APN's daily news review from Israel
Friday April 11, 2014
Quote of the day:
"Every Arab mother should know that the fate of her son is in our hands."
--Words written on shirts ordered by IDF Nahal officer and soldiers for their army unit.*
--Words written on shirts ordered by IDF Nahal officer and soldiers for their army unit.*
Front Page News:
Haaretz
- Bennett threatens: If Arab Israelis are released - we will break up the coalition - Netanyahu freezes Palestinian monies, demands that Abbas commit to not to pull out of negotiations
- Duty officer (caricature of IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz)- Haaretz poll: Chief of Staff leads the list of most liked public figures in Israel, and even passed recordmaker (President Shimon) Peres. Lieberman breathes down Netanyahu's neck // Yossi Verter and Amos Harel
- Despite threats, better not to expect a turnabout regarding the state's dealings with the extremist right-wing rioters // Amos Harel
- Zohar Hankishiev is the state witness accused of fraud against the state in gay youth bar affair
- I have a confession: I also roll (joints) // Yonatan Geffen
- Without medical insurance and rights, asylum seekers who are injured are abandoned to their fate
- Visit to Syrian refugee centers in the poorest state of the EU
- Dog language and even artificial: the future war against crime
Yedioth Ahronoth
- Bennett: We will leave (the coalition government) if Arab Israelis are released
- The Jewish 'Poof' // Sima Kadmon
- Return to the tunnel
Maariv
- US last effort to formulate "Pollard in exchange for prisoners" agreement (Hebrew)
- Without an agreement, there is a need for an arrangement // Ben-Dror Yemini (Hebrew)
- Olmert's movie - Only two months ago the prime minister planned a draft to reconquer the government
- The new axis - Avigdor Lieberman and Moshe Kahlon examining cooperation in next elections (Hebrew)
- Protest in Golan - Residents of Heights furious over plan to drill for oil led by Brig. Gen. (res.) Effi Eitam
- Embarrassment in Central Command: Reserves Lt. Col. (living in Yitzhar) avoiding giving names of rioters
- The sovereign takes revenge // Kalman Libskind (Hebrew)
- Released for publication: Zaor Hanishiev is the state witness in the gay youth bar affair
- Preparing for