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ISRAEL

Ambassador (Ret.) Yoram Ettinger :Congress – the co-equal and systematic ally of Israel

https://bit.ly/3uii0cw

Presidents propose and Congress disposes

On September 23, 2021, the US House of Representatives voted 420:9 to replenish the Israeli-developed defensive “Iron Dome” missiles, which are increasingly manufactured – and eventually exported – by the US defense company Raytheon, that benefits from the battle-tested “Israeli laboratory.”

The overwhelming vote reflects Congressional realization that the “Iron Dome”:  

*Enhances Israel’s posture of deterrence, which is critical to the survival of all pro-US Arab regimes and minimization of regional instability;
*Reduces the need for full-scale Israeli wars on Palestinian and Islamic terrorism;
*Provides an alternative to Israeli military ground-operations against Palestinian terrorists, which would entail substantial Israeli and Palestinian fatalities;
*Represents joint US-Israel interests, militarily and technologically, in the face of mutual threats (e.g., Islamic terrorism) and mutual challenges (e.g., developing world-class, game-changing technologies).  
*Constitutes another example of the systematic support by Congress of enhanced US-Israel cooperation.

The decisive role played by Congress in the replenishment of the “Iron Dome” underscores the cardinal rule of the US political system: The President proposes, but Congress disposes. 

The involvement of Senators and House Representatives in foreign policy and national security-related issues has surged since the Vietnam War, Watergate and Iran Gate scandals, the dismantling of the USSR (which transformed the world from a bi-polar to a multi-polar) and rapidly-expanding globalization.   

Iraq Should Join the Abraham Accords Full relations with Israel would help atone for the infamous act of driving out our Jewish population. By Wisam Al-Hardan

https://www.wsj.com/articles/iraq-abraham-accords-israel-sunni-shiite-11632495291?mod=opinion_lead_pos7

Erbil, Iraq

More than 300 of my fellow Iraqis from Baghdad, Mosul, Al-Anbar, Babel, Salahuddin and Diyala joined me Friday in this northern city, where we issued a public demand for Iraq to enter into relations with Israel and its people through the Abraham Accords.

We are an assembly of Sunnis and Shiites, featuring members of the (Sunni) Sons of Iraq Awakening movement, which I lead, in addition to intellectuals, tribal elders, and youth activists of the 2019-21 protest movement. Some of us have faced down ISIS and al Qaeda on the battlefield. Through blood and tears we have long demonstrated that we oppose all extremists, whether Sunni jihadists or Iran-backed Shiite militias. We have also demonstrated our patriotism: We sacrificed lives for the sake of a unified Iraq, aspiring to realize a federal system of government as stipulated in our nation’s constitution.

Now, in striving to rebuild our country, we commit ourselves to an awakening of peace. Our guiding light is the memory of a more honorable past: a young, modern state with a glorious ancient tradition; a country that, at its finer moments, witnessed a spirit of partnership across ethnic and sectarian lines. Iraq’s subsequent deterioration was marked by the dissipation of tolerance—a casualty of generations of tyranny and fear, imposed first by rulers, then by external actors, as a tool to divide and conquer.

The most infamous act in this tragedy was the mass exodus and dispossession of the majority of our Iraqi Jewish population, a community with 2,600 years of history, in the mid-20th century. Through their forced migration, Iraq effectively cut one of its own principal veins. Yet we draw hope from the knowledge that most Iraqi Jews managed to rebuild their lives, passing their traditions to their children and grandchildren in Israel.

Israeli pipeline company embroiled in conflict over UAE oil deal David Isaac

https://www.jns.org/israeli-pipeline-company-embroiled-in-conflict-over-uae-oil-deal/

An agreement penned a year ago has encountered growing opposition from environmentalist groups and Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection. It was hailed as the first major partnership to come out of the Abraham Accords—a deal in which Israel would serve as an artery for Emirati crude to Western markets. The lucrative deal, reportedly worth hundreds of millions, was inked on Oct. 19, 2020, by Israel’s state-owned Europe Asia Pipeline Co. (EAPC) and MED-RED Land Bridge Ltd., a private Dubai-based company.

