A source told World Israel News that Angel Bakery, the largest bread chain in the country, is shutting down branches in ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods, where it is no longer worthwhile to remain open. 

By World Israel News Staff

A boycott by the Haredi community against Angel Bakery, Israel’s largest bakery chain, is taking its toll.

Angel Bakery, which is headquartered in Jerusalem but provides baked goods to restaurants, supermarkets, and stores throughout the country, sells price-controlled and government-subsidized products that are a staple in millions of homes in Israel. But sales plummetted tremendously since the start of the boycott a month ago.

Ultra-Orthodox lawmakers called for the boycott at the beginning of May after its chairman, former public security minister Omer Bar-Lev, protested outside the home of 100-year-old Ashkenazi scion Rabbi Gershon Edelstein in Bnei Brak.

Bar-Lev had posted a photo of himself with the “Brothers in Arms” protest group on Twitter, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Justice Minister Yariv Levin of bribing the Haredi parties to “vote in favor of the coup d’état,” referring to the government’s plans for judicial reform, in exchange for the the Draft Law, exempting young ultra-Orthodox men from the army.

Several lawmakers and religious community leaders slammed Bar-Lev. MK Limor Son Har-Melech (Religious Zionism), for example, told Kan News, “It cannot be that the chair of Angel’s Board of Directors goes to protest at the home of one of the greatest [rabbis] of this generation. Bar-Lev’s remarks are very problematic, hostile, deeply hateful, and ignorant of this world.”

“The boycott will end when Omer Bar-Lev faces judgment. The boycott needs to continue until he is fired,” she added.

The Haredi community demanded that Bar-Lev be fired for disrespecting the Torah and the revered spiritual leader.

Meanwhile, Rabbi Edelstein – head of the Lithuanian ultra-Orthodox community in Israel and head of the renowned Ponovezh yeshiva – passed away last week after a sudden deterioration in health. Tens of thousands of people from all walks of life attended the funeral.

A source who requested anonymity told World Israel News that Angel is suffering tremendously due to the boycott, despite the fact that the company tried ignoring it.

“Every day,” the source said, “they have tons of unsold goods. Their business is seriously impacted, to the point where they are shutting down branches in Haredi neighborhoods because it’s not profitable for them.”

Perhaps due to the company’s profound losses, Bar-Lev paid a condolence call to the family during the shiva mourning period and offered his “sincere apologies” for the insult. In a letter, he wrote:

“I view the existence of the Torah and its students as an important value in Jewish tradition, that is not what I protested against.

“If I had been made aware of the situation we found ourselves in, and the perceived offense, I surely would have refrained from this action. For this, I am sorry and apologize sincerely.”

He was accompanied by the company’s CEO Yaron Angel, who also wrote a letter of apology.

“We should have said this immediately after the protest and expressed our sorrow. In real time, we thought such a reaction would involve the firm in political matters in which, for decades, we have not wanted to get involved,” he said, although the demonstration in front of the rabbi’s home was purely political.

“But this silence was interpreted as a further insult. We are sorry for this and apologize wholeheartedly,” he concluded.

Before the rabbi’s passing, none other than Yoel Speigel, a grandson of the bakery’s late founder, defended Bar-Lev in a now-deleted Facebook post that added insult to injury.

“There is no limit to the chutzpah on the part of the ultra-Orthodox public in Israel,” he said. “They eat for free … evade army service, have dark opinions and, above all, are hypocrites!”

Spiegel’s comments triggered additional calls for yeshivas and grocery stores owned by community members to avoid stocking Angel Bakery products.

“Rabbi Edelstein is one of the spiritual giants of the people of Israel. One of the greatest righteous men of our generation. Hurting him is hurting me. It is an insult to all who love God. I’m not able to eat one bun from Angel after all of this,” said Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, one of Israel’s most prominent Religious Zionist rabbis.

“This is not revenge. This is a public campaign regarding the character of the State of Israel. Those who care about the State of Israel will not buy Angel products until they mend their ways,” he stated.

“There are enough other bakeries that know how to bake delicious challah for Shabbat. And if you don’t find it, it’s better to eat rye bread and not eat [Angel’s] challah.”

President Isaac Herzog reportedly helped coordinate Bar-Lev’s shiva visit.

Begging forgiveness, Bar-Lev concluded his letter with the words “mode ve’ozev yerucham,” a biblical verse generally translated as “mercy will be shown to those who admit a mistake and desist from it,” Times of Israel reported.

Ultra-Orthodox Shas party chairman Aryeh Deri responded that the apology demonstrates the purchasing power of the large Haredi population. He also used the phrase, indicating that the boycott could be over.

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Dispute began with the Angel Bakery chairman’s protest outside leading haredi rabbi’s home, triggering boycott of company’s products followed by vicious social media attack on the ultra-Orthodox.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Israel’s largest bakery is engaged in a public spat with the ultra-Orthodox community, one of its most important consumer segments, due to political differences and incendiary comments from the business founder’s grandson.

