News FROM ISRAEL 20-Apr-18Two Gazans killed by snipers but only 3,000 protesters by Times of Israel and Agencies

Two Palestinian men died Friday after being shot by IDF sniper fire as three thousand Palestinians clashed with IDF troops on Israels border with the Gaza Strip, according to the enclaves Hamas-run health ministry.

Ahmad Abu Aqel, 25, was shot east of Jabaliya in northern Gaza, health ministry spokesman, Ashraf al-Qudra, said. It said a second man, 24, was also killed but did not immediately provide details on his identity.

Israels army said it was looking into the incidents.

These were the 36th and 37th fatalities from the border demonstrations and clashes dubbed the March of Return, which took place for the fourth time Friday, according to the health ministry figures, which could not be verified by Israel.

Hamas has acknowledged that several of those killed were its members, and Israel has identified other fatalities as members of terrorist groups.

The Israel Defense Forces said 3,000 Palestinians were taking part in clashes today (Friday) along the Gaza border. The army says riots took place at five different locations along the border fence, with demonstrators trying to approach security infrastructure, burning tires near it and trying to fly kites with burning objects to attached to them. A number of kites crossed into Israeli territory and were extinguished as needed, the army says.

The IDF said soldiers were using riot dispersal means and live fire to prevent the demonstrators from approaching the border. The IDF will not allow harm to security infrastructure and the [border] fence, which protect Israeli citizens and will act against violent rioters and terrorists involved in this, the army says.

Huge black plumes of smoke from the blazing tires engulfed the area, as Israeli troops fired tear gas and live bullets, witnesses said. Gazas health ministry said 40 protesters were injured, but did not say how many of those were wounded by gunfire or overcome by tear gas.

Hundreds were clashing with Israeli forces, an Agence France Presse correspondent said.

Thousands of Gazans at first gathered on Friday at various locations along the border in the blockaded enclave, calling for Palestinian refugees to be able to return to their former lands in what is now Israel, some burning tires or flying kites with flaming rags dangling from their tails.

The kites are part of a new tactic aimed at setting fields on the Israeli side on fire. Most kites were stitched together in the colors of the Palestinian flag. One white kite bore the Nazi swastika.

Earlier, Israeli military aircraft dropped leaflets near the Gaza border warning Palestinians to keep away from the fence separating the coastal enclave from Israel, the IDF said. That followed reports Wednesday that despite Egyptian pressure on Hamas and 3other Palestinian groups to halt the mass protests, organizers said they would move protest camps 50 meters closer to the border.

The National Forum for the March of Return, one of several Palestinian groups behind the weekly demonstrations, said that the decision came to affirm our right to returna reference to the Palestinian demand that Israel allow tens of thousands of refugees and their millions of descendants to return to their former homes inside Israel. Such a demand would mean the end of Israel as a majority Jewish state.

In a statement, the army said that the leaflets warned against approaching the fence, attempting to damage it or attempts at terrorism.

Violent disturbances in recent weeks took advantage of civilians in order to carry out terrorist acts against Israeli and IDF security infrastructure, the statement continued. The IDF will not abide damage to security infrastructure and the fence, which protect Israeli citizens, and will target anyone who attempts to harm Israels security.

Addressed to residents of Gaza, the leaflets dropped near the border on Friday read: You are participating in violent disturbances. Hamas is using you to carry out terror activity. The IDF is prepared for every scenario. Refrain from approaching the fence or damaging it. Refrain from using weapons or carrying out violent acts against Israeli security forces and Israeli civilians. Stay away from terror operatives and any who encourage disturbances and violence.

The IDF, the leaflets continued, will respond to any attempt to damage the [border] barrier and its components, or any other military equipment. Hamas is using you to promote its political interests. Dont follow Hamass orders, which endanger your lives. There is another wayyour future is in your hands.

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman toured the Gaza area, where he met troops as weekly Friday clashes took place on the border. They understand the mission well, they are determined and they are best people the nation of Israel can count on, Liberman tweeted about IDF troops. Thanks to the IDFs activity, week by week there is a drop in the number of participants in the riots.

Tensions have been high in recent weeks as tens of thousands of Palestinians have engaged in clashes with Israeli troops on the border for three consecutive Fridays.

Last week, at least 10,000 Gazans took part in large-scale demonstrations, with the IDF saying protesters hurled an explosive device and firebombs at Israeli troops deployed at the border, as well as making several attempts to damage the fence and cross over into Israeli territory. The previous Friday, about 20,000 Palestinians took part in the demonstrations, with the previous week attracting an estimated 30,000.

On Thursday, Gaza protest organizers moved their sit-in tents closer to the border fence, raising fears for more deadly clashes.

Hamas goal: Erase the border and liberate Palestineby Times of Israel

More than 30 Palestinians have been killed in the clashes over the past three weeks, according to Hamas-run health authorities. Hamas has acknowledged that several of those killed were its members, and Israel has identified other fatalities as members of terror groups.

The Israel army said protesters have burned tires and thrown bombs, Molotov cocktails, and rocks at Israeli soldiers, and made attempts to breach the border fence. Soldiers have responded with tear gas, rubber bullets, and in some cases live fire.

The National Forum for the March of Return, one of several Palestinian groups behind the weekly demonstrations, said they were affirming our right to return. It was a reference to the Palestinian demand that Israel allows tens of thousands of refugees and their millions of descendants to return to homes and lands inside Israel which they left or were forced from during Israels 1948 Independence War.

The protests, encouraged by Hamas, the terrorist group that governs the Gaza Strip, began March 30. Organizers said they would gradually move the camps toward the fence until May 15, but made conflicting comments about a possible breach.

While some organizers portray the protests as peaceful, Hamas leaders say their goal is to erase the border and liberate Palestine.

We will cross the border, said Daoud Shehab, a member of the organizing committee from the smaller Islamic Jihad group, adding that Israel should feel really jittery as a result of these marches.

Israel has warned it will not tolerate a mass border breach or permit protesters to get close to the fence. The IDF said Thursday that it is ready for all scenarios and is prepared to prevent any breach of Israeli sovereignty or damage to the border fence.

In a camp east of Gaza City, five tents were moved to within 300 meters of the border, just in range of tear gas volleys. Bulldozers also raised protective sand berms around the new tents. In another protest site in southeastern Gaza, earth mounds were created to define the camps new boundary.

Activists were testing new means of confronting Israelkites with burning rags dangling from their tails. The aim is to set ablaze drying wheat fields on the Israeli side.

Several fires have been started in wheat fields on the Israeli side of the border by such contraptions in recent days. The Facebook page of the Gaza protest organizers published images Wednesday of Israeli fields behind the fence, taken from a small camera attached to a kite.

An Islamist terror group, Hamas violently took control of Gaza from Mahmoud Abbass Fatah party in 2007, two years after Israel withdrew its military and civilian presence from the Strip. Israel and Egypt maintain a security blockade of Gaza. Israel says this is vital to prevent Hamaswhich has fought three rounds of conflict against Israel since seizing Gaza, firing thousands of rockets into Israel and digging dozens of attack tunnels under the borderfrom importing weaponry.

At previous peace talks, the Palestinians have always demanded, along with sovereignty in the West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem and the Old City, a right of return to Israel for Palestinian refugees who left or were forced out of Israel when it was established. The Palestinians demand this right not only for those of the hundreds of thousands of refugees who are still alivea figure estimated in the low tens of thousandsbut also for their descendants, who number in the millions.

No Israeli government would ever be likely to accept this demand since it would spell the end of Israels Jewish majority.

Greenblatt: Gazans have right to protestat safe distanceby Times of Israel and Agencies

US President Donald Trumps Mideast envoy Jason Greenblatt on Thursday said that Gazans have the right to protest their dire humanitarian circumstances, but warned them to keep a safe distance from the Israeli border, as organizers of mass Palestinian demonstrations moved sit-in tents closer to the border fence, raising fears of further violence Friday.

In a series of tweets, Greenblatt said the organizers of the Friday border protests should be focusing on the grim conditions in Gaza and not stoke the potential for more violence with firebombs & flaming kites and must keep a safe distance from the border.

