APN's daily news review from Israel
Thursday May 25, 2017
Quote of the day:
“What I discovered was that the decision to capture East Jerusalem, and certainly to annex it, was not
motivated by an existential need (in contrast to the Six-Day War, which was launched to remove an existential
threat to Israel) or by a salient security need (in contrast to the decision to invade the West Bank). The IDF
was sent into the Old City primarily for emotional reasons, and because of a personal need to settle accounts
with history felt by a few Israeli leaders in 1967, deriving from the role they had played in the 1948 War of
Independence.”
--Uzi Benziman, who was Haaretz’s Jerusalem correspondent during the Six Day War of ’67, revisits the dramatic decision that changed the face of the Middle East.*
You Must Be Kidding:
“Hahaha, you’re mistaken, Muslims have murdered over 11 million Muslims since 1948.”
--Response by the page manager of the official Israeli Foreign Ministry’s Arabic-language Facebook page to a commenter who wrote, “If you hadn’t occupied and abused the Palestinian people, perhaps you would be the chosen people, as you claim.”**
--Uzi Benziman, who was Haaretz’s Jerusalem correspondent during the Six Day War of ’67, revisits the dramatic decision that changed the face of the Middle East.*
You Must Be Kidding:
“Hahaha, you’re mistaken, Muslims have murdered over 11 million Muslims since 1948.”
--Response by the page manager of the official Israeli Foreign Ministry’s Arabic-language Facebook page to a commenter who wrote, “If you hadn’t occupied and abused the Palestinian people, perhaps you would be the chosen people, as you claim.”**
Front Page:
Haaretz
- Court stopped the counting of ballots in Histadrut (National Labor Union) elections
- Britain: Terrorist from Manchester acted as part of terror network
- Tillerson: Trump pressured Netanyahu and Abbas to return to negotiations and to compromise
- Lieberman: I am not living in peace with the arms deal between the US and Saudi Arabia
- Interior Ministry closed newspaper in Eilat a moment before the cancellation of the Newspapers Order
- US wants to cut the funding for the world battle against AIDS; Researchers: A million will die
- All the slogans // Haaretz Editorial
Yedioth Ahronoth
- Jerusalem of happiness (aerial photo of street in Jerusalem filled with marchers)
- Subsidizing of summer camp postponed
- (Actress Gal Gadot) on wave of the world
- Not moving from here (KAN – the Israel Public Broadcasting Corp) – Interview with CEO Eladad Kovlantz
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
- Netanyahu doesn’t rule out parting from E. Jerusalem neighborhoods
- Defense Minister Lieberman: “I am not at peace with the arms deal between the US and Saudi Arabia”
- Histadrut (National Labor Union) elections: Court stopped the ballot counting
Israel Hayom
- “Trump to Abu Mazen: Arab initiative first” – Senior Palestinian official to Israel Hayom: US President flipped the order
- Following the selfie with MK Hazan (and Trump): End to handshakes at the reception ceremonies
- Jerusalem of flags
- Drama at Histadrut elections: At request of candidate Yachimovich – Court ordered to stop counting ballots; She claims numerous fake ballots
News Summary:
Leaks of various peace and separation plans, criticism of the US-Saudi arms deal, unprecedented access to right-wing Jews for ‘Jerusalem Day’ celebrations (and under-reported violence), and a court order to stop ballot counting in the Histadrut national labor union elections were the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. And with the stark exception of Haaretz, the Hebrew papers did not mention the increasingly dangerous health situation of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners – some already hospitalized – who are hunger-striking mainly to get a public telephone to call their families and more visitation time to see them. (See Prisoners' Quick Hits below.)
US President Donald Trump plans to launch an “unconventional peace plan,” according to which Arab states will begin normalizing relations with Israel (Saudi Arabia and other Arab and Muslim states will recognize the State of Israel and its right to exist but won’t sign peace treaties or open embassies in Israel) before Israel and the Palestinians reach a peace agreement, Israel Hayom reported. This despite the long-standing insistence of the Arab states that Israel must first make peace to get diplomatic relations with them.
