After tunnel find, Hamas threatens to strike Tel Aviv, Haifa - by Raoul Wootliff - http://www.timesofisrael.com/after-tunnel-find-hamas-threatens-to-strike-tel-aviv/
'Qassam Brigades will shake you' in major Israeli cities, terror group says
The military wing of Hamas on Monday threatened in a new video to attack major Israeli cities using long-range missiles, hours after the Israeli army announced it had discovered and "neutralized" a cross-border tunnel from the Gaza Strip.
A video clip by the Gaza-based organization, titled "The Rantisi Rocket on Haifa" was posted to the YouTube page of the Palestinian news site Palestinian Information Center (PIC) and shows Hamas terrorists preparing missile attacks on Tel Aviv and Haifa.
In the slickly produced clip, which includes camera shots from a drone, masked men read a paper describing the "characteristics of the rocket" which states, "its basic mission: to strike the Zionist enemy."
"Qassam Brigades will shake you in Haifa, in Tel Aviv," the voice-over says as a masked Hamas terrorist runs his finger across a map of Israel.
A group of uniformed men are then seen preparing a missile launcher to be fired at Israeli cities.
The R-160 is named for Abdel Aziz Ali Abdul Majid al-Rantisi, the co-founder of Hamas who was killed in a 2004 airstrike by the Israeli air force. Sunday was the 12th anniversary of his assassination.
The advanced Syrian missile is also known as the M-302, has a range of up to 160 kilometers (100 miles) and can carry up to 170 kilograms (375 lbs).
During Operation Protective Edge, Hamas considerably increased its rocket range with the R-160, as well as with the J-80 projectile, which has an 80-kilometer range.
At the time, Hamas's armed wing Izz ad-Din Al-Qassam reported on its website firing nine R-160s and 19 J-80s. The Islamic Jihad terror group has reported firing two missiles with a 100-kilometer (62 mile) range and 38 missiles with a range of 70 kilometers.
Most of Hamas's weapons were smuggled in from Egypt via tunnels running underground from the Sinai Peninsula. Since Operation Pillar of Defense in 2012, Hamas has invested much of its resources in developing smuggling networks in Sinai and importing weapons from Libya, Sudan and Iran, according to the Shin Bet security service.
In March 2014, the IDF intercepted the Klos-C, an arms ship originating in Iran and headed for Sudan, its cargo intended for Gaza. The ship was carrying several dozen M-302 missiles.
The threatening video was released hours after the Israel Defense Forces announced Monday that it had "neutralized" a concrete-lined tunnel it found last week adjacent to the southern Gaza Strip, but would not elaborate on whether it was destroyed or merely sealed off.
Its exact location is still being kept under wraps by the military censor, though it does not appear that the tunnel led directly into Holit or Sufa, the Israeli communities closest to the southern Gaza Strip.
The IDF has identified the Hamas terror organization as the group behind the tunnel's construction and maintains it was dug "in order to carry out attacks against civilians," a spokesperson said, though he would not discuss the specific intelligence that led to that finding.
On Thursday, a senior IDF officer told reporters that Hamas has been recruiting fighters and collecting materiel at a "surprisingly" quick pace, though the group was not yet prepared for another conflict with Israel.
However, he declared the terrorist organization would not again drag Israel into a war, and insisted any future conflict would be one undertaken at the initiative of the Jewish state.
According to the officer's assessment, Hamas now has some 5,000 fighters in its special forces and has also filled out its middle and upper ranks with 25 battalion and brigade commanders.
Near-clash of Israeli-Russian planes over Syria - http://www.debka.com/article/25377/Near-clash-of-Israeli-Russian-planes-over-Syria-
Western and Middle Eastern military sources monitoring the war in Syria, and networks monitoring Russian air force flights in the country, reported Wednesday afternoon that there was almost a clash earlier in the day between four Israeli F-15 fighters and two Russian Su-30 jets.
The sources report that the Israeli warplanes, flying from the direction of the Mediterranean, approached Russia's Hmeimim airbase near the Syrian city of Latakia. The Russian command, which apparently feared that the Israeli planes would fly over the base, scrambled two of their fighters that specialize in dogfights.
debkafile's military sources point out that Russia has deployed its advanced S-300 and S-400 antiaircraft missile batteries at the base.
The sources report that after a short time in which there was concern that a confrontation between the Russian and Israeli air forces was about to occur, both groups of jets turned back. The Su-30s returned to the base, and the F-15s continued their flight.
