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A remarkable event occurred at the beginning of the year, to which few gave much attention. The GDP of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) surpassed that of the G7 countries (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States) in terms of purchasing power parity

Bank starts road to redemption with capital markets return

The G7 countries as with fear look at drift of India BRICS aside

Religious Zionism MK says that should compromise negotiations fail, “we will move forward unilaterally” with judicial reform legislation.

By World Israel News Staff

After prioritizing passing the 2023-2024 state budget and focusing on the recent Operation Shield and Arrow clash with Islamic Jihad in Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he is now turning his attention to passing legislation aimed at reforming Israel’s legal system.

Speaking to Channel 14 News on Wednesday morning shortly after the final budget vote, Netanyahu stressed that passing judicial reform was “certainly” his government’s next goal.

But, Netanyahu stressed, Wwe are trying to reach a [compromise], and I hope we will succeed in this.”

Talks between coalition and opposition leaders regarding a compromise for judicial reform have been stalled for weeks, with both sides vehemently rejecting potential middleground frameworks that were leaked to the media.

In March 2023, after an unprecedented and likely illegal nationwide strike shuttered hospitals, businesses, and schools throughout the country, Netanyahu officially froze legislative efforts regarding the reform.

Following the two-month pause, Netanyahu signaled that he is ready to once again bring the issue to the forefront of his political agenda.

The architects of the reform, Justice Minister Yariv Levin (Likud) and Constitution and Law Committee Chair Simcha Rothman (Religious Zionism) have publicly said that further delays to the legislation could trigger them to resign from the coalition and topple the government.

Speaking to Ynet last week, Rothman said that the opposition parties were not engaging in compromise negotiations in good faith, and that they are “determined to blow up” the discussions.

“If there are no agreements, if there is an explosion [and total breakdown in negotiations,] we will move forward unilaterally [with judicial reform legislation] in this Knesset session,” he emphasized.

Rothman stressed that “the distances between the parties are not great, and if the opposition wants to reach agreements – it can happen tomorrow morning.”

However, he reiterated his previous warning that no progress on the reforms could lead to the collapse of the government.

“A coalition that does not keep its promises does not survive,” he said.

The post Netanyahu: With budget passed, judicial reform is next appeared first on World Israel News.

In another example of the flourishing ties between Israel and Morocco following the Abraham Accords, the International University of Rabat (UIR) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) have entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a center of excellence focusing on aeronautics and artificial intelligence research and innovation.

The post WATCH – Israel, Morocco to build AI and Aeronautics innovation research center appeared first on World Israel News.

Resident of northern Arab town had reportedly scoped out sites for terror attacks and conducted intelligence-gathering missions for Hamas.

By Adina Katz, World Israel News

A 20-year-old Israeli citizen of Arab descent was recruited by the Hamas terror group in Gaza and was plotting to carry out an attack in the Jewish State before being arrested by Israeli intelligence and security forces, the Shin Bet security agency said in a media statement on Wednesday morning.

The detainee, identified as Nadir Mahajne, is a resident of Umm Al-Fahm, an Arab city in Israel’s north. He reportedly made contact with Hamas recruiters based in the Gaza Strip online in December 2022.

His Hamas handlers instructed him to perform intelligence gathering missions for determining the ideal place for a terror attack. Mahajne surveyed local areas that are typically crowded with civilians and security sites in Israel’s north, and reported that information back to Hamas.

Hamas told Mahajane to bomb a bus line in the coastal city of Hadera, the Shin Bet said. Mahajne was reportedly in the process of taking concrete steps to facilitate the attack, but the security agency did not reveal what those actions were.

הוא נעצר על ידי לוחמי הגדעונים (יחידה 33 בלהב 433) כשברשותו מדיה ששימשה לקשר מול החמאס ברצועת עזה. pic.twitter.com/zgW6kAiwPi

— Shai Levy (שי לוי) (@shailevy6) May 24, 2023

“This investigation reveals, once again, the efforts of Hamas to promote terror attacks within Israeli territory while publicly denying its involvement [in such attacks], and its false representation that it is attempting to maintain the status quo within the Strip,” a Shin Bet official said in a press release.

