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The Times of Israel liveblogged Thursday’s events as they unfolded.
Parents of slain teen visit family of murdered rabbi
The parents of Hallel Yaffa Ariel, the 13-year-old Israeli girl murdered by a Palestinian terrorist in her bed in Kiryat Arba last week, pays a condolence visit to the family of Rabbi Miki Mark, who was shot dead in a terror attack near Otniel a day later.
The Ariel family ended the shiva mourning period for Hallel this morning.
Rina Ariel, Hallel’s mother, extended her wishes for a speedy recovery for Chava Mark, who is still in the hospital with serious head wounds sustained in the attack that killed her husband.
Rina Ariel, the mother of slain teen Hallel Ariel, pays a visit on July 7, 2016 to the family home of Rabbi Miki Mark, who was killed in a terror attack a day after her daughter (screen capture: Channel 10)
Netanyahu donor convicted in France over vast tax scam
A French court convicts and jails a tycoon over a 283 million-euro carbon tax scam after a trial in which he testified he made unrelated campaign donations to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Arnaud Mimran is sentenced to eight years and a 1 million-euro fine for the 2008-2009 fraud, which resulted in a major tax shortfall for French authorities.
The Paris court give prison terms ranging from one to eight years for 10 other defendants, who are all convicted of aggravated fraud and money-laundering. One person is acquitted.
Half are tried in absentia and are believed to be in Israel.
Netanyahu’s office denies any campaign payments, saying that Mimran lawfully contributed in 2001 to a fund used while Netanyahu held no office. Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit is investigating.
— AP
Disappointment as PM snubs Jewish community on Ethiopia trip
ADDIS ABABA — Israel’s only Ethiopian-born lawmaker expresses disappointment that Netanyahu’s historic visit to the East African country does not include a visit to its Jewish institutions or meetings with representatives of the local Jewish community.
“Yes, I am disappointed because I feel that [Jewish community institutions] could have been on the itinerary,” says MK Avraham Neguise, a member of Netanyahu’s Likud party.
It’s understandable if a visit at a Jewish site was not planned for practical reasons, he allows, but says “it is possible to meet a delegation of the leadership of the Jewish community here. Two or three members of the community. He can meet a delegation.”
— Raphael Ahren
Fire near summer camp forces evacuation of 3,000 kids
Some 3,000 children have been evacuated from an Israeli scouts summer camp in Nahal Hashofet, near Haifa, when a large blaze broke out at the nearby forest.
Four teams of firefighters from nearby Afula have been dispatched to battle the blaze, Ynet news website reports. Four planes have been also deployed to fight the fire from the air.
Officials investigating security threat in Kiryat Arba
The Kiryat Arba settlement instructs residents to remain in their homes, in light of a “security event,” according to the community’s spokesperson.
Israel’s Channel 10 news reports that someone may have broken into the Hebron-adjacent community.
“Security forces are investigating the incident,” settlement officials say.
— Judah Ari Gross
Fierce fighting for key Aleppo road despite Syria truce
The Syrian army is advancing within firing range of the rebels’ sole supply route to Aleppo in heavy fighting, despite its announcement of a ceasefire for the Eid al-Fitr holiday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Saudi-backed rebel group Jaish al-Islam (Army of Islam) says four of its fighters were killed trying to stop the army from cutting the Castello Road, the only route into rebel-held areas of Syria’s second city.
The army announced yesterday that it is observing a 72-hour nationwide ceasefire for the Eid al-Fitr holiday that marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, but fighting has continued on the ground, particularly in and around Aleppo.
Syrian children sit amid the rubble of destroyed buildings on July 6, 2016, in the rebel-held district of Tariq al-Bab of the northern city of Aleppo. (AFP PHOTO/KARAM AL-MASRI)
— AFP
PM asks Ethiopia to help free Israeli held by Hamas
Netanyahu says he asked his Ethiopian counterpart for assistance with efforts to secure the release of Israeli national Avraham Mengistu, who is being held in Gaza by Hamas.
The PM makes the remarks on the final leg of a four-nation tour in Africa.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Ethiopian counterpart Hailemariam Desalegn in Addis Ababa on July 7, 2016 (Kobi Gideon/GPO)
Merkel: Russian actions led to NATO’s ‘loss of trust’
German chancellor Angela Merkel says that Russia’s actions in Ukraine have eroded mutual trust with the West.
“If through words and deeds the validity of (international) law and the inviolability of borders are questioned, then of course trust is lost,” she tells the German parliament on the eve of a major NATO summit in Poland.
Merkel says that “Russia’s actions have deeply disturbed our eastern allies” and require a “clear reassurance” of their safety under NATO’s Article 5 on collective defense.
