Free Republic

Trump told the audience at Liberty University that to bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States he would make Apple "build their damn computers and things in this country." While this isn't a bad idea, or even the first time it has been suggested, Trump didn't offer any specifics on how he would force Apple to abruptly change its manufacturing. "Please, we have such amazing people in this country: smart, sharp, energetic, they're amazing," Trump said. 'I was saying make America great again, and I actually think we can say now, and I really believe this, we're gonna get...

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's pilots' union criticized a decision by Air Berlin and Lufthansa to resume flights to Israel, ending a ban imposed in response to fears that rockets fired from the Gaza Strip may hit aircraft. Lufthansa and Air Berlin said they will resume flights to Israel's Ben Gurion Airport on Saturday, the same day a 12-hour humanitarian truce agreed by Israel and Hamas began.

During the ground offensive IDF soldiers have also exposed a tunnel camouflaged under a bathroom. Inside a house in the neighborhood of Shuja'iyya in Gaza a tunnel shaft was found under the sink, in between the sewage pipes and the cleaning supplies. According to IDF assessments this tunnel was not originally destined to aid terrorists with infiltration to Israel, but was built for a different destination. This is a command and control tunnels which connects between different destinations inside Gaza Strip, in order to enable Hamas activists to hide inside it for longer periods of time, without being exposed to...

Hours after extending a 24-hour ban that went into effect Tuesday, the FAA cancels flight restrictions in response to increased Israeli security measures. Just twelve hours after it renewed a 24-hour ban on US flights to and from Israel's Ben Gurion Airport, the Federal Aviation Authority on Thursday withdrew the ban, setting the stage for US and international carriers to resume flights. Europe's Aviation Safety Agency, which had issued a "strong recommendation" against flights to Tel Aviv, retracted its warning later in the day. Since the FAA ban on Tuesday, which followed the first successful Hamas rocket landing within the...

TEL AVIV (Reuters) - US Airways said it would resume flights to Israel later on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lifted a ban imposed two days ago when a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip landed near Tel Aviv airport. About 30 carriers had suspended services to Ben Gurion International Airport, Israel's main hub. Other major airlines have yet to announce a resumption of flights. Israel had criticized the FAA decision, saying the airport, was safe. Israeli airlines have picked up some of the slack. US Airways, a unit of American Airlines Group Inc, flies daily to...

Among the questions being raised about this weekend's exchange of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl for five top Taliban commanders held at Guantanamo is why Congress was not informed of the move ahead of time. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said on Meet the Press on Sunday that concerns over the health and perhaps even the survival of Bergdahl required secrecy, telling reporters, "We couldn't afford any leaks anywhere" because the deal was "essentially an operation to save the life of Sgt. Bergdahl." But just under a year ago, in June 2013, White House press secretary Jay Carney was unequivocal in his response...

Fears emerged tonight that the pilot of the missing Malaysia Airlines jet may have hijacked the plane himself as an anti-government protest. Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah was a fervent supporter of his country's opposition leader who was jailed for homosexuality - illegal in Malaysia - only hours before flight MH370 vanished with 239 passengers and crew on board, the Sunday Mirror can reveal. And in a new twist, it emerged that the pilot's wife and three children moved out of the family's home the day before the plane's disappearance. The revelations came after Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak yesterday confirmed...

“Gallup will not conduct daily tracking surveys for a second night, Tuesday, Oct. 30, due to the ongoing effects of superstorm Sandy and will continue to reassess the situation on a day-to-day basis,” read a statement from the organization. “Gallup will provide an update on Wednesday about plans from that point forward.” Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1012/83057.html

New music video by Yaakov Shwekey.

What is the miracle of Hanukkah really about? One days' worth of olive oil lasting for 8 days, was indeed, miraculous.... but there is so much more to this holiday than meets the eye. Hanukkah is the miraculous story of the Jewish People, and as you will see -the story never ended. It lives today in our times, through the miracle of the State of Israel, and the modern day Maccabees who stand alongside her. Watch this short and powerful video from Jerusalem, for illuminating insights and fascinating perspectives into the holiday of Hanukkah. Watch the video: Hanukkah - In...

