“How far is the Tehran regime prepared to go in the nuclear field? For the time being, it appears that despite its breaches of the nuclear deal over the past year and the shake-up of recent days, Iran is approaching this matter with caution. It fears, first of all, that unequivocal efforts at this stage to advance toward nuclear weapons could cause it to be attacked by the US and Israel. This would likely result in the destruction of parts of its nuclear infrastructure, probably including its uranium enrichment facilities at Natanz and Fordow. Trump responded to Iran’s withdrawal from the nuclear deal by tweeting, “Iran will never have nuclear weapons.” As Tehran just learned, Trump is capable of dramatic action and willing to use force. Secondly, Iran does not want to cause the collapse of its relationship with the EU, which continues to show it considerable sympathy. Finally, it is doubtful whether Iran’s economy, which has been hard-hit by the sanctions, will allow it to continue to invest in the nuclear weapons project right now,” – writes Lt. Col. (res.) Dr. Raphael Ofek, an expert in the field of nuclear physics and technology who served as a senior analyst in the Israeli intelligence community. (BESA, Jan. 14, 2020)
“This was long overdue. Soleimani was pushing an agenda of expanding terror across the Middle East. He is responsible for the death of thousands of people. When our community here heard this news, it was thrilled. This might open a window for Iranian protesters to come out into the streets again. Our organization doesn’t want war. It wants change by the Iranian people,” — Nasser Sharif, president of the California Society for Democracy in Iran, told Reuters in an interview. (NYT, Jan. 8, 2020)
“[Turkey] has been destabilizing the region through violence and supporting terror organizations. Erdogan has turned Turkey into a safe haven for Hamas terrorists and a financial center for funneling money to subsidize terror attacks. Erdogan’s Turkey shows no moral or human restraint toward the Kurdish people. Erdogan has turned Turkey into a regional hub for terror,” — Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon told the UN Security Council’s monthly Middle East meeting. Despite officially maintaining diplomatic ties, Israel’s military has added the Republic of Turkey to its list of threats in an annual assessment for the coming year, in light of the country’s growing aggressiveness in the region. This is the first time Israeli Military Intelligence put them on the list. (Times of Israel, Jan. 14, 2020)
“Let us take a moment to reflect on the remarkable connection between the latest Monsey incident and Hanukkah. For the miracles, for the deliverance, for the strength, for the salvation and for the battles – we thank God for all of these, including the battles. We thank God for Mattathias and his sons who bravely demonstrated that Jews do not believe in passively accepting the efforts of those who seek to destroy us. Jews do not live by the maxim to turn the other cheek. Jews, even those for whom the temple as a dwelling place for God on this earth is the ideal, recognized the need not to rely solely on the Almighty but to put forth all of our own efforts as well to rid us of evil and to make us worthy of God’s presence in our midst. Hanukkah is the holiday of the Maccabees as much as it is the commemoration of miracles,” – writes Rabbi Benjamin Blech. He was reflecting on the upsurge in antisemitic attacks taking place in the US, particularly the attack in Monsey that took place on Chanukah. (Aish, Dec. 29, 2019)
“Let’s replace it and let’s replace it with the Trump deal. From the American perspective, it’s a flawed deal. President Trump is a great dealmaker by his own account, and by many others,” — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the BBC in reference to the Iranian nuclear accord. The British broadcaster reports that it did not appear that Johnson was suggesting to scrap the 2015 accord, just that he wants to alter the deal in a way that would bring the U.S. back into it. The prime minister said that Iran is “an amazing country” but that its people “are captive” to the regime. (WIN, Jan. 14, 2020)
NEW YORK HANUKKAH MACHETE ATTACK SUSPECT PLEADS NOT GUILTY TO FEDERAL HATE CRIME CHARGES (White Plains) — The man accused of stabbing at least five people in a machete rampage at the home of a Hasidic rabbi during a Hanukkah celebration pleaded not guilty to federal hate crime charges. A federal grand jury indicted Grafton Thomas, 37, late last week with additional counts of hate crimes for the Dec. 28 stabbing of members of the Orthodox Jewish community, bringing the number of federal charges he faces to 10. (Algemeiner, Jan. 13, 2020)
JERSEY KOSHER MARKET SHOOTERS HAD DEVASTATING BOMB, EXPLOSIVE RANGE OF 5 FOOTBALL FIELDS (NJ) — Senior law enforcement officials in New Jersey disclosed that the bomb discovered in the van of the two individuals who carried out an anti-Semitic massacre in Jersey City on Dec. 10 would have caused dozens more deaths had it been detonated. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the local FBI in the state, the bomb found in the van of the two shooters — David Anderson, 47, and Francine Graham, 50 — was powerful enough to explode the length of five football fields, about 500 yards. (WIN, Jan. 14, 2020)
