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The forum of emerging economies, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS), is very much in the news. There is much global interest in the economic developments in this group, especially as it relates to creating an alternative economic order which includes a new reserve currency to replace the US dollar

A flurry of diplomatic visits to Moscow and Beijing from Western leaders and the Global South suggest they aren’t quite alone

South Africa took over as the chair of BRICS on Jan. 1, 2023, during a challenging economic period, both domestically and globally. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the West’s sanctions have worsened the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on economies globally, leading to soaring energy and food prices, which have had a disproportionate effect on the global South

The main subject would-be jurors are being asked about is their position on capital punishment.

By JNS

In an 11-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Robert Colville ruled that the defendant’s legal team in the Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha Synagogue shooting trial “fails entirely” to show that the government arbitrarily pursued the death penalty.

Attorneys for Robert Bowers, the defendant who is accused of carrying out the most lethal antisemitic attack in U.S. history, argued that the prosecution was acting arbitrarily by pursuing the death penalty against Bowers but not against those accused of other mass shootings.

So far, the court has interviewed 108 potential jurors since April 24 in a process expected to last weeks. So far, 36 have been chosen as eligible to serve. One of the primary questions for the jurors has been their views on the death penalty.

Reportedly, multiple would-be jurors were excluded for questioning whether capital punishment was moral, and another, who has anti-Jewish beliefs and mocked the synagogue shooting in online forums, was also dismissed.

The post Death penalty still on table for Tree of Life shooter, judge rules appeared first on World Israel News.

Shireen Abu Akleh was killed in May 2022 during an exchange of fire between the IDF and terrorists in Jenin. The report confirms earlier findings, says State Department spokesman.

By JNS

The U.S. Security Coordinator has submitted a new report on the killing of an Al Jazeera journalist in Jenin in May 2022, which is said to confirm the USSC’s previous finding that her death was unintentional.

Shireen Abu Akleh was killed during an exchange of fire between Israeli forces and Palestinian gunmen in Jenin.

“My understanding is that the U.S. Security Coordinator has not changed the same conclusion that was released last summer… when we put out a statement about this, which is that [Israel Defense Forces] gunfire was likely the reason [for her death]—unintentionally. But, again, I don’t have any additional updates or assessments to offer on this report,” said U.S. State Department spokesman Vedant Patel in a briefing on Wednesday.

“Our findings, that are consistent with the U.S. Security Coordinator’s, is that this was unintentional and due to incredibly tragic circumstances,” he added.

An IDF investigation into the incident found that, “it is not possible to unequivocally determine the source of the gunfire which hit Ms. Abu Akleh. However, there is a high possibility that Ms. Abu Akleh was accidentally hit by IDF gunfire that was fired toward suspects identified as armed Palestinian gunmen, during an exchange of fire in which life-[threatening], widespread and indiscriminate [fire was directed] toward IDF soldiers.”

The IDF emphasized that at no point was Israeli fire directed at anyone other than the terrorists shooting at Israeli forces, some of whom fired “from the area in which Ms. Shireen Abu Akleh was present.”

Forensic analysis of the bullet the Palestinian Authority claims killed Abu Akleh yielded inconclusive results. The testing was conducted in a forensic laboratory in Israel under the supervision of the U.S. Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority Lt. Gen. Michael Fenzel.

“The physical condition of the bullet does not allow for a conclusive determination regarding the source of fire that led to the death of the journalist,” the IDF said in a statement at the time.

The U.S. State Department in its own statement concurred that the bullet was too badly damaged to yield conclusive results.

“After an extremely detailed forensic analysis, independent, third-party examiners, as part of a process overseen by the U.S. Security Coordinator, could not reach a definitive conclusion regarding the origin of the bullet that killed Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh,” said the statement.

“The USSC found no reason to believe that this was intentional,” the statement continued, “but rather [that it was] the result of tragic circumstances during an IDF-led military operation against factions of Palestinian Islamic Jihad on May 11, 2022, in Jenin, which followed a series of terrorist attacks in Israel.”

Nevertheless, news surfaced in November that the Federal Bureau of Investigation had launched an investigation into the incident.

Then-Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz made clear that Jerusalem would not cooperate with the FBI’s probe or any external investigation.

“The U.S. Justice Ministry’s decision to investigate the unfortunate death of Shireen Abu Akleh is a serious mistake,” Gantz said at the time.

The post New US report confirms Al Jazeera journalist’s death was an accident appeared first on World Israel News.

In a meeting with the chief of staff, southern regional council heads demanded that the IDF take the initiative against the terrorist heads in the coastal enclave.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

The mini-confrontation between Gazan terrorists and the IDF that began Tuesday and ended early Wednesday after a 104-rocket barrage may just be the prologue to a much wider clash, Channel 13 reported Wednesday evening.

