12/09 Links Pt1: The Phenomenon of Lone Palestinian Terrorists; Gantz is handing Palestinians a state on silver platter; German Jews wary of new 'traffic light' government

From Ian:

JCPA: The Phenomenon of Lone Palestinian Terrorists

The IDF is alarmed by the imitation phenomenon of lone terrorists, mainly the mimicking of knife and vehicular attacks. Moreover, in recent weeks, the incitement on social media has increased, which has the most significant impact on the younger Palestinian generation, especially when they view the live action in east Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.

In November, there were three terrorist attacks: a stabbing attack in the Old City of Jerusalem in which two Border Police soldiers were wounded; a shooting attack by Hamas terrorist and cleric Fadi Abu Shahidam in which an Israeli civilian was murdered; and a stabbing attack in Jaffa in which a civilian was seriously wounded.

So far, in the early days of December, there were two attacks: a stabbing at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem in which an Israeli civilian was seriously injured and another vehicular attack at the Te’enim crossing in Samaria in which an Israeli security guard was seriously injured. In all cases, the terrorists were killed.

Hamas is trying to re-launch terror inside Israel and the West Bank after it suffered a severe blow: in recent months, the Israel Security Agency arrested an extensive network of dozens of Hamas terrorists who planned a series of attacks in Israel and the Judea and Samaria area. Weapons and explosive belts intended for suicide bombings were captured.

This terrorist activity in Jerusalem and the West Bank is directed from the Gaza Strip, Turkey, and Lebanon through Hamas’ “West Bank headquarters.” The mastermind is Saleh al-Arouri, the head of Hamas’ military-terrorist wing in the West Bank.

Hamas is attempting to carry out a “showcase” assault that will serve as a role model and fuel for the fire that has already begun in east Jerusalem.

Hamas estimates that Israel is struggling to cope with the phenomenon of lone terrorists. Their attacks occur spontaneously and often in seemingly undirected waves. Hamas, therefore, tries to ride each wave as soon as it is detected and before it fades. For Hamas and other terrorist groups, the main “enemy” of the spectacle of a handful of terrorists is the security coordination between Israel’s security forces and the PA security services.

PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas knows that he holds a double-edged sword that could undermine his rule. So, while his prime minister, Mohammad Shtayyeh, attacks Israel for killing the young terrorists (“cold-blooded murder”), Abbas, in recent days, has changed direction and ordered his security forces to stop the stabbings and end the incitement.

The phenomenon of lone terrorists is attributed mainly to young Palestinians who continue to feed on the incitement on Palestinian social networks and media.

Many of the young terrorists are frustrated. They come from families living in difficult economic situations. They seek to become “heroes” in the Palestinian society that nurtures the legend of “martyrs.”

Israel can end lone wolf terror wave with five-step plan

The coordination with the PA and the weakening of Hamas's incitement: The security coordination with the PA is better than it's been in a while. An example of that is the rescue of the two members of the Breslov Hassidic movement, who accidentally entered the city of Ramallah last week. In addition, the Palestinians make arrests of instigators, terror operatives, and issue warnings to their relatives. In one such case last week, an alert was received about a lone attacker who intended to throw an explosive device at IDF soldiers, as a result, his family was located, warned, and he was questioned.

Furthermore, the Shin Bet along with the IDF is preparing for next Tuesday, November 14, the anniversary of Hamas' establishment. For weeks arrests have been made and every activity of Hamas in West Bank has been monitored. The concern is that a sequence of terror attacks may be carried out by Hamas operatives on that day, with the terror group's incitement campaign already in full swing.

Deterring the family of the assailant: One of the things that were proven as very useful, and prevented dozens of attacks, is actions taken against the family of the attacker. These acts include the demolition of their houses, prevention of entry to Israel in order to work, and arrests of family members.

This is done in an effort to force family members of potential attackers to alert the security forces if they notice any changes in his behavior, or his patterns of action. It has already happened in the past and it is proven to be a very useful tool against lone assailants.

