Quote of the day:
"Reuven had a pure heart. He loved everyone, I met him in the 1990s, when I used to import goods from China. He was a good man. What they did to him is horrific. If more people were like Reuven, peace would have been achieved a long ago." 
--A Palestinian man, who asked to remain anonymous, was one of a number of Palestinians who donated to a fund to establish a synagogue in honor of Reuven Schmerling, who was murdered by two Palestinian employees.*

---

Front Page:

Haaretz

Yedioth Ahronoth

Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)

News Summary:
The Gaza burning kite and balloon dilemma continued to make headlines from the south as an incendiary balloon landed in an Israeli preschool and dozens of Syrian refugees asking for refuge on the border in the north along with US President Donald Trump retracting his rejection of US intel agencies conclusion that Russia meddled in the US Presidential election were top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. And, the race to pass laws, many of them controversial, continued successfully, much to the chagrin of the left-wing and human rights supporters. Also, Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a right-wing European leader, visits Israel today, but won’t be visiting the Palestinian Authority.

On the third day of a supposed ceasefire, IDF warplanes shot at a group of Gazan youth who launched incendiary kites towards Israel. Two youth were injured. Also, a balloon carrying a firebomb from Gaza fell in the yard of an Israeli kindergarten, causing a fire while children played, and firefighting crews continued to battle against the fires other balloons caused. Hours earlier, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman visited the Gaza border area, and Netanyahu said that the IDF was prepared for any scenario. But Haaretz+ reported that Hamas was likely to accept a deal ending the airborne firebomb attacks and Ynet reported that Cairo was pressuring Hamas to completely stop or significantly reduce number of incendiary balloons and kites, while the IDF called for Israeli political pressure on Gazacivilians in order to avoid war.

SYRIA:
Dozens of Syrian civilians waving white cloths came up to 200 meters from the border fence with Israel in the Golan Heights and asked to be let in and to have help. Interestingly, Maariv reported that Israeli soldiers shouted in Arabic: “Go back before something bad happens to you,” while the more propaganda-ish ‘Israel Hayom’ newspaper quoted the soldiers as saying: “Go back, we don't want to hurt you.”Haaretz only quoted the soldier as shouting, “Go back.” Israel Hayom presented the scenario is frightening for Israel, while Maariv presented it as desperate for the Syrians.

At the Knesset, the stormy debates continued into the night. The ‘Breaking the Silence Law’ was passed preventing lectures and activities at schools by organizations in favor of legal actions being taken abroad against IDF soldiers. Today’s Haaretz Editorial explained that the amendment to the State Education Law, which has become known informally as the “Breaking the Silence Law, “authorizes every education minister to set rules barring access to the schools to any outside person or organization 'whose activity stands in severe and significant contradiction to the goals of state education.' This wording will allow Bennett and his successors to bar any organization which contradicts their political views, in the name of defending the unspecified 'goals of state education.' Breaking the SIlence said that the law proves how much Education Minsiter Naftali Bennett fears his own ideology

NEW
The Knesset passed a new law that will limit Palestinians’ access to the High Court. The Knesset approved the transfer of authority over the West Bank from the High Court of Justice to a Jerusalem District Court for Administrative Affairs. Now administrative petitions by Palestinians regarding land ownership will be reviewed by the Jerusalem court, which will require them to meet higher threshold conditions. Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked reacted saying, “The petitions party is over for Palestinians and extreme leftists. Maariv’s Avishai Greenzweig and Arik Bender explained the behind the scenes of the law: “Minister Shaked explained that the transfer of authority from the High Court of Justice was due to the heavy workload placed on the bench of the High Court justices and the desire to make it easier for them. But it seems that the decision to transfer the powers to the Jerusalem District Court is not coincidental. Recently, Shaked appointed Haya Zandberg, who headed the committee to legalize settlement outposts, as the head of the Jerusalem District Court. In recent years, a number of right-wing judges have been appointed to the courts in Jerusalem, as well as to the District Attorney's Office, and it can be assumed that it was not for nothing that the authority was transferred specifically to a Jerusalem court.” Haaretz wrote thatt he law was meant to hamper Palestinian petitions against Jewish settlement construction in the West Bank. (Also Knesset Hebrew link.)

Another headline grabbing law passed yesterday was the one that granted Netanayhu a tax break, boosting his annual income by up to 200,000 shekels. It exempts him from paying taxes on prime ministerial benefits.

Lastly, a Knesset committee approved the last controversial clause of the Jewish Nation-State bill, preparing it for a vote in the Knesset today. The contentious bill was revised multiple times over the last few years. It redefines Israel as a "Jewish state with a democratic regime" and makes the establishment of communities for Jews-only a national priority and lowers the status of the Arabic language. Haaretz+ interviewed the President of the U.S. Jewish Federation, who said he was ‘disappointed’ after fighting the Israeli government over the bill.
 

