APN's daily news review from Israel
Sunday July 10, 2016
Quote of the day:
“I didn’t follow Twitter for a few hours. Can anyone tell me what Lihi’s husband said?”
--MK Tzipi Livni made fun of MK Yair Lapid by referring to his wife, after the MK made a sexist attack on the new female editor of Haaretz English.**
--MK Tzipi Livni made fun of MK Yair Lapid by referring to his wife, after the MK made a sexist attack on the new female editor of Haaretz English.**
Front Page:
Haaretz
- Police examining suspicion of Netanyahu’s involvement in enormous money laundering
- Youth killed 5 police in Texas in protest of police violence against blacks
- All the fears, all of them // Chemi Shalev
- Moderately wounded Israeli in shooting attack near Tekoa
- Israel Prison Services’ harsher policies: obstructing meetings between lawyers and prisoners
- Knesset expected to approve: Prison to whomever persuades Arab-Christians to desert the IDF
- Film critic Gidi Orsher suspended from Army Radio after post against Mizrachi Jews
- Fake concern // Haaretz Editorial
Yedioth Ahronoth
- The plan to strengthen English-language studies
- The secret probe (against Netanyahu) comes to light
- (Army Radio film critic) Orsher storm
- On hypocrisy and racism // Ben-Dror Yemini
- America is burning
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
- (Army Radio film critic) Orsher storm
- “The investigation against Netanyahu focuses on money laundering”
- US: police in the crosshairs
- It’s an existential problem // Ron Miburg
- It’s the weapons, idiots // Shlomo Shamir
- Israeli moderately wounded in shooting attack in Gush Etzion
Israel Hayom
- Volcano in America
- Obama doesn’t stand up to expectations of Blacks // Boaz Bismuth
- Zero on the Orsher ranking: He attacked “ululating Mizrachi Jews” – and was suspended
- Assessment: “Attorney General will release announcement on probe in Netanyahu affair this week”
- Close to midnight: Israeli moderately wounded in shooting attack in Gush Etzion
News Summary:
**The killing of US police in Dallas, the soon-to-be-public probe over suspicions of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s alleged involvement in enormous money laundering crime, and the suspension of an Army Radio film critic for racist statements made on Facebook against Mizrachi Jews who believe in miracles made top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. However, a chauvinist attack by MK Yair Lapid on a female journalist did not make big news, [despite that affecting half the population. - OH] Lapid got slammed and later apologized, partially. (And in Maariv)
In diplomacy, Egypt’s Foreign Minister meets today with Netanyahu to discuss efforts to end the Israel-Palestinian conflict, the first visit in Israel by an Egyptian foreign minister in nine years. Interestingly, a close associate of Netanyahu told the Saudi news website, Ilaf, that Netanyahu supports a two-state solution, but the Israeli cabinet is stopping him from making that happen. The Israeli source, who declined to be named, said that "Netanyahu wants to reach an agreement in order to win the Nobel Peace Prize." According to him, Netanyahu would make opposition leader MK Isaac Herzog Foreign Minster and put MK Tzipi Livni in charge of negotiations with the Palestinians. (Maariv)
Quick Hits:
- Israeli Moderately Wounded in Drive-by Shooting in West Bank - Gunmen fled scene and forces are searching the area, with closure imposed on Palestinian town of Sa'ir. (Haaretz and Ynet)
- Israel Police Refuse to Reveal Protocol on Use of Controversial Sniper Rifles - In response to petition by Israeli Arab law center, police reveal a heavily censored document, redacting parts relating to use of supposedly 'non-lethal' Ruger rifle. Several Palestinians, including children, were killed by Ruger fire. (Haaretz+)
- MDA Paramedics and ambulance drivers admit: "a major crisis in relations between the IDF and MDA" - After the dispute between the IDF and MDA over giving medical treatment to terrorists was exposed, an ambulance driver for the national medical-ambulance organization confirmed: "We are not aligned with the military, [our bosses] told us to ignore the guidelines of the IDF [to treat Palestinian assailants]." Moreover, he said, the IDF told MDA it does not like [controversial] ambulance driver Ofer Ohana coming to the sites of attacks in Hebron. But MDA “rejected the claims” that it was refusing to treat Palestinian attackers and said Ohana is not connected with the organization. However, Ohana told the military court that he is connected to MDA. (Maariv)
