Israel News

22 several hundred UAVs to Russia, and Russia has been using these UAVs to attack Ukraine’s critical infrastructure and The Jewish Home | DECEMBER 15, 2022 kill Ukrainian civilians,” Vedant Patel, principal deputy spokesperson of the U.S. State Department, said on Friday. The U.S. imposed sanctions on three Russian entities linked to Moscow’s growing military relationship with Tehran, the State Department announced on Friday. Those entities were involved in training personnel and the transfer of drones. (JNS)

Bali Bombmaker Released

A bombmaker in the 2002 Bali attacks that killed 202 people was released from an Indonesian prison on parole last week after serving half his 20-year sentence, despite the opposition of Australia’s prime minister, who described him as “abhorrent.”

Umar Patek was a leading member of Al Qaeda-linked network Jemaah Islamiyah, which is blamed for the bombings at two nightclubs in Kuta Beach. Indonesian authorities have said that Patek was successfully reformed in prison and that they would use him to influence other militants to turn away from terrorism.

Patek, 55, whose real name is Hisyam bin Alizein, received a total of 33 months of sentence reductions, which are often given to prisoners on major holidays for good behavior, said Rika Aprianti, spokesperson for the Corrections Department at the Justice Ministry. Most recently, he was granted a five-month reduction August 17, Indonesia’s Independence Day. That meant he had fulfilled the parole requirement of serving twothirds of his current sentence.

Patek was found guilty by the West Jakarta District Court of helping build a car bomb that was detonated by another person outside the Sari Club in Kuta, moments after a smaller bomb in a backpack was detonated by a suicide bomber inside the nearby Paddy’s Pub nightclub. The attacks killed 202 people — mostly foreign tourists, including 88 Australians, leaving a deep scar in that country.

Aprianti said that authorities would monitor Patek and that he would have to take part in a mentoring program until his parole ends April 29, 2030.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described Patek as “abhorrent” and said his release would cause further distress to Australians who were affected by the Bali bombings.

“His actions were the actions of a terrorist,” Albanese told Channel 9 in August. “We lost 88 Australian lives in those bombings.”

Patek was sentenced to 20 years in prison a decade after the bombing. He left Bali just before the attacks and spent nine years on the run, during which he was considered one of Asia’s most wanted terror suspects.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation and the third-biggest democracy, has imprisoned hundreds of Islamic militants since the Bali bombings.

Indonesia executed three Islamic militants by firing squad at Nusakambangan prison in November 2008 for involvement in the Bali bombings. The three — Imam Samudra, Amrozi bin Nurhasyim and his brother Mukhlas — never expressed remorse, saying the bombings were meant to punish the U.S. and its Western allies for alleged atrocities in Afghanistan and elsewhere.

Another bomber, Ali Imron, was saved from execution after showing remorse and exposing the plot to investigators and was sentenced to life.

Tobacco Company Targeting Chareidim

According to a Hebrew University study published this week, tobacco giant Philip Morris is targeting Israel’s charedi population to drive cigarette addiction and increase profits.

Researchers from the university’s public health wing reported that 87 percent of Philip Morris’s advertising budget

Happy Hanukkah!

Gift Baskets & Other Chocolate Treats from Dolce Confections

Call or Order Online

Gift Baskets and Trays

Hand Dipped Chocolates, Cookies & Pretzels

Dried Fruit & Nuts

Holiday Themed Candies and Chocolate Molds

We Welcome Corporate Accounts!

Mention this ad and get a free gift on orders over $100 (while supplies last) In- Store or Curbside Pickup, Local Delivery & Nationwide Shipping Available

1319 Broadway, Hewlett, NY 11557 (516)374-1940

24 over a four-year period was targeted at the charedi public, despite the fact that the population group has the lowest The Jewish Home | DECEMBER 15, 2022 smoking rates in the country. “We expected that the company would focus on populations with the highest rates of smoking in Israel, men in the Arab sector, and not on the population that has hardly any smokers,” said Dr. Yael Bar-Zeev, one of the report’s researchers. Marketing expenditure on the charedi public, which is focused on the printed press, was almost NIS 3 million annually. Philip Morris claims to only target existing smokers with its advertising material, an assertion that is challenged by the Hebrew University’s findings. The report also found that the company developed creative strategies to circumvent tobacco advertising legislation, which limits advertisements to one per newspaper. The company would use double-page ad spreads and QR codes, which would take readers to additional promotional material.

