Israel Orders Airstrike Against Gaza Militant

-        The Israeli military carried out an airstrike Sunday against a Palestinian militant in Gaza responsible for firing rockets into Israel

-        The target was critically wounded and a bystander was hurt

-        The airstrike is a practice known as “targeted killing”

-        The target was a senior member of the Popular Resistance Committee

-        Popular Resistance Committee- made up of fighters who left other organizations like Hamas, Fatah, and Islamic Jihad

-        “Our resolute policy against terrorism may be summed up in a single principle: Whoever attacks us or plans to attack us will bear the consequences” – Prime Minister Netanyahu

-        Gaza militants have launched 33 rockets at Israel since the beginning of this year

-        The target was accused of firing rockets from the Egyptian territory into southern Israel

-        Israeli military officials say that Hamas appears to be having trouble controlling some of their smaller militant groups

Egypt Locks Morsi in Soundproof Cage During Trial

-          Muhamed Morsi the deposed Eqyptian president appeared at his trial in a glass soundproof cage

-          It was the largest courtroom debate saying it deprived the defendant of hearing and participating in the own trial

-          The former president consistently declares he is the President of Egypt and also declared he did not recognize the court’s authority to try him, in part since it was outside the constitutional procedures for impeaching a president

-          The judge replied saying I am the president of Egypt’s criminal court

-          Mr. Morsi and the other defendants are now accused of conspiring with foreign militant movements to break themselves out.

-          In the afternoon when Mr. Morsi was allowed to speak he said I have the utmost appreciation for judges and I say to them: Stay away from politics

-          Security forces have killed more than a thousand people at protests against the take over and jailed thousands more.

-          The Sinai-based militant group Ansar Beit al-Maqdis has claimed responsibility for most of the major attacks which have recently occurred

20 Al Jazeera Journalists Face Charges in Egypt

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• By the military-backed government that ousted President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood
• The Brotherhood has  been outlawed and declared a terrorist organization
• Al Jazeera is the only major Arabic-language news outlet available in Egypt sympathetic to the Brotherhood and critical of the government
• It has been the target of a campaign by the government
• Accused of manipulating video footage to produce unreal scenes to suggest the country is in a civil war
• Broadcast the images to assist the terrorist group in achieving its purpose of influencing international public opinion.
• 16 of the 20 are Egyptians charged with joining a terrorist group with the purpose of damaging national security and social peace
• The other four were comprised of two British, one Australian, and one Dutch charged with collaborating with the Egyptian defendants by providing money equipment, and information.
• All were charged with possession of documents and recordings promoting the group
• If convicted several years in prison will be served
• Eight are in custody the others are fugitives
• “The world knows these allegations against our journalists are absurd, baseless and false.” – Al Jazeera
• The State Department spokeswoman said, Egypt should reconsider the prosecution, “The governments targeting of journalists and others on spurious claims is wrong and demonstrates egregious disregard for the protection of basic rights and freedoms