NEW IDF INTEL ASSESSMENT: IRAN COULD HAVE ENOUGH URANIUM FOR NUKE BY SPRING (Jerusalem) — The IDF Military Assessment Directorate report stated that the US assassination of Iranian Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani would have a deterrent effect, though the situation still required close monitoring. Despite Soleimani’s death, however, without intervention, Iran could succeed in enriching enough uranium for one nuclear weapon by spring. But it will take another two years to be weaponized sufficiently to be placed in a warhead. The report nevertheless theorized that Iran did not actually want to build a nuclear weapon, but rather to obtain better “cards” for negotiations with world powers, within the framework of its primary goal — spreading the “Islamic Revolution.” (Algemeiner, Jan. 14, 2020)
SYRIAN OFFICIAL GAVE US INTEL ON SOLEIMANI WHEREABOUTS – REPORT (Washington) — A senior Western intelligence source told the London-based paper The Independent Arabic that a senior Syrian official gave American intelligence information on Qasem Soleimani’s movements in Syria, provided that the assassination would not be carried out on Syrian soil. The source, who was aware of the incident, added that the official had leaked accurate and important information to US intelligence on Soleimani’s movements in Syria, and even informed them of the date of travel and the information regarding his civilian aircraft and escort details. (Jerusalem Post, Jan. 14, 2020)
AVOIDING DIRECTLY CRITICIZING TRUMP, TRUDEAU BLAMES TENSIONS FOR PLANE DISASTER (Ottawa) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the victims of the Ukrainian jetliner shot down by a missile that killed 176 people including 57 Canadians would be alive right now if tensions had not escalated in the region. Trudeau has been careful to avoid blaming U.S. President Donald Trump for the deaths of the passengers after Trump ordered the killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, Iran’s top general, in a U.S. airstrike in Baghdad. (WIN, Jan. 14, 2020)
JEWISH, IRANIAN GROUPS DEMAND CANADA LIST IRAN MILITARY FORCE AS TERRORIST GROUP (Ottawa) — Leaders from Canada’s Iranian and Jewish communities have given the federal government 30 days’ notice to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in its entirety as a terrorist organization, B’nai Brith Canada, a senior human rights advocacy organization, said in a press release. At a news conference in Ottawa Monday, leaders from the Council of Iranian Canadians, the Justice 88 Campaign and B’nai Brith Canada urged the government to implement a motion previously passed by the House of Commons in June, 2018, the organization reported. (WIN, Jan. 14, 2020)
EUROPEAN COUNTRIES TRIGGER DISPUTE MECHANISM IN IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL (EU) — European countries triggered a dispute mechanism in their nuclear deal with Iran, a move that could lead to the return of United Nations sanctions on Tehran. Britain, France and Germany said that they had been “left with no choice” but to make the move. Iran announced Jan. 5, after the U.S. killing of Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, that it would no longer be bound by limitations on its nuclear energy program. (Washington Post, Jan. 14, 2020)
NEW MILESTONE: ISRAEL STARTS NATURAL GAS EXPORTS TO EGYPT (Jerusalem) — On Wednesday, Israel began its first day of exporting natural gas to its southern neighbor Egypt as part of a deal signed last month. According to reports, under the terms of the deal, for the next 15 years Israel will supply natural gas to Egypt, which plans to liquefy it and export it to Europe. Israel Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz and Egyptian Petroleum Minister Tarek El-Mollae described the deal as “another significant step on the path to consolidating the [Mediterranean Natural Gas Organization] and its activities,” and the first of its kind between the two countries since the Camp David Accords 1979 peace treaty. (WIN, Jan. 15, 2020)
RIVLIN RECEIVES 2019 DEMOCRACY INDEX: 90% TRUST THE IDF, 51% THE SUPREME COURT (Jerusalem) — President Reuven Rivlin was presented with the 2019 Israel Democracy Index by the president of the Israel Democracy Institute (IDI) Yohanan Plesner. This is the 17th annual report, outlining the Israeli public’s perception of the state of Israel’s democracy, the faith it places in state institutions, and its views regarding the public sector. This year’s report includes two special sections on the IDF and Israel-diaspora relations. (Jewish Press, Jan. 7, 2020)
ISRAEL APPROVES MASSIVE CONSTRUCTION IN BINYAMIN REGION (West Bank) — The Supreme Planning Council of the IDF’s Civil Administration in Judea and Samaria approved several construction projects in the Binyamin region, including the expansion of the Israeli community Mitzpe Dani, as part of the neighborhood’s legal finalization process. 1,283 housing units and three outline plans were approved by a committee convened by the Civil Administration’s Planning Division. (Jewish Press, Jan. 7, 2020)