A senior defense official told the news channel, “It’s doubtful whether the State of Israel will succeed in getting through this summer without a broad round of escalation in Gaza.”

The report noted that there are three dates in the next few weeks that Arabs both in Israel and the Palestinian-held territories often mark with violence: May 15, the Georgian date of Israel’s independence, which in Arabic is called the Nakba, or “Catastrophe”; Jerusalem Day, which this year falls on May 18, when the traditional Flag March is held in the Israeli capital to mark its reunification as a result of 1967’s Six Day War; and June 5, the anniversary of the start of that war, which the Arab world commemorates as Naksa (“Setback”) Day.

But IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi went south Wednesday to meet the area’s regional council heads to warn them that this whole period is very volatile. They in turn demanded that the IDF take the initiative instead of allowing the terrorists to set the time and place of their attacks or rocket launches.

“We missed an opportunity now,” they told Halevi, according to Channel 13. “At the end of the day, Hamas and [Palestinian] Islamic Jihad (PIJ) started this round and also said the last word…. It can’t go on like this, we must initiate action against the heads of the terror organizations in the Gaza Strip.”

Hundreds of residents of Sderot, which absorbed most of the damage from the recent 104-rocket barrage, along with neighbors from surrounding villages, gave the same message to the government Wednesday night to go after the terrorists. Calling Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by his nickname, they also yelled in part, “Bibi, wake up, the whole South is burning, we’re not cannon fodder.”

The report added that an IDF spokesman had admitted that Israel already knew Tuesday morning that the terrorists were planning to hit the south with rockets following the death of one of a senior PIJ member in Israeli prison as a result of a hunger strike, but had done nothing to prevent it.

The air force struck over a dozen military targets in the Gaza Strip after the rocket barrages, which came in spurts, began, and some dozen people were hurt, including a Chinese construction worker, who was seriously wounded and is still hospitalized.

In commenting on the situation, political reporter Zvi Yechezkeli said, “PIJ has learned from this round that it can fire on Israel and Israel won’t react, because it wants to keep things quiet… Islamic Jihad did not intend on starting a long round, it depended on the Israelis to say, ‘Enough,’ and that’s what happened.”

They don’t need an excuse to start up, he continued. “They’ll make up reasons, because at the end, you don’t need a reason to begin a round [of attacks] with a country that just wants to stop the round.”

In the last decade, Israel has made three major incursions into Gaza in what is dubbed “mowing the grass” operations, in that their purpose is not to uproot and destroy Hamas and its terrorist junior partners completely but just restore deterrence that is admittedly only temporary.

The post Hot summer ahead? Gaza operation possible, says defense official appeared first on World Israel News.

Bereaved husband and father who lost his wife and daughters in terror attack last month praises IDF for killing of the terrorists, adds he hoped to ask the terrorists or their families why they murdered his loved ones.

By World Israel News Staff

The bereaved husband and father of three British-Israeli women who were murdered by Arab terrorists last month praised Israeli security forces after they killed the two Hamas terrorists responsible for the murders.

Rabbi Leo Dee, whose wife Lucy and daughters Maia and Rina were murdered in a drive-by shooting attack in the Jordan Valley last month, lauded Israeli security forces in a statement Thursday morning, while tying Tehran to the attack, noting Iran’s support for the Hamas terror organization.

“The kids and I were comforted to hear that the Israeli security forces have eliminated the Iranian-funded terrorists responsible for Lucy, Maia, and Rina’s murders. This has been done in a way that has not endangered the lives of Israeli soldiers, nor innocent Palestinian civilians – in a way that only the Israeli army knows how to do.”

Rabbi Dee added that he had asked officials from the Shin Bet security agency if it would be possible for him to speak with the terrorists’ families to ask them why their relatives committed the murders.

“Furthermore we have asked for the opportunity to speak with the terrorists’ families and ask what good they thought would come out of their actions and to hear their vision for a better world.” Rabbi Dee continued.

In an interview with Reshet Bet, Rabbi Dee added that had the terrorists been captured, he would have sought to ask them personally.

“If the terrorists would have been captured alive, I would have wanted to ask them why they did this. What was their vision for a better world? I asked the Shin Bet if I could speak with their families to ask them that question.”

Three terrorists were killed during a gun battle with Israeli troops in the Palestinian Authority-controlled city of Shechem (Nablus) Thursday morning.

According to a report by The Jerusalem Post, Israeli forces used a suicide drone to bomb the apartment where the terrorists were holed up.

Four other terrorists were reportedly wounded during the battle.

