APN's daily news review from Israel - Tuesday December 29, 2020 

Quote of the day:

“When people are killed in a vehicle that has a police escort, what is there left to say?"
--Arab-Israeli MK Ahmed Tibi (Joint List) said following the drive by shooting murder of an Arab-Israeli while was under police protection out of fear he would be murdered due to a feud between two families.*

Front Page:

Haaretz

• Mendelblitt secretly established a forum of judicial experts outside of the State Prosecutor’s Office to discuss Prime Minister’s cases
• (Yesh Atid Chairman Yair) Lapid in contact with Tzipi Livni to run jointly together; (Tel-Aviv Mayor Ron) Huldai expected to announced establishment of a party
• Dizzying rate of vaccinations - and the goal is to vaccinate most of the public by March (elections) // Amos Harel
• List of ‘red’ cities was updated: More than 600,000 pupils will return to studies by Zoom
• (Israeli-Arab) resident of Lod was shot dead, son of the rival family was murdered afterward while under police protection
• Friends of the (Jewish settler) teen who died in the (police) chase in the West Bank are suspected of reckless homicide
• New type of wild bee that does not make honey was discovered in Israel
• A favor for a favor // Raviv Drucker writes that Justice Minister Nissenkorn should stay in Kahol-Lavan party after party leader Benny Gantz did everything to protect him
• He learned nothing // Emmanuel Gross writes that Netanyahu’s attempt to give back to the government the authority to appoint an Attorney General is reminiscent of the ‘Bar-On Hebron’ affair
• The logic-lacking lockdown restrictions are expected to be a fatal blow to some 7,500 small businesses and streetshops

Yedioth Ahronoth

• Lack of trust - The quiet rebellion - Mayors went out against the general lockdown (Hebrew)
• Let the municipalities win // Amichai Attali writes that each city should establish restrictions according to its needs
• Eli’s victory - Two years after the terrible accident in the elite Maglan Unit that left him paralyzed, Eli Chayut won the national swim championship for handicapped (Hebrew)
• Wanted: Social vaccine // Miriam Peretz writes that Israelis need to find peace between themselves (Hebrew)

Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)

• Fighting over the lockdown - Roads were filled, shops were open and dozens who tried to escape from the corona hotels clashed with police
• The wild west - Young (Arab-Israeli) man shot dead and another was severely injured by shots at their car while they drove with a police escort car
• Running free - Mayor of Tel-Aviv, Ron Huldai, announced he was establishing a new party

Israel Hayom

• Half a lockdown, half a million vaccinated - Roads full of cars, streets full of people
• Under the police’s nose young (Arab-Israeli) man shot dead and another was severely injured by shots at their car while they drove with a police escort car)
• Tension in Likud party: Cancelling of primaries and battle over who is saved a spot on the list
• Delegation from Morocco considering possibility of returning to building the kingdom used 20 years ago

Top News Summary:
Israelis ignore the restrictions of the third corona lockdown, but the elderly get vaccinated en masse, and in the political arena former politicians consider returning, present politicians change sides, and want-to-be politicians establish new parties - making top news in the Hebrew newspapers.

*Also making big headlines, a young Arab-Israeli man from Lod was killed in a drive-by shooting on a major highway despite having a police escort. The men were being escorted to another locale to protect them after a man from a rival family was slain in Lod overnight. Arab-Israeli citizens and politicians have been complaining for years that the state is not acting to erase violence in their sector. After the shootings, acting Police Commissioner Moti Cohen said, "There is a real escalation in the murder incidents in the sector” and promised that the police would do whatever it took to prosecute those violent criminals and that a comprehensive investigation would be conducted. (Maariv) In an interview on 103FM, Joint List MK Ahmed Tibi asked, “When people are killed in a vehicle accompanied by the police, what is there left to say?" (Maariv)

Haaretz had a scoop today, revealing that Attorney General Avichai Mendelblitt secretly formed a group of legal scholars outside of the State Prosecutor's Offfice to consult with them before deciding on Netanyahu's corruption cases.

