Letter Threatening Netanyahu Found on His Brother’s Grave

 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, center, attends a graduation ceremony for new pilots with Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, left, and Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Galant, in Hatzerim air force base near the southern Israeli city of Beersheba, Israel, Thursday, June 29, 2023. (AP)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, center, attends a graduation ceremony for new pilots with Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, left, and Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Galant, in Hatzerim air force base near the southern Israeli city of Beersheba, Israel, Thursday, June 29, 2023. (AP)
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Letter Threatening Netanyahu Found on His Brother’s Grave

 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, center, attends a graduation ceremony for new pilots with Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, left, and Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Galant, in Hatzerim air force base near the southern Israeli city of Beersheba, Israel, Thursday, June 29, 2023. (AP)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, center, attends a graduation ceremony for new pilots with Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, left, and Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Galant, in Hatzerim air force base near the southern Israeli city of Beersheba, Israel, Thursday, June 29, 2023. (AP)

Israeli intelligence said on Friday they found a letter threatening to kill Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu placed on the grave of his brother, Yoni, at Mount Herzl, Jerusalem.

Yoni was killed 47 years ago during the Entebbe Operation. He was an army officer who commanded the elite commando unit Sayeret Matkal during operation to rescue hostages held at Entebbe Airport in Uganda in 1976.

Netanyahu had visited the grave to mark the 47th anniversary of his brother’s death. During a regular security check preceding the PM’s visit, the Shin Bet, Israeli intelligence, discovered the letter, which was addressed to Yoni. The issue is being investigated.

“It's my request to tell your brother, Bibi [Benjamin] Netanyahu, that he has a few rights or a lot of rights, but they have ended. And now, Mount Herzl, this sanctified place, has the clock ticking down, until September 16, 2023, when your brother, thinks he will turn 74,” the author of the letter wrote, referring to the PM’s Hebrew calendar birthday.

The letter demanded of the prime minister to conquer Gaza, and bring back the body of Hadar Goldin (a soldier killed in Gaza in 2014, to whom the letter's author has a stated connection), and the other hostages.

The letter added, “Bibi, you are no Ariel Sharon. Sharon had a stroke and fell into a coma for eight years. To you, I wish worse things.” It ends with “The clock is ticking! You have a little over three and a half months.”

The Palestinian Hamas movement is holding the bodies of Goldin and Oron Shaul, who were both killed in the 2014 Gaza war.

Netanyahu had received several death threats recently. Last week, a 23-year-old suspect, a resident of Beit Shemesh, was arrested for writing what were allegedly threatening messages against Netanyahu in a WhatsApp group.

“Everyone should carry a weapon with them. Then there will be a gun for everyone and an opportunity to put a bullet in Bibi’s head,” he wrote, using the premier’s nickname.

“Whoever wants to buy a gun send me a message. When it’s about your life you don’t need a license. We don’t care about the law,” he added. A police investigation is ongoing.

Three weeks ago, protesters vandalized a memorial of Netanyahu’s late father Benzion Netanyahu with a sign calling the Likud leader a “dictator.”

The PM responded on his Twitter account saying: “Vile people vandalized the memorial in honor of my father today. The time has come for them to stop trampling on every norm of decency.”



Biden Announces Surge in Ukraine Military Aid

US President Joe Biden speaks at the 'Supporting Ukrainian Recovery and Reconstruction' meeting on the sidelines of the General Debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, New York, USA, 25 September 2024 (issued 26 September 2024).  EPA/LESZEK SZYMANSKI
US President Joe Biden speaks at the 'Supporting Ukrainian Recovery and Reconstruction' meeting on the sidelines of the General Debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, New York, USA, 25 September 2024 (issued 26 September 2024). EPA/LESZEK SZYMANSKI
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Biden Announces Surge in Ukraine Military Aid

US President Joe Biden speaks at the 'Supporting Ukrainian Recovery and Reconstruction' meeting on the sidelines of the General Debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, New York, USA, 25 September 2024 (issued 26 September 2024).  EPA/LESZEK SZYMANSKI
US President Joe Biden speaks at the 'Supporting Ukrainian Recovery and Reconstruction' meeting on the sidelines of the General Debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, New York, USA, 25 September 2024 (issued 26 September 2024). EPA/LESZEK SZYMANSKI

US President Joe Biden announced on Thursday a "surge" in assistance to Ukraine, including nearly $8 billion in military aid and new long-range munitions, ahead of a White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

"Today, I am announcing a surge in security assistance for Ukraine and a series of additional actions to help Ukraine win this war," Biden said in a statement.

However, the statement did not mention Kyiv's hoped-for permission to launch US-made long-range missiles into Russia -- which Zelensky has been pushing hard for, and which Biden has so far refused.

