Israel / Middle East - Page 355

Brexiteer MP John Mann has quit the House of Commons over antisemitism, saying he would “never forgive” Jeremy Corbyn for allowing the party to be “hijacked” by antisemites.

NEW YORK — In the run-up to President Barack Obama’s controversial nuclear deal with Iran, the U.S. military under the Obama administration reportedly used American spy satellites to monitor Israel Defense Force actions out of concern that the Jewish state would strike Iran’s nuclear program.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Thursday ordered his country’s nuclear industry to develop faster uranium enrichment technology, marking another major breach of the 2015 nuclear deal.

NEW YORK — Barack Obama was so radical in his views about Israel that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emerged shellshocked, ashen faced and traumatized after his first White House meeting with the newly-elected president in May 2009, according to an adviser who was present.

President Trump on Thursday announced the departure of Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt from his administration as he commended the diplomat for his efforts to pursue peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

The Trump administration imposed sanctions on Iran’s space agency for the first time on Tuesday, accusing the regime of developing ballistic missiles under the guise of a civilian program aimed at launching satellites into orbit. 

The amount of terror operatives at the disposal of Islamic State in Iraq has fallen to such a level that cows are being rigged with remote-controlled bombs and herded into built-up areas before they are exploded.

A large Iranian-registered shipping network created solely to transport and obfuscate the sale of Iran oil has been targeted with fresh sanctions by the Trump administration.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that a Yahoo News report linking the Netherlands to a landmark 2007 cyberattack on Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment facility is being “carefully examined” and could lead to diplomatic action between the two countries.

TEL AVIV — Iran is constructing a new military facility in Syria that can house thousands of soldiers, Fox News reported citing multiple Western intelligence sources.

TEL AVIV — The IDF on Tuesday announced that it had identified a facility in southern Lebanon for the conversion and manufacture of precision-guided missiles being used by Hezbollah in partnership with Iran. 

Iran said Wednesday it will honor the 2015 Obama-negotiated JCPOA nuclear agreement if it can sell its oil on the open market or get “$15 billion over four months.”

TEL AVIV — Islamic State gunmen in the Sinai Peninsula intercepted a shipment of rockets being smuggled to the Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources told i24News Arabic on Tuesday.

TEL AVIV — In what seems to be another indication of thawing relations between Israel and Gulf states, several prominent figures have come forward and publicly condemned the Hezbollah terror group for attacking Israel and have expressed support for the Jewish state’s right to retaliate. 

TEL AVIV — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday said while Sunday’s exchange of fire with the Hezbollah terror group was tense, Israel achieved all its goals. 

TEL AVIV — Hezbollah terror chief Hassan Nasrallah warned Israel that Sunday’s “successful” attack at an army base was the start of a “new phase” in which the Iran-backed terror movement no longer has red lines. 

A 39-year-old Imam in the Swedish city of Helsingborg has been sentenced to fines and a conditional prison sentence after labelling Jews “the progeny of monkey’s and pigs.” The Imam made the remarks during a demonstration organised by the Swedish-Palestinian

TEL AVIV — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party mocked the rival Blue and White for putting out two contradictory statements in the same minute regarding Sunday’s flareup with Hezbollah on Israel’s northern border, and slammed the party’s number 2 Yair Lapid for putting politics before the lives of soldiers. 

TEL AVIV – Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez on Sunday opened a trade mission in Jerusalem, in a move he said was a “first step” toward transferring his country’s embassy to the city.

TEL AVIV — The IDF engaged in psychological warfare Sunday by staging a fake evacuation of “bloodied” soldiers from an APC military vehicle hit by Hezbollah, in an apparent attempt to deter the terror group from escalating the violence in the northern border any further. 

The Royal Navy warship HMS Montrose has faced 115 confrontations with Iranian forces in the Gulf since the start of July, it was revealed on Monday night.

TEL AVIV — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said from Berlin that the Palestinians were engaged in “spreading a culture of peace” but that the Trump administration was hampering efforts to stabilize the region.

TEL AVIV – Hezbollah terror chief Hassan Nasrallah said Saturday he has decided just how to retaliate over an alleged recent Israeli drone attack that Israel “must pay a price” for. 

The Hezbollah terror group fired several anti-tank guided missiles at an army base and military vehicles in northern Israel Sunday afternoon, the Israel Defense Forces said, adding that more information would be released shortly.

President Donald Trump criticized former Central Intelligence Agency director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and former FBI Director James Comey in a tweet about an image of a failed Iranian rocket launch.

The Islamic monarchy of Qatar is yet to confirm Israeli soccer fans will be welcomed into the country for the soccer World Cup in 2022.

An Iranian oil tanker blacklisted by the U.S. Treasury is steaming slowly near the coast of Syria. The ship-tracking website MarineTraffic.com reveals the Adrian Darya 1 slowed to a near-stop on Sunday some 50 nautical miles off Syria.

Turkey and Russia have begun talks aimed at letting the former buy Sukhoi Su-35 and Su-57 fighter jets from Russia in a direct snub to the the Trump administration which nixed a deal that would’ve allowed NATO-ally Ankara to add the new F-35 Lightning II to its combat aircraft fleet.

(AFP) — President Hassan Rouhani spoke with French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Saturday, warning him Iran would take the next step in reducing its nuclear commitments unless Europe lives up to its own undertakings.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier asked Poles for forgiveness on Sunday for German atrocities committed during World War II, during a speech in Wielun, the first city to be bombarded by Luftwaffe in 1939.

An Iranian rocket that was reportedly carrying a telecommunications satellite blew up on the launch pad at Imam Khomeini Space Center on Thursday, marking Iran’s third failed satellite launch of the year.

A federal appeals court on Wednesday overturned the conviction of 30-year-old David Daoud Wright for supporting a terrorist organization on the grounds that Wright’s trial judge did not give proper instructions to the jury. Wright’s conviction pertained to his participation in plots to kill police officers, overthrow the U.S. government, and behead blogger Pamela Geller at the behest of the Islamic State (ISIS).

Thursday during an appearance on Hugh Hewitt’s radio program, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pledged the U.S. government’s support for Israel when it comes to dealing with a threat from Iran and other adversaries, including from within the United Nations.

On Thursday’s broadcast of Fox News Radio’s “Brian Kilmeade Show,” President Trump stated that the U.S. will keep a presence of 8,600 troops in Afghanistan if a deal with the Taliban is reached. Trump said, [relevant remarks begin around 10:20]

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s son Yair has called on Germany to immediately stop its “outrageous” policy of providing millions of euros in aid money to radical Israeli and Palestinian NGOs that are bent on bringing an “end to the Jewish state” and make Israelis feel as if Germany sees the Jewish state as its “colony.”

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said his government will “boot out” a convicted child sex offender all the way back to his homeland Iraq once his prison sentence has been finished.