Jerusalem News (4 January, 2015, 13 Tevet, 5775)
Contents:
1. Ultra-Orthodox are not Jail Birds!
2. Iranian Colonel: IRGC thwarted Israeli assasination attempt on nuclear scientist in last 2 years
3. Top 10 Non-Jews Positively Influencing the Jewish Future, 2014, by Dovid Efune
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1. Ultra-Orthodox are not Jail Birds!
Ultra-Orthodox comprise 0.2% of Israeli Prison population, i.e. one in 500.
They comprise ca. 12% of the population i.e. ca. one in 8.
Each prisoner in jail costs 96,000 shekels a year plus 40,000 shekels for his family i.e. 130,000 shekels, i.e. ca. 2,600 shekels a week.
[Source: Musaf Shabat, p.7, Col Yisrael, 11 Tevet, 5775.]
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2. Iranian Colonel: IRGC thwarted Israeli assasination attempt on nuclear scientist in last 2 years
 Colonel PRESS TV (Iran) 1/3/2015 9:39:33 AM
http://presstv.com/Detail/2015/01/03/391389/Iran-foiled-Israel-terror-hit-bid
A senior Iranian military officer says the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has thwarted an Israeli assassination attack on an Iranian nuclear scientist. 'The Zionist enemy (Israel) took action to assassinate a nuclear scientist during the past two years, but the timely presence of IRGC security men thwarted this operation,' Fars news agency quoted a deputy IRGC chief for security, identified as Colonel Baqeri, as saying. Baqeri added that IRGC is 'duty-bound to protect nuclear scientists.' Iran had already announced that the assassination of its scientists - including Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, Daryoush Rezaeinejad, Professor Majid Shahriari, and Professor Masoud Ali-Mohammadi - had been carried out by Israeli agents. In their 2012 book, entitled Spies Against Armageddon: Inside Israel's Secret Wars, Dan Raviv of CBS News and Israeli journalist Yossi Melman said that Israeli spies had killed at least four Iranian nuclear scientists. Tehran has repeatedly held Israeli, US and British agents responsible for the assassination of the Iranian nuclear scientists since early 2010. Experts say the assassinations came after several rounds of sanctions against Iran failed to stop Tehran's efforts to develop its nuclear energy program. DB/NN/KA
Source: www.imra.org.il
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3. Top 10 Non-Jews Positively Influencing the Jewish Future, 2014, by Dovid Efune followed by Brit-Am Comment
http://www.algemeiner.com/2015/01/01/top-10-non-jews-positively-influencing-the-jewish-future-2014/
January 1, 2015 9:40 pm 33 comments
Extracts:
10. Anett Haskia
Haskia, a Muslim-Arab Zionist hairdresser from the Israeli city of Acre made a name for herself during the summer's Operation Protective Edge when she regularly appeared on television to defend Israel's army.
A mother of three, her children serve in the IDF and she maintains an active social media presence. Recently she announced her candidacy to run for parliament in Israel's Jewish Home political party and could serve as a significant positive inspiration to other members of Israel's substantial Muslim-Arab population who traditionally side with the Palestinian narrative.
9. Eric Pickles
Britain's Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Pickles unveiled new laws this week to combat the country's rise in antisemitism
The Conservative politician is also a backer of Israeli-British trade and is supportive of the Conservative Friends of Israel group.
8. Manuel Valls
France's Prime Minister Valls, the country's former interior minister, has been a leader in the struggle against rampant violence facing Europe's largest Jewish community.
In 2002, while mayor of the Paris suburb of Evry, Valls joined the weekly synagogue walk after the local Jewish community faced violent attacks, signaling to the perpetrators that the Jews had a powerful ally, The Jerusalem Post reported.
'To many French Jews, Valls is something of a hero for his unusually robust defense of Israel and the French Jewish community,' Â the Post said. 'His elevation is seen as a reassuring sign amid one of French Jewry's most troublesome periods.'
7. John Hagee
Pastor Hagee's Christians United for Israel has emerged as the world's largest pro-Israel grassroots membership group. With over 1.2 million members CUFI has made it clear to the leaders of the US, Israel's greatest ally, that support for Israel is far more widespread than just the Jewish community.
Outspoken, and criticized for his 1999 assertion that the Holocaust was allowed by God to compel Jews to move to Israel, Hagee later voiced genuine regret and has made contributions to the Jewish people so significant that any past insensitivities can be forgiven.
In the early days of Operation Protective Edge, Hagee's group gathered in Washington DC some 5000 strong where the pastor told his flock, 'We've come to Washington to ask our government to stop demanding for Israel to show restraint.'