Elections 2021:

• Tel Aviv mayor to launch Knesset bid with new party - Huldai promises to present 'clear alternative' to 'hundreds of thousands of Israelis who feel they have no home in current political set up'; joining center-left union could gain him 7 seats, poll says. (Ynet and Israel Hayom)
• Ex-Foreign Minister Livni Mulls Joining Lapid Ahead of Israel's Election - Once a strong contender for Prime Minister, Livni sees opportunity in Kahol Lavan’s steep decline (Haaretz+)
• Netanyahu rival Sa'ar vows to limit PM tenure to 8 years - Gideon Sa'ar, head of the recently formed New Hope party, says mayoral terms should be limited to two terms as well and that he believes in empowering local leaders over a centralized power structure. (Israel Hayom)
• Netanyahu will ask to reserve three or four realistic seats for candidates  - The chairman will offer the members of the center to give up primaries and is considering including Shuli Mualem Refaeli in the list. The opinion of the Deputy Attorney General, according to which, political party activity will be allowed even during the lockdown, may torpedo the initiative. (Maariv)
• Thursday: Justice Minister Leaves Gantz, Foreign Minister Expected to Follow Suit Ahead of Election - Gantz to remove Nissenkorn as justice minister and take over the role as parties prepare for March election. (Haaretz+ and Maariv)

Corona Quickees:

• Israel sees 5,449 new virus cases, highest since October - Health Ministry says infection rate now stands at 5.6%; In the meantime, 115,400 Israelis were vaccinated against COVID on Monday alone, bringing the total number of inoculated in the country to 495,000. (Ynet)
• Israel leading the world in vaccinating population for COVID - Jewish state's inoculation drive gains momentum with almost 100,000 shots administered in a single day; PM says close to 25% of population will be immunized by end of January at current pace. (Ynet)
• Corona effects: Many Israelis return home from relocation around the world - Quite a few who have made a successful move abroad in recent years, have chosen in the past year to return, even if it involves giving up a high standard of living, leaving a glittering job and parting with residence in a bustling metropolis. (Dudi Fetimer, Maariv)
• Iran to receive COVID-19 vaccines from unnamed U.S. donor group - The 150,000 doses come as much needed respite for Iran, which has seen over 1.2 million people infected and 55,000 killed. (Agencies, Haaretz)

Quick Hits:

• (Settler) Teens involved in fatal West Bank police chase now suspected of reckless homicide - 16-year-old Ahuvia Sandak was killed in car crash with police, who had been chasing him and friends on suspicion of stoning Palestinian motorists. (Haaretz+)
• Gaza fishermen, borderline farmers targeted by Israeli army gunfire - Israeli navy opened fire at fishermen's boats as they were sailing three nautical miles into the sea across from of al-Sudaniya shore, northwest of Gaza City, forcing the fishermen to leave the area in a hurry to avoid being shot or their boats damaged or seized. (WAFA)
• Israeli soldiers open fire at Palestinians near the apartheid barrier near Jenin, injuring one - A 27-year-old man was brought to hospital in Jenin with gunshot wounds to his leg after soldiers opened fire at him near the apartheid barrier in Bartaa town. (WAFA)
• After months of no coordination, Palestinian Authority resumes referral of Gaza patients to hospitals (outside of Gaza) - Report said total of 774 patient permit applications: fifth (21%) for children under 18; and nearly a quarter (23%) for patients aged 60 years or older and 12 applicants, or 1.6% of  total, were denied permits to cross Erez crossing to reach healthcare in November. (WAFA)