Angel Bakery, which is headquartered in Jerusalem but provides baked goods to restaurants, supermarkets, and stores throughout the country, sells price-controlled and government-subsidized products that are a staple in millions of homes in Israel.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews make up a significant portion of the company’s consumers, and thousands from the community also work at its factories and distribution centers. But now, leading rabbis and leaders have called for the community to boycott the company’s products.

A widescale boycott by the ultra-Orthodox community could lead to Angel Bakery losing millions of shekels in revenue.

Mixing business with politics

The dispute began shortly after Angel Bakery named former Public Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev, who served as a lawmaker from the left-wing Labor party, as head of its Board of Directors.

Last week, Bar-Lev participated in a protest outside of the home of the 100-year-old Rabbi Gershon Edelstein, spiritual leader of the Lithuanian ultra-Orthodox movement in Israel and the Degel HaTorah political party.

Demonstrators gathered on the street outside Edelstein’s home in the ultra-Orthodox enclave of Bnei Brak, chanting and holding signs expressing their opposition to blanket exemptions from military service granted to yeshiva students.

Bar-Lev posted a selfie at the event, referring to potential legislation to ease the military exemption process for yeshiva students. The former lawmaker also referred to reforms to the judicial system as a “coup,” although they were proposed by democratically elected politicians.

“Beyond and in addition to the importance of military service for everyone, the law of ‘no equality in the burden’ that the Coalition intends to enact is the bribe being paid to the haredi parties by [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu and [Justice Minister Yariv] Levin so that they’ll vote in favor of the coup,” he wrote.

The tactic of protesting outside of politicians’ homes has become commonplace in recent months, as left-wing demonstrators have descended upon the residences of supporters of judicial reform. Some have even trapped politicians inside and prevented them from leaving.

But the protest outside Edelstein’s home, due to his status as a revered spiritual leader in the community, appears to have been a step too far.

‘Hypocrites, parasites’

In response to Bar-Lev’s political actions, several leading rabbis, including the son of former Sephardic Chief Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, encouraged members of the community to avoid buying Angel’s products.

Right-wing politicians, including Shas Chair Aryeh Deri and United Torah Judaism head Moshe Gafni, also expressed support for a boycott.

“It cannot be that the chair of Angel’s Board of Directors goes to protest at the home of one of the greatest [rabbis] of this generation. Bar-Lev’s remarks are very problematic, hostile, deeply hateful, and ignorant of this world,” MK Limor Son Har-Melech (Religious Zionism) told Kan News.

“The boycott will end when Omer Bar-Lev faces judgment. The boycott needs to continue until he is fired, she said.

The calls for a boycott triggered anger among left-wingers and supporters of Bar-Lev.

“There is no limit to the chutzpah on the part of the ultra-Orthodox public in Israel,” wrote Yoel Spiegel, the grandson of the bakery’s founder, in a now-deleted Facebook post.

“They eat for free … evade army service, have dark opinions and, above all, are hypocrites!” He went on to praise Bar-Lev for his military service, stressing that he has the “right to protest” however he sees fit, “within the framework of the law.”

Ironically, Spiegel did not acknowledge that the same right to protest is evident in a consumer boycott of Angel’s products.

“The days of free eating are over,” he continued in the post. “Judgment Day is coming and no boycott or calls for a boycott will stop us from correcting the injustice of years and putting an end to evasion and parasitism.”

‘This is not revenge’

Spiegel’s comments sparked another wave of backlash within the ultra-Orthodox community, triggering additional calls for yeshivas and grocery stores owned by community members to avoid stocking Angel Bakery products.

“Rabbi Edelstein is one of the spiritual giants of the people of Israel. One of the greatest righteous men of our generation. Hurting him is hurting me. It is an insult to all who love God. I’m not able to eat one bun from Angel after all of this,” said Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, who is widely considered one of the most prominent Religious Zionist rabbis today.

“This is not revenge. This is a public campaign regarding the character of the State of Israel. Those who care about the State of Israel will not buy Angel products until they mend their ways,” he continued.

“There are enough other bakeries that know how to bake delicious challah for Shabbat. And if you don’t find it, it’s better to eat rye bread and not eat [Angel’s] challah.”

Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar (Likud) took to his Twitter account to call for reconciliation between the community and the bakery.

“Demonstrations, boycotts, hatred between brothers and incitement. (And do yourself a favor, don’t try to explain to me why this is justified). Is this how we want to be seen? We no longer remember where we were as a people ? Have we already forgotten what this nation went through until we built this amazing country?” he wrote.

“If we don’t wake up and change direction, we will all regret it. All of us, without exception. We are brothers.”

A senior executive in the bread industry told Israel Hayom that the boycott could have serious financial consequences for Angel Bakery.

“Angel sells a lot of bread in the ultra-Orthodox sector….If it were to be a massive boycott, I estimate that it could affect 10 to 15 percent of the total volume of sales, which is a lot,” they said.

