ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 534
Adiv Sterman is a breaking news editor at The Times of Israel.
The Times of Israel liveblogged Tuesday’s events as they unfolded.
Security forces say they caught a Palestinian woman who planned to carry out a stabbing attack in Jerusalem.
Police say they were suspicious of the woman, and stopped her for questioning. They discovered a screwdriver in her belongings and transferred her to a nearby security facility for further interrogation.
During questioning, the woman admitted she had intended to carry out a stabbing attack, police add.
The presidents of Israel’s eight research universities call on an American organization to refrain from moving forward with plans to boycott Israeli academics.
In a letter, the group says the American Anthropological Association’s resolution to boycott Israel is “absurd” and aims to “incite and introduce hatred and racism” into Israeli academia.
The association supported the motion last month at its annual meeting, and it will soon come up for a vote among all its 12,000 members. If it passes, the association will be the largest organization to adopt an academic boycott of Israel.
The initiative is backed by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which aims to protest Israeli policies toward the Palestinians but which Israeli universities accuse of spreading lies and slander about the country.
— AP
A 29-year-old man is arrested in the Paris region as part of a vast investigation into last month’s attacks on the city that left 130 dead, a judicial source says.
The probe has seen 2,700 police raids and 360 people placed under house arrest since the attacks by the Islamic State group, which triggered a nationwide state of emergency.
Two men are already in custody, accused of providing accommodation to Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the suspected ringleader who was killed in a major police raid in northern Paris five days after the attacks.
This undated image made available in the Islamic State’s English-language magazine Dabiq, shows Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who was identified by French authorities as the presumed mastermind of the terror attacks in Paris on November 13, 2015. (Photo via AP)
Eight men have been arrested in Belgium, where the attacks are thought to have been organized, and one man has been detained in Turkey on suspicion of scouting the concert hall, bars and restaurants where the attacks took place.
Six counter-terrorism judges are overseeing the investigation — an unprecedented number for France.
But three of the nine attackers have yet to be identified, including two of the three suicide bombers who blew themselves up outside the Stade de France stadium, who appear to have used fake passports to sneak into Europe posing as refugees.
The other unidentified man is thought to have taken part in the gun attacks on the terraces of restaurants and bistros and died alongside Abaaoud in the shootout with police on November 18.
Salah Abdeslam, a 26-year-old French citizen thought to have played a key logistical role, is still on the run and subject to an international arrest warrant.
Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said a total of 334 people had been arrested since the attacks, of whom 287 were held for questioning, and that over 400 weapons had been seized.
— AFP
Two people are wounded in apparent stabbings allegedly committed by the same person at two different construction sites in the city of Modiin, police say.
The suspected stabber flees the area, and police are searching for him. The motive for the stabbings is unclear.
One of the injured individuals, a 28-year-old man, is transferred to the Tel Hashomer Medical Center for treatment of wounds sustained in his upper body. The second wounded man, 50, was treated at the scene for injuries to his upper body as well.
Police are investigating the incident.
Ramallah-based Palestinian TV station Wattan says Hamas authorities in the Gaza Strip sentence a 50-year-old man to death by hanging for “collaborating” with Israel.
According to the report, the man’s son, a 27-year-old, is sentenced to 15 years in prison on charges of espionage and treason.
The Palestinian Ma’an News Agency adds that Hamas claims the defendants were associated with the “Israeli occupation” since 2007.
Police arrest 45 residents of the ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods of Mea Shearim in Jerusalem and Ramat Beit Shemesh in Beit Shemesh for allegedly engaging in drug trafficking and illegal weapons sales.
A police agent, an ultra-Orthodox man himself, worked undercover on the case for the past two years.
סוכן חרדי חשף רשת של סחר בסמים ונשקים במאה שערים https://t.co/DjSGHbt1M3 pic.twitter.com/cZjqjA9NOO
— סקופים רוטר.נט (@RotterNews) December 15, 2015
The agent says he bought dozens of kilograms of drugs, as well as weapons and stolen vehicle parts, from the suspects over the two-year period, Israel Radio reports.
The UN voices deep concern over an “unacceptable” wave of Palestinians attacking Israelis, but also slammed Israeli authorities for “excessive use of force” in response to the attacks.
“We continue to be gravely concerned at the unrelenting violence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and in Israel,” Cecile Pouilly, spokeswoman for the UN human rights office, tells reporters.
“We call on both Israeli and Palestinian leaders to act decisively to de-escalate the situation,” she adds.
Since October 1, almost daily attacks by Palestinians and clashes with Israeli soldiers have killed 117 on the Palestinian side, 21 Israelis, an American and an Eritrean, and thousands more have been injured, she says.
