| Notes | The IDF’s Unit 9900: ‘Seeing’ their service come to fruition The secretive and sensitive Unit 9900, which specializes in visual intelligence and plays an essential role in the activities of the Israel Defense Forces, has received some 100 autistic volunteer soldiers so far. BY YAAKOV LAPPIN November 27, 2020 The main headlines FEATURED COLUMN DOV LIPMANJNS Obama’s revisionist ‘Promised Land’ U.S. President Barack Obama speaks on the phone to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on June 8, 2009. Credit: Pete Souza/White House. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meets with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Neom, Saudi Arabia, on Nov. 22, 2020. Credit: State Department Photo by Ron Przysucha. NEWS More than meets the eye in secretive meeting between America, Israel and Saudi Arabia ISRAEL KASNETTJNS The visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu comes as Israel is ramping up ties with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, though Iran is also in the picture. COLUMNThe major significance of Netanyahu’s ‘secret’ Saudi trip FIAMMA NIRENSTEIN The Israeli prime minister has been pursuing regional peace over the course of many years, openly and behind the scenes, and it’s paying off. FEATURE ‘We don’t operate according to Hezbollah’s equations’ YOAV LIMORISRAEL HAYOM IDF Brig. Gen. Shlomi Binder. Photo by Oren Cohen. FEATURED COLUMN JONATHAN S. TOBINJNS The foreign-policy establishment strikes back President-elect Joe Biden announcing his picks for his national security team. Source: Joe Biden/Facebook. NEWSCan Biden renew foreign aid to Palestinians while still adhering to Taylor Force Act? ISRAEL KASNETT “Sympathizers in the Democratic Party are trying to convince the Palestinians to make changes in the law so salaries will be based on economic conditions and not just on terrorism,” said Yossi Kuperwasser, a senior intelligence and security expert at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. FEATURE An insider’s look at Israel’s next satellite: A ‘smartphone in space’ YAAKOV LAPPINJNS Artist's rendition of the Dror 1, which will be the most advanced communication satellite built in Israel to date. Credit: Israel Aerospace Industries. Israel’s Minister of Regional Cooperation Ofir Akunis (right) and philanthropist Sylvan Adams visit the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon and the “Save a Child’s Heart” organization on Nov. 26, 2020. Photo by Shlomi Yosef. BRIEF Israeli minister visits ‘Save a Child’s Heart’ facility amid new alliances JNS Israel’s Minister of Regional Cooperation Ofir Akunis spoke with children and their mothers, and met doctors from Tanzania, Zambia, Ethiopia and the Palestinian Authority taking part in the program. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a welcoming ceremony at Ben-Gurion International Airport for the first commercial flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Nov. 26, 2020. Credit: Kobi Gideon/GPO. BRIEF Netanyahu welcomes first commercial flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv JNS “There is a great opening here for trade, the economy and tourism that makes for a truly new and different Middle East,” says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israeli police officers and a bomb squad unit at the scene of an attempted ramming attack at a checkpoint near Ma'aleh Adumim, Nov. 25, 2020. Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90. BRIEF Israeli Police shoot and kill Palestinian attempting to ram soldier with vehicle JNS The suspect tried to burst through a checkpoint near Ma’aleh Adumim; Israeli soldier suffers light injuries. U.S. Special Envoy for Iran Elliott Abrams. Credit: U.S. State Department. BRIEF US special envoy for Iran announces plans to tighten sanctions JNS “We think the Biden administration has a great opportunity because there is so much leverage on Iran through the sanctions,“ says Elliott Abrams. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley addresses the General Assembly in June 2018. Credit: U.N. Photo/Evan Schneider. BRIEF Haley calls on administration to release classified report on Palestinian refugees AARON BANDLERJEWISH JOURNAL “This goes to the heart of speaking hard truths in the name of moving peace forward,” says the former U.N. ambassador. Iranian diplomat and politician Mohammad-Javad Larijani, Jan. 13, 2015. Credit: Meghdad Madadi via Wikimedia Commons. BRIEF Iranian official: To rejoin JCPOA, US must lift sanctions, offer compensation MEMRI If the United States refuses to re-enter the nuclear deal with no preconditions, Iran will “suspend” NPT and Additional Protocol, says Iranian Expediency Council member Mohammad-Javad Larijani. Illustrative photo by Indypendenz via Shutterstock.com. BRIEF Tel Aviv University’s Islamic history course a global hit NAAMA BARAKISRAEL21C Students from Pakistan, Indonesia, Qatar and Afghanistan all tuned in to a course previously enjoyed only in an Israeli classroom. Irwin Cotler in 2012. Photo by Miriam Alster/Flash90. NEWS Human-rights advocate Irwin Cotler named as Canadian envoy to combat anti-Semitism JNS “No one more qualified to lead the fight against it on Canada’s behalf on the international stage,” said Jeffrey Rosenthal of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs. Congressman-elect Kai Kahele of Hawaii's 2nd Congressional District. Credit: Team Kahele/Flickr. NEWS The Aloha State’s Kai Kahele vows to