And the last step is operational professionalism: The first seconds of any attack are crucial for the outcome. An attack that ends with a rapid, sharp response, and the neutralization of the attacker - without casualties among civilians or security forces -would make a potential terrorist think twice, and such an event won't be used as an example to incite others.

Police officers cleared in deadly shooting of Palestinian stabber

The State Prosecutor’s Office said Thursday it had closed an investigation into two Border Police officers who shot dead a Palestinian assailant after he stabbed a Jewish civilian in a Jerusalem terror attack, saying there was legal justification for the shooting.

The officers were questioned after video of the Saturday incident showed them firing at Muhammad Salima once he was already lying on the ground.

Police video of the entire incident that was later released showed Salima stabbed one civilian and then also tried to attack the officers. The video showed that the officers did not immediately fire the fatal shot at the assailant as he lay on the ground, but did so only after he moved, apparently trying to get up.

State Prosecutor Amit Aisman on Thursday adopted the recommendations of the Justice Ministry’s internal investigations unit, and decided to close the probe into the two officers.

The State Prosecutor’s office said in a statement that the Police Internal Investigations Department (PIID) had “thoroughly, professionally and efficiently” investigated the officers’ actions.

“The Border Police officers’ explanations that they acted in self-defense were consistent with the rest of the investigation’s findings, including a video documenting the incident in its entirety,” the statement read.

“An examination of all the circumstances found that this was an incident that lasted only a few seconds, in circumstances where there was a real and tangible danger to the lives of the officers and civilians in the area,” the statement read.

'Gantz is handing Palestinians a state on silver platter'

Right-wing groups expressed outrage Wednesday after Defense Minister Benny Gantz compared the Palestinian Authority's perceived takeover of land in Judea and Samaria to Israeli land grabs.

The written statement by Gantz was issued as an official reply to a parliamentary query submitted by Likud MK Keti Shitrit, requesting clarification of the Defense Ministry's response to the takeover of open spaces in Judea and Samaria.

In his response, the defense minister noted "attempts to trespass and to commandeer land in Judea and Samaria by both Palestinians and Israelis" usually manifested by illegal construction and unauthorized agricultural activity. He also pointed to the renewal of the process of approval of construction permits for the Palestinian sector in Area C as the solution to the problem.

Avichai Boaron, chairman of the right-wing Zion and Jerusalem Forum, lambasted the move.

"The defense establishment led by Benny Gantz turns a blind eye to a ticking bomb. It is similar to assumptions made before the 1973 Yom Kippur War, but this time, the failure of the assumption will end in a densely populated Palestinian state … When we wake up, it will be too late, and no one will be able to turn back the time."

Gantz was also criticized by Regavim, a group dedicated to the protection of Israel's national lands and resources, who said he was "handing Palestinians a state on a silver platter."

"This document indicates that the current defense minister is completely clueless regarding the strategic issues involved. This is nothing less than a revisited 'Yom Kippur War-style' implosion for the Defense Ministry," Regavim Director-General Meir Deutsch said.

The Caroline Glick Show: Ep29 – The dangerous farce of nuclear diplomacy unravels in Vienna

In Episode 29 of the Caroline Glick Middle East News Hour, Caroline and her co-host Gadi Taub discussed the implications of the U.S.’s farcical, destructive policies enabling Iran to acquire nuclear weapons and what Israel’s options are going forward for dealing with Iran (and the Biden administration). They then moved on to domestic Israeli affairs. Former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trial has been going on for two months and all the prosecution’s star witnesses have sat on the witness stand and obliterated the indictments against Netanyahu. Gadi and Caroline discussed what it all means for Israel’s legal fraternity and its democratic system.

In Egypt, Lapid and Sissi discuss Iran nuclear threat, Hamas

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid met on Thursday with Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi in Cairo, where the two discussed the Iranian threat, and Israel’s attempts to reach an agreement with the Hamas terror group in Gaza.

