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Hand-picked articles from people on the ground in Israel as well as analysis from our partner ministries to keep you informed, so you are equipped to pray effectively for Israel as we are instructed to do in the Bible.

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Israel and Austria Sign Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation Agreement

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

Knesset Speaker Mickey Levy and President of the National Council of Austria Wolfgang Sobotka met in the Knesset on Monday and signed an agreement for cooperation between the Israeli and Austrian parliaments.

The agreement entails cooperation between the parliaments on a variety of issues, including innovation, security strategies, and sustainability. The agreement stipulates that the parliaments will advance dialogue between the elected officials of the two countries by means of joint meetings.

During Sobotka’s visit to the Knesset, Levy said that he is “glad to announce that the ties between Israel and Austria took another step forward today, by signing an agreement between the Knesset and the National Council. This way, we will fortify the relationship between the peoples, and will contribute to strengthening the ties between the Israeli and Austrian societies.”

Addressing his guest, Levy said that said his visit “here in Jerusalem is a testimony to the strong friendship between our countries and the warm and productive relationship between our parliaments, and attests to the fact that you are a true friend of the State of Israel.”

Sobotka said in his statement to the press that the agreement “attests to the friendship between Israel and Austria and our desire to preserve it for many years to come. From a sense of historical responsibility and a desire to protect the democracy and its institutions, we will continue to battle against antisemitism, and we wish to learn from you additional ways to do so.”

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Another Significant Gas Discovery Found Off Israel’s Coast

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

A new natural gas reservoir has recently been discovered off Israel’s coast, giving another significant boost to Israel’s rapidly developing energy industry.

The Greek Energean Oil and Gas plc. announced Monday that it made “a commercial gas discovery” at the Athena exploration well of 58 Billion cubic meters of natural gas.

The Athena exploration well was drilled on Block 12 and is located 20 kilometers from Karish and 20 kilometers from Tanin A, at a water depth of 1,769 meters. It was drilled in 51 days and came in below the budget of $35 million. The Athena exploration well is the fifth well in a row that has been drilled successfully by Energean in Israel.

Energean CEO Mathios Rigas stated that the company is “considering a range of strategic commercialization options both for a standalone and wider Olympus Area development, including domestic and multiple export routes.”

“This discovery and the broader de-risking of a number of prospects in the Olympus Area reaffirms the role of the East Mediterranean as a global gas exploration hotspot. It strengthens our commitment to provide competition and security of supply to the region, enables the optimization of our Israel portfolio and fulfills one of our key milestones for 2022,” he said.

Israel’s economy has received a significant enhancement by its gas discoveries, found in some 20 wells.

The gas fields are not only economically important to Israel, but politically as well. In 2013, the Israeli government decided that the country should export 40% of its gas production and invest the profits in economic development.

Israel has signed contracts to supply gas to Jordan and Egypt, and plans to build a pipeline through Cyprus to Greece to provide Europe with gas.

According to the Natural Gas Authority, the Israeli economy has saved about NIS 65 billion in the last year alone due to the transition to the use of natural gas, which price in Israel continues to be significantly lower than in the world.

The economic savings in energy costs in the years 2014-2021 resulting from the use of natural gas instead of other fuels in the energy economy are estimated at NIS 116 billion.

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Israel Exposes Iranian Attempt to Recruit Agents With the Help of ‘Sara Puppi’

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

Israel’s Shin Bet security agency has exposed an attempt by Iranian intelligence elements to recruit agents in the country by using a fake Facebook profile and while posing as “Sara Puppi,” who introduced herself as a young Jewish girl, with connections and business in Israel.

This fictitious profile gained thousands of friends in a very short time, and most of its connections were from Israel. After making initial contact on Facebook, the Iranian officials transferred to using the WhatsApp app to maintain contact.

“Making contact through social networks is a well-known method used by Iranian terrorist organizations and intelligence, to recruit and operate Israelis,” the Shin Bet said in a statement Monday. The Israeli security agency has previously exposed attempts by Iran to recruit Israelis through social media, some of them successful.

The Shin Bet said it recorded in recent months a growing number of attempts by Iranian factors to contact Israelis through the Internet to recruit them to gather intelligence and conduct terrorist activity.

The network activity has been monitored by the Shin Bet since it began, the Shin Bet underscored.

