Tag Archives: Israel

Minority of Americans Believe The President Strongly Supports Israel

A new survey shows that a majority of Americans believe the President of the United States should be a “strong supporter” of the nation of Israel, but only a minority believe the current President is a supporter.

The poll by Quinnipiac University said that 2 in 3 Americans believe that the President should be strongly supportive of Israel.  Only 20 percent said that the President should not be a supporter of the country.

Only 48% believe that President Obama is a strong supporter, although that is up from 42% from the poll taken in 2010.  The poll of 1,353 eligible voters ran from April 16th to the 21st.

The poll showed that younger demographics were less likely to believe the President should be a supporter of Israel.  Those over 55 had a 77% response rate to support for Israel to only 57% of those 18-34.

The political parties also showed a difference, with 87% of Republicans believing the President should be a strong supporter while only 56% of Democrats shared that view.

The poll also queried the voters about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.  The PM had a 38% favorable rating, 22% unfavorable and the remaining 37% said they did not know enough about him to make an opinion.  He was supported by 68% of Republicans in the poll and only 14% of Democrats.

The poll also showed that 62% do not believe the currently proposed deal with Iran over nuclear weapons would stop them from eventually developing a nuclear bomb.

Writing On Pottery Corroborates Jeremiah

A group of archaeologists have reported the discovery of writing on pottery shards which confirm the Biblical writings in Jeremiah.

The writing was found on pottery dating back to the First Temple Era.  The language used is Paelo-Hebrew, the language of ancient Israel.  The items in the largest collection of the First Temple era pottery dates back to 8 B.C.

“Among the personal names are those of the priestly families Pashur and Meremoth, both mentioned in the Bible. (Jeremiah 20:1; Ezra 8:33) Some of the letters were addressed to the commander of the citadel of Arad, Eliashiv ben Ashiyahu, and deal with the distribution of bread (flour), wine and oil to the soldiers serving in the fortresses of the Negev,” the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained. “Also, in one of the letters, the ‘house of YHWH’ is mentioned.”

“Scholars suggest that the King of Arad mentioned in the Bible was in fact the ruler of the Kingdom of Arad, ‘the Negev of Arad’ (Judges 1:16), whose capital was another city,” it adds.

The items were first discovered in 2000 and studies of the items are finding new writings and materials dating the items to Biblical times.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz published a report last week saying the scholars had found the Jeremiah communications.

“Scholars have taken this as a confirmation of the biblical narrative of Jeremiah, which recounts that Azekah and Lachish were the last fortresses of Judah to fall before Jerusalem was besieged and destroyed by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II,” the publication explains.

The Scripture referenced is Jeremiah 34:7, which reads, “When the king of Babylon’s army fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah: for these defensed cities remained of the cities of Judah.”

The scientists who continue the study of the items are based at Tel Aviv University.

Netanyahu Says World Hasn’t Learned Lesson

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told those attending the Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony that the world has not learned the lessons of the Holocaust.

Netanyahu used the current situation with Iran and nuclear negotiations as an example  of the world not learning lessons regarding appeasement of tyrannical regimes.

“Appeasing tyrannical regimes will only increase their aggression and is an approach that is liable to drag the world into larger wars,” he said.  “The bad deal with Iran signals that the lessons of the Holocaust have not been learned.”

The prime minister continued to say that even if the rest of the world bows down before Iran, Israel will stand alone.

“Even if we are forced to stand alone against Iran we will not fear. In every circumstance we will preserve our right and our ability to defend ourselves,” he added.

Netanyahu said that the world needs to protect the values of freedom and tolerance to ensure that humanity can be free.

Hamas Begins Using Heavy Machinery To Build Tunnels

Hamas is using heavy equipment and engineering equipment to quickly build a system of attack tunnels into Israel according to sources of the Times of Israel.

The terrorists are using small bulldozers that can be used to negotiate tight spaces.  Larger tractors are being used on the Israeli side of the tunnel.

The tunnels are being reinforced with wood because it’s difficult for Hamas to obtain all the concrete they need to build their planned tunnel network.  The terrorists routinely redirect shipments of concrete meant for rebuilding houses to tunnel construction.

Hamas is also working on a rocket system that would produce short-range missiles quickly because those are the missiles least likely to be shot down by Israel’s “Iron Dome” defense system.