oppose BDS, fight anti-Semitism JACKSON RICHMANJNS “Israel is a very strong partner” and the “best example of democracy and the American values that we have in the Middle East,” says the 46-year-old Democrat. FEATURE JNS ‘top 40’ advocates for Israel online assemble for Knesset panel ALEX TRAIMANJNS From left: Hillel Neuer, Arsen Ostrovsky, Former MK Dov Lipman, MK Michal Cotler-Wunsh, Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, Avi Mayer, Michael Dickson, Alex Traiman, Yosef Haddad in Jerusalem, Nov. 24, 2020. FEATUREJNS top 40 global advocates for Israel online Each of these inspiring leaders have two things in common: They are making a real difference and are fearless advocates for the Jewish state. Israeli airstrike in Damascus on Jan. 21, 2019. Source: Screenshot. BRIEF IDF hits targets in southern Damascus area, claims Syrian media JNS The reported strikes follow Israeli attacks on Iranian and Syrian military targets on Nov. 18, including a Syrian Army facility near Damascus used to host senior Iranian military figures. Soldiers of the IDF Bardelas Battalion prepare for urban-warfare training near Nitzanim in the Arava area of southern Israel on July 13, 2016. Photo by Hadas Parush/Flash90. BRIEF Israeli military sees 160 percent rise in number of females in combat roles ISRAEL HAYOM “The IDF must aspire to let every person maximize their potential during their service, women and men alike,” says Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Zvika Hauser. Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Gilad Erdan, in his first address to the Security Council, Oct. 26, 2020. Source: Facebook/Gilad Erdan. BRIEF Israeli envoy calls for UN action against Iran over its actions in Syria ARIEL KAHANAISRAEL HAYOM “Israel demands a total rollback of Iran and its proxies from Syria and the removal of Iranian military infrastructure from Syrian territory,” says Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, April 28, 2018. Credit: U.S. State Department. BRIEF ZOA urges Saudi government to include Israel on official maps JNS “How can Saudi Arabia educate Saudi youth of the mutual benefits of promoting relations with Israel if Israel is not even shown on the Saudi maps?” asked ZOA national president Mort Klein. Participants in the first Jewish-Arab-Jerusalem Hackathon, November 2020. Photo by May Hatib. BRIEF Jewish-Arab hackathon aims to model new projects and ties in Jerusalem JNS “We have a vision—to build an innovative, integrated platform of Jerusalemites from all sectors. This is the beginning of building bridges,” said Yonatan Arnon. Reciting commemorative prayers from the Hebrew Bible. Credit: kaddishinitiative.com. BRIEF Mass prayers to be held for Jews buried in Arab countries JNS Hundreds of organizations representing Jews of all religious and ethnic streams have signed up to join the Nov. 28 “Kaddish Initiative.” Deputy Knesset Speaker and Ra'am Party leader Mansour Abbas. April 16, 2019. Photo by Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90. BRIEF Joint List outraged after member says ‘Arab parties not in left’s pocket’ DANIEL SIRYOTIISRAEL HAYOM “On social issues and matters of religion and state, I am on the right,” says Deputy Knesset Speaker and Ra’am Party leader Mansour Abbas. BRIEF PA show: Israel ‘deliberately killing Palestinian children’ JNS Israel murders Palestinian children in “random summary executions,” claims official P.A. TV. Houthi politburo member Abd al-Wahhab al-Mahbashi delivers a sermon on March 20, 2020. (MEMRI) BRIEF Houthi official: Missile used in Jeddah attack should have been fired at Eilat MEMRI Houthi politburo member Abd al-Wahhab al-Mahbashi says the Iran-backed militia should be attacking Israel, but is “forced” to target Saudi Arabia instead due to Saudi “aggression.” Redwood High School in Larkspur, Calif. Source: Screenshot via Google Maps. BRIEF California school-district students, parents again targeted by anti-Semitism JNS Accounts on TikTok and Instagram posted “hateful messages, including references to false claims the Holocaust never happened, rape and homophobia,” wrote Redwood High School principal David Sondheim. This illustration, created at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), reveals ultrastructural morphology exhibited by coronaviruses. Credit: Wikimedia Commons. BRIEF OU launches virtual support group for siblings of those with special needs JNS Participants in the first session ranged in age from 21 through 60, and joined from New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Ohio and Canada. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to U.S. President Donald Trump over the phone on March 21, 2019, thanking him for the United States recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Credit: Kobi Gideon/GPO. BRIEF Netanyahu talks with Pollard, looks forward to his arrival in Israel JNS “We’re waiting for you. You should really feel at home,” the Israeli prime minister told a newly paroled Jonathan Pollard. FEATURED COLUMNJONATHAN S. TOBIN The man Israel left behind and the damage left with him In the final chapter of the Pollard tragedy, there are no heroes. BRIEFNetanyahu welcomes lifting of restrictions on Jonathan Pollard Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he hopes to see the former U.S. intelligence analyst in Israel soon. BRIEFPollard on making aliyah: ‘God willing, very soon!’ ARIEL KAHANA ISRAEL HAYOM Two days after his parole restrictions were lifted, released Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard elaborates on his plans for the future. President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. Credit: Joe Biden/Facebook. NEWS Biden’s foreign-policy appointments and what they might mean for Israel ISRAEL KASNETTJNS While Middle East analysts say Biden is building a team of people in whom he trusts, can rely on and can work together as a team, a good deal of concern centers on whether U.S. foreign policy will look too much like it did during the Obama administration. NEWSJewish and pro-Israel groups, policy experts react to Biden national security picks JACKSON RICHMAN Michael Makovsky of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America said “given the foreign-policy rhetoric during the Democratic primary, [Tony] Blinken and [Jake] Sullivan are from the more moderate wing of the party, and that is reassuring. They’re thoughtful and experienced experts.” BRIEFTlaib accused of anti-Semitism over response to Biden’s secretary of state pick SEFI FISHMAN ISRAEL HAYOM Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) says she is fine with Anthony Blinken as long as he doesn’t “suppress her First Amendment right” to criticize the Israeli prime minister’s “racist and inhumane policies.” The commissioning and flag-raising ceremony onboard the INS Magen in Kiel, Germany, on Nov. 11, 2020. Credit: IDF Spokesperson's Unit. NEWS Israeli Navy commissions its most advanced warship ever YAAKOV LAPPINJNS The state-of-the-art German-made Sa’ar 6 will form a central pillar in Israel’s ability to secure its economic waters and naval energy resources, which are under mounting threat from Hezbollah’s arsenal, Hamas and Iranian forces in the region. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, U.S. President Donald Trump, UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani hold up the Abraham Accords, during the signing ceremony at the White House, Sept. 15, 2020. Photo by Avi Ohayon/GPO. NEWS Netanyahu, Abu Dhabi crown prince nominated for Nobel Peace Prize JNS Nobel laureate Lord David Trimble calls for the two leaders to be granted the award for their “far-reaching achievements, courageous leadership and relentless pursuit of peace.” Reema Dodin, an incoming deputy director of the White House Office of Legislative Affairs for President-elect Joe Biden. Credit: Biden-Harris Transition website. BRIEF Incoming senior Biden staffer justified suicide bombers during Second Intifada JNS In 2002, Reema Dodin, then a student at the University of California, Berkeley, spoke about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying that “suicide bombers were the last resort of a desperate people.” Rev. Raphael Warnock. Source: Rev. Raphael Warnock/Facebook. NEWS Almost 170 rabbis, cantors sign letter defending Warnock, despite past anti-Israel statements JNS Circulated by the Jewish Democratic Council of America, the group penned a letter saying “they reject the baseless claims and attacks targeting him amid this Senate election.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds a conference call with senior Israeli officials shortly after his arrival in Washington, D.C., to establish diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, Sept. 14, 2020. Credit: GPO. BRIEF Netanyahu to visit Bahrain ‘soon’ as Crown Prince Salman’s guest JNS The Israeli premier and Bahraini Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa hold their second-ever talks, focused on strengthening bilateral relations. Participants take part in the JBiz 2020 COVID-19 Business Expo and Conference sponsored by the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce in Lakewood, N.J., on Nov. 16, 2020. Credit: Courtesy. NEWS In hard-hit New Jersey, Jewish group seeks to boost small businesses FAYGIE HOLTJNS Hundreds of participants took part in an outdoor expo in Lakewood, hosted by the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce, to provide new opportunities for businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Transitional leader of Sudan Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. Credit: Wikimedia Commons. BRIEF Israel sends delegation to Sudan for talks on economic, humanitarian cooperation JNS The Israeli team reportedly met with members of the U.S. embassy in Khartoum and a “range of figures” from the Sudanese leadership. Israeli singer Omer Adam (left) in a picture with famous Egyptian singer and actor Mohamed Ramadan (center). Source: Twitter. BRIEF Egyptian star faces lawsuit for having picture taken with Israeli JNS Mohamed Ramadan was photographed in Dubai with Israeli singer Omer Adam • Egyptian Syndicate of Artists suspends the Egyptian singer/actor pending investigation. Dutch politician Thierry Baudet, leader of the Forum for Democracy Party. Credit: Wikipedia. BRIEF Dutch politician resigns after anti-Semitism revealed among party members JNS Thierry Baudet condemns “terrible messages,” saying he will remain in parliament but step down as leader of the Forum for Democracy Party. Scroll to view more Republish this article Spread the word. Help JNS grow! Share now: FACEBOOK TWITTER WHATSAPP EMAIL PRINT (May 4, 2018 / JNS) A program designed to integrate young people on the autistic spectrum into the military—in fields where they have a relative advantage—is proving to be a “win-win” for all involved. The program, dubbed “Seeing Afar,” which is jointly run by the IDF and the Ono Academic