The dead terrorists include  Hassan Katnani and Ma’ad Masri, both members of Hamas who carried out last month’s deadly terror attack. The third terrorist, Ebrahim Hora, actively assisted the Katnani and Masri, the IDF said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu celebrated the killing of the terrorists.

“This morning, we settled accounts with the murderers of Lucy, Maya and Rina Dee, may their memories be blessed,” Netanyahu said.

“Our message to those who harm us, and those who want to harm us, is that whether it takes a day, a week or a month – you can be certain that we will settle accounts with you. It does not matter where you try to hide – we will find you. Whoever attacks us will pay the price.”

“I would like to thank the security agencies and our brave soldiers who worked night and day to settle accounts with the murderers.”

The post Rabbi Leo Dee: ‘I wanted to ask the terrorists why they murdered my wife and daughters’ appeared first on World Israel News.

The EU supports Moldova’s dictatorial policies against the opposition and citizens alike.

Netanyahu reportedly reassures Democrat lawmakers that compromise on judicial reform near, says that most controversial aspects of the legislation – such as the Override Clause – have been dropped.

By Adina Katz, World Israel News

A group of Democratic lawmakers told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that proposed changes to Israel’s judicial system are damaging the left-wing party’s ability to defend Israel to their constituents, according to an Axios report.

In late April, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (NY) and other Democrat leaders met with Netanyahu in Jerusalem. During the visit, Democratic lawmakers reportedly warned the premier that the legislation is impacting Israel’s image in the eyes of American left-wing and liberal voters.

“They told Netanyahu it is very difficult for them to defend Israel under such circumstances, and their message was: help us help you,” a source, who was present at the meeting, told Axios.

“I can confirm that this very message was shared with Netanyahu by the delegation and, in particular, by each of the Jewish members at the table,” one of the Democratic lawmakers who attended the meeting told the outlet.

But the politician stressed that the meeting wasn’t all negative, as the lawmakers shared with Netanyahu an “equally warm sentiment on the occasion of Israel’s 75th anniversary and our unique and enduring friendship.”

Netanyahu reportedly reassured the lawmakers by saying that a compromise regarding the judicial reform is on the horizon, and said that the controversial override clause – which would allow the Knesset to overrule Supreme Court decisions with an absolute majority of 61 MKs – has been dropped from the agenda.

Both Netanyahu and Jeffries’ office decline to comment on the Axios report.

President Joe Biden has been openly critical about potential changes to the legal system, sparking backlash from lawmakers opposed to U.S. meddling in Israeli internal politics.

The Biden administration is reportedly financially supporting and working in collaboration with organizers of the anti-judicial reform protests.

Justice Minister Yariv Levin confirmed that Israel’s Left is working with the current American government, though the Biden administration has repeatedly denied that claim.

The post Dems to Bibi: ‘Difficult’ to defend Israel because of judicial reform appeared first on World Israel News.

United Torah Judaism party slams potential delay to blanket exemptions from military service for ultra-Orthodox men, warns that they will bring down government if legislation stalls.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Housing and Construction Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf, who leads the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party, warned that the government will collapse if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not fulfill his promise to pass legislation granting blanket exemptions from military service to the community.

“The prime minister has received clear information from me: there is an order from the Council of Torah Elders that if the conscription law is not passed before the budget, we will withdraw from the government. As long as there is no other directive [from the Council], this is what will be done,” Goldknopf told Mishpacha Magazine.

Under the current draft laws, ultra-Orthodox Israeli males can defer mandatory army service on a yearly basis if they study in a yeshiva until age 26, at which point they are exempt from the draft.

As part of his coalition agreement with UTJ, Netanyahu pledged to lower the age of the exemptions to age 21, and create a new Basic Law which would ease the bureaucratic process for members of the community to skip military service.

Netanyahu had promised to pass the legislation before the deadline for the state budget to be ratified, which must occur before the end of May, but the premier has walked back that pledge and asked ultra-Orthodox party heads for a delay regarding the matter.

While the Shas party has tacitly accepted the proposal, UTJ has pushed back against the delay.

Last week, Jerusalem Affairs and Jewish Heritage Minister Meir Porush of UTJ slammed Netanyahu during an interview with Kikar HaShabbat.

“If Netanyahu can’t pass the draft law now, he should go home,” he said. “Why did we go to elections? Why did we support the formation of this new government – to hear the same excuses from the Bennett-Lapid era?”

Porush continued blasting Netanyahu, saying that by not fulfilling his promise, the premier “looks ridiculous.” He stressed that UTJ “stands by our demands” outlined in the coalition agreement.

The post Draft exemption for ultra-Orthodox or gov’t collapses: Minister appeared first on World Israel News.