The recent report on Iran’s nuclear program from the United Nations nuclear watchdog has escalated concerns about Iran’s work towards nuclear weapons, with one expert telling The Mideast Update that its time for the world to act as though there’s no more time to waste. Dr. Emily Landau, senior research fellow at The Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Israel, said that even without the latest study, there are suspicious nuclear activities that hint strongly toward plans to develop nuclear weapons. Among those include the amount of Iran’s 20% nuclear fuel enrichment—which even if it isn’t yet to military-grade...

The Palestinian bid for United Nations membership and effective statehood recognition is now one week old, but is a final vote in the UN Security Council coming soon? Where does the vote count stand? And what happens if the United States issues a veto? Here’s a step-by-step analysis of where the Palestinian UN membership application is now and where it’s heading

NEW YORK—Less than two hours after Israel and the Palestinians addressed the United Nations General Assembly, the Mideast Quartet proposed the parties agree to a timetable for peace talks, with a final deal is to be reached by the end of 2012 at the latest. According to a Quartet statement released by the UN, the Quartet—consisting of the UN, Russia, the United States and the European Union—calls on the parties to hold a “preparatory meeting” to agree on an approach to negotiations within one month.

The Palestinians are continuing their push for statehood, but a are they preparing their people for peace?Palestinian Media Watch, a watchdog organization that translates and reports on Palestinian media, says that incitement of various forms against Israel has continued on official Palestinian Authority media despite the statehood efforts. To learn more, I spoke from the United Nations by phone with Palestinian Media Watch Director Itamar Marcus, who was on a visit to Washington, D.C. Click here to listen

UNITED NATIONS—Less than 24 hours before the Palestinians were set to address the United Nations General Assembly, the Mideast Quartet was still trying to put together a package to restart Mideast peace talks. Talks regarding a potential statement from the Quartet—the United States, the European Union, the UN and Russia—on the matter were still ongoing as of

UNITED NATIONS—In what is becoming an annual event, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad again slammed the West in a radical speech at the UN General Assembly, with diplomats from a number of Western nations leaving the meeting hall in apparent protest. Representatives from the US and Europe were among those who walked out in the mass exit as Ahmadinejad on Thursday implicitly criticized some Europeans for still using the Holocaust “as the excuse to pay fine or ransom to the Zionists,” which is his term for Israel. The US Mission to the UN reacted strongly to

UNITED NATIONS—The Palestinian bid to for full United Nations membership could be at risk before it even is launched, as they may not have the nine “yes” votes needed to pass a full membership resolution in the UN Security Council. The US has veto powers in the Council and has said they will veto the bid if it passes otherwise, but a lack of sufficient votes would be a huge blow to Palestinian efforts to win a symbolic diplomatic victory. An anonymous Israeli official, speaking by phone with The Mideast Update on Wednesday, said, “At the moment I think the

UNITED NATIONS—Despite strong and public resistance from the United States to a Palestinian bid for United Nations membership in the UN Security Council, the Palestinians are still planning to submit their bid for consideration, an official said Thursday. According to the WAFA Palestinian news agency, Palestinian official Yasser Abed Rabbo told Voice of Palestine radio that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas would make the

UNITED NATIONS—Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for the end of violence in Syria and for a negotiated settlement in the Israel-Palestinian peace process in his speech at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday. The Middle East is expected to be a key region at the United Nations this week with the Palestinians expected to request full UN membership and statehood recognition. ... The US and Europe have sanctioned the Syria regime over their actions, but the UN Security Council has yet to pass

NEW YORK—The Mideast Quartet on Tuesday continued its efforts to find a means to find a way to renew Israel-Palestinian peace talks and avoid “unilateral” moves ahead of a possible diplomatic showdown over the Palestinian statehood bid. A European diplomat told The Mideast Update by email on Tuesday morning that “discussions are continuing,” and another meeting for Quartet envoys had been set for Tuesday afternoon. Another European diplomat