The Iranian operator who used the fictitious “Sara Puppi” profile asked his contacts in Israel to locate information about Israelis who are of interest to Iranian intelligence, without knowing that the Shin Bet was on the other side of the line. The Iranian operator asked the “potential Israeli target” to gather information about Israeli personalities and examined his willingness to harm them while exerting pressure and promising thousands of dollars as payment for the operation. Sometimes an attempt was made to use emotional and romantic manipulations.

As part of the connection, the Iranian operator made payments using Bitcoins.

The operator behind the Facebook profile used business coverage stories to assign various tasks, such as a request for revenge on those who supposedly owed him money, a desire to harm personal opponents, and even a desire to harm LGBT people in general.

Furthermore, against the background of the war between Russia and Ukraine, the Iranian operator prompted the alleged operative to carry out an advertising campaign against Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the aim of harming Israel-Russia relations.

The Iranian operator also tried to gather intelligence and harm the representatives of business companies and diplomats of Arab countries operating in Israel.

The Shin Bet’s operation “exposed Iranian practices alongside a desire to harm Israeli personalities and Israel’s foreign relations with various countries,” it noted.

Security officials called on Israeli citizens to “be vigilant and cautious in light of the threat posed by various terrorist elements on social media and to report any unusual contact to the Israel Police.”

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IDF Exposes Hezbollah’s Ties With Drug Dealer, Smuggling Methods

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

The IDF exposed Hezbollah’s ties to a well-known drug trafficker in southern Lebanon and the way he helps the terror group smuggle drugs and weapons into Israel, while exposing the identity of one of its commanders.

IDF Spokesperson for Arab Media Avichay Adraee unveiled on Monday a method of smuggling drugs and weapons into Israel on the Lebanese border, under the auspices of Hezbollah, from the house of Hatem Sheet in Kafr Kila.

Hasan Sareini, nicknamed Abu Muhammad, who is considered an assistant to notorious Hezbollah commander Hajj Khalil Yusif Harb, manages the smuggling operations on the Lebanese border, and has ties with Sheet.

Sheet, a Lebanese Shiite, known as a prominent drug dealer in southern Lebanon, operates a smuggling network from inside his home in Kafr Kila, with the approval and sponsorship of Hezbollah. From the balcony of his house, which overlooks Israeli territory, he makes smuggling attempts by dropping drugs and weapons along the border.

Sheet conducts reconnaissance work from his balcony to gather intelligence and learn about the movement of IDF forces in the vicinity. Sheet then communicates with Israeli smugglers through various communication applications such as Telegram to coordinate the date for a smuggling operation.

Sheet uses couriers to reach the transfer point and throw the contraband, drugs or weapons, over the border fence, while he monitors the operation from his home and guides the Israeli smugglers to help them evade Israeli forces operating in the area.

For the first time, the name of Hasan Sareini is revealed, Adraee pointed out.

He further noted that in recent weeks, the IDF and Shin Bet security agency uncovered a number of Hezbollah drug and weapons smuggling networks led by Harb.

Most recently, at the end of March, the IDF and Israel Police were successful in thwarting the largest arms smuggling operation from Lebanon into Israel in history and seized 61 weapons and drugs with a total value of approximately NIS 3,500,000. Three suspects, Arab residents of the town of Tuba Zangaria, were arrested during the bust.

From the beginning of the year in a period of only three months, the police have thwarted four smuggling attempts from Lebanon, during which 120 weapons were seized.

The Hezbollah terror organization has been previously exposed to be behind the smuggling of weapons and drugs into Israel. The drugs are grown or produced in southern Lebanon and Syria, and are distributed to points in the Middle East and around the globe, one of the operations Hezbollah runs to fund its terror activities.

“The security forces will continue to work by all means to protect border security and to thwart any attempt to harm the sovereignty of the State of Israel,” Adraee declared.

Harb is a member of Hezbollah’s Unit 133, and was the mythical commander of Unit 1800, which was involved in “Lebanon-Palestine Operations” and was responsible for terror attacks on Israel. Unit 1800 was dismantled over a decade ago and was subsequently replaced by Unit 133.

Harb was appointed by Hezbollah to assist Unit 133 and may have even been appointed as its commander.