• Israeli occupation forces demolish two Palestinian-owned car-repair shops in north of West Bank - Israeli army force escorted a bulldozer to al-Lubban al-Sharqiya village and tore down the two Palestinian-owned car-repair shops located on the main road connecting Nablus to Ramallah, reducing them to rubble. (WAFA)
• Israeli occupation authorities issue demolition orders against two structures in the Jordan Valley - The two rooms were built by the Wall and Settlements Resistance Commission to provide services for the residents in the area of in the area of Hammamat al-Maleh. (WAFA)
• 17 US churches and Christian agencies call on Biden to reengage with Palestinian Authority, ensure accountability for Israel - The letter called the new US administration to reiterate the U.S. position that territory controlled by Israel as a result of the 1967 war, including East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, are occupied territories subject to international law and are not recognized parts of Israel. (WAFA)
• Rights group calls on EU to support proposal for a wide ban of trade with and support for illegal settlements - Ramallah-based Al-Haq sent letters yesterday to European representatives,  calling on them to support initiative of the 46 European Parliament members to ban trade with, and support for, illegal settlements established in occupied territories. (WAFA)
• Palestinian premier calls on international community to stop Israel’s settlement plans - Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said that as Israel gets ready to hold its fourth general elections in two years, calls for increasing settlement activities escalate. (WAFA)
• Moroccan delegation in Israel to set up liaison office - The administrative delegation will inspect the building that hosted the Moroccan liaison office in the late 1990s. Rabat had preserved the Tel Aviv office even after severing ties in 2000, when the Second Intifada erupted. (Israel Hayom)
• Israel welcomes 20,000 new immigrants in 2020 - Despite significant drop in number of new arrivals due to pandemic, more Western young adults interested in making Aliyah; Jewish Agency projects over 250,000 people will move to Israel in three to five years. (Ynet)
• Israel fails to transfer restitution payments to Holocaust survivors - Ynet learns that over the past two years, Israel has offset the increase in the monthly stipends paid by the German government to the Holocaust survivors from the monthly allowance the state itself transfers to the victims, saving the Treasury money. (Ynet)
• 'Palestinian techno queen' arrested for holding rave party at Moses' burial site - Palestinian DJ arrested and Palestinian Authority opened an investigation after Palestinian public expresses outrage over reveling at West Bank holy site Nabi Musa. (Haaretz+ and Ynet)
• Russia sends forces to Syrian territory facing renewed Kurdish-Turkish clashes - The deployment comes amid upcoming talks between Russia and Turkey and clashes this month between Turkish-backed fighters and Kurdish forces. (Agencies, Haaretz)
• Leading Saudi women's rights activist sentenced to 6 years in prison - Al-Hathloul was found guilty on charges including agitating for change, pursuing a foreign agenda and using the internet to harm public order. (Agencies, Haaretz and Israel Hayom)
• Biden adviser slams Saudi Arabia over prison sentence for leading women's rights activist - Criticism of the ruling against Loujain al-Hathloul potentially signals a new approach from the Biden administration toward Saudi Arabia. (Agencies, Haaretz)

