By JONATHAN S. TOBIN — COMMENTARY — Iran’s official denial of reports of a major explosion at its underground nuclear facility in Fordow is heartening for those who are hoping that the rumors about a setback for the Islamist regime are true. The optimistic scenario would be based on the notion that if Iran is…
By TIMES OF ISRAEL— Israel’s Home Front Defense Minister Avi Dichter on Sunday welcomed a report that Iran’s Fordo nuclear facility had been rocked by a huge explosion. The report was published Friday on the website wnd.com, under the sensational headline: “Sabotage! Key Iranian nuclear facility hit?” It claimed that a blast deep within Fordo…
By SAM SOKOL, JPOST— Apostolate Renê Terra Nova, the head of the International Restoration Ministries in Manaus, Brazil, has brought tens of thousands of Christians to Israel over the past 10 years and says that his followers “leave this country in love and become ambassadors of Israel.” Terra Nova, who is the leader of one…
By P. DAVID HORNIK, FRONTPAGEMAG— Except for rockets from Gaza—which, meanwhile, have stopped since Israel’s Operation Pillar of Defense in November—you haven’t been hearing much about Palestinian terrorism. But it’s not for lack of trying. Israel’s Shin Bet (domestic security agency) has released its figures for 2012. It says it thwarted 100 “serious” terror attacks…
Torah: Exodus 18:1–20:23, “Yitro” (Jethro …) Haftorah: Isaiah: 6:1–7:6; 9:5-6 Hebrews: 12:18–24 Gospel: Matthew 8:5–20, “Ani avo vaarapeh” (I will come and heal …)
By BOAZ BISMUTH, ISRAEL HAYOM— You can’t say this came as a surprise. From the moment that the uprising in Syria started in Daraa in mid-March 2011, Israel was concerned. We knew that the situation in Syria was difficult and complex. There are no angels on either side of the conflict there. We also knew…
By EARL COX, JPOST— Now that Barack Obama has been re-elected and sworn in to serve another term as President of the United States, this question is appropriate. Is Mr. Obama good for Israel? According to election exit polls, about 75 percent of American Jews voted for President Obama. They seem to believe that he…
By ISI LEIBLER, JPOST— The unexpected election results have created daunting challenges for Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. Many Israelis dislike Netanyahu. He has personality deficiencies and, like every Israeli leader since David Ben-Gurion, has made major mistakes. But to his credit, over the past four years he has moved Likud to the center and achieved…
By HOWARD LAFRANCHI, JWREVIEW— Elections can sometimes lead to new beginnings and bold initiatives, but few Middle East experts expect a rosy hue to suddenly color US-Israel relations after Tuesday’s national elections in Israel. Two key reasons explain why recent tensions in relations are likely to continue, analysts say: differences over the approach required to…