The Israeli Alma Research and Education Center explained that Harb’s primary objective today is to strengthen Hezbollah’s collaborators and build terror infrastructure inside Israeli territory. Among other methods, he is trying to do this by rehabilitating the weapons and drugs smuggling infrastructure on the border with Israel, in cooperation with the crime families in southern Lebanon, which he has known well since his days as commander of Hezbollah’s Unit 1800.

Rewards for Justice (RFJ), the US State Department’s national security rewards program, has placed a $5 million prize for a tip on Harb. He is described as a close adviser to Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, and has served as the group’s chief military liaison to Iranian and Palestinian terrorist organizations.

Since 2012, Harb has been involved in the movement of large amounts of currency to Hezbollah’s allies in Yemen.

In August 2013, the Department of the Treasury designated Harb as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.

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In Jerusalem, Dozens Of Religious Leaders Call For Peace In Ukraine

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

Dozens of religious leaders gathered at the Moskva Square at the center of Jerusalem and publicly called on Patriarch Kirill to use his position as head of the Russian Orthodox Church to bring peace to Ukraine.

The Christian, Druze, Jewish, and Muslim leaders gathered in front of the Russian Orthodox Cathedral of the Holy Trinity and called for peace for Ukraine.

This gathering follows the delivery of a letter earlier this month to Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, calling on him to speak with President Putin to seek peace. The letter was signed 150 Jerusalem and global religious leaders and clergy, including Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pizzaballa, Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, Swami Rameshwarananda Giri, Venerable Dharmakosajarn, Imam Mustafa Ceric and Rabbi Michael Melchior.

The religious leaders, representing many faiths and traditions around the world, expressed their deep concern with the war and affirmed the key role religious leaders can play in promoting peace between Russia and Ukraine.

“At a time when everything hangs in the balance, we must not assume that political and military leaders alone will be able to defuse this crisis. As Putin has put Russia on nuclear alert, it is a key time for religious figures worldwide to advocate for peace,” the group stated.

“This is a moment when religious leaders should raise the banner of peace and do everything in their power to promote it,” said Rabbi Yonatan Neril, director of The Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development.

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Singapore Announces Historic Establishment Of First Embassy In Israel

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

On Monday a meeting was held between the Foreign Minister of Israel Yair Lapid and his Singaporean counterpart, Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan. The Singaporean Foreign Minister informed Minister Lapid that Singapore intends to open an embassy in Israel for the first time since the establishment of relations between the two nations in 1965.

Israel, however, has had an embassy in Singapore for decades.

Yair Lapid said of the announcement, “I welcome the Government of Singapore’s decision to open an embassy in Israel for the first time since our diplomatic relations were established. This is further evidence of the good and special relations between our two countries.”

Also on Monday, Israel’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Orit Farkash HaCohen, signed a cooperation agreement with Vivian Balakrishnan in Jerusalem, for the two nations to collaborate on Artificial Intelligence (AI), a move that will benefit the development and deployment of AI in both countries. Singapore is considered a leading country in the field of high-tech and AI.

For his part, however, Minister Balakrishnan seems to be more interested in promoting his visit to Ramallah where he met with the leadership of the Palestinian Authority (PA) On Sunday he met with PA Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Malki and Health Minister Mai Al-Kaila.

“We will establish a representative office in Ramallah,” said Minister Balakrishnan on Twitter, “to support the work of our Non-Resident Representative Hawazi Daipi, coordinate our technical assistance & facilitate engagement w the PA. Our technical assistance programs have benefitted over 600 Palestinian officials.”

The Minister added that he presented a donation of masks to Minister Al-Kaila. The masks are part of Singapore’s special healthcare assistance package to the PA.

“Hope these will help PA manage the pandemic,” he said.

Dr. Balakrishnan was also scheduled to visit Yad Vashem on Monday.

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Between Land Day In The Negev And Ramadan In Jerusalem: Efforts To Prevent Security Deterioration

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

Security tensions are rising ahead of Ramadan.

Palestinian sources report that factions in the Gaza Strip are considering resuming violent clashes with IDF forces on the Gaza Strip border fence and resuming the activities of the night attrition units as part of what they call the “popular protest.”

Sources report that some factions in the Gaza Strip intend to hold events taking advantage of the Negev and Jerusalem issue and organize two large rallies to mark “Land Day,” which will occur on March 30, adding that the factions are considering holding activities in the Palestinian Authority as well.