On Iran, Lapid and Sissi spoke about Tehran’s nuclear program and the threat to regional stability posed by its support for armed proxy groups, according to the Foreign Ministry.

Lapid also presented his vision for Gaza, which would offer economic incentives in return for an end to Hamas attacks, and discussed the issue of the Israeli civilians and the remains of two Israeli soldiers being held in the Strip.

The Foreign Minister originally announced his two-stage plan for Gaza in September. The first stage would entail rehabilitating infrastructure in the Strip in exchange for tight international oversight — as well as quiet from Hamas. In the second stage of Lapid’s plan, the two sides would see the realization of more ambitious projects. An artificial island would be built off the coast of the enclave — a long-proposed plan to see a port built in Gaza — and the West Bank and Gaza would be linked by infrastructure projects.

Sissi hosted Lapid at the Al-Ittihadiya Palace in the Heliopolis neighborhood of Cairo, the official office of Egypt’s president.

Sissi and Lapid also discussed combating terror, and measures taken by Israel to strengthen the Palestinian Authority.

Palestinian confrontation with Israel can be avoided - Gaza factions

Sources in the Gaza Strip were quoted as saying the factions want to give the Egyptians and other mediators more time to pursue their efforts to prevent an escalation with Israel.

Hamas and the factions expect a quick intervention from the Egyptians and other mediators to prevent an “explosion,” the sources added. Rami Abu Zubaideh, a researcher in Palestinian military and security affairs, ruled out the possibility of a military confrontation in the coastal enclave. He told the Palestinian daily Al-Quds newspaper that Hamas’s threats were aimed at putting pressure on Israel and Egypt to move forward with the issue of the reconstruction of the Strip.

Abu Zubaideh said if no progress is achieved in the coming days, the Gaza-based factions may resort to “popular tools or rallies,” an apparent reference to the resumption of protests near the border with Israel.

He pointed out that Hamas was determined to achieve “a major breakthrough regarding the humanitarian situation, and rejects any conditions, such as linking a prisoner-exchange deal with Israel to the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.”

German Jews wary of new 'traffic light' government

The government has named Annalena Baerbock of the Green Party as foreign minister—the first woman to hold such a position, replacing the SDP's Heiko Maas, who faced criticism from the pro-Israel camp for seeking to work around the Trump administration's sanctions on Iran, among other Iran-appeasement measures. Baerbock has talked back her 2018 criticism of submarine sales to Israel and has expressed support for Israel's right to defend itself during the 11-day conflict with Hamas in May.

"It's really too early to say," Beck said of her approach to Israel in her new capacity.

But if the appointment of Claudia Roth, also of the Green Party, as culture commissioner is any indication, the government will entertain a less friendly orientation to Israel.

"We now have a culture minister who is a close friend of the Iranians and who has bowed her head wearing a headscarf in front of the mullah regime, in addition to being a supporter of the cultural boycotters of Israel," said Sacha Stawski, head of the pro-Israel watchdog group Honestly Concerned.

The coalition is marked by subtle yet peculiar differences from previous agreements. While Merkel's famous proclamation of Israel's security being Germany's "reason of state" is included, Israel is not characterized as a "Jewish state." While previous governments called for the predictive two-state solution, this agreement modified the formulation to include one based on "1967 borders," often considered by the pro-Israel camp to be erroneous lingo that delegitimizes Israel's presence beyond the historical 1949 armistice line.

"If you start off from a point where you speak of inexistent borders, where you automatically speak of the settlements as being 'in violation of international law,' you're setting the wrong precedent," said Stawski.

Serious COVID-19 cases in Israel drop below 100 for first time in 4.5 months

The number of COVID-19 patients in serious condition dropped below 100 on Thursday, the lowest level since July, despite concerns over the highly mutated Omicron coronavirus variant.

