APN's daily news review from Israel
Sunday December 4, 2016
Quote of the day:
“It’s American Southern comfort food meets Arabic breakfast comfort food.”
--Jewish Israeli chef Mattan Abrahams describes the dish of slow-cooked short ribs on top of hummus, which he made with Arab Israeli chef Abu Marun as part of next weekend's Al-Sham food festival, which pairs Jewish and Arab chefs together to offer modern takes on traditional Arab recipes.*
You Must Be Kidding:
Israel's Civil Administration in the West Bank intends to relocate the illegal Amona outpost due to its location on privately-owned Palestinian land to other land privately-owned by Palestinians. The location was chosen after the Civil Administration 'invited' the Palestinian public to submit any ownership claims to the land next to Amona’s current site. Reportedly, no one claimed three plots - yet the Civil Administration knows that they are privately owned.**
--Jewish Israeli chef Mattan Abrahams describes the dish of slow-cooked short ribs on top of hummus, which he made with Arab Israeli chef Abu Marun as part of next weekend's Al-Sham food festival, which pairs Jewish and Arab chefs together to offer modern takes on traditional Arab recipes.*
You Must Be Kidding:
Israel's Civil Administration in the West Bank intends to relocate the illegal Amona outpost due to its location on privately-owned Palestinian land to other land privately-owned by Palestinians. The location was chosen after the Civil Administration 'invited' the Palestinian public to submit any ownership claims to the land next to Amona’s current site. Reportedly, no one claimed three plots - yet the Civil Administration knows that they are privately owned.**
Front Page:
Haaretz
- In the shadow of the strengthening of the isolationists, Italy goes to national referendum
- Due to the criticism: Plea bargain with Buchris (general accused of rape) is in question
- Minister Ariel will give education budget for “Jewish agriculture” led by Habayit Hayehudi activists
- Youth beat to death asylum seeker from Sudan for 1.5 hours and will be indicted on manslaughter
- Ran Peker, one of the greatest combat pilots of IAF, died at age 80
- Under one’s nose // Amir Oren
- The Drucker illusion // Rogel Alpher
- The most interesting band in Israel isn’t afraid of sex or politics
Yedioth Ahronoth
- Abu Dhabi is building the Israeli navy’s ships – new revelations
- They fell asleep on guard // Yossi Yehoshua
- After completion of the investigation: “There is evidence against Sara Netanyahu”
- The #1 pilot – Ran Peker died at age 80
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
- “The is no legalization (of outposts law) without Amona (outpost)” – settlers at the outpost are furious about reports that the bill to be brought for a vote at the Knesset won’t assure them of staying put
- Chief of Staff on Buchris (rape) affair: “Zero tolerance for sexual harassment”
- Sara (Netanyahu) against the leaks (of the protocols of her questioning by police)
- Ran Peker 1936-2016 – Death of the champion of downing enemy planes
Israel Hayom
- Amona residents: “We will block the (demolition) tractors with our bodies”
- Sara Netanyahu’s lawyers to Attorney General: Investigate the leaks of the questioning (of Sara)
- Parting from the champion of downing enemy planes
- Chief of Staff on Buchris affair: “Zero tolerance for sexual harassment”
News Summary:
The latest ahead of the vote on the outpost legalization bill, the anger of Sara Netanyahu at the leak of her questioning by police, the latter who says the evidence justifies charging Mrs. Netanyahu, and the statement by IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot that he has no tolerance for sex crimes in the army were the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers alongside the death of Israel’s #1 combat pilot.
Also in the news, after Yedioth revealed that not only Iran made millions from the German submarine and shipmaker company that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu insisted working with, Yedioth revealed today that Abu Dhabi was contracted to help build the Israeli ships. Amos Gilad, the director of the Defense Ministry's Political-Military Affairs Bureau, said he wasn’t aware of the Iranian connection to the Israeli naval ships, but that it was minor. Haaretz has a great ‘What We Know’ link to all the updates related to the Israeli submarine scandal.
**The outpost legalization bill is up for a vote in the Knesset soon as the government still scrambles to find a solution for the Amona outpost, whose demolition date must be on or before December 25th. Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said the legalization bill should be postponed until US President Barack Obama leaves office and the Trump administration moves in. At the moment, Israel's Civil Administration in the West Bank intends to relocate the Amona outpost off of the privately-owned Palestinian land it was sued for - to other privately-owned Palestinian land, whose owners are ‘absent.’ The temporary move is supposedly only for eight months and will cost $13 million, Haaretz reported.