The activity planned to mark “Land Day” could be the opening shot in a series of events that will lead to an escalation in the month of Ramadan, which will begin two days later and in close proximity to Passover and towards Israel’s Independence Day.

At the end of the week, the “National Committee for the Support of Israeli Arabs” was established in the Gaza Strip. A Hamas spokesman said at the event that “the meeting of national and Islamic forces in Gaza is a historic event, and the announcement of the establishment of a committee to support Israeli Arabs is intended to prove that our people are indivisible.”

Israeli Minister Zeev Elkin’s intention to resume planting in the Negev, including in areas where violent clashes took place two months ago, is already receiving attention on the Palestinian side, but the fear of escalation stems from a series of further developments, including the diverted global attention from the Palestinian issue in the wake of the crisis in Ukraine, pressure on the Palestinian Authority to freeze security coordination with Israel, tensions between Fatah and Hamas, and due to Israel’s intention to approve the construction of housing units in Jerusalem.

In eastern Jerusalem, which was at the center of events last May that led to Operation Guardian of the Walls, Palestinians are warning against Jews ascending the Temple Mount on Purim and the Passover holiday, in parallel with Ramadan. Sheikh Akram Tsabari, a preacher at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and head of the Supreme Muslim Council, called on Muslims on Sunday to increase their presence in mosques in the east of the city “and to repel the attacks of Jewish worshipers.”

Sheikh Tsabari also called for the prevention of Purim ceremonies on the Temple Mount, and explained that “such comic ceremonies hurt the feelings of Muslims.”

News sites and social media activists are monitoring the activities of Jewish organizations on the Temple Mount, and Hamas is threatening escalation following the upcoming Purim ceremonies at the holy complex.

Hamas spokesman for Jerusalem affairs, Muhammad Hamada, said “calls for Purim ceremonies are a crime and provocation” and the Twitter page of “Jordanian Youth for Jerusalem” claimed that “dangerous news is spreading about the call of extremist temple groups to storm the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Purim.”

Nasser al-Hadmi, head of the Jerusalem Committee against Judaization (of Jerusalem), said in an interview that “the city is marching towards an explosion in the month of Ramadan” and explained that “Israel intends to house the Jews who emigrated from Ukraine specifically in Jerusalem.”

Israel has been in a series of contacts recently to prevent a deterioration in the month of Ramadan. Arab sources claim that the issue came up at a meeting between Foreign Minister Yair Lapid with Hussein A-Sheikh, the Palestinian Minister of Civil Affairs, and with King Abdullah in Jordan.

The Jordanian news agency Petra reported that during the meeting, the king stressed the need not to harm the status quo in Jerusalem and to keep quiet while stopping all unilateral measures that undermine the two-state solution.

The Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper claims based on Palestinian sources that “Israel is pressuring the Palestinian Authority not to freeze security coordination and not to turn to UN institutions for membership, which could worsen the situation in the region.”

This is due to the pressure exerted on PA head Mahmoud Abbas by PLO institutions and especially by the Fatah Central Council, which demanded a freeze of the security coordination, withdrawal from the recognition of Israel, and intensifying the “popular struggle” against Israel.

Along with the political contacts, Israel announced that the number of permits for Palestinian workers leaving the Gaza Strip for Israel will increase to 12,000, and Palestinian sources estimate that this number is expected to increase to 20,000, in an effort to prevent the Gaza Strip from deteriorating this spring.

Security tensions in Jerusalem increased recently when four stabbing incidents occurred within five days and tensions are also growing in the PA, and Palestinian sources claim that the number of shooting incidents in the Shechem (Nablus) area alone, in the first half of March, stands at 12 incidents.

The Palestinian Authority is aware of the deteriorating security situation and is also increasing arrests against Palestinian terrorists. A Palestinian human rights organization recently reported that the PA had arrested dozens of students and released prisoners.

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Second Terrorist Stabbing Attack In Jerusalem In Two Days – Another Policeman Stabbed

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

For the second time in the last two days, a terrorist stabbed Israeli border police offices at one of the gates that enter into the Old City of Jerusalem. The second attack occurred on Monday evening at the Cotton Gate, which leads into the Temple Mount area, reported the police spokesman’s office.

The terrorist was armed with a knife and stabbed two Jerusalem District and Border Police officers who were operating in the area.