Quick Hits:

---

Features:

'Tourism here is completely dead': Flaming kites create lose-lose situation for Israeli businesses
Farmers can file for damage claims, other businesses are left out in the cold. (Hagai Amit, Haaretz+)

Commentary/Analysis:
The Cruel Similarities Between Israel’s Occupation and Assad’s Regime (Wesam Sharaf, Haaretz+) I live under Israeli occupation, and I was a passionate supporter of Bashar Assad, the 'Messiah of the Resistance.' Now I realize you can’t oppose Israel’s occupation and support Assad’s tyranny: it’s the same fight.
The new era of Jewish terror (Aviad Mendelbaum, Yedioth/Ynet) There is a growing acceptance and support of extreme right-wing views demonstrated by support for the defendants in the Duma terror trials. The practical objectives of Jewish rebel groups have turned into attempts to overthrow the government and start religious wars in order to establish a state governed by radical Jewish Law.
Israel’s Holocaust credit line is running out (Amira Hass, Haaretz+) The day will come when not only Israeli politicians and military officials will be put on trial, but also jurists, military and civilian judges, architects and planners, everyone who enabled and enables the division of this land.
The military's mistake (Amnon Lord, Israel Hayom) The IDF chief of staff needs to realize that the military's top echelon is a partner in the nation's leadership and speak up about military failures, such as the situation on the Gaza border.
Gaza Flare-up: Israel Must Admit the Truth - Burning Kites Don’t Justify War(Amos Harel, Haaretz+) The government is dragging Israel dangerously close to an unnecessary war in Gaza, despite assertions by top security brass that the situation doesn't warrant it.
The political echelon has no vision vis-à-vis Hamas's strategy, except for preserving the status quo (Yossi Melman, Maariv) The leadership offers only defensive tactics to restore the quiet. But if the fields continue to burn, the political echelon, which is beginning to lose its cool, will be forced to order the IDF to embark on another operation.
Between cynicism and childish bragging: the Helsinki summit was a purposeful display by Putin (Ran Adelist, Maariv) Trump scolds and lambasts journalists who make it difficult for him, and Putin reportedly kills them. Aside from that, neither of them cares about anyone except for their personal interests and the way they see the national interests of their countries.
The Education Commissar (Haaretz Editorial) The passage of the NGO Law that limits anti-occupation organizations is a glaring example of the way efforts to silence opposition to the occupation are undermining our entire democratic structure.
Know thine enemy (Dr. Edy Cohen, Israel Hayom) The Saudis are playing a double game, signaling to Israel that Iran is a common threat while making sure the people at home believe the enemy is Israel, followed by Iran.
As GOP recoils from Trump and Putin, Netanyahu gloms on (Bradley Burston, Haaretz+) Even for Israel – where 'normal' never is – there was something exceptionally peculiar in the prime minister's response to the Trump-Putin meeting.
The moment of truth in Gaza (Prof. Eyal Zisser, Israel Hayom) The problem with Gaza is not defeating Hamas, it is dealing with Gaza should Hamas fall. Until a good solution to this dilemma is found, it is best to pursue the path of restraint.
How a West Bank highway's road sign captures the Israeli psyche (Amira Hass, Haaretz+) There’s nothing more political than a company paving roads beyond the state’s borders to enable Jewish Israelis to violate international law, completely oblivious of Palestinian residents.
Helsinki Fiasco Proves That Netanyahu’s Adulation for Trump Is a Miscalculated Risk for Israel (Chemi Shalev, Haaretz+) A U.S. president who shames his country in public won’t hesitate to stick a knife in the back of its ally in the Middle East.
Taking a new crack at an old alliance (Prof. Abraham Ben-Zvi, Israel Hayom) Monday's summit in Helsinki sends a clear message that from the Trump administration's perspective, the key to maintaining global order lies with Moscow.
Trump's Appalling Display in Helsinki Shows Netanyahu Was Right All Along to Invest in Putin (Daniel B. Shapiro, Haaretz+) Israel is prepared for the post-Helsinki reality: With Trump so beholden to Putin, for whatever reasons, Russia alone is calling the shots in Syria – and alone will decide whether to take Israel’s interests into account.
In Helsinki, Trump's critics go off the deep end (Eldad Beck, Israel Hayom) U.S. indictments against 12 Russians for hacking Democratic Party officials, filed days before Trump's meeting with Putin cast a shadow over the historic summit • Neither leader came to Finland to fight. They came to try to forge a new bilateral dynamic.
Understanding the Syria Moment at the Trump-Putin News Conference (Ron Kampeas, JTA, Haaretz) There was at least one corner of apparent normalcy in the news conference: Russia and the United States seemed to agree that any Syria outcome should reassure Israel about its security needs.
With Orbán and Soros, Hungary’s Jews trapped between pro-Israel and anti-Semitic politics (Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz+) The Hungarian government is spending heavily on the Jewish community and Budapest’s Jews walk the streets without fear. So why is Benjamin Netanyahu's alliance with their own prime minister 'making Hungarian Jews shiver'? The second of three special reports.
Orban visit: May your arrival be cursed – anti-Semitic garbage (B. Michael, Haaretz+) It is hard to swallow an official visit by an anti-Semite, racist, Islamophobe, demagogue, provocateur and liar, who is also anti-democratic, hostile to human rights and a hater of law and enlightenment.
Orban, Take the Holocaust Off Our Hands, the Murdered Are Already Dead (Mordechai Kremnitzer, Haaretz+) The deep common values that unite you and Netanyahu ought to legitimize any form of cooperation, even a joint statement for the benefit of the present and future at the expense of the past.
If we have a religious right to a state, others can determine that there is a religious right to destroy us (Attorney Uriel Lin, Maariv) The term "religious right", which was embedded in the race to pass the nation-state law, is extremely dangerous to our existence and our future.
Trump’s Empty Threat to the International Order (David Rosenberg, Haaretz+) He talks the talk, but don’t worry: He has neither the intellectual nor the leadership tools to make it happen.
Unemployment, corruption fuel south Iraq’s protests (Zvi Bar'el, Haaretz+) Region’s vast oil wealth is siphoned off by tribal leaders, foreign producers and a dysfunctional central government