USA ENVOY NIKKI HALEY: PALESTINE IS NOT ANY STATE AT ALL: “The Palestinians are not a UN Member State or any state at all. The United States will continually point that out in our remarks at UN events led by the Palestinians,” USA Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said. She spoke after the UNGA placed the PA at the head of a group of 134 nations, known as the Group of 77. To do so, it had to temporarily confer additional rights on the Palestinians, who have a non-member state status at the United Nations. “Today’s UN mistake undermines the prospects for peace by encouraging the illusion held by some Palestinian leaders that they can advance their goals without direct peace negotiations”. Her office added, “The United States does not recognize a Palestinian state, notes that no such state has been admitted as a UN Member State, and does not believe that the Palestinians are eligible to be admitted as a UN Member State.” USA deputy UN Ambassador Jonathan Cohen told the UNGA that it planned to remind the UN that the Palestinians had not achieved statehood. His words were consistent with the United States position that recognition of Palestinian statehood should only occur after an agreement is reached ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (J.Post)

THOUSANDS OF ACRES DESTROYED IN 6 MONTHS OF GAZA ARSON BALLOONS: More than 3,000 acres of forest in the Northern and Western Negev desert have been damaged by terrorist arson attacks from Gaza. Marking six months since Gazan Arabs began sending incendiary balloons and kites over the border toward southern Israel, Keren Kayemeth L’Yisrael-Jewish National Fund reported on 10 Oct. 2018 that some 3,279 acres, a total of 12,270 dunams, of forests have been damaged by fires caused by the attacks. Another 4,000 acres of farmland also have been destroyed by the fires. Keren Kayemeth firefighting teams have been on call 24/7, in order to quickly detect and respond to the ongoing fires. KKL-JNF’s Board of Directors last week allocated 100 million shekels, or about $27.5 million, for special projects to help the Gaza border area communities. Meanwhile, copycats in Judea & Samaria have begun to send arson balloons toward Jerusalem and central Israel. An incendiary balloon was discovered on Wed. 10 Oct. 2018 in Jerusalem’s German Colony neighborhood. This comes on the heels of a similar arson balloon discovered in the courtyard of a home in the town of Givat Ze’ev, located just north of Jerusalem. Last week an incendiary balloon landed on a highway near the Modiin industrial zone in central Israel. (INN)

THREE ISRAELI GYMNASTS WIN GOLD MEDALS AT INT’L ACROBATICS COMPETITION: Three 15-year-old Israeli acrobats days ago won the gold in the Budapest Acro Cup for trio pyramid acrobatics at the advanced level between ages 12-18. Shai Horesh from Moshav Hatsev, Shir Edri from Rehovot and Leah Curcus from Rehovot competed against and eventually defeated some of the most renowned teams in the world such as China, Russia, and Great Britain. The Beer Tuvia local council stated "this is pride is a double one, both of the council and of course of Israel." "This is the happiest moment of my life," said an emotional Horesh. The leader of the dynamic trio, Horesh added that "the ambition and passion for personal excellence is an inseparable way of her life." "We wish Shai to continue breaking personal records," the Beer Tuvia council said. "We wish that she may continue to represent us with great pride." (J.Post)

AUSTRIA’S KURTZ TO NETANYAHU: I’M COMMITTED TO FIGHTING ANTI-SEMITISM: PM Benjamin Netanyahu met Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurtz in New York on 26 Sept. 2018. Netanyahu expressed appreciation for a series of decisions and actions that the Austrian government has adopted in recent months. The chancellor briefed Netanyahu on the steps taken by the Austrian government and parliament to reflect their appreciation of the Jewish community, the memory of the Holocaust and the struggle against anti-Semitism, including the closure of the journal Aula associated with the far-right Freedom Party of Austria. The chancellor said that Austria is committed to fighting anti-Semitism not only in its own country but throughout Europe, and that he intends to urge the leaders of the EU to fight anti-Semitism. Austria is currently the rotating president of the EU. The two leaders also discussed regional challenges and the need to curb Iranian aggression in the region and in the world. (J.Post)