“The impact is expected to be felt mainly in Jerusalem and Bnei Brak.”

The post Spewing hatred: Grandson of founder of Israel’s largest bakery chain incites against ultra-Orthodox, slams boycott appeared first on World Israel News.

“Bar Lev does not understand what the Torah is and what is great in the Torah.”

By World Israel News Staff

Ultra-Orthodox lawmakers called for a boycott of Angel Bakery, Israel’s largest bakery chain, after its chairman, former public security minister Omer Bar Lev, protested outside the home of Ashkenazi scion Rabbi Gershon Edelstein in Bnei Brak on Thursday.

Bar Lev posted a photo of himself with the “Brothers in Arms” protest group on Twitter, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Justice Minister Yariv Levin of bribing the Haredi parties to “vote in favor of the coup d’état,” referring to the government’s plans for judicial reform, in exchange for the the Draft Law, exempting young Haredi men from the army.

Several large yeshivot, or Jewish seminaries, announced they would join the boycott against Angel’s, including the Hevron Yeshiva in Jerusalem, which has over 1000 students and regular orders from the bakery.

United Torah Judaism MK Moshe Gafni tweeted, “Omer Bar Lev and Angel have no respect for the Torah!”

“You should seriously consider whether you can trust their kashrut. Bar Lev does not understand what the Torah is and what is great in the Torah and everyone has to calculate whether it is possible to buy food products from them. I despise him!” wrote Gafni.

Labor Minister Yoav Ben-Tzur (Shas) slammed Bar Lev’s attendance at the protest.

“Freedom of speech isn’t the freedom to disgrace. Omer Bar-Lev and his privileged group, who demonstrated outside the home of Rabbi Gershon Edelstein, disgraced the honor of the Torah, and there is no way to forgive that. I was pained to see Omer Bar-Lev, who contributed so much to Israel’s security, shaming his past and using the IDF as a tool to divide the nation,” he said.

“The contribution of the Haredi community to the state of Israel is tremendous, and no protest can fritter away the work of our hundreds of charity organizations that work for all Israeli citizens,” he added.

Deputy Minister Uri Maklev (UTJ) criticized Bar Lev for expressing “extreme opinions about the Haredi and right-wing public

“As an active participant in the incitement against the Haredi public [he] must pay the price,” Laklev added.

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The Attorney General report also determined, however, that the police exceeded their authority under cyber warrants that were granted by the courts in certain cases.

By Gil Tanenbaum, TPS

A special investigation conducted by Israel’s Ministry of Justice into allegations that Israel Police illegally used spyware to conduct surveillance on Israeli citizens – including politicians – has cleared the police of the most serious charges against them.

The police were accused of using the Pegasus spyware made by Israel’s own cyber security company NSO Group to gain access to people’s private information without a court order granting authority to do so.

The police allegedly hacked the phones of Israeli citizens using the Pegasus spyware.

The revelations about the unauthorized surveillance came about after a worldwide scandal erupted over how NSO Group sold its spyware to non-democratic governments. These governments were said to use the programs to spy on journalists and political opponents alike.

The Marari report, a 100-page report named for the team of the Ministry of Justice and technological experts led by the Deputy Legal Adviser to the Government, attorney Amit Marari, found that most people who were named in a report by Israel’s Calcalist as having been victims of hacking by police were not spied on.

However, while exonerating the police in the hacking scandal the report did determine that the police in fact exceeded their authority under cyber warrants that were granted by the courts in certain cases.

Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, who is responsible for the police department, was pleased with the findings of the report.

“The findings do not surprise me, since throughout the period I supported and came to the defense of the police, despite the criticism directed at me,” said Barlev. “I support the police officers of the Israel Police who lead with dedication and commitment a determined and important fight against crime.”

He also stated that the “falsified publications caused great damage to both the Israel Police and Israeli democracy.”

The police issued a statement declaring that the report states that they acted in all cases subject to court orders. No spying on citizens was carried out, no “extraction” of cellular devices was carried out, and the allegations against the police regarding the published list of individuals – were refuted.

Israel Police promised to take action in response to the charges of misconduct made in the report.

“The gaps that arise in the report will be fully addressed by a team that the commissioner ordered to be established headed by the deputy head of the police, in order to implement the report’s recommendations, and to make the necessary adjustments to return the use of technological capabilities to fight crime as the report’s conclusions permit,” said the Israel Police in a statement.

The Israel Police, however, stressed that in their opinion the report is proof that they, “acted with integrity, in accordance with procedures and strict supervision, when before our eyes the fight against crime and criminals and maintaining the safety of the public.”

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A Palestinian from Ramallah with a permit to enter Israel stabbed the victim with a screwdriver.

By World Israel News Staff

A Jewish man was stabbed while travelling on a bus near the Ramot junction in Jerusalem Tuesday afternoon.

