Police seek to enlist Netanyahu confidant as state witness — report

Netanyahu speaks to French president about Lebanon, Iran

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks on the phone with French President Emmanuel Macron, who updates him on talks he’s been having about the conflict in Lebanon, according to a readout from the Prime Minister’s Office.

During the conversation — which the PMO said lasted half an hour and came at Macron’s request — the two men decided they would speak again in the coming days and meet in Paris next month.

“Netanyahu and Macron also spoke about the nuclear deal with Iran, Iran’s efforts to establish itself and Syria, and its [other] actions in the region,” the PMO says.

Arab League meets to discuss Iran’s regional ‘violations’

Arab foreign ministers gather in Cairo at Saudi Arabia’s request for an extraordinary meeting to discuss alleged “violations” committed by Iran in the region.

The Arab League meeting comes as tensions have been rising between longstanding rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran, including over League member Lebanon.

Sunni Muslim powerhouse Saudi Arabia and Iran, the predominant Shiite power, have for decades stood on opposing sides of conflicts in the Middle East including in Syria and Yemen.

A diplomatic source says Riyadh is seeking to adopt a condemnation of “Iran and Arab militias linked to this country.”

A committee is to prepare a draft resolution on Iran to be discussed later by all ministers.

The meeting is also expected to address a Yemen rebel missile that was intercepted near Riyadh on November 4, and a pipeline fire in Bahrain on November 10.

— AFP

American-Israeli car-ramming victim disappointed Rivlin didn’t call

An American-Israeli man injured in a car-ramming attack in the West Bank on Friday laments not having received any inquiry from an Israeli official regarding his well-being, despite having received a call from an American representative “on behalf of President Donald Trump.”

David Ramati tells The Times of Israel that while he received a call from US Deputy Consul General in Jerusalem Mike Hankey wishing him a speedy recovery, “nobody from [President Reuven] Rivlin’s office called to see if I was even alive.”

The 70-year-old was released from the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem today, two days after he sustained a head wound and two broken vertebrae when a Palestinian terrorist ran him over at the Efrat South Junction.

Ramati says that Hankey also thanked him for his service in the US Marine Corps.

“It’s sad that American officials reached out, but the government here in Jerusalem says nothing,” he says.

A spokesman from Rivlin’s office says the president only landed back in Israel from Los Angeles as Shabbat started, and intends to reach out to Ramati in the near future.

— Jacob Magid

Rivlin commutes sentence of man who killed his rapist

President Rivlin commutes the sentence of a man convicted of killing his rapist and sentenced in 2013 to 20 years in prison.

Yonatan Heilo, who has long fought for early release, will be able to come before the parole board after Rivlin reduced his sentence to 10 years and eight months.

In 2016, at the recommendation of the Justice Ministry, Rivlin turned down Hailu’s request for a full pardon.

Heilo was originally convicted of murdering Yaron Eilin, who repeatedly raped, robbed and blackmailed him over a period of several months in 2010.

However, in 2016, following an appeal, the Supreme Court softened Heilo’s murder conviction, instead finding him guilty of manslaughter and reducing his term from 20 years to 12.

Zimbabwe ruling party recalling Mugabe as chief

Zimbabwe’s ruling party Central Committee has begun recalling President Robert Mugabe as party leader and replacing him with recently fired Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

The emergency meeting is also recalling first lady Grace Mugabe as head of the women’s league “forever.” The motion is yet to be formalized but will be complete shortly.

— AP

IDF finds driver’s negligence caused deadly truck crash

An IDF investigation into a July accident in which two soldiers were killed finds no evidence of systemic failure that would have caused the crash, but does uncover a number of unrelated issues in the military’s fleet of trucks.

On July 13, the truck in which soldiers Ya’akov Twati, 35, and Habtamu Abebe, 19, were driving flipped while traveling along a highway in southern Israel.

According to the military, “no technical or maintenance issue was found” with the truck, and the soldiers were properly trained on how to operate the vehicle.

“The investigating team determined that the truck overturned as a result of driving that was inappropriate for the road conditions,” the army said in a statement.

However, the investigation, whose conclusions were presented to IDF chief Gadi Eisenkot last month and then shown to the families of the deceased soldiers, finds a number of problems with the military’s trucks.