An Israeli “land bridge” transporting oil from Eilat on the Red Sea to Ashkelon on the Mediterranean already exists; it has been operating for more than 50 years. In fact, there are two pipelines between the cities: one for crude oil and one for distillates (gasoline, jet fuel, etc.). While the pipeline isn’t new, pumping Arab oil through it is, at least in such a publicly celebrated manner.

“Since the establishment of the state, Israel has been dealing with the Arab boycott and its consequences,” EAPC said in a statement. “These agreements are, in fact, the practical expression of improving relations between the State of Israel and the Gulf states.”

Then-United States Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who was present at the signing, called it a “significant breakthrough that was made possible thanks to the Abraham Accords,” the normalization treaty signed between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain a month earlier.

But the agreement has encountered growing opposition from environmentalist groups and Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection. The Eilat oil terminal is roughly 200 yards from coral beaches. While those favoring the deal focus on its geo-strategic importance, opponents say it poses an unacceptable risk to the coral reefs.

One of the earliest critics was environmentalist group Zalul, which issued a statement immediately after the October 2020 signing, calling the intention to bring more oil tankers to Eilat “a mortal danger.” Zalul then organized a coalition of 20 green groups to fight what they termed “the transformation of Eilat and Ashkelon into oil cities.”

Democrats Can’t Hide Their Israel Problem By Philip Klein

https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/09/democrats-cant-hide-their-israel-problem/#slide-1

Stripping funding for Iron Dome only makes sense if the goal is to help Hamas become more efficient at killing civilians.

F or the past decade or so, top Democrats have been desperately trying to downplay the increasing size and influence of the anti-Israel wing of the party. But it keeps getting harder to hide what’s happening. This week provided yet another stark reminder when a group of progressives banded together to force House speaker Nancy Pelosi to rip $1 billion for Israel’s Iron Dome missile-defense system out of a spending bill meant to avert a government shutdown. It’s hard to overstate what a radical turn this is for the party.

Iron Dome has been an enormously successful shield that has allowed Israel to protect its people by shooting down rockets that Palestinian terrorist groups indiscriminately fire at civilians. By limiting Israeli casualties, the system also protects Palestinian civilians. That is, were the rocket attacks more deadly, Israel would have no choice but to launch a more aggressive military campaign — and likely a ground invasion in Gaza — which would mean the loss of more lives on both sides.

But the life-saving system comes at a cost. Each time Israel intercepts a rocket, it is estimated to cost between $50,000 and $80,000. When Palestinians pursue a saturation-bombing strategy and fire thousands of rockets all over Israel, as they did in May, the price tag of defending civilians can quickly add up, so the system requires constant funding.

There is of course a principled stand one could take against foreign aid in general, or against sending more money overseas at a time when the U.S. is facing historic debt. But progressives are not making any sort of consistent argument against foreign aid and have zero concern for the national debt. If current plans being pushed by progressives pass, then Democrats will have authorized $6 trillion in new spending within the first year of Joe Biden’s presidency. That’s 6,000 times $1 billion.

Iron Dome woes, and Yair Lapid in la-la land By Ruthie Blum   

https://www.jpost.com/opinion/iron-dome-woes-and-yair-lapid-in-la-la-land-opinion-680176
Israel should be deeply concerned by the victory that was achieved on Tuesday by the progressive wing of the US House of Representatives. Rather than making excuses for the removal of a $1 billion provision for Israel’s Iron Dome defense system from a major funding bill, Jerusalem would do well to grasp the significance of the goings-on behind the scenes in Washington.

Unfortunately, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid’s response indicates that the new Israeli government is still clinging to a dangerous fantasy with two related prongs. One is that former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to blame for the “rift” created between the Democratic Party and the Jewish state. The other is that the administration of President Joe Biden is just as pro-Israel, if not more, than its predecessor, headed by Donald Trump.

The irony is inescapable.

In the first place, if anything proves that Bibi isn’t to blame for the radicalization of the American Left and its increasingly open hostility to Israel, it’s the move against the Iron Dome. The maneuver was clearly spearheaded by the so-called Squad, made up of core members Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib, and joined by Jamaa Bowman and Cori Bush.