He said the cost of the demonstrations was too high in loss of life and injuriesalthough he did not specify who was to blame for thisand said this was why Trump is willing to invest so much to forge peace.

Greenblatt also said such an agreement would require reuniting Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank under one responsible PA leadership, and issued praise for pro-peace remarks made this week by the PLOs envoy to Washington, Husam Zomlot.

It is time to do the difficult work of negotiating a solution and work for peace. That difficult work includes reuniting Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank under one responsible PA leadership, he wrote, adding that the effort would require brave deeds, commitment & compromise from all.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has been boycotting the Trump administration since it recognized Jerusalem as Israels capital in December, and announced it will open the US embassy there next month.

Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports: Saeb Erekat, a top Palestinian negotiator with whom Greenblatt is friendly, said recently that Greenblatts statements only consider Israeli sensibilities. Greenblatt had said earlier there was no truth to Erekats accusation.

Greenblatt has been working intensely for a year to revive the Middle East peace talks. The Palestinians backed away from the effort to revive the talks in December after President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israels capital. Husam Zomlot, the Palestine Liberation Organization envoy to Washington, has since then been on a speaking tour explaining why the Jerusalem recognition drove the Palestinians away from the talks, most recently this week at the annual conference of J Street, the liberal Jewish Middle East lobby.

In his tweets, Greenblatt addressed Zomlots J Street speech, saying he agreed with aspects of it. Husam Zomlot put forth 2 important quotes this week: Investing in the cause of peace is not by words but by deeds & The future is not shaped by those who merely witness it; the future is shaped by those who author it,' Greenblatt said. I agree & we must work together to try to reach a peaceful future for Israelis & Palestinians.

Islamic Jihad sets sniper sights on top IDF commandersby Michael Bachner, Times of Israel

The Gaza-based, Iran-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group on Thursday released a video showing IDF soldiers and senior officers in the crosshairs of a sniper, threatening the commanders on Israels 70th Independence Day.

In the video, the sniper appears to train his sights on Israeli troops and officers at the Gaza border fence. Among those seen is Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, the Defense Ministrys outgoing head of liaison to the Palestinians, as well as Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Eyal Zamir.

You murder our people in cold blood and think you are protected, when the scopes of our snipers have been set on your senior commanders, the terror group wrote in Hebrew and Arabic at the end of the video.

The video shows the sniper in a house in Gaza along with other Islamic Jihad members while observing the generals, who are seen alongside other IDF soldiers.

Mordechai, the Defense Ministrys outgoing Coordinator of the Governments Activities in the Territories, has toured Israels border with the Strip during the last few weeks along with Zamir to coordinate a response to widespread Palestinian protests that have led to bloody clashes.

He is defined by Israeli authorities as an individual under threat from Hamas, the terror organization which rules Gaza, and has had security forces guarding his house since the 2014 Gaza war.

The edited footage was apparently filmed during the Friday demonstrations in recent weeks dubbed the March of Return, according to the Ynet news site.

Egypt has reportedly been exerting pressure on Hamas and other Palestinian groups to halt the mass protests. The Egyptians, according to reports, have expressed fear that the demonstrations could spin out of control and ignite another war between Hamas and Israel.

Israeli governments have rejected the notion of a mass right of return for Palestinians into the borders of the state of Israel, arguing that an influx of millions Palestinians would spell the end of the Jewish nation-state. Israel has called for Palestinian refugees to be absorbed into a future Palestinian state, just as Israel took in hundreds of thousands of Jewish refugees fleeing Arab nations in the Middle East and North Africa.

Of the hundreds of thousands of refugees who left or were forced out of Israel when the country was established, a figure estimated in the low tens of thousands are still believed to be alive. But their descendants, considered refugees under the unique designation afforded by the UN to Palestinians, number in the millions.

At the Gaza border on successive Fridays in recent weeks, Gazans have been holding mass demonstrations, termed March of Return, which Gazas Hamas terrorist rulers say ultimately aim to see the removal of the border and the liberation of Palestine.

A senior Israeli minister threatened to resume assassinations of Hamas leaders after the Iran-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group on Thursday released a video showing IDF soldiers and senior officers in the crosshairs of a sniper.

The threats by the PIJ Terror organization to shoot at IDF officers by snipers from Gaza, constitutes crossing a red line, Transportation and Intelligence Minister Israel Katz tweeted. Hamas must know that any attack on IDF commanders at the border to Gaza will immediately lead to a renewal of targeted killings of the Hamas leadership.

Iranian general warns all Israeli air bases within reachby Times of Israel

The vice commander of Irans revolutionary guards warned Israel today (Friday) that the latters airbases were within reach, in apparent reaction to Israels publication on Tuesday of a map showing five Tehran-controlled bases in Syria.

Israel: Dont trust in your airbases; theyre within reach, Hossein Salami wrote on Twitter. Dont have hope in US and UK; when they arrive, youre not there ... Smallest goal will be your existence. You cant bear. When you escape, youll have no way but to the sea.

In an earlier tweet Friday, Salami warned, Hands are on the trigger and missiles are ready and will be launched at any moment that enemy has a sinister plot ... North and west of Israel are at the intersection of fire; you will not escape. You live in the dragons mouth.

Iranian officials have been making increasingly bellicose remarks following an April 9 strike on the T-4 air base, near Palmyra in central Syria, which killed at least seven members of the IRGC, including the head of its drone program, Col. Mehdi Dehghan.

Iran, Syria, Russia and some US officials have all said explicitly that Israel was responsible for the strike. Israeli officials refuse to comment on the matter, though The New York Times quoted an Israeli military official as acknowledging that the Jewish state was behind the attack.

Amid the escalating rhetoric, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made several threats against Iran in recent days. On Friday, he told a festive post-Independence Day cabinet meeting, We hear the threats from Iran. The IDF and the security forces are ready for any development. We will fight whoever tries to harm us. We will not shy away from the price and we will exact a price from those who want to hurt us. The IDF is ready for the job and the people will stand strong.

On Tuesday, ahead of Israels Independence Day and in an apparent effort at deterrence, Israeli media was provided by the IDF with a map showing five Iranian-controlled bases in Syria, which would apparently constitute potential targets for an Israeli response should Iran carry out any kind of attack.

On Monday, a spokesman for Irans Foreign Ministry said the countrys retaliation against Israel will come sooner or later and that Jerusalem will regret its misdeeds.

Israels defense establishmentthe countrys various intelligence services and the militarybelieves an Iranian revenge attack would likely be carried out by the IRGCs air force, with surface-to-surface missiles or armed drones, The Times of Israel has learned.

That would be a departure from previous clashes between Israel and Iran, in which Tehrans reprisals were carried out through proxies, like the Hezbollah terrorist group, rather than by its own Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Iran FM warns of measures if US pulls out of nuke dealby Times of Israel

Irans foreign minister warned today (Friday) that a US pullout from the international nuclear deal it signed with the Islamic Republic would be met with measures that would be very unfavorable for the Americans.

Mohammad Javad Zarifs comments followed a warning Thursday by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that Iran would immediately restart nuclear efforts if Washington walks away from the deal signed between Tehran and world powers in 2015.

Speaking upon his arrival in New York for a six-day trip that will include attending the UNs two-day High Level Meeting on Peace building and Sustaining Peace, scheduled to start on Tuesday, Zarif said the parley would give us the opportunity to present the stances of the Islamic Republic of Iran especially in regards to the proposals for establishing dialogue and sustainable security in the Persian Gulf region and in our neighborhood, the Iranian Mehr News Agency reported.

He added, The measures to be undertaken by the Islamic Republic of Iran and the response of the international community to [the] US leaving the JCPOA will be very unfavorable for the Americans.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action was signed in 2015 between Tehran and six world powers, including the US, under then-president Barack Obama. It curbed Tehrans controversial nuclear enrichment program in exchange for relief from international sanctions.

President Donald Trump, however, has termed the agreement the worst deal ever and has called on the other signatories to fix it. He has threatened to tear up the agreement unless new restrictions are imposed on Irans ballistic missile program and other military activities by May 12.