Russia has strongly warned against such a step, and President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday announced plans to broaden Moscow's rules on the use of its nuclear weaponry, allowing it to unleash a nuclear response in the event of a "massive" air attack.

The Kremlin said the updated doctrine should be seen as a warning to the West.

Kyiv has relied on the United States as its main military backer, and Zelensky said his country would use the new assistance in the "most effective and transparent way possible to achieve our main common goal: a victorious Ukraine, a just and lasting peace, and transatlantic security."

But the white-knuckle US vote on November 5, pitting Biden's Vice President Kamala Harris against firebrand Trump, means that support may now hang in the balance.

Biden will host Zelensky in the Oval Office at 1:45 pm local time (1745 GMT), the White House said.

Biden pledged nearly $8 billion in military aid, including $5.5 billion to be authorized before it expires at the end of the US fiscal year on Monday.

Another $2.4 billion was pledged via the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), meaning it will not immediately arrive on the battlefield, as the munitions need to be procured from the defense industry or partners, rather than drawn from US stockpiles.

Biden also announced Washington would provide Ukraine with the Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) long-range munition, "to enhance Ukraine's long-range strike capabilities."

The United States has provided around $175 billion in both military and economic assistance to Ukraine during the war, despite frequent opposition from Republicans.

US President Joe Biden announced on Thursday a "surge" in assistance to Ukraine, including nearly $8 billion in military aid and new long-range munitions, ahead of a White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

"Today, I am announcing a surge in security assistance for Ukraine and a series of additional actions to help Ukraine win this war," Biden said in a statement.

However, the statement did not mention Kyiv's hoped-for permission to launch US-made long-range missiles into Russia -- which Zelensky has been pushing hard for, and which Biden has so far refused.

Russia has strongly warned against such a step, and President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday announced plans to broaden Moscow's rules on the use of its nuclear weaponry, allowing it to unleash a nuclear response in the event of a "massive" air attack.

The Kremlin said the updated doctrine should be seen as a warning to the West.

Kyiv has relied on the United States as its main military backer, and Zelensky said his country would use the new assistance in the "most effective and transparent way possible to achieve our main common goal: a victorious Ukraine, a just and lasting peace, and transatlantic security."

But the white-knuckle US vote on November 5, pitting Biden's Vice President Kamala Harris against firebrand Trump, means that support may now hang in the balance.

Biden will host Zelensky in the Oval Office at 1:45 pm local time (1745 GMT), the White House said.

Biden pledged nearly $8 billion in military aid, including $5.5 billion to be authorized before it expires at the end of the US fiscal year on Monday.

Another $2.4 billion was pledged via the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), meaning it will not immediately arrive on the battlefield, as the munitions need to be procured from the defense industry or partners, rather than drawn from US stockpiles.

Biden also announced Washington would provide Ukraine with the Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) long-range munition, "to enhance Ukraine's long-range strike capabilities."

The United States has provided around $175 billion in both military and economic assistance to Ukraine during the war, despite frequent opposition from Republicans.

US President Joe Biden announced on Thursday a "surge" in assistance to Ukraine, including nearly $8 billion in military aid and new long-range munitions, ahead of a White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

"Today, I am announcing a surge in security assistance for Ukraine and a series of additional actions to help Ukraine win this war," Biden said in a statement.

However, the statement did not mention Kyiv's hoped-for permission to launch US-made long-range missiles into Russia -- which Zelensky has been pushing hard for, and which Biden has so far refused.

Russia has strongly warned against such a step, and President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday announced plans to broaden Moscow's rules on the use of its nuclear weaponry, allowing it to unleash a nuclear response in the event of a "massive" air attack.

The Kremlin said the updated doctrine should be seen as a warning to the West.

Kyiv has relied on the United States as its main military backer, and Zelensky said his country would use the new assistance in the "most effective and transparent way possible to achieve our main common goal: a victorious Ukraine, a just and lasting peace, and transatlantic security."

But the white-knuckle US vote on November 5, pitting Biden's Vice President Kamala Harris against firebrand Trump, means that support may now hang in the balance.

Biden will host Zelensky in the Oval Office at 1:45 pm local time (1745 GMT), the White House said.

Biden pledged nearly $8 billion in military aid, including $5.5 billion to be authorized before it expires at the end of the US fiscal year on Monday.

Another $2.4 billion was pledged via the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), meaning it will not immediately arrive on the battlefield, as the munitions need to be procured from the defense industry or partners, rather than drawn from US stockpiles.

Biden also announced Washington would provide Ukraine with the Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) long-range munition, "to enhance Ukraine's long-range strike capabilities."

The United States has provided around $175 billion in both military and economic assistance to Ukraine during the war, despite frequent opposition from Republicans.