In response, police opened fire on the terrorist in self-defense and he was killed. The attack left two policemen moderately injured (according to medical sources) and they were evacuated to the hospital

The Israel Police said that in response to the terrorist attack considerable police forces were called to the scene where they set to work gathering information and evidence.

The attack came after another Arab terrorist stabbed and injured two other Border Policemen at the Lions’ Gate entrance to the Old City of Jerusalem early Sunday morning. That terrorist, a 19-year-old from eastern Jerusalem, was shot and killed by the police who responded to his attack.

Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem reported that a 25-year-old policeman with stab wounds to the upper body was taken to the trauma room at Hadassah Mount Scopus. His condition was reported to be apparently moderate, and the victim of the attack was fully conscious when brought in. The policeman underwent imaging tests.

MDA medic Baruch Weissman referred to two wounded officers. “When we arrived at the cotton gate, we saw the policemen treating 2 wounded [police] in their 20s,” he said, “who had suffered stab wounds. We took them to the Western Wall plaza for initial medical treatment, which included applying bandages and stopping the bleeding, and transferred them to an intensive care unit that then evacuated them to the hospital when their condition was stable.”

Condemnation of the attack came swiftly from Israel’s right-wing politicians. An irate MK Itamar Ben-Gvir, who leads the opposition Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party tweeted, “Terrorist attack follows terrorist attack, and for the second time this week another attack, and the government is silent.”

Ben-Gvir went on to call Naftali Bennett’s government weak.

“At this difficult time,” added Ben-Gvir, “praise to the fighters who acted professionally, and eliminated the heinous terrorist along with all the people of Israel praying for the safety of the wounded.”

Matan Peleg, chairman of the “Im Tirzu” (If You Will it) Movement released a statement in response to the attack, saying that Israel’s government is too busy dealing with the crisis in Ukraine to deal with security issues at home. “With all due respect to the desire to mediate between Russia and Ukraine, the Cabinet must convene and prepare for the wave of terrorism that by all indications is going to resume on us soon,” he said.

Peleg also warned that every year just before the month of Ramadan acts of Arab terror increase in Israel.

“The lack of enforcement in the face of the construction of illegal mosques in Jerusalem joins the lack of significant activity in the face of growing terrorism in Judea and Samaria,” he added. “The policy of gifts and benefits to the Palestinian Authority, along with an attempt to maintain calm in the face of nationalist riots in Israeli territory, will certainly lead to another war within the cities.”

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PM Bennett: Goal Of Bahrain Trip Is To Provide ‘Energy For The Peace Between The Two Countries’

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett flew to Bahrain on Monday afternoon for a historic visit to the country at the invitation of its Crown Prince and Prime Minister Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa. The surprise trip, which was not publicly announced ahead of time, marks the first time that a serving Israeli prime minister is visiting Bahrain.

Before his plane took off, Bennett said a few words about the trip, calling it “a moving event.”

He spoke about the meetings that will be held with the King and Crown Prince, saying that the goal is to provide “content and energy for the peace between the two countries.”

Bennett said that he thinks that these are especially tumultuous times. As such, it is important for the nations of the region, the Middle East, to collectively send a message of goodwill, cooperation and of standing together against “common challenges and of building bridges to the future.”

It is no secret to whom Bennett was referring when he said “common challenges.” He, and the entire Israeli political establishment, has been sounding the alarm around the world as to the threat posed by the possibility of a nuclear powered Iran. The Prime Minister, and others, have warned that the continuation of the current nuclear talks with the Iranians is only providing the country with more time to work on the enrichment of its uranium for weapons purposes.

However, the two nations are also working together to deal with the growing problems caused by climate change.

Bennett also said a few words about the current situation in the Shim’on HaTsadik Neighborhood of Jerusalem, known as Sheikh Jarrah in Arabic. Local Arabs have escalated the level of violence as they attempt to push Jewish residents out of the area. Since Friday a home owned by Jews there was firebombed with a Molotov Cocktail, some people were rammed by a car driven by an Arab (he was later arrested) and fireworks were launched at Jewish families’ homes.

“The situation in which Jewish homes are set alight in Israel’s capital city is intolerable,” said Bennett. “Therefore, I can tell you that right now the Israel Police are increasing the level of security and will see to providing security for all residents of the city including in sensitive neighborhoods.”