Press TV quoted Zarif as accusing Trump of shirking US commitments, indicating that the Europeans had failed to pressure the White House to honor the agreements.

If the European countries want to preserve the deal, they have to make it sustainable for Iran, he was quoted as saying. They need to impose pressure on the United States in order to compel the US, encourage the US to implement what it undertook under the deal. Unfortunately, it hasnt been doing that.

Zarif said that in all events, Tehran would make no concessions, and that any suggestion to renegotiate the deal would not get a positive answer from the Islamic Republic.

Dozens protest in Israel for Palestinian right of returnby Juliane Helmhold, Jerusalem Post

Dozens participated in the "Procession of Return" near Atlit yesterday (Thursday), Israel's Independence Day, to protest for the right of return for Palestinian 'refugees'.

The "Procession of Return" has been taking place since 1998 and was organized by the Association for the Protection of the Rights of the Displaced, which unites local committees of dozens of villages from around Israel, a spokesperson for the organization said.

The association and the Higher Arab Monitoring Committee called upon the Arab public and different Jewish groups to participate in the march in order to emphasize the rights of Palestinian 'refugees' in general and in particular their right of return.

According to spokesperson, an estimated 3 out of 10 Palestinians in Israel were displaced.

MK and Chairman of the Ta'al Party Ahmad Tibi, who participated in the march, stated that "This is the day marking the erasure of more than 500 Arab villages and the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes. This is the day when the Palestinians unite here with memory and grief over shattered families and brothers who have been separated in all directions."

Recounting the history of day, he emphasized that "What happened then was Nakba, a human and national disaster by any measure. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians live close to the communities from which they were uprooted."

"The State of Israel and the Jewish majority must recognize us as equal citizens and do so, and in addition must recognize our national identity as Palestinians," he continued. "Empathy for the suffering of the other is an important factor in narrowing differences and bridging disputes. This is the time to recognize our Palestinian narrative."

"Nakba Day," or "Day of Catastrophe," is observed annually by Palestinians and Israeli-Arabs to commemorate the events following the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. According to the Palestinian narrative, approximately 700,000 Arabs fled or were expelled from their homes during the 1948 Israeli War of Independence.

Nakba Day is marked on May 15, the day following the Gregorian calendar date for Israel's independence. Israel celebrates its Independence Day according to the Hebrew calendar date.

Expel or kill graffiti in Palestinian town, fourth incidentby Times of Israel

In a fourth suspected hate attack by far-right wing Israelis this week, vandals overnight Thursday spray-painted a building in the West Bank town of Burqa, near Ramallah, with the words, Supporters of terror, expel or kill. Palestinians also said that the tires of some 40 cars were slashed.

Police confirmed receiving reports of the attacks and said they were on their way to Burqa with the army to investigate.

CCTV camera footage from the scene showed men in dark, clothes, their faces, hidden, puncture the tires of a truck.

On WednesdayMemorial Day, when Israel was commemorating its fallen ahead of Independence Dayvandals cut down more than two dozen olive trees and spray-painted walls in the Palestinian village of Urif outside of Nablus with the words, Death to Arabs.

Photos from the scene showed one wall spray-painted with the biblical phrase The stranger who approaches will be put to death, which in context refers to a layman who enters the holy sanctuary. A nearby rock was painted with another biblical phrase, You shall drive them out, which relates to the conquest of the Land of Israel.

The previous day, car tires were deflated and messages including Expel or kill and Enough with administrative orders were scrawled on walls in the villages of Luban a-Sharqiya in the West Bank and Issawiya in East Jerusalem.

And a week ago, vandals torched a mosque in the northern West Bank village of Aqraba before dawn. Footage captured by a security camera at the entrance to the mosque showed a pair of assailants setting the door of the building ablaze. Their faces were covered throughout the clip.

Administrative orders, when used to prevent settler violence, can include detention, bans from entering the entire West Bank, and bans on contacting certain individuals, as well as nightly curfews.

Administrative detention is also widely used against Palestinians and has been criticized by many rights groups as it allows Israel to hold detainees for long periods of time without trial, access to a lawyer or information on accusations against them.

Man injured by Molotov cocktail in east Jerusalemby Jerusalem Post

One person suffered minor to moderate burns on his lower body after being hit by a Molotov cocktail thrown at him in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, according to the United Hatzalah spokesperson.

The 44-year old man that was wounded in the incident, was evacuated to Shaare Zedek hospital for further treatment.

PFLP will boycott rare Palestinian parliament sessionby Reuters

GAZAA Palestinian Liberation Organisation faction said on Thursday it would not attend a meeting of the most important Palestinian political congress in years, because it wants more factions to be included.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) said it will boycott the rare Palestinian National Council (PNC) session, after a delay to allow such factions as Hamas and the Islamic Jihad to attend was not been granted, the group said in a statement issued in Cairo on Thursday.

The PFLP is the second-largest PLO faction after Fatah, the group headed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who also heads the PLO. Its absence would be a blow to his efforts to win a broad consensus on resolutions.

"The PFLP's decision will lead to weakening the legitimacy of the PNC meeting and the legitimacy of decisions it may take," said Hani Habeeb, a Gaza political analyst.

The 700-member council session will convene in the West Bank town of Ramallah on April 30 to discuss US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a US policy change that has outraged the Palestinians.

Romania begins possible move of embassy to Jerusalemby Raphael Ahren, Times of Israel

Romania may become the first European Union member state to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Officials in Bucharest said yesterday (Thursday) that the government has taken steps to advance the relocation, but the move needs to be formally confirmed by the Romanian cabinet. Sources in Jerusalem assess that there is a good chance that Romania may vote in favor of the move.

Romanian Prime Minister Viorica Dncil, a Social Democrat, on Wednesday proposed the move, and while many members of the ruling party appear in favor of relocating the Embassy, the final say on the matter lies with President Klaus Iohannis, a right-leaning independent.

Israels Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely, who met with Dncil and other top Romanian officials in Bucharest last week to push for the Embassy relocation, seemed optimistic.

I congratulate the speaker of the Romanian parliament on his announcement today to the media according to which Romania will commence the process of moving the Romanian embassy to Jerusalem, she wrote on her Twitter account last Thursday. This was the spirit of our meeting last week in Bucharest, and I hope to see the Romanian Embassy in Jerusalem soon.

Next week, Hotovely is due in the Czech Republic, which reportedly is considering to move the Embassy as well.

Israels Prime Ministers Office and the Foreign Ministry on Thursday evening did not comment on Romanias move.

Earlier on Thursday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that at least six countries are seriously discussing with Israel relocating their embassies to Jerusalem. So far, the US and Guatemala are the only two countries that have formally announced the move.

Recognizing reality is the way you build peace. You cannot build peace on a foundation of lies because it crashes on the rocks of reality. Its important to establish those principles that will ultimately guide peace: that Israel has a capital, that the Jewish people have had a capital for 3,000 years and that its called Jerusalemis uncontestable. Its time to recognize that fact, Netanyahu said at at reception for the diplomatic corps at the Presidents Residence in Jerusalem.

Ive decided that the first ten embassies to come here will get preferential treatment, told the diplomats. Well help you! All of you should do that.

Romania abstained on a United Nations General Assembly Resolution that condemned the US administrations December 6 decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital and move the Embassy to the city. The Romanian Foreign Ministry said the resolutionwhich was adopted with 128 yes votes, 9 no votes and 35 abstentionscomes at a time when caution should be exercised.

In a press release, the ministry said it was rather necessary, at this stage, to re-launch the direct dialogue in order to unlock the peace process. Consequently, Romania has voted to abstain within the UNGA.

At the time, Netanyahu called President Iohannis to thank him for the abstention.

32 of 120 soldiers honoured by president born abroadby Greer Fay Cashman, Jerusalem Post

The Israel Defense Forces continue to attract young men and women in the Diaspora who want to do something meaningful for Israel. Of the 120 outstanding soldiers from all units in the IDF, who are traditionally honored at the Presidents Residence on Independence Day, 32 were born in 14 foreign countries, with six from Ethiopia and four each from Brazil, Ukraine and the US.