- MK Zoabi filed a complaint against MKs Boker and Hazan: They incited and that led to threats to my life - MK Haneen Zoabi (Joint List) filed a complaint to the Knesset Ethics Committee against two Likud members during Eid al-Fitr holiday due to the urgency from the threats to her life. MK Nava Boker wrote on Facebook: "Whoever cut the throat of a girl in her bed, was motivated by the incitement of Zoabi. Whoever who tries to kill a whole family does it because of incitement and hatred that Zoabi and her likes spread." Zoabi noted that people responded with explicit threats to her life on the MKs’ FB pages, but neither of them bothered to delete them. (Maariv)
- Israeli opposition leader Herzog calls for censorship of MK Zoabi's speeches - 'I would recommend that Knesset TV not broadcast her words as a matter of principle,' Zionist Union's Herzog. MK Issawi Frej: Herzog a 'useful idiot' for Netanyahu and the right. (Haaretz)
- UNESCO to vote on Jewish connection with the Temple Mount - A joint Jordanian-Palestinian draft decision denying Jewish affinity with the Temple Mount, including the Wailing Wall, set to be voted on during annual UNESCO meeting: Draft accuses Israel of misconduct on the mount including deliberate vandalism: Foreign Ministry says document is 'malicious and dishonest.' (Yedioth/Ynet)
- IDF to investigate Jordanian citizen's infiltration and attack of Israeli woman - The IDF will examine what allowed a Jordanian citizen to cross the border into Israel, throw rocks at a moving car and attempt to assault its driver; security forces have since apprehended the man, who was moderately injured. (Haaretz, Maariv+PHOTOS and Ynet)
- Israeli trauma center Natal overworked, asks government for assistance - The organization, which offers psychosocial services to victims of terror attacks and war, is struggling to offer support to those who need it as an influx in acts of terror create trauma for more and more Israelis. (Ynet)
- Bereaved mother asks PM to be allowed to visit Temple Mount - Rina Ariel, whose daughter Hallel was murdered in her bed by a terrorist in June, asked to be allowed to give a short ceremony with 250 supporters on site; ‘Recently,’ said Rina. ‘200 thousand Muslims performed a mass prayer at the site. Would a Jewish group comprised of a tenth of that number not be allowed to convene there for a single hour?’ [Note: Rena Ariel is a founding member of ‘Women for the Temple Mount.’ – OH] (Ynet)
- For first time ever, Israel Publishes Subsidized-housing Tender for Kiryat Arba - Tender published Wednesday, following murder of 13-year-old girl in that settlement, which is adjacent to Hebron. (Haaretz)
- IDF accelerates development of ‘Obstacle’ defense system against Hamas tunnels - Following persistent pressure from citizens living near the Gaza Strip, the IDF has decided to fast track the Obstacle defense system to block Hamas tunnels and other threats from Gaza. (Ynet)
- ‘Yemenite Children Affair’ report made available online - The report from the Kedmi Committee, which looked into the disappearances of children of Jewish Yemenite immigrants between 1948–1954, is now accessible online; the report contains ‘disturbing information on the ease with which infants were hospitalized without supervision, documentation and at times without allowing family members to visit.’ (Ynet)
- Angered Educators: Israel Needs to Learn How to Help Arab Teachers - Possible solutions include hiring of Arab teachers in Jewish schools and broadening career choices. ‘The options open to a Jew who graduates and an Arab aren’t equal,’ says one Arab graduate. (Haaretz+)
- Israeli Bill Envisions Jail Time for Anyone Who Dissuades Christians From Joining Army - The Law and Justice Committee approved the bill last week even though Arab legislators were allegedly promised it wouldn’t be discussed during the Id al-Fitr holiday. (Haaretz)
- Herzog Says Won't Remain Labor Leader at Any Cost - 'No one is under the illusion that Herzog will be the next prime minister,' source says, however the party has yet set a date for primary elections. (Haaretz+)
- At Jerusalem Film Festival, Cheers for Tarantino, Jeers for Culture Minister - Culture Minister Miri Regev gets booed when she talks about terror attacks, and criticizes ‘elitists’ and ‘our enemies at home.’ (Haaretz+
- Moroccan Jewish Couple Found Slain, Dismembered in Casablanca - Sam Tolédano and Vicky Chetrit were reportedly killed by gardener who had hoped to rob them of cash and jewels. (Haaretz)
- Israeli Lawmakers Unite to Fight Arms Exports to Countries That Violate Human Rights - Bipartisan Knesset effort hopes to bar weapon sales by Israeli arms producers to nations implicated in serious violations. (Haaretz+)
- WATCH: Israeli Navy fires anti-ship missile at target - Missile boats INS Hetz and INS Herev fire Harpoon anti-ship missile at the decommissioned INS Atzmaut from 120 kilometers away, accurately hitting the target and sinking it. (Ynet)