According to Health Ministry data, there were 96 people whose condition was defined as serious as of Thursday evening, with 55 of them on ventilators.

The last time there were that few serious cases was on July 24. The number has been steadily dropping over the past month from 157 on November 9.

The death toll stood at 8,210, with no one succumbing to the disease in the previous 72 hours, the ministry said. Over the past seven days, five people died of COVID-19.

There were 651 new coronavirus cases diagnosed in the country on Wednesday, with a further 153 since midnight, taking the total number since the pandemic began to 1,348,486. There were 5,971 active cases.

According to the ministry, more than 100,000 coronavirus tests were conducted Wednesday, with 0.69 percent returning positive.

Bennett sought lockdown for unvaccinated, was blocked by health officials – reports

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett ordered officials on Thursday to look at imposing restrictions on people who are not vaccinated against COVID-19, his office said in a statement.

Bennett met with Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz and other senior officials from a range of ministries during a situational assessment on the coronavirus outbreak.

The prime minister instructed officials to examine the possibility of restrictions on those who did not avail themselves of vaccines in the national vaccination campaign, which currently offers shots to anyone age five and up. The statement did not specify what restrictions were under consideration.

According to Hebrew media reports, Bennett proposed banning unvaccinated Israelis from leaving the country or ordering just them into lockdown, noting that the latter measure has already been taken by other countries.

According to sources present at the meeting, Horowitz and health officials, in a heated exchange, opposed Bennett’s ideas. Sources told outlets that the prime minister had edged toward more extreme positions in dealing with the virus outbreak.

CNN Downplays Wave of Palestinian Terrorism with Bizarre Comparison to ‘Attacks by Jewish Settlers’

There are several points that need to be addressed with regard to this title.

First, there is nothing “suspected” about the attack.

Second, the inclusion of the rather vague term “highlights rising tensions” masks the context in which this attack occurred. That is, it was the second terror attack by a Palestinian in just 48 hours, the former involving the stabbing of a Jewish man in Jerusalem on Saturday.

Indeed, so alarming is the surge in violence against Israeli citizens and soldiers, that former IDF chief of staff Moshe Ya’alon warned on Monday that “we are in the midst of a new wave of individual terrorism.”

And third, the inclusion of the statement that there are “questions over police actions” suggests security officers who shot the terrorist may have acted improperly in neutralizing the driver.

But while Israeli Defense Ministry director-general Amir Eshel confirmed “the circumstances of the incident” are under investigation, he has praised the swift actions of checkpoint guards.

Reuters Uses Misleading Context of Sheikh Jarrah Dispute to Justify Stabbing of Jewish Mother

On December 8, a Palestinian stabbed a Jewish mother in the back with a foot-long knife while she was walking her children to school. Instead of producing a straightforward report about the attack, Reuters instead used the headline to apparently justify the stabbing:

Palestinian girl facing Jerusalem eviction held on suspicion of stabbing Jewish neighbour

Instead of centering the actual story – a stabbing attack – the headline centers the attacker, framing her as a victim for facing “eviction” and being “held.” No evidence is provided that the property dispute actually motivated the attack. The article’s lede about “long-running tensions in the neighborhood” similarly turns the story into the justification of a violent attack by a Palestinian teen girl on a Jewish mother in front of her young children.

While the ongoing property dispute in the Shimon HaTzadik / Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood may be relevant context for readers, the story manages to get that context wrong, anyway. In explaining the property dispute, the article tells readers only:
The Palestinian families who could lose their homes in Sheikh Jarrah have lived there for decades. Settlers claim the land as theirs and have presented 19th-century documents as evidence.

The Jewish owners’ claims are not simply based on “19th century documents.” They are the successors of the Jewish owners who were driven out during the 1948-49 war, and Jewish ownership was acknowledged by the Jordanian Custodian of Enemy Property and the UN. The Palestinian squatters have been offered protected tenant status (i.e., they will not be evicted) if they finally start paying rent.

