Quote of the Day #1:

Haaretz

Yedioth Ahronoth

Maariv This Week (Hebrew links)

Israel Hayom

News Summary:
Shari Arison, Israel’s wealthiest woman, was questioned by police for hours over suspicions as a suspect in a bribery investigation, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu threatened early elections if a compromise isn’t reached on the IDF draft bill in the next two weeks, Kenyan-Israeli athlete Lona Chemtai Salpeter made two tragic mistakes and lost a medal at the European championships 5000 meter run competition and and the debate over the waving of Palestinian flags at the Arab-Israelis’ protest against the Nation-State Law Saturday night continued in full force making the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. Meanwhile, a third cabinet meeting about a long-term ceasefire arrangement with Hamas ended with no decisions, but a declaration from Netanyahu that Israel wants “a complete cease-fire; we will not be satisfied with less.”

Also worthy of note: the ‘Choice of Life" forum of bereaved families of fallen Israeli soldiers, ‘accompanied by’ the far right-wing ‘Im Tirtzu’ organization, called on the Defense Minister to revoke the candidacy of Maj. Gen. Yair Golan as the next IDF chief of staff due to his past statements expressing fear over signs that Israeli society is becoming fascist and declaring it “intolerable” that Israeli soldiers place Palestinian civilians in harm’s way instead of themselves. [“It’s unacceptable that in the name of preventing risk we would decide that now we are going to mow down an apartment building. You would kill women, children, those involved. It’s intolerable,” he said.](Maariv) Matan Peleg, the leader [of the semi-fascist - OH] ‘Im Tirtzu’ organization, said: “In order to ensure the existence of the State of Israel, the IDF must educate its commanders and soldiers to strive for victory. The value of victory must be paramount for the commanders of the army. Yair Golan's statements last year revealed that he may be suitable for a Red Cross commander, but certainly not for the IDF, and that his appointment as chief of staff will undermine the security of thousands of soldiers, fighters and commanders.” But right-wing journalist Erel Segal said on his program on 103FM/Maariv: "There is no easy way to say this -  this was cynical use of bereaved parents. Although I dislike (Golan), I do not like what was done. Is bereavement a tool to create an ideological position? "

For the most part, the Israeli media did not ask the question about the meaning of the waving of Palestinian flags waved at a protest calling for equality between Israeli Arab and Jewish citizens. Instead, for the most part, they just shared the quotes by people, such as Netanyahu, who said it was wrong. At the government cabinet meeting Sunday, Netanyahu said that the Palestinian flags waved at the joint Jewish-Arab protest Saturday against the Nation-State law proved the protesters were trying to turn Israel into an Israeli-Palestinian state, which is why ‘it is clearer than ever' the law was necessary. And Culture Minister Miri Regev said Yitzhak Rabin would turn over in his grave if he knew that Palestinian flags were waved at the square in his name.

Ynet interviewed two Druze men who also opposed it for the same reason. One of them, former MK Shachiv Shnaan, whose son was killed last year in a Palestinian attack on Border Police officers at the Temple Mount, asked: “If you protest because you want equality in your country, why wave flags of another state?” he asked. “But it isn’t anything new that Arab Israelis have a continued identity problem. They are torn between the national Palestinian identity and their real lives in Israel in partnership with the state.”

But there were rebuttals and explanations towards the ends of the articles. The Israeli Labor party responded to Regev, “Rabin would turn over in his grave if he knew that a person who incites like you were serving as a minister in the Israeli government.” (Maariv) And Zionist Camp MK Shelly Yachimovich said that if Rabin weren’t murdered the square would not have been named after him so he wouldn’t have turned over in his grave because he would still be alive. Maariv called the flags ‘PLO flags’ and asked Arab MK (Balad party) Jamal Zahalka his view on them and the calls “to redeem Palestine.” “Those were people who came on their own with the flags. But we are pride about the waving of the flag, anyway. It’s a flag of the hope for freedom, liberty and independence.”

103FM/Maariv interviewed former Shin Bet chief Ami Ayalon, who opposes the Nation-State Law and attended the Arab-Jewish protest was not deterred by the flags. “I was at the demonstration out of a sense of Jewish-humanistic and civic duty to go,” he said. “(I told myself) in advance that I would not identify with all that would be said and with the flags that were raised and that's what happened. I saw the flags but I could not hear calls [‘to redeem Palestine’]. This is the test of democracy. It's easy for us to attend demonstrations where everyone thinks like us. The smart thing is to get out of our comfort zone and hear things you do not like to hear.” [NOTE: Oddly, Maariv wrote that Ayalon was ‘present’ at it - as if it were not a choice to attend, but he happened to be there, despite him saying otherwise. - OH] Regarding the call by protesters 'with blood and hearts we will redeem Palestine,' Ayalon said: "These are the vocal minority that the media love. They didn’t photograph the families with the children in strollers that asked to call themselves equal citizens. It is important to me that people understand that democracy is not only beautiful words, it is the only framework that enables us to conduct a discussion of our differences without killing each other."

Ynet also interviewed Amnon Be’eri Sulitzeanu, co-director-general of the Abraham Fund Initiatives—which works for a “shared future for Israel’s Jewish and Arab citizens”—who said: “Just as the Israeli flag is the flag of Jews and is waved with pride by Jews in marches in different places in the world, it should also be acceptable to wave the Palestinian national flag by Arab Palestinian Israeli citizens, which is their flag.”

And Ynet interviewed Arab MK Ahmed Tibi, who explained that the flag “is not the PLO flag, but the flag of Palestinians" and that anyway, what was important was the number of people who came to protest against the legislation. "There were 30,000 people and only 15-20 were waving Palestinian flags. 30,000 Jews and Arabs demonstrated to repeal this law and not everyone thinks the same thing. There are different political positions and different worldview." He rejected claims the protesters, who were demanding equality in the State of Israel, were waving the flag of another country while doing so. "This is not the flag of another country, and I don't want you or anyone else to preach to the Arab public about morals," he insisted. "The flag is a flag of Palestinian people, not the PLO, not the flag of evil. It’s the same flag that a Palestinian who lives in Chile or anywhere else in the world, would wave." According to Israeli-Arab leaders the rally was a success and even the Arabs were divided over whether anyone should have brought Palestinian flags.
 

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