Maariv’s Ben Caspit reported that right-wing Likud MK Anat Berko presented Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu with a plan to exclude certain E. Jerusalem neighborhoods from the municipality. Berko’s main goal was to transfer to the Palestinians the municipal responsibility for those neighborhoods and thereby deprive those residents of their Israeli identity cards. Caspit wrote that “Since this is a municipal move, and because most of the neighborhoods discussed never belonged to Jerusalem, Netanyahu left the opening for the process of the type described here.”
Yesterday Channel 10 reported that Israel’s National Security Council discussed the possibility of severing the Shuafat refugee camp and Kufr Aqab from the municipal area of Jerusalem and establishing a separate regional council for them. As far as is known, this is another plan unrelated to the Berko plan. Ben Caspit: “In any case, it is clear that there are more and more creative ideas flowing around the prime minister that will allow Netanyahu to present something to the Americans in the hope of appeasing the heavy pressure exerted by the American administration for flexibility in the negotiations.” Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told reporters that Trump ’put a lot of pressure’ on Israel and the Palestinians to renew peace talks. Trump's Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt returns to Israel today.
On the occasion of the controversial ‘Jerusalem Day,’ in which some Israelis celebrate the conquering of the Palestinian side of the city, Netanyahu said it wasn’t the division of Jerusalem that was delaying peace, but refusal to recognize the Jewish state. Netanyahu vowed that the Temple Mount and the Western Wall will forever remain part of Israel and said that Trump's Jerusalem visit proved the historic connection between Jews and the Western Wall. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas responded by saying, 'East Jerusalem, with its holy sites for Islam and Christianity, is the capital of the Palestinian state and will remain so forever.'
Instead of politics, President Reuven Rivlin focused on the poverty in the Palestinian side of the city and the lack of tolerance between the different people living in the city. "We cannot sing a song of praise for a unified Jerusalem while East Jerusalem is the poorest urban area in Israel…sovereignty in Jerusalem means responsibility for all of Jerusalem…Jerusalem is still waiting to realize its potential as a city of seemingly impossible combinations, a city in which people live together ... Jerusalem can and should be a city in which cultures live side by side and with each other as the fathers of Zionism and my teacher at the head, Zeev Jabotinsky, dreamed. In the next fifty years and under Israeli sovereignty, Jerusalem must become such.” (Maariv)
Meanwhile, some 60,000 right-wing religious Zionist Jews paraded through the city as hundreds of anti-occupation activists and Palestinians protested, calling for an end to hatred and violence. That erupted in violent clashes and the police removed the activists, the Palestinians and the journalists from the plaza outside the Old City's Damascus Gate at the beginning of the annual Flag March. For the first time, Israeli Police allowed the marchers to go around the Old City walls and to enter from a gate that was not allowed in the past. Moreover, Maan reported that hundreds of right-wing Israelis and settlers entered the Temple Mount (Harram Al-Sharif) holy site and Israeli police assaulted and detained Al-Aqsa security guards after the guards “objected to the provocative behaviors of Israeli settlers during their raid of Al-Aqsa.”
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said he was ‘not at peace’ with Trump's massive U.S.-Saudi arms deal and was worried about a 'Middle East arms race.’ Lieberman also seemed to confirm that Trump leaked Israeli intel to Russia, when he said that Israel made a "specific correction" in its dealings with the U.S. following the incident. Netanyahu assured that the US was committed to maintaining Israel's military edge and that the US added $75 million to Israel's missile defense program – a compensation. And former IDF Intel chief, Amos Yadlin, also said that the arms deal shouldn't worry Israel, because weapons the Obama administration sold Saudi Arabia in 2010 were much more significant, designated to warding off an Iranian threat.
Leaks of various peace and separation plans, criticism of the US-Saudi arms deal, unprecedented access to right-wing Jews for ‘Jerusalem Day’ celebrations (and under-reported violence), and a court order to stop ballot counting in the Histadrut national labor union elections were the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. And with the stark exception of Haaretz, the Hebrew papers did not mention the increasingly dangerous health situation of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners – some already hospitalized – who are hunger-striking mainly to get a public telephone to call their families and more visitation time to see them. (See Prisoners' Quick Hits below.)
