APN's daily news review from Israel
Monday July 20, 2015
Quote of the day:
"Surely Haaretz could have managed to do that also on the front page of the Friday newspaper? Wouldn’t
it help our Muslim citizens to feel included if the news broadcasts did the same? "
--Haaretz reader asks why Hebrew Israeli media doesn't wish Israel's Muslim citizens 'Eid Mubarak.'
--Haaretz reader asks why Hebrew Israeli media doesn't wish Israel's Muslim citizens 'Eid Mubarak.'
Front Page:
Haaretz
- Herzog at Labor party conference: I oppose moving to Netanyahu government
- Netanyahu: I will present Congress members with my views against the agreement
- Changing the face of the sea: In Netanya they will build a wavebreaker, in Ashkelon and Herzliya they are debating
- Criticism of Erdan in police top brass: For months, positions aren’t filled, the organization is paralyzed
- Court refused to freeze the deportation to Rwanda and Uganda of asylum seekers
- Cell that murdered Israeli near Shvut Rachel was arrested, prisoner released in Gilad Shalit deal was behind it
- Weizmann Institute ranked 10th in world in quality of research
- Bennett changes line in education: Dismissed the chairman of the pedagogical office
- Injustice in Susiya // Haaretz Editorial
Yedioth Ahronoth
- Released in Shalit deal and committed murder again
- “Netanyahu won’t receive a lifeline” – Herzog denies rumors about unity (gov’t)
- Difficult, but less so – First draft of Golani recruits who will serve 32 months instead of 36 showed up at drafting centers across country
- 48 hours till the strike
- Hardcore fans – The leaders, the racism, the violence and thousands of members: This is how the ‘La Familia’ organization of Beitar Jerusalem soccer fans works
- Miri Regev’s short memory
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
- Nuclear agreement reaches UN Security Council – Jerusalem continues the battle
- Weight of cottage cheese – Following the internet protest, Tnuva Co. confirmed that it found differences in the weight of cottage and cream cheese in the 125 gram package and it will establish a committee to examine and to compensate consumers
- Terrorists who murdered Malachi were arrested
- Today State Comptroller’s report on gas to be released: Lack of policy caused creation of monopoly
Israel Hayom
- The world powers will aid Iran “to protect its nuclear facilities from sabotage” – Page 142 in agreement, article 10
- Storm in a cup: How much cottage cheese really was in the 125 gram containers of Tnuva?
- “An educator (at a religious seminary) posed as an Operation Protective Edge hero in order to get sex”
- Released for publication: Hamas people suspected of murdering Malachi Rosenfeld were arrested
- Today: State Comptroller releases special report on development of natural gas sector
News Summary:
The latest on the Iran nuclear deal and the arrest of Hamas activists suspected of murdering a Jewish settler were top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. Also in the news, ISIS car bomb attacks against Hamas in Gaza.
The heat is on over the Iran deal as it goes to the UN Security Council today for a vote (and they’ll discuss Israel’s perceived mistreatment of Palestinians, too) and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu gave interviews to US media, saying he plans to tell Congress people why he opposes the plan. Opposition leader Zionist Camp chief MK Isaac Herzog also said he will visit the US to campaign against the deal (Maariv), which got him criticism from his party for backing Netanyahu. Herzog denied rumors he plans to join Netanyahu’s coalition government.
At the Sunday cabinet meeting Netanyahu said that Iran deserves no concessions until it stops calling for Israel’s destruction and that there was no way to compensate Israel if the Iran deal goes through. According to Yedioth’s Itamar Eichner, the US National Security Advisor Susan Rice passed a message of reconciliation to Netanyahu through former Israeli president Shimon Peres, promising that the US will offer Israel an “unprecedented compensation” for swallowing the bitter nuclear deal pill. However, Ynet reported that US officials said there was no plan to compensate Israel with new weaponry.