Israeli security forces have said they are aware of the tunnel construction but that when they investigated the tunnels ended just before entering Israeli territory.

Biblical Expert: Claims Of Jesus’ Burial Place Baseless

A Biblical scholar says that the recent claims of an Israeli activist that Jesus’ burial place was discovered in 1980 is “sensationalist” and baseless.

“I have been to the Talpiot Tomb and interviewed one of the archaeologists who excavated it in 1980. There is no evidence that Jesus or his family members were buried there, certainly not his supposed wife and son. Those behind this latest announcement traffic in sensationalism, not archaeology,” Scott Stripling, the chair of the Humanities and Foreign Language Department at Wharton County Junior College, and adjunct professor at Belhaven University (biblical archaeology and English) and The Bible Seminary (church history), told The Christian Post in a statement on Wednesday.

Several western media outlets have been promoting the claims of Aryeh Shimron who says that the evidence “could not be stronger” that Jesus was buried in that tomb, thus proving Christianity to be false.  Shimron has been working with television producer Simcha Jacobovici to produce shows claiming Christianity is false.

Stripling said the alleged “discoveries” are actually irrelevant because no one has disputed the tombs that were discovered date to near the first century A.D.

“The argument set forth by producer Simcha Jacobovici that the names of Jesus’ family, including his supposed wife, were found on the 10, or in the Shimron/Jacobovici view 11, ossuaries does not hold up under scrutiny,” Stripling said.

“First, some of the names are open to interpretation. Second, virtually every family in the first century had members with the names Jesus, Joseph, James, and Mary. There is abundant evidence which supports the Church of the Holy Sepulchure as the actual site of the culmination of the Passion of Jesus.”

Palestinian Stabs 2 Israeli Soldiers in West Bank

A Palestinian terrorist attacked two Israeli soldiers with a knife on Wednesday, stabbing two before he was killed by one of the wounded soldiers.

One of the soldiers is in critical condition after being wounded in the neck.  Both wounded soldiers remain hospitalized in Jerusalem.

The attack happened 30 miles north of Jerusalem in the town of Shilo.  The attacker came from the nearby Palestinian town of Sinjil.

While Israel endured a series of attacks last year during the Passover holiday season last year, this attack highlighted the overall lack of attacks this year.

Israeli leaders praised the wounded soldier who shot and killed the attacker for his bravery and quick response.

“This should be the fate of anyone who harms innocent Jews,” Cabinet Minister Naftali Bennett told reporters. “This is how such a serious incident must end.”

Hackers Strike Israeli Websites

Anti-Semitic hackers attacked Israeli websites Tuesday after an international hacking collective threatened to launch an “electronic Holocaust.”

The hacking campaign is timed to strike the country during Israel’s annual “Holocaust Remembrance Day.”

The hackers struck the websites of Israeli musicians and non-profit groups according to the Israeli Computer Emergency Response Team.  The hackers replaced the sites with photos of Muslim holy sites and photos of ISIS terrorists holding their militant flag.

“We are always here to punish you! Because we are the voice of Palestine and we will not remain silent!” the message read.

The cyber terrorists had vowed to take down Israeli government sites, banks and other public institutions.  However, their attempts to breach advances security measures apparently failed as no major disruptions were reported by any major organization.

Israel’s national cyber bureau admitted they boosted defenses before the beginning of the announced attack.

French Fact Sheet On Iranian Deal Shows Iran Could Get Bomb

A French government fact sheet on the Iranian nuclear deal, not meant for public view but leaked to the Times of Israel, shows that Iran could be able to quickly generate material needed for a nuclear bomb.

The deal allows Iran use of the IR-2 and IR-4 centrifuges, which can rapidly create highly enriched uranium that is needed for nuclear weapons.

In addition, the deal allows Iran to continue their research and development on the IR-4, IR-5, IR-6 and IR-8 centrifuges.  The IR-8 centrifuge could enrich uranium at 20 times the speed of the current IR-1 centrifuges.  The document released by American officials did not specify this fact.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been assailed by American officials after he said the deal was “very bad” for Israel and paves the way for Iran to create a nuclear bomb.  The French document appears to back up the claims of Netanyahu that were criticized by American officials.