HAMAS CREATES ALTERNATE US HISTORY, CLAIMS AMERICAN INDIANS WERE MUSLIM (Gaza) — Sheikh Salem Salameh, a Hamas-affiliated legislator and the deputy head of the Palestine Islamic Scholars Association created his alternative version of US history last week while appearing on Arab television, saying that the wars between the Americans and the indigenous population at the early years of the United States were a result of the latter being Muslim. (Israel Hayom, Jan. 12, 2020)
NEXT GENERATION VERSION OF IRON DOME MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEM SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETES SERIES OF TESTS (Jerusalem) — Iron Dome is part of a multi-layered defense program, concentrating on the interception of short-range rockets and missiles. It has proven enormously successful against rocket fire from the Gaza Strip. The improved version of the aerial defense system intercepted a series of projectiles in a variety of scenarios. The tests were conducted by the Israel Defense Forces and Ministry of Defense’s Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure. (Algemeiner, Jan. 12, 2020)
‘JEOPARDY!’ IGNITES FUROR AFTER WADING INTO ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT DURING FRIDAY NIGHT SHOW (Los Angeles) — During the episode’s first round, in the category “Where’s that church?” one of the clues was: “Built in the 300s A.D., the Church of the Nativity.” Contestant Katie Needle buzzed in with the answer “What is Palestine?” but her answer was rejected by host Alex Trebek. When fellow contestant Jack McGuire buzzed in with the reply “What is Israel?” $200 was added to his score. The Church of the Nativity, in which Christians believe Jesus was born, is located in Bethlehem, just south of Jerusalem in the West Bank. Israel captured the city during the 1967 Six-Day War and later ceded administrative control to the Palestinian Authority in 1995. (Algemeiner, Jan. 11, 2020)
TOP UK JEWISH GROUP ISSUES ‘TEN PLEDGES’ LABOUR PARTY MUST TAKE TO REGAIN TRUST OF BRITISH JEWS (London) — Britain’s leading Jewish group, the Board of Deputies of British Jews, announced that it was issuing “Ten Pledges” the UK Labour party must take if it is to regain the trust of the country’s Jewish community. Labour, resoundingly defeated in the December 2019 general election, has been wracked by antisemitism scandals since 2015, when the party’s far-left took control of the party. (Algemeiner, Jan. 12, 2020)
GERMAN POLICE BUST ISLAMIST CELL SUSPECTED OF PLANNING BERLIN SYNAGOGUE ATTACK (Berlin) — German police busted a suspected Islamist terror cell that was scouting locations — including a Berlin synagogue — for a potential attack. According to German news magazine Spiegel, the suspects were found to be in possession of videos showing the synagogue, leading authorities to believe they were plotting to target the building. (Algemeiner, Jan. 14, 2020)
GERMAN POLICE BUST ISLAMIST CELL SUSPECTED OF PLANNING BERLIN SYNAGOGUE ATTACK (Berlin) — German police busted a suspected Islamist terror cell that was scouting locations — including a Berlin synagogue — for a potential attack. According to German news magazine Spiegel, the suspects were found to be in possession of videos showing the synagogue, leading authorities to believe they were plotting to target the building. (Algemeiner, Jan. 14, 2020)
TOP ISRAELI ARMS CONTROL RESEARCHER EMILY LANDAU DIES AT 59 (Jerusalem) — Emily Landau, a top Israeli expert on arms control and nuclear proliferation, died of a long illness at the age of 59 late Monday night, associates said. A well-regarded national security analyst and commentator, Landau worked at Tel Aviv’s esteemed Institute for National Security Studies think tank as a senior research fellow and the head of its Arms Control and Regional Security Program. Landau was a staunch critic of the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, regularly and readily arguing that the agreement was far too lax and failed to adequately curb Tehran’s atomic ambitions. (Times of Israel, Jan. 7, 2020)
Analysts: Cooperation with the US Aside, Israel is Not Iran’s Primary Concern: Charles Bybelezer, Medialine, Jan. 15, 2020 — Irrespective of whether Israel verified US intelligence on the whereabouts of Iran’s former Quds Force commander prior to his assassination, the Jewish state is presently not the primary consideration driving the formulation of policy in the Islamic Republic. [Charles Bybelezer is a CIJR Fellow]
Social Media Video Shows Iranian University Students Refusing to Trample American, Israeli Flags: Benjamin Kerstein, Algemeiner, Jan. 12, 2020 — Video emerged on Sunday of students at Beheshti University of Tehran refusing to trample on American and Israeli flags as mass protests over the weekend threatened the stability of the ruling Iranian regime.
New Video Shows Two Iranian Missiles Hit Ukrainian Plane: Malachy Browne, Evan Hill, Logan Mitchell, and Barbara Marcolini, NYT, Jan. 14, 2020 — The New York Times has verified security camera footage on Tuesday that shows, for the first time, that two missiles hit Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 on Jan. 8. The missiles were launched from an Iranian military site around eight miles from the plane.
WATCH: Jewish Americans are Finally Leaving the Democratic Party: Cantor Sangee Goldenholz, Founding Member #Jexit, Janet David Facebook, June 2019.