Israel plans to reject a compensation package this week. According to Eichner, Israel has not received an official list of what the US will offer, but if US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, who is in Jerusalem and will meet today with Israeli Defense Minster Moshe Yaalon and with Netanyahu tomorrow, offers discussing a compensation package, “he will hear a polite rejection. Israel fears that entering negotiations about a compensation package at this stage will interpreted as Israeli acceptance of the Iran nuclear deal,” wrote Eichner. Carter said an Iran deal doesn't prevent military option and that he had no expectations of persuading Israeli leaders to drop their opposition to the deal.
**Ynet reported on a new Pew survey that showed that more than anything else, Israelis are worried about Iran and ISIS. “…Netanyahu's repeated warnings of the Iranian threat made quite an impression on Israelis, as 53% said they found Iran to be the biggest cause for concern, while 44 percent said they are most concerned with the threat posed by the Islamic State.
Yedioth’s Eldad Beck wrote that after getting criticized for visiting Iran, the German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel offered his country as mediator to improve ties between Jerusalem and Tehran and said that Iran must accept Israel's right to exist if it wants closer economic ties with Germany.
The Shin Bet arrested three Hamas activists suspected of being behind the shooting attack that killed Malakhi Rosenfeld in the West Bank near Shilo settlement. Two others suspected of being part of the cell have already been arrested by the Palestinian Authority and Israel has requested them to be handed over. The man suspected of being the mastermind, Ahmed Najar, was released from Israeli prison in the Shalit deal and lives in Jordan. His involvement raised questions again about the issue of prisoner exchanges. Ynet’s Elior Levy writes about how some of the 1000 Palestinians that Israel convicted of terror and released in the Shalit deal four years ago have returned to violence leading to the death of 6 Israelis.
In another act in the ongoing struggle between the Salafists, who have become affiliates of ISIS, and between Hamas, six vehicles belonging to members of Hamas' and Islamic Jihad's military wings exploded in central Gaza City Sunday at 6AM, wounding two people. Next to one of the cars was graffiti of the ISIS symbol. Ynet’s Elior Levy writes a fascinating article on the battle for for control of the coastal territory and how it affects Israelis.
The latest on the Iran nuclear deal and the arrest of Hamas activists suspected of murdering a Jewish settler were top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. Also in the news, ISIS car bomb attacks against Hamas in Gaza.
The heat is on over the Iran deal as it goes to the UN Security Council today for a vote (and they’ll discuss Israel’s perceived mistreatment of Palestinians, too) and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu gave interviews to US media, saying he plans to tell Congress people why he opposes the plan. Opposition leader Zionist Camp chief MK Isaac Herzog also said he will visit the US to campaign against the deal (Maariv), which got him criticism from his party for backing Netanyahu. Herzog denied rumors he plans to join Netanyahu’s coalition government.
At the Sunday cabinet meeting Netanyahu said that Iran deserves no concessions until it stops calling for Israel’s destruction and that there was no way to compensate Israel if the Iran deal goes through. According to Yedioth’s Itamar Eichner, the US National Security Advisor Susan Rice passed a message of reconciliation to Netanyahu through former Israeli president Shimon Peres, promising that the US will offer Israel an “unprecedented compensation” for swallowing the bitter nuclear deal pill. However, Ynet reported that US officials said there was no plan to compensate Israel with new weaponry.
Israel plans to reject a compensation package this week. According to Eichner, Israel has not received an official list of what the US will offer, but if US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, who is in Jerusalem and will meet today with Israeli Defense Minster Moshe Yaalon and with Netanyahu tomorrow, offers discussing a compensation package, “he will hear a polite rejection. Israel fears that entering negotiations about a compensation package at this stage will interpreted as Israeli acceptance of the Iran nuclear deal,” wrote Eichner. Carter said an Iran deal doesn't prevent military option and that he had no expectations of persuading Israeli leaders to drop their opposition to the deal.
**Ynet reported on a new Pew survey that showed that more than anything else, Israelis are worried about Iran and ISIS. “…Netanyahu's repeated warnings of the Iranian threat made quite an impression on Israelis, as 53% said they found Iran to be the biggest cause for concern, while 44 percent said they are most concerned with the threat posed by the Islamic State.