Yes, they’re a terrorist group. They are hell-bent on genocide, and your propaganda rag is also sponsored by a government that funds like-minded scum such as Hamas. https://t.co/vuCg1QryuE

— Elliott Hamilton (@ElliottRHams) December 9, 2021

No democracy in Israel? How about that: Arab opposition MK and Arab coalition MK (and Deputy speaker) first yell at each other in Hebrew and then in Arabic. For the Europeans criticising Israel: in which Parliament in Europe is this possible? pic.twitter.com/7Lz4bIByU3

— Jenny Aharon (@jenny_aharon) December 9, 2021

President Mahmoud Abbas: A Palestinian killed by Israel is a martyr who carried out his duty. pic.twitter.com/Me8X8xuYpC

— Khaled Abu Toameh (@KhaledAbuToameh) December 8, 2021

Palestinian Authority: There was no attack on an Israeli woman in Sheikh Jarrah. This is an Israeli attempt to demonize the residents of Sheikh Jarrah and cover up the crime of the police attack on the girls' school.

— Khaled Abu Toameh (@KhaledAbuToameh) December 9, 2021

PMW: Terrorist prisoners have fathered 101 babies via smuggled sperm since 2012, claims PA

Although imprisoned Palestinian terrorists are denied conjugal visits with their wives, the PA claims that some of them have succeeded fathering children.

No less than 101 babies – the PA calls them “ambassadors of freedom” - have been born of smuggled terrorist sperm since 2012, according to the PA.

This was revealed by the Head of the Research and Documentation Unit of the PLO Commission of Prisoners’ Affairs Abd Al-Nasser Farwaneh:
“Behind the bars there are men defying the prison guards. They are embracing the freedom for which they fought, and they are smuggling out sperm so their wives will give birth to children for them… They have recorded many successes and dozens of victories since 2012. Today the list of ‘ambassadors of freedom’ – children who were born from smuggled sperm – has gone up to 101.”

[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Dec. 5, 2021]

Already in 2015, official PA TV proudly described the phenomenon in a special episode of the Giants of Endurance program for prisoners titled “The Children of the Sperm.” Dr. Salem Abu Khaizaran, Director of the Razan Medical Center, which is one of the clinics that perform the artificial insemination of the prisoners’ wives, explained that already then “36 male and female ambassadors of freedom” had been born by smuggled sperm.

Murderer of one is “prominent national figure we are all proud of” – PA TV host

Official PA TV host: “Greetings to prisoner Nael Barghouti (i.e., murdered 1) who began his 42nd year in the occupation’s prisons. Nael Barghouti is a prominent national figure we are all proud of, and Allah willing we will soon receive Nael and all the veteran prisoners outside of the prison’s darkness.”

[Official PA TV, Giants of Endurance, Nov. 25, 2021]

Nael and Fakhri Barghouti – Palestinian terrorists who murdered an Israeli army officer in January 1978, near Ramallah. Both were sentenced to life but were released in the Shalit prisoner exchange deal in 2011. Nael Barghouti was arrested again in 2014 for violating the terms of his release by offering Hamas to serve as its minister of prisoners' affairs, and is serving a life sentence plus an additional 18 years.

“Jesus is a Palestinian” - PA history distortion in song in Zimbabwe competition

Official PA TV host 1: “Let us watch the song ‘Save Palestine,’ which participated in the Yasser Arafat Prize in Zimbabwe.” …

Lyrics in English: “Jesus is a Palestinian. Those who fought him 2,000 years ago are now destroying his people.”

PLO Ambassador to Zimbabwe Tamer Al-Masri: “It was agreed with the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists that a prize named the Yasser Arafat Prize for Journalism would be presented as part of the annual prizes for excellence.”