US President Donald Trump plans to launch an “unconventional peace plan,” according to which Arab states will begin normalizing relations with Israel (Saudi Arabia and other Arab and Muslim states will recognize the State of Israel and its right to exist but won’t sign peace treaties or open embassies in Israel) before Israel and the Palestinians reach a peace agreement, Israel Hayom reported. This despite the long-standing insistence of the Arab states that Israel must first make peace to get diplomatic relations with them.
Maariv’s Ben Caspit reported that right-wing Likud MK Anat Berko presented Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu with a plan to exclude certain E. Jerusalem neighborhoods from the municipality. Berko’s main goal was to transfer to the Palestinians the municipal responsibility for those neighborhoods and thereby deprive those residents of their Israeli identity cards. Caspit wrote that “Since this is a municipal move, and because most of the neighborhoods discussed never belonged to Jerusalem, Netanyahu left the opening for the process of the type described here.”
Yesterday Channel 10 reported that Israel’s National Security Council discussed the possibility of severing the Shuafat refugee camp and Kufr Aqab from the municipal area of Jerusalem and establishing a separate regional council for them. As far as is known, this is another plan unrelated to the Berko plan. Ben Caspit: “In any case, it is clear that there are more and more creative ideas flowing around the prime minister that will allow Netanyahu to present something to the Americans in the hope of appeasing the heavy pressure exerted by the American administration for flexibility in the negotiations.” Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told reporters that Trump ’put a lot of pressure’ on Israel and the Palestinians to renew peace talks. Trump's Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt returns to Israel today.
On the occasion of the controversial ‘Jerusalem Day,’ in which some Israelis celebrate the conquering of the Palestinian side of the city, Netanyahu said it wasn’t the division of Jerusalem that was delaying peace, but refusal to recognize the Jewish state. Netanyahu vowed that the Temple Mount and the Western Wall will forever remain part of Israel and said that Trump's Jerusalem visit proved the historic connection between Jews and the Western Wall. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas responded by saying, 'East Jerusalem, with its holy sites for Islam and Christianity, is the capital of the Palestinian state and will remain so forever.'
Instead of politics, President Reuven Rivlin focused on the poverty in the Palestinian side of the city and the lack of tolerance between the different people living in the city. "We cannot sing a song of praise for a unified Jerusalem while East Jerusalem is the poorest urban area in Israel…sovereignty in Jerusalem means responsibility for all of Jerusalem…Jerusalem is still waiting to realize its potential as a city of seemingly impossible combinations, a city in which people live together ... Jerusalem can and should be a city in which cultures live side by side and with each other as the fathers of Zionism and my teacher at the head, Zeev Jabotinsky, dreamed. In the next fifty years and under Israeli sovereignty, Jerusalem must become such.” (Maariv)
Meanwhile, some 60,000 right-wing religious Zionist Jews paraded through the city as hundreds of anti-occupation activists and Palestinians protested, calling for an end to hatred and violence. That erupted in violent clashes and the police removed the activists, the Palestinians and the journalists from the plaza outside the Old City's Damascus Gate at the beginning of the annual Flag March. For the first time, Israeli Police allowed the marchers to go around the Old City walls and to enter from a gate that was not allowed in the past. Moreover, Maan reported that hundreds of right-wing Israelis and settlers entered the Temple Mount (Harram Al-Sharif) holy site and Israeli police assaulted and detained Al-Aqsa security guards after the guards “objected to the provocative behaviors of Israeli settlers during their raid of Al-Aqsa.”
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said he was ‘not at peace’ with Trump's massive U.S.-Saudi arms deal and was worried about a 'Middle East arms race.’ Lieberman also seemed to confirm that Trump leaked Israeli intel to Russia, when he said that Israel made a "specific correction" in its dealings with the U.S. following the incident. Netanyahu assured that the US was committed to maintaining Israel's military edge and that the US added $75 million to Israel's missile defense program – a compensation. And former IDF Intel chief, Amos Yadlin, also said that the arms deal shouldn't worry Israel, because weapons the Obama administration sold Saudi Arabia in 2010 were much more significant, designated to warding off an Iranian threat.