There is an increase in the number of young Israelis born with disabilities, which ordinarily would disqualify them from army service, but are accepted as volunteers due to a growing realization in the upper echelons of the IDF that what disabled people can do is more important than what they cant do.

There were four male soldiers and one female soldier in this category among the 120 outstanding honorees, whose disabilities include autism, deafness, Aspergers syndrome, and being wheelchair bound. All five are making a valuable contribution.

Of the 21 lone soldiers from among the honorees, there were eight males and 13 females. Some came from troubled socioeconomic backgrounds, despite which they had been able to realize their potential.

The event, hosted by President Reuven Rivlin and his wife, Nechama, is a tribute not only to the 120 outstanding soldiers, but to the IDF in general. Among those who attended were Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gadi Eisenkot, members of the General Staff, former defense ministers Moshe Arens, Yitzhak Mordechai, Ehud Barak and Amir Peretz, former chief of staff Benny Gantz, as well as senior politicians, former commanders of IDF units, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat and the families of the honorees.

In the spirit of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the state, at least one entertainer was older than the state itself. Israel Gurion, 82, singing and dancing with members of the IDF entertainment troupe who were around 60 years his junior, proved that he still has his voice, his energy and his agility.

A huge cheer went up when the 120 soldiers, who had been put through their paces by Lt.-Col. Oded Nahari, who was heading the military aspect of the ceremony for the 18th consecutive year, marched up on stage and took their places.

Rivlin recalled that exactly a week earlier, he together with Eisenkot and the heads of the Israel Police, Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and Mossad, had stood on a ramp at Auschwitz-Birkenau at the edge of the worst abyss to which the Jewish people had been subjected and heard the sounds of shofars, and the recital of Kaddish and other memorial prayers.

They had also stood and listened to popular singer Shlomo Artzi speak of his mother who had been a survivor of Auschwitz, and together with the huge crowd had joined him in singing: Suddenly a man rises in the morning, feels as if he is a nation, and begins to walk ...

Rivlin said that in singing the song, there was a strong realization that Israel is not something to be taken for granted. We are a miracle without precedent, he said.

Israels mission was not completed on the 5th of the Hebrew calendar month of Iyar, 5708 (May 14, 1948), he said. There was still much to be done: Jewish immigration, the ingathering of the exiles, the development of the land for all who dwell in it, freedom, justice, equality, full social and political rights for all citizens of Israel regardless of creed, ethnicity or gender; freedom of religion, conscience, speech, education and culture all of which were part of the vision of the prophets and the founders of the state, he said, and which are inscribed in the Declaration of Independence.

Rivlin, Netanyahu, Liberman and Eisenkot were asked by moderators Rotem Abuav and Aviv Alush to name what for them was the most meaningful moment in the states history.

They expected only one reply from each, but they got more.

For Rivlin, it was the victory in the War of Independence, Tu Bishvat 1949 when the Knesset was transferred from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and the reunification of Jerusalem in June 1967.

Netanyahu also named the Six Day War, but added the Yom Kippur War of 1973, which ended in a victory for Israels unprepared army which though caught unawares, emerged the victor.

For Liberman, it was also the Six Day War, which culminated with the reunification of Jerusalem and imbued Soviet Jews with the desire to learn about Zionism and to study Hebrew.

For Eisenkot, the exciting moment was and still is seeing new recruits arrive with their parents at the recruitment base as well as to watch them getting into the buses as members of the IDF.

There was consensus that Israels army has the best technology in the world.

In his own address, Eisenkot noted that thousands of recruits join the IDF each year and notwithstanding differences in backgrounds, work diligently and devotedly shoulder to shoulder in response to every challenge.

Despite the IDFs many accomplishments, it must remain constantly on high alert in order to defend the state, he said. Tens of thousands of soldiers have been deployed along the borders to deter enemy efforts from infiltrating, he added, noting that they do so in the spirit of a combat soldier, in a feeling of camaraderie, and mutual commitment to each other, loyalty to the state and a sense of mission.

Eisenkot also pledged to bring home for burial in Israel the remains of Oren Shaul and Hadar Goldin, and to do all that was possible to secure the freedom of two Israeli civilians being held in Hamas captivity.

Speaking on behalf of the soldiers Dr. Shira Ben Barak Leibovich, who serves as a physician in the medical unit of the Armored Corps, said that none of the 120 outstanding soldiers was performing his or her duty for the sake of recognition and reward. We do what we do as part of our everyday lives, she said. It is our mission to defend the state and we dont forget those who are missing or who are prisoners.

Thousands of lone soldiers celebrate Independence Dayby Ilanit Chernick, Jerusalem Post

The smell of barbecues and beer filled the air as thousands of lone soldiers came together across Israel to celebrate the countrys 70th year of independence.

The Lone Soldier Center in Memory of Michael Levin hosted the largest Independence Day party especially geared toward lone soldiers, in hopes of giving them a warm and familial experience as they took time to celebrate the milestone holiday.

Two barbecues that took place in Jerusalems Sacher Park and in the Arca Wedding Hall at the Tel Aviv Port for around 2,000 lone soldiers were buzzing with excitement, as 400 kilograms of meat and 500 liters of beer were consumed, thanks to generous donations and a partnership with Beer Bazaar. In addition, thousands of side dishes and desserts were also prepared by communities in Beit Shemesh and Ramat Beit Shemesh.

Parents of fallen lone soldiers and prominent members of the Jerusalem municipality also took part in the Sacher Park barbecue.

A large carpeted canopy was set-up while barbecues cooked and beer was served. Some chose to sit on the grass just outside the canopy while others hung Israeli flags all over the cordoned-off areaon trees, fences and the like.

Daniel, a lone soldier who is serving in the Golani Brigade, said that the organization was like his family.

Another soldier who asked to remain anonymous told The Jerusalem Post that events like this made being a lone soldier so much easier.

You get to meet people who are in the same situation as you from all walks of life at these eventsthey become your family and they make it easier for you to serve and live in the country despite being alone, she said. Its not so simpleand Im not going to say serving in the IDF has been an easy transitionbut I couldnt wish to be anywhere else. The Lone Soldier Center has been there for me throughoutits incredible.

Soldiers of different ages and from different battalions and countries joined together in the celebration and also watched in awe during the F-35 flyovers by the air force.

Many of the attendees were either dressed in their IDF uniforms or in blue and white. Israeli flags also flew high and there was a relaxed and family-like atmosphere.

StandWithUs Israel CEO Michael Dickson said in a live-stream video on the organizations Facebook page that they joined the festivities at Sacher Park to help serve the soldiers who serve us every day of the year.

Feige, a lone soldier originally from New Jersey who is serving in the 41st Infantry Battalion, said during the live-stream that she fell in love with Israel while vacationing in the country when she was 17. I realized this was my place; this is my home and I want to defend my homeI want to be a part of the IDF.

She connected with the Lone Soldier Center when she decided to enlist; now its her sanctuary. Coming home after a long, hard week on basewhich can sometimes be three weeks on baseits just so nice to be able to go to the center. Its like a familyI can relax there. They organize Shabbat meals, and the times everyone is with their family, the Lone Soldier Center is my family.

As the afternoon wore on, more lone soldiers arrived and joined in the funrelaxing, meeting new people, chatting and celebrating in true Israeli style as Sacher Park buzzed with action and excitement.

Unique haredi group stages remembrance event By Jeremy Sharon, Jerusalem Post

For the second year running, a group of haredi men and women held a Remembrance Day ceremony in what the organizers hope will become a regular feature of the communitys calendar.

The event was organized by activists from a unique haredi community which began life as a Facebook group called The Torah Hub for young men and women who are integrated to a greater extent into Israeli society than other components of haredi society.

Modern-Ultra-Orthodox if you will.

Several speakers addressed the audience at the event in Jerusalem, which numbered some 150 people, including former Israel Air Force chief Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amir Eshel, while people who lost family members who served in Israels wars also spoke.

The group, numbering some 1,300 members, has now become an active community with regular events in which several dozen people participate, while vigorous debates about matters affecting the haredi community on The Torah Hub forum.