Thus far, these paragons of progressive virtue have been mum about their role in the Iron Dome issue, but they have been clear from the outset about their agenda in general and their attitude toward Israel in particular. Nor have they hidden their view of Biden as a puppet put in place initially to oust Trump, and then to sit back and not get in their way. This week, they showed that they meant business.

Secondly, Biden’s supposedly stellar record on Israel is irrelevant. He thinks that a Palestinian state is crucial for Mideast peace, and continues to push for a return to the nuclear deal with Iran.

That the anti-Netanyahu crowd in Israel was buoyed by the US president’s meeting with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett at the White House last month is equally beside the point. The little get-together was briefly postponed due to the slaughter of 13 US servicemen and dozens of Afghans in Kabul – thanks to Biden’s hasty retreat and the Taliban’s immediate takeover.

With that debacle in the background, his pledge of “unwavering commitment to Israel’s security,” including “full support [for] replenishing Israel’s Iron Dome system,” rang as hollow as his vow to “ensure Iran never develops a nuclear weapon.”
What really reverberated, however, was the caveat that “we’re putting diplomacy first and seeing where that takes us.”

The Squalid “Squad” Is Trying to Destroy Bipartisan Support for Israel by Alan M. Dershowitz

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/17783/squad-israel-bipartisan-support

The fact that the Squad picked on the Iron Dome to make its stand against Israel is significant. The Iron Dome is a system developed jointly by the United States and Israel that is purely defensive. It does not kill, injure, or threaten anyone. It only protects civilians against war crimes committed by terrorist groups that direct lethal rockets against innocent civilians.

The fact that the Squad would try to deny Israel the right to defend its civilians speaks volumes about the lack of morality and decency among Squad members and their allies.

It follows from this effort that the Squad will oppose any and all aid to Israel, including protecting its innocent civilians against Iran’s nuclear threat. The obvious goal of Squad members is to deny Israel the right to defend itself against aggression. At least one of its members has denied that Israel has the right to exist.

These bigoted actions directly violate the platform of the Democratic Party (as well as that of the Republican Party). The Democratic Party must decide whether it will become captive to its most extreme wing or whether it will marginalize these radicals who are not only anti-Israel but, in many ways, anti-American. They are intolerant of dissent and due process for those who disagree with them. They are anti-police, anti-military, and anti-free market economy.

The time has come, indeed it is long past, for the Democratic leadership to stand strong against the anti-American, anti-Israel and anti-decency squalid Squad. The leadership can no longer stand idly by the bigotry of their members. If they persist in tolerating the intolerable, they will lose the support of the all-important mainstream voters.

The “Squad” is a small group of radical members of the U.S. House of Representatives who run for Congress under the banner of the Democratic Party but do not reflect its mainstream policies. They represent niche districts that are not typical of the Democratic base. They could not be elected in any statewide race, because they lack widespread support. They were nominated because of low turnout in primaries and were elected because their districts are overwhelmingly Democrat. They are fringe Democrats who should not have influence beyond their districts. But the House leadership of the Democratic Party has exaggerated their significance and given them more power than they deserve.

Shooting Down Israel’s Iron Dome Democrats pull funding for missile defenses that save civilian lives.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/shooting-down-israels-iron-dome-missile-defense-democrats-nancy-pelosi-11632261494?mod=opinion_lead_pos4

The Democratic Party still likes to say it supports Israel. But on Tuesday House Democrats stripped from their government funding bill the $1 billion earmarked for Israel’s Iron Dome missile-defense system. Facing a revolt from progressive lawmakers, and with limited time to avert a government shutdown, Speaker Nancy Pelosi buckled.

Democrats say the funding will be included in a defense bill later this year, and the moderates among them may fight for it another day. But why has the party been made to retreat? Iron Dome has enjoyed strong bipartisan support. It is a defensive system that shoots down in midair rockets fired by Hamas and other Iran-backed terrorist groups in the Gaza strip.

