APN's daily news review from Israel - Thursday October 22, 2020 

Quotes of the day:

"As I cried, I could hear Saeb’s voice crack. I had known Dr. Erekat for years, a relationship that began when he was the editorial writer of the Palestinian daily al-Quds, briefing Israeli reporters on Palestinian politics while sharing a smoke on the steps of the newspaper’s East Jerusalem office. Over the years, we laughed a lot together. Now we were crying...We realized that Yigal Amir’s bullets, the ones that that killed Rabin, were also meant to kill the prospects for peace, and we understood that they could very well succeed. "
----Ori Nir, former Haaretz's West Bank and Washington correspondent, and now Americans for Peace Now's Vice President for public affairs, was on the phone with Saeb Erekat when the announcement was made of the death of Yitzhak Rabin by an assassin.**

"'And you helped the sick person wherever he was sick, whether a foreigner, a non-Jew or a citizen, whether mild or respectable.'" ...These words were written as the oath of the Hebrew doctor. They are not worth much today. Caring for a patient is a basic thing, which we have seen is disappearing. It happened in Hebron, with the paramedic who left a Palestinian, whom Elor Azaria shot, to bleed to death. It happened in Umm al-Hiran, with paramedics watching Yakub Abu al-Qiyan drown in his own blood. It turns out that this was too high a moral level for us. We are now discussing whether saving lives is at all legitimate. Give us a few more years of occupation, and we'll see where we get to."
--Former Meretz chairwoman, Zehava Galon, writes in an Op-Ed about Israeli right-wing opposition to giving medical treatment to long-time Palestinian peace negotiator, Saeb Erekat, who is in intubated and on life support in critical condition with COVID-19 and about Israeli left-wing approval for Erekat's medical treatment because it gives Israel 'moral superiority.'***

"There is a subset of liberal Jews, mainly in the United States and Canada, intellectuals who see themselves as enlightened and progressive, who fight injustices all over the world, until it comes to Israel, which in their eyes is above all suspicion. This is where they close their eyes and their consciences fall silent. They see nothing...Turns out that one can be an expert on human rights, an enlightened intellectual raised in an environment of Jewish liberalism, but at the moment of truth, their face is revealed, and it is nationalist, racist, cruel and incredibly ugly."
--Gideon Levy writes in an Op-Ed today about Canadian-Israeli 'centrist' lawmaker from Kahol-Lavan party, MK Michal Cotler-Wunsh, who called on Israel not to provide hospital treatment to long-time Palestinian peace negotiator, Saeb Erekat, who is in intubated and on life support in critical condition with COVID-19, unless Israel got something in return.*Front Page:

Haaretz

• The Border Policeman who shot dead Eyad Alhalaq will be indicted with reckless homicide
• Eyad Alhalaq broke through the Israeli wall of apathy. The reason for that is not so pleasant // Nir Hasson
• Corona cabinet decided not to advance the opening of commerce and the educational system
• Jerusalem Municipality initiates meetings with children at risk, without permission
• Knesset Speaker Levine (Likud) canceled the plenum vote’s approval of  to establish a probe committee into the submarines
• Police decided to close case against commander before even receiving the investigation materials
• Israeli study reveals how poison is created in living creatures
• Critical condition - The question over the treatment of (Palestinian official) Saeb Erekat is immoral. You don’t get points for treating a patient, even if you despise him // Zehava Galon (Hebrew)
• The women need protection // Dorit Eladar-Avidan on those who oppose bill to prevent economic violence
• Internal contradiction - “Upside-down wedding” reveals the burning issue in the religious sector: Homosexuals marrying the opposite sex in order to leave
• Jaffa Theater organized a protest play in open air. It ended with a heavy fine and artists who feel they were abandoned

Yedioth Ahronoth

• Mayors: Allow us to be responsible for the children’s schoolsd
• Almost 50% violate the quarantine
• Investigation - (Minister Gila) Gamliel’s diary: Testimonies from the minister’s office: This is how they retroactively change the diaries that are open to the public and fill them with meetings that did not take place, or meetings that the Minister Gamliel did not attend
• Why I demonstrated - Senior former Mossad official, David Meidan, explains why he joined the protest (against Netanyahu) at Balfour
• After the drama in the Knesset: Battle over the probe into the submarines goes to the High Court
• In the coming days: Israel will declare relations with Sudan
• Solomon the king - Israeli pride in champion soccer league (Hebrew)

Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)

• Circus at the Knesset
• (School children) remain in Zoom
• The self-employed on the way to the square (to protest against the government)
• Conquered Madrid: Manor Solomon scored against Real Madrid for a sensational win

Israel Hayom

• “The Iranians are praying five times a day for Biden to win”
• The Abraham Accords Forum - The second day
• “They tried to do a ‘targeted assassination’ against me” - Minister Gila Gamliel speaks about “the lie that wasn’t in the investigation”
• The final stretch: The fateful days on the way to the White House // ‘Israel Hayom’ correspondent, Boaz Bismuth, reports from Nashville
• Sensation: Solomon scores, (Ukrainian soccer team) Shakhtar Donetsk shocks Real Madrid

Top News Summary:
An uproar in the Knesset after the Knesset Speaker (Likud) cancelled the Knesset vote that approved establishing a committee of inquiry into Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s alleged connection to the submarine corruption case. And fury among parents of elementary school children and among the self-employed (the latter who are returning to protest at Rabin Square against the government - Maariv) after the corona cabinet decided to continue to keep schools and businesses closed. These are the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers.

Also worthy of noting, only Haaretz gave front page news to the police recommendation to indict on charges of reckless homicide, the Border Police officer who shot dead Eyad Alhallaq, an autistic Palestinian man. (Maariv, p. 10; Israel Hayom, p. 16; Yedioth, p. 19, the last news item of the paper.) Haaretz also dedicated three Op-Eds to the subject of how Israelis view Palestinians and the pain that Israel’s actions have on them: two looked at the Israelis who opposed Israel giving medical treatment to Palestinian official, Saeb Erekat, who is in critical condition with COVID-19, and another Op-Ed examined at why Israelis were willing to look critically at the killing of the autistic Palestinian young man and feel it was wrong. See Commentary/Analysis below. None of the other papers wrote any Op-Eds on these subjects.

DIPLOMACY:
On Wednesday, an Israeli minister hinted that Sudan would be the next country that will normalize relations with Israel and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US has begun the process of removing Sudan from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, while also working to get Khartoum to recognize Israel ASAP. Earlier, Israeli media reported that to be removed from the blacklist, Sudan had to normalize relations with Israel. Days ago, US President Donald Trump said that Sudan needed to transfer $355 million in compensation to US victims and their families in order to be removed from the terror list. Then today it was announced that Israel and US officials flew to Sudan and back today. This evening, Sudanese government sources said that Sudan's Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was willing to proceed with normalizing relations with Israel if a yet-to-be-formed transitional parliament approves it.

‘Israel Hayom’ is holding the “Abraham Accords conference” where Arab and Israel and US speakers discuss how it’s for the benefit of the Arab world to normalize relations with Israel. Speaking in a panel, US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, said that the “Palestinians must stop holding on to the victim narrative. It has served them faithfully for several generations, but I think those times are coming to an end.” Friedman expressed optimism that more Middle Eastern countries would go in the direction of the UAE and Bahrain. "In time, we will see an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict." Speaking about the Palestinian Authority , Friedman claimed: "There is no one to shake hands with.” (Maariv) At the conference, ‘Israel Hayom’ interviewed US Special Representative for International Negotiations Avi Berkowitz, who said that Arab leaders are tired of the conflict and that the US is working actively to expand Israel's normalization deals with the Arab world. Meanwhile, Bahrain and Israel signed a direct flights agreement. And the US announced a joint Israel-UAE fund to encourage private-sector and regional cooperation. And Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz left for Washington Wednesday for meetings with his US counterpart Mark Esper.





