prominently General Mohammed Ali Allahdadi of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.
An Israeli security source (anonymously) confirmed to Reuters that the IDF carried out the attack. YNet lays out what the group had in store beyond the reconnaissance they were apparently doing when they met their demise:
“Jihad Mughniyeh was already planning, and had prepared, more major murderous attacks against Israel in the Golan Heights. These attacks include rocket fire, infiltrations, explosive devices, anti-tank missile fire, etc., with the goal of killing soldiers, hitting Israeli communities in the Golan Heights and killing Israeli civilians.”
2. Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman was found dead in his home hours before he was due to testify to lawmakers about his explosive allegations that President Christine Fernández de Kirchner covered up Iran’s role in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center.
Nisman had filed a 300-page complaint naming Fernández, Timerman and others of seeking to “erase” Iran’s role in the bombing at the AMIA community center offices in which 85 people were killed. He had said he wanted to question the president and other officials whom he claimed were involved in the cover-up.
Investigators believe, so far, that Nisman killed himself. Merco Press reported (before his death) the points Nisman was to have raised with lawmakers about his investigation’s stunning turn. Chris Dickey wonders if Iran murdered the prosecutor, while David Horovitz asks the question I was wondering: Who will obtain justice for Nisman?
3. The EU is appealing the removal of Hamas from its terror blacklist. Reuters coverage.
As a result of the appeal, Hamas will remain on the EU’s terrorism list and its assets will remain frozen for now, pending a final judgment by the European Court of Justice.
Israel and the Palestinians
• Israelis testified in Geneva to the UN commission investigating the Gaza war. The Jerusalem Post describes the testimony.
• My two cents says to wait till the ICC’s preliminary investigation is over before taking action. But what do I know?
Netanyahu to launch media campaign against ICC
• Europe’s turning to Israeli homeland security technology and services to fight terror; YNet foresees even more business on the horizon.
“Over the coming years, Europe is expected to spend some $50 billion on procurement in this field; and although most of the money will remain on the continent, there are enough niches for Israeli companies to link up with.”
• Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived in Israel to discuss economic ties. His three-day itinerary includes visits to Cairo and Ramallah. AFP coverage.
• Egypt’s ban on Jewish festival is a reflection of nation’s attitudes, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In its heyday, the festival drew thousands of Jewish pilgrims paying tribute at the tomb of Rabbi Yaakov Abuhatzeira, a revered Moroccan holy man who died in Egypt while on a pilgrimage to what is now Israel.
Misc. Matters
• With oil forecasters predicting a long run of prices for crude, Hezbollah’s cuts are likely to become extreme. The military budget shouldn’t be affected, at least not yet. But the slowdown could anger the group’s foot soldiers in Syria. Already, some complain that higher-ups and their relatives are inured to the daily hardships of war. Umm Ayman, a middle-aged widow and resident of the Dahiyeh, Beirut’s southern suburbs, from which Hezbollah draws much of its support, has a 17-year-old son fighting in Syria. In recent weeks, she says, Hezbollah has cut support to the relatives of soldiers.
• Israel wants to turn Beersheva into a cyber hub, reports Bloomberg News.
• Time: Not all French Jews moving to Israel adapt so easily.
• Discouraging news from Scotland:
The number of anti-semitic incidents in Scotland has soared by more than 300% in the last year, Jewish leaders have told the Sunday Herald.
Commentary/Analysis
• Retaliation for yesterday’s air strike will be Iran’s decision, not Hezbollah’s. And it’s not in Tehran’s interest to escalate, says Avi Issacharoff:
Iran’s dilemma right now is whether or not to allow Hezbollah to respond with force, which could well lead to a general escalation. A Hezbollah response is not necessarily what Iran wants, especially when the White House is pressuring Congress not to enact new sanctions on Iran. Tehran does not want to be seen as responsible for a regional deterioration, which could bring about new sanctions. In addition, it doesn’t want to get Hezbollah stuck in another active front while the drop in oil prices has left Iran with less and less money to fund its operations in Syria. What’s more, Hezbollah continues to lose men fighting the Islamic State and other jihadist organizations.
• Ron Ben-Yishai offers an additional reason Hezbollah likely won’t retaliate:
The second reason that Hezbollah is uninterested in an escalation is that its militants were killed Sunday in the Syrian Golan, where the group has no justification to operate against Israel while priding itself on being the protector of Lebanon. In an interview last week, Nasrallah strenuously denied that Hezbollah had operated in the Golan in the past. The very fact that Hezbollah members were killed right on the border in the Golan unmasks him as a liar to the Lebanese people. Hezbollah and Nasrallah see themselves foremost as Lebanese, and they, according to estimates by defense officials, will be in no hurry to drag Lebanon into a war that has no distinct justification and legitimacy.
• “War crimes in Palestine”: Who will investigate, and what?‘
• Washington Post: Palestinian move at International Criminal Court signals a volatile new stage
• For more commentary/analysis, see Yoav Limor (Hezbollah gets hit between the eyes), Norman Bailey (Put the ball in the ICC’s court), Lucy Tobin (Worse things than Peppa Pig are worrying Jews and Muslims here), Dalia Hatuqa (How long can Abbas hold on?), and Dow Marmur (Israel protects Jews against another Holocaust).
Featured image: CC BY-SA flickr/Filipe Soares Dilly; Nisman via YouTube/daniberliner;money CC BY-SA flickr/Themeplus;
For more, see yesterday’s Israel Daily News Stream and join the IDNS on Facebook.
