By Ayelet Shaked, TOI

In 1914, Robert Frost published his poem “Mending Wall,” where he coined the maxim, “Good fences make good neighbors.” Those were the days of World War I, and it was perceived at that time that the best way to safeguard international relations and world peace was to clearly demarcate the physical borders between countries.

Two decades later, around the time of World War II, the concept of sovereignty had changed to include more than merely defending a country’s territory. The understanding that foreign governments were able to have a serious effect on a country’s internal decision-making led the United States to enact the Foreign Agents Registration Act in 1938, which requires non-diplomats representing foreign interests to register with the U.S. Department of Justice.
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By Dr. Ephraim Herrera, ISRAEL HAYOM

British Prime Minister David Cameron recently wrote that “aspects of the Muslim Brotherhood’s ideology and activities … run counter to British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, equality and the mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs.”

He described the movement as fertile ground for growing violence and, based on research he commissioned, determined that membership in the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered a possible indicator of extremism.
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T. Belman. He offers nothing new here. Netanyahu has long attempted to get the West’s approval for building in the blocs. Secondly, why should the West make this deal because we have accepted a freeze over all the land. Probably Obama has made it clear, if we build then we can forget about the US veto at the Security Council.

By Tovah Lazaroff, JPOST

Israel should build in the West Bank settlement blocs except for the “controversial” area of E1, Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid told The Jerusalem Post on Monday as he put forward a plan to separate from the Palestinians.

“Let’s unfreeze the places we can unfreeze,” Lapid said on the sidelines of the second regional business conference in the West Bank city of Ma’aleh Adumim.

He referenced what many on the Israeli Right believe is a de facto settlement freeze by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which in the last year has approved very few new Jewish building plans in Judea and Samaria.
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By Matt Barber, CFP

“When the sacred months are over slay the idolaters wherever you find them. Arrest them, besiege them, and lie in ambush everywhere for them.” – The Quran, Surah 9:5

When it comes to the global scourge of orthodox Islam, the Western world, which Islamistsexpressly seek to “destroy from within,” is an upside-down realm wherein objective facts, logic and reason must yield to multiculturalist make-believe, “progressive” propaganda and political correctness run amok.

Faithful Muslims want to kill you, and faithless progressives seem all too happy to help them along. Look at the ongoing Muslim invasion of Europe. This progressive paradise, a burgeoning multicultural dystopia, is beginning to look an awful lot like hell on earth.
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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Today’s issues: Deepening the divide, Netanyahu’s racist discourse, enlightened and benighted, and defeating Jewish terrorism.

The Jerusalem Post criticizes PM Netanyahu’s speech at the site of the attack on Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Street, and asserts: “Instead of expressing negative generalizations about more than 20 percent of the Israeli population, Netanyahu could have focused on more positive themes.” The editor points out that Arab Israelis are full-fledged citizens of Israel and the vast majority are law-abiding, and states that the abominable act, which is hardly representative of the Arab population, “could have been an opportunity for the prime minister to emphasis what Jewish and Arab Israelis have in common. Unfortunately, Netanya hu used it as an opportunity to deepen the divide.”
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Jewish Home chair condemns Netanyahu’s criticism of Arab sector after Tel Aviv shooting, says ‘the state has failed the Arabs.’

INSS Insight No. 783, January 3, 2016

After months of an air-land military effort by the Russian-Iranian coalition in Syria, the integrated attack has been halted. The main goal of Iran’s intervention in the fighting in Syria is a strengthened Shiite Iran-Iraq-Syria-Hezbollah axis, built on the Alawite regime with its pro-Iranian orientation. For its part, Russia has other interests, and its preferred goal is a settlement that will give it a foothold and facilitate its influence in the Middle East, while putting an end to Western dominance in the region. Yet regardless of various points of contention, and despite the efforts of the Western powers and Sunni Arab countries to puncture the Russian-led coalition, the pro-Assad partnership is still a long way from dissolution. Iran has no option for an exit from the game in Syria, and will therefore prefer continued cooperation with Russia, even if it sometimes leaves a sour taste. Read more…

JCPA

The Middle East is imploding in waves of violence whose impact has reached Israel.

To the north, radical Islamists in Syria linked to both the Islamic State and al-Qaeda are approaching Israel’s border on the Golan Heights and threatening Jordan as well. At the same time, Iran is sending thousands of rockets with increasingly accurate guidance systems to Hizbullah in Lebanon to again attack Israeli cities.
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Endless Lamentation Betrays Cowardice

By Robert B. Sklaroff, M.D.

It is excruciatingly nauseating to listen to storied pundits decry the Iran-Nuke Capitulation and then fail to explore what might be done to stop its imminent implementation.

They claim the next president can fix the problem but, in the interim, upwards of $150B will have enriched the #1 global funder of terrorism.

Andrew C. McCarthy has chronicled efforts by Sen. Ted Cruz—detailed in a letter he wrote to Sen. McConnell—that concluded the pact could be derailed by targeting bankers.
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Regavim

The heinous terror attack in Tel Aviv is an extreme example of the lawlessness that has been ignored for decades. For many years, Regavim has warned against the loss of sovereignty in the Arab sector. Where, more than 110,000 homes are built illegally; Where thousands of citizens evade municipal and income taxes; Where there are over 25,000 illegal weapons of all kinds; Where the rate of serious crime is tens of percentage points above their share of the general population; and where their elected officials’ day and night incite against the State of Israel – the terror attack was only a matter of time.
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ARUTZ SHEVA

Parents of Amiram Ben Uliel profess son’s innocence after his indictment as chief suspect in Duma case.