Philip Morris has stated that it has a “vision” for a “future without cigarettes,” which includes not seeking to recruit new smokers, and that it encourages existing smokers to transition away from the addiction using the company’s e-cigarette range.

“Thanks to the determination and persistence of hundreds of scientists, engineers and technicians, and an investment of more than nine billion dollars in science-based innovation, we are on the right track to realizing this vision.

“Today, close to 19 million adult smokers worldwide use the groundbreaking, smoke-free products we developed. The vast majority of those people (13.5 million) completely stopped smoking cigarettes,” the company said.

The charedi population was targeted with 55% of Philip Morris’ total e-cigarette marketing expenditure, lower than that for traditional cigarettes. However, chareidim were still the largest target market for e-cigarette marketing, with 39% aimed at Russian speakers and 6% at the Arab population.

This week, SodaStream, the Israeli carbonation company, announced that it will be laying off 120 employees, mainly at its factory in southern Israel, as demand for its products returns to preCovid levels.

The majority of the job cuts will be made at SodaStream’s production plant at the Idan Hanegev industrial park near the city of Rahat, whose employees include Bedouin Arabs from the surrounding area. The factory currently employs 2,000 workers.

“In recent years, SodaStream increased the scope of its workforce in order to respond to the growth that the company experienced for a long time, and particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic,” the company wrote in a statement. “Current forecasts for production volumes indicate a return to demand levels recorded in the past.

“At the same time, the company is vulnerable to volatile global market conditions, which affect its business,” SodaStream said.

The company will set up a career center to help the laid-off employees find other jobs.

SodaStream, founded in 1991, makes and sells seltzer machines for home use. In 2018, the company was bought by U.S. beverage and food maker PepsiCo Inc. for $3.2 billion in cash. As part of the acquisition deal, PepsiCo committed to let SodaStream remain an independent unit within the U.S. beverage company and keep its Israeli headquarters for 15 years.

About a year after the acquisition, PepsiCo announced a $92 million expansion of SodaStream’s plant in southern Israel to hire 1,000 more workers. Over the years, the company has employed diverse populations at its manufacturing sites, including Jews, Arab, Bedouins and Palestinians.

The company has 3,800 workers globally. Its devices are sold in more than 45 countries.

IT’S HARD TO FEEL HOLIDAY CHEER ON AN EMPTY STOMACH

Since 2020, the poverty rate in Israel has almost doubled from 14% to 27.6%. Today, a staggering 2.5 million Israelis live in poverty, including over 1.1 million children. Our network of RestaurantStyle Soup Kitchens and food distribution programs provide over 100,000 meals monthly, giving children the nourishment to thrive and parents one less thing to worry about.

Help us lighten and brighten up their lives this Chanukah!

American Friends of Meir Panim 88 Walton St, Suite B1, Brooklyn, NY 11206-4479 (877) 7-Donate / 877.736.6283

The Jewish Home | DECEMBER 15, 2022 Give the giftyou’ll want a slice of.

Anyone have success with...

Master the Art of...

5.10 Bonus Scoring

6:12

Hi everyone! Sarah here.

My starter worked! Finally! Proo ng Dough

6:12

THE SOURDOUGH BAKING GIFT SET + course

Whether you’re shopping for a foodie friend, healthy mom, or teen baker, the Bread Basket by Spice & Zest is the ultimate kit that keeps on giving. The best part: your recipient will need someone to gift those tasty loaves. Here’s hoping it’s you! WHAT’S INCLUDED?