The assailant, a resident of Ramallah in his 40s, attacked the victim in the head with a screwdriver.

Magen David Adom and Hatzalah medics arrived quickly at the scene.

The victim, 41, was taken to Shaare Zedek Medical Center with multiple stab wounds to his upper body. His injuries are not life-threatening and his condition is moderate, the hospital said.

The terrorist then approached passerby Meshi Ben Ami, a Ynet News photographer, who shot the terrorist.

“I got out of the car, loaded my gun and realized it was a terror attack,” Ben Ami told Kan News. “I did not hesitate and fired one bullet at him and he fell to the ground. I heard him praying in Arabic.”

The terrorist’s condition was also described as moderate.

Israel Police Jerusalem District Commander Doron Turgeman also arrived at the scene.

“This is another reminder of the terrorist threat we face, he said. “The result of tonight’s attack could have been much more deadly, and the terrorist was neutralized first and foremost thanks to the determination and heroism of civilians who were passing by, fought with him and acted to neutralize him.

“Their vigilance and courage prevented further harm to innocent people. We will continue to fight terrorism and terrorists wherever they are, for the safety and security of the public.”

“Police are working to protect the security of Israeli citizens, and the officers are determined to thwart any such attempt. I wish a speedy recovery to the citizen who was injured in the attack,” Public Security Minister Omer Barlev said.

“I would like to wish a speedy recovery to the victim who was injured in the stabbing incident in Jerusalem. I congratulate the Ynet photographer who happened to be at the scene and acted resolutely to neutralize the terrorist and prevent injury to other people,” Prime Minister Yair Lapid said in a statement.

“We will not allow terrorism to rear its head and disrupt the routine of our lives. We will settle scores with anyone who tries to harm innocent civilians,” he added.

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Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai has called for open fire procedures to be scrutinized.

By Debbie Reiss, World Israel News

The widow of a police officer who was killed by a Palestinian car thief lambasted Israel’s rules of engagement on Sunday, interrupting the Israeli police minister’s eulogy by lamenting, “You don’t give them permission to shoot. They are like sitting ducks.”

Barak Meshulam was the victim of a hit and run when a 17-year-old Palestinian from Ramallah rammed into a checkpoint to avoid being caught, and in doing so, he ran over the 29-year-old father of two.

Meshulam was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Kfar Saba on Sunday evening.

Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, whose ministry is in charge of the police, eulogized Meshulam to hundreds of mourners: “Tonight, Barak met the cruelest of murderers. The punishment needs to fit the crime,” he said.

He added that in the circumstances surrounding Meshulam’s death and “in any other life-threatening situation, the police officer is allowed to neutralize the potential suspect.”

Nevertheless, Meshulam’s widow Ariella began yelling at Barlev through tears about the force’s restrictive open fire policy. “Why don’t you give them permission to shoot? You do not protect them. The wives of the policemen standing here, friends of my husband, do not know if they will knock on their door tomorrow.”

“Next time you will let them shoot,” Ariella shouted at Barlev, while other mourners expressed their support, saying “She’s right!”

Unlike in the U.S., Israeli police are generally trained to “shoot to incapacitate” — generally targeting a suspect’s legs — and not to kill, and then, after first calling on the suspect to stop, following that up with warning shots fired in the air.

However, in the case of an active crime that poses a clear and present danger to either an officer or a civilian’s life, for example in the case of a terrorist attack, officers are given more leeway to open fire.

Israel’s High Court in April called on the state to “amend the regulations” of its open fire policy after an Arab-Israeli car thief was fatally shot in the back by a policeman.

According to a statement by the prosecution,  police officers have “too much leeway to shoot, even in cases that prima facie don’t justify it.” Also, the rules are not clear about when to open fire and “lack necessary restrictions that could reduce harm to human life,” Haaretz reported at the time.

In the wake of Meshulam’s death, Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai said that open fire procedures will be reexamined.

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Over 19,019 Israelis tested positive in the past week, a 27.7 % increase over the previous week.

By Aryeh Savir, TPS

Israel’s health system is contemplating the administration of a fifth Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine, as the number of new cases has significantly risen in recent days.

The country’s Corona Supervisor, Professor Salman Zarka, stated on Wednesday at the 2042 Medicine Conference in Tel Aviv that “unfortunately, it seems that we are starting a new corona wave in Israel, the BA.5 wave, we are considering giving a fifth vaccine.”

The BA.5 is a sub-lineage of the Omicron variant. BA.5 was first detected in South Africa in February 2022, and since has become the dominant variant there together with the BA.4.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control stated in May that the observed growth advantage for BA.5 is likely due to its ability to evade immune protection induced by prior infection or vaccination, particularly if this has waned over time.

Fearing s sixth wave of infections in the country, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is slated to convene a special meeting on the issue on Wednesday evening.

According to the Ministry of Health’s data, a very high 20.38% of the COVID-19 tests done Tuesday returned positive, with 4,585 new cases.