Hamas rockets are meant to kill Israeli civilians, but Iron Dome also saves Palestinian lives. When the rocket attacks are futile and Israeli casualties are prevented, there’s less domestic pressure on Israel’s political leaders to escalate their military response. Iron Dome was one big reason the Hamas rocket offensive in the spring did not provoke a costly Israeli ground invasion. The system’s deployment and improvement, with U.S. funding, also helps develop technology that can be used to defend Americans.

Democratic opposition to Iron Dome certainly isn’t motivated by fiscal responsibility. The progressives who put up a fight over the $1 billion are demanding the expenditure of trillions on the welfare state. Funding Iron Dome now would also fulfill President Biden’s promise to replenish Israel’s interceptors after the war with Hamas.

The funding was shot down because a growing number of Democrats oppose anything that would help Israel, even if it promotes peace. Supporters of Israel should take note. If Iron Dome can lose Democratic Party support, then there is nothing pro-Israel that won’t be in jeopardy in Congress.

Islamic terrorism and the Age of the Holocaust Moshe Dann

https://www.jpost.com/opinion/islamic-terrorism-and-the-age-of-the-holocaust-opinion-679731

Shrouded by what is portrayed as a “humanitarian” agenda – “self-determination,” “end the occupation – free Palestine,” “global jihad/intifada,” etc. – radical Islamists promote terrorism and murder.
The 20th century, marked by two world wars and the Holocaust, also saw the advent of the nuclear age and the UN; peace, however, didn’t last long. Regional wars erupted: when the State of Israel was declared, Arab nations invaded in an attempt to wipe it out; backed by Communist China, North Korea invaded South Korea and then North Vietnam invaded South Vietnam.

Many African nations are plagued by civil wars between Islamists and Christians. Afghanistan has been conquered by the Taliban; UNICEF calls Yemen, torn by civil war initiated by Islamists and assisted by Iran, “the largest humanitarian crisis in the world.” Yazidis, an ethnic minority in Iraq, have been slaughtered and enslaved by Islamists. Islamist insurgents in Nigeria have killed around 35,000 people and displaced at least two million in the past decade, driven first by Boko Haram and more recently by its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). Islamist terrorists threaten Mali, Somalia, Sudan and neighboring countries.

This is a third world war. Why is the world silent?

SUKKOT EXPLAINED BY AMB.(RET) YORAM ETTINGER

https://theettingerreport.com/sukkot-feast-of-tabernacles-guide-for-the-perplexed-2021/

Sukkot (September 21-27) Commemorates the Exodus and is named for the first stop during the 40-year-Exodus from Egypt – the town of Sukkot – as documented in Exodus 13:20-22 and Numbers 33:3-5. This holiday underscores the gradual transition from the spiritual state-of-mind during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur to the mundane of the rest of the year. The construction of the Holy Tabernacle, during the Exodus, was launched on the first day of Sukkot (full moon).

Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles, is a national Jewish liberation holiday. It is the 3rd Jewish pilgrimage holiday (following Passover and Shavou’ot – Pentecost), which highlights faith and optimism, commemorating the transition of the Jewish people from bondage in Egypt to liberty and sovereignty in the Land of Israel.
The roots of the Hebrew word Sukkot (סוכות) are wholeness and totality (סכ), shelter (סכך) and attentiveness (סכת). The numerical value of סכך (every Hebrew letter has a numerical value) is 100 (ס=60, כ=20, ך=20), representing the totality/unity of the Jewish people, history, roots, education and legacy.
The 7 days of Sukkot are dedicated to 7 monumental principle-driven leaders, who were compassionate and brave shepherds, representing leadership qualities in the pursuit of ground-breaking initiatives: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron and David. They were endowed with faith, reality-based-optimism, humility, compassion, tenacity in the face of daunting odds, courage and peace-through-strength.

