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| Week ending Shabbat, November 25, 2006 |
4 Kislev, 5767 |
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Lieberman: Kill Hamas Leadership, Deal With Jordan
The newest government minister, Yisrael Beiteinu Party Chairman Avigdor Lieberman has called for discarding the US-backed Road Map plan, ignoring Mahmoud Abbas and killing the Hamas leadership. As he was speaking with Israel Radio last weekend, Lieberman outlined his vision for the steps Israel must take. He asserted that "Palestinian" Authority (PA) Arabs are not interested in setting up a state, but in destroying Israel "in the service of international Jihad." Lieberman said that to ensure its survival, Israel must reject all past agreements and current interim proposals, from the failed Oslo Accords to the unimplemented US Road Map to Peace. "Continued commitment to Oslo and to the Road Map will lead us to another round of conflict - a much bloodier round," Lieberman said. "And in the end we will be in an even worse dead-end position that threatens our very existence in the future."
Lieberman dismissed efforts to empower Fatah chief and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), whose group was trounced by the Islamist Hamas in the PA's parliamentary elections. The newly appointed Minister of Strategic Threats said Israel should instead develop closer coordination with the Hashemite rulers of Jordan regarding administrating the Arab areas of Judea and Samaria. "We have always targeted the wrong places and taken care not to speak with the right people. We are seeking a reliable partner and that only exists in Jordan right now. We have to coordinate with Jordan and say that Abbas is simply not relevant. We must ignore him. He has no authority and no power." The Hashemite regime in Jordan is increasingly nervous that it will be overthrown by Islamist groups such as Hamas, which enjoy massive support among Jordan's populace, a majority of whom consider themselves "Palestinian." Lieberman flat-out called for the liquidation of the entire leadership of Hamas. "All the leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad walk around freely, inciting violence. They have got to disappear - to be send to paradise, all of them. There can't be any compromise." "There is no point in targeting refugee camps or Beit Hanoun," he added. "Those people, who live on ten shekels a day, have nothing to lose. When they are killed, they volunteer gladly. We have to focus on those who have something to lose - the leaders of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad." Lieberman said he hopes his entry into the government can finally signal an end to the repetition of the mistakes of Oslo. "We must learn our lessons from Oslo, from leaving Gaza, from what happened following the disengagement," he concluded. "Without those lessons, moving on is impossible."
Left-wing Meretz Party Chairman Yossi Beilin demanded that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert fire Lieberman for his statements. "If [Olmert] doesn't do so," Beilin said, "Lieberman's statement become the statements of the entire government."
Plot to bomb EL AL airliner foiled in Germany
German authorities arrested six terror suspects all of Arab nationalities, for allegedly attempting to place an explosive charge on an aircraft leaving Frankfurt International Airport. According to investigators, one of the planes targeted was an Israeli EL AL airliner on its way to Tel Aviv. The German newspaper Die Walt has revealed the arrest of the six suspects who allegedly planned the bombing. According to a statement made by the prosecution, some of the suspects approached an employee of the airport with access to secure areas, probably this summer during the World Cup tournament, and asked for his help to place a bag with explosives on an airliner in return for a payment of some kind. Prosecutors said that the deal did not go through because the parties could not agree on a payment for the "service." The six are likely to face indictments for membership in a terrorist organization or support of a terror group. They were taken in for questioning last weekend but for reasons only known to the German prosecutors, five of them were released a day later. The sixth suspect remained in custody because of his involvement in another crime. According to the prosecutors there are other suspects allegedly involved in the plot. According to the report, German security forces conducted searches in nine apartments in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse in southwestern Germany. Security sources in Israel have confirmed that over the past months, there were several pinpointed warnings on attempts by terror organizations to conduct terror attacks against EL AL planes in Europe in general and in Germany specifically. In one case, pinpointed information brought to an increase of security on one specific EL AL flight from Germany this summer.
Manasseh Comes Home
Ben-Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv was the setting for an emotional homecoming Tuesday morning, when the first planeload of 51 Bnei Menashe (descendants [literally 'sons'] of Manasseh) immigrants arrived on an El Al flight from Bombay. The Jewish Agency, headed by Ze'ev Bielski, will oversee their arrival in the Jewish state, as well as various aspects of their absorption in the country. The newcomers are moving into absorption centers in the northern Israeli towns of Karmiel and Upper Nazareth. Their ages range from a two-week-old infant to an 84-year-old grandmother.