The official added that Hamas regularly attempts to “cynically exploit Israeli citizens for the purposes of terror activity” and that the terror group’s leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, holds the ultimate responsibility for the efforts to recruit Arab-Israelis.

Mahajne’s hometown of Umm Al-Fahm is a hotbed for Islamic extremism, with Sheikh Raed Salah, the head of the outlawed northern branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, hailing from the city.

In March 2021, Umm Al-Fahm residents and cousins Ibrahim and Ayman Agbariya committed a deadly ISIS-inspired terror attack at a bus stop in the city of Hadera, shooting and killing two Border Patrol officers and wounding several others before being shot dead by security forces.

The post Shin Bet busts Arab-Israeli Hamas recruit planning to bomb a bus appeared first on World Israel News.

Benefits provided by the free trade zone include exemption from taxes and assistance with the visa process for employees and their families.

By TPS

Ninety-seven Israeli companies are now extending their global reach through the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) free trade zone, a 25% increase since January.

Nearly one-third of the Israeli companies are in precious metals and stones, financial services, technology and telecoms and professional services.

Other sectors include construction, engineering and machinery, media and marketing, energy, and food and agriculture.

Benefits provided by the free trade zone include exemption from taxes, such as no income tax for 50 years; 100% ownership of their companies; and assistance with company formation services and the visa process for employees and their families.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem, executive chairman and chief executive officer for DMCC, said, “I am personally delighted to see this 25% jump in members from Israel, which is further proof that Israeli companies believe in DMCC’s value proposition.

“In the coming years we will increase our focus on Israel and keep this incredible momentum moving forward. I am therefore confident we will see many more companies from Israel choose Dubai and DMCC to scale and access the global marketplace,” he added.

DMCC registered its most successful year yet in 2022 and now includes more than 23,000 companies from around the world.

A long-awaited free-trade agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates went into effect on April 1.

Meanwhile, in Morocco, the International University of Rabat (UIR) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday to establish a center of excellence focused on aeronautics, artificial intelligence research and innovation.

The agreement aims to strengthen cooperation and partnership in applied research, innovation, co-development and incubation.

The post Dubai free trade zone notches 25% growth in Israeli members appeared first on World Israel News.

The government must deter the constant terror on the roads, said Devora Sheetrit after she and her four daughters survived a rain of bullets at her car.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

A mother of four who escaped death Monday night after Palestinians directed automatic weapons fire at their car on a Samarian road is demanding government action that will put a stop to the terrorism.

“I think that the government has to act on this issue,” Devorah Sheetrit said in an interview with Samarian Regional Council media center on Tuesday. “We must have some kind of deterrence force in the region, we have to show them that we control the area.”

“We won’t accept that such incidents happen again, another time that shots are fired at a car, another family that could be hurt,” she added. “We cannot continue to accept it as if it’s just understood [that such things happen]. We must act to achieve deterrence, and immediately.”

Sheetrit recounted the terrifying incident, which occurred as she was traveling home from a family event in Kochav Hashachar with her four daughters, aged 12, 11 and twin 4-year-olds.

“Between Migdalim and Evyatar we hear a volley of gunfire directed at the car; you can’t mistake the rhythm of the noise, it’s gunshots, we know it from the nearby villages where they shoot like that during weddings,” she recounted. “I recognized it and immediately floored the accelerator to escape while shouting at the girls to duck.”

In a video clip uploaded to social media of the incident, apparently from the car’s dashcam, around a dozen shots can be heard while the 40-year-old optometrist yells at her daughters, “Get down, get down!” and then asks them in a panicked voice, “Are you OK? Are you OK?”

“I told my oldest daughter to call my husband who … phoned the Samaria Emergency Center while on the line with me,” she continued. “They told me to stop at Tapuach Junction but I said there’s no way I’m stopping on the way, I’m going straight home.”

Just after passing the junction, however, she felt that something was wrong with a tire and she was losing control of the car so she halted on the side of the road, she said. A few minutes later security forces arrived and confirmed that two bullets had struck the vehicle, and the tire, in her words, “was completely burned.”

One of the bullets had hit between the car’s hood and front windshield, and Sheetrit knew they had had a very close call.

“We are aware of the miracle that happened to us, a very big miracle, that we weren’t hurt…. A few more centimeters and the bullet would have hit me,” she said.