Prisoners' Hunger-Strike-related Quick
Hits:
- On 38th day, hunger strikers threaten individual action to pressure Israel - While the estimated 1,300 prisoners currently participating in the strike have so far stood united behind Barghouthi, a prominent Fatah leader, a “breakup” of the strike would mean that the Israel Prison Service (IPS) would have to negotiate with each prisoner individually, which PPCS head Rafaat Hamdouna said could lead to “a chaos that IPS can’t control or afford.” (Maan)
- Palestinian Hunger-strikers' Health Deteriorating After 38 Days, Say Prisoners - One inmate says strikers in Israeli prisons being held in small rooms with filthy sheets infested with bugs, not able to change clothing. The prisoners’ two primary demands are for more frequent family visits and for prisoners to be allowed to speak to their families on public phones under supervision. (Haaretz+)
- UN alarmed at conditions for Palestinian hunger-strikers - UN High Commissioner for Human Rights raises concern over 'punitive measures by the Israeli authorities against the hunger strikers, including restricted access to lawyers and the denial of family visits' and prisoners' health. (Agencies, Ynet)
- Israeli forces fire tear gas at demonstration in solidarity with prisoner hunger strike - Witnesses told Ma’an that the demonstrators had released balloons with photographs of prisoners during the march. (Maan + VIDEO)
- Sit-in staged in front of ICRC building in support of Palestinian hunger strikers - Participants of the sit-in, which was organized by the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society and Jerusalem Committee for Families of Prisoners, said they were deeply concerned about the deteriorating conditions of their loved ones, and were distraught over the lack of information about the prisoners’ healths. (Maan)
- Protesters hold sit-ins in Ukraine, France in support of Palestinian hunger strike - A crowd of Palestinians and Ukrainian demonstrators held Palestinian flags, signs, and pictures of prisoners, in Kiev and distributed fliers detailing the situation of Palestinians since 1948. (Maan)
Quick Hits:
- Hate crime suspected after graffiti, cars torched in Israeli Arab village in Wadi Ara - 'Price tag' and 'the exiles say hello' spray-painted inside Israeli Arab village days after West Bank extremist held. (Haaretz and Ynet)
- 3 Palestinian suspects arrested over attack on settler's car - Suspects from Huwara arrested as part of investigation into incident in which some 200 Palestinian rioters pelted the car of a settler who came upon the area with stones, later surrounding the car, banging on its windows and kicking it. [NOTE: The settler driver drove into some people standing in his car's way, after which numerous people attacked his car - OH] (Ynet)
- Israeli forces assault, detain 2 children on their way home from school - Israeli forces raided Aida refugee camp while students from the camp’s United Nations school were returning home from their final exams. The soldiers then got out of their jeeps near the camp’s cemetery and assaulted two students, whose identities remained unknown. After beating the two, the soldiers threw them into the jeep and took them into a military base located adjacent to the camp. (Maan)
- Palestinian youth arrested with pipe bombs next to West Bank military court - The arrest, made at a checkpoint adjacent to the Samria Military Court, comes after a similar incident earlier this month. (Haaretz and Maan)
- Israeli forces and settlers surround Palestinian school, detain student, teacher - Sharif al-Froukh, the deputy headmaster of the al-Minya middle and high school in the village of Tuqu, said an Israeli settler chased students who were on their way to the school for their end of year exams, claiming that they had thrown rocks at him. (Maan)
- Israeli police violently detain Palestinian street vendors in East Jerusalem - A video circulating on social media in recent days revealed Israeli police forces assaulting a family of Palestinian street vendors in occupied East Jerusalem on Monday and then detaining them. (Maan+VIDEO)
- **Foreign Ministry’s Arabic-language Facebook Page Takes the Low Road - Its posts are written in literary Arabic, but the propaganda, patronization and gung-ho patriotism on display won’t convert Arabs to the Israeli cause. (Haaretz+)
- In the Knesset, Culture Minister Miri Regev clashed with Arab MKs: "What you call Nakba – is a day of historic justice" - A bill to make Nakba Day a national memorial day was rejected by a large majority. In the stormy debate, a harsh exchange of words was recorded between the culture minister and MK Ahmed Tibi, who remained unaffected: "We are proud natives of this homeland." (Maariv)