Corona Quickees:

• Coronavirus Israel Live: Cabinet Decides Against Lifting Further Restrictions - Ahead of school debate, gov't report warns kids could be superspreaders. Coronavirus czar announces free testing without referral. Ultra-orthodox locales removed from list of restricted areas. (Haaretz)
• State Prosecutor Reprimands Israel Police for Lax Enforcement of COVID Restrictions - Top prosecution officials fear officers overlooking ultra-Orthodox violators will lead other Israelis to argue they have been discriminated against. (Haaretz+)
• Dozens of preschool teachers test positive for COVID, days after kindergartens reopen - Health Ministry reports 1,089 new virus cases, bringing Israel close to target of 1,000 daily cases before further lockdown restrictions lifted; 40,915 tests yield positivity rate of 2.7%, far below peak of some 14% before lockdown began. (Ynet)
• Palestinian official Erekat undergoes bronchostomy - Family says senior PLO diplomat remains in critical condition, intubated and connected to ECMO machine; treatment especially complicated given history of health issues, including lung transplant in 2017. (Agencies, Ynet)

Quick Hits:

• Israeli Cop Who Shot Dead Autistic Palestinian Faces Trial: 'He Posed No Danger' - Eyad al-Hallaq, 32, was shot in Jerusalem by Border Police who mistook him for a terrorist near his special needs school in May. Policeman to be indicted with reckless homicide. Case against commanding officer was closed out of lack of guilt. (Haaretz+ and Ynet, Agencies)
• In a punitive act, Israel seals shut room in a West Bank house of alleged Palestinian attacker - Soldiers raided the house of 49-year-old Nathmi (Nazmi) Abu Bakr, sealed shut 40 square meters of the 70 square meter house using special flammable carcinogeous material - deeming entire house unlivable, according to family member. Abu Bakr denies the charges that he (intentionally tried to ) kill Israeli soldier (Amit Ben-Yigal) when he dropped a rock on his head during a predawn army raid of Yabad in May. (WAFA)
• Red Cross: Palestinian detainee on hunger strike in critical condition - “More than 85 days into the hunger strike, we are concerned about potentially irreversible health consequences. From a medical perspective, he is entering a critical phase,” said the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Thursday.  Maher al-Akhras, a Palestinian administratively detained (no charges, no trial), demands  an end to his illegal administrative detention. (WAFA)
• Lawsuit initiated against Britain for its responsibility in the suffering of the Palestinian people - Frst legal case to be carried out against British Government before a Palestinian court regarding Britain’s blatant violation of the rights of the Palestinian people and its responsibility for the aftermath of the implementation of the Balfour Declaration. "The Balfour Declaration...was not just a declaration, but a birth certificate of a state with letters of shame, injustice, nullifying, and a replacement tactic drawn by Britain in partnership with the Zionist movement, ignoring the rights of more than 93% of our Palestinian people, and granting the Jews, who at the time composed only 7% of the population, full rights," said Munib Masri. (WAFA)
• Israel Police Close Case Against Former Top Officer Before Even Seeing It - Former Maj. Gen. Gila Gaziel was suspected of promoting sale of discount apartments to police officials who were not eligible for them. (Haaretz+)
• IDF sent thousands of soldiers on foreign trips and the public paid for it - Data obtained under Freedom of Information Law shows almost 6,000 military personnel flew abroad in 2019; exact cost of flights, which include to cooking competition in Russia, is unclear but believed to run to tens of millions of shekels. (Ynet)
• Haim Saban: MBS Said Iran, His People Would Kill Him if Saudi Arabia Normalized Ties With Israel - Israeli-American billionaire Saban relates Saudi crown prince's comments at a Biden/Harris campaign event, praises Jared Kushner for work on Israeli accords with Bahrain, UAE. (Haaretz+)