Systems that are meant to assist drivers, like Mobileeye, were apparently disconnected from some trucks. The training of reservist drivers was also found to be inadequate.

The army says the issues that came up in the investigation “will be taken care of by the relevant bodies.”

— Judah Ari Gross

13 Palestinian factions to meet in Cairo for reconciliation push

Leading Palestinian political factions are to gather on Tuesday in Cairo to push ahead with reconciliation efforts, despite fundamental disputes ahead of a key December 1 deadline.

The talks come as Palestinians face rising tensions with the United States over the threatened closure of their office in Washington, but this is seen as unlikely to affect the outcome.

Tensions between the two largest Palestinian groups — Fatah and Hamas — have reemerged since they signed a reconciliation deal last month, but delegates hope the meeting of 13 factions could push the bid ahead.

The fate of Hamas’s vast armed wing, however, remains unclear.

— AFP

Ministers vote to close Holot migrant detention center

Ministers vote unanimously to shutter the southern Holot detention center for African migrants within some three months and to step up deportations of what the government calls “infiltrators.”

The decision comes after the High Court of Justice in late August backed Israel’s controversial practice of deporting illegal migrants to third countries — identified in media reports as Rwanda and Uganda — and vetoed the practice of detaining them in Holot until they agree to leave.

“Our policy toward infiltrators is three-staged,” Netanyahu tells ministers at the weekly cabinet meeting. “First stage — stopping them [from coming into the country]. We’ve built a fence and legislated laws that, together, have completely stopped the flood of infiltrators.

“The second stage is deporting them. We’ve deported around 20,000 of the existing infiltrators in different ways. Now it’s the third stage — increased deportations.”

Those who refuse to leave will be jailed.

On Friday, the UN refugee agency expressed “serious concern” over Israel’s plan to deport thousands of African migrants in the coming months.

In a statement, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said it was “seriously concerned by proposals announced yesterday… Under these proposals, Eritreans and Sudanese asylum-seekers and refugees would be compelled to accept relocation to countries in Africa or face imprisonment in Israel.”

Ministers shelve bid to restrain state comptroller

During a debate of a bill that would limit the purview of the state comptroller, Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon and other cabinet members express their opposition, forcing a postponement of a vote on the initiative.

The bill, sponsored by MK Bezalel Smotrich (Jewish Home party), would prevent the comptroller from criticizing the ongoing decision-making process, limiting him to commentary on past decisions and conduct.

According to Hebrew media reports, Kahlon urges a vote on the initiative during the weekly meeting of the Ministerial Committee for Legislation, the cabinet panel for fast-tracking bills, in order to kill the initiative.

But the committee’s chair, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked (Jewish Home), realizing there is no majority for the move, postpones the vote by 30 days.

Syria army, allies said to retake Albu Kamal from IS

The Syrian army and loyalist militiamen retake full control of Albu Kamal from the Islamic State group, according to a military source, ousting the jihadists from their last urban stronghold in Syria.

The military source in Deir Ezzor tells AFP that “Syrian troops and allied forces took full control of Albu Kamal, and are removing mines and explosives left by IS” in the town on the Iraqi border.”

Albu Kamal has changed hands several times, with government forces announcing its capture earlier this month but losing it to a blistering IS counter-attack a week ago.

— AFP

Controversial police media adviser steps down

Lior Horev steps down as media adviser to the Israel Police amid allegations of bias leveled at him by Likud lawmakers, who also accused him of attempting to sway the corruption investigations against the prime minister.

A police spokesperson says that Horev “asked to remove himself from the list of advisers from the Goldfinger Media firm providing services to the Israel Police.

“The head of the police media department approved the request and thanked him for his enormous contribution to the police in the range of fields he dealt with,” the statement adds.

Lior Horev (Flash90)

Horev was targeted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a Facebook post last month criticizing the leaks from the ongoing investigations he is facing.

“Since Lior Horev was appointed to be the police’s external political adviser at the cost of millions [of shekels] of taxpayer money and without a public tender for the position, the illegal leaks have become a tsunami, and the decision to avoid recommendations [for indictment] disappeared as a result,” Netanyahu wrote.

Horev is a veteran political operative who has served as media adviser to a number of high-profile politicians, including Netanyahu’s former ally Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon during the 2015 elections. He was hired by the police as a media adviser in March 2016, a few months after Roni Alsheich was appointed commissioner, to the tune of NIS 800,000 ($228,000) a year.

