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The Israeli military said a misunderstanding led its troops to kill a member of the Hamas terror group as he was trying to prevent Palestinian youths from breaching the security fence. The highly irregular acknowledgment of such a mistake appeared to be an effort by the Israel Defense Forces to calm tensions with Hamas and prevent another round of violence. Palestinian media identified him as a commander in Hamas's armed wing. A Hamas source said that he was shot when he chased after two young Palestinians who approached the border fence to stop them from crossing over into Israeli territory. Hamas's military wing stated that his death will not go “unpunished.”
Ethiopian-Israeli protests resumed Monday, ending a pause of several days after angry demonstrations rocked the country last week over the police killing of an unarmed Ethiopian teen. Some 500 people began marching in Tel Aviv in the afternoon, mostly Ethiopian Israeli women holding signs saying "Mother, don't let me be the next victim." An investigation into the police officer has confirmed that he fired at the ground and that the bullet ricocheted into Solomon Tekah’s body. Israeli media reports said that it is unlikely that the officer will be charged with manslaughter. However, Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan said the police should not be forgiving when it comes to police violence.
A day care manager from central Israel was indicted on 18 counts of child abuse of nearly a dozen toddlers and infants who were under her care, days after shocking footage of her violence against the children sparked protests across the country. Chanting “the country demands justice for the children” and other slogans, thousands of Israelis protested in some 25 locations around the country to demand state oversight of day care centers. Currently, the government only regulates facilities for children aged three and up, when children are eligible to enter public pre-schools. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he would move the responsibility for day care centers to the Education Ministry from the Labor and Social Affairs Ministry.
Five IDF soldiers were wounded Saturday when a Palestinian man crashed a car into the group, near the Hizma check point in East Jerusalem. After a manhunt, the driver was arrested Saturday night. A probe carried out by the Israeli military has determined that IDF soldiers did not operate according to commanders’ instructions.
Hamas held an unprecedented military exercise in the Gaza Strip, in which all members of the coastal enclave's military organizations participated. The terrorist group’s various security branches simulated an Israeli ground incursion as part of the surprise drill on Tuesday.
Coordinating with Hamas, Israel increased the number of Palestinian laborers from the Gaza Strip allowed to work in the country, and this seems to be the main reason for the relative quiet along the border with the coastal enclave in recent days. Like other relief efforts recently approved by Israel's political leadership and defense establishment as part of the understandings reached through mediation by Egypt, Qatar, and the United Nations, this decision, too, was not officially disclosed in Israel.
The US State Department’s newly released International Religious Freedom Report for 2018, which addressed “both Israel’s strengths and its areas of concern,” was the subject of a debate hosted by the US Embassy in coordination with the Israel Democracy Institute. An Israeli Foreign Ministry official on Monday dismissed the report in a gentle rebuke of Washington’s assessment.
Shabbat Shalom,
Jackie Congedo, Director, JCRC
Shep Englander, CEO, Jewish Federation of Cincinnati
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