• Israel Reportedly Strikes Targets in Southern Syria in First Since mid-September - Israel targeted a school in the Quneitra province in the Syrian Golan Heights, SANA reports, while opposition groups say Hezbollah positions were hit. (Haaretz+ and
• 'We will not allow Hezbollah or Iran to entrench themselves on Golan Heights' - IDF confirms hits on underground Hamas infrastructure in retaliation for rocket fired at southern Israel. Hamas spokesman blames normalization process for "continued Israeli aggression." (Israel Hayom)
• Israel Says Gaza Tunnel Discovered on Tuesday Was Built by Hamas - Army found an attack tunnel stretching several dozen meters from southern Gaza Strip into Israel. (Haaretz+)
• Despite discovery of the tunnel at Gaza border: Communications with Hamas over a truce agreement continue - Even while the Southern Command prepares for a possible escalation in the south, security establishment believes that there is a chance for progress regarding a short or long-term arrangement with Gaza and is making attempts to do so. As Maariv reported last Friday, the contacts are at a relatively advanced stage. Alongside the $60 million Qatari grant to Gaza, the talks deal with plans to advance major civilian projects in the Strip, with the Egyptians heavily involved in mediation. (Maariv)
• Qatar to keep funding Gaza through the end of 2021 - Doha pushing for monetary aid to go to infrastructure projects such as a gas pipeline to operate the enclave's only power station while the Gaza rulers push for more money to be delivered to families in need in the run-up to internal elections scheduled for early 2021. (Yedioth/Ynet)
• Hundreds Protest in Israel to Demand Government Act on Violence Against Women - Demonstrators take to streets after two women murdered in single day. Organizers: 'This is not a women's protest. It's a social protest.’ (Haaretz+)
• Trump administration mulls designating several rights groups 'anti-Semitic' - Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Oxfam are said to be in Washington's sights over their policies, affiliation with the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. It is unclear how such a designation would affect these groups. (Israel Hayom)
• Amnesty International Slams Reported U.S. Push to Label It Antisemitic - Following report that U.S. plans to make such a declaration over group's criticism of Israel, Amnesty slams 'attempt to silence and intimidate' human rights organizations. (Haaretz+ and Ynet)
• AJC ad promotes labeling Hezbollah a terrorist organization - In a full-page ad in the Oct. 21 edition of the Wall Street Journal, American Jewish Committee (AJC) is calling again on the 27-member European Union (EU) to designate Hezbollah a terrorist organization. (Israel Hayom)
• [Right-wing] Watchdog: EU continues transferring millions for anti-Israel activity - According to NGO Monitor, in 2019-2020 the European Union allotted 32 grants to Israeli and Palestinian non-governmental organizations involved in the demonization of Israel and the dissemination of anti-Semitism. (Israel Hayom)
• Europe Lost Nearly 60 Percent of Its Jewish Population in Past Half Century, New Study Shows - Report by London-based Institute for Jewish Policy Research finds that Europe accounts for same percentage of worldwide Jews today as it did nearly 1,000 years ago ■ 70,000 Israeli-born Jews live permanently in Europe. (Haaretz+)
• Gaza nurses protest loss of Israeli permit, layoffs - The workers directed their anger at both Israel, which has heavily restricted the entrance of Palestinians from Gaza, and at the decision by the Makassed hospital to lay them off arbitrarily after working there for more than 20 years. (Agencies, Ynet)
• Russia calls for collective security in Gulf, US blames Iran - Situation in the Persian Gulf "remains fragile and could become dangerous and unpredictable again," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov tells UN Security Council members. US Ambassador to the UN Kelly Craft: "What makes America special is that we are unafraid to stand up for what is right." (Agencies, Israel Hayom)