When NATO leaders meet in Warsaw, “it will be in a phase in which the security situation has significantly changed in Europe,” she says, and also points at the turmoil in Syria, Iraq and Libya.
The US-led alliance plans to finalize its biggest revamp since the collapse of the Soviet Union to counter what it sees as an unpredictable Russia seeking to recover lost territories.
German chancellor Angela Merkel (R), German vice chancellor, Economy and Energy Minister Sigmar Gabriel (C) and German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier laugh during a plenary session at the lower house of Parliament Bundestag in Berlin ahead of NATO summit in Warsaw on July 7, 2016. (AFP PHOTO/John MACDOUGALL)
— AFP
Father, son commit suicide within hours of each other
A father and son commit suicide within hours of one another in Ma’ale Adumim.
The son, in his 30s, takes his own life, and his father does the same when he hears of his child’s suicide.
The circumstances of the deaths are still being investigated, Channel 2 says.
Police call for sexual assault charges against council chief
Police recommend bringing criminal charges against the head of the al-Qasum regional council in the Negev for alleged sexual assault of a female staffer.
The recommendation comes after a police investigation into the staffer’s claims that Itzik Tomer shut her in a room alone with him and assaulted and harassed her, Army Radio says.
The details of the investigation are being handed over to the state prosecution pending a decision on whether to bring charges against Tomer.
UK’s House of Lords on lockdown over suspect package
Parts of the House of Lords, Britain’s upper house of parliament, are put on lockdown after police are called in to respond to reports of a suspect package, police and a parliamentary official said.
“We are currently examining the contents of the package,” a police spokeswoman says. A Lords spokesman says the parking lot and parts of the building’s terrace are closed.
Yeoman of the Guard pass through the Peer’s Lobby during the ceremonial search ahead of the State Opening of Parliament, in the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster in London Wednesday May 27, 2015. (John Stillwell/AP)
— AFP
PM to Ethiopian MPs: Like you, we fought for independence
Netanyahu addresses the Ethiopian parliament in Addis Ababa on the last stop of his African tour.
The PM is greeted by loud rhythmic clapping, and tells lawmakers that he is already planning his next visit to the country.
Netanyahu presents “greetings from Jerusalem, the city I grew up in and where King Solomon met the Queen of Sheba.”
He adds: “You in Ethiopia, you fought for your freedom for millennia. We respect you, we admire you. You resisted foreign rule and lived as a free independent homeland. We too live as a free independent homeland.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the Ethiopian parliament in Addis Ababa on July 7, 2016 (Raphael Ahren/Times of Israel)
— Raphael Ahren
Kiryat Arba alert lifted as break-in fears abate
There is no longer a threat of a break-in in the Kiryat Arba settlement, according to a message sent to residents.
Some security forces will remain in the area, but there is no longer a threat, the message says.
— Judah Ari Gross
Death toll in Baghdad blast reaches 292
A Baghdad bombing claimed by the Islamic State group killed 292 people, the health minister says, raising the toll of what was already one of the deadliest attacks in Iraq.
The identities of 177 people killed in the bombing, which ripped through a crowded shopping area early on Sunday, are yet to be determined, while 115 bodies have been handed over to families, Health Minister Adila Hamoud says in a statement.
Iraqi men carry a coffin in the holy Iraqi city of Najaf during a funeral procession for the victims of a suicide bombing that ripped through Baghdad’s busy shopping district of Karrada on July 3, 2016. (AFP/Haidar HAMDANI)
— AFP
Trump cites Disney in defense of allegedly anti-Semitic imagery
Donald Trump keeps alive a controversy over a campaign tweet featuring apparently anti-Semitic imagery, tweeting an image featuring popular Disney characters to demonstrate that the media is “dishonest.”
The image, posted Saturday, bore the slogan “Most Corrupt Candidate Ever!” inside a red six-pointed star and a background of dollar bills. Critics, including the Anti-Defamation League, say the imagery is anti-Semitic and note that it had first appeared on a neo-Nazi Internet bulletin board. Trump’s staff removed the tweet and replaced it with an altered version that had a circle, although the GOP candidate continues to maintain that the star was meant to be a sheriff’s star or just a plain star.
Where is the outrage for this Disney book? Is this the 'Star of David' also?
Dishonest media! #Frozen pic.twitter.com/4LJBpSm8xa— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 7, 2016
— JTA
British Muslim admits killing shopkeeper for ‘disrespecting’ Islam
A British Muslim admits killing a coreligionist in Scotland because he felt his victim disrespected Islam.
Tanveer Ahmed, from Bradford in northern England, pleads guilty during a hearing at Glasgow’s High Court to killing Asad Shah. The shopkeeper was stabbed and beaten in March at his convenience store in Glasgow.
