| Student Killed by Kassam: Roni Yihye, 47, Roni Yihye, 47, a father of four, is the man who was killed by a Kassam rocket in Sapir College Wednesday. He was from Moshav Bitcha, a moshav (agricultural community) located near Ofakim. Yihye was mortally wounded when a rocket landed near him in the Sapir College parking lot. He died of his wounds shortly afterwards. A second man was wounded in the attack. Yihye underwent a kidney transplant several years ago, after he quit working as a cement truck driver due to a kidney ailment. A neighbor told Maariv/NRG that Yihye was attending a course given by the National Insurance Institute in Sapir College when the rocket struck next to him. Avner Mori, who heads the Mechavim Regional Council, said that Yihye was "a quiet and modest person whom I saw at the synagogue every morning. This is a sad day for the moshav and the regional council. We will do everything to aid the bereaved family." The Sapir College management expressed its condolences to Yihye's family and wished the people hurt in the attack a speedy recovery. 15 people were hospitalized at Ashkelon's Barzilai hospital following a large scale Kassam attack launched by Hamas terrorists in Gaza. One rocket landed near the Carlsberg beer factory and hit a power line. This, in turn, caused intermittent local blackouts. All in all, Gaza terrorists' violence against civilians hurt 49 people today: two suffered light injuries and 47 others suffered emotional shock. Israel was bombarded with close to 30 rockets between 3:00 and 4:30 PM, and another four hit the Ashkelon area around 6 PM. One of the latter landed in an open area just outside Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon, north of Gaza, and several people were treated for shock. Electricity in parts of the city was knocked out for short periods by the rockets. At least one other person was hurt by shrapnel in the attack on Sapir College. A total of 15 Sderot residents were treated in Ashkelon's Barzilai Hospital for shock, including five for serious trauma. In the midst of the Kassam bombardment, the Israel Air Force announced that it had successfully hit a rocket-launching cell. PA sources report that in a second Israeli attack in Gaza City, one person was killed. In the last Kassam rocket wave, three rockets slammed into a college in the Sderot area. The young student is the 12th death caused by Kassams in Israel, following the killing of three Israelis in Sderot - Shir'el Friedman, Chai Shalom, and Oshri Oz - in the space of one week last May. Hamas Proud of its Success The attacks follow a successful Israel Air Force counter-terrorism attack on a bus carrying Hamas terrorists in Gaza this morning; five terrorist trainers, including a leading Hamas terrorist, were killed and several were injured. Hamas took credit for firing 16 Kassams at Israel this afternoon. It broadcast photos from Sderot, boasting that the scenes were reminiscent of a terror attack and saying that this was the answer to those in the Palestinian Authority who felt that the Kassams were unnecessary. The rocket bombardment began with three waves of attacks at 3 PM, when the "Color Red" rocket warning alert was sounded in Sderot and environs. Eleven rockets were fired, one of which slammed into a chicken processing plant in Sderot, and others fell in the vicinity of the town. Though the rocket slammed into the factory's dining room, causing very heavy damage - dozens of workers had left the dining room shortly before the rocket hit - no one was directly hurt by shrapnel. Several victims were treated for shock. This is at least the third time the poultry plant has been hit by a Kassam rocket. In November 2006, Yaakov Yaakobov was killed when a rocket hit the factory, and last month, a fire was started when a Kassam hit the plant. Around 3:30 PM, yet another Kassam rocket was fired at Israel, landing in the Eshkol region of the western Negev. No casualties or damage were reported. In two other waves of attacks by 4:30, another ten rockets were fired at Israel, slamming into Sderot, S'dot Negev, and adjoining areas. A house in Sderot suffered a direct hit, with no reported injuries. Earlier in the day, two Kassams were fired at the western Negev, causing no damage. Abbas Says Terrorist Path is Impractical - "Now" by Hillel Fendel Mahmoud Abbas - Israel's partner in peace talks and the head of Fatah and the Palestinian Authority - enjoys a reputation as a "moderate," largely in light of his juxtaposition with the arch-terrorists of his rivals/allies in Hamas. However, he now says that terrorism and violence against Israel are actually the preferred approach, and certainly need not be ruled out in the future. "At present," Abbas told the Jordanian newspaper A-Doustour, "I am against an armed struggle against Israel because we can't do it, but in the coming stages, things may change." "I am against an armed struggle against Israel because we can't do it," Abbas said. "I do not rule out a return to the way of armed struggle against Israel," he said in the Wednesday night interview. Seventeen Arabs, mostly terrorists, have been killed in six Israel Air Force counter-terrorism actions in Gaza since Wednesday morning. One of the dead was the son of a top Hamas official. Shot the First Bullet Abbas took pride in the fact that he was the first terrorist in the struggle against Israel. "I had the honor of firing, in 1965, the first bullet of the 'resistance', he boasted. He added that it was his Fatah organization that taught Hizbullah and other terrorist organizations in the world how to run terrorist campaigns. Abbas, whose nom de guerre is Abu Mazen, said that he does not demand that Hamas - the terrorist movement that violently wrested control of Gaza from Fatah last year - recognize Israel at present. "I wanted to establish a unity government