Shalom and good evening, this is TV7 Israel
News broadcast to you from Jerusalem;
And in today’s top stories;
Israel allegedly conducts two separate strikes
against Iranian-backed forces in Syria.
The Secretary General of Iran’s Lebanese-proxy
Hezbollah Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah condemned
Germany for its decision to designate his
militant group a “terror organization.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
announced Israel’s gradual exit plan from
the current restrictive routine, in light
of the government’s perceived success in
handling the corona-crisis.
Unidentified aircraft conducted two separate
bombardments in Syria last night, both of
which Damascus officials have attributed to
the Israeli Air Force.
Both strikes were reportedly conducted around
the same hour, at ten thirty at night.
The first aerial attack targeted an institute
for scientific research near the city of Al-Safira,
situated in the southeastern countryside of
Aleppo governorate.
Intelligence sources confirmed to TV7 that
the target included Syrian installations and
military warehouses, including the so-called
scientific research institute - dubbed ‘Branch
247’.
While the alleged Israeli strike caused extensive
destruction to, what is believed to be, a
number of ‘weapons caches of the Damascus
regime and its allied Iranian-backed proxies’;
no injuries were immediately reported.
Shortly after the first attack, a number of
explosions were reported in the al-Mayadeen
desert, which is situated in the rural Deir
ez-Zor governorate.
According to the London-based Syrian Observatory
of Human Rights, unidentified aircraft - that
are believed to be Israeli - targeted positions
belonging to Iranian militias.
It is important to mention that limited information
emerged from this attack.
Nevertheless, the targeted area in question
is a known smuggling-corridor adjacent to
the Syrian border with Iraq.
According to verified intelligence reports,
the referred to territory is currently controlled
by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps
and its most loyal Iraqi proxy, Kataib Hezbollah
of the Popular Mobilization Forces, or Hashd
al-Shaabi in Arabic.
It is further important to note that last
night’s reported strikes were the fourth
such bombardments against Iranian controlled
installations and proxy arms warehouses in
less than two weeks, responsibility of which
were all exclusively attributed to the Israeli
Defense Forces.
And while in response to TV7’s request for
comment, the IDF Spokesperson’s unit refused
to confirm nor deny its involvement; Israeli
Defense Minister Naftali Bennett seemingly
confirmed Israel’s alleged activities.
Speaking last week on Tuesday – one day
after the first out of four reported attacks
– Israel’s top Defense Official highlighted
in a statement, quote: “We have moved from
blocking Iran’s entrenchment in Syria to
forcing it out of there, and we will not stop.”
In a rare statement of a senior Israeli official
on the defense establishment’s operational
intensions, Minister Bennett further stressed
that the IDF will continue to “take the
fight to the enemy’s territory” as Jerusalem
“will not allow more strategic threats to
grow just across (Israel’s) borders without
taking action.”
Turning now to Lebanon, where;
The Secretary General of Iran’s Lebanese-proxy
Hezbollah Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah condemned
Germany for its decision to designate his
militant group a “terror organization.”
In a televised address from one of his undisclosed
bunkers in Israel’s northern neighbor, Nasrallah
asserted that the decision by German authorities
was nothing-less than a blatant politically-rooted
capitulation to the will of the United States
and Israel.
"Where does Hezbollah have terrorist activities
in Germany?
Let them present one file, there is none.
So, this is a political decision that shows
Germany has succumbed to the American will
and to satisfy Israel."
In a moved hailed by Israeli Foreign Minister
Yisrael Katz as “a very important decision
and a valuable and significant step in the
global fight against terrorism,” was officially
adopted by the Federal Interior Minister Horst
Seehofer last week on Thursday, April 30th.
The decision consequently led German police
authorities to conduct numerous raids on suspected
locations belonging to Hezbollah and its offshoots
in Berlin, Bremen, Munster, Recklinghausen
and Dortmund, among others.
Meanwhile;
The Interior Minister of the German state
of North Rhine-Westphalia Herbert Reul praised
Berlin for its move to ban – what he referred
to - the “appalling Israel and Jew haters”
from operating in Germany.
"The members of this party are nothing more
than appalling Israel and Jew haters, people
who do not question the right of Israel to
exist but openly call for the destruction
of the state.
With this they are in obstruction of the constitution
and go against intercultural understanding
and that is why German Interior Minister Horst
Seehofer today imposed this national ban on
this self-named party of god."
Minister Reul further noted that while it
was legally impossible to completely ban the
Iranian-backed group, the Federal decision
to ban all of Hezbollah’s activities has
also an immediate effect.
"A complete ban or a dissolution was sadly
legally not possible as it concerns a foreign
rather than a German organization but a ban
on all activities also has an immediate effect.
As of immediately it will be illegal to take
part in demonstrations or to show propaganda
writings or symbols of this organization."
According to security officials, there are
some 1,050 Hezbollah members residing in Germany.