Israeli security forces gather at the site where a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli near the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron, on December 7, 2015. (AFP/Hazem Bader)
Many of the Palestinians killed have been attackers, while others have been shot dead by Israeli security forces during clashes.
Pouilly warns that although international attention appeared to be waning, “the level of killings, injuries and arrests has continued, with an average of one person dying every day.”
“The unacceptable wave of stabbings, shootings and car rammings continues to kill and injure Israelis,” she says, warning though that “the response from Israeli security forces has resulted in alleged attackers, protesters and even bystanders being killed and injured.”
She points out that in the H2 area of Hebron alone, 16 of the 17 Palestinians allegedly involved in attacks against Israelis since October 1 were shot dead, while one had been injured and arrested.
“We again voice deep concern over reports of excessive use of force by Israeli forces,” Pouilly says.
— AFP
A 39-year-old Palestinian man is arrested in connection with an attack on two workers at construction sites in Modiin earlier today.
Police are investigating whether the suspected attack was nationalistically motivated.
Two people were wounded in attacks allegedly committed by the same person, police say.
One of the injured individuals, a 28-year-old man, was transferred to the Tel Hashomer Medical Center for treatment of wounds sustained in his upper body. The second wounded man, 50, was treated at the scene for injuries to his upper body as well.
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon says there is still not enough evidence to try the Jewish extremists suspected of firebombing a Palestinian home in July, killing a toddler and both his parents.
Israel has come under heavy pressure to try those responsible for the deadly arson, with rights groups questioning the delay in the case and contrasting it to the swift reaction often following Palestinian attacks.
Ya’alon tells Army Radio that Israel is determined to bring those responsible to trial, adding that he considered the arson “a Jewish terrorist act.”
Inside the Dawabsha home in Duma. A doll wrapped in a Palestinian flag rests in a stroller to honor Ali. (Eric Cortellessa/Times of Israel)
But he also says evidence was still lacking nearly five months after the July 31 firebombing in the village of Duma in the West Bank despite the recent arrests of suspects in the case.
“We know who is responsible for this terrorist act, but do not have enough proof yet to try them,” he says.
— AFP
A 39-year-old Palestinian man arrested in connection with an attack on two workers at construction sites in Modiin earlier today committed the act for nationalistic motives, police say.
Two people were wounded in attacks allegedly committed by the same person, police say.
One of the injured individuals, a 28-year-old man, was transferred to the Tel Hashomer Medical Center for treatment of wounds sustained in his upper body. The second wounded man, 50, was treated at the scene for injuries to his upper body as well.
Police originally thought the alleged attack was carried out with a knife, but later reports state that the suspect assaulted the two men with a large metal bar.
A top secret document containing very sensitive information was stolen over the weekend from the vehicle of a high ranking IDF officer, the army says.
The officer was investigated and is now suspended until further notice, Channel 2 reports.
The officer’s lawyer declined to comment on the incident.
US Defense Secretary Ash Carter says he is looking forward to learning more about what Saudi Arabia has in mind for the creation of a new 34-nation counter terrorism alliance based in Riyadh.
Carter tells reporters during a visit to Incirlik Air Base in Turkey that he would like to talk to the Saudis and learn more specifics of the plan.
“In general, at least, it appears that it’s very much aligned with something that we’ve been urging for quite some time, which is greater involvement in the campaign to combat ISIL by Sunni Arab countries,” he says, using an acronym for the Islamic State group.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2015, before the Senate Armed Service Committee. (AP/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
A senior defense official said the US did not know in advance about the formation of an Islamic military alliance to fight terrorism, but officials were working to find out the details.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
— AP
Education Minister Naftali Bennett will convene an urgent discussion on allowing lefty NGO Breaking the Silence members to lecture in schools.
Defense Minister Ya’alon condemned Breaking the Silence on Sunday night, arguing that the group — which documents alleged abuses by IDF soldiers against Palestinians — has “malicious motives.”
Ya’alon said he banned the left-wing group from any events attended by Israeli soldiers, and said past attempts to work with the organization to investigate and verify claims of misconduct concluded that the allegations against the military were groundless.
Illustrative photo of a lecture by a member of Breaking the Silence. (Gili Getz)
Ya’alon’s condemnation came a day after a public uproar by right-wing activists over President Reuven Rivlin’s speech at the Haaretz conference in New York, at which members of the Breaking the Silence organization were also scheduled to appear. Dozens of IDF reservists gathered outside Rivlin’s residence on Saturday to protest his participation in the conference.
