Today’s Top Stories
1. Either the mullahs stashed the iridium-192 for their own nefarious reasons, or someone really stole enough radioactive material from the Bushehr nuclear facility to make a dirty bomb. Asharq al-Awsat reports the material disappeared during transportation. I hope the Mossad dunnit . . .
2. Israel’s Security Cabinet approved the purchase of 17 more F-35 fighter jets, in addition to 33 it earlier agreed to buy. Israel’s first F-35 is due to arrive in three weeks, says the Associated Press.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity under military briefing guidelines, said Israel would begin training with the new planes immediately, but that it would take “more than a few months” for the first planes to be operational.
He did not specify what missions Israel might make with the planes, but said the F-35s are expected to meet all of Israel’s needs. In recent years, Israel has reportedly carried out long-range airstrikes as far away as Sudan, and is believed to have struck Hezbollah-bound weapons shipments in neighboring Syria . . . .
Both Syria and Iran possess sophisticated Russian anti-aircraft systems. He said these systems will still present a challenge, but the F-35 will be “very helpful” against them.
And Globes discussed the purchase with Lockheed Martin Israel CE Brigadier General (ret.) Joshua Shani.
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3. Deputy Minister for Diplomacy Michael Oren ruffled feathers in Europe, calling for a boycott of French products in response to just-published French guidelines for labeling settlement products. The Times of Israel picked up on Oren’s tweet, with the former ambassador telling the paper
that he was not calling for a boycott of French products but merely wanted Israeli consumers “to be aware that France is moving to label Jewish products from Judea, Samaria, and the Golan.”
4. Giving Tuesday, tomorrow, is a global day dedicated to supporting worthy causes. Please support our fight for Israel’s fair media coverage.
Israel and the Palestinians
• Following up on yesterday’s border clash with Islamic State jihadists, the Israeli Air Force blew up an IS outpost used for training and weapons storage. The outpost was formerly used by UN observers who evacuated the area in 2014 when the Syrian civil war became too dangerous.
• Israeli nature and park authorities estimate it will take forests and wildlife 30 years to recover from the wildfires, according to YNet.
• The Shin Bet busted a cell from an outlawed Islamic group over Temple Mount harassment.
According to a statement by the Shin Bet, the defendants incited unrest at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and four of them tried to keep up the activity of the Murabitun and Murabitat, two groups outlawed in Israel since last year for harassing Jewish visitors.
The Murabitun and Murabitat were declared illegal by the Defense Ministry in November 2015 after years of harassing Jewish visitors to the Temple Mount with the goal of eliminating Jewish visitation.
• Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is reportedly investigating Ambassador the UN Danny Danon over allegations he purchased positive media coverage of an anti-BDS conference at the UN he spearheaded. The “article” (call it a copy-and-pasted press release) in question was published in Walla, an Israeli news site.
Danon has denied the claims, but the ministry review of the incident is underway after inquiries by the Haaretz daily, which alleged the former Likud Knesset member bought a puff piece in violation of official regulations . . .
The November 17 article had no byline, and instead was initially attributed to “Walla News in cooperation with the embassy in New York.”
Following a Haaretz inquiry submitted to the Foreign Ministry and the Israeli UN mission, the byline was changed to read “Walla News in cooperation with organizations fighting BDS.”
Around the World
• Israeli envoy urges Swedes to protest screening of anti-Israel film by state TV. ‘The Occupation of the American Mind,’ narrated by former Pink Floyd frontman and BDS activist Roger Waters, was recently broadcast by Educational TV.
• Backing off in the face of popular protest, Lebanese authorities halted construction of a wall around the Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp. Palestinian leaders originally consented to the barrier following clashes between Fatah and Islamist factions. Jerusalem Post coverage.
• Jewish students accuse Cambridge University of hushing up a vile anti-Semitic attack.
Commentary/Analysis
• The wildfires are on my mind.
– Jonathan Tobin: Israel’s terror fires
– Yonah Jeremy Bob: Will the ICC view Israel’s fires as terrorism?
– Dr. Gabi Avital: Fire is stronger than ‘isolation’
• Here’s what else I’m reading today . . .
– Yossi Melman: IDF meets Islamic State
– Judah Ari Gross: First IDF-Islamic State clash sends Israeli message
– Ehud Eilam: Future confrontations with Hamas & Hezbollah
– Hussain Abdul-Hussain: Hezbollah’s army is good news for Israel
– Noah Klieger: The main reason for the new anti-Semitism
Image: CC BY-SA tedeytan; F-35 via US Dept. of Defense; Temple Mount CC BY-NC-ND Steve Conger; Haifa via YouTube/I Love Israel;
For more, see yesterday’s Israel Daily News Stream and join the IDNS on Facebook.
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