Features:

The Secret Blacklist of Palestinian Sexual Harassers and Rapists
One young woman from Egypt sparked a revolution by revealing how egregious sexual harassment is covered up in her country. Now Palestinian feminists are also compiling a blacklist. (Rajaa Natour, Haaretz+)
Israeli drone company plans for worldwide aerial-supply networks
Gadfin is hoping to connect Israeli hospitals with drone supply networks and has its sights set on providing essential services in remote Third World locations. (Yaakov Lappin, Israel Hayom)

Top Commentary/Analysis:
Democratic Only When They Have a Majority (Haaretz Editorial) The Israeli legislature marked a new low on Wednesday. Knesset Speaker Yariv Levin (Likud) decided to revoke the results of a legal vote by the Knesset. All of this was because with the vote, the Knesset adopted an opposition measure to establish a parliamentary committee of inquiry regarding the affair involving Israel’s purchase of submarines and other naval vessels. Levin’s conduct is a clear violation of the Knesset rules, in the mafioso style that the ruling party has recently adopted. His conduct is not surprising; it’s entirely in keeping with his thuggish stance in a prior clash between the High Court of Justice and the Knesset – after the speaker at the time, Yuli Edelstein, refused to comply with the court’s instructions and hold a vote on a new Knesset speaker.
Why Israelis Care About the Killing of an Autistic Palestinian, but Are Silent About Others (Nir Hasson, Haaretz+) The innocence of an autistic Palestinian broke through a wall of apathy, and the decision to try the officer who shot him is a rare one. Still, for Israelis, this case is far too convenient.
*What a Surprise – Even a Proud Liberal Zionist Scion Can Be a Racist (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) Unlike most Israelis or perhaps all Israelis, I, to my great shame, had never heard of lawmaker Michal Cotler-Wunsh. I learned that she is an expert on international law and was a research fellow at the Institute for Counter-Terrorism, a board member of national reconciliation organization Tzav Pius, active in the Manhigut Acheret NGO, ran for Knesset on the Kahol Lavan ticket, switched from Telem to the Israel Resilience Party – which is apparently the southern branch of Kahol Lavan or the political arm of Derech Eretz, it’s hard to tell. Her stepfather is Prof. Irwin Cotler, the renowned former justice minister of Canada and liberal jurist, who is considered a great advocate of human rights despite his strong support for Zionism. Professor Cotler is an activist against racism and against war crimes but never saw any connection between this and his support for Israel. Neither father nor daughter apparently see any contradiction between human rights and occupation, or between racism and Zionism, between apartheid and Israel. There is a subset of liberal Jews, mainly in the United States and Canada, intellectuals who see themselves as enlightened and progressive, who fight injustices all over the world, until it comes to Israel, which in their eyes is above all suspicion. This is where they close their eyes and their consciences fall silent. They see nothing. Last week the promising new Knesset member happened upon an opportunity to make herself known – Saeb Erekat became critically ill with COVID-19. Cotler-Wunsh seized the moment. The member of the legal team aiding the Goldin family in its efforts to have their son’s remains returned hastened to post a tweet about Erekat possibly being transferred to Hadassah Hospital for life-saving treatment: “The foundational principle of reciprocity demands: humanitarian [gesture] for humanitarian [gesture]! Medical aid must be reciprocated with return of 4 Israelis held in Gaza for 6+ years, in violation of international law.” Where to begin? With the stupidity? The ignorance? The evil? The lack of humanity? Her parliamentary colleague from the Joint List Ahmad Tibi aptly responded on Twitter: “I strongly object to making Knesset members take an IQ test, but this view carries severe implications and collateral effects.” A parliamentarian representing the Israeli center, the epitome of the Israeli center…who was a research fellow in a Hebrew University doctoral program entitled Human Rights Under Pressure (!), proposes conditioning saving one person’s life on lowly blackmail. Cotler-Wunsh (wunsh in German is wish) essentially made a death wish for Erekat. If her counsel would have been heeded, it would have been an immediate death sentence for him. The expert on human rights and terrorism surely knows a thing or two about the sanctity of human life, but Erekat is not human in her eyes. Perhaps no Palestinian is human in her eyes, for the Palestinians surely haven’t had many leaders more moderate than Erekat. But that’s beside the point. One hopes that she knows demanding that Hamas release the soldiers’ remains and the Israeli civilians in return for medical treatment for Erekat, who is detested by Hamas, is quite ludicrous. Even Cotler-Wunsh has more influence in Gaza than Erekat