Despite public outcry at the high salary, including a hearing on the appointment in the Knesset’s Interior Affairs Committee, Horev’s contract was extended by a further three years this March.

At a separate committee meeting two weeks ago, Netanyahu ally MK David Amsalem (Likud) called for Horev to be fired due to a series of tweets criticizing lawmakers on a range of issues.

— Raoul Wootliff

Turkey bans all LGBTQ events across Ankara province

Turkish authorities announce a ban on all LGBTQ cultural events in Ankara province until further notice to “maintain public order.”

The move follows a ban on a festival of German-language gay films in the capital on Thursday, imposed on the grounds it could incite hatred and be at risk from terror attacks.

“Since [Saturday] 18 November and until further notice, all film and theater events, screenings, panels, colloquium, exhibitions, etc… have been banned,” the Ankara administration says on its website.

It argues that LGBTQ events are likely to “provoke reactions within certain segments” of society and says it has issued the ban to “maintain public order.”

But organizers of Thursday’s film festival wanted authorities to instead offer greater protection, denouncing the move as a violation of their constitutional rights.

— AFP

Police grilling Netanyahu on corruption suspicions

Police investigators arrive at the Prime Minister’s Residence in Jerusalem to question Benjamin Netanyahu in a pair of corruption investigations against him.

It is Netanyahu’s sixth questioning session.

Last week Netanyahu was grilled by police for over four hours for the first time since March.

Netanyahu is facing two separate criminal investigations, known as Case 1000 and Case 2000. He has denied wrongdoing in both cases.

Case 1000 revolves around alleged illicit gifts given to Netanyahu and his family by billionaire benefactors, most notably hundreds of thousands of shekels’ worth of cigars and champagne from the Israeli-born Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan.

Case 2000 is examining an alleged clandestine quid-pro-quo deal Netanyahu made with Yedioth Ahronoth publisher and owner Arnon “Noni” Mozes, in which the prime minister was said to have promised Mozes he would hobble Yedioth’s main commercial rival, the freebie Israel Hayom, in exchange for friendlier coverage from Yedioth.

Rivlin turns down Hebron shooter’s pardon request

President Rivlin rejects a request for a pardon by an IDF soldier convicted of manslaughter for killing an incapacitated Palestinian stabber in Hebron last March.

Azaria’s months-long trial and conviction revealed deep rifts in Israeli society, with some hailing him as a hero and others deploring his actions.

Azaria maintained throughout his trial that he shot and killed the attacker, Abdel Fattah al-Sharif, because he feared he was fitted with a bomb.

A military court, however, dismissed the testimony and sentenced him to an 18-month prison term that was later commuted to 14 months by IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot.

Earlier this month, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman urged Rivlin to pardon Azaria, saying it would help “stitch together the rips” in Israeli society.

UN calls on Syria warring sides to stop targeting civilians

The United Nations calls on Syria’s warring sides to stop targeting civilians in the capital Damascus and nearby neighborhoods, where escalating bombardment has killed dozens in recent days.

Rebel groups and regime forces are locked in a cycle of tit-for-tat attacks around Damascus and in the opposition-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta.

UN coordinator for humanitarian and development affairs in Syria Ali al-Zaatari calls on “all warring sides to avoid targeting civilians.”

“For days, there have been daily reports about civilians being killed and others being severely wounded, in addition to warehouses, hospitals and schools being put out of service during the exchange of shellfire, particularly in Damascus and Eastern Ghouta,” Zaatari says.

— AFP

Rivlin says pardoning Azaria would have harmed IDF ‘resilience’

Following is the full text of Rivlin’s decision to turn down Elor Azaria’s pardon request, as presented in a letter to Azaria himself:

The President has given his opinion regarding the offenses committed by you and their circumstances, the content of your written application, and all the material and opinions brought before him, and has decided to reject the application.

From examining the material before him, the President learned that in passing sentence, the military court took into account the circumstances raised by you — which appear in part in this pardon request — as consideration of leniency, and noted it took them into account in passing a lighter sentence.

In addition, in September 2017, the Chief of Staff saw fit to further ease your sentence and reduce the punishment by four months from the prison sentence imposed upon you, for reasons of compassion and while taking into consideration your military service as a soldier in the operational arena.