Yedioth’s Eldad Beck wrote that after getting criticized for visiting Iran, the German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel offered his country as mediator to improve ties between Jerusalem and Tehran and said that Iran must accept Israel's right to exist if it wants closer economic ties with Germany.
The Shin Bet arrested three Hamas activists suspected of being behind the shooting attack that killed Malakhi Rosenfeld in the West Bank near Shilo settlement. Two others suspected of being part of the cell have already been arrested by the Palestinian Authority and Israel has requested them to be handed over. The man suspected of being the mastermind, Ahmed Najar, was released from Israeli prison in the Shalit deal and lives in Jordan. His involvement raised questions again about the issue of prisoner exchanges. Ynet’s Elior Levy writes about how some of the 1000 Palestinians that Israel convicted of terror and released in the Shalit deal four years ago have returned to violence leading to the death of 6 Israelis.
In another act in the ongoing struggle between the Salafists, who have become affiliates of ISIS, and between Hamas, six vehicles belonging to members of Hamas' and Islamic Jihad's military wings exploded in central Gaza City Sunday at 6AM, wounding two people. Next to one of the cars was graffiti of the ISIS symbol. Ynet’s Elior Levy writes a fascinating article on the battle for for control of the coastal territory and how it affects Israelis.
Quick Hits:
- Zionist Union proposes two bills which may limit free speech in Israel - One bill would block offensive speech on Internet and another would prevent publication of names of soldiers under investigation for actions carried out in the line of duty. (Haaretz+)
- Academic degrees in Israel increase 500% since 1990 - Central Bureau of Statistics report shows number of graduates has increased most in academic colleges; percentage of women awarded undergraduate and masters degrees higher than that of men; almost a tenth of graduates during the 2013/14 school year were Arabs [although they are 20% of population – OH] (Ynet)
- National Union party: increase coalition sanctions until the end of the (settlement construction) freeze - In an emergency discussion held by the National Union party, they decided they must act to change the policies of a complete freeze of tenders and planning and a significant slowdown in construction in (East) Jerusalem and the West Bank: "The government must not betray the public’s trust, and if it does so, God forbid, it loses its right to exist.” (Maariv and JPost)
- Minister Regev: "Organization of Beitar fans, 'La Familia,' is not a terrorist organization" - Sports and Culture Minister condemned the words of MK Yoel Razvozov, who called the Beitar Jerusalem soccer team’s fans organization a ‘terrorist’ group. La Familia was attributed with the rioting in Beglium, during which it wounded the opposing team's goalie. (Maariv)
- Sen. Chuck Schumer vows to 'do the right thing’ on Iran deal - The senator is being squeezed by Democrats and Republicans hoping that he will take a leadership role in opposing the nuclear agreement. (Haaretz+)
- The private mansion of a Russian-Jewish oligarch in Ceasaria - Russian billionaire Valery Kogan started one of the most opulent mansions in the Middle East in 2012, and it is just about finished. (Ynet)
- Immigration authority freezes deportation of father to IDF soldiers - Aipokoro Andayelo Molto, a non-Jewish citizen of Ethiopia, still denied residency despite being eligible due to his children’s service in the military. (Haaretz)
- Bracelets honor the memory of fallen Givati soldiers - Fox Foundation for the Givati Reconnaissance Unit creates bracelets with sentences symbolizing the fallen troops' legacy. (Ynet)
- 'Smart cities' tech comes to Israel - Cisco Israel presents new technology that could someday improve public transit and help tourists explore Israel's cities. (Ynet)
- Israeli Interior Ministry workers resume strike, refuse to issue passports - Workers claim the workload at the ministry’s Population, Immigration and Borders Authority is intolerable. (Haaretz+)
