Iran Nukes Possible in Days
The Washington Free Beacon reports: “Iran has passed the “point of no return” in its nuclear weapons program and could soon have the ability to enrich enough missile-grade uranium to build a bomb in just two weeks. Olli Heinonen, who served at the IAEA for 27 years until 2010, said the advanced centrifuges that Iran recently began installing in its enrichment facilities will “radically reduce the so-called breakout time” for the regime to quickly produce enough weapons-grade uranium to build a nuclear weapon. Iran announced in January it would install 3,000 IR-2 centrifuges in its Natanz facility. These produce a four to five times greater output than the older model, according to the Institute for Science and International Security. A recent ISIS report estimated Iran could achieve breakout in one month, based on its current capabilities. This highlights the advancements Iran has made in its program since last year, when ISIS estimated it could produce the necessary amount of weapons-grade uranium in two to four months.
School Officials Called Out Over Anti-Israel Materials in Newton, Mass.
(JNS.org)—An ad campaign in Boston-area newspapers calls out Newton, Mass. school officials over the alleged presence of anti-Israel materials in their school system. The Boston-based nonprofit Americans for Peace and Tolerance (APT) took out the ads. They concern research by concerned parents and students that revealed anti-Israel texts in Newton schools including The Arab World Studies Notebook, which claims, among other things, that Israeli soldiers murdered hundreds of Palestinian nurses in Israeli prisons. Newton School Superintendent David Fleischman “tried to charge the taxpayers $1,600” for a list of the anti-Israel teaching materials, while Newton School Committee Chair Matt Hills “told staff not to let citizens see the offending materials,” according to the ads. Fleischman and Hills both did not immediately return requests from comment from JNS.org.
Pentagon Fast-Tracks Israeli Robot
Defense News reports the U.S. Defense Department is fast-tracking deployment of an Israeli-designed, stair-climbing Micro Tactical Ground Robot (MTGR) to support special operations and explosive ordnance disposal forces. MTGR provides capabilities to identify IED threats from a safe standoff range and is produced in the U.S. by Roboteam. Yosi Wolf, co-founder and co-chief executive of Roboteam, is a six-year veteran of an Israel Air Force special ops unit says, “We made sure our touch screens could be operated while wearing gloves and night-vision devices. For day operations, our displays are clearly visible in the brightest sunshine.”
George W. Bush to CoP: Iran Can’t Be Trusted
(JNS.org)—In a surprise appearance, former U.S. President George W. Bush attended the 50th anniversary tribute gala of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations in New York and said Iran cannot be trusted when it says its nuclear program has peaceful intentions, according to someone who was there and wishes to remain anonymous, since Bush’s remarks were off the record. Bush quoted one of his own speeches from 2008 and said America stands with Israel “in firmly opposing Iran’s nuclear weapons ambitions. …Permitting the world’s leading sponsor of terror to possess the world’s deadliest weapon would be an unforgivable betrayal of future generations,” Bush told the Knesset in 2008. The event honored Malcolm Hoenlein, the umbrella’s executive vice chairman since 1986, and opened with a video message from President Barack Obama. Hoenlein said the fact that remarks from both Obama and Bush were featured demonstrates the Conference of Presidents’ objective of “unity, with diversity.”
Israel And Nigeria Ink New Aviation Deal
(JNS.org) Israel and Nigeria inked a new bilateral aviation deal that will provide for direct flights between the two countries. The Bilateral Air Service Agreement enables airlines from both countries to fly directly to each other without stopovers. Proponents of the deal hope that the agreement will continue the strong growth of Israel-Nigeria ties. Each year, tens of thousands of Nigerian Christians make pilgrimages to Israel’s holy sites. The agreement comes amid a visit to Israel by Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan. Jonathan was scheduled to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres to discuss further deepening the countries’ bilateral ties.
Golani Brigade Gets Druze Commander
(JNS.org)—Making Israel Defense Forces history as the first member of the Druze community to head the Golani Brigade, Col. Rasan Alian, 41, from the northern city of Shfaram will be the second Druze officer to become an infantry brigade commander—the first was Brig. Gen. (ret.) Imad Fares who was the commander of the Givati Brigade. Alian rose through the ranks, serving in various operational roles as an officer and a combat soldier. During the Second Lebanon War in 2006, he served as deputy commander of the brigade, and during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza in 2008-9 he served as battalion commander of the brigade’s reconnaissance unit. Following that, Alian served as the commander of the Menashe Brigade, which is responsible for the Jenin area.
Israel is ‘Global Power’ In Cyber Defense
(JNS.org)—At a major global conference on cyber-security in South Korea, Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Ze’ev Elkin said that because of security threats faced by Israel, the Jewish state has “a record number of young people who enter the fields of technology and cyber defense every year. …Israel is a global power in the realm of cyber defense,” Elkin said at the Seoul Conference on Cyberspace, which gathered more than 1,000 representatives from some 90 countries, Israel Hayom reported. “Due to the constant threats, Israel uniquely serves the global community as a live lab for new technologies. We have turned the threat of cyber attacks into an opportunity for knowledge and growth.”
Erdogan Betrays Mossad
(JNS.org)—Turkey exposed the identities of up to 10 Iranians working for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency in Iran, according to a report in The Washington Post on by columnist David Ignatius. According to sources, early last year Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan gave the order to “shop” Israeli agents to Iran. The spies in question were Iranian nationals who would meet with their Mossad handlers inside Turkey. The Turkish-Iranian border is relatively easy to cross. Ignatius wrote that Israel and Turkey have cooperated on intelligence for more than 50 years, and Israel was blind-sided by the Turkish betrayal, which was described by knowledgeable sources as a “significant” loss of intelligence and “an effort to slap the Israelis.”
UN Inspectors in Syria Miss Deadline
Combined Services—UN inspectors who were to inspect 23 site in Syria where chemical weapons were manufactured, could not visit two of the sites because no cease fire was in place. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said verification activities had been completed at 21 out of 23 sites. “Efforts to ensure the conditions necessary for safe access to those sites will continue,” it added.
On Sunday, Syria submitted a plan to the OPCW to destroy its chemical arsenal.
WoW Splits on Platform
Combined Sources—Women of the Wall have divided their ranks as their chairperson Anat Hoffman, the with approval of her board of directors, decided to compromise on the platform suggested by the Jewish Agency at Robinson’s Arch. Some of the founding members and activists have accused the organization’s chairwoman of selling out and caving to the government’s demands. Hoffman, who wanted to retain some control of the situation joined the compromise under pressure from the Conservative movement, but alienated the Modern Orthodox women who do not want to share space with men, and want to remain to daven on the Kotel Plaza, a right for which they fought for 25 years. The women have made 16 demands, which may take years to implement, including one that would raise the Robinson’s Arch plaza to the same level as the Kotel Plaza, making it one contiguous space. That would require approval of the Waqf that controls the Temple Mount.