The R coefficient, which indicates the spread of the virus, was registered in Israel at 1.19 on Wednesday, pointing to a spread of the virus.

Over 19,019 Israelis tested positive in the past week, a 27.7 % increase over the week before that.

Only about 40% of Israelis’ immune protection is still in effect. About 813,600 Israelis have received the fourth vaccine, as opposed to 6,710,000 who got the first.

Minister of Public Security Omer Barlev tested positive for the virus on Monday, as well as Members of Knesset Gilad Kariv, Alon Tal, and Orit Strook.

10,867 Israelis have died of the virus in the past two and a half years, including two in the past week.

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Members of far-right groups Lehava and La Familia hurled epithets and fought against Arabs in the capital during Jerusalem Day celebrations.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

Defense Minister Benny Gantz supported the idea of designating two far-right Jewish organizations as terrorist groups after their members got into physical and verbal confrontations with Arabs on Jerusalem Day Sunday.

“As defense minister, I believe that the time has come to consider ‘terrorist organization’ designations for groups like La Familia and Lehava,” Gantz said at a Blue and White party faction meeting in the Knesset Monday. “I know that the subject has been brought up with security organizations, and I trust the heads of the organizations to make that consideration in the cleanest and best way possible.”

La Familia is technically a fan club of Jerusalem’s Beitar soccer team. The team’s ownership disavowed it years ago, as its members’ racist chants at opposing Arab players and general hooliganism, especially before and after games against Israeli Arab teams, cost the team both financially and socially.

Lehava is a religious Jewish group that works against Muslim-Jewish intermarriage. Its head, Bentzi Gopstein, has been taken to court several times over the last several years on charges such as incitement to violence, racism and even terrorism due to his vehement anti-Arab rhetoric.

Dozens of supporters of both organizations were seen shouting epithets such as “Death to Arabs” and brawling with Arab, both in and outside the Old City during the Flag March, in which tens of thousands of mostly young, national-religious men and women waved the Israeli flag as they sang and danced their way to the Western Wall plaza.

Internal Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev of the far-left Meretz party said such a move was long overdue, although he acknowledged that groups represented only a small minority of Israelis.

“I asked the attorney-general even before I became a minister to test the possibility of outlawing La Familia and Lehava,” he said. “This is a noisy and difficult handful [of people]…. There is no doubt that they harm the state of Israel’s security, Israel’s internal security, damage our broad common denominator, and they should be outlawed. ”

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid criticized what he called “the extremist minority” who had tried to turn a “day of joy” into a “day of hate,” saying that “Jerusalem deserves better, Israeli society deserves better.”

“The Israeli flag does not belong to them,” he added. “We won’t let them steal Zionism and love of the land from us. These people aren’t patriots, they are worthless thugs…. We didn’t celebrate this 55 years ago when the city was reunified.”

Gopstein reacted angrily to Gantz’s remarks.

“‘Defense’ Minister Gantz hosts the Holocaust denier and terror supporter Abu Mazen in his home,” he said in a statement, referring to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. “And he doesn’t do anything to the Arabs who are inciting day after day on the Temple Mount. But he does fight the Lehava organization, which acts for the good of the people of Israel. We survived Pharoah, we’ll survive Gantz.”

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IDF expert reservists specializiing in field analysis played a major role in locating the murderers.

By World Israel News Staff

Four days after the deadly attack in the ultra-Orthodox city of Elad in central Israel, the two axe-wielding terrorists were caught and arrested in a joint operation by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), the IDF and the Israel Police.

The escaped terrorists, 19-year-old As’ad Yussef Assad al-Rafa’i and 20-year-old Sabhi Abu Shakir — both of Rummanah, a small village near Jenin — were found in a wooded area between Rosh HaAyin and Nahshonim, less than a kilometer from where the attack took place.

Three fathers — Yonatan Habakuk, Boaz Gol and Oren Ben Yiftach — were murdered on Thursday evening, at the conclusion of Israel’s Independence Day, leaving their wives and a total of 16 children.

It was assumed the terrorists had not managed to escape to the Palestinian Authority-run areas of Judea and Samaria, as no trace of them had been found at the security barrier.

Information gathered by intelligence, including IDF expert reservists who specialize in field analysis, pointed to the location where the murderers were found. It was a wooded area, with many tangled branches, making it difficult to locate them.

The exhausted terrorists surrendered to the forces with no resistance.

“I congratulate the security forces on capturing the two terrorists who committed the murder in Elad,” stated Minister of Public Security Omer Bar-Lev.

“In the last two days, the best forces in the police, the Shin Bet, and the IDF have worked together to get their hands on them, and so it has happened. The intensive activity along a complex terrain route deserves all praise. We will continue to pursue with determination those who seek our harm at any time, and everywhere, and we will reach them,” he said.

“We said that we would apprehend the terrorists and we have done so,” Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said at the Sunday morning cabinet meeting.