As such, the President concluded that taking all considerations into account and in light of the above, an additional lightening of your sentence would harm the resilience to the Israel Defense Forces and the State of Israel. The values of the Israel Defense Forces, and among them the Purity of Arms, are the core foundation of the strength of the Israel Defense Forces, and have always stood strong for us in the just struggle for our right to a safe, national home, and in the building a robust society.

In his decision, the President took into account the fact that you are expected to face a committee in approximately three months, to consider your release.

Defense minister decries president’s rejection of Azaria pardon

Defense Minister Liberman criticizes Rivlin’s decision to turn down Azaria’s pardon request.

In a statement, he says that while he “appreciates” the president, he wishes to “express sorrow” over the decision.

Rivlin, he continues, “had an opportunity to put an end to this episode, which roiled Israeli society.

“In addition to the personal price paid by the soldier and his family,” he says, it was “in the public’s interest in this unique case to consider also the public interest, the need to mend the rips in Israeli society, and the impact the trial had on IDF soldiers and on youth who are soon to be inducted.”

He concludes by noting that Azaria was “a standout soldier” who killed “a terrorist.”

US Secret Service nabs attempted White House fence jumper

The US Secret Service says an individual has been taken into custody after attempting to jump a security barrier on the Pennsylvania Avenue side of the White House.

US President Donald Trump was inside the White House during this morning’s incident.

The Secret Service tweets at about 8 a.m. that someone tried to jump a row of metal bike racks that are being used to create a second row of fencing outside the executive mansion.

Those racks were installed in response to a series of fence-jumping incidents in recent years, including a man who made it into the White House in 2014.

Pedestrians are briefly barred from walking in front of the White House during the incident.

The Secret Service doesn’t immediately provided more details.

— AP

Bennett calls Azaria’s mother, says he ‘regrets’ pardon nixed

Education Minister Naftali Bennett also criticizes Rivlin for turning down Azaria’s pardon request.

In a phone conversation with the Hebron shooter’s mother, Oshra, he says, “I regret the decision to not pardon Elor.

“Give Elor and [his father] Charlie my love. We have no other country and we cannot despair. We must hold our heads high and be strong.”

Saudi wants resolute anti-Iran stand from Arab League

Saudi Arabia asks fellow Arab nations to take a “serious and honest” stand against Iran, saying that showing leniency toward Tehran will only encourage it to press on with its “aggression” and “meddling” in the internal affairs of Arab countries.

Addressing a meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir says the pan-Arab organization needs to make a decision to be “non-compromising” in dealing with Iran. He cites a ballistic missile fired by Iranian-backed rebels in Yemen earlier this month that was intercepted near the Saudi capital, Riyadh, as an example of how far Iran has gone with its aggressive policy in the region.

“Showing leniency toward Iran will not leave any Arab capital safe from those ballistic missiles,” he says. “We are obliged today to take a serious and honest stand… to counter these belligerent policies so that we can protect our security,” said Al-Jubeir.

He says his country was targeted by a total of 80 ballistic missiles fired by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Shiite rebels, since the kingdom in 2015 led a coalition to fight them alongside the internationally recognized government there.

Saudi Arabia, he adds, will not stand idly by in the face of Iran’s “blatant aggression.”

Arab diplomats say a Saudi draft resolution put forward to the Arab ministers is proposing a declaration of solidarity with the kingdom and stating Arab support for actions it might take to safeguard its national security in the face of Tehran’s policies. The diplomats speak on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to brief the media.

The Saudi draft also includes a warning to Iran against continuing its present policies in the region and orders Arab diplomats to request a meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss what it called Iranian “threats,” add the diplomats.

The draft appears to be in sync with Saudi Arabia’s hardening of its rhetoric against Iran since the Yemeni rebels, known as Houthis, fired that missile on November 4. Along with that attack, the resolution cited the bombing of an oil pipeline in Bahrain also this month as an example of Iran’s threat to regional security.

— AP

IDF strikes Syrian position for second time in 2 days

An IDF tank again strikes a Syrian position operating in what is supposed to be a demilitarized zone along the border, the army says.

“The Syrian Armed Forces violated the 1974 cease fire agreement by conducting construction work in order to strengthen a military post in the northern part of the demilitarized zone between Syria and Israel,” the army says in a statement.