[Official PA TV, Palestine This Morning, Nov. 21, 2021]

Lebanon Grants Offspring of 1948 Refugees Some Access to Jobs

Most of the 174,000 Palestinians who live in Lebanon (according to a 2017 Lebanese Palestinian Dialogue Committee survey) are stateless and are not entitled to Lebanese citizenship, even though most were born in Lebanon to refugees who fled there during Israel’s 1948 War of Liberation. Without citizenship, they do not have Lebanese identity cards, which also means they are not entitled to health, education, and other government services. Most of them are forced to live in and near 12 official camps, where, according to Human Rights Watch, they exist in “appalling social and economic conditions.”

Palestinians are not allowed to buy land in Lebanon, and the local labor laws bar them from a long list of more than 30 professions. But on Wednesday, Lebanon’s Labor Ministry’s website announced that Palestinians born in Lebanon, as well as non-Lebanese with a Lebanese mother or who are married to a Lebanese citizen, are now allowed to work in professions under the control of Lebanese guilds and syndicates.

According to The National News, syndicated professions, such as nursing, are governed by a government decree or by Parliament, and only lawmakers can change laws governing guild jobs such as engineering, medicine, pharmacy, and law.

In November, responding to the flight of Lebanese medical professionals due to the crashing economy, the parliament passed a law allowing Palestinians to register in the syndicate of nurses. Abdelnasser El Ayi, who works for the Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee (LPDC), an inter-ministerial body headed by the prime minister’s office, told The National News that it was the first time a Lebanese syndicate changed its bylaw to let Palestinians in.

It remains to be seen whether the new access to the job market is permanent or merely intended to cover the urgent need of the medical sector in Lebanon.

The way the Biden administration ignores Congressionally mandated sanctions against countries that want to undermine American interests and in many cases kill Americans, it's really something. https://t.co/YArWxg8DwC

— Omri Ceren (@omriceren) December 8, 2021

From ‘Maximum Pressure’ to ‘Minimal Resistance’

Last week marked the first time the Biden administration partook in indirect negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran’s new ultra-hardline government. Unsurprisingly, after days of discussion, no deal was clinched to revive the faltering 2015 nuclear accord. Iran made maximalist demands and upended initial agreements reached during previous rounds of talks. Washington now faces the uphill challenge of containing Tehran’s expanding nuclear program while recalibrating its Iran policy.

Tehran is increasingly comfortable with reducing international monitoring of its atomic activities and making irreversible nuclear advancements on the ground. The regime may even be inclined to push uranium enrichment to weapons grade. Tehran’s more recent boldness stems in great part from signals Washington sent throughout 2021 that the United States is unwilling to hold the regime accountable.

A close look at Iran’s nuclear advances over the past two and a half years shows Tehran’s most egregious nuclear violations occurred under Biden’s watch. The Trump administration’s May 2018 withdrawal from the nuclear deal, or Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), provided an avenue—and political argument—for Iranian escalation, yes. But withdrawal merely expedited the fait-accompli of Iran’s growing enrichment capacity. It didn’t create it. The 2015 accord had already allowed for significant Iranian nuclear expansion after 2026.

Tehran’s initial responses to Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign was to absorb what it hoped would be a short-lived attempt at unilateral sanctions. In May 2019, however, Iran embarked on a policy of graduated escalation in which it incrementally and overtly breached the JCPOA’s limits. The regime also embraced other forms of escalation—particularly in the maritime and regional domains—in hopes of generating sufficient fear and leverage to make the Trump administration end its mounting pressure policy.

Congress Requires Biden Admin To Disclose How Iran Sanctions Relief Could Fund Terrorism

Congress will require that the Biden administration come clean about how economic sanctions relief for Iran would impact the regime's ability to conduct terror attacks.

Written into the final version of the National Defense Authorization Act, the sprawling annual defense spending bill, is a provision mandating the Biden administration account for every dollar Iran receives as a result of sanctions being lifted. This is the first time such strenuous reporting requirements have been forced on an administration, and they are part of a larger bid by Republican foreign policy leaders in Congress to expose how negotiations with Iran will end up enriching the country's terrorist allies such as Hezbollah in Lebanon. The NDAA passed the House on Tuesday and is expected to pass the Senate this week.