with Hamas that would negotiate with Israel," he said. "Syria's Bashar Assad supported me... I am not the only one who wants recognition of Israel; the Arab initiative, which is a matter of consensus in the Arab and Islamic worlds, also says this." Abbas was happy about rejecting the notion of Israel as a "Jewish state." He said that in the Annapolis Summit of last November, "they wanted us to agree to a summation saying that Israel is a Jewish state, and we objected strongly. The summit almost blew up because of this." PM Olmert Says it's 'War', Promises Restraint by Ezra HaLevi Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called the situation in southern Israel a “war” as the IDF struck several terrorist targets in Gaza overnight. Olmert met with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Wednesday night in Tokyo, telling her, “The Palestinian are trying our patience.” The statements came after some 50 rockets were fired at Israel, including one that killed 47-year old Roni Yihye, a student at the town’s Sapir college. A powerful Grad missile was also fired at Ashkelon. Olmert commented on the situation while visiting the factory of the Nissan car company in Tokyo. "We are in the midst of warfare and we will continue fighting until the danger looming over the residents of the south will cease to exist,” he said.” This is a long, painful process, but we do not have any magic solution to make it cease it in one day. We get hit, and hit back even harder." Rice expressed concern for the humanitarian situation in Gaza. The PM assured Rice publicly, at a press conference following the meeting, that Israel would continue to act with restraint. "We will make terrorists pay a heavy price, but we will not make exaggerated statements,” he said. Meanwhile, Mahmoud Abbas - Israel's partner in peace talks and the head of Fatah and the Palestinian Authority - took the opposite approach. "I do not rule out a return to the way of armed struggle against Israel," he told the Jordanian newspaper A-Doustour on Wednesday night. Israel filed an official complaint with the United Nations regarding the latest barrage of rockets. Israel Strikes Gaza Compounds by Ezra HaLevi Israel pounded several targets in Gaza following a barrage of more than 50 Kassam rockets and Katyusha missiles on Sderot and Ashkelon Wednesday. The Air Force struck Hamas’s Gaza chief Ismail Haniyeh’s office Wednesday night, and another Hamas compound, wounding dozens of people. Nobody was inside the buildings at the time, however. "No one in Hamas, whether low ranking or among the senior ranks, will be immune," Prime Minister Ehud Olmert threatened in comments on the matter made from Japan. In another strike early Thursday in Gaza’s Saja’iyeh neighborhood, three terrorists were killed. One man was a Hamas terrorist and the two others were of the Hizbullah-backed Popular Resistance Committee. Another terrorist was wounded in the strike. Two vehicles were targeted, with some of the terrorists having just returned from terrorists training in Arab countries, according to the IDF. Two more strikes took place in Jabalya and Beit Hanoun. Judea and Samaria Counter-Terror Operations Too Two terrorists were killed by IDF forces during an operation in Shechem (Nablus), in northern Samaria. One belonged to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and the other to Fatah, the faction currently embraced by the Israeli government as a partner for peace negotiations. Six other terrorists were wounded in shootouts with IDF soldiers in area. In Shechem’s Balata neighborhood, an IDF reconnaissance unit came under fire and responded, killing one terrorist and wounding another. Both those terrorists also belonged to the ruling Fatah faction. We Must Make Sure Peki'in Events Don't Recur- Police Chief: by Ezra HaLevi The Knesset Interior Committee discussed, Wednesday, the investigative report into events in Peki’in last year, with the participation of Police Chief Dudi Cohen. Cohen told the committee that, looking back, he would not hesitate to order the operation in Peki’in that resulted in violent clashes with Druze residents last October. “The events in Peki’in were grave and difficult,” Cohen said. “It is forbidden for us, as police and as a state, to ignore lawbreakers. We must explore ways to prevent such incidents from reoccurring.” Druze leaders told the committee that they consider themselves Israelis in every regard, but refuse to accept the manner in which the police behaved toward them. “We request from the committee to examine from the ground up the events in Peki’in and to issue recommendations,” they said. The clashes were the result of ongoing attacks on nearby Jewish residents and the rebuffing of smaller police forces that came to carry out the arrest of suspects in the vandalizing of a cell phone tower. Police then entered the town in force and were confronted with force. Scores were injured in the clashes – two seriously. Many of the 23 injured police were also Druze. In the ensuing violence, most of the Jewish homes of the mixed Jewish-Druze town were burned and looted. More recently, the home of a European Jewish family that moved to Peki’in was also attacked. Aside from a few elderly Jews who take care of Peki’in’s ancient synagogue – the town’s Jews who fled have not returned since. A police investigative report issued last week listed several systemic failures in the upper command echelons of the Northern Region Police during the preparation stages of the operation in Peki’in. The report placed most of the blame on Northern Police Commander Shimon Koren. The report did not find fault with the entry to Peki’in itself, but said the most problematic aspect was the leak of the fact that police were planning the operation, which allowed crowds of youths to assemble and orchestrate