“We’re still in shock,” she admitted Tuesday, “and it will take time to recover.” The four-year-olds didn’t quite understand what had happened, she said, but the older ones did. In her fear, the 11-year-old couldn’t speak or catch her breath after they’d stopped, Sheetrit said.

Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan, who met with Sheetrit Tuesday, reiterated the pleas that he makes after every terror incident.

“We cannot keep relying on miracles,” he said. “Just a few minutes from there, Hallel and Yagel Yaniv were murdered [in Huwara]. There are so many terror attacks. Unfortunately, this government has not yet changed its approach and I say to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Defense and all the ministers: The government has direct responsibility for the deterioration in security.”

“The ball is in your court, you must flip the way the previous government worked, which brought a wave of terror upon us,” Dagan said.

Two things must be done immediately, he stated.

“The government must reverse the reality and launch a military operation against the terror infrastructure of the Palestinian Authority, which everyone knows is behind this wave of terror. [And it] must immediately restore all security barriers. We paid in blood, we don’t want to continue paying with blood that doesn’t need to be shed.”

“We will not agree that in the center of the State of Israel, precious families like this one drive and feel like they’re sitting ducks,” he added.

“I know that most Israelis,” he said, “are demanding of the prime minister and other members of the government: ‘Get ahold of yourselves already’ … and stop this wave of terror now.”

The search for the terrorists who fled the scene is still ongoing.

The post Terror shooting in Samaria: ‘It’s a miracle we weren’t hurt’ appeared first on World Israel News.

“This government will last all four of its years,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the final vote.

By World Israel News Staff

The Knesset passed the 2023-2024 state budget after an all-night vote, with a final approval vote of 64-55 occurring at around 6 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

Opposition lawmakers presented numerous objections to the budget, slowing down the voting process, but the coalition parties managed to approve the last aspects of the budget before dawn.

Had the budget not passed by May 29th, the Knesset would have automatically been dissolved, triggering a fresh round of national elections.

“This government will last all four of its years,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the final vote.

The vote came after coalition infighting, which saw the ultra-Orthodox Agudat Israel and the Otzma Yehudit party headed by Public Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir threaten to vote against the budget and topple the government, should they not receive additional funds.

Netanyahu conceded to their demands and awarded both the parties hundreds of millions of shekels in state funds, which had not been originally included in the budget.

“This is a good budget, it will serve the citizens of Israel,” said Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich following the approval.

The budget will “provide stability and certainty to the economy, Smotrich continued, adding that the coalition was targeted by “enormous pressure from interested parties, irresponsible strikes and media campaigns” ahead of the vote.

Fortunately, Smotrich said, the government “did not capitulate.”

During the all-night debate on the Knesset floor, protesters outside of the building demonstrated against the large allocations made to the ultra-Orthodox community, including stipends for yeshiva students and funding for religious schools that exclusively focus on Torah studies and do not teach the core curriculum.

Ben-Gvir said the budget marked a “new dawn” for Israel and noted that his party secured “a 9 billion shekel ($2.4 billion) increase for the National Security Ministry, just as we promised – a raise of some 20 percent for police officers, the recruitment of thousands of officers and prison guards, and the establishment of a national guard, along with great tidings for residents of the Negev and Galilee.”

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid released a statement bemoaning the new budget.

“While you were sleeping, [the coalition] passed the worst, most destructive budget in the history of the country,” he said in a statement to the media.

“It brings no fresh tidings, no attempt to fight the cost of living – just endless extortion. This budget is a violation of the contract with the citizens of Israel, and our children and children’s children will pay for it.”

The post Knesset successfully passes 2023-2024 budget after overnight blitz appeared first on World Israel News.

On May 9th The Washington Post called attention to the “chilling effect” Gospodin (Mr.) Putin’s war on Ukraine is having on Arctic research with Polar Bears and other endangered species. The article in the Health & Science section points to the cutoff of scientific contact between American and Russian climate scientists. Arctic species are one of the best indicators of the impact of global warming at the poles. 