GOOD NEWS FROM AMAZING ISRAEL FROM MICHAEL ORDMAN

www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com

 The new Jewish year 5782 is a Sabbatical year when observant Israeli farmers allow their fields to rest. However, as this newsletter shows, there is certainly no rest for Israeli researchers, medics, scientists, aid volunteers, social activists, inventors, designers, entrepreneurs, writers, musicians, or archaeologists. Michael Ordman

ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
 
Learning from Israel’s Covid boosters. The Chair of UK’s Health and Social Care Select Committee, MP Jeremy Hunt, stated in Parliament that Israel shows that a booster program reduces Covid hospitalizations in just two weeks. Israeli research also shows that the booster gives 10 times more antibodies than the second jab.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/313170
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-research-3rd-vaccine-dose-produces-10-times-more-antibodies-than-2nd/
 
Israeli vaccine gives longer protection. The Brilife vaccine, developed by the Israel Institute for Biological Research, appears to give long-term defense against the coronavirus. The 230 trial volunteers who received the highest dosage of the vaccine were still fully protected six months after vaccination.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/tv-high-dose-of-israeli-made-vaccine-appears-to-give-long-lasting-protection/
 
A “super cork” for Covid. (TY WIN) Researchers at Israel’s Weizmann Institute have developed a small molecule that stops the coronavirus spike protein from attaching to the lungs’ ACE2 receptor. But it doesn’t damage ACE2’s normal function. (See also here for similarities with opaganib from Israel’s Redhill).
https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/life-sciences/putting-super-cork-coronavirus
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41564-021-00954-4
 
Unlocking cancer immunotherapy. (TY UWI) More details on the breakthrough technology of Israel’s Nectin (see here previously). Monoclonal antibodies, with toxins attached, are sent directly to the cancer cell to break its ability to immobilize the body’s immune system. Clinical trials are expected to start in early 2022.
https://www.israel21c.org/new-drug-candidate-could-boost-potential-of-immunotherapy/
 
Using white blood cells to fight cancer. (TY UWI) Researchers at Tel Aviv University have discovered that a type of white blood cell (eosinophils) can be utilized to fight cancer. They have a double effect, producing destructive proteins, while at the same time summoning the immune system’s cancer-fighting T-cells.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-scientists-aim-to-mobilize-allergy-causing-cells-to-fight-cancer/
 
Remove succinate to treat IBD. (TY UWI) Recent studies show that the metabolite succinate, secreted by gut bacteria, can cause Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). Scientists at Israel’s Ben Gurion University and in South Korea have developed therapeutic peptides to remove succinates from the body. Patents have been filed.
https://www.israel21c.org/novel-biological-treatment-for-inflammatory-bowel-diseases/
https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/fulltext/S2211-1247(21)00952-9
 
Treatment for cystic fibrosis sufferers. Israel’s SpliSense (see here previously) uses mRNA to fix the root cause of cystic fibrosis – genetic mutations that create a non-functioning protein (CFTR). It not only treats patients with no current treatment but is also much cheaper than existing treatments.
https://www.israel21c.org/inhaled-drug-could-treat-rare-cystic-fibrosis-mutations/  https://splisense.com/
 
HBOT and Alzheimer’s. Tel Aviv University scientists have discovered more on the effects of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT – see here). It significantly improved vascular function and blood flow to the brain, plus reduced and removed the build-up of amyloid plaque on the brain – a common symptom of Alzheimer’s.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/oxygen-therapy-may-slow-alzheimers-say-israeli-researchers-after-mice-study/
 
Voice analysis to aid mental health. Israel’s Eleos Health has developed an AI-powered voice analysis system to help behavioral health clinicians and care teams provide better personalized, care to mental health patients and reduce staff burnout.  It is deployed at Solvista Health, Achieve, Yeshiva University and ReachLink.
https://eleos.health/for-clinics/  https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3917801,00.html
 
Unbelievable joy as twins separated. (TY UWI) Very Good news. Surgeons at Israel’s Soroka hospital used Israeli technology to separate the heads and major blood vessels of two conjoined Israeli baby girls, assisted by a UK Muslim specialist. The babies were visibly delighted to be able to see each other for the first time.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-israeli-1st-doctors-separate-heads-of-conjoined-twins-in-life-or-death-op/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/uk-muslim-doctor-busts-boundaries-helps-separate-jewish-israeli-conjoined-twins/   https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/313063
 
New York Life works with Empathy. The U.S.’s largest life insurer company New York Life has partnered Israel’s Empathy (see here previously) The Israeli app will help guide NYL customers navigate the complexities experienced with loss by offering logistics and emotional support.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3915955,00.html