Today’s Top Stories
1. After uncovering Hezbollah terror tunnels two and three, Israel called on the UN and Lebanon to destroy them. According to the IDF, one of the tunnels “originated in the Lebanese village of Ramyeh underneath a number of homes and crossed into Israeli territory near the village of Zarit.”
See below for more developments with Operation Northern Shield.
2. A US-sponsored UN General Assembly resolution condemning Hamas failed despite unprecedented support carrying a majority of votes (Hamas supporters hijacked the resolution on procedures, requiring a two-thirds majority). In the end, 87 countries voted for the resolution, 57 opposed, 33 abstained and 23 were not present.
3. With Israeli approval, another $15 million was transferred to Gaza. The infusion of funds is part of an unofficial Israel-Hamas truce meant to end months of clashes along the Gaza border. How does Qatar oversee the distribution of the aid money?
4. Award-Winning Irish Journalist Tweets Antisemitic Conspiracy: Award-winning Irish journalist Gemma O’Doherty tweets a dog whistle promoting an antisemitic conspiracy theory on a white nationalist website.
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In the News
• Is Hezbollah mobilizing missiles from Syria to south Lebanon?
• “Lebanon’s ambassador to the United Nations on Thursday accused Israel of hacking into the country’s telephone network to warn southern Lebanese citizens of imminent Israeli military activity on the border, in what was described by Beirut as ‘extremely serious acts.'”
Israel frequently forewarns civilians to avoid certain areas ahead of military strikes in an effort to avoid non-military casualties. But the Israel Defense Forces warnings were condemned by Lebanon as tantamount to issuing a “direct threat against their lives.
• Is Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lining up his ducks for a possible escalation with Lebanon? The PM is trying to set up a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss Operation Northern Shield.
• The man appearing in the IDF’s tunnel video (and a Haaretz cartoon I rather enjoyed) was identified by i24 News. Surprise, surprise, he was educated in Iran, is a big fan of Ayatollah Ali Khameini and now has gone, uh, underground.
Dr. Imad “Azaladin” Fahs, a commander of the Hezbollah observation unit on the border with Israel, as well as a commander in the tunnel unit.
“Azaladin” who is in his 30’s, has a PhD in mechanical engineering from Tehran’s University of Technology and is married with two children.
According to the security official, “Azaladin” trained with Mexican drug cartels near the United States border.
• The Media Line takes a closer look at the complicated “under the table” relationship between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
• “The Palestinian Authority (PA) has planted millions of olive trees in the West Bank in a ploy to lay claim to land and set facts on the ground, according to an internal report by the Israeli Civil Administration (ICA),” per Ynet.
• It turns out a Palestinian killed in a drive-by shooting in central Israel was wanted by the PA for allegedly selling West Bank land to Israelis. In PA law, selling land to Israelis carries the death penalty. Ahmed Salama, who denied being involved in land sales, had also been suspected of illegal arms dealing.
All year, #Hamas sent kids to ##Gaza border fence as cannon fodder. @AP humanizes victims w/o explaining Hamas responsibility, playing into terror group's hands https://t.co/raLZBW2rUN pic.twitter.com/f34gHCKVPk
— Pesach Benson (@PesachBenson) December 9, 2018
• Per Israeli media reports, Benjamin Netanyahu seeks to make formal and public relations with Saudi Arabia in time for Israel’s general elections next year. In recent weeks, Netanyahu visited Oman, hosted the president of Chad, and is reportedly eyeing relations with Bahrain, Sudan, Mali and Niger.
If the Netanyahu’s governing coalition completes its four-year term, elections would be held in November, but an early vote is widely expected.
• It’s now illegal for the muncipalities of Chile to boycott Israel.
• NYU student government passed a BDS resolution led by an Israeli Jewish student. Ohio State University student leaders overwhelmingly rejected an anti-Israel boycott — for the fifth time. Caving to pressure from Roger Waters himself, a Pink Floyd tribute band cancelled three Israeli gigs.
• Drip drip drip: “A new play about rising antisemitism that opens in a London theatre this week has become the target of antisemitic abuse.”
Commentary
• Believe it or not, China operating the new port of Haifa made one columnist’s most strategic moment of the year. Guven Sak raises some important points about the port and its regional ripple effects.
• Following the UN vote on condemning-not-condemning Hamas, Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon argues that the UN missed a historic opportunity, while a New York Post staff-ed decried the body’s business as usual. And Khaled Abu Toameh unpacks why Mahmoud Abbas couldn’t support a condemnation of Fatah’s biggest political rival.
• Plenty of spilled ink and burnt pixels weighing in on Operation Northern Shield . . .
– Ahmed Al-Jarallah: Who will save Lebanon from “Hezbollah”?
– Anna Ahronheim: How the next war with Hezbollah might have looked
– Amos Harel: ‘Nasrallah knows Israel’s DNA – and planned to shock us with Hezbollah attack tunnels’
– Yoav Limor: The unknown at the end of the tunnel
– Zvi Bar’el: What has really been on Nasrallah’s mind as Israel’s front with Hezbollah heats up
– Yaakov Katz: Netanyahu’s “wag the dog”
– Giora Eiland: Weakening Iran by targeting Hezbollah
– Elliott Abrams: UNIFIL and the Hezbollah tunnels
– Dr. Yaron Friedman: Hezbollah has tunnels in Syria and Yemen too
– Yoav Limor: Fog of war can’t conceal Hezbollah’s plotting
• Tweet of the day goes to Emmanuel Navon.
The French government is about to award its "human rights prize" to @btselem, yet this how it treats high school students for taking part in anti-government demonstrations.@EmmanuelMacron and @EPhilippePM, we really appreciate your concern for human rights in Israel. https://t.co/CD5ZBUi5F6
— Emmanuel Navon עמנואל נבון (@emmanuelnavon) December 7, 2018
• Here’s other commentary I’m reading this weekend . . .
– Max Singer: Refute Palestinian lies to promote Mideast peace (click via Twitter)
– The Australian (staff-ed) Anti-Israel stunts help nobody
– Matti Friedman: What happens when a Holocaust memorial plays host to autocrats
– Yonah Jeremy Bob: Israel ready to challenge the International Criminal Court on Palestine
– Abe Greenwald: The “hyper-whitening” of the Jews
– Benny Avni: Europe is “saving” the Iran deal by ignoring the violations
– Gerard Henderson: On Australian recognition of Jerusalem
Featured image: CC BY flash.pro;
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