All public schools in the Los Angeles area are ordered closed due to a threat.
School district spokeswoman Ellen Morgan announces the closure but releases no further details ahead of a press conference at district headquarters.
The district, the second largest in the US, has 640,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade and more than 900 schools and 187 public charter schools.
The district spans 720 square miles (1,866 square kilometers) including Los Angeles and all or part of more than 30 smaller cities and some unincorporated areas.
— AP
A federal prosecutor asks an Argentine court to reopen the complaint filed by the late special prosecutor Alberto Nisman charging that former president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner covered up Iran’s role in the 1994 AMIA Jewish center bombing.
The prosecutor, Raul Plee, files a request to reopen the case with the Federal Criminal Cassation Court.
On Monday, just after the new government voided the Argentine pact with Iran to jointly investigate the AMIA attack, Plee asked the justices to analyze new information collected during the case about the unconstitutionality of the Iran memorandum with an eye toward reviving Nisman’s theory that the pact was a bid to cover up Iran’s role in the bombing.
The prosecutor asked that the secret and confidential files be sent to prosecutor Gerardo Pollicita and to the judge, Daniel Rafecas. Pollicita was the prosecutor who took over Nisman’s accusation after his death and presented it to the court in February. Rafecas dismissed the accusation, saying it could not be sustained by the evidence.
Alberto Nisman (Natacha Pisarenko/AP)
Nisman was found dead on January 18, hours before he was to present his allegations to Congress against Kirchner, Timerman and others. Whether his shooting death was murder or self-inflicted has yet to be determined.
— JTA
Leading nations of the UN nuclear agency approve a resolution that ends a decade-long probe of allegations that Iran worked on atomic arms.
The probe had to be formally closed as part of an Iran-six nation nuclear deal crimping present Iranian nuclear programs that could be used to make such weapons in exchange for sanctions relief for Tehran.
The move by the 35-nation board of the International Atomic Energy Agency comes after last month’s IAEA assessment that Iran worked in the past on elements of a nuclear weapon.
An EU statement reflects the will to move on among board members. Unlike previous EU statements, it avoids criticism of Iran, saying only “we note” the IAEA conclusion.
— AP
The French air force uses its first cruise missiles against Islamic State group targets in Iraq, the ministry of defense says.
“Launched from the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, the raid was made up of a dozen fighter planes equipped with cruise missiles and bombs,” the French ministry says in a statement.
— AFP
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes US Secretary of State John Kerry to the Kremlin and begins talks on efforts to halt the Syrian civil war.
“Together, we’re looking for ways out of the most urgent crises,” Putin tells Kerry, adding that he was looking forward to discussing a “whole range of issues” with him.
— AFP
Turkey’s state-run news agency says police have detained a Syrian Islamic State member suspected of planning a suicide attack against the US Consulate in Istanbul.
Anadolu Agency says the man was detained in Kahramanmaras, a province close to the border with Syria. It didn’t cite a source for the report.
The US Consulate was closed down last week over an unspecified threat. Unconfirmed Turkish news reports had said the closure was related to intelligence that an IS militant planning attacks had crossed into Syria from Turkey.
— AP
Human rights organization B’Tselem calls to allow three individuals suspected of firebombing a Palestinian home in July to meet with their attorneys.
B’Tselem also urges authorities to investigate the suspects “without abuse or use of prohibited interrogation methods.”
The suspects, all of whom were arrested by the Shin Bet security service within the last month, have been denied legal counsel since the time of their arrest at the recommendation of the security service on the grounds it would obstruct their ongoing investigation and possibly thwart additional arrests of suspects believed to be involved in the yet to be named incident.
Saad and Riham Dawabsha, with baby Ali. All three died when the Dawabsha home in the West Bank village of Duma was firebombed, by suspected Jewish extremists, on July 31, 2015 (Channel 2 screenshot)
The Supreme Court on Sunday ruled that the three should be prevented from meeting with their lawyers due to the nature of the investigation and the severity of the crimes they are charged with.
Suspected Jewish extremists torched the Dawabsha home on July 31 while the family slept. Ali Dawabsha, the family’s 18-month old son, died in the attack; his parents, Saad and Riham, succumbed to their injuries in Israeli hospitals in the aftermath of the attack.
A federal judge calls on the US Parole Commission to explain why it has imposed such strict conditions on Jonathan Pollard’s parole.
Judge Katherine Forrest of the US District Court in Manhattan sends the Pollard case back to the commission for further review. The decision comes in response to an appeal of the parole conditions filed by attorneys for Pollard, who was released last month after spending 30 years in a federal prison for spying for Israel.