"Iran is the world's leading state-sponsor of murder and terrorism," Sen. Roger Marshall (R., Kan.), the provision's chief Senate sponsor, told the Washington Free Beacon. "They actively fund violence against America and her allies and partners. The inclusion of this amendment in the NDAA will reveal what we've known all along—the Biden administration’s disastrous negotiations and attempts to lift sanctions on the Iranian regime will only embolden them to continue spreading terror."

The requirements come as the Biden administration restarts negotiations aimed at securing a new Iran nuclear deal. Marshall and his colleagues in the House told the Free Beacon that the Biden administration claims Iran will use sanctions relief to aid its people and rebuild its economy—claims made by the Obama administration during its diplomacy with Iran, which included billions of dollars in sanctions relief. In reality, Iran spent this money on its nuclear program and regional terrorist proxies.

As part of the new reporting requirements, the Biden Pentagon will also be required to provide Congress with an assessment of how sanctions relief benefits Iran's military infrastructure, including its paramilitary fighting brigades and ballistic missile program. The measure was spearheaded by the Republican Study Committee, the largest conservative caucus in Congress, and received bipartisan support. The RSC championed these new reporting requirements as part of its larger push to stop the Biden administration from granting Iran full-scale sanctions relief.

Iranian Armed Forces Spokesman General Abolfazl Shekarchi: We Will Not Back Down a Single Millimeter from Our Goal of Erasing the Zionist Regime from the Map #Iran #JCPOA pic.twitter.com/VaImb4h2aA

— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) December 9, 2021

Iran nuclear talks resume in Vienna, end within an hour

Defense Minister Benny Gantz landed in the US on Thursday afternoon ahead of planned meetings with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken concerning Iran's nuclear program.

Before taking off on Wednesday, Gantz stated that the meetings in the US would "discuss ways to preserve Israel's security supremacy in the region and security challenges, especially dealing with Iranian aggression."

"Iran is a threat to world peace, to the region and seeks to become an existential threat to Israel. In the discussions, we will highlight the possible courses of action to ensure that its attempt to reach a nuclear scene is halted, thus expanding its activities in the region," added Gantz.

US and Israeli defense chiefs are expected on Thursday to discuss possible military exercises that would prepare for a worst-case scenario to destroy Iran's nuclear facilities should diplomacy fail and if their nations' leaders request it, a senior US official told Reuters.

The scheduled US talks with visiting Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz follow an Oct. 25 briefing by Pentagon leaders to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on the full set of military options available to ensure that Iran would not be able to produce a nuclear weapon, the official said on Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons, saying it wants to master nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

On Wednesday, KAN News reported that Israel was planning to conduct an exercise next year in which dozens of aircraft would drill an attack on Iran by flying over 1,000 kilometers over the Mediterranean Sea.

Hudson Institute: Saudi Arabia and the New Middle East

The balance of power in the Middle East is shifting in ways that are likely to make America’s regional partner Saudi Arabia uneasy. In Vienna, nuclear negotiations with Iran are off to an unpromising start, and the regime is creeping closer to nuclear breakout. In neighboring Yemen, Iranian-backed Houthis have virtually captured the key port of Hodeidah and are advancing on the city of Marib and its crucial oil refinery. As Russia and China grab strategic footholds in the Middle East and America reassesses its regional posture, Saudi Arabia is being forced to reevaluate its own strategy and alliances.

How is Saudi Arabia reacting to the shifting strategic terrain in the Middle East? What steps should the U.S. and Saudi Arabia take to advance their own interests and promote stability in the region? Join Hudson Institute for a conversation with Senior Fellow Michael Doran, Visiting Fellow Mohammed Khalid Alyahya, and Princeton University Professor of Near Eastern Studies Bernard Haykel.