College, is now in its fifth year. It includes a training course that teaches autistic youths to decipher aerial and satellite visual-intelligence images, based on their enhanced visual ability and their tendency towards patience, which allow them to explore the minutest details—an essential attribute for this role, an officer from an intelligence unit that received the volunteers has told JNS. The secretive and sensitive Unit 9900, which specializes in visual intelligence and plays an essential role in the activities of the Israel Defense Forces, has received some 100 autistic volunteer soldiers so far. Cpl. O (full name withheld) is one of them. He spent 10 months deciphering visual-intelligence images, helping the IDF track down suspicious enemy movements, before working to train others like him to do the same. Subscribe to The JNS Daily Syndicate by email and never miss our top stories Your email “When I first arrived here, I still felt like a civilian,” Cpl. O told JNS in an interview. Gradually, however, he began to feel like an organic part of the military. He described what it was like to sift through intelligence images, searching for that needle in the haystack. Cpl. O (face hidden for security purposes). Credit: IDF Spokesman Unit. “You search and search, and don’t find it at first. Sometimes, it feels like forever until you find it. But when you do, it certainly brings satisfaction,” said Cpl. O. “There were whole days that I couldn’t find what I was looking for. On other days, I’d locate it in every picture—six pictures in a row. On those days, I wanted to look for more! Sometimes, it feels empty; other times, full. Everything I found has given me satisfaction. It was a step forward that brought us all toward the goal.” Asked what it takes to get good at this unusual work, which is critical to national security, Cpl. O said: “Deciphering aerial images is like everything else. You need experience and endurance. No one was born knowing how to decipher aerial images. [Guitar legend] Jimmy Hendrix got good with practice. We also trained, and then we started working, getting to know this work. It takes time until you become professional—a lot of time.” From project to program Lt. L [full name withheld], who is Cpl. O’s commanding officer, explained that her department in Unit 9900 not only qualifies its personnel, but also offers them a full-range of support in light of their varying conditions. This includes specialized caregivers, occupational therapists and the commanding officers themselves, who have become qualified to support autistic soldiers. “They are learning this from scratch,” she said. “The idea of this program is about creating a ‘win-win situation.’ How do we take people with very high capabilities, who are on the autistic spectrum, put them in very high demand roles and enable them to contribute to the military?” The idea began with three co-founders: Ranan Hartman, CEO of the Ono Academic College; physicist Leora Sali; and ex-Israeli Defense Ministry official Tal Vardi. They approached the commander of Unit 9900 in 2013 with the idea of placing highly functional autistic volunteers in the unit. The commander said that in the next 20 years, machines will not be able to replace humans for such jobs, and as such, “there will always be a shortage. Everyone who can contribute to this is welcome. He accepted the idea.” Added Lt. L: “This is how the ‘marriage’ began. It started as a project, which went through two cycles. Now it’s a program, and it has extended beyond deciphering to include open-source intelligence and quality assessment of software. The 11th training course is now beginning.” Entering the job market after service The volunteers are highly motivated and very capable of serving their country, said Lt. L. On a personal level, the officer said, “I gain every day. From the dialogue I have with them, the ideas, the dilemmas that come up, and finding ways to deal with it.” In such a working backdrop, the volunteers inevitably mature during their time in service, noted Lt. L. Afterwards, the military helps them find jobs in the civilian world. “During the course, we talk about autism—how to accept it and how to become more independent,” she added. “We have already helped people get into the job market.” She said she has become inspired by her work with these soldiers and plans on working with autistic people in the civilian world after completing her own military service. Cpl. O. described how far he had come since the day he identified himself as having Asperger’s syndrome as a teenager—a self-diagnosis that was later confirmed by professionals. He received an exemption from military service before his mother found out about the “Seeing Afar” program. “I still wanted to the serve,” he said. “My mother had a senior role in intelligence. This gave me motivation. There is a debt to the country that I needed to repay.” On a social level, the unit has enabled him to flourish, improving his ability to initiate communication, in part due to the fact that his fellow unit members have something in common with him. “Socially, it helped me grow up,” he said. “I have learned how to research things here. And how to not immediately put all of the responsibility on others.” Cpl. O said that after he completes his service, he intends to make a big leap to an entirely different area and become a tattoo artist.. “Now, you have the ability to dare—and to work for yourself,” Lt. L said with a smile. |