CHURCH OF ENGLAND, BRITISH CATHOLIC CHURCH OPPOSE MOVING UK EMBASSY TO JERUSALEM: Two of the UK’s most senior Christian authorities have recently come out against the potential decision of Prime Minister Liz Truss to move the British Embassy to the State of Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
In a letter sent to the prime minister, one of the UK’s leading Roman Catholic Church authorities, Archbishop of Westminster Cardent Vincent Nichols has called on Truss to not move the British Embassy to the State of Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Furthermore, Cardinal Nichols, who serves as the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England, in a statement shared both on his official website, as well as on his Twitter account, stated that “such a relocation of the UK Embassy would be seriously damaging to any possibility of lasting peace in the region and to the international reputation of the United Kingdom.” Following Cardinal Nichols’ lead, the head of the Church of England, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby also expressed his concerns over the potential move, with his spokesperson addressing the subject in a statement to a UK Jewish newspaper on Friday, October 7.
Responding to the Cardinal’s statement, International Human Rights Lawyer Arsen Ostrovsky tagged Nichols, saying: “Dear Cardinal, I suggest you read over scriptures, what they say about Jerusalem. You might then care to reconsider your opinion.” The Israel-Britain Alliance also issued a statement regarding these comments, saying that while they have “respect for all clergy, interventions like this reveal a fundamental political naivety. Sovereign states naming their own capital is normal. When did normal become a bad idea?” Truss herself has mentioned earlier that she is a “huge Zionist and huge supporter of Israel,” adding that she would “take the UK-Israel relationship from strength to strength.” (JPost / VFI News)
CANADA TO PERMANENTLY DENY ENTRY TO 10,000 MEMBERS OF ‘MURDEROUS’ IRANIAN REGIME: Canada announced Friday, October 7, that it will permanently deny entry to more than 10,000 members of Iran’s “murderous” regime, including members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which Ottawa blames for “heinous” acts against the Iranian people.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he would list Iran under “the most powerful provision” of Canada’s immigration and refugee act to make “over 10,000 [IRGC] officers and senior members most responsible for this heinous state behavior inadmissible to Canada.” “This is the strongest measure we have to go after states and state entities,” he said, noting it was previously applied only against regimes for war crimes or genocide. Those listed “will be inadmissible to Canada forever” and will be prevented from holding assets or having any financial dealings in this country, he said. Thousands of Canadians have marched in the streets in recent weeks in solidarity with Iran’s protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, while in the custody of Iran’s notorious morality police. (TOI / VFI News)
NY GOVERNOR HOCHUL BLASTED FOR PHOTOS WITH DEM DONOR, WHO CALLED JEWS ‘SATANIC’: New York Governor Kathy Hochul was slammed by critics for taking several photos with a Democratic donor who has shared anti-Semitic and Holocaust denial content online.
Hochul, who is running for reelection, was at a Harvard Club fundraiser in New York City in September, where she took several photos with Maher Abdelqader, vice president of AI Engineers in New York and a Democratic Party donor, American media reported. According to the news outlet, Abdelqader is “an activist who has propagated anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, such as sharing a video claiming that Jews are ‘satanic’ and controlling the media, and that questions whether 6 million Jews died in the Holocaust.” Abdelqader also promoted in social media posts the discredited allegation that Jews are not actually from Israel and used his Facebook account to encourage support for the BDS movement. “A great fundraiser by a small group of entrepreneurs and business leaders at the prestigious Harvard Club of NYC for NYS Governor Kathleen Hochul,” Abdelqader wrote in a since-deleted tweet. Hochul’s actions were slammed by the Republican Governors Association (RGA). (INN/ VFI News)
ISRAEL REJECTS LEBANESE CHANGES TO MARITIME BORDER PROPOSAL, PUTTING DEAL IN DOUBT: Prime Minister Yair Lapid rejected on Thursday, October 6, Lebanon’s requested modifications to a proposed maritime border deal, according to a senior Israeli official.
Contradicting earlier assertions by Western officials that Lebanon’s objections were minor, the official called Beirut’s demands “significant.” The statement cast doubt on the viability of a deal that, only days ago, Israeli officials were speaking of as a foregone conclusion. Lapid also emphasized that he would not compromise on Israel’s economic and security interests, even if it meant that there would be no deal in the near term, according to the official. The official also warned the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terror group against trying to strike the Karish offshore gas field or threaten Israel, saying the talks would “end permanently, and [the terror group’s leader] Hassan Nasrallah will have to explain to Lebanese civilians why they don’t have gas rigs or an economic future.” (TOI / VFI News)
AMBASSADOR ERDAN: HOW CAN YOU NEGOTIATE WITH A REGIME THAT MURDERED A YOUNG WOMAN?: Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, on Friday, October 7, demanded answers on how the international community can negotiate a nuclear deal with the regime in Iran.