The Prime Minister, however, went on to cast blame on both Jews and Arabs alike for the escalation of the situation. He referred to Chairman of the opposition Otzma Yehudit Party – part of Religious Zionist Knesset coalition- MK Itamar Ben Gvir, as well as Arab opposition MKs from the Joint List, Ofer Cassif and Ahmed Tibi, who both visited the area Sunday night.

Naftali Bennett called all of the MKs provocateurs who “set the area ablaze just for political goals.”

“We need neither Ofer Kasif, nor Ben-Gvir, nor Tibi,” he said, “to run Jerusalem for us. We will deal with it and we will bring stability and security for the residents of the city. This is the responsibility of the Government of Israel and nobody else.”

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PA To Provide Financial And Legal Assistance To Jerusalem’s Arabs With Illegal Buildings

by The Israel Insider
written by The Israel Insider

The Palestinian Authority stated Wednesday that it attaches extraordinary importance to strengthening “the Palestinians’ standing” in Jerusalem and will provide its Arab residence with economic and legal support for “the preservation of Palestinian assets and presence in the city in the face of the unprecedented Israeli attack on the Arab presence in the city.”

Legal aid will be directed to families whose illegal homes have been demolished due to the lack of building permits and to those facing eviction or demolition orders. They will receive free legal advice, funded by the PA, in order to petition against the demolition of houses, assistance in obtaining building permits, and advice in the field of engineering planning prior to obtaining permits.

To date, the PA has provided NIS 3.6 million in emergency aid to 137 families whose homes are facing demolition. The PA government, through its legal team, is following up on more than 2,000 lawsuits being filed against eastern Jerusalem residents in the courts. The number of cases is growing at a rate of 60 new cases a month, according to the PA.

The Palestinian Authority’s institutions has claimed legal achievements, including the freezing of demolition orders for dozens of houses and the redesign of neighborhood projects that led to the freezing of the demolition of hundreds of houses.

“Dozens of decisions to evict homes in the various neighborhoods in Jerusalem have been frozen and we have recorded success in managing a number of cases related to the issue of property and seizure of real estate on the grounds of bankruptcy,” the PA said in a statement.

The government will also fund the increase in the number of lawyers working to protect eastern Jerusalem prisoners.

The economic assistance will be directed mainly to traders in the east of the city and to support civic institutions that provide services to the population in the fields of education, health, culture, women and youth.

“The Jerusalem District is considered a development area for project promotion,” the PA said. Some 20% of the Arab and Islamic aid funds were allocated to fund projects in Jerusalem and these will be implemented during the coming year.

An amount of $2.25 million will be allocated for loans on favorable terms, electricity bill payments of NIS 8 million for 1,452 merchants in the Old City for 2020 and 2021 will be paid by the government, and the government will transfer a grant of $1,000 to 330 merchants after 882 of them have already received the grant.

The PA government instructed the Ministry of Endowments, the Waqf, to lease 60 dunams of endowment land for the benefit of the Fatah-affiliated Chamber of Commerce in Jerusalem, for the production of energy using solar panels to provide discounted electricity to Old City merchants.

The PA government also decided to allocate NIS 16.5 million to assist in other areas in the eastern Jerusalem. “To date, the government has spent a total of NIS 12 million for emergency purposes,” the statement said.

During the PA’s cabinet meeting in November, a series of assistance programs were established for the Arab residents of eastern Jerusalem in the areas of education, housing, security, energy and infrastructure development. The PA government has decided to provide NIS 96 million in assistance to villages and local authorities in the Jerusalem district for the purpose of developing infrastructure and for the establishment of branches of its offices in the district.

In the field of education, the PA decided to establish schools in the east of the city at a cost of $20 million, including two vocational schools. In the field of housing it was agreed to establish housing associations and assistance of $2 million along with approvals for land acquisition and transfer transactions.

The government has also decided to strengthen the security system and public order in light of the deteriorating sense of security in eastern Jerusalem and the increase in crime. In the field of energy, it undertook to set up solar stations in the Bedouin communities in the Jerusalem area, to set up electric transformers in Al-Azaria that cost $15 million.

The government has also pledged to begin planning for the Qalandiya Road, which is intended to alleviate the transportation crisis between Jerusalem and Ramallah. The cost of the planning is NIS 22 million.

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