- Revolutionary Guard commander: Iran has 100,000 missiles ready for 'wiping out' Israel - Speaking on Iran’s state-run TV network, Deputy IRG commander boasts of arsenal that will 'annihilate' the 'Zionist regime' once the command is given. (JTA, Haaretz)
- U.S. House Undermines Boeing's $25 Billion Deal With Iran - Two amendments to a bill block sales from the U.S. aircraft giant as well as its European rival, Airbus, to the Islamic republic. (Haaretz)
- ISIS Tightens Grip on 3,000 Female Captives Held as Sex Slaves - In a fusion of ancient barbaric practices and modern technology, ISIS sells women like chattel on smart phone apps and shares databases that contain their photographs and the 'owners' names to prevent their escape. (Agencies, Haaretz)
Features:
When Israeli Soldiers Kill Palestinians, Even a Smoking Gun Doesn't Lead to Indictments
Mustafa Tamimi was killed when he was shot in the face with a gas canister in a 2012 protest. A year later, Rushdi Tamimi was shot in the belly with live fire. No one ever faced charges. A closer look at the two cases reveals that putting soldiers to trial is the exception, not the rule. (Chaim Levinson, Haaretz+)
Mom Is in Gaza, Kids Are in the West Bank: A Palestinian Family Torn Apart by the Occupation
Two toddlers from the Dawabsheh family in the West Bank village of Duma are growing up without parents: Israeli authorities arrested the father and won't allow their mother to reunite with them. (Gideon Levy and Alex Levac, Haaretz+)
An Israeli band heads to Paris coexistence festival to 'conquer' Palestinian hearts
Departures / Arrivals: A group of musicians takes its message of freedom to an art and music festival created by a Muslim-Jewish duo; Coldplay groupies talk about their against-the-clock marriage proposal in Cologne. (Liat Elkayam, Haaretz+)
Art project solves mystery of abandoned, ornate Jerusalem building
Artists who entered abandoned building near Waldorf Astoria hotel have located Palestinian family who lived there until 1948. (Nir Hasson, Haaretz+)
How Elie Wiesel the journalist saw Israel
Once Elie Wiesel decided Israel was not for him, and before he became a best-selling novelist, he had a serious career as a journalist in Israel. The stories he never published may have been the most telling. (Shlomo Nakdimon, Haaretz+)
Commentary/Analysis:
Minister Bennett Is Lying. The Settlements Aren't Keeping Israel Safe. (Uri Misgav, Haaretz+) The heartbreaking truth is that Hallel Yaffa Ariel did not live as a hero and die as a hero. She was stabbed to death in her bed because her bed was spitting distance from occupied Hebron.
Do houses matter more than Jews? (Judith Bergman, Israel Hayom) How morally twisted and depraved the world is when the construction of houses elicits greater outrage than the officially sanctioned murder of sleeping children.
Hebron Shooter Is Just a Common Soldier Fighting Netanyahu's Revolution (Ravit Hecht, Haaretz) By killing a subdued Palestinian terrorist in Hebron, the Israeli soldier split Israeli society into two groups, but he is not the revolutionary tearing down Israel's institutions. Netanyahu is.
Sarona is not Kiryat Arba (Aviad Kleinberg, Yedioth/Ynet) While terror attacks that happen in Tel Aviv are just considered a part of life in Israel, terror attacks in settlements beyond the Green Line confer special privileges upon those who live in the area. Why is this the case?
The news from Mandelblitt: The Attorney General's appointment turns out to be a terrible defeat for Netanyahu (Ben Caspit, Maariv) The political establishment is in a storm over the prospect of a new investigation against the prime minister and the scenarios it can produce - such as early elections. But even if the investigation comes out to nothing, unlike in the past, there are those willing to probe.
Yair Lapid’s Destructive Conspiracy of Silence for Israel (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) All Israelis who break the silence about the occupation and other crimes are doing their patriotic, human and moral duty. That’s why the Yesh Atid leader is so afraid of them.
Until the next trauma: how we stopped asking for explanations from our government (Michal Aharoni, Maariv) The biggest achievement of the government is that no one demands anything from it. We’ve even given up our right to get answers about Operation Protective Edge.
Connecting by knowing each other (Head of Commission on Mizrachi heritzage in education, Erez Biton, Israel Hayom) A people is comprised of all its parts, and if the school system reflects the legacy of all Jewish cultures, social antagonism and verbal violence will wane.