- Netanyahu seeks to loosen gas exports quota to ensure Egypt deal - Proposals in framework may endanger Israeli energy security. (Haaretz+)
- Saudi Arabia claims to have thwarted ISIS attacks - Kingdom arrests over 400 suspects in anti-terrorism sweep, one day after ISIS attack killed over 100 people in Iraq. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- 'Hamas chief Mashaal urged Saudi king to save Morsi from death row' - Egyptian daily 'Al-Watan' reports that Hamas leader brought up the issue during his meeting in Riyadh with King Salman. (JPost/Maariv)
Features:
PT. 6: Walking the Green Line: 48 years of occupation - Waiting for the dust to settle – Kibbutz Nirim,
summer 2014
It is now 48 years since the Six-Day War, a short military campaign with long-term consequences for Israel and the Palestinians. Writer Nir Baram spent a year meeting people on both sides of the Green Line. (Nir Baram, Haaretz+)
Melting-pot culture has proved recipe for success in Israel, claims Mizrahi professor
According to Prof. Momi Dahan, Jews of Middle Eastern descent are closing the economic gap on their Ashkenazi peers. The next challenge, he says, will be for the Arabs, ultra-Orthodox and Ethiopian Israelis to do likewise. (Anat Georgi, Haaretz+)
**Iranians in New York breathe easier after nuclear deal
In a coffee shop named after the iconic meeting place for liberal intellectuals in Tehran, dozens of young Iranians gather to toast the nuclear agreement and celebrate what they hope will be a new era in their homeland. (Taly Krupkin, Haaretz+)
Commentary/Analysis:
It is now 48 years since the Six-Day War, a short military campaign with long-term consequences for Israel and the Palestinians. Writer Nir Baram spent a year meeting people on both sides of the Green Line. (Nir Baram, Haaretz+)
Melting-pot culture has proved recipe for success in Israel, claims Mizrahi professor
According to Prof. Momi Dahan, Jews of Middle Eastern descent are closing the economic gap on their Ashkenazi peers. The next challenge, he says, will be for the Arabs, ultra-Orthodox and Ethiopian Israelis to do likewise. (Anat Georgi, Haaretz+)
**Iranians in New York breathe easier after nuclear deal
In a coffee shop named after the iconic meeting place for liberal intellectuals in Tehran, dozens of young Iranians gather to toast the nuclear agreement and celebrate what they hope will be a new era in their homeland. (Taly Krupkin, Haaretz+)
Commentary/Analysis:
The misleading legal arguments that legitimize injustice in the West Bank (Haaretz Editorial) When it comes to the planned demolition of the village of Sussia,
invoking the law is a particularly cynical move.
Herzog, stay home and don’t go to the US (Shlomo Shamir, Maariv) If the leader of the Opposition plans in his planned lecture tour in America to explain the Israeli government's position on the agreement with Iran, better he help himself and stay home.
West Bank murder arrest: A reminder of Shalit deal’s price (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) Shin Bet says orchestrator of last month's murder of Malachi Rosenfeld was released in controversial 2011 prisoner exchange, deported to Gaza then moved to Jordan, where he plots against Israel.
Iran deal will save Assad (Smadar Perry, Yedioth/Ynet) The world powers' agreement with the Islamic Republic promises the Syrian president that his ally will continue to support him and fund the military aid and everything required for his survival. As long as Iran is not producing a bomb, no one will touch the Syrian field.
Left forgets what responsibility is (Dr. Haim Shine, Israel Hayom) Israel's opposition parties are making a cardinal mistake by using the Iran nuclear deal for petty political purposes.
When it comes to Palestinians, Israel's defense minister doubles as a pedantic linguist (Amira Hass, Haaretz+) Moshe Ya'alon and his chief of staff have redefined Palestinians living in the Jordan Valley as non-residents to justify their temporary evacuation.
Ingratiating behavior by the West as a sign of its defeat (Benny Ziffer, Haaretz+) The agreement with Iran is not just a victory for Islam but also evidence that the West’s power to fight for its cultural and ethical principles has waned.