Neta Katz, one of the community members and activists, said that the initiative for a haredi Remembrance Day ceremony began within the forum, after a post asking if members had relatives who died serving in the IDF garnered numerous affirmative responses.

Katz, who also helped to found the IDF Shahar program for haredi soldiers, said the group was surprised by the number of people who said they had an uncle, a brother, a cousin and even a son who had been killed in one of Israels wars.

He noted that Remembrance Day is widely ignored in the haredi community, and that members of The Torah Hub are seeking to find their place in the story of Israels historical and ongoing efforts to defend itself from its external enemies, and the price that has been paid in so doing over the years.

Katz also rejected arguments heard within the haredi community that Remembrance Day is not rooted in Jewish tradition and therefore not something which religious Jews should participate in.

There is no traditional way of remembering the fallen soldiers of the IDF, and so there is no reason not to participate in the framework established by the State of Israel, said Katz who spoke at the event. And it is basic Jewish value to show gratitude, especially for recognizing the sacrifice of those who have died for us and our families. The very, absolute minimum we can do is to mark Remembrance Day, especially people who never severed in the army, Katz said.

Racheli Ibenboim, a feminist activist from the Gur Hassidic community, was another of the speakers at the event. She noted that her grandfather, also from the Gur community, was enlisted to the nascent IDF following the Declaration of Independence in 1948, and was killed in action during the campaign to retain control of Jerusalem.

Today it sounds almost unbelievable, but back then you could be 100% haredi, and from Gur, and show that there is no contradiction in such an identity and fighting for our existence here, said Ibenboim.

We have a feeling of obligation for those who sacrificed themselves for us, and feel that we cannot let this evening pass without expressing this, she explained in reference to the Remembrance Day ceremony.

She also said that it was important for members of The Torah Hub group that the general population know that there are haredi men and women who observe Remembrance Day and show their gratitude for the sacrifice of those who died defending the country.

Speaking more broadly about the group, Ibenboim said that it was an effort to create a space for haredi men and women whose horizons are broader than those in the mainstream of the community, and also to provide something of a support group for such people who are trying to live in both the haredi world and that of modern Israeli society.

There is a lot of optimism among us, but also concern, such as the fear of losing our haredi, if we somehow fail to bridge between these worlds in the right way, said Ibenboim.

Chelsea steps up fight against anti-Semitismby Allon Sinai, Jerusalem Post

Chelsea Football Clubs Say No to Anti-Semitism campaign was launched only earlier this year, but it is already gaining momentum and recognition.

Last week, representatives of the club took part in the March of the Living in Poland from Auschwitz to Birkenau, including directors Bruce Buck and Eugene Tenenbaum, Sir Steve Redgrave, the Olympic legend and Chelsea supporter, Israeli Avram GrantChelseas former manager whose father was a Holocaust survivorplus Jody Morris, Chelseas under 18 manager and players from the academy.

As part of this initiative, the Chelsea Foundations equality and diversity workshops in primary schools will be extended to talk specifically about Jewish faith and culture. The club will also launch an education program for supporters banned for anti-Semitic behavior, as well as helping them to understand the impact of their actions, with participation in the course potentially leading to a reduction in the length of their ban.

Additional activities taking place throughout the year will also include educational visits to former concentration camps for staff, fans and stewards, an exhibition at the Chelsea Museum on soccer and British Jews and screenings of Liga Terezina documentary about a soccer league run from a concentration camp during the Holocaust.

One of Chelseas most famous fans, athletics legend Sebastian Coe, who is currently the president of the IAAF, athletics world governing body, was in Israel earlier this week with the aim of promoting the program.

The reason I joined was not just because Im a Chelsea fan but because all my life Ive been campaigning to keep discrimination out of sport in any way and it was a good initiative and Im really happy to be here, Lord Coe told The Jerusalem Post.

It is something that I think is in the values of the club. I think this is a campaign that could go for many years. I think it will become part of the DNA of the club. Sport has consistently played the leading role in social change, much more than politicians, much more than other groups.

The Say No to Anti-Semitism campaign was initiated and backed by Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich.

The Holocaust was a crime without parallel in history. We must never forget such atrocities and must do our utmost to prevent them from ever happening again, Abramovich said ahead of the March of the Living. We can all do something to challenge discrimination at our club as well as within the world around us.

Coe, an Olympic gold medalist from the 1980 and 1984 Games, who among his many past roles also served as the President of the Organizing Committee for the London 2012 Olympics, believes that sport is a superb tool through which to fight anti-Semitism and discrimination.

Sport is never the problem. Sport is 90 percent of the time the solution. It is more of a solution than politicians, more of a solution than any other area of activity. Sport deals with issues that politicians sometimes are afraid to address, he explained.

Im really pleased that Chelsea has addressed it inside the football family. For many people, their football club is the main anchor point in their lives. I really believe in the campaign.

J.K. Rowling 'explains' anti-Semitism in tweetby Ron Kampeas, Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Theres an unsettling debate underway in Britain about whether the right or the left is more anti-Semitic, and videos of Jewish members of Parliament reading out some of the anti-Semitic invective theyve suffered have gone viral.

J.K. Rowling, the non-Jewish author of the Harry Potter series, decided to weigh in on Wednesday, defining anti-Semitism for her 14.4 million Twitter followers.

She posted a screen grab of a non-Jew gentile-explaining what Judaism isJudaism is a religion not a raceand gently explained why this is hardly relevant to defining anti-Jewish bias.

Most UK Jews in my timeline are currently having to field this kind of crap, so perhaps some of us non-Jews should start shouldering the burden, she said. Anti-Semites think this is a clever argument, so tell us, do: were atheist Jews exempted from wearing the yellow star? #anti-Semitism.

Rowlings head-smacking was almost audible as she sorted through responses to that tweet, including one that said arguing against anti-Semitism was culturally insensitive to Muslims. Keep updated: Sign up to our newsletter Email*

When you only understand bigotry in terms of pick a team and get a mind-boggling response, she said.

She also reacted with impatienceattaching a GIF of an exasperated Hugh Lauriewhen someone argued that Arabs cant be anti-Semitic because they are Semites. The Arabs are semitic too hot takes have arrived, she said.

Split hairs. Debate etymology, she said in a tweet attached to a definition of anti-Semitism as hostility to or prejudice against Jews. Gloss over the abuse of your fellow citizens by attacking the actions of another countrys government. Would your response to any other form of racism or bigotry be to squirm, deflect or justify?"

Natalie Portman refuses to visit Israel for Genesis prizeby Times of Israel

Culture Mnister Miri Regev on Friday morning lambasted Jerusalem-born Hollywood star Natalie Portman for her decision to not come to Israel to receive the so-called Jewish Nobel awarded by the Genesis Prize Foundation.

Regev said Portman had fallen into the hands of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign that aims to isolate the Jewish state.

Portman had initially agreed to accept the $2 million award at a ceremony scheduled for June.

The Genesis Prize Foundation cancelled the prize ceremony, saying in a statement that its organizers fear that Ms. Portmans decision will cause our philanthropic initiative to be politicized, something we have worked hard for the past five years to avoid.

Yesterday (Thursday), the foundation said that it had been notified by Portmans representative that [r]ecent events in Israel have been extremely distressing to her and she does not feel comfortable participating in any public events in Israel and that she cannot in good conscience move forward with the ceremony.

Portman did not specify which events caused her distress, although the United Nations and the European Union recently called for investigations into the use of live ammunition by Israels military in clashes along the border with Gaza that have left dozens of Palestinians dead and hundreds wounded. The Israeli Army has said it faces Hamas-encouraged terror at the border under the cover of the weekly mass protests.

The Genesis Foundation did not indicate whether Portman would still receive the prize money in light of her announcement.

Regev said she was sorry that Portman had fallen like ripe fruit into the hands of BDS supporters.

She added, Natalie, a Jewish actress who was born in Israel, joins those who relate to the story of the success and the wondrous rebirth of Israel as a story of darkness.

Calling on Interior Minister Aryeh Deri to cancel Portmans Israeli citizenship, Likud MK Oren Hazan labeled her an Israeli Jewess who on the one hand makes cynical use of her origins in order to advance her career and who, on the other hand, prides herself on having avoided being drafted into the IDF.