violence. Cohen rejected claims that the police responded to the disturbances in Peki’in with excessive force. "The police will continue to enter Peki'in and to carry out their duties,” Cohen promised. “On the day of the clashes, 124 policemen entered Peki'in in order to arrest 17 civilians who had set fires and thrown hand- grenades. It was a reasonable police force.” Prisoners, Elderly, Ill in Europe to Enjoy Happy Purim by Hillel Fendel The Brussels-based European Aleph Institute has announced the opening of its new, Five-Point Purim program for Jewish prisoners, elderly and ill throughout Europe. The program, overseen by Aleph Director Rabbi Levi Kanelsky, is designed to bring a happy Purim to many thousands of people in various European countries. It contains five features: "Feasting and Happiness" - Purim meals, as required by Jewish Law, accompanied by live music "Megillah Reading" - the printing and dissemination of thousands of copies of Megillat Esther, one of the 24 books of the Bible and the one that is read aloud in synagogues twice during the Purim holiday. The Books will be translated into five languages. "Mishlo'ach Manot" - the Rabbinically-ordained sending of food packages to friends on Purim "Matanot LaEvyonim" - in fulfillment of the requirement to give charity to the poor on Purim. Coupons for various stores and prison canteens are distributed. "Az Lama Lo Kol Yom Purim?" - In possible answer to the question why we do not celebrate Purim every day, a surprise gift described as "revolutionary" will be distributed. The total cost of the campaign is expected to reach one million Euros, subsidized largely by the European Jewish Development Fund (EJDF). Rabbis and Jewish communal leaders throughout the continent have been contacted to sign up. The EJDF was founded two years ago by Viatcheslav Moshe Kantor for the specific goal of strengthening Jewish life in Europe. It supports programs aimed at building Jewish identity and Jewish pride, especially by re-connecting young people with their rich and vital Jewish past. It also focuses on addressing such serious threats to Jewish life in Europe as assimilation, anti-Semitism and racism. The European Aleph Institute is an affiliate of the Florida-based Aleph Institute, which runs educational and kindness programs for Jewish prisoners throughout the United States. The number of Jewish prisoners in the United States is estimated at between 5,000 and 8,000, out of some two million prisoners in total. This puts the Jewish representation at about a fifth or less of its proportionate representation in the American population. Representatives of Aleph visit Jews even in remote prisons throughout the U.S. They further encourage writing and encouraging Jewish prisoners, via programs such as www.jewishpenpals.org. The European Aleph program similarly places an emphasis on the estimated Jewish prisoners in Europe. After its recent Chanukah program, European Aleph Institute Executive-Director Rabbi Levi Kanelsky said, "Chanukah is the festival of lights and we must send this light to all places of darkness - especially to those in prison and to the hearts of the inmates." City of David Dig Reveals Information on Ancient Postal System by Ezra HaLevi Artifacts from City of David excavations in Jerusalem reveal an interesting tidbit of information about the ancient postal system in Israel. In an archaeological excavation being carried out at the “Spring House,” near the Gihon Spring in the City of David – in the valley east of Jerusalem’s Old City, soil was excavated which contained pottery shards that date to the Iron Age 2 (eighth century BCE). “Whereas during the ninth century BCE, letters and goods were dispatched on behalf of their senders without names, by the eighth century BCE the clerks and merchants had already begun to add their names to the seals,” concluded the Antiquities Authority. Wet sifting and sorting through the soil revealed three fragments of clay stamps used to seal letters or goods in ancient times. Two more stone seals were recently found as well. All of the objects bear Hebrew names and all date to the eighth century BCE. Among them is a seal that was discovered intact, bearing the Hebrew name “Rephaihu (ben) Shalem”, who lived in the City of David in Jerusalem during this period. The seals were primarily used by public officials, according to Professor Ronny Reich of the University of Haifa and Eli Shukron of the Israel Antiquities Authority, who oversee the dig. “In contrast with the large cluster of bullae (seals) that was found two years ago, in which all of its items contain graphic symbols (such as a boat or different animals – fish, lizards and birds) but are of an earlier date (end of the ninth-beginning of the eighth century BCE), the new items indicate that during the eighth century BCE the practice had changed and the clerks who used the seals began to add their own names to them.” The Israel Antiquities Authority, together with the Nature and Parks Authority and the Elad Association, discovered the seals during ongoing intensive excavations being carried out on the eastern side of the Old City of Jerusalem. |
WAPO MISSION INTERNATIONAL
JERUSALEM TODAY
Our Mission
To promote, advocate and minister
to all Tanzanian men and women by
imparting the Good News of peace
and true freedom that will radically
transform their whole spirits, souls
and bodies; and be kept blameless
at the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
to all Tanzanian men and women by
imparting the Good News of peace
and true freedom that will radically
transform their whole spirits, souls
and bodies; and be kept blameless
at the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
Contact us:
+255 22 262 7979
+255 22 285 1266
+255 22 262 7979
+255 22 285 1266
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