Quick Hits:
- UN calls on Israel to leave Golan, Israel prepares fight at UNSC - As the UN General Assembly calls again on Israel to leave the Golan Heights and declares Israeli jurisdiction on 'the Holy city of Jerusalem' to be 'null and void,' the Jewish state prepares to go up against three UNSC resolutions aimed against it. (Yedioth/Ynet)
- Netanyahu, Lapid neck-in-neck in latest election poll, Zionist Union shrinks dramatically - Both Netanyahu's Likud and Lapid's Yesh Atid gain ground in poll from Channel 2, pulling mandates away from nearly all parties except for the Joint Arab List, now the third most popular party in Israel. (Haaretz)
- Justice minister, Supreme Court president butt heads - Ayelet Shaked argues that Supreme Court is 'distorting democracy' by intervening with the legislature and the executive; Miriam Naor says, 'Judicial independence is a prerequisite of a democratic society.' (Yedioth/Ynet)
- Israeli Public Schools to Teach 'Jewish Agriculture' to Strengthen Students' 'Zionist Identity' - The Agriculture Ministry's program is carried out by an organization that specializes in Jewish identity education – apparently without the involvement of the Education Ministry. (Haaretz+)
- Right-wing lawmaker to activist who outed sex crimes claims: You did it to get interviews - Chagit Moriah-Gibor defends publication of claims against Habayit Hayehudi lawmaker, saying that she discussed the matter with two MKs and a journalist beforehand. (Haaretz+)
- Turkey: Court asked to drop case against Israeli officials - Request comes on the heels of the recently signed Turkey-Israel reconciliation pact according to which Israel would pay compensation to those who died in the incident on the condition that Turkey drop cases against Israelis involved. (Agencies, Ynet and Israel Hayom)
- Palmach veterans ask Netanyahu to avoid naming heritage center after Ze’evi - War of Independence heroes ask prime minister to change his decision to name Sha’ar Hagai monument after disgraced former general; already have President Reuven Rivlin’s backing. (Haaretz+)
- *Arab food festival in Haifa serves up coexistence - Following massive fires, a coexistence food festival in Haifa is set to be held from December 7-9; festival organizer: 'they are trying to crack the beautiful coexistence that we have here, but we won’t let them.' (Ynet)
- First fire indictments: 2 Israeli Arab youth indicted for arson in case of wildfire near Acre - Fire causes estimated 12,000 shekels ($3,100) in damage. 15 trees damaged. Youths hail from Judeida-Makr near Acre. Indictment says motive nationalistic. Israel Fire and Rescue Service estimates 40-50% of recent wildfires caused by arson. (Israel Hayom)
- 2 Israeli Teens Suspected of Beating Sudanese Man to Death Avoid Murder Charge - Though police recommended murder charge, prosecutor failed to prove the youths who allegedly beat a man for an hour and a half intended to kill him. (Haaretz+)
- Bedouin demolishes own home as tribe prepares for destruction of its village - 'It’s not easy to uproot a human being. And it’s not just me. There are 40 other people here,' says resident. (Haaretz+)
- Construction worker seriously hurt in fall during raid by Israeli immigration police - According to the police statement, the man was attempting to evade a police search for illegal aliens when he fell from the building. (Haaretz+ and Ynet)
- War crimes suit against Israeli justices rejected by Chilean court - Legal team representing Palestinians in the South American country say they will file an appeal with the country's Supreme Court. (Haaretz+)
- Keith Ellison on Israel in 2010: 'We Can't Allow Another Country to Treat Us Like We're Their ATM' - In full speech by DNC chairman frontrunner, snippets of which have already sparked a controversy, Ellison says Israel asks U.S. for money but won't stop settlement construction, urges Muslim Americans to organize like AIPAC. (Haaretz)
- Water situation in Gaza growing worse - With the Palestinian population approaching two million, a new World Bank report says that if no measures are taken by 2020, Gaza will no longer have usable water; While Israel provides technical support and advice, new wastewater plants are needed. (Ynet)
- Gaza Gets Economic Boost as Coca-Cola Opens $20 Million Bottling Plant - Despite difficulties to bring goods into Gaza, factory hopes to employ up to 1,000 Palestinians directly or indirectly and keep 3 million bottles in circulation. (Haaretz)
- Iran Urges Kenya to Release Citizens Held on Suspicion of Plotting Attack on Israeli Embassy - Tehran says the men, charged with collecting information for a terrorist act, are lawyers who were in Kenya to council jailed Iranian clients, also imprisoned on terror charges. (Agencies, Haaretz)
Features:
The rise of Yair Netanyahu, the 25-year-old who has the prime minister's ear
Sources describe the prime minister's eldest son as a volatile man who has an increasingly strong influence on his father's opinions, pushing him further to the right. 'Sara talks about him as though he’s the next prime minister.' (Shuki Sadeh, Haaretz+)
"That was a dark period": 50 years since the end of military rule over Arabs of Israel
Fifty years have passed since the end of the military rule imposed on Arabs in Israel following the establishment of the state. But for those who were there, the memory is still etched as a severe trauma: "We don’t want our children to remember it.” (Oz Rosenberg, Maariv)
Commentary/Analysis:
Netanyahu's government begins to unravel over bill to legalize West Bank outposts (Yossi Verter, Haaretz+) Instead of showing leadership on Amona, Netanyahu procrastinates ■ Sara Netanyahu is back in the interrogation room ■ What could be behind Bitan's initiative to prohibit police investigations of a prime minister?