“How can you negotiate a nuclear deal that expires in only a couple of years? A deal that will funnel hundreds of millions of dollars into the coffers of a murderous regime?” he wondered. “Can you truly believe the commitments made by a totalitarian government that murdered a young woman, Mahsa Amini, for not properly wearing a head covering, and then butchered those who protest such brutality?” “How do you trust the Ayatollahs, whose attack drones are, as we speak, flying in the skies of Europe? How can any of you desire a deal that would permit the world’s number one state sponsor of terror to continue with its intercontinental ballistic missile program?” asked Erdan. His comments come amid the continued protests in Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini following her arrest for wearing her hijab improperly. The crackdown by the security forces on the protests has claimed 185 lives including at least 19 children, according to human rights groups. Meanwhile, the indirect talks between the US and Iran on a return to the 2015 nuclear deal remain stalled. Iran recently announced it had submitted its comments to the US response to the European Union’s draft for reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. (INN / VFI News)
JORDAN PETERSON: ‘THE FATE OF THE WORLD DEPENDS ON ISRAEL’: Dr. Jordan Peterson, the Canadian psychologist, and owner of one of the most listened-to podcasts in the world said Thursday, October 6, while he tearfully pleaded with those present in the International Convention Center in Jerusalem to protect the holy city.
Peterson said: “As Jews in Israel, are you telling the greatest story ever told? Well, you decide that by how you live. And what you do will affect the world – for one reason or another, it’s not so easy to understand, everyone looks here to see, well, how are you actually doing, under this tremendous assault of adversarial criticism, as this little, tiny people in the middle of no man’s land in some real sense, as a – what would you say – cardinal model of the nation-state and the city on the hill.” “You have a tremendous moral responsibility, like you have, perhaps, for your entire history, for reasons that are very difficult to understand, and I think it is true, in some real sense, that the fate of the world depends on the decisions of the people of Israel. Just as the fate of the world depends on the decision of every individual, so you make yourself a shining light on the hill, right? You attract people here because of what you’re capable of doing. You show the world what the holy city could look like. Because we need it. We need it, and it’s up to you to do it. Thank you very much.” Ben Shapiro, the well-known American political commentator, and the owner of an American media body explained that in his eyes, Jerusalem, chosen especially by the two as the place where they will appear when they arrive together in Israel, is a global moral compass. “We have returned to an era in which divine rule does not come from above, not through laws, not through logic and not even through providing a sufficient explanation, but through force alone. When chaos ruled everything.” (INN / VFI News)
TURKEY NAMES FORMER JERUSALEM ENVOY AS NEW AMBASSADOR TO ISRAEL: Turkey appointed Sakir Ozkan Torunlar as its new ambassador to Israel late on Wednesday, October 5, following a mutual decision taken last month to restore full diplomatic ties, two Turkish foreign ministry officials said.
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu briefed Torunlar on Wednesday night as part of the ministry’s new appointments abroad, the officials told Reuters. A career diplomat with decades of experience, Torunlar was Turkish Consul General in Jerusalem from 2010 until 2013. Israel has already named Irit Lillian as its next ambassador to Ankara. Relations between Turkey and Israel have been rocky since 2011 when Ankara expelled Israel’s ambassador following a 2010 Israeli raid on the Mavi Marmara aid ship to Gaza, which killed nine Turkish citizens. The latest developments come five months after Israeli President Isaac Herzog visited Ankara as part of his first visit to Turkey by an Israeli leader since 2008. (JPost / VFI News)
ISRAEL’S CENTRAL BANK CHIEF SAYS IT’S ‘UNLIKELY’ COUNTRY WILL SEE RECESSION: Israel’s aggressive interest rate hiking cycle aimed at lowering inflation was at a “well advanced” stage, Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron said, with price pressures starting to ease and inflation hopefully moving back into its target range next year.
Israel will likely avoid a recession, Yaron said, and growth will be stronger than the United States and Europe. Analysts increasingly think the euro zone economy will contract this winter. The central bank has raised its benchmark interest rate ILINR=ECI five times since April to a decade high of 2.75% from 0.1% — the last two moves in late August and this past Monday being 75 basis points. Bank of Israel economists forecast 4.6% inflation in 2022 and moving to 2.5% in 2023. Yaron said most of the reduction will be in the second half of the second quarter and into the summer. “It takes a while for these things to take effect, but we believe this is the right magnitude (of rates) for the Israeli economy right now,” he said. (JPost / VFI News)
The suggestions, opinions and scripture references made by VFI writers and editors are based on the best information received.
Blessings from Jerusalem,
Barry Segal with the Editorial Staff