War is hell. And now, it appears to be hell on bears, too. But was this the right place to impose sanctions? Efforts to cut off Russia’s access to world markets through sanctions was the best way for the U.S. and NATO to forge stronger ties, doubtless. And these sanctions are the first, least warlike of actions designed to unite the civilized world against naked aggression. Even though the Kremlin has found some creative “workarounds” to make do without direct access to foreign trade, there are still major nations—like China and even NATO member Turkey—who can help the Kremlin continue its belligerence. 

This may be the first place to seek an end to this war. By extending an olive branch in the form of cooperation on environmental research in polar regions, we can send a strong message to the people of Russia that we Americans are not their enemy. Even a dictatorship finds it harder to continue an unpopular war when the people passively resist it. (The case of Mussolini in North Africa and Sicily in World War II is a stellar example.) 

Washington Post writer Dino Grandoni points out that even in the coldest days of the Cold War, the USSR and America found common ground on protecting polar bears. And the migratory Spoon-bill Sandpiper proves that you can see Russia from Alaska. Cooperation to save this bird—even by incubating its eggs to protect them from predators—was a joint endeavor interrupted by our sanctions against Russian aggression. 

Our past and hopefully future work on environmental issues with Russia can remind us of the priority our war time President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave to conservation. When the Navy sought to condemn a migratory bird sanctuary to use as a firing range for battleships, FDR vetoed it. “Leave my ducks alone!” was his policy. And there was never a stronger supporter of a huge and powerful navy than our thirty-second President. 

Our present attitude toward Gospodin Putin presents a paradox. We recognize the undoubted war crimes committed by the Wagner Group of mercenaries and criminals who are the Kremlin’s spear point in Ukraine. But how do we propose to bring the Kremlin’s ruler to justice at the International Criminal Court? PBS’s Frontline programs on Mr. Putin quote Russian experts who tell us he is most dangerous when cornered. 

He has told us that himself. Part of Putin’s autobiography includes his story of confronting a rat in the hallway of his parent’s ramshackle apartment house in Leningrad. Mr. Putin noted that when he cornered that rat, it attacked him. Some Americans call him a rat, but this one has nuclear weapons. 

University of Virginia professor Norman A. Graebner was a diplomatic historian of the school we call Christian Realism. Mr. Graebner always called upon us to consider Ends and Means. Our End in this war should be to restore Ukraine’s territorial integrity and to defend Ukraine’s sovereignty. That sovereignty must include Kyiv’s ability to join NATO, if it so chooses. 

Can threats to Gospodin Putin’s physical survival be the Means to achieve our End? South Carolina’s Sen. Lindsey Graham publicly calls for an assassination of Vladimir Putin. This violates international law and U.S. statute. Graham is a senior member of the Judiciary Committee. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton demands “regime change” in Moscow. Gospodin Putin shows his cohorts videos of the gruesome fate of Muammar Gaddafi with Hillary cackling at his death. That’s what she means by regime change. No other American Secretary of State publicly gloated over the death of hated enemies. Not Hitler’s. Not Stalin’s. Not Mao’s. 

In the Soviet era, a popular joke made the rounds about the red-scarfed Young Pioneer boy whose winning essay was titled “Russia: The Home of the Elephants.” The lad was an example of the USSR’s exaggerated claims to have invented everything, including elephants. But later archeologists actually found evidence of prehistoric mastodons in Russia. That lad had a point. 

In the West we have for centuries equated Russians with the Bear. Huge, powerful, always dangerous—that’s Russia to us. Russians, however, see themselves as Elephants. That may be because Russians are a herd people who have an instinctive suspicion of outsiders. They habitually reject writings of exiles and expatriates. Perhaps that’s why heroic resisters of tyranny like Alexei Navalny and Vladimir Kara-Murza would rather risk prison under Mr. Putin than be ignored as outsiders by the people of Russia, whom they love. 

Sloni—Elephants—are famous for their memory. Russians remember successive invasions of their steppe-lands for a thousand years. (And, yes, they even recall the intervention of the U.S., as pitiably small and ineffectual as it was, in their Russian Civil War.)

Ronald Reagan said: “Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.” We should explore every Means to achieve the End we all seek. We may find common ground—on the Arctic ice. 

The post <strong>Putin, Polar Bears, and “Russia: The Home of the Elephants”</strong> appeared first on Providence.