Portman left Israel with her parents at the age of 3.

Kulanu lawmaker Rachel Azaria said that Portmans decision was a reflection of changing attitudes toward Israel among US Jews.

Natalie Portmans cancellation should be a warning sign, she tweeted. Shes totally one of us, identifies with her Jewishness and Israeliness. Shes expressing the voices of many in US Jewry, and particularly those of the younger generation. This is a community that was always a significant anchor for the State of Israel and the price of losing it is likely to be too high.

Much of the US Jewish community has been at odds with Israels right-wing government in recent years over the latters position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its support for ultra-Orthodox Jewry on issues of religious identity and practice.

Earlier, in a statement announcing the cancellation of the prize ceremony, the Genesis Prize Foundation said that its organizers fear that Ms. Portmans decision will cause our philanthropic initiative to be politicized, something we have worked hard for the past five years to avoid.

In November, the Genesis Prize announced that Portman would receive its 2018 award, which comes with a cash prize that recipients may direct toward causes of their choice. She joined artist Anish Kapoor, violinist Itzhak Perlman, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and actor-director Michael Douglas as winner of the $1 million prize, which honors individuals who serve as an inspiration to the next generation of Jews through their outstanding professional achievement along with their commitment to Jewish values and the Jewish people.

Genesis said in December that Portmans prize money had been doubled to $2 million by a donation by Israeli philanthropist Morris Kahn.

The prize was established by Mikhail Fridman and other wealthy Russian-Jewish businessmen and operates in partnership with the Prime Ministers Office and the Jewish Agency for Israel.

In 2009, Portman joined other Hollywood stars in protesting calls for a boycott against the Toronto International Film Festival for its staging of a Tel Aviv-themed event. She also directed and starred in a Hebrew-language adaptation of Israeli novelist Amos Ozs memoir, A Tale of Love and Darkness. In a statement following the Genesis Prize announcement in November, Portman said she was proud of my Israeli roots and Jewish heritage.

In 2015, following the re-election of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, she said she was very, very upset and disappointed.

I find his racist comments horrific, she told The Hollywood Reporter. However, I dontwhat I want to make sure is, I dont want to use my platform [the wrong way]. I feel like there are some people who become prominent, and then its out in the foreign press. You know, shit on Israel. I do not. I dont want to do that.

How Jewish civil rights group became a far-left villainby Ben Sales, Jewish Telegraphic Agency

When Starbucks announced that it would close its US stores for one day to conduct anti-bias training for employees, seeking the expertise of the Anti-Defamation League seemed unsurprising.

Its the most prominent group in the country fighting anti-Semitism, and it also opposes bigotry of all kinds. Its website says it has conducted anti-bias training in schools, workplaces and elsewhere for 60 million people.

But when far-left activists look at the ADL, they dont see a civil-rights group. They say the ADL supports domestic institutions perpetuating racism (like the police) while defending what the activists call Israeli oppression of the Palestinians abroad.

They have a track record of being selective in the way in which they approach civil rights, said Rebecca Vilkomerson, executive director of Jewish Voice for Peace, which supports boycotting Israel. They tend to defend Israel and its actions. There seems to be a double standard they impart on Muslims and in particular Palestinians.

The ADL declined to comment for this article, but the positions it has taken in recent years make it an unlikely target of some left-wing organizations. The group has been an outspoken Jewish voice against right-wing racism and bigotry. It has released reports and statements on far-right extremist activity and filed an amicus brief against the Trump administrations travel ban. It has convened mayors to fight hate and opened a center in Silicon Valley to combat cyberhate.

Its CEO, Jonathan Greenblatt [similar name, but not Trump's mid-east envoy], who came to the ADL in 2015 after a stint at the Obama White House, has not been shy about criticizing US President Donald Trump for statements targeting Muslims or praising far-right demonstrators. This week, Greenblatt urged scrutiny of his pick for secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, for his anti-Muslim activities.

Next month, the ADL will take part in the Starbucks training, which comes in response to the outcry over the arrest of two black men at a Philadelphia branch of the coffee giant who were waiting to start a meeting. Along with the ADL, the training will also be led by the NAACPs Legal Defense Fund, the liberal think tank Demos and the Equal Justice Initiative, a civil rights group.

But along with its work on bias, the ADL engages in pro-Israel activism that has pit it against groups that share its domestic agenda. In 2016, the ADL called out the Movement for Black Lives after it published a platform accusing Israel of apartheid and genocide. It has sparred with Linda Sarsour, the Palestinian-American liberal activist and an organizer of the Womens March, over her anti-Zionism. It welcomed the adoption by Congress of the Taylor Force Act, which conditions certain American aid to the Palestinian Authority on ending the Palestinian Liberation Organizations practice of paying families of jailed and deceased terrorists.

And as opposition to Israel has become increasingly common in leftist activist circles, the ADLs talking points supporting Israel have made it a target. IfNotNow, a grassroots group opposing Israels occupation, has staged sit-ins in the lobby of the ADLs office building. Last month, after the ADL criticized Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan and his backers, IfNotNow accused it of downplaying the threat of white supremacy.

The left-wing attacks on the ADL gained a wider audience Tuesday when Womens March co-organizer Tamika Mallory, who recently came under fire for supporting Farrakhan, a virulent anti-Semite, denounced Starbucks for cooperating with the Jewish group.

So you are aware, Starbucks was on a decent track until they enlisted the Anti-Defamation League to build their anti-bias training, Mallory tweeted Tuesday. The ADL is CONSTANTLY attacking black and brown people.

Vilkomerson said she was most concerned about the ADL giving awards to police departments, as well as accusations that the ADL spied on Muslim civil society groups in the 1990s. In 1999, the ADL settled a class-action suit over the spying.

Anti-Israel activists have also taken issue with an ADL program that brings delegations from American police departments for counterterrorism training with Israeli security forces. Jewish Voice for Peace has dubbed the program a deadly exchange that encourages police violence against minorities. On Monday, Durham, North Carolina, became the first city in the country to bar its officers from participating in such programs, adopting a resolution pushed by JVP and pro-Palestinian groups.

The police exchanges are a manifestation of the ways the ADL identifies itself as a civil rights organization but often acts as an Israel advocacy organization, Vilkomerson said. Theyre absolutely prioritizing Israeli lives, often at the expense of Palestinian lives.

The ADL says its programs are about tapping Israels counterterrorism expertise and giving US law enforcement tools to deal with extremist threats facing all groups and houses of worship. Former Durham Police Chief Jose Lopez said none of his training in Israel involved militarization, but dealt with leadership, it was learning about terrorism and then learning about how to interact with people who are involved in mass casualty situations and how to manage mass casualty situations.

The attack from the left is also seen as ironic in light of the frequent criticism the ADL has gotten over the years from right-wing Jewish groups, who say the ADLs broad-based agenda has distracted it from the fight against Islamist extremism. Morton Klein, president of the Zionist Organization of America, criticized Greenblatt last year for joining other groups, including Muslim-American organizations, in objecting to a March Against Sharia. Klein called it troubling and shocking that ADL has joined radical Islamists/Israel haters.

Other left-wing activists have pushed back on the criticism of the ADL. Neera Tanden, who heads the liberal think tank the Center for American Progress, tweeted that Mallorys criticism was outrageous.

Rabbi Jill Jacobs, executive director of the liberal rabbis group Truah, said the ADL does valuable work in drawing connections between anti-Semitism and other forms of hate. While she disagrees with elements of the ADLs policies on Israel, Jacobs said to implicate the groups work in Israel for the long legacy of racism among American police departments is unfair.

They have a good reputation for doing these anti-bias trainings, Jacobs said. The ADL has always understood that fighting anti-Semitism is inherently tied to fighting racism, xenophobia and Islamophobia.

Some activists have gotten caught in the verbal crossfire.

Sophie Ellman-Golan, a spokeswoman for the Womens March, who is Jewish, agreed that the ADL is out of place in the Starbucks training. But she has also pushed back against those who pointed to the groups presence as evidence for anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.

