Ancient Philistine Cemetery Uncovered Near Ashkelon

Archeologists announced over the weekend that they have uncovered an ancient cemetery in the Ashkelon National Park containing a treasure trove of information about the Philistine civilization which features prominently in the Bible. The findings date from the 11th–8th centuries BC and scholars say point to confirmation of a long-held theory that the Philistines were migrants to the coast of the ancient Levant, possibly from the Greek nation-states which suffered a series of disasters in the 12 Century BC.

Iranian officials reacted with anger and contempt Saturday to a statement by UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon that the Islamic Republic’s ballistic missile program violated the spirit of last years JCPOA nuclear agreement. “Iran will strongly continue its missile program based on its own defense and national security calculations,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said. In related news, a senior officer with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps boasted on Friday that Iran can unleash tens of thousands of missiles to “annihilate” Israel in any future war.

Israeli athlete Hanna Knyazyeva-Minenko won a silver medal at the European Athletics Championships in Amsterdam on Sunday, setting her up as one of Israel’s top hopes for Olympic glory in Rio next month. “I’m really happy and this gives me a lot of confidence,” said Knyazyeva-Minenko.

Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit issued a statement Sunday confirming reports that his office in investigating allegations of money laundering by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The probe is in a preliminary phase and might not result in any legal action being taken, but Netanyahu’s political enemies were already predicting his imminent demise in press statements minutes after Mandelblit’s announcement.

A Palestinian terrorist carried out a shooting attack on an Israeli motorist near the community of Tekoa, south of Jerusalem on Saturday evening. The motorist was wounded in the legs and reported in stable condition at a Jerusalem hospital Monday morning, while the terrorist remained at large. Meanwhile, police are investigating how a Jordanian man crossed the border into Israel Friday and attacked vehicles along Route 90, near the Sea of Galilee. Stones he threw at one car caused the driver to lose control and crash before he was shot and wounded by nearby security guards.

In the years following the 2006 war, Hezbollah has increased the quantity and quality of its missiles and rockets by tenfold. We must think, therefore, about the next operation in Lebanon. The destruction will be enormous, and IDF ground forces will have to act decisively and quickly to counteract fire and inflict great losses on Hezbollah.