“This morning, our forces – the Israel Police and the ISA, together with soldiers from the Maglan, Egoz and Mirol [IDF] units – captured the murderers. The miserable terrorists, brainwashed with incitement who used axes to commit unimaginably brutal murders, were apprehended near a local quarry. Again, I commend the ISA and its Director, the Israel Police and its Inspector General, and all of the soldiers.”

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Omer Bar-Lev casually states that a special forces commando was killed in Syria, information that was still classified at the time he said it.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Public Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev raised eyebrows on Tuesday when he revealed still-classified information about the death of an IDF soldier in a special forces unit, stating for the first time in which country the man had been killed.

Speaking to KAN Radio about his comrades killed in action, Bar-Lev casually mentioned that a Sayeret Matkal (reconnaissance unit) commando died during a secret operation in 1984.

“Barak Shar’abi was killed under my watch when I was the commander of the unit, somewhere deep inside Syrian territory,” Bar-Lev said.

That information had never been disclosed to the public, and Bar-Lev did not clear the sharing of those facts with the military before the interview.

Initially, Shar’abi’s parents were told that he died in a car accident.

Several years after the mission, Shin Bet officials informed the Shar’abi family that Barak had been killed behind enemy lines. Security Agency officials sat in on media interviews with them to ensure that details about the secret operation were not unwittingly shared with journalists.

This isn’t the first time that the lawmaker has spilled state secrets in a public setting. In 2014, Bar-Lev was suspended from the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee for intentionally leaking classified information to the media.

Bar-Lev has recently struggled with his public speaking, and a number of his gaffes have made headlines.

After revealing the classified information on Tuesday, Bar-Lev told Channel 12 News that Israel has done an excellent job preventing terror attacks during Ramadan. “In the past month, no one was killed, and during the previous month, there were serious terror attacks,” Bar-Lev said.

Last Saturday, a security guard in Ariel was shot to death during a shift. Less than a month ago, three Israelis were murdered by a terrorist on a shooting spree while sitting at a bar on Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Street.

Incidentally, in three attacks just a week earlier, ahead of Ramadan, terrorists massacred four people in Beersheba, two in Hadera and five in B’nei Brak.

When speaking at the funeral of one of the victims of the deadly Beersheba ramming and stabbing terror attack in March 2022, Bar-Lev pledged to hunt down and prosecute the perpetrator — despite the fact that the terrorist was shot and killed on the scene.

After arriving at the scene of the Bnei Brak terror attack in late March 2022, an angry mob of citizens surrounded Bar-Lev and he had to be extricated from the fray by police.

In April 2022, a poll by the Israel Democracy Institute (IDI) found that just 18 percent of Israelis said they have strong faith in Bar-Lev’s competence as Public Security Minister.

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The supplement will be allocated in two phases, with $34.7 million being provided immediately and the remaining $21.9 million by August.

By JNS.org

The Israeli government has authorized the allocation of 181 million shekels ($56.5 million) in emergency funding to the Israel Police.

The budget supplement was authorized “in light of the significant challenges that Israel’s police force currently faces and given the operational gaps that have accumulated in recent years,” according to an official statement.

The emergency funding comes as Israel’s police force struggles to deal with multiple terror attacks taking place throughout Israel.

“For many years, the Israel Police was neglected and the operational needs that it required to carry out its tasks were not met,” said Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.

“We are correcting this and are now allocating significant resources in order for it to carry out its supreme task—defending public security. A strong police equals a strong State of Israel…. We are in the midst of a wave of terrorism directed against the citizens of Israel and are acting with all of the tools in all sectors in order to restore security and the sense of security.”

Israeli Public Security Minister Omer Barlev called the plan to strengthen Israel’s police force “an unprecedented milestone” that comes after “prolonged neglect.”

The funding will be allocated in two phases, with NIS 111 million ($34.7 million) being provided immediately and the remaining NIS 70 million ($21.9 million) by August.

The supplement will be directed towards implementing the first stage of establishing a “Border Police Brigade” based on reserve forces; recruiting 200 career Border Police officers; purchasing 6,500 ceramic vests, 4,000 helmets and 40 motorcycles; equipment for 10 reserve Border Police companies; recruiting volunteers, strengthening the national guard and recruiting reservists.

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MK Itamar Ben-Gvir warns that preventing him from visiting the holiest site in Judaism would represent “capitulation to terror and further stoke the flames.”

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

MK Itamar Ben Gvir of the Religious Zionism party announced that he will visit the Temple Mount on Thursday.

Ben Gvir said in a statement that he visits the flashpoint compound, which is the holiest site in Judaism, on the first day of each Hebrew calendar month, and will not be deterred from making his usual ascent because of an uptick in Arab violence.

The statement came on the heels of two deadly terror attacks by Arab Israelis in less than one week which left six people dead.

The visit is set to occur the day after Land Day on March 30th, an annual Arab protest against the State of Israel that has seen widespread unrest and violent clashes with police and the IDF in past years.