does. Cotler-Wunsh is not an important figure, as yet, but her voice is important because it reflects the view of many. She is not the racist right, she represents a supposedly moderate, centrist party convinced that it supports universal values, maybe even believes in the two-state solution, and certainly in the existence of a Jewish and democratic state. But what do you know – even this liberal breeding ground can produce racist Zionism and cruelty towards a dying man just because he’s a Palestinian, or maybe just because he’s not a Jew. Turns out that one can be an expert on human rights, an enlightened intellectual raised in an environment of Jewish liberalism, but at the moment of truth, their face is revealed, and it is nationalist, racist, cruel and incredibly ugly.
***Liebskind and Smotrich - when morality is in a critical condition (Zehava Galon, Haaretz Hebrew) At the time of writing, Saeb Erekat is in critical condition in (and Israeli) hospital and his family were called to part from him. He is fighting for his life, and here (I) discuss how much that life is worth to us. Not much, by the way. On the right, it has been argued that treating Erekat is insane. On the left, they say that treating him is necessary to preserve our moral superiority. We also learned to how to conduct a moral discussion, without involving even a single drop of morality. There is no moral superiority in caring for a patient, and those who calculate such benefits are no longer in the realm of morality anyway. You do not get points for treating a person in a critical condition, even if you despise him. On the contrary: avoiding treatment in some cases means a death sentence. Such a sentence, which is not given by a judge, which is not in the book of laws, is murder. There is no superiority in avoiding murder. This is the minimum. And murder, by the way, is exactly what is being demanded right now. Journalist Kalman Liebskind this week quoted a column he wrote three years ago, when Erekat needed medical treatment in Israel, and in the end he only got it in the United States. "Anyone who invites enemies like Saeb Erekat to us is insane," Liebskind wrote, demanding to stop treating "our war with the Palestinians" as if it were a soccer game. The argument is tempting. The conflict is not a game, and humanitarian gestures seem detached in time of war. But this is fiction that pretends to be realism. Israel is not at war with the Palestinian Authority. It is in a controlled, managed and regulated conflict, in which between one bloody outburst and another there is an extensive network of connections, which Liebskind does not demand be cut off. He owes his personal security to it. But when it comes to the life of a Palestinian, it is always possible to pretend that we are in a world war. A similar disconnect was demonstrated by MK Bezalel Smotrich [far right-wing - OH] and Michal Kotler-Wensch, a Knesset member who was suddenly discovered in Kahol-Lavan, who argued that the treatment of Erekat should be conditioned on the return of (Israeli) prisoners from Gaza. They have no idea what they are talking about. The 'Im Tirtzu' [right-wing] organization demonstrated against treating him, saying Erekat receives treatment for free. I am sure that Erekat pays in full for his treatment, like other Palestinian patients who are impoverished by the cost of Israeli treatment. This is another variation of the myth that "We supply Gaza with free electricity." And this is, among other things, the purpose of this monstrous debate - a re-description of the Israeli occupation as if it were a children's story. With an occupier, generous and cruel. Let's go back to Liebskind. Not only towards Erekat is he resentful, but also towards the family of [Hamas leader in Gaza] Ismail Haniyeh: his daughter was hospitalized at Ichilov Hospital, his granddaughter was treated in Schneider Hospital, his brother-in-law was treated in Beilinson Hospital. A moral disaster. I thought that only God dealt with the iniquity of the fathers over the sons [Exodus 20:5], and we were commanded that "a man dies for his own sins." But who am I to teach Liebskind Judaism, and there is no reason to be surprised. Collective punishment anyway is the bread and butter of the occupation. "And you helped the sick person wherever he was sick, whether a foreigner, a non-Jew or a citizen, whether mild or respectable." Many Palestinians have passed through Qalandiya checkpoint [separating West Bank from E. Jerusalem - OH] since these words were written as the oath of the Hebrew doctor. They are not worth much today. Caring for a patient is a basic thing, which we have seen is disappearing. It happened in Hebron, with the paramedic who left a Palestinian, whom Elor Azaria shot, to bleed to death. It happened in Umm al-Hiran, with paramedics watching Yakub Abu al-Qiyan drown in his own blood. It turns out that this was too high a moral rank for us. We are now discussing whether saving lives is at all legitimate. Give us a few more years of occupation, and we'll see where we get to.
Political violence: We won't see it coming (Itamar Fleishman, Israel Hayom) The air of political violence has been around for a while, ugly and menacing. When the match ignites, and it will, none of us should be surprised.
