JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed jitters over his government’s judicial overhaul drive that have scared away some investors, calling it an opportunity to make money by betting on what he described as sound economic fundamentals.
“The momentary fluff, the momentary dust that is in the air is just that — dust,” he told US business broadcaster CNBC late on Wednesday, responding to a question about falling investment by citing strong growth and a low deficit.
“The smart money moves in because they know that the fundamentals are great,” Netanyahu said. “The less smart money moves with the herd ... so those who come in now and are coming in now are going to make a lot of money.”
Netanyahu’s government’s plan to limit Supreme Court powers has triggered unprecedented protests nationwide, drawn rebuke from Western allies and scared away some investors. He suspended the judicial push on March 27 to negotiate with the opposition.
On Friday, Moody’s Investors Service reaffirmed Israel’s A1 rating but revised its outlook from positive to stable, citing the judicial drive. Israel’s shekel is near a three-year low and economic growth is forecast to slow to 2.5 percent this year from 6.5 percent in 2022.
According to the IVC Research Center and LeumiTech, Israeli high-tech firms raised $1.7 billion in 2023 first quarter, down 70 percent from the $5.8 billion in the first three months of 2022 and its lowest quarterly fundraising level in four years.
A survey by Start-Up Nation Central found that 84 percent of investors believe the judicial changes will have a negative effect on ability to raise capital abroad, while 79 percent of companies currently raising capital have reported cancelations of meetings with investors.
Israel’s high-tech community, usually quiet on politics, has been vocal about potential damage to the economy. The tech sector contributes 25 percent to the country’s tax income.
Benjamin Netanyahu dismisses investor worry over Israel judicial moves as ‘momentary fluff’
https://arab.news/4vhve
Benjamin Netanyahu dismisses investor worry over Israel judicial moves as ‘momentary fluff’
- ‘The momentary fluff, the momentary dust that is in the air is just that — dust’
- Israel’s tech sector contributes 25 percent to the country’s tax income
Syria gunman who killed Americans was to be fired from security forces for ‘extremism’: ministry
DAMASCUS: Syria’s interior ministry said on Sunday that the gunman who killed three Americans in the central Palmyra region the previous day was a member of the security forces who was to have been fired for extremism.
Two US troops and a civilian interpreter died in the attack on Saturday, which the US Central Command said had been carried out by an alleged Daesh group (IS) militant who was then killed.
The Syrian authorities “had decided to fire him” from the security forces before the attack for holding “extremist Islamist ideas” and had planned to do so on Sunday, interior ministry spokesman Noureddine Al-Baba told state television.
A Syrian security official told AFP on Sunday that “11 members of the general security forces were arrested and brought in for questioning after the attack.”
The official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the gunman had belonged to the security forces “for more than 10 months and was posted to several cities before being transferred to Palmyra.”
Palmyra, home to UNESCO-listed ancient ruins, was once controlled by IS during the height of its territorial expansion in Syria.
The incident is the first of its kind reported since Islamist-led forces overthrew longtime Syrian ruler Bashar Assad in December last year, and rekindled the country’s ties with the United States.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the soldiers “were conducting a key leader engagement” in support of counter-terrorism operations when the attack occurred, while US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said the ambush targeted “a joint US-Syrian government patrol.”
US President Donald Trump called the incident “an Daesh attack against the US, and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them,” using another term for the group.
He said the three other US troops injured in the attack were “doing well.”
