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The Daily Brief
"Praying for All in Authority"
Thursday, October 12, 2017
"You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. " (Hebrews 10:35,36 NIV)
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| Focus on Israel | |||
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Feast of Booths Continues!
1. Israeli delegation said to land in Cairo ahead of Fatah-Hamas talks - Times of Israel
An Israeli delegation flew into Cairo on Tuesday to conduct talks with high-ranking Egyptian officials ahead of Palestinian reconciliation talks in Egypt's capital, according to Arabic media reports.
Although there was no word on the content of the discussions, the reports came on the same day unity talks were launched in Egypt between Hamas and Fatah, as the Palestinian Authority seeks to regain sovereignty over the Gaza Strip after a decade of Hamas rule.
Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced the reconciliation efforts, saying any future Palestinian government must disband the Hamas terror group's armed wing and sever its ties with Iran.
(Read more)
2. 'International community needs to be clear-eyed on Iranian threat' - Israel Hayom
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his British counterpart Theresa May spoke on the phone Monday. During their conversation May said the U.K. opposed U.S. President Donald Trump's intent to exit the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, saying Britain remains committed to the agreement signed in 2015 by the Islamic republic and world powers.
Britain and Israel agree on the need to be "clear-eyed" about the threat Iran poses to the Middle East, a spokesman for May said following the call.
"They agreed that the international community needed to be clear-eyed about the threat that Iran poses to the Gulf and the wider Middle East, and that the international community should continue working together to push back against Iran's destabilizing regional activity," the spokesman said in a statement.
(Read more)
3. Qatari and French- Jewish diplomats favorites to head UNESCO - Jerusalem Post
Hamad bin Abdulaziz al-Kawari of Qatar and Audrey Azoulay of France are the leading candidates to head UNESCO as a result of Monday's preliminary vote in Paris.
UNESCO's 58-member Executive Board cast secret ballots for seven candidates to replace the organization's director-general Irina Bokova, whose eight-year tenure expires at the end of December.
After the first round of voting, Kawari received 19 votes, followed by Azoulay, who is Jewish, with 13. Egyptian human rights advocate Moushira Khattab garnered 11 votes.
The news was a mixed bag for Israel, which has been nervous about Kawari's candidacy, believing him to be antisemitic.
(Read more)
4. Israel, Trump admin reach understanding on construction - israelnationalnews.com
The Civil Administration Higher Planning Committee is slated to meet next week and give final approval to nearly 4,000 new housing units across Judea and Samaria, including the first new construction in the Jewish community in Hevron in some four decades.
On Sunday night, Channel 2 reported that the Netanyahu government has okayed the move, following delays by the Higher Planning Committee, which had originally been scheduled to approve the projects in September.
The new wave of construction, totaling 3,829 homes, includes building in communities outside of the so-called "major settlement blocs", a significant shift from the limits imposed on projects approved during the Obama administration. Along with larger 'consensus' towns such as Ariel and Givat Zeev, the new construction wave includes units in Beit El, Tzofim, Rehalim, Nogohot, Hevron, Tekoa, Kfar Etzion, Avnei Hefetz, Nofim, Kochav Yaakov, Har Bracha, and Maaleh Michmash [Michmas]. . .
"There was a long dry period during the Obama era, and we were hit with condemnations for every construction in the settlement," the official said. "After Trump came into office, Israel and the new American administration set clear criteria for construction that the Americans were not opposed to, such as canceling the distinction between settlement blocs and isolated settlements. In addition, it was made clear that the Americans no longer consider the settlements an obstacle to peace."
5. More Than 1 Million Jews Expected to Take Part in Global Shabbat Observance Oct. 27-28 - algemeiner.com
A global observance of Shabbat with hundreds of special events being held in local Jewish communities around the world - including new events in Togo, Mozambique and Venezuela - is slated for Oct. 27-28.
The worldwide observance day, started by The Shabbat Project, brings Jews together to keep a single Shabbat. It began as a local South African event in 2013, initiated by South African Chief Rabbi Dr. Warren Goldstein, who proposed the idea of hosting a communal Shabbat experience.
"Over the past few years, it has been nothing short of thrilling and deeply inspiring to witness Jews come together across every conceivable divide - language, culture, ethnicity, geography, observance," Goldstein said in a statement.
(Read more)
For more information about the Global Shabbath Project, go here.