The POWs and MIAs will not return any time soon, even if Turkey does its best (Yossi Melman, Maariv) Ankara's attempt to advance a prisoner exchange will not lead to a breakthrough. The main reason: the new rising star of Hamas in Gaza. And, the affair that should concern anyone to whom Jordan’s stability is important to him, including Israel: an investigation revealed that over the last three years, Jordanian army intel officers have stolen hundreds of weapons from deliveries sent by the CIA.
Netanyahu's promises of settlement construction are nothing but a smokescreen (Yossi Verter, Haaretz+) By now, it has become a ritual: a series of terrorist attacks against West Bank settlers spawns bombastic announcements of new construction. When you look closely, you see this was only sleight of hand.
Facebook is not the enemy (Sever Plocker, Yedioth/Ynet) The social-media giant is but the latest in a line of arenas for the exchange of opinions, and it won't be the last; hateful wars and ideologies blossomed well before the internet; blaming Facebook for the opinions expressed therein is a failed argument that only distances Israel from the technological sector that it seeks to embrace.
Veteran Hiring Bill Discriminates Against Those Whom Israel Chooses Not to Draft (Haaretz Editorial) Reverse discrimination is justified for groups that are disadvantaged or underrepresented. But is there anyone who can claim with any sincerity that demobilized soldiers are underrepresented in government jobs or the universities?
The phenomenon of illegal (Palestinian workers): Israel is deliberately abandoning your fate (Lior Akerman, Maariv) The way in which Israel ignores its porous borders, which it is fully aware of, is almost unimaginable. The current situation requires an immediate change.
Israel's UN delegation hoping for Security Council seat (Itamar Eichner, Yedioth/Ynet) After Israel's ambassador was appointed to head a UN committee and an Israeli professor was re-elected to another, Israel's mission to the organization has set its eyes on a Security Council seat in two years.
Why Sayed Kashua Is Rejecting His Honorary Doctorate From Ben-Gurion University (Sayed Kashua, Haaretz+) I don't support a boycott of Israeli academia. But Ben-Gurion University's decision not to honor Breaking the Silence, an NGO whose crime is to remind people of the occupation, leaves me no choice: To decline the honorary doctorate it has offered me.
Second Lebanon War: Mistakes, lessons and the next war (Yoav Limor, Israel Hayom) A decade after the Second Lebanon War, Hezbollah is bogged down in Syria and is wary of escalation with Israel, but growing stronger • The IDF knows the next war will be unlike any other Israel has ever known, and is working to ensure it doesn't happen.
Netanyahu Will Go, but 'Bibism' Will Abide (Rogel Alpher, Haaretz+) Even if the prime minister is ousted, his principles have become enshrined among the Israeli public and in the media.
Mustafa Tamimi was killed when he was shot in the face with a gas canister in a 2012 protest. A year later, Rushdi Tamimi was shot in the belly with live fire. No one ever faced charges. A closer look at the two cases reveals that putting soldiers to trial is the exception, not the rule. (Chaim Levinson, Haaretz+)
Mom Is in Gaza, Kids Are in the West Bank: A Palestinian Family Torn Apart by the Occupation
Two toddlers from the Dawabsheh family in the West Bank village of Duma are growing up without parents: Israeli authorities arrested the father and won't allow their mother to reunite with them. (Gideon Levy and Alex Levac, Haaretz+)
An Israeli band heads to Paris coexistence festival to 'conquer' Palestinian hearts
Departures / Arrivals: A group of musicians takes its message of freedom to an art and music festival created by a Muslim-Jewish duo; Coldplay groupies talk about their against-the-clock marriage proposal in Cologne. (Liat Elkayam, Haaretz+)
Art project solves mystery of abandoned, ornate Jerusalem building
Artists who entered abandoned building near Waldorf Astoria hotel have located Palestinian family who lived there until 1948. (Nir Hasson, Haaretz+)
How Elie Wiesel the journalist saw Israel
Once Elie Wiesel decided Israel was not for him, and before he became a best-selling novelist, he had a serious career as a journalist in Israel. The stories he never published may have been the most telling. (Shlomo Nakdimon, Haaretz+)
Commentary/Analysis:
Minister Bennett Is Lying. The Settlements Aren't Keeping Israel Safe. (Uri Misgav, Haaretz+) The heartbreaking truth is that Hallel Yaffa Ariel did not live as a hero and die as a hero. She was stabbed to death in her bed because her bed was spitting distance from occupied Hebron.
Do houses matter more than Jews? (Judith Bergman, Israel Hayom) How morally twisted and depraved the world is when the construction of houses elicits greater outrage than the officially sanctioned murder of sleeping children.