Features:

Iranian Cyberattack Claims New Victim – and Israeli Hackers Vow Revenge
The Pay2Key group claims it managed to hack the data of yet another Israeli defense firm; meanwhile, a group of anonymous Israeli hackers is mounting a counteroffensive. (Omer Benjakob, Haaretz+)
What Happened When Four Gay Guys From Tel Aviv Took a Vacation to Dubai
A bar with a weekly gay night, but no couples kissing on the dance floor; a heartwarming encounter by the poolside but a disturbing male prostitution industry: Impressions from a short visit to the emirate. (Itay Stern, Haaretz+)

Commentary/Analysis:
Israel's Ambitious Vaccine Drive Is Set for Success as Netanyahu Seeks Election Campaign Boost (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) Israel aims to vaccinate most adults by March, and it can do it as long as a high public response rate continues and the COVID-19 vaccine supply chain doesn't face delays.
A lockdown to reelect Netanyahu (Nahum Barnea, Yedioth/Ynet) PM's handling of the pandemic and other government decisions are colored by his corruption trial; anything is deemed acceptable to keep him in power including intimidation, blackmail and violence - and this has to stop.
Floods, scorched earth and anarchy follow Netanyahu (Dr. Nachman Shai, Yedioth Hebrew) A two-year election campaign, without a budget, against the background of undermining trust in democracy, weakening the legislative and judicial authorities and harming the media. What does Binyamin Netanyahu leave behind? And who do we look up to.
Netanyahu's Plan for Electoral Victory (Nehemia Shtrasler, Haaretz+) In his self-congratulatory speeches about the vaccines, Netanyahu also forgets to mention the tens of millions that he poured down the drain in the Biological Institute in Nes Ziona. He visited the place, had his picture taken, proclaimed that the results were very promising and that we were on the brink of having a highly effective Israeli vaccine. And gullible folks believed him. This is the great strength of the arch-scoundrel, who at this point barely remembers where Nes Tziona is…The vaccine is the cornerstone of Netanyahu’s strategy to win the upcoming election. His plan has four stages.
Precisely before the election, it is worth asking: Is the closure political? (Moshe Nestelbaum, Maariv) The fact that the fight against the corona virus is taking place in the shadow of elections requires all leaders to make reasoned and transparent decisions, along with ensuring that selective enforcement is not carried out.
COVID has given Israel an excuse to tighten the blockade of Gaza (Amira Hass, Haaretz+) Attending the wedding or funeral of an immediate family member is a valid reason to permit entry or exit from the Gaza Strip, but the pandemic has given Israel an excuse to ignore that.
COVID Vaccines for Gaza Isn't Charity. It's Israel's Legal and Humanitarian Duty (Ghada Majadli, Haaretz+) Israel is exploiting Hamas’ helplessness to halt the spread of the coronavirus and conditioning aid for the pandemic on the return of Israeli captives and missing soldiers.
Between political agreements and the persecution of the judiciary, it was a year of one man (Yitzhak Ben-Ner, Maariv) No matter how you look at the terrible year that will end the day after tomorrow, it was the year of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for all his achievements, clear failures and the indictment against him.
Next election could harm public trust (Dan Schueftan, Israel Hayom) In an election, the public is supposed to vote for its preferred government policies, but it doesn't look like any discussion of any serious issues will take place. Iran? The economy? The Palestinians? It's doubtful any of the politicians vying for our vote have given much thought to anything beyond how best to maintain or gain power.
Israel's Lawmakers Have Failed. How About We Let Somebody Else Run This Country? (B. Michael, Haaretz+) For the first time in the state’s history the government was deposed automatically, because it failed to carry out the most basic task of a government: passing the state budget. Now it becomes a transitional government. Its rule continues; its authority remains almost as it was and its tenure endures until a new government is formed, which, as we’ve already seen, can take months. However, don’t logic, common sense, fairness and caution demand there be a difference between the authority of a transitional government that ends in some natural way (like the end of its tenure, a law to dissolve the Knesset, the resignation of the prime minister), and the authority of a transitional government that was sent home because it didn’t fulfill the demands of the law? Shouldn’t its authority be curtailed, lest it fail in its duty yet again…
Thanks to her it are sitting here today, now is the time to anchor it in law (MK Michal Cotler-Wish, Maariv) …Alongside health, social and economic crises, Israeli society is in a deep crisis of confidence. The mutual guarantee, on the basis of which the state arose, is threatened from the outside and inside. The Declaration of Independence embodies the opportunity for the renewal of the alliance in order to restore trust and mutual guarantee between the state and its citizens, and between its citizens and themselves. In addition, the Declaration of Independence requires every authority to do its job responsibly, properly and transparently and produces a balance between the authorities. Thanks to the Declaration of Independence we are sitting here today. As David Ben-Gurion and the leaders of that period recognized the magnitude of the hour, so, on our way to another election we are called today to take responsibility, to rise above the divider, identify the right and duty and ensure the anchoring of the Declaration of Independence in the Law Book of Israel.
Where Will the Middle East’s Normalization Roulette Land Next? (Zvi Bar'el, Haaretz+) An air of reconciliation isn't confined to relations between Israel and Arab and Muslim countries, but it is also sprouting between Arab countries themselves.
The election paradox created by Balfour protesters (Ben-Dror Yemini, Yedioth Hebrew) The anti-Netanyahu protest became the best thing that happened to the ideological right-wing, thanks to it, and only thanks to it, it manages to hypnotize centrist voters. It seems to them that they are voting against Netanyahu. Mistake: They are voting for the right-wing.
A Free and Fair Election in the Digital Age: Can Israel Do It? (Haaretz Editorial) During the first three elections in Israel, anarchy reigned in the digital political arena: There were posts and tweets loaded with disinformation; targeted advertising using data from unknown sources; digital teams that dug up dirt, some of it baseless, on rival candidates – all of it funded in part by taxpayer money allocated to the parties by the government. Unlike in the United States, in Israel we can’t rely on Facebook and Twitter to protect users from false or anonymous political information.
Ten Years On, the Arab Spring's Biggest Winner Is Israel (Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz+) Democracy is no longer seen as a panacea for the region or even a precondition for peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors.
China Is the Middle East's Rising Power. Israel Must Tread Carefully (Gedaliah Afterman and Theresa Hoffmann, Haaretz+) China can’t substitute for American support for Israel. But with Beijing fortifying its position in the Middle East, Israel must engage – or risk its future.

 

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