Kahl's oped is mandatory reading ahead of the Gantz/Barnea visit. Kahl fundamentally opposes Israel's "Begin Doctrine," believing it to be based on a flawed premise that the Osirak strike was a good idea. https://t.co/Y4bvbkArK5

— Richard Goldberg (@rich_goldberg) December 8, 2021

Khaled Abu Toameh: Arabs to Biden: Do Not Let Iran Play You for a Fool

Iran has been insisting on its conditions and demands, including that Washington and the Western powers release frozen Iranian funds before reaching an agreement, according to Tariq Alhomayed, a Saudi journalist and former editor-in-chief of the Arabic-language newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat. He added that Iran was refusing to discuss ballistic missiles, drones and its terrorist militias in the Middle East as the mullahs continue their alarming rate of uranium enrichment.

"It is evident that Washington has been begging Iran to return to the negotiating table," he said. "Washington did not threaten Iran with the use of force. It is true that we hear statements from Washington about impatience, but they are neither serious nor real. The Americans did not convey any serious message to the Iranians." — Tariq Alhomayed, Asharq Al-Awsat, November 24, 2021.

Iraqi writer Ali Alsarraf believes that by seeking guarantees that the US will not reimpose sanctions on Iran in the future, the mullahs in Tehran are hoping that they will become immune from anything that their militias do in the Middle East, including striking American bases and forcing them to leave Iraq and Syria.

"As with North Korea, the world would be forced to grapple with Iranian aggression very cautiously because of the likelihood that it could rain down ballistic and nuclear weapons upon neighbors. Unlike North Korea, Iran has proxy forces deployed throughout the region which henceforth could act with impunity, shielded by Iran's nuclear umbrella." — Baria Alamuddin, award-winning Lebanese journalist and broadcaster, Arab News, November 28, 2021.

It is impressive to see that a growing number of Arabs, especially those... whose countries are occupied by Iranian-backed militias, share Israeli fears of the mullahs' evil plans.

The message these Arabs are sending to the Biden administration: take a tough stance towards Iran before it is too late. Far from being a danger to Israel alone, Iran is terrorizing Arab countries and threatening world peace and security.

This isn't what our GCC partners told him. Now that's still OK! People in politics lie all the time. Whatever.

The weird thing is - the audience for this tweet is like the 500 people who track Iran policy. And 100% of them know this isn't what our GCC partners told him. So why? https://t.co/EyBNxlpq69

— Omri Ceren (@omriceren) December 9, 2021

A picture’s worth a thousand words. China, Russia and Iran strategize on next moves to play the Biden administration in Vienna. https://t.co/5RpvleI5Cx

— Richard Goldberg (@rich_goldberg) December 9, 2021

Half of Iran's Civilian Planes Grounded for Lack of Spare Parts

More than half of Iran's fleet of civilian aircraft is grounded due to a lack of spare parts, the deputy head of the country's airlines association has said.

"The number of inactive planes in Iran has risen to more than 170... as a result of missing spare parts, particularly motors," Alireza Barkhor said in an interview with state news agency IRNA.

The shortage represented more than half of the civilian aircraft in the sanctions-hit country, he said in an interview this week.

"If this trend continues, we will see even more planes grounded in the near future," Barkhor was quoted as saying.

"We hope that one of the priorities of the government will be helping to finance airlines so that they are able to provide the spare parts to refurbish the grounded planes," he added.

According to the Iranian economic daily Financial Tribune, national carrier IranAir currently operates a fleet of 39 planes, the majority of them Airbus jets.

British-Palestinian Journalist Abdel Bari Atwan on Hizbullah TV: The U.S. Has Made It Clear that It Would Not Support Israeli Military Action against Iran; Biden Knows This Would Spell America’s End #Iran #JCPOA @abdelbariatwan pic.twitter.com/sVourm280k

— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) December 9, 2021

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