| Week ending Saturday, November 12, 2005 |
10 Cheshvan, 5766 |
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Supreme Court decides Gaza Expellees Must be Paid:
The Israeli Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the government may no longer withhold advance compensation payments to the evacuees of the communities of Gush Katif and northern Samaria. The petition was brought by Attorney Yossi Fuchs of the Land of Israel Legal Forum along with several residents. They had maintained that although their requests for an advance compensation payment had been approved by the relevant committee, the Disengagement Authority suddenly added another condition, which demanded residents sign a form stating they had left their homes within 48 hours of having been ordered to do so. Fuchs expressed to the Court that the extra condition is illegal, since "most of the families owned a home there, and according to Clauses 32-43 of the Evacuation/Compensation Law, their right to compensation is absolute, regardless of when they left the area." Knesset Economics Committee Chairman Amnon Cohen said that people were forced to borrow gray-market money because of the "obtuseness of the Disengagement Authority." "The criteria for receiving compensation must be eased," he said, "and people should not be forced to bring grocery store receipts from years ago or their children's 3rd-grade report cards as proof of how many years they lived there... The government must pay unemployment even to those who are self-employed, since it (the Government of Israel) was the one that closed their businesses."
Thousands Gather Under the Banner:
Thousands of Israelis participated in a "We Won't Forget, We Won't Forgive" rally in Jerusalem. The event was billed as the initiation of the campaign to save Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem. Former spokesman Eran Sternberg called upon youth not to enlist in the Israeli Defense Force "until the army returns to being the Israel Defense Forces," and not the expulsion forces. Addressing the youth, he said, "Smile and go to jail" if an illegal order is given. Former right-wing Knesset Member Elyakim HaEtzni of Kiryat Arba said, "The grandchildren of those who carried out the crime of expulsion will be ashamed of their grandparents. There can be no forgiveness for those who carried it out, or for those who gave the expelling forces black uniforms reminiscent of the Holocaust, or for those who showed the world that a Jewish house can be razed in a few minutes while an Arab house cannot be destroyed at all." He mocked the "love will conquer all" approach taken by part of the nationalist camp during the months leading up to the expulsion, saying it leads to a feeling that the country can simply move on to the next expulsion.
Israel to Continue Targeted Assassinations:
Army Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Dan Halutz told a Knesset committee that the military plans to continue its current program of assassinating top ranking terrorists. "What is called a ‘targeted killing’ was a very, very effective measure in our fight against terror," said parliamentarian Tommy Lapid. Halutz identified that Israel has served a debilitating blow to Islamic Jihad since the group carried out a suicide bombing that killed six Israelis two weeks ago.
Ethiopian Immigration Reinitiated:
Ethiopia and Israel have agreed to the renewal of the immigration of the Falash Mura. Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom issued a statement saying that the immigration of the community, halted completely a few months ago because of domestic problems in Ethiopia, would now be renewed at the rate of 600 people a month. "We have worked, and will continue to work at all levels to end the suffering of those in the camps living in difficult conditions," Shalom said, referring to Falash Mura waiting in compounds for permission to come to Israel. "I hope that by the end of 2007, we can complete the immigration of the entire Falash Mura community."
Multiple Archaeological Finds:
Israeli archaeologists have found what they believe to be a third or fourth century church, which could be the oldest found in Israel. The ruins of the church were found during prison renovations in Megiddo. The Hebrew word "Har" means mountain. "Har Megiddo" translated into the Greek New Testament ends up "Armageddon." The prophecy concerning this location is that the final battle will take place in the valley beside this mountain, and that the Messiah will come and judge the nations, and establish His kingdom on the earth. "This is why it's so important to the Christian world," said chief archaeologist Yotam Tefer. Surely, this is a great discovery, which is a confirmation for all the Christians all over the world. The church contains a well-preserved mosaic with references to Jesus and images of fish, an ancient Christian symbol.
Other archaeologists have discovered a forty-pound rock (shown right) bearing the oldest known example of the Hebrew alphabet. The inscription of the Hebrew alphabet shows it written out in the traditional order. It was found in the wall of a building dating back around 3,000 years (10th century BCE) in Tel Zayit, south of Jerusalem. The identified building was part of a network of structures at the site, which indicates it as an important border town connected to a centralized kingdom.
In Tel es-Safi, which biblically was called Gath, a small ceramic piece of shard was uncovered. Gath was a Philistine city and home to the nine foot-six inch tall giant named Goliath. Two names were written on the piece of shard, one of them resembles the name Goliath. Excavations were conducted under Bar-Ilan University. Archaeologists claim that this piece of shard could be 50 years after the time of David and Goliath. Still, it is the oldest find that identifies Philistine presence in the land of Israel, and again giving evidence to the truth and validity of the scripture.
'Paris'tine:
"And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse ..." Genesis 12:3
(from this week's Torah portion)
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