Between missions, money and people (Yoav Limor, Israel Hayom) An epic battle over the future of the IDF will come to the forefront this week, and while the final decision will seemingly come down to money, it is really about what the State of Israel wants from its army.
In Vietnam, disaster followed diplomacy. What's in stock for the Iran deal? (Seth Lipsky, Haaretz+) Americans might have good reason to be galled by Secretary of State John Kerry's emotional speech at the conclusion of the negotiations with Tehran.
Accept the Iran deal, and focus on strengthening Israel (Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie, Haaretz+) Israel's security is not at risk, but lobbying against the deal will have damaging consequences.
Intensify Israel's power of deterrence (Dr. Ephraim Kam, Israel Hayom) The die is cast. Israel must now look at ways of keeping the Iranian regime from violating the agreement and obtaining a nuclear bomb.
This is not how a Jewish state should treat refugees (Don Futterman, Haaretz+) One of the leaders of the Sudanese asylum seekers seems to have won his court battle – for now. But Israel's refugee policy brings only shame upon the country.
Obama's convoluted logic on Iran (Moshe Arens, Haaretz+) Evidently no options were left on the table except for agreeing to Iranian conditions. The Iranians, really smart negotiators, caught on quickly.
Letters to the Editor / Disrespecting the U.S. president lost my respect (Haaretz)
Herzog, stay home and don’t go to the US (Shlomo Shamir, Maariv) If the leader of the Opposition plans in his planned lecture tour in America to explain the Israeli government's position on the agreement with Iran, better he help himself and stay home.
West Bank murder arrest: A reminder of Shalit deal’s price (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) Shin Bet says orchestrator of last month's murder of Malachi Rosenfeld was released in controversial 2011 prisoner exchange, deported to Gaza then moved to Jordan, where he plots against Israel.
Iran deal will save Assad (Smadar Perry, Yedioth/Ynet) The world powers' agreement with the Islamic Republic promises the Syrian president that his ally will continue to support him and fund the military aid and everything required for his survival. As long as Iran is not producing a bomb, no one will touch the Syrian field.
Left forgets what responsibility is (Dr. Haim Shine, Israel Hayom) Israel's opposition parties are making a cardinal mistake by using the Iran nuclear deal for petty political purposes.
When it comes to Palestinians, Israel's defense minister doubles as a pedantic linguist (Amira Hass, Haaretz+) Moshe Ya'alon and his chief of staff have redefined Palestinians living in the Jordan Valley as non-residents to justify their temporary evacuation.
Ingratiating behavior by the West as a sign of its defeat (Benny Ziffer, Haaretz+) The agreement with Iran is not just a victory for Islam but also evidence that the West’s power to fight for its cultural and ethical principles has waned.
Between missions, money and people (Yoav Limor, Israel Hayom) An epic battle over the future of the IDF will come to the forefront this week, and while the final decision will seemingly come down to money, it is really about what the State of Israel wants from its army.
In Vietnam, disaster followed diplomacy. What's in stock for the Iran deal? (Seth Lipsky, Haaretz+) Americans might have good reason to be galled by Secretary of State John Kerry's emotional speech at the conclusion of the negotiations with Tehran.
Accept the Iran deal, and focus on strengthening Israel (Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie, Haaretz+) Israel's security is not at risk, but lobbying against the deal will have damaging consequences.
Intensify Israel's power of deterrence (Dr. Ephraim Kam, Israel Hayom) The die is cast. Israel must now look at ways of keeping the Iranian regime from violating the agreement and obtaining a nuclear bomb.
This is not how a Jewish state should treat refugees (Don Futterman, Haaretz+) One of the leaders of the Sudanese asylum seekers seems to have won his court battle – for now. But Israel's refugee policy brings only shame upon the country.
Obama's convoluted logic on Iran (Moshe Arens, Haaretz+) Evidently no options were left on the table except for agreeing to Iranian conditions. The Iranians, really smart negotiators, caught on quickly.
Letters to the Editor / Disrespecting the U.S. president lost my respect (Haaretz)
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.