Hebron Shooter Is Just a Common Soldier Fighting Netanyahu's Revolution (Ravit Hecht, Haaretz) By killing a subdued Palestinian terrorist in Hebron, the Israeli soldier split Israeli society into two groups, but he is not the revolutionary tearing down Israel's institutions. Netanyahu is.
Sarona is not Kiryat Arba (Aviad Kleinberg, Yedioth/Ynet) While terror attacks that happen in Tel Aviv are just considered a part of life in Israel, terror attacks in settlements beyond the Green Line confer special privileges upon those who live in the area. Why is this the case?
The news from Mandelblitt: The Attorney General's appointment turns out to be a terrible defeat for Netanyahu (Ben Caspit, Maariv) The political establishment is in a storm over the prospect of a new investigation against the prime minister and the scenarios it can produce - such as early elections. But even if the investigation comes out to nothing, unlike in the past, there are those willing to probe.
Yair Lapid’s Destructive Conspiracy of Silence for Israel (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) All Israelis who break the silence about the occupation and other crimes are doing their patriotic, human and moral duty. That’s why the Yesh Atid leader is so afraid of them.
Until the next trauma: how we stopped asking for explanations from our government (Michal Aharoni, Maariv) The biggest achievement of the government is that no one demands anything from it. We’ve even given up our right to get answers about Operation Protective Edge.
Connecting by knowing each other (Head of Commission on Mizrachi heritzage in education, Erez Biton, Israel Hayom) A people is comprised of all its parts, and if the school system reflects the legacy of all Jewish cultures, social antagonism and verbal violence will wane.
The POWs and MIAs will not return any time soon, even if Turkey does its best (Yossi Melman, Maariv) Ankara's attempt to advance a prisoner exchange will not lead to a breakthrough. The main reason: the new rising star of Hamas in Gaza. And, the affair that should concern anyone to whom Jordan’s stability is important to him, including Israel: an investigation revealed that over the last three years, Jordanian army intel officers have stolen hundreds of weapons from deliveries sent by the CIA.
Netanyahu's promises of settlement construction are nothing but a smokescreen (Yossi Verter, Haaretz+) By now, it has become a ritual: a series of terrorist attacks against West Bank settlers spawns bombastic announcements of new construction. When you look closely, you see this was only sleight of hand.
Facebook is not the enemy (Sever Plocker, Yedioth/Ynet) The social-media giant is but the latest in a line of arenas for the exchange of opinions, and it won't be the last; hateful wars and ideologies blossomed well before the internet; blaming Facebook for the opinions expressed therein is a failed argument that only distances Israel from the technological sector that it seeks to embrace.
Veteran Hiring Bill Discriminates Against Those Whom Israel Chooses Not to Draft (Haaretz Editorial) Reverse discrimination is justified for groups that are disadvantaged or underrepresented. But is there anyone who can claim with any sincerity that demobilized soldiers are underrepresented in government jobs or the universities?
The phenomenon of illegal (Palestinian workers): Israel is deliberately abandoning your fate (Lior Akerman, Maariv) The way in which Israel ignores its porous borders, which it is fully aware of, is almost unimaginable. The current situation requires an immediate change.
Israel's UN delegation hoping for Security Council seat (Itamar Eichner, Yedioth/Ynet) After Israel's ambassador was appointed to head a UN committee and an Israeli professor was re-elected to another, Israel's mission to the organization has set its eyes on a Security Council seat in two years.
Why Sayed Kashua Is Rejecting His Honorary Doctorate From Ben-Gurion University (Sayed Kashua, Haaretz+) I don't support a boycott of Israeli academia. But Ben-Gurion University's decision not to honor Breaking the Silence, an NGO whose crime is to remind people of the occupation, leaves me no choice: To decline the honorary doctorate it has offered me.
Second Lebanon War: Mistakes, lessons and the next war (Yoav Limor, Israel Hayom) A decade after the Second Lebanon War, Hezbollah is bogged down in Syria and is wary of escalation with Israel, but growing stronger • The IDF knows the next war will be unlike any other Israel has ever known, and is working to ensure it doesn't happen.
Netanyahu Will Go, but 'Bibism' Will Abide (Rogel Alpher, Haaretz+) Even if the prime minister is ousted, his principles have become enshrined among the Israeli public and in the media.
Interviews:
'Honoring an anti-occupation NGO isn't a statement Ben-Gurion University wants to make'
On the line with Prof. Rivka Carmi, president of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. (Interviewed by Nir Gontarz in Haaretz+)
'Honoring an anti-occupation NGO isn't a statement Ben-Gurion University wants to make'
On the line with Prof. Rivka Carmi, president of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. (Interviewed by Nir Gontarz in Haaretz+)
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.