- Trove of Six-Day War artifacts found in Jerusalem - Find includes some 40 Jordanian coins as well as Israeli coins that may have originated with Israeli visitors to the site right after the war. Rifle magazine, rounds and casings also found, as well as two distorted .50-caliber bullets. (Israel Hayom)
- Biggest Israeli flag flown over Ammunition Hill - The flag weighs 40 kilograms and is 18 meters tall, 10 meters wide, and 180 square meters in size; 'A flag like that has never been flown in Israel,' says Alon Vald of the Ammunition Hill Museum, whose father died in the battle to liberation Jerusalem. (Ynet)
- Descendants of Nazis marched in Jerusalem with Holocaust survivors: "We are friends of Israel" - Dozens of grandchildren of former SS soldiers and officers are now members of an organization dedicated to commemorating the Holocaust and fighting anti-Semitism. On the occasion of Yom Yerushalayim they marched along the Burma Road alongside the children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors. (Maariv)
- Higher Education in Israel Set to Become More Segregated - New five-year program will pilot segregated classes on existing campuses and broaden definition of who can apply for segregated studies. (Haaretz+)
- Israelis share crisis-coping expertise with EU educators - Some 200 principals attending conference hold moment of silence for victims of Manchester attack • Speaker from Israel's crisis hotline: The psychological resilience of children is built on the foundations of strength of adults in their world. (Israel Hayom)
- In Opinion, Israeli Attorney General Affirms Privacy Class Action vs. Facebook - Facebook's demand that any legal dispute with users be adjudicated in a California court is a discriminatory condition, Avichai Mendelblit says. (Haaretz)
- Mass Graves Found in Jaffa Date to Invasion by Napoleon - As Napoleon fought the British and the Ottomans for control of the Levant, he reluctantly wound up killing Turkish soldiers, lest POWs set free rejoin their troops, again. (Haaretz)
- Gaza fisherman sentenced to 3 years in prison for providing Hamas with diving gear - The court noted that in the context of the considerations for punishment, it was taken into account that the fisherman acted for the sake of his livelihood and did not belong to a terrorist organization. (Maan and Ynet)
- Hamas to execute three alleged assassins days after found guilty - Men accused of collaborating with Israel to be executed on Sunday. (Agencies, Haaretz and Maan)
- 5 Palestinians injured in 'accidental explosion' in southern Gaza - Five Palestinian were injured in an reportedly accidental explosion at a “resistance site” in the southern besieged Gaza Strip on Wednesday afternoon. (Maan)
- Reports: Exit permits to be issued for West Bank Palestinians stranded in Gaza - The Palestinian Committee of Civil Affairs said that issuing such permits had been halted by Israel for almost a year, “but after conducting serious efforts by Minister Hussein al-Sheikh with Israeli authorities, the issuing of permits was resumed.” (Maan)
- Iran extends hand to new Hamas leader Haniyeh - A senior leader of the Iranian army congratulated Ismail Haniyeh on his nomination as the New Hamas leader, saying that Iran hopes to strengthen relations with the terror group turned political party, renew resistance against the Zionists and retake Jerusalem—seeking an invigoration of the 'holy war' against Israel. (Ynet)
- After Israel, Saudi Arabia Trips, the Alt-right Is Ready to Dump Trump - Trump's overtures to the Sunni Muslim world and worshipping at the Western Wall, in a gesture to Jews, irks white nationalists and the far-right in American politics. (Haaretz)
- Some Holocaust Survivors Are Insulted by Trump’s Brief, 'Bizarrely Chipper' Visit to Yad Vashem Memorial in Jerusalem - While some criticized the president's short trip to the Holocaust museum as being 'just for show,' others defended Trump for having made the visit at all. (Haaretz)
- Qatar: Hackers post fake comments by Emir on 'good' ties with Israel - Doha says hackers broke into the website of its state-run news agency and published a fake story falsely quoting the country's ruling emir as calling Iran an 'Islamic power' and criticizing US foreign policy. (Agencies, Ynet)