Acknowledging the possibility that Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai might ban him from reaching the compound out of fear that his presence could exacerbate tensions, Ben Gvir said that “any attempt to prevent a Jewish MK from visiting the site will send a message of capitulation and surrender to terrorism and only further stoke the flames.”

He added that Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, whom he recently confronted at the site of Sunday’s deadly terror attack in Hadera, is a “leftist” and a “failure.”

Ben-Gvir has long been critical of the Israeli government’s attitude towards clamping down on unrest, which he says puts the onus on Jews not to provoke Arabs rather maintaining than a zero tolerance policy towards terror and violence.

Earlier in March, recently appointed Attorney General Gali Baharav Miara wrote a scathing letter, published by Hebrew-language news site Mako, saying that Barlev does not have the authority to preemptively ban MKs from the Temple Mount. This was after he had issued a directive to Shabtai, stating that particular lawmakers should be prevented from reaching the compound during Ramadan.

Bar-Lev doubled down on his statements, arguing that barring MKs from visiting the Temple Mount was a life-or-death matter and that the primary responsibility of the Israeli police is to prevent behavior that could spark Arab violence.

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Public Security Minister incenses mourners with gaffe about imprisoning dead terrorist.

By David Hellerman, World Israel News

The four victims of Tuesday night’s terror attack in Beersheba — Rabbi Moshe Kravitsky, Laura Yitzhak, Doris Yahbas and Menachem Yechezkel — were laid to rest on Wednesday.

Muhammad Abu Al-Kiyan, from the Bedouin town of Hura, near Beersheba, ran over Kravitsky with his car, then drove to a nearby gas station where he stabbed Yitzhak. Al-Kiyan then drove to a shopping center where he stabbed three women, including Yahbas who died of her injuries. The other two women are in serious condition at Beersheba’s Soroka Medical Center.

Al-Kiyan then drove off, collided with another car and stabbed Yechezkel.

Al-Kiyan was killed after attacking bus driver Arthur Chaimov, who confronted the terrorist. Chaimov and another bystander who has not been identified shot and killed Al-Kiyan.

At the funeral of Yahbas, Public Security Minister Omer Barlev incensed the mourners when he said, “We will not rest until this terrorist criminal arrives in prison and is judged with the full severity of the law.”

Barlev later told Channel 12 News that he wasn’t supposed to speak at the funeral, but when a microphone was thrust in front of him, he got confused and improvised, prompting funeral attendees to shout at him.

Barlev said he intended to say, “We will not rest until all the accomplices of this terrorist are caught and prosecuted and jailed.”

Cabinet ministers Nachman Shai and Yifat Shasha-Biton who attended the funerals, were also heckled with criticism about poor police service in the south.

Kravitsky, 50, was a Chabad emissary and father of four who ran a soup kitchen for the needy in Beersheba’s Nachal Beka neighborhood. Yahbas, 49, of Moshav Gilat, is survived by a husband and three children. Yitzhak, 43 is survived by a husband and three daughters ages 6-14. Yechezkel, 67, is survived by four siblings.

Police say Al-Kiyan, a 34-year-old elementary school teacher acted alone, but arrested two brothers who may have had advance knowledge of his plans. He and three other teachers had recently been released from prison for trying to join Islamic State in Syria and for propagandizing their students with radical Islamist ideology.

Police do not believe he was in contact with Islamic State.

Al-Kiyan’s family and the residents of Hura condemned the attack.

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By Aryeh Savir, TPS

Acting on orders from the government led by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, hundreds of policemen raided the Binyamin area on Monday morning and destroyed over 20 illegal structures built by Israelis, including two synagogues.

Operating from the early hours of the morning, the massive forces removed the families living in the structures and then destroyed them. Eight families, including 20 children, lost their homes. Resisting the destruction, several residents were arrested.

In one incident, the police did not untie a dog in one of the structures and reportedly killed it in the demolition.

Yisrael Gantz, head of the Binyamin Regional Council, accused Bennett and Defense Minister Benny Ganz of launching “a major and focused campaign of destruction against Jews only. They allow Arabs to run wild and take over the nation’s lands every day in the heart of the country. Our homeland is being conquered and they are turning a blind eye to Arab criminality, and now they are heroes over the weak and destroying only for the Jews.”

“The conquest of Judea and Samaria by the Arabs and the selective enforcement of the law against Jews are on Bennett and Gantz,” he said.

“A government that destroys the Jews and builds for the Arabs needs to be replaced,” said Samaria Regional Council hed Yossi Dagan. “The government is acting like a pyromaniac in order to set fire to the area with deliberate intent.”

“The demolition of the houses of the Jewish pioneers who build the country, and on the other hand approving of illegal Arab construction in the Negev and Judea and Samaria, and turning a blind eye to illegal construction in Area C. The Israeli government that works against its citizens must be replaced,” he demanded.

