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Two US senators have introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at promoting the normalization of ties between Israel and Arab countries. The bill, sponsored by senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Cory Booker (D-NJ), calls for the State Department to publish an annual report documenting the mistreatment by Arab governments of citizens who violate laws preventing, or even criminalizing, cooperation — whether business, scientific, cultural, or otherwise — with Israelis.
The initiative is based on a set of recommendations compiled by the Arab Council for Regional Integration, which opposes Arab boycotts against Israel, arguing that they harm, rather than advance, the interests of various Middle East nations.
The development comes as Israel continues to build bridges with Sunni-majority countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The rapprochement has been primarily attributed to shared concerns about Shi’ite Iran’s potential nuclearization and its regime’s expansionist ideology.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pointed the finger at the United States in explaining his government’s inaction to date regarding the application of Israeli sovereignty to parts of the West Bank in consonance with President Donald Trump’s Middle East peace plan. In an interview with Israeli media, Netanyahu said: “It was clear from the start that [any annexations] would be done only with agreement from the United States. Otherwise, I would have already done it a while ago.”
The prime minister suggested the delay was due to President Trump being “busy with other things and this [sovereignty] is not top on his mind.”
After Netanyahu attended the unveiling of the US peace proposal at the White House in January, he vowed to immediately incorporate into Israel the Jordan Valley in addition to some 130 Jewish communities located beyond the pre-1967 borders. However, he has since put the brakes on the initiative amid reported disagreements within the Trump administration, which has received pushback from numerous key regional allies.
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Israeli Alternate Prime Minister and Defense Minister Benny Gantz told parliament’s’s powerful Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that while Hezbollah is currently Israel’s “biggest enemy from the North,” the terrorist group headed by Hassan Nasrallah is also “Lebanon’s biggest problem.”
Gantz noted that last week’s massive blast in Beirut could have been even worse, given that Iranian-sponsored Hezbollah is known to manufacture and stash explosive materials and devices in populated areas throughout Lebanon.
“The fact that in Lebanon there are homes with a guest room and a missile room will make Lebanese society pay a heavy price,” Gantz forewarned.
Meanwhile, Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab confirmed that his cabinet was resigning and that his government would remain in place only until a new one is formed.
The blast at the Port of Beirut has sparked nationwide protests against the political class, which reportedly was aware that Hezbollah had for years been storing in the vicinity an estimated 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate whose ignition is believed to have caused the disaster.
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A Lebanese blogger’s video attacking Hezbollah over its role in the massive explosion in Beirut, as well as suggesting that all of her country’s wars with Israel had done less damage, has gone viral. As of Monday, Dima Sadek’s post had been viewed over 700,000 times on Twitter.
In the video, Sadek directly addresses Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, asserting: “I just want to tell you one thing, if you manage to answer this question to the people in Lebanon, I swear we will bow to you…. What [did] Israel do against us more than Hezbollah — answer me.”
Israel has vehemently denied any involvement in the explosion and immediately offered aid to Lebanon through a third party, given that the two nations remain technically at war.
While mainstream media have focused primarily on a social media campaign in which some Lebanese citizens urge their leader to reject the Israeli overture , the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem has confirmed that thousands of people in Lebanon have reached out for help.
A Lebanese journalist asks Nasrallah a simple question and reveals to the world the truth about Hezbollah and Israel!
Must Watch video!עיתונאית ליבנונית שואלת את נאסראללה שאלה פשוטה וחשפת לעולם את האמת על חיזבאללה וישראל!
חובה צפייה! pic.twitter.com/dy6UcsA8tR— יוסף חדאד-Yoseph Haddad-يوسف حداد (@YosephHaddad) August 7, 2020
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The Tel Aviv-Yafo municipality has announced plans to launch Israel’s first “sail-in” floating cinema at the city’s famous HaYarkon Park. A total of 70 boats will be outfitted with screens so that viewers can enjoy a film of their choice from the park’s lake.
“The coronavirus crisis poses new challenges for the Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality, including bringing cultural life to a halt in the city,” said Mayor Ron Huldai. “In recent months, we have been constantly examining ways of providing assistance. The initiative to screen movies at HaYarkon Park’s boating lake is another creative way to spend the hot August days,” he added.
The theater will operate from August 22-28 in accordance with Health Ministry regulations.
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As Florida’s annual hurricane season approaches, Israeli-made autonomous drones will play a part in ensuring that the state’s major power companies prevent civilians from being kept in the dark. Modi’in-based Percepto developed the unmanned aerial vehicles, which have been certified by Florida International University’s “Wall of Wind” – a simulation facility that subjected the drones to gusts of up to 150 miles per hour – with a view to ensuring that they are fit to fly in the immediate aftermath of a hurricane.
The drones are outfitted with high quality thermal and RGB cameras, along with various sensors, that can quickly detect fluctuations in temperature as well as identify cracks, leaks and other damages, thus allowing repair teams to immediately reach hard-hit areas once they have been declared safe.
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Antisemitism Watch: Former professional baseball player Cody Decker said that antisemitism remains “rampant throughout the game” and that an Oakland Athletics coach should be suspended for recently employing a Nazi salute .
Decker, who briefly played for Major League Baseball’s San Diego Padres — in addition to Israel’s national team in the World Baseball Classic — spoke candidly to media about several instances over the course of his career in which he was singled out for being Jewish and had antisemitic slurs hurled at him by fans and teammates.
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