No, @ADL_National isnt the right Jewish org to address racism, discrimination, anti-Blackness at @Starbucks, Ellman-Golan tweeted. Also no, this isnt evidence of Jews trying to control Black folks. Thats an anti-Semitic white supremacist conspiracy theory.

Finally, white Jews: This isnt about us.

Corrosive: The dangerous 'voice for peace'by Caroline B. Glick, Jerusalem Post

Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) is a marginal group, by all accounts. The Jewish-run, anti-Zionist organization has perhaps a couple of dozen employees and anywhere between a few dozen and a couple of hundred committed activists in the US. Its positionsthat Israel is evil and must be destroyed and that Jews should be disenfranchised and ostracized because they support Israelis anathema to the overwhelming majority of American Jews.

Yet despite the fact that its bigoted positions are rejected by just about everyone, this group, which the Anti-Defamation League has listed as the largest and most influential Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the United States, is becoming increasingly influential in the US.

As the ADL report on JVP notes, in recent years, the little group has received millions of dollars in donations and has vastly expanded its operations. It has 35 chapters across the US including at several campuses. It has nearly a half million followers on Facebook and 75,000 followers on Twitter.

JVP doesnt only attack Jewish supporters of Israel. It also attacks Judaism. JVPs rabbinical council issues resolutions and publications in the name of the Jewish religion that are inherently anti-Semitic.

In 2012 for instance, JVPs rabbinical council published an alternative Haggada, which included anti-Israel themes inside the Passover story of the liberation of the children of Israel from slavery in Egypt. One of the four cups of wine for the Passover Seder was dedicated to the BDS movement. Readers were instructed to add an olive to the traditional Seder plate to symbolize Palestinian suffering under Israeli rule.

JVP is open about its determination to serve as a Jewish fig leaf for anti-Semitic groups and operations. Its website states this mission explicitly, arguing that the groups Jewish veneer gives it a particular legitimacy in voicing an alternative view of American and Israeli actions and policies and the ability to distinguish between real anti-Semitism and the cynical manipulation of that issue.

It is a sign of the confusion within the American Jewish community that JVPs strategy meets with success not only among the general public, which may not understand how marginal and extreme JVPs positions are, but within the Jewish community itself.

Consider a development this week at New York University.

On Monday, 51 campus groups published a declaration committing their members to adopting the BDS program including by boycotting two NYU Jewish student groups.

The pledge that NYU College Libertarians, the Asian American Womens Alliance at NYU, and their comrades in 49 other student groups signed committed them to boycotting NYUs pro-Israel clubs, Realize Israel and TorchPAC, by not co-sponsoring events with them, as well as boycotting off-campus pro-Israel groups such as Birthright-Taglit, the Maccabee Task Force, Mosaic United, Zionist Organization of America, American-Israeli [sic] Political Action Committee and the Anti-Defamation League.

There are two remarkable aspects to this declaration. First, it is remarkable that so many groups were willing to affix their signatures to a document that is so openly anti-Semitic. They found nothing objectionable about committing themselves to ostracize two Jewish student groups and six national Jewish organizations, which together represent the views of the overwhelming majority of American Jews.

The group that spearheaded the NYU anti-Jewish boycott is Students for Justice in Palestine. SJP is behind nearly every BDS initiative in the US. And JVP, which is a member of the coalition that pushed the NYU anti-Jewish boycott, serves as SJPs Jewish fig leaf at NYU and on campuses throughout the US.

In any discussion about JVP and its role in legitimizing and normalizing anti-Jewish discrimination and hatred, it is important to bear in mind the nature of its partner and leader SJP.

In 2016, Jonathan Schanzer from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies revealed SJPs pedigree in congressional testimony. Schanzer explained that SJP, which is run by Berkeley professor Hatem Bazian, is not a legal entity. It is just a name. SJP is a shell group directed in every way by a Chicago-registered organization called American Muslims for Palestine, which Bazian heads.

American Muslims for Palestine devises all of the SJP campaigns. It provides talking points to SJP chapters ensuring that the SJP message and operation is identical across all campuses.

American Muslims for Palestine is not a registered nonprofit. Its fund-raising arm, also chaired by Bazian, is called American for Justice in Palestine Education Foundation. Schanzer noted that AJPs IRS Form 990s revealed that it raised $3.2 million in contributions between 2010 and 2014. Yet in apparent breach of the US tax code, AJP reported neither the sources of the funds nor how they were used.

Most important, Schanzer revealed that Bazian, American Muslims for Palestine and American for Justice in Palestine are up to their armpits in Hamas ties.

Before establishing SJP, AMP and AJP, Bazian and his colleagues worked for three linked organizations: the Holyland Foundation, KindHearts and the Islamic Association for Palestine. All three were shut down following the 2008 verdict in the Holyland Foundation terrorism financing trial. That verdict found that the Holyland Foundation, and its sister organizations KindHearts and the Islamic Association for Palestine were all terrorism financiers that raised funds for Hamas and al-Qaeda.

Schanzer noted that there is no evidence that Bazian and his associates at the follow-on AMP-AJP groups raise funds for terrorist groups now. But all the same, at AMPs annual conference in 2014, participants were invited to come and navigate the fine line between legal activism and material support for terrorism.

No doubt ignorant of all of this, and immunized from allegations of Jew-hatred by JVPs advocacy for the resolution, 51 campus groups at NYU decided to side with SJP-AMP-AJP and blackball two mainstream Jewish groups.

Which brings us back to JVP and its pivotal role in advancing Jew-hatred in America, and to the second remarkable aspect of the NYU operation.

The response of the affected Jews at NYU make clear the corrosive effect JVP is having on the Jewish communitys capacity to defend itself against open discrimination.

Realize Israel and TorchPACs reactions to this egregious act of discrimination directed against them are notable for their docility.

Speaking to Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Realize Israel president Adela Cojab described the campus climate on Israel as one of animosity.

Cojab expressed surprise about the scale of the assault. I didnt expect so many people and so many groups to turn against students the way they have, she said.

Cojab then added, Theyre creating a rift between students that doesnt exist. You can advocate for a cause without singling out two student groups, especially NYU groups that have been on this campus and have been contributing in a meaningful way to NYU campus life.

0TorchPAC president Rebecca Stern told Jewish Telegraphic Agency that her group wants to open a dialogue with the groups that just officially ostracized her group.

They arent student groups that we particularly know much about, so were working on trying to talk to people and to see what exactly it is about this specific resolution that drew them to adopt it. We really want to establish ourselves as a tolerant, discussion-based community.

Cojabs and Sterns decision to respond with passive, nonjudgmental statements to an openly bigoted assault against them personally, and against the overwhelming majority of the American Jewish community which shares their positions generally, is noteworthy. It is similarly noteworthy that the response of the NYUs professional Jewish leadership was arguably even more timid.

In a statement to Jewish Telegraphic Agency, the executive director of NYUs Bronfman Center for Jewish Life, Rabbi Yehuda Sarna, said that the groups open ostracism of the Jewish campus groups is a source of sorrow and disappointment to me.

Sarna added, The university should be about people coming together, not about people refusing to speak to those with differing views.

The docile response of the affected Jews at NYU to their colleagues decision to ostracize them and ban them from the wider student body is an extreme example of the confusion and weakness of the Jewish community. JVP and other anti-Israel Jewish groups are making significant progress in their bids to paralyze the Jewish community from within. They work avidly to sow doubt, confusion and embarrassment among American Jews about whether they have a right to civil rights and protection, let alone to respect and support when they express their support for the Jewish state.

An event in Durham, North Carolina, earlier this week points to way that JVP is subverting the Jewish community. This week, Durham, North Carolina, became the first US city to adopt BDS as official policy. The city council adopted a statement calling for the police department to ban all exchange programs with Israel.

The statement was the result of an intense, months-long lobbying campaign led by JVP.

According to sources inside the Durham Jewish community, JVP members have taken leading roles in two area synagogues and the local Jewish federation. Sandra Korn has been a JVP member since at least 2015. She is a trustee and the head of adult education at Durhams Judea Reform synagogue.