- Convicted Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard loses bid to relax U.S. parole conditions - The former U.S. Navy intelligence officer who served 30 years in prison is required to wear an electronic tracking device and obey a curfew, among other conditions. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Czech Parliament recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel - On Jerusalem Day, the Czech Republic Parliament approved the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel; Members of parliament call on the government to adopt the same position and stop payments to UNESCO. (Yedioth/Ynet)
- Right-wing Extremists Killed Over 250 in U.S. Terror Since 1993, Says ADL - Report says group has been one of the largest sources of domestic terror, killing over 250 people in 150 different attacks, but hasn’t attracted enough media attention. (Haaretz+)
- Egypt Blocks 21 Websites, Including Al Jazeera for 'Supporting Terrorism' - Two security sources say websites were blocked for being affiliated with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood or for being funded by Qatar. (Agencies, Haaretz)
Features:
On the way to the mountain: the Israeli enclave that operated in the heart of Jerusalem
The defense of Mount Scopus, the invasive inspections, the tunnels and the smuggled equipment. Ephraim Ganor, then commander of a tank crew, returns to the place that will functioned in the heart of the Hashemite Kingdom. (Ephraim Ganor, Maariv)
Neighborhood or community: How the settlement enterprise keeps growing
It looks like a community, it is registered as an independent community in regional council documents, and it sits on an isolated hill. Officially, however, Kerem Re’im is defined as a neighborhood belonging to the Talmon settlement in the Binyamin region. Dozens of other communities are being built in the territories using the exact same successful method. (Oded Shalom and Elisha Ben Kimon, Yedioth/Ynet)
We got a speech expert to analyze Trump's Mideast speeches – this is what she found
The president's comments in Israel show he intends to try, but beyond personality and rhetoric, his advisers are no doubt wondering if he can affect real policy in the region. (Yael Wissner-Levy, Haaretz+)
Hate crimes are gaining momentum: 'We (settler hilltop youth) are being persecuted and this is the result'
Within a month, there were five hate crimes against Arabs, the last in Wadi Ara, when at the same time, restraining orders were issued against more than 20 hilltop youths; the settlers rush to say that they are being harassed while the Shin Bet claims that the restraining orders are intended to calm the area. (Elisha Ben Kimon, Yedioth/Ynet)
Commentary/Analysis:
*The Real Reason Israel Annexed East Jerusalem (Uzi Benziman, Haaretz+) Haaretz’s Jerusalem correspondent covered the story of the city’s unification in the wake of the Six-Day War. Fifty years later he revisits the the dramatic decision that changed the face of the Middle East.
The defense of Mount Scopus, the invasive inspections, the tunnels and the smuggled equipment. Ephraim Ganor, then commander of a tank crew, returns to the place that will functioned in the heart of the Hashemite Kingdom. (Ephraim Ganor, Maariv)
Neighborhood or community: How the settlement enterprise keeps growing
It looks like a community, it is registered as an independent community in regional council documents, and it sits on an isolated hill. Officially, however, Kerem Re’im is defined as a neighborhood belonging to the Talmon settlement in the Binyamin region. Dozens of other communities are being built in the territories using the exact same successful method. (Oded Shalom and Elisha Ben Kimon, Yedioth/Ynet)
We got a speech expert to analyze Trump's Mideast speeches – this is what she found
The president's comments in Israel show he intends to try, but beyond personality and rhetoric, his advisers are no doubt wondering if he can affect real policy in the region. (Yael Wissner-Levy, Haaretz+)
Hate crimes are gaining momentum: 'We (settler hilltop youth) are being persecuted and this is the result'
Within a month, there were five hate crimes against Arabs, the last in Wadi Ara, when at the same time, restraining orders were issued against more than 20 hilltop youths; the settlers rush to say that they are being harassed while the Shin Bet claims that the restraining orders are intended to calm the area. (Elisha Ben Kimon, Yedioth/Ynet)
Commentary/Analysis:
*The Real Reason Israel Annexed East Jerusalem (Uzi Benziman, Haaretz+) Haaretz’s Jerusalem correspondent covered the story of the city’s unification in the wake of the Six-Day War. Fifty years later he revisits the the dramatic decision that changed the face of the Middle East.
Trump's new deal (Boaz Bismuth, Israel Hayom) Trump, the most pro-Israel president in decades, will not insist
that the improvement of U.S.-Israel ties depends on warmer relations between Israel and the Arabs.
