Price tag attacks represent criminal acts of terror meant to drag Israel into a religious Armageddon,
Amos Gilad,a senior Israeli security official said on Monday, adding that Jerusalem must do everything it can to retain its peace treaty with Egypt.

Rabbis: Monastery desecration shocking-

Dozens of prominent Jewish religious leaders, including chief rabbis, send letter of sympathy to
Latrun Monastery abbot. 'We deeply regret the disrespect you were shown by members of our religion and people,' they write


"Price tag" attacks represent criminal acts of terror meant to drag Israel into a religious Armageddon, a senior Israeli security official said on Monday, adding that Jerusalem must do everything it can to retain its peace treaty with Egypt.
Speaking at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism's 12th world summit, Amos Gilad, the Defense Ministry's director for policy and political-military affairs, referred to recent acts of violence against Palestinians and Israeli Arabs, saying that the right-wing activists who perpetrate "price tag" attacks must be restrained.


“Price tag is murder, it is criminal terror meant to drag Israel in a religious, national Armageddon,” Gilad said. Referring to a recent firebomb attack against a Palestinian taxi in the West Bank and the attempted lynch in Jerusalem last month, Gilad said Israel should treat the incidents as it treats terrorist attacks targeting Israelis.


During his speech at the Israel Air Force culture house, Gilad examined the current geopolitical situation in the Middle East. According to Gilad, Israel's security cooperation with Egypt is conducted as a dialogue, and adjustments were made in the security addendum of the Camp David Peace Treaty. Gilad recommended Israel try and keep good relations with Egypt.


“The peace [between Israel and Egypt] should be guarded every day. It’s hard to see how our security condition would remain stable without there being peace with Egypt,” he said. “There are a lot of Al-Qaida types of terrorist groups in Sinai. Israel and Egypt should do everything to fight it (terrorism).”



Rabbis: Monastery desecration 'shocking'-

Dozens of prominent rabbis from Israel and Europe, including former and present chief rabbis, have written a letter of condemnation and sympathy to leaders of the Latrun Monastery, which was desecrated by vandals last week.


This significant move was made in a bid to calm tensions with the Christian world following the suspected "price tag" attack by right-wing activists.On Sunday, following their morning prayers, the Latrun Monastery monks were addressed by Alon Goshen-Gottstein, director of the Elijah Interfaith Institute, who presented them with the rabbis' letter.




"We would like to express our shock in light of the acts of vandalism directed at your monastery, the kind of which have been directed in recent months against other churches and mosques across the country," they wrote.

"We deeply regret the disrespect you were shown by members of our religion and people."
In the letter, addressed to the monastery's abbot, Father Rene, the rabbis wrote that Jews are compelled by the Torah to show respect to every single person, regardless of their faith.

"We believe there is no room for expressions of hatred and hostility towards any person of a different faith… Our Torah's ways are pleasant and peaceful."


The rabbis said they had conducted a process of "self-examination" following the incident. "It is our responsibility to expose and emphasize the religious texts education must be based on in light of these values. The love of Israel must not be based on the hatred of others."





In this context, they praised an educational project called "Judaism's attitude towards other religions", which includes texts supporting the idea of educating the young generation this way.

The letter concludes with the hope that "you accept this expression of sympathy as well as our renewed commitment to work to increase the understanding between members of the different religions in the Land of Israel."


The letter's signatories include former Sephardic Chief Rabbi Eliyahu Bakshi Doron; Rabbi She'ar Yashuv Hacohen, chair of the Council for Dialogue between Judaism and Islam; Rabbis Jonathan Sacks, Gilles Bernheim, Berel Lazar and Michael Schudrich – the chief rabbis of Britain, France, Russia and Poland (respectively); Rabbi Menachem of the settlement of Tekoa, Rabbi Yuval Sherlo of the Petah Tikvah Hesder Yeshiva and Rabbi Michael Melchior.


http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/top-official-price-tag-attacks-are-acts-of-terror-meant-to-drag-israel-into-religious-war.premium-1.464110


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