Religious Zionism MK Bezalel Smotrich said that “while this government succumbs to [head of the Islamist party Ra’am] Abbas’ threat, while the police commissioner orders the freezing of demolition of illegal construction in the Arab sector, Bennett, Shaked, Orbach and Kahana send Ganz and Barlev to abuse settlement and settlers, freeze construction, approve plans for Arabs.”

“This is a non-Jewish and non-Zionist government in its essence and actions, and those who founded it will be remembered forever,” Smotrich continued.

“We knew hostile governments and we survived, and thank God the settlement is strong and it is growing and developing in spite of everything. With God’s help, we will also be able to defeat this evil Bennett-Shaked-Lapid-Abbas government and we will win.”

Gush Etzion Regional Council head Shlomo Ne’eman said, “8-0. This is the current score in the game Defense Minister Gantz is playing with the Jewish presence in Judea and Samaria. Zero permits for new construction and eight new demolitions this morning.”

“Gantz puts himself on the wrong side of Zionist history in terms of establishing a presence in Judea and Samaria, but the game is far from over,” Ne’eman added.

In response to the destruction, and following a lack of building permits for Jews, heads of council in Judea and Samaria announced they would boycott a meeting with Gantz.

World Israel News staff contributed to this report.

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Gazans will be granted permits to visit relatives incarcerated on terror charges; PA residents to get widespread access to Temple Mount.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Israel is planning on easing a number of restrictions and security measures for Gazans and Arab residents of Palestinian Authority-controlled municipalities in Judea and Samaria ahead of Ramadan.

Shin Bet officials have warned, however, that they expect a rise in violence during the month-long Muslim holiday.

Despite a spate of stabbing attacks perpetrated by Arab assailants in Jerusalem in recent weeks, the Israeli government is reportedly hoping that eased security measures will help relieve tensions and reduce the potential for violent rioting and terror attacks.

Among the eased restrictions Israel is reportedly planning to roll out is an initiative, spearheaded by Defense Minister Benny Gantz, to issue permits allowing Palestinians from Gaza to visit their relatives who are incarcerated on terror charges in Israeli prisons, Kan Reshet Bet reported.

Additionally, Israeli authorities will allow Palestinian Arabs virtually unfettered access to the Temple Mount for prayer during Ramadan. This marks the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 and the Gaza-Israel escalation in May 2021 that residents of PA-controlled areas will be permitted to to visit the site in large numbers.

Attorney-General Gali Baharav Miara warned Public Security Minister Omer Bar Lev last week that he has no authority to preemptively ban Jewish MKs from ascending the Temple Mount during Ramadan. Nevertheless, Israeli authorities may restrict access for Jews to the site, fearing Arab violence.

“These will be very complex days, and we are making preparations for all eventualities, including extreme events,” a senior security official told Kan News.

“That means using all our intelligence capabilities, as well as forces on the ground. All the same, we will also be doing our utmost to ease restrictions on movement for Palestinian laborers, which means, among other things, extending the hours during which crossings are open.”

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The officers were attacked while responding to a car arson incident outside the Old City.

By Gil Tanenbaum, TPS

The Israel Police has confirmed that at least one police officer was wounded in a stabbing attack Sunday evening in Jerusalem. However, MDA medics reported that two officers were stabbed.

A little after 5 p.m. local time, police officers were called to the Ras al-Amud neighborhood in Jerusalem in response to a car arson incident. Ras al-Amud is located to the southeast of Jerusalem’s Old City, just below the Mount of Olives.

The responding police were attacked by a number of suspects at the scene. At least one officer was stabbed and taken to the hospital for treatment.

The suspect fled the scene and has not yet been located. Two other suspects, however, who were allegedly involved in the attack were apprehended.

A large number of police and forensics experts arrived at the scene of the incident and began collecting evidence while conducting searches for the suspect with the aid of a helicopter.

\Jerusalem District Police Commander Superintendent Doron Turgeman also arrived at the scene where he held a situation assessment.

The police department said that the victim  was moderately injured, according to medical sources, and sought medical treatment.

MDA medics Eliyahu Ben Hamo and Nasser Zahiman arrived at the scene of the attack and provided medical aid. They stated that there were two wounded on the scene who both suffered from bleeding stab wounds.

“We joined the medical force of the police who provided them with primary medical care,” said the medics. “One of the moderately injured was taken to the hospital when his condition was stable and the other was treated on the spot and did not need to be evacuated to a hospital.”

Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem later confirmed that a 30-year-old man was admitted. The hospital spokesman said that his condition was moderate, with an injury to his upper body. After an initial evaluation, he was sent for imaging tests and further treatment.

“The stabbing attacks over the last day are another example of how damned terrorists and extremist forces will continue to try and harm our attempts to celebrate the spring holidays for the first time in two years without restrictions,” said Minister of Public Security Omer Barlev.

“The Israel Police and the Border Police will continue to be determined and strong in their vigilance,” he added, while wishing a quick recovery for those who were wounded.

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