Operators of networks monitoring air traffic in Syrian airspace and in the eastern Mediterranean say that according to the messages sent out by both sides there was serious concern over an exchange of fire between the Russians and the Israelis.
debkafile's sources point out that the incident was apparently the reason that the commander of Israel's air force, Maj. Gen. Amir Eshel, joined the delegation of Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu make a one-day visit to Moscow on Thursday for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The sources add that according to the agreement between Russia and Israel on coordination of flights in Syrian airspace, planes from both sides can fly in an unimpeded manner as long as they do not interfere with the operations of those of the other side. Also, each side agreed to inform the other side of the location of its jets to prevent inadvertent clashes.
But recently, as the Russians have replaced a large part of their air power in Syria with advanced attack helicopters, it has become clear that the understandings between Jerusalem and Moscow are not in line with the new situation. The understandings are concerning flights by fighters, but the attack helicopters fly at different heights and speeds, and under completely different conditions.
On April 4th, the Russian military's deputy chief of staff, Gen. Nikolai Bogdanovsky, met with his Israeli counterpart, Maj. Gen. Yair Golan, in Tel Aviv to discuss the topic. The incident on Wednesday and Maj. Gen. Eshel's trip to Moscow show that the air forces of the two sides have not resolved the problem, and that a new framework is needed to coordinate Russian and Israeli military flights in Syrian airspace.
Khamenei Vows Full Support for Hezbollah -
Rouhani warns world powers against lagging in implementing nuclear deal.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reiterated the Shi'ite country's full support for its ally Hezbollah, as the Lebanese organization came under harsh attack by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states for its involvement in Syria's civil war.
"Hezbollah and its faithful youth are shining like the sun and are a source of honor for the Muslim world," he told members of the Iranian Students' Islamic Association in Tehran on Wednesday, Fars News Agency reported.
Khamenei's comments came after Riyadh and its allies harshly criticized Iran and Hezbollah for their interference in the internal affairs of states in the region in the final statement at the 13th summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation last week.
Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states have cracked down on Hezbollah, and have deported residents suspected of supporting the group.
Iran's supreme leader also said that Iranian youth are being targeted in a "soft war" of the "imperialist front" led by the US and "Zionist regime" which includes the political, economic, and cultural fields, Iran's Mehr News Agency reported.
"A reason why they would confront us in our attempt to achieve peaceful nuclear technology is this feature of the imperialist front; should Iran concede some ground, they will advance any further deny us further progress in biotechnology, nanotechnology and other strategic technologies," he added.
President Hassan Rouhani warned world powers that Tehran would seriously respond if they lag in implementing the nuclear deal.
"We should monitor and verify the other side's performance," Rouhani at a cabinet meeting in Tehran on Wednesday, according to Mehr. "If we see any lagging and shortages from the other side, we should certainly show serious reaction," he added.
Netanyahu to Putin: Golan Heights is a red line, must remain a part of Israel - http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Politics-And-Diplomacy/Netanyahu-to-Putin-Golan-Heights-is-a-red-line-must-remain-a-part-of-Israel-451947
PM visits Moscow for third face-to-face meeting with Russian president in seven months.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated in Moscow alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday what he said on the Golan Heights on Sunday: the strategic plateau will always remain part of Israel.
Netanyahu, who flew for the day to Moscow for a meeting with Putin, said during statements in the Kremlin beforehand that "we we cannot return to the days and times when our villages were shot at from the Golan Heights, therefore, whether within the framework of an agreement or without one, the Golan Heights will remain part of [Israeli] sovereign territory."
Netanyahu said earlier this week that his comments about the Golan Heights were necessary following a draft for a Syrian peace agreement circulated by the UN special envoy which called, in its very first clause, for Israel to return the Golan to Syria. The premier said that he had come to Moscow with one central goal: "to strengthen the security coordination between us to prevent mistakes, misunderstandings and unnecessary accidents" between Israeli and Russian forces operating in Syria.
On his last visit to Moscow in September, Netanyahu and Putin established a coordination mechanism to ensure that the Russian and Israeli air forces do not accidentally engage one another in Syrian airspace. In addition to that meeting, the two leaders met at the end of November on the sidelines of the Paris climate conference.
"During our last meeting I presented to you our security policy regarding our northern border," Netanyahu said.
"Israel has clear red lines for our self-defense," he said. "First of all, we are acting to the best of our ability to prevent the transfer of advanced weaponry from Iran and Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Secondly, we are working to prevent the establishment of an additional terrorist front against us from the Golan Heights. These are our red lines, and we will continue to protect them."
Netanyahu said the talks will also touch on bilateral issues, as Israel and Russia are this year marking 25 years since the re-establishment of full diplomatic ties. The premier pointed out that there are now more than a million native Russian speakers living in Israel who are a "living bridge between our two peoples."
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