Since the Federal decision, however, Minister
Reul levelled a warning to Hezbollah and other
terror organizations, in which he emphasized
that they should not “feel safe” on German
soil.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, today's ban is a clear
signal to foreign terror organizations and
their supporters in Germany.
You should not feel safe here, the German
and North-Rhine Westphalia security forces
are onto you and will continue to use every
opportunity to make your lives difficult."
Turning now to Jerusalem, where;
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
announced Israel’s gradual exit plan from
the current restrictive routine, in light
of the government’s perceived success in
handling the corona-crisis.
In an address broadcast live on all of Israel’s
major domestic television networks, the Israeli
Premier insisted that three factors ultimately
brough about the perceived success of limiting
the potentially dire’ implications of the
corona pandemic.
“Now, our success is not based on genetics,
not on climate, not on the fact that we are
an island, because none of these things matter.
It is based on three basic things.
The first thing is the fast and calculated
steps that have been taken since the global
crisis, first and foremost, the closure of
borders, home isolation and digital surveillance.
The second cause of success is the wonderful
dedication of our medical teams, doctors and
nurse practitioners, MDA teams, rescue teams,
hospital administrators, and their people.
Our third and greatest cause is your responsiveness,
the citizens of Israel.”
According to Netanyahu, the three stated factors
brough-out about a significantly lower number
of contagion carriers, in contrast to other
afflicted countries around the world.
Furthermore, it allowed Israel’s health
system to function properly, and while each
victim is a devastating loss, the low mortality
rate is inter-connected to the strict measures
that were implemented by Jerusalem.
"On the basis of these achievements, we have
in recent days devised a comprehensive, measured,
and responsible plan that allows the State
of Israel to gradually return to a new routine
- the Corona routine."
Before unveiling his government’s exit plan,
Netanyahu emphasized that any action to exit
the crisis will remain subject to situation
assessments that will dictate Jerusalem’s
future steps.
"It's like a pilot flying an airplane.
He has an altimeter, a pressure gauge, a fuel
gauge.
If he sees a red light on one of those metrics,
he should immediately recalculate his rout.
That's what we will do with regard to Corona.
We are closely monitoring the data ... I wanted
to tell you 'once a day' but we do this twice,
three times a day.
We are constantly following this.
All the time, and we will continue the monitoring.
If a red light comes on we will have to change
the policy, And God forbid we get to the point
where everything we've done, all of our great
achievements go down the drain.
" Among others, the Israeli Premier announced
that restrictions barring Israelis from leaving
their residence beyond 100 meters will be
terminated immediately.
Furthermore, all will be permitted to visit
immediate family members, so-long as they
maintain social distancing and hygiene.
In addition, the government intends to restart
the country’s education system by the 14th
of May, among other related decisions that
are published on the Health Ministry’s website.
“At the moment we are still restricting
gatherings to no more than 20 people and only
in the open space, but if all goes well, in
two weeks on May 17 we will convene gatherings
of 50 people.
Even before that, Lag Ba'omer, because there
are many weddings around Lag Ba'omer, we will
allow 50 people weddings, a wedding ceremony
and a blessings, not dancing, again with no
contact, but to allow weddings, whoever plans
it can plan it.
On May 31, we will allow a gatherings of up
to 100 people and on June 14, we hope we can
completely eliminate the gathering limit."
Concluding his statement, Prime Minister Netanyahu
stressed to the citizens of Israel that while
the decision to gradually steer the Jewish
State out of the corona-crisis heralds optimism;
no one can predict the future.
"Now, everything I have presented here gives
a lot of optimism and a lot of hope.
The horizon looks brighter.
But the current situation assessment is based
on the current situation.
The situation assessment is based on the situation
and not on the heart’s desire.
We are dealing with a huge global crisis.
No one in the world can say for sure what
else will happen.
I tell you this because I speak to many leaders
around the world.
I also speak to the world's leading experts.
Each of which says ‘I cannot tell you what
will happen.’
This should not discourage us, it should not
depress us either, because so far we have
been able to withstand this epidemic in an
exceptional manner.
However, the virus may re-erupt, in a second
wave, and perhaps more seriously.
We have to be ready for that.
We will be prepared for this in the form of
measures, I will not list them at the moment,
[but] we are dealing with this.
Beyond the question of reopening the economy,
reopening the state under a corona routine,
we are preparing for the possibility that
the second wave will erupt before a vaccine
is found.
I'm not sure that's going to happen, I hope
it doesn’t happen, I pray it won't, but
I know that with God’s and your help we
will be ready for it.
"
Thank you for watching us.
As part of TV7’s global prayer initiative,
I would like to encourage you to join myself
and the team here in Jerusalem to pray today
for the peace and salvation of Singapore,
alongside our ongoing prayers for the peace
of Jerusalem, the peace and salvation of Israel,
as well as for all those who are impacted
by the corona contagion world-wide.
I am Jonathan Hessen, have an Erev Tov, and
we will see you again tomorrow at the same
time.
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