The brilliant marketing maneuver behind the Israeli deal to buy German ships (Gili Cohen, Haaretz+) How the Israel Navy exploited the need to protect gas reserves to get what it wanted.
Why is Israel's attorney general delaying probe into Netanyahu? (Gidi Weitz, Haaretz+) Soon, Israelis will be able to judge for themselves whether he had the public interest in mind, or that of the prime minister.
Sounding the alarm (Nadav Shragai, Israel Hayom) The increasingly common arson brush fires in Israel have been dismissed as misfortune, and only a handful have been investigated • A volunteer group devoted to containing agricultural crime says that lax policy led to the awful fires of this past week.
Drucker Reports Fueling Israeli Left's Ouster Fever (Rogel Alpher, Haaretz+) The prime minister is carrying out policy that the vast majority of the people want. It’s pathetic to keep waiting for the next exposé by Raviv Drucker.
Government incitement is worse than online incitement (Yossi Dahan, Yedioth/Ynet) While Netanyahu and some of his ministers used every opportunity to declare that the fires were the result of ‘a nationalistic wave of terrorism,’ they avoided reaching a decision declaring just that in the latest cabinet meeting. Why? It’s all about the money.
Sex Crimes in the Army: Let Every Jewish Mother and Daughter Be Aware (Ariana Melamed, Haaretz+) The plea deal by a retired general shows that the Israeli army won’t fight for the accuser, who’s already subject to the patriarchal thinking that created the army in the first place.
The Army Belongs to the Rabbis, Please Don't Disturb It (Ravit Hecht, Haaretz+) How much longer will senior officers have the strength to fight their rearguard action over the nature of the people’s army?
Note to Israelis: The US is not racist (Ruthie Blum, Israel Hayom) The Left needs a brain transplant -- especially in regard to its utterly false presentation of the U.S. and the people who make up its rich and intricate fabric.
This Is How to Stay Behind (Friday Haaretz Editorial) Figures show that Israel’s gap in math-test scores between students from richer areas and those from poorer areas is the third largest among the countries surveyed, preceded only by Turkey and Qatar.
Aleppo's massacred children: The real legacy of Obama (Asaf Ronel, Haaretz+) The outgoing U.S. president proved impotent, but the blood of Aleppo is smeared on the hands of the entire international community.
'Stay Here, You Dog!' (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) Three years ago I visited my father’s town in the Sudetenland, and now I am in my mother’s town – and both arouse much greater emotion than the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron or the hills of Samaria.
Israel, a light of mediocrity unto the nations (David Rosenberg, Haaretz) Jews are supposed to be brilliant and to be business mavens, but Israelis show neither quality, for all those Nobel prizes. What went wrong?
Sources describe the prime minister's eldest son as a volatile man who has an increasingly strong influence on his father's opinions, pushing him further to the right. 'Sara talks about him as though he’s the next prime minister.' (Shuki Sadeh, Haaretz+)
"That was a dark period": 50 years since the end of military rule over Arabs of Israel
Fifty years have passed since the end of the military rule imposed on Arabs in Israel following the establishment of the state. But for those who were there, the memory is still etched as a severe trauma: "We don’t want our children to remember it.” (Oz Rosenberg, Maariv)
Commentary/Analysis:
Netanyahu's government begins to unravel over bill to legalize West Bank outposts (Yossi Verter, Haaretz+) Instead of showing leadership on Amona, Netanyahu procrastinates ■ Sara Netanyahu is back in the interrogation room ■ What could be behind Bitan's initiative to prohibit police investigations of a prime minister?