“In response, the IDF fired a warning shot towards the area using a tank.”

It is the second such attack by the IDF in two days.

— Judah Ari Gross

Zimbabwe’s Mugabe set to address nation on live TV

Zimbabwe’s state-run broadcaster says longtime President Robert Mugabe will address the nation shortly amid pressure to resign, after nearly four decades in power.

The announcement comes hours after the ruling party’s Central Committee fired Mugabe as party leader and said if he didn’t resign as the country’s president by noon Monday, it would start impeachment proceedings.

— AP

Ultra-Orthodox block roads, train in Jerusalem in protest of draft

Ultra-Orthodox activists block Sarei Israel Street in Jerusalem and disrupt light rail service in protest of the IDF draft.

A police spokesperson says units “are mobilized in area as in order to respond to any incidents.”

The spokesperson says “a number of roads have been blocked” and there are “disruptions to the light railway in Jerusalem.”

Police seek to enlist Netanyahu confidant as state witness — report

Police reportedly offer attorney David Shimron, a longtime close adviser and attorney to Prime Minister Netanyahu, to turn state’s witness in Case 3000, the investigation into suspected corruption in the purchase of military submarines from a German company.

According to the Hadashot news (formerly Channel 2), Shimron has so far resisted the offer, which police put on the table in the hope that he could implicate “very senior” figures.

Netanyahu, who is also Shimron’s cousin, has not been named as a suspect in the case.

Police arrest 10 ultra-Orthodox protesters in Jerusalem

Police say officers at the scene of ultra-Orthodox demonstrations in Jerusalem have arrested at least 10 protesters, who were obstructing traffic at the corner of Jaffa Road and Nordau Street.

Meanwhile, protests are also taking place in the Jerusalem suburb of Beit Shemesh, which features a large ultra-Orthodox community.

Mugabe ‘agrees to resign’ — source close to presidency

Zimbabwean President Mugabe has agreed to resign, a source close to the presidency tells AFP, as his authoritarian 37-year reign petered out within days of a military takeover.

“Yes, he has agreed to resign,” the source says after Mugabe’s expected television address to the nation is delayed.

Barak: ‘Noose tightening’ in Netanyahu investigations

Former prime minister Ehud Barak goes after Netanyahu on Twitter, predicting that the investigations against him will force him to step down.

“A sixth investigations. The noose continues to tighten. The defenses are crumbling,” he tweets, referring to the prime minister’s interrogation this evening.

“[Netanyahu’s] inner circle will probably stand trial. Bibi’s career will end in indictments.”

Barak goes on to say that the Israel Police’s “integrity” will keep Netanyahu from talking his way out of a trial.

“When it came to [Ehud] Olmert, Bibi himself asserted that a prime minister cannot function while under criminal investigations. It’s time for him to practice what he preached and go home.”

Last week, Barak gave testimony to investigators examining suspected corruption in Israel’s purchase of submarines from a German shipbuilder.

He served as defense minister under Netanyahu when the submarines were purchased, and, controversially, he and Netanyahu ordered a sixth submarine against the advice of then-chief of staff Benny Gantz.

Neither Netanyahu nor Barak has been named as a suspect in that affair.

The prime minister is a suspect in two other cases involving suspected illicit gifts and a quid-pro-quo deal with a newspaper editor.

Netanyahu proclaims his innocence after another interrogation

Netanyahu emerges after an interrogation session that lasted over four hours and tweets a refrain he has often resorted to when professing his innocence:

“Tonight, too, I am completely certain: There will be nothing because there was nothing!”

Mugabe ends TV speech without resigning

Zimbabwe’s Mugabe concludes a live TV speech without resigning as expected.

He ends with the words, “I thank you and good night.”

The state-run broadcaster introduced Mugabe’s speech by saying, “Sit back, relax and join us.”

Ruling party leaders have told him to step aside by noon Monday or face impeachment.

— Agencies

Lapid vows to ‘hit the streets’ if Netanyahu indicted but doesn’t quit

Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid says he’ll lead mass protests in the event Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is indicted and does not resign.

“If Netanyahu is indicted and does not quit, we’ll hit the streets,” says Lapid during the weekly Yesh Atid faction meeting.