This is the second time documents have conflicted with the American “fact sheets” on the Iranian deal.

Israeli analysts noticed differences between the American and Iranian fact sheets just days after the announced deal.  Ehud Ya’ari of Israel’s Channel 2 News noticed that while the U.S. says restrictions on enrichment last 15 years, Iranians say it’s only 10.  The Iranians also said that they can continue R&D on centrifuges, which the French document confirms, and the American documents say is not permitted.

Israeli Officials Downplay Obama Statements Of Support

Israeli officials responded to an interview by President Obama claiming he supports Israel by saying his platitudes are irrelevant if Iran gets a nuclear weapon.

Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz told Israel’s Channel 2 that while President Obama’s claim it would be a “fundamental failure” of his presidency if Israel is weakened is “pleasant-sounding”, “no assistance and no backing will help if Iran acquires nuclear weapons.”

Steinitz, a colleague of Netanyahu, released a government fact sheet outlining 10 differences in the deal between Israel and American views.  Among the questions were what would happen to Iran’s stockpiled enriched uranium and why the lifting of sanctions was not connected to changes in Iranian behavior.

The document concludes “the alternative to this framework is a better deal, one that will significantly dismantle Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, bring about a cessation of its aggression in the region and terrorist activities around the world, as well as end its efforts to destroy Israel. The framework deal does not block Iran’s path to the bomb. By removing the sanctions and lifting the main restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program in about a decade, this framework paves Iran’s path to a bomb. The result will be a dramatic increase in the risks of nuclear proliferation and an increase in the chances of a terrible war.”

U.S. officials dismissed the Israeli fact sheet and statements regarding the deal.  Obama advisor Ben Rhodes said the deal “is the best deal that can emerge from these negotiations” and refused to even consider adding the clause the Iran affirms Israel’s right to exist.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu told CNN that while he respects the president, the deal is a threat to the Israeli people.

“I trust the president is doing what he thinks is good for the United States. But I think we can have a legitimate difference of opinion on this,” Netanyahu said.

President Obama admitted Tuesday to NPR, without acknowledging Israeli’s claims from the beginning about this fact, that at the end of the deal Iran would have an “almost zero” breakout time to a nuclear bomb.

President Obama: Weakened Israel Would Be Failure For Presidency

President Obama gave an interview to the New York Times that was published Sunday saying that he would consider it a failure if the nation of Israel was more vulnerable because of his actions as president.

“Look, Israel is a robust, rowdy democracy. … We share so much. We share blood, family. … And part of what has always made the U.S.-Israeli relationship so special is that it has transcended party, and I think that has to be preserved,” the President told the Times’ Thomas Friedman.  “There has to be the ability for me to disagree with a policy on settlements, for example, without being viewed as … opposing Israel. There has to be a way for Prime Minister Netanyahu to disagree with me on policy without being viewed as anti-Democrat, and I think the right way to do it is to recognize that as many commonalities as we have, there are going to be strategic differences. And I think that it is important for each side to respect the debate that takes place in the other country and not try to work just with one side. … But this has been as hard as anything I do because of the deep affinities that I feel for the Israeli people and for the Jewish people. It’s been a hard period.”

The President even said he took things personally when people would comment he and his administration were trying to undermine Israel.

“It has been personally difficult for me to hear … expressions that somehow … this administration has not done everything it could to look out for Israel’s interest — and the suggestion that when we have very serious policy differences, that that’s not in the context of a deep and abiding friendship and concern and understanding of the threats that the Jewish people have faced historically and continue to face,” the President said.

The agreement has been met with scathing criticism from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who says the deal paves the way for Iran to have a nuclear bomb.  Netanyahu also alluded to the idea that the deal was not done with Israel’s interested in mind.

President Obama acknowledged that Netanyahu and the Israeli people “have every right to be concerned about Iran. This is a regime that at the highest levels has expressed the desire to destroy Israel, that has denied the Holocaust, that has expressed venomous anti-Semitic ideas and is a big country with a big population and has a sophisticated military. So Israel is right to be concerned about Iran, and they should be absolutely concerned that Iran doesn’t get a nuclear weapon.”

The President continued to say the United States’ interest in the region is not oil but rather that all nations in the area live together in peace.