The Ben Uliel family, whose son Amiram has been charged as the prime suspect in the Duma arson case, responded to the murder indictment on Sunday, stressing his innocence.

In a video message, the Ben Ulliel family said: “We the parents of Amiram are shocked and appalled by the news that has been associated to our beloved son.”

“We believe in the innocence of our son that will be proven in court, and we hope that the courts will reveal the harsh and violent abuse that he has suffered these past weeks during the interrogation process,” the family added. “We want to stress that we are against any and all violence against any person.”
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GERMAN PRESS AGENCY –

A total of 804 vehicles were set aflame in all of France on New Year’s Eve, a 14.5 per cent decrease from the previous year, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said on Twitter Friday.

The 2014-2015 celebrations saw 940 cars burned.

Burning automobiles as a way to ring in the new year has grown into a trend in recent years, with mostly young men using it as a form of protest.
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T. Belman. The question remains. Do the ends (obtaining enough info to lay charges) justify the suspension of civil liberties and rights for Israeli citizens.

Two Jewish youths suspected of involvement in deadly Duma arson indicted on murder charges Sunday morning.

By Uzi Baruch, INN

Indictments were filed on Sunday morning at the Lod District Court against two Jewish youths suspected of involvement in the deadly arson attack in Duma five months ago.

They have been identified as 21-year-old Amiram Ben-Uliel from Jerusalem and an unnamed 17-year-old from Samaria. Ben-Uliel was charged with three counts of murder, while the minor was charged as an accessory to murder.
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While Syria and Iraq are being torn apart, an independent Kurdish state may emerge • Saudi Arabia tries to establish a NATO-like Sunni coalition, but challenges abound • Meanwhile, Israel would be wise to avoid other people’s battles • A year in review.

By Yaakov Amidror, ISRAEL HAYOM

Kurdish forces northeast of Baghdad in 2014
The changes currently sweeping over the area surrounding Israel are so significant and will so profoundly impact the future of the region that it is difficult to say how it will look in the coming years and onward. From time to time it is important to stop and take stock — make an interim assessment — and the end of the calendar is a good time to do just that.

The concept of “nation-state” has taken quite a blow this year. Three states have entirely collapsed (Iraq, Syria and Libya) and several others are on the verge (chiefly Yemen), and no one would be surprised if additional nations join the list in the future. Even in states that have ostensibly remained intact, deep rifts have emerged that will be difficult to bridge therefore the unrest will not soon abate.

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Stephen Coughlin on ‘Catastrophic Failure’ — on The Glazov Gang

This special edition of The Glazov Gang was joined by Stephen Coughlin, the co-founder of UnconstrainedAnalytics.org and the author of the new book, Catastrophic Failure.

He came on the show to discuss his book and How American Leadership is Blindfolding America in the Face of Jihad.

Don’t miss it!

Yoram will be in the US in February, and then in May, 2016, available for speaking engagements  (http://bit.ly/1W5CrSr).

Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger, “Second Thought: a US-Israel initiative”
Straight from the Jerusalem Boardroom #209, http://bit.ly/1YVmFJv

1. PricewaterhouseCoopers: Israeli mergers and acquisitions (M&A) totaled $12.6bn in 2015, a 73.3% increase over 2014 ($7.25bn). Moreover, 62 Israeli companies were acquired for $7.2bn, compared to 52 companies and $5bn in 2014, a fifth year in a row with over $5bn.  Overseas investment in Israeli companies reached $6.5bn, compared to $3.8bn in 2014, a 71% increase. 2015 experienced a rise in the number of investors from the US, China, Hong Kong and Canada. Israeli entrepreneurs and developers are less inclined to sell early-stage startups, investing more resources to reach mature stage, hence the higher price per transaction/investment (Globes business daily, December 28, 2015).

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Jewish Press

A survey by Dr. Mina Tzemach and Mano Geva for Yedioth Ahronoth shows the strengthening of Yair Lapid, Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman and United Torah Judaism. Likud, Kahlon, Shas and the Zionist Camp (Labor) lose seats.

Dr. Mina Tzemach is a renowned expert in conducting public opinion polls, and has been one of the key Israeli pollsters since the field began to flourish in Israel, in the late 1960s.

The survey, carried out by the Midgam Institute, shows that if the Knesset elections were held today, Likud would receive 25 seats, down five seats from its current position.
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Shooter remains at large amid massive police manhunt; semiautomatic rifle fire used in attack on pub on Dizengoff Street

By Judah Ari Gross, TOI

Two people are dead and three are in serious condition in a shooting attack in Tel Aviv just before 3 p.m. Friday.

Witnesses said some 10 shots were fired in the attack, apparently in semiautomatic bursts from a Kalashnikov rifle.

The shots were fired inside a bar at Dizengoff 122, near the city’s well-known Dizengoff Center Mall. The area is crowded on Friday afternoons.

A total of 10 casualties are reported.
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