Korn is also a staff member at the Durham/Chapel Hill Jewish Federation, employed as a youth teacher. She teaches religious studies at all area synagogues. Korn allegedly led the BDS campaign at the city council. She was allegedly joined in her efforts Lara Haft. Like Korn, Haft is a JVP member and Federation staffer. Haft teaches religious studies at Beth El synagogue in Durham.

Korns Judea Reform synagogue has something called the Israel Discourse Advisory Committee. Three of its members signed a letter to the city council in support of BDS.

Consider the impact that committed JVP activists are having on the Jewish community in Durham. The parents who pay good money to send their children to Hebrew school are in all likelihood uninterested in teaching their children that Passover is a cautionary tale about Jewish venality. And yet, it can be assumed that students who emerge from Korns and Hafts classrooms will not be joining pro-Israel organizations when they go to college. It can be taken for granted that these Jewish youth, whose parents took the trouble to join a synagogue and send them to Hebrew school, will not understand why Jews have just as much of a right to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state as everyone else has to advocate on behalf of issues that matter to them.

There are two ways to deal with Jewish Voice for Peace. First, while the Obama administration refused to investigate Students for Justice in Palestine and its parent groups ties to terrorist groups, the Trump Justice Department and Treasury Department can easily inquire into their pedigree. The federal government can take action against them if, as seems likely, investigators discover operational ties between these groups and illegal terrorist organizations.

Second, the Jewish communal groups need to block JVP activists and sympathizers from gaining positions of power and influence over their local institutions. Among other things, this requires investing in Jewish educators to attract more Jewish Americans to these professions.

JVP is punching above its weight because the Jewish communal leadership is punching beneath its weight. It is time to correct this imbalance.

Caroline Glick was born in Chicago and made aliya to Israel in 1991, after receiving her BA in Political Science from Columbia University.She joined the IDF that summer and served as an officer for more than five years. She has served as assistant foreign policy advisor to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.. In March 2002, she accepted the position of deputy managing editor of The Jerusalem Post. She is the senior fellow for Middle Eastern Affairs at the Center for Security Policy in Washington, DC

Assessment: 70 years of strategic successby David M. Weinberg, Jerusalem Post

A strict strategic assessment leads to the conclusion that Israel at 70 has the upper hand. Despite military threats and other challenges, the State of Israel is winning on all fronts.

Statehood: Across Arab expanses, countries are crumbling, borders are being erased, and societies are being torn apart. In contrast, the nation-state of Israel is resolute, its borders unyielding, its society robust.

Security: In the face of Iranian ambitions, Russian adventurism and American retrenchment, Israel stands tenaciously firm with the strongest military ever assembled in the Middle East, and with steady, experienced hands at the helm of state. Vigilance, patience and diplomatic nimbleness are seeing Israel well through the regional storms.

Territory: Israel knows how to defend its borders, and hasnt made any serious withdrawal mistakes recently.

Can you imagine the mayhem and suffering Israelis would be experiencing had we withdrawn from the Golan or the Samarian heights? Palestinian leaders can bellow away with venom in the UN, but everybody knows that Palestinians and Israelis (and Jordanians and others) are better off with the current situation where Israel firmly controls the West Bank envelope.

Diplomacy: North American public opinion remains staunchly pro-Israelwhich means that Washington and Ottawa can be expected to stand by Israels side when it faces moments of challenge. Moreover, Israels diplomatic horizons are expanding to include important allies beyond North America and Europe. Trade and security delegations from China, India, Russia, Africa and South America are beating a path to Jerusalem seeking opportunities to cooperate with Israel, not to isolate it. And behind the scenes, Israels relations with Egypt, Saudi Arabia and other Sunni states have never been better.

Strategy: Key global players have come to accept Israels strategic platform; i.e.

that the main conflict in the region is no longer Israel versus the Palestinians or Israel versus the Arabs. Instead, the main axis of defense and diplomatic activity in the Middle East is an unofficial alliance between Israel and most of the Arabs (together with Western powers), against the Iranians and the jihadis.

The forces of stability and moderation (with Israel in a lead role) are arrayed against the forces of violent and radical Islamic revolution.

There is an Israeli grand strategy of sorts, and it has been largely successful. It involves steadfastness, patience and looking over the horizon. It involves being both flexible and firm. It involves positioning Israel as a regional anchor of sanity and a global source of ingenuity.

Economy: BDS efforts notwithstanding, Israeli science and technology are in high demand everywhere. Israels foreign currency reserves are deep ($115 billion), and its exports are high ($102b.). The debt is manageable, unemployment is low, the banks are solvent, and the public is educated and productive (although the large haredi and Arab publics lag significantly behind). The country now has natural gas and desalinated water riches, which should make Israel self-sufficient as well as a strategic player in the regional resources market.

Aliya: Israel continues to attract immigration: about 30,000 olim a year. Most of these immigrants could go elsewhere, but they are choosing Israel! And perhaps the Heavens will surprise us with yet another wave of one million immigrants in the coming decades.

(Contrast this with the sad situation elsewhere in the region: Three million refugees are on the roads and high seas, fleeing Africa and Arabia, and another 30 million could yet follow. Good luck to Europe).

Identity: One of the greatest sources of energy in Israel is intensification of faith as an anchor in the countrys societal makeup, alongside a relatively high birthrate.

Israel is increasingly a nation of believers, with great collective spiritual searching under way. In my view, this too ultimately is a source of health and strength.

So in overall perspective, Israel is stronger than any of its enemies; indeed, stronger than all its enemies combined. Neither the perpetual Palestinian conundrum, nor the Iranian threat to Israel, nor the unstable regional situation, dims my optimism. My assessment is that Israel is winning on all battlefronts, even though there are inevitable conflicts ahead. Perhaps most important of all, Israelis are neither crushed nor dispirited by their challenges. They remain resilient and motivated to build an even better future.

And this gives Israel fortitude for the long haul.

One of Israels most-respected strategists, Prof. Efraim Inbar, president of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategic Studies, has reached similar conclusions. In a 4,000-word essay published this week, he determines that time is on Israels side.

A review of the balance of power between Israel and its foes; of the domestic features molding Israels national power; and of Israels standing in the international communityvalidates the assessment that Israel has the dominant hand for the foreseeable future.

Following Israels 70th Independence Day, it is important to emphasize and re-emphasize this perspective; to shake off the bleak and sinister prognostications sometimes advanced by both friends and enemies. The gloomy, wintry forecasts are just not accurate.

Im referring specifically to Obama-era American officials, and to Jews on the hard Left, who have warned Israel that unless it rapidly proceeds to establish a fullfledged Palestinian state in Judea and Samaria, the sky will come crashing down on the Jewish state; that unless the two-state solution is promptly implemented, Israel will molder, or atrophy, into apartheid and inch into isolation.

Well, theyre wrong. The wisdom and utility of a twostate settlement aside, its doubtfulness does not doom Israel. Long-term, lingering conflict with Palestinians is lamentable but bearable, and Israel will continue to prosper and be worthy nonetheless. And Israels hand remains outstretched for peace, whenever our adversaries are truly ready for a levelheaded settlement.

So despite the overwrought friends, apocalyptic agonizers, boycotters and detractorsthe Heavens are shining, not collapsing, upon Israel.

Listen to the words of the late, great Rabbi Dr. Ambassador Yaacov Herzog, speaking in 1971 about The Permanence of Israel: We face perils. No man can guarantee that fighting will not resume tomorrow, that our soldiers will not have to fight again bloody battles. But we know we have the strength to withstand them ... With firmness touched with generosity, with strength uplifted by spiritual understanding, we can move ahead. With all the difficulties, with all the pressures, we are the generation of redemption.

Let us indeed be worthy of this privilege that defies human logic and supersedes human vistas.

So on this Independence Day, count your personal and our national blessings. Life in Israel is full of meaning and delightadorned by sacrifice, commitment, achievement and joy; the crucial ingredients that make life satisfying and exciting, and uniquely so for Jews who have long awaited a national return to Zion.

The author is vice president of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategic Studies.

Prepared by News from Israel: http://www.isrinfo.orgIsrael Information Office in Scotland, 222 Fenwick Road, Glasgow G46 6UE Tel: 0141-639 3294

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