Broader, More Representative: This Is How the Protests Can Oust Netanyahu (Uzi Baram, Haaretz+) An effective protest is a protest that sweeps people in. It also sweeps in those who are on sitting on the fence, or who are even opposed at first to joining in. The regular protests seeking to oust Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are effective because more and more people are joining in – including some who were previously undecided and have now made up their minds to act. Protesting solely over the collapse of the country’s democracy and the conduct of the police and against the Prime Minister’s Residence as a symbol of the country’s decline can be a source of pride, but it won’t tip the balance either. If the protest is to really surge forward, the coronavirus and the economic crisis have to be the central issues.
How Bennett plans to become prime minister (Ariel Kahana, Israel Hayom) Yamina leader Naftali Bennett has learned from the past five elections that he cannot let Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu control the message.
Israel has put all its eggs in Trump's basket (Dr. Nachman Shai, Yedioth/Ynet) After Jerusalem's long insistence on supporting the Republican party and its followers at all costs, a Biden victory will force it to go cap in hand to the U.S. Jewish community it has ignored for years, but it may be too late.
There is no situation in which the submarine affair will not be investigated (Gilad Sher, Yedioth Hebrew)  In the book of laws, there are three tools that will lead to the establishment of a commission of inquiry into the most serious corruption case in the history of the state. Do not let the circus in the Knesset confuse you...The subjects are: State security. Law enforcement. Equality before the law. Public's trust. The principle of transparency. Integrity. What else is needed to convince you - Benny Gantz, Gabi Ashkenazi, Avi Nissenkorn (and maybe also Yisrael Katz)? The establishment of a committee to investigate the "submarine and naval vessels affair" is on your table today. It is a duty to investigate, not permission. And it's up to you.
Here Is the Truth About the Submarines (Uri Misgav, Haaretz+) Haaretz recently published two defense briefs by Netanyahu partisans Mor Altshuler and Yaakov Amidror, who sought to provide explanations and hypotheses for the multiple weighty questions the affair raises. Honestly, if these essays are the best the defense has to offer, they just go to show why this episode demands thorough investigation.
A strategic turning point in Arab-Israeli relations (Salm Salmen Alnoiami, Israel Hayom) The agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Israel is not "just" another treaty. The shared security challenges require a special kind of dialogue.
Netanyahu’s Gulf Breakthrough: It’s His Party and He’ll Cry if He Wants To (Chemi Shalev, Haaretz+) The prime minister’s toxic reputation is denying him the peacemaker glory he yearns for.
The rise of a new Middle East (Eldad Beck, Israel Hayom) For decades, we dreamed, hoped and fought to become part of our region. Now, when it's finally happening, it would be unforgivable to ignore it.
Normalization with Saudi Arabia? Not so fast (Smadar Perry, Yedioth Hebrew) As long as the King of Saudi Arabia is functioning and Trump's future is vague, no change can be expected in relation to Israel. A survey conducted in the kingdom also shows that we are still far away.
Is Iran pushing an arms race? (Benjamin Weil, Israel Hayom) Tehran is not only a threat to the Middle East, but to international stability as well.
In the spirit of Abraham, Israel-UAE business ties must be built on a foundation of trust (Michael Eisenberg, Calcalist English) Michael Eisenberg returned from a visit to the Persian Gulf and suggests Israelis take time to develop solid and mutually beneficial relationships.
 

Interviews:
'Ordering a terrorist's elimination is never taken lightly'
The elimination of Baha Abu al-Ata, Islamic Jihad's "chief of staff" in the Gaza Strip nearly a year ago was a game-changer for Israel and the terrorist group both. Israel Hayom offers an exclusive glimpse into the IAF mission known as Operation Black Belt. (Interviewed by Hanan Greenwood in Israel Hayom)

Berkowitz: "There is a fear that a government led by Joe Biden will seek reconciliation with Iran"
US Special Representative for International Negotiations tells Israel Hayom the US is working actively to expand Israel's normalization deals with the Arab world. Berkowitz was interviewed at the "Abraham Accords" conference of 'Israel Hayom,' the Kohelet Forum and the Shiloh Forum. "We received a message from leaders in the Middle East who are tired of the conflict." (Interviewed by Ariel Kahana in 'Israel Hayom[ Hebrew and English)

Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.

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