The restrictive conditions for Pollard’s five-year parole include wearing an electronic ankle bracelet with GPS tracking and surveillance of his and any employer’s computers. He also is confined to his New York home between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. — a condition, Pollard’s attorneys argue, that has interfered with his ability to observe the Jewish Sabbath and certain holidays, and could preclude him from holding down a job.
— JTA
An Israeli man is lightly wounded by stones hurled at his car near the northern West Bank settlement of Mevo Dotan.
Security forces are searching the area for suspects.
The testing of a ballistic missile by Iran on October 10 was capable of delivering a nuclear warhead, a team of sanctions monitors say in a confidential new report, according to Reuters.
If true, the missile test violates a UN Security Council resolution.
Screen capture of the last launch of an Iranian missile, October 10, 2015. (YouTube/PressTV News Videos)
“On the basis of its analysis and findings the Panel concludes that Emad launch is a violation by Iran of paragraph 9 of Security Council resolution 1929,” the panel says in its report.
“The Panel assesses that the launch of the Emad [missile] has a range of not less than 1,000 km with a payload of at least 1,000 kg and that Emad was also a launch ‘using ballistic missile technology’,” the report adds.
The Foreign Ministry slams the International Atomic Energy Agency’s decision to close a long-running probe into Iran’s past efforts to develop nuclear weapons, removing an important obstacle to implementing July’s landmark deal with big powers.
The ministry says Iran has conducted a coordinated effort to develop a nuclear explosive device, including activities taking place after 2003.
Education Minister Naftali Bennett decides not to allow activists of the NGO Breaking the Silence to lecture in Israeli schools.
“Our children are sent to the education system to encourage mutual responsibility, not to attack IDF soldiers,” Bennett says.
A police officer who shot a 16-year-old Palestinian teenager who carried out a stabbing attack with a pair of scissors in Jerusalem along with her 14-year-old cousin several weeks ago will not be prosecuted, police say.
The investigation was opened following a decision by the attorney general after claims surfaced that officer shot the stabber while she no longer posed any danger.
The officer said he fired at the teenager because he believed that she was still capable of further attacking civilians.
Russia’s military says it has cooperated with Syrian opposition forces in the fight against the Islamic State group.
Sergei Rudskoi of the General Staff of the Russian military says that more than 150 Syrian opposition units totaling some 5,000 fighters have cooperated with the Syrian army and Russian airforce to fight the IS.
Rudskoi says in televised remarks that members of the “patriotic” Syrian opposition are pinpointing the IS targets for Russian warplanes.
Rudskoi says that Russian aircraft have destroyed more than 1,200 oil tanker trucks operated by the IS.
Rudskoi’s statement followed President Vladimir Putin’s claim that Russia is giving air cover to some units of the Free Syrian Army, a Western-backed opposition group, and is also providing them with weapons, ammunition and supplies.
FSA’s chief of staff has denied receiving Russian weapons.
Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton plans to address Tuesday the need for a “360-degree strategy” to keep the US safe and prevent domestic terror attacks.
In a speech at the University of Minnesota, Clinton will address proactive steps for capping Islamic State recruitment in the US, especially online, and for stopping potential jihadists from training overseas, her campaign said Tuesday, previewing her remarks.
The Democratic hopeful was addressing her counter terrorism strategy hours before Republicans were holding their latest debate in Las Vegas.
In this Dec. 9, 2015, photo, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks during a town hall meeting in Waterloo, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
As President Barack Obama’s former secretary of state, Clinton holds direct ties to the White House’s national security policies and has largely endorsed the president’s approach to dismantling the Islamic State group. Like Obama, Clinton has said she would not send American ground troops to the Middle East, saying it would provide a recruiting tool for IS.
Clinton will also talk about ways to stop foreign fighters from coming to the US, discover and disrupt plots before they can be carried out, work more closely with law enforcement agencies and empower Muslim-American communities, her campaign said.
She sought to reassure Americans that she would keep the homeland safe in the aftermath of high-profile attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California, incidents that have thrust terrorism to the forefront of the presidential campaign.
— AP
Yishai Menuhin, the chairman of the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel files a complaint against right wing NGO Im Tirzu, which portrayed him in a short video as an enemy of the state of Israel.
“It has passed the limit freedom of expression,” Menuhin says.
The right-wing Im Tirzu organization on Tuesday accused leading figures from Israel’s left-wing human rights organizations in a video clip of being “moles” operated by foreign countries to sabotage Israel’s counter-terror efforts.