Trump Exposed the Fantasy of Netanyahu's 'Undivided Jerusalem' (Daniel Seidemann, Haaretz+) Netanyahu's bullying, bluster and hasbara cannot change the empirical facts: Jerusalem is more binational, more contested and more divided than at any point since 1967.
A Repellent Personality, a Miserable President. But on Trump's MidEast Peace Efforts I Back Him (Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie, Haaretz+) Letty Cottin Pogrebin is wrong: If there’s the slightest chance for a deal to be made, we must support it. Yes, even if Donald Trump is its advocate and champion.
Trump chose Israel's side (Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom) The U.S. president's visit to Israel has proved that, unlike his predecessor, he is free of the messiah complex.
A Jubilee of Failure (Haaretz Editorial) Fifty years is enough time to judge Israel on its success in Jerusalem, and the picture is one of striking failure.
Back to the Shteitel: What we learned from Donald Trump's visit in Israel (Ephraim Ganor, Maariv) The arrival of the president of the United States shows that in 2,000 years in the Diaspora we have absorbed the language of flattery and obsequiousness, and it will probably take many generations to get rid of this exile.
Israeli Left Should Talk to the Settlers, but Without Groveling (Emilie Moatti, Haaretz+) When prominent leftists say, 'Let’s show them we're Jews and Zionists,' I want to scream: Look how well the suppression is working!
The day after: Did you think Donald Trump would club Netanyahu? It won't happen (Amos Gilboa, Maariv) Quite a few people hoped that Trump would surprise for the bad and pressure the prime minister. But it turned out that the president of the United States was a warm friend of Israel, Obama's opposite.
The Private Memorial Day of Israeli Ethiopians (Efrat Yardai, Haaretz+) The memorial event for Ethiopian Jews who perished on their way to Israel falls on the same day as Jerusalem Day, meaning it consistently fails to receive the coverage it deserves.
Don't Be the One Who Says No to Trump (Daniel B. Shapiro, Haaretz+) The U.S. president has a fleeting moment of leverage to push Israeli and Palestinian leaders to a deal. He must make the costs of disappointing him high.
Trump Exposed the Fantasy of Netanyahu's 'Undivided Jerusalem' (Daniel Seidemann, Haaretz+) Netanyahu's bullying, bluster and hasbara cannot change the empirical facts: Jerusalem is more binational, more contested and more divided than at any point since 1967.
A Repellent Personality, a Miserable President. But on Trump's MidEast Peace Efforts I Back Him (Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie, Haaretz+) Letty Cottin Pogrebin is wrong: If there’s the slightest chance for a deal to be made, we must support it. Yes, even if Donald Trump is its advocate and champion.
Trump chose Israel's side (Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom) The U.S. president's visit to Israel has proved that, unlike his predecessor, he is free of the messiah complex.
A Jubilee of Failure (Haaretz Editorial) Fifty years is enough time to judge Israel on its success in Jerusalem, and the picture is one of striking failure.
Back to the Shteitel: What we learned from Donald Trump's visit in Israel (Ephraim Ganor, Maariv) The arrival of the president of the United States shows that in 2,000 years in the Diaspora we have absorbed the language of flattery and obsequiousness, and it will probably take many generations to get rid of this exile.
Israeli Left Should Talk to the Settlers, but Without Groveling (Emilie Moatti, Haaretz+) When prominent leftists say, 'Let’s show them we're Jews and Zionists,' I want to scream: Look how well the suppression is working!
The day after: Did you think Donald Trump would club Netanyahu? It won't happen (Amos Gilboa, Maariv) Quite a few people hoped that Trump would surprise for the bad and pressure the prime minister. But it turned out that the president of the United States was a warm friend of Israel, Obama's opposite.
The Private Memorial Day of Israeli Ethiopians (Efrat Yardai, Haaretz+) The memorial event for Ethiopian Jews who perished on their way to Israel falls on the same day as Jerusalem Day, meaning it consistently fails to receive the coverage it deserves.
Don't Be the One Who Says No to Trump (Daniel B. Shapiro, Haaretz+) The U.S. president has a fleeting moment of leverage to push Israeli and Palestinian leaders to a deal. He must make the costs of disappointing him high.