Nefesh b'Nefesh Push for Mega-Aliyah
The Nefesh b'Nefesh Aliyah assistance organization is holding three "mega-events" in the coming weeks aimed at educating the larger Jewish public about immigration to Israel. The half-day programs are part of a series of specially tailored programs, events, and individual counseling sessions taking place throughout the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom this winter. The programming is designed for those already actively planning their immigration, as well as those merely contemplating Aliyah. Pre- and Post-Aliyah guidance and strategies will be discussed as well as services and benefits offered by
Nefesh b'Nefesh. The events will include seminars, videos and other presentations focusing on specific issues such as children, families, education and networking in Israel.
There will also be individual sessions run by a team of experts who will fly in from Israel to offer first-hand professional advice to participants. "By enabling participants to tailor sessions according to their own specific interests, Nefesh b'Nefesh aims to bring more relevant and helpful information on Aliyah to local communities," a Nefesh b'Nefesh statement said. The personally tailored sessions will include: Employment, Healthcare, Community options, The Aliyah process, the Education system, Retirement, Taxes and Aliyah and others.
The Toronto mega-event will take place on Thursday, November 30, at the Novotel North York Hotel, 3 Park Home Avenue, Toronto from 7:00 - 10:30 p.m.
The New Jersey MEGA will take place on Sunday, December 3, at the Crowne Plaza Englewood, 401 South Van Brunt Street, Englewood, NJ from 10:15 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
The New York MEGA will be held on the same day at the Holiday Inn at JFK Airport, 144-02 135th Ave. Jamaica, NY from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m.
Nefesh b'Nefesh ran information events in 2005 attended by more than 12,000 participants. Now working together with the Jewish Agency, they have successfully brought close to 10,000 new Olim (immigrants) to Israel since 2002.
Sigd, Holiday of Return and Longing
Each year, on the 29th day of the Hebrew month of Cheshvan, thousands of Ethiopian Jews gather overlooking the Temple Mount to observe an ancient holiday of yearning for Zion and the Torah. It is a holiday called Sigd, which means prostration in Amharic and shares its root with the word for temple. The ceremony resembles the one held for the renewal of the Divine covenant by Ezra the Scribe during the Second Commonwealth, described in the Book of Nehemiah. Before immigrating to Israel, the Beta Israel ('House of Israel') or Falashas (meaning 'strangers,' a term used by their non-Jewish neighbors in Africa) community would observe Sigd each year on mountaintops outside their villages. The Kessim, the community's rabbis and priests, would ascend the mountain, which was meant to represent Mount Sinai. In that place, the double message of renewal of the Divine covenant and yearning for the return to Zion was expressed. During the celebration members of the community would fast, and read from the Orit (i.e., oraita, "Torah" in Aramaic), expressing their longing to return to Jerusalem and the Holy Temple. After the Kessim descended from the mountain, joyous celebrations would take place to welcome and accept the Torah anew.
After they arrived in Israel the question of how to observe the holiday arose. On the one hand, the dream of return had been fulfilled. On the other hand, the Temple is still missing and redemption has not yet arrived. In addition, the challenge of rejoining the Jewish people, with the evolution of the oral law in their absence, added extra significance to the Sigd tradition of annually renewing the commitment to the Torah as well. Now, Ethiopian Jews from all over Israel gather at Jerusalem's Armon HaNetziv Promenade, where a stage is erected and Kessim read passages and prayers in Ge'ez, the language reserved for scripture. Native-born Israelis and Amharic-speaking grandparents come together to observe the holiday. Some remember Sigd back in Ethiopia and others recount the event as though they were there, having been told of it by their parents and grandparents.
Tour Israel for Hanukkah
It's still not too late to join us as we explore Israel from a genuine Biblical Zionists perspective. Meet the people who are continuing the Biblical narrative in the Land today. See for yourself how ancient prophesies are being fulfilled. Discover how you too can participate in the ongoing process of Biblical Redemption. Join us for an opportunity of a lifetime, to see the real Israel from the viewpoint of those who are living the Bible today. The experience will change your life. The tour has been coordinated and will be guided by Associate Pastor Jon Klein [pictured left].
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