6. Rupert Murdoch
Many of the titles and channels owned by Murdoch's News Corporation and Twenty-First Century Fox, have, for the most part, covered stories relating to Jews and Israel in a balanced and fair manner, and Murdoch himself has described himself as an ardent Zionist and philosemite.
Murdoch has been recognized by a number of major Jewish organizations, including the American Jewish Committee, the Anti Defamation League, and the Museum of Jewish Heritage .
At a dinner late last year for an Israeli charity Murdoch told the audience, 'You know as I do that as Israel goes, so goes [...] our morality and our very existence as freedom loving citizens of the world.'
5. Tony Abbott
The government of Australia's Prime Minister Abbott has been the most pro-Israel in recent memory. In June it resolved to stop referring to East Jerusalem as 'occupied' Â territory and to adopt additional similar steps.
During the failed United Nations Security Council vote this week to force an Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank, Abbott's Australia was the only country to join the US in opposing the move.
During Protective Edge the prime minister was firm in his defense of Israeli actions saying, 'The problem in the Middle East is that in the end so many people are not prepared to accept Israel's right to exist.'
Abbot has earned strong support from the country's Jewish community.
4. Stephen Harper
As Prime Minister of Canada, Harper has consistently led those members of the international community who have risen to the defense of the Jewish state.
In support of Israel's Gaza campaign, Harper was forthright.
'Canada is unequivocally behind Israel,' Harper said. 'We support its right to defend itself, by itself, against these terror attacks, and urge Hamas to immediately cease their indiscriminate attacks on innocent Israeli civilians.'
In 2012, Harper ensured that his government was among the few that opposed the Palestinian Authority's unilateral move for acceptance at the United Nations.
At a meeting in New York in 2013, Harper said that  'There is nothing more short sighted in Western capitals in our time than the softening support for Israel,' according to a Wall Street Journal report. Israel, he said, 'is the one strong stable democratic western ally that we have' in the Middle East.
3. Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
Perhaps an unexpected inclusion on the list, El-Sisi actually topped last year's list for his unrelenting war against Hamas terrorists in Gaza, albeit likely for his own purposes.
El-Sisi has effectively stunted the flow of deadly weapons to the coastal enclave through shutting down hundreds of smuggling tunnels, and, in 2014, creating a substantial buffer zone between Sinai and the Strip.
Despite his heavy handed, autocratic rule Israeli officials have praised the impact El-Sisi has had, specifically as Hamas has proven to be the single group responsible for the most Jewish deaths over the past two decades.
During the summer's war, El-Sisi all but forced Hamas to accept Israel's ceasefire terms. Later, he reportedly went so far as to offer a segment of the Sinai peninsula as land for the establishment of a Palestinian state.
2. Mitch McConnell
As the incoming Senate majority leader, McConnell's commitment to the US-Israel relationship has become more significant than ever.
During Protective Edge, McConnell ensured that domestic politics wouldn't interfere in US funding for Israel's lifesaving Iron Dome missile defense system by introducing an aid package that was independent of a controversial immigration bill.
1. Narendra Modi
Since his sweeping ascension to India's top job, Modi has used almost every opportunity to promote Israel-India ties.
In November, Bloomberg News reported that 'Modi is openly boosting ties with Israel, strengthening a relationship that has largely grown outside of the public spotlight over the past two decades.'
The moves, which began with a meeting between Modi and Israeli Prime Minister Netanayhu, include billions in defense deals, and speculation that India is reconsidering its pro-Palestinian stance at the United Nations.
In November, the two allies successfully tested an advanced missile system, which was hailed by an adviser to the Indian defense minister as 'an important milestone in the cooperation between India and Israel,' The Times of Israel reported.
In December, Modi tweeted a Chanukah greeting in Hebrew which wished his 'Jewish friends a happy Chanukah! May this Festival of Lights and the festive season ring in peace, hope and well-being for all.'
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Brit-Am Comment:
This list represents the private opinion of Dovid Efune, editor-in-chief of The Algemeiner newspaper. This is obviously a well-informed and balanced personage but it is not necessarily reliable. Even so, it is an indication of sorts as to were pro-Israel sentiment may be found.
10. Anett Haskia, Haskia, a Muslim-Arab Zionist hairdresser from the Israeli city of Acre.
A9. Eric Pickles, Britain's Secretary of State for Communities and Local Governmen
A8. Manuel Valls, France's Prime Minister
A7. John Hagee, Christians United for Israel
A6. Rupert Murdoch, News Corporation and Twenty-First Century Fox.
A5. Tony Abbott, Australia's Prime Minister
A4. Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada
3. Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, ruler of Egypt.
A2. Mitch McConnell,incoming US Senate majority leader.
1. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India.
Seven out of the ten (all those marked by "A") are from Israelite nations; six out of the seven pertain to Joseph.
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