The brilliant marketing maneuver behind the Israeli deal to buy German ships (Gili Cohen, Haaretz+) How the Israel Navy exploited the need to protect gas reserves to get what it wanted.
Why is Israel's attorney general delaying probe into Netanyahu? (Gidi Weitz, Haaretz+) Soon, Israelis will be able to judge for themselves whether he had the public interest in mind, or that of the prime minister.
Sounding the alarm (Nadav Shragai, Israel Hayom) The increasingly common arson brush fires in Israel have been dismissed as misfortune, and only a handful have been investigated • A volunteer group devoted to containing agricultural crime says that lax policy led to the awful fires of this past week.
Drucker Reports Fueling Israeli Left's Ouster Fever (Rogel Alpher, Haaretz+) The prime minister is carrying out policy that the vast majority of the people want. It’s pathetic to keep waiting for the next exposé by Raviv Drucker.
Government incitement is worse than online incitement (Yossi Dahan, Yedioth/Ynet) While Netanyahu and some of his ministers used every opportunity to declare that the fires were the result of ‘a nationalistic wave of terrorism,’ they avoided reaching a decision declaring just that in the latest cabinet meeting. Why? It’s all about the money.
Sex Crimes in the Army: Let Every Jewish Mother and Daughter Be Aware (Ariana Melamed, Haaretz+) The plea deal by a retired general shows that the Israeli army won’t fight for the accuser, who’s already subject to the patriarchal thinking that created the army in the first place.
The Army Belongs to the Rabbis, Please Don't Disturb It (Ravit Hecht, Haaretz+) How much longer will senior officers have the strength to fight their rearguard action over the nature of the people’s army?
Note to Israelis: The US is not racist (Ruthie Blum, Israel Hayom) The Left needs a brain transplant -- especially in regard to its utterly false presentation of the U.S. and the people who make up its rich and intricate fabric.
This Is How to Stay Behind (Friday Haaretz Editorial) Figures show that Israel’s gap in math-test scores between students from richer areas and those from poorer areas is the third largest among the countries surveyed, preceded only by Turkey and Qatar.
Aleppo's massacred children: The real legacy of Obama (Asaf Ronel, Haaretz+) The outgoing U.S. president proved impotent, but the blood of Aleppo is smeared on the hands of the entire international community.
'Stay Here, You Dog!' (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) Three years ago I visited my father’s town in the Sudetenland, and now I am in my mother’s town – and both arouse much greater emotion than the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron or the hills of Samaria.
Israel, a light of mediocrity unto the nations (David Rosenberg, Haaretz) Jews are supposed to be brilliant and to be business mavens, but Israelis show neither quality, for all those Nobel prizes. What went wrong?
Interviews:
Alt-right Leader Has No Regrets About 'Hail Trump,' but Tells Haaretz: Jews Have Nothing to Fear
Richard Spencer, termed 'professional racist in khakis' by hate-group monitor, wants the alt-right to go mainstream and insists his Nazi salute was just 'fun and exuberance.' In Haaretz interview, he says he doesn't deny Jewish suffering and wants U.S. to stop funding Israel. (Interviewed by Taly Krupkin in New York for Haaretz+)
Will US Jews stay Democrats?
Pre-eminent scholar of American Jewish history professor Jonathan Sarna talks with Israel Hayom about the result of the U.S. presidential election and what it could mean for traditionally left-wing U.S. Jews and their relationship with the State of Israel. (Interviewed by Dror Eydar in Israel Hayom)
Alt-right Leader Has No Regrets About 'Hail Trump,' but Tells Haaretz: Jews Have Nothing to Fear
Richard Spencer, termed 'professional racist in khakis' by hate-group monitor, wants the alt-right to go mainstream and insists his Nazi salute was just 'fun and exuberance.' In Haaretz interview, he says he doesn't deny Jewish suffering and wants U.S. to stop funding Israel. (Interviewed by Taly Krupkin in New York for Haaretz+)
Will US Jews stay Democrats?
Pre-eminent scholar of American Jewish history professor Jonathan Sarna talks with Israel Hayom about the result of the U.S. presidential election and what it could mean for traditionally left-wing U.S. Jews and their relationship with the State of Israel. (Interviewed by Dror Eydar in Israel Hayom)
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.