Heavy barrage on southern Israel

Approximately 20 rockets were fired within a short time from the Khan Yunis area in Gaza.

Jul 1, 2024, 9:28 AM (GMT+3)

Rockets fired from Gaza towards Israel

A barrage of approximately 20 rockets was fired Monday morning from Gaza towards the Eshkol Regional Council in southern Israel.

Some of the rockets exploded in open areas.

An IDF spokesperson confirmed: “Following the sirens which sounded near the Gaza border in the past hour, approximately 20 launches were identified which crossed from the Khan Yunis area in Gaza towards the Gaza border region in Israel.”

“Some of them were intercepted, and hits were identified in a number of locations in the Gaza border region. No one was injured.”

“IDF artillery is now striking the source of the launches,” the IDF added.


 

Illustrative. People take part in a gathering organized by the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF) calling for the release of hostages held in Gaza since the Hamas-led October 7 attacks on Israel, at the Trocadero esplanade with the Eiffel Tower in the background in Paris, on April 7, 2024. (Thomas Samson/AFP)

Illustrative. People take part in a gathering organized by the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF) calling for the release of hostages held in Gaza since the Hamas-led October 7 attacks on Israel, at the Trocadero esplanade with the Eiffel Tower in the background in Paris, on April 7, 2024. (Thomas Samson/AFP)

The dramatic results of the first round of the parliamentary elections in France constitute “another step toward” a massive wave of immigration by local Jews to Israel, a prominent professional facilitating this movement says.

Ariel Kandel, CEO of the Quelita association for the absorption and encouragement of Jewish immigration, or aliyah, from France speaks with The Times of Israel following news that the far-right National Rally party obtained the largest share of the vote (34 percent), followed by the far-left-backed New Popular Front (28%).

The centrist Renaissance party of President Emmanuel Macron, who called the snap elections this month in a failed bid to curb the far-right’s electoral growth by uniting its rivals behind Renaissance, comes in third with only 20%.

National Rally, under its president Jordan Bardella and its top lawmaker Marine Le Pen, seeks to limit public expressions of religious worship, including by Jews, as part of the party’s anti-Muslim agenda. It also wants to end pension payments to citizens living abroad.

“This is major consideration for about 50,000 French Jews who are currently contemplating leaving,” Kandel says.

Some critics of National Rally believe it panders to antisemites, though others dispute this.

If the far-left under Jean-Luc Melenchon reaches power, “then we’re talking about an even bigger push factor,” adds Kandel, citing the position of many French Jews that Melenchon is an antisemite.

The second round of the parliamentary elections is Sunday. It is a runoff between the two top candidates of the first round. Second-round voters in many constituencies will need to choose between a far-left candidate and a far-right one. The runoff results determine the makeup of French parliament. It does not affect the presidency, but may limit the president’s ability to pass legislation and budgetary decisions.


‘Doomsday weapons’ may be used against Israel’s enemies

‘Doomsday weapons’ may be used against Israel’s enemies

IAI official warns that Israel will use all weapons at its disposal in order to survive regional war.

By World Israel News Staff

Amid escalating threats from Iran and Hezbollah, a senior military technological industry official said that Jerusalem is prepared to use “doomsday weapons” in the event of a full-scale military confrontation with other countries in the Middle East.

Speaking at an event in central Israel on Saturday, Chairman of the Israel Aerospace Industries Workers’ Council Yair Katz said that Israel would use all the weapons at its disposal in order to survive.

If Israel is in existential danger and “Iran, Yemen, Syria, Iraq and all the countries of the Middle East decide that it is time to settle [the score] against us, I understand that we have the capabilities to use doomsday weapons,” he said.

“Doomsday weapons” is likely a reference to nuclear weapons, which Israel has never officially confirmed that it possesses.

Katz said that Israel relies on its international partners for advanced warning regarding moves by regional actors that could harm Israel.

“The Americans, the British and the Germans help us with intelligence… they know how to inform us where there are action that may endanger us,” he said.

Katz’s remarks came shortly after Iran threatened to launch an “obliterating” war against Israel, in the event that Jerusalem steps up its military actions against Hezbollah.

“I think it is impossible to underestimate and take lightly the Iranian threat,” Major General Gadi Shamani, former head of the Central Command and the Gaza Division, told Radio 103FM.

“The IDF and the State of Israel should take things seriously, but it is impossible to paralyze our ability to act because of this,” he continued.

“The state needs to do what is required in the north, in the Gaza Strip, and formulate some kind of clear policy. What is absolutely clear to me is that without the United States with us, behind us, it will be very difficult.”