Israeli Leaders Congratulate Obama On Victory
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni congratulated US president-elect Barack Obama on his victory, saying that Israelis were “impressed by his commitment to the peace and security of Israel” during his recent visit. In a statement released after the election, Livni also thanked Sen. John McCain for his “long-standing friendship” with Israel, and congratulated him on an honorable campaign.
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US Approves “Stealth” Fighter Aircraft Sale to Israel
The Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency has approved the $15.2 billion sale of 25 of the stealthy F-35 Joint Strike Fighters for Israel with an option for another 50, saying it is vital to US national security interests to assist Israel in the development of “a strong and ready self-defense capability.”
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Israel Absorbs Georgian Refugees From War
A total of 75 new immigrants fleeing the conflict between Georgia and Russia arrived in Israel with most of them settling in the cities of Bat Yam and Ashdod. The Immigrant Absorption Ministry approved an assistance package for the newcomers that will include Hebrew schooling, employment offers and subsidized rent. Underprivileged immigrants will also receive a grant of several thousand shekels. According to the Jewish Agency, some 120 additional Georgians are preparing to immigrate to Israel within the coming.
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ISRAEL THREATENS IRAN OVER NUKES
An Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear sites looks “unavoidable” given the apparent failure of sanctions to deny Tehran technology with bomb-making potential, one of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s deputies said recently. “If Iran continues with its program for developing nuclear weapons, we will attack it. The sanctions are ineffective,” Transport Minister Shaul Mofaz told the mass-circulation Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper. (more…)
Israel Says Farewell to Regev and Goldwasser: Thousands at Burials of Returned Israeli Soldiers
Thousands of mourners turned out for the burials of two Israeli soldiers returned in a prisoner exchange with Hezbollah, laying to rest the young men whose unknown fate had riveted Israel for two years. The pair’s 2006 capture in a raid by Hezbollah sparked a month long war. Though officials believed the two soldiers were dead, there was no proof until their bodies were returned in black coffins.
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ISRAEL CELEBRATES 60 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE
Festivities began May 8th, at the end of Yom Hazikaon, the solemn, 24-hour day of mourning for the more than 20,000 soldiers and civilians killed in fighting that preceded and followed Israel ‘s creation. Mostly, Israelis celebrated Yom Ha’atzmaut by going to parks and picnic sites. Nature reserves, picnic sites, and museums were open to the public and the IDF opened selected bases to the public.
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ISRAEL BRINGS IN DIGNITARIES FOR ITS 60TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION
Israel’s President, Shimon Peres, announced that a May conference marking its 60th birthday will open with a tribute to Israel’s staunchest ally, the United States. In attendance will be President Bush and Barbra Streisand. “After 60 years we want to stand up and say ‘thank you America,'” Israeli President Shimon Peres said in an interview with The Associated Press.
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EIGHT KILLED IN TERRORIST ATTACK AT JERUSALEM YESHIVA
Eight teenage students were killed and nine others were wounded when a terrorist entered a crowded Jerusalem yeshiva and opened fire on March 6th. The head of the Zaka emergency service described the scene after the shooting as “like a slaughterhouse.” Three of the wounded in the attack at the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva were in serious condition while the other six were slightly hurt.
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ISRAELI CABINET RESPONDS TO CONTINUED GAZA ROCKET FIRE
At the February 10th cabinet meeting, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said there will be no peace between Israelis and Palestinians as long as Gaza terrorists continue launching rockets at Israeli towns. “There is no hope for any kind of peace or the vision of the Pales-tinian state which includes the Gaza Strip without real change on the ground,” Livni told reporters.
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Jewish Agency: Trying to Bring All Iranian Jews to Israel
The Jewish Agency is working to bring all of Iran’s remaining 25,000 Jews to Israel, an official told The Jerusalem Post as 40 immigrants landed at Ben-Gurion International Airport. The December 25th arrival was the largest single group of Iranian immigrants brought by the agency to start new lives in a country that Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has vowed to wipe off the face of the earth.
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