Includes starter & COMPLETE toolkit

Lifetime access to our signature course Private members-only community

Order on spiceandzest.com

Free shipping in US

Purchase before 12/26 for access to weekly sourdough support sessions throughout January!

Everything you need for this sourdough loaf is in your kit!

Questions? Let’s chat on Whatsapp!

spiceandzest

2 Killed When Scaffolding Collapses

Two construction workers were killed and another was moderately injured when part of a scaffolding collapsed on a 12-story building under construction in the settlement of Givat Ze’ev, just north of Jerusalem, earlier this week.

Rescue workers needed a crane to reach one of the men buried under the fallen scaffold on Harakefet Street.

Walid Amro, a construction worker at the building site, told Channel 13 he was on another part of the scaffolding when the disaster happened.

“I heard workers saying run, [and] I ran away,” he said.

Amro said workers had told the site manager that the scaffold was not secure and was shaking, but he allegedly shrugged off the warnings.

Speaking to Channel 12, Amro said that the ninth floor collapsed as the three workers were standing on it.

Another worker, identified only as Mahmoud, told the network he was just meters away when the disaster happened.

“We heard a loud noise,” he said. “The whole thing collapsed in one go.”

According to the MDA statement, rescuers found three men under the scaf-

It took another two hours to extract the third worker, who was dead when rescuers reached him. A crane was needed to lift some of the debris that covered the man, delaying efforts to reach him.

Deaths of construction workers in Israel are a frequent occurrence, largely because of poorly enforced safety codes.

A Legendary Spy

According to Mossad chief David Barnea, legendary Israeli spy Eli Cohen, who infiltrated the top levels of government in Syria, was caught merely because his transmissions were intercepted by the enemy.

On Monday, Barnea revealed the last message sent out by Cohen on the day of his capture in Syria in 1965, along with new information on what led to his arrest.

Over the years, there has been much dispute over what led to Cohen’s capture – was he transmitting too often? Had he been pressured by his handlers? But Barnea insists that he was captured “simply because his transmissions were intercepted and triangulated by the enemy.”

“Eli Cohen was among our best agents,” Barnea said at an event marking the inauguration of the new Eli Cohen Museum in Herzliya.

The spy chief praised Cohen’s “fighting spirit, courage, values and devotion” and said he serves as “a source of inspiration” for all Mossad personnel.

“We all learn from him, even today, from his Zionism, his sacrifice and his dedication.”

Cohen infiltrated the top echelons of Syria’s political leadership in the years leading up to the 1967 Six Day War. The information he obtained is believed to have played a key role in Israel’s overwhelming success in that war. He was caught in 1965 and hanged in Damascus.

Cohen’s last report, sent on January 19, 1965, the day he was captured, was “about a discussion at the Syrian General Staff with the participation of then-president Amin Al-Hafez,” Barnea said.

The Mossad is donating the original document containing Cohen’s transmission to the new museum established in his memory.

It is not known where Cohen’s body is held. In February 2021, it was reported that Russia, in cooperation with Syrian authorities and under Israeli pressure, was searching the area of the Yarmouk refugee camp in southern Damascus for Cohen’s body in order to transfer it to Israel.

The following month, an object believed to have belonged to Cohen was reportedly transferred to Israel. Quoting an unnamed Syrian government source, Israeli reports said at the time that the

Israel Safe for Tourists

Israel is the fifth-safest country in the world for tourists to visit, according to data on the 50 most popular destinations.

According to data reviewed by The Swiftest analytics startup for its Travel Safety Index, published earlier this month, the top-ranked country was Singapore, followed by Denmark, Netherlands and Switzerland.

Israel came next, followed by Sweden, Austria, Ireland, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Japan, France, the Czech Republic, Belgium, Australia, and Croatia.

The deadliest travel destination was South Africa, followed by India, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Brazil, Cambodia, the Philippines, and Saudi Arabia.

The index is based on seven risk factors: death rates from homicide; road traffic accidents; poisoning and poor hygiene conditions; life years lost from communicable diseases and injuries; and a natural disaster index. (JNS)

A New Knesset Speaker