| 1 |
The Mossad conducted an operation to extract DNA from a body buried in the Lebanese village Nabi Chit to find out if it was the corpse of missing Israeli Air Force navigator Ron Arad, it has been claimed.
According to reports, the spy agency last month also kidnapped a retired Iranian general from Syria and subsequently transferred him to an unnamed African country to be interrogated in a bid to discover the missing IDF soldier’s fate. The general was later released.
Arad disappeared in 1986 after he and an aircraft pilot, who was saved, were forced to bail out of a damaged aircraft during a bombing operation in Lebanon.
In 2008, intelligence received by Israel claimed he died in 1988 during an escape attempt. However, a conflicting report received in 2016 indicated he passed away in the 1990s after being denied medical treatment.
Mossad chief David Barnea was quoted as describing last month’s “courageous, daring, complex operation” as an ultimate “failure” during a meeting with officials.
| 2 |
Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid has said the government will not turn a blind eye to the “Palestinian issue” after Prime Minister Naftali Bennett did not mention the conflict during his recent address to the United Nations General Assembly.
Speaking at the Jewish Federations of North America’s annual conference, Lapid said he would continue pushing to expand on the US-brokered Abraham Accords, which saw Israel establish diplomatic ties with several Arab countries.
However, he said such efforts do not mean “we are neglecting forever and ever the Palestinian issue that we have also to work on.”
“Of course, we will always have to keep an open eye both on [the Hamas-ruled] Gaza [Strip] and on Hezbollah up north [in Lebanon and Syria]. But this is basically an optimistic process,” he added.
| 3 |
The European Union has unveiled a nine-year plan to combat antisemitism and foster Jewish life within its 27 member states.
A 26-page strategy document, which was drawn up by the European Commission, says this will be done by tackling anti-Jewish bigotry and offering education and research into Holocaust remembrance.
The commission’s president Ursula von der Leyen said the proposal would help see “Jewish life thriving again in the heart of our communities,” adding the “strategy we are presenting today is a step-change in how we respond to antisemitism. Europe can only prosper when its Jewish communities feel safe and prosper.”
The plan comes amid revelations a European-funded foundation trained Palestinian teachers using materials that glorified the notorious Palestinian Liberation Organization terrorist Dalal Mughrabi, who took part in the 1978 Coastal Road Massacre in which 38 Israelis were murdered, including 12 children.
Israeli watchdog Palestinian Media Watch revealed that UK-based A.M Qattan Foundation recently conducted a “learning experience” in Hebron during which textbooks were used that stated Dalal and her accomplices “ascended to Heaven as Martyrs” and she “watered the soil of Palestine with her pure blood.”
| 4 |
President Isaac Herzog touched down in Ukraine for an official visit that marks 30 years since the country established diplomatic relations with Israel.
Herzog is scheduled to participate in a number of events while there, including a ceremony held in Kyiv to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Babyn Yar massacre, as well as a meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.
During a press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, Herzog thanked the nation’s government for allowing Jews to travel to the city of Uman to celebrate the Jewish new year.
“The Jewish nation has always had a glorified history in Ukraine. Some of the greatest Jewish and Israeli personalities were born and grew up here. Religious, spiritual, political, Zionist and cultural leaders all came from here,” he said.
| 5 |
Israel’s ambassador to the United States and the United Nations was prevented from showing a photo to the UN’s General Assembly that highlighted the antisemitic views of a school teacher working in the Gaza Strip.
Gilad Erdan wanted to show a screenshot of a teacher quoting Hitler during a discussion on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) — this, to demonstrate the problem of anti-Jewish bigotry among staff employed by the body.
However, a security team was instructed by UNRWA staff to stop him from entering the assembly hall while in possession of the photo.
Addressing the incident, Erdan said in his speech: “I brought here with me a photo of a UNRWA teacher’s post glorifying the most horrific mass murderer in history, Adolf Hitler. Unfortunately, shockingly, I was prevented from bringing in this photo in order to share this proof with the other distinguished ambassadors here.”
UNRWA has repeatedly come under fire over incidents of antisemitism among employees at its schools, as well as incidents of children being taught from textbooks that hail Palestinian terrorists. It has also been criticized for its relationship with Hamas, which has used UNRWA schools to store weaponry and, effectively, as military bases during conflicts with Israel (see here and here, for example).
Recommended Reading
- How Did the Israeli Startup Ecosystem Evolve During COVID-19? (Alon Ghelber, NoCamels)
- New York Times Tightens Ties With Foundation Known for Anti-Israel Grants (Ira Stoll, Algemeiner)
- Think Regionally: A US Role for Deepening the Abraham Accords (David Makovsky, Times of Israel)
- The Cost of Kamala Validating ‘Israeli Genocide’ Speech (Emily Schrader, Jerusalem Post)