The 1967 war's impact (Yoram Ettinger, Israel Hayom)
The Six-Day War highlighted Israel as a unique national security producer for the U.S., extending its strategic hand and deterrence without requiring U.S. personnel or bases.
Lots of Reasons to Celebrate Six-Day War’s 50th Anniversary (Israel Harel, Haaretz+) At the many conferences marking the Six-Day War (or the 'occupation'), most of the panelists engage in criticism of Israel, sometimes lethal, especially over our relations with the Arabs.
Fear as an obstacle to peace: Why are Israelis afraid? (Ramzy Baroud, Maan) Bat-Hen Epstein Elias's long article on Iranian Jews is interesting. Parts of it, in fact, are heartwarming. Yet, despite the lack of any serious evidence, the story is entirely framed in the language of fear.
A Simplistic, Power-driven Religious Zionism Marches Away From Jewish Values (William Kolbrener, Haaretz+) Parading through Jerusalem's Muslim Quarter, the Orthodox Jews marching for Jerusalem Day equate Jewish heroism with militaristic nationalism. But there are, and always were, other paths.
Can the Saudi weapons against Iran pose a threat to Israel? (Dr. Yaron Friedman, Yedioth/Ynet) During the Riyadh summit, attended by dozens of regional leaders and the US President, decisions were made pertaining to Iran and ISIS; In the long run, Israel should worry about the establishment of a large Arab force that might rise against it in an all-out war.
The Real Scandal Wasn't the Israeli Lawmaker's Selfie With Trump (Uri Misgav, Haaretz+) How are Israelis supposed to sleep at night when Gilad Erdan, the cabinet minister who is responsible for their safety, is so reckless and unserious?
A modest approach toward Mideast problems (Shlomo Puterkovsky, Yedioth/Ynet) While Trump has not abandoned the American aspiration to bring peace to the Middle East, he has no intention of forcing the parties involved in the conflict to accept the agreement he is interested in—and that is a very refreshing innovation.
Why Jerusalem Would Be Better Off Divided (Einat Wilf, Haaretz+) The desperate attempts to portray the city as united are just that – desperate. The next time a politician says they want to divide the city, they should go ahead and do it.
The Six-Day War highlighted Israel as a unique national security producer for the U.S., extending its strategic hand and deterrence without requiring U.S. personnel or bases.
Lots of Reasons to Celebrate Six-Day War’s 50th Anniversary (Israel Harel, Haaretz+) At the many conferences marking the Six-Day War (or the 'occupation'), most of the panelists engage in criticism of Israel, sometimes lethal, especially over our relations with the Arabs.
Fear as an obstacle to peace: Why are Israelis afraid? (Ramzy Baroud, Maan) Bat-Hen Epstein Elias's long article on Iranian Jews is interesting. Parts of it, in fact, are heartwarming. Yet, despite the lack of any serious evidence, the story is entirely framed in the language of fear.
A Simplistic, Power-driven Religious Zionism Marches Away From Jewish Values (William Kolbrener, Haaretz+) Parading through Jerusalem's Muslim Quarter, the Orthodox Jews marching for Jerusalem Day equate Jewish heroism with militaristic nationalism. But there are, and always were, other paths.
Can the Saudi weapons against Iran pose a threat to Israel? (Dr. Yaron Friedman, Yedioth/Ynet) During the Riyadh summit, attended by dozens of regional leaders and the US President, decisions were made pertaining to Iran and ISIS; In the long run, Israel should worry about the establishment of a large Arab force that might rise against it in an all-out war.
The Real Scandal Wasn't the Israeli Lawmaker's Selfie With Trump (Uri Misgav, Haaretz+) How are Israelis supposed to sleep at night when Gilad Erdan, the cabinet minister who is responsible for their safety, is so reckless and unserious?
A modest approach toward Mideast problems (Shlomo Puterkovsky, Yedioth/Ynet) While Trump has not abandoned the American aspiration to bring peace to the Middle East, he has no intention of forcing the parties involved in the conflict to accept the agreement he is interested in—and that is a very refreshing innovation.
Why Jerusalem Would Be Better Off Divided (Einat Wilf, Haaretz+) The desperate attempts to portray the city as united are just that – desperate. The next time a politician says they want to divide the city, they should go ahead and do it.
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.