Police say the slaying was “religiously prejudiced.” Shah was a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community, a minority sect which differs from mainstream Islam in that it doesn’t regard Muhammad as the final prophet.
Slain Glasgow shopkeeper Asad Shah (Youtube screenshot)
Prosecutors say that when 32-year-old Ahmed was interviewed by police, he said his actions were motivated by Shah’s “disrespect [for] the Quran, the Prophet Muhammad, Allah and faith.”
Ahmed will be sentenced on August 9 for what Judge Rita Rae calls “a truly despicable crime.”
— AP
High Court rejects petitions against Turkey deal
The High Court of Justice rejects petitions against Israel’s recently signed reconciliation agreement with Turkey, which aims to end years of tensions between the two once-close allies.
Several petitions were presented, including one from the far-right Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Strength) party.
“The petitioners did not successfully demonstrate that there are exceptional circumstances in this case to merit intervention in the reconciliation agreement,” Justice Uri Shoham says in his ruling on the petitions, Walla reports.
In Bulgaria, Rivlin lauds ‘steadfast friendship, fruitful cooperation’
President Reuven Rivlin tells his Bulgarian counterpart Rosen Plevneliev that Israel is proud of the “steadfast friendship and fruitful cooperation” between the two nations, as he embarks on a state visit to Sofia.
After viewing a honor guard, the two heads of state meet at the President’s Residence on the strong ties between the two countries and how to expand cooperation. Plevneliev updates Rivlin on the investigation into the 2012 terror attack in Burgas that killed five Israeli tourists and wounded dozens more.
“We must all stand strong together and say in a loud and clear voice that above all else, we will fight terrorism and its supporters in any place they may try and reach and in every place they will attempt to hide,” Rivlin tells reports at a joint press conference following their meeting.
Plevneliev adds: “In our hearts we will always remember the tragedy of the 2012 attack in Burgas. The two countries are doing their best since then so this tragedy may never to repeat itself. Bulgaria will do its utmost to bring to justice the perpetrators of this attack.”
President Reuven Rivlin and Bulgarian counterpart Rosen Plevneliev view an honor guard in Sofia, Bulgaria on July 7, 2016. (Photo by Haim Zach/GPO)
Father and son who committed suicide hours apart are named
The father and son who died in separate suicides hours apart are named as Haim Ben-Hur and Ron Ben-Hur, respectively.
Ron Ben-Hur took his own life in his home near the Ma’ale Adumim settlement, while his father, who was head of security at Ma’ale Adumim, killed himself after learning of his child’s death.
The two will be buried at 11:30 tonight, Channel 2 reports.
May, Leadsom in final round to be Britain’s next PM
Home Secretary Theresa May and Minister Andrea Leadsom are the last two in the contest for Britain’s next prime minister, an official says.
Michael Gove, the fervently pro-Brexit justice secretary, is knocked out in today’s voting, winning just 46 votes from Conservative MPs. May pulls in 199 votes, putting her in the lead and solidifying her place as favorite, and Leadsom gets 84 votes.
Whichever candidate wins, Britain is on course to have its first woman prime minister since Conservative leader Margaret Thatcher stepped down in 1990.
No double standard in Clinton probe, FBI chief tells House
Summoned before Congress and aggressively questioned by Republicans, FBI Director James Comey strongly defends the government’s decision to not prosecute Hillary Clinton over her private email setup. He says there was no evidence that she knew that anything she was doing was against the law or had lied to federal investigators.
Comey’s appearance before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee marks his first public statements since an FBI announcement that removed the threat of criminal charges against the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, but also revived public scrutiny of her handling of classified information.
Comey rejects the suggestion from a number of Republicans of a double standard for charging everyday people accused of crimes as opposed to high-level people like Clinton.
“I’ve heard it a lot,” he says. “It’s not true, but I’ve heard it a lot.”
— AP
PM says he held talks with leader of Muslim nation in Africa
Netanyahu tells Israeli reporters in Addis Ababa that he spoke earlier this week with the leader of a Muslim nation in Africa with which Israel does not have diplomatic ties.
The PM says conversation took place on the sidelines of an Israeli-African summit in Uganda, which was attended by Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Tanzania. One of the leaders present at the summit took made the introduction between the two leaders.
Netanyahu does not say to which country he is referring, but adds that Israel has many contacts with states that do not have formal ties with Israel, but do seek closer cooperation.
— Raphael Ahren
Jared Kushner ‘under fire from family’ for defense of Trump
Donald Trump’s Jewish son-in-law Jared Kushner has reportedly incurred the ire of his own family for invoking his grandparents’ story of survival in the Holocaust to defend the GOP candidate from accusations of anti-Semitism.
“I have a different take-away from my Grandparents’ experience in the war,” writes his cousin Mark Kushner on Facebook in a blurb accompanying a link to Jared’s op-ed in defense of his wife Ivanka’s father. “It is our responsibility as the next generation to speak up against hate. Anti-semitism or otherwise.”
But, according to Politico, another relative was less diplomatic.
“When an out of touch with reality nominee hires an out of touch with reality campaign manager, who is also a son-in-law, you get the BS Jared wrote,” says cousin Jacob Schulder. “That my grandparents have been dragged into this is a shame. Thank you Jared for using something sacred and special to the descendants of Joe and Rae Kushner to validate the sloppy manner in which you’ve handled this campaign… for the sake of the family name, which may have no meaning to you but still has meaning to others, please don’t invoke our grandparents in vain just so you can sleep better at night. It is self serving and disgusting.”
Parts of doomed EgyptAir flight wash up on Israeli beach
Parts of the EgyptAir passenger jet that crashed on May 19 are believed to have washed up on the beach in Netanya, authorities say.
The sections of the plane appeared on the shoreline this morning, and Israel has informed France, from where the plane departed, and Egypt of the discovery.
Netanyahu has instructed the relevant bodies to communicate with Egypt in order to hand over the sections of the plane, perhaps as soon as tomorrow, the Prime Minister’s Office says.
Egyptians light candles during a candlelight vigil for the 66 victims of the EgyptAir MS804 flight that crashed in the Mediterranean Sea, at the Cairo Opera House in the Egyptian capital on May 26, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / KHALED DESOUKI)
Duma attack defendant granted house arrest
One of the defendants in the firebombing of a Palestinian home that killed three members of the same family is being granted house arrest, Channel 2 says.
Palestinians look at the damage after a house was set on fire and a baby killed, allegedly by Jewish terrorists, in the West Bank village of Duma, on July 31, 2015. (AFP/Jaafar Ashtiyeh)
Lod District Court made the decision over the objections of prosecutors, Chanbnel 2 says, on the grounds that the defendant is a minor and house arrest is preferable to jail, despite the severity of the case.
The July 31 attack in the West Bank village of Duma killed Riham and Saad Dawabshe and their 18-month-old baby boy, Ali, and caused shock waves across Israel. The surviving son, 5-year-old Ahmad, is being treated in an Israeli hospital for severe burns.
The minor is on trial along with 21-year-old settler Amiram Ben-Uliel.
Germany arrests Pakistani man spying for Iran on Israel-supporter
A Pakistani man is arrested in Germany on suspicion of spying for Iran, with his target being the former head of a group that promotes German-Israeli relations.
Federal prosecutors say the 31-year-old, identified only as Syed Mustufa H. in keeping with German privacy rules, was arrested Tuesday in the northern city of Bremen.
They say in a statement that he was “in contact with an intelligence unit attributed to Iran,” without elaborating. He is alleged to have spied on the former head of the German-Israeli Society and people close to him, among others, and handed over information to Iran in October.
The ex-head of the German-Israeli group, former lawmaker Reinhold Robbe, tells Bild newspaper that he isn’t surprised by the alleged espionage and he “will not be intimidated.”
— AP
Israeli band A-Wa gets a Rolling Stone profile
Rolling Stone magazine profiles Israeli band A-Wa, hailing the three sisters’s “blend of darbuka drums, catchy harmonies and hip-hop electronics that deftly and happily transcends the complicated history of Arab-Jewish relations in their home country.”
Tair Haim, the eldest of the three, tells the magazine about the family history, cultural influences and the impact of growing up in their own “little house on the prairie” in southern Israel.
Prosecutors, witnesses in Hebron soldier trial get extra security
Prosecutors in the manslaughter trial of an IDF soldier for shooting dead an incapacitated Palestinian attacker are given extra security in light of threats against them, Channel 2 reports.
Elor Azaria is on trial for killing Abdel Fattah al-Sharif in Hebron in March, while the latter lay on the ground having already been shot by soldiers as he carried out an attack a short time earlier.
Four soldiers summoned to give evidence in the trial are also granted security after they express fear for their own safety, the report says.
The trial of Azaria has divided Israel, and in the face of strong condemnation of his actions by top military brass, the former defense minister, and the IDF chief of staff, far-right supporters and some politicians have accused the defense establishment of abandoning one of its own.
Pipe bombs hurled at Rachel’s Tomb
Multiple pipe bombs are thrown at Tomb of Rachel on the outskirts of the West Bank city of Bethlehem, police say.
No damage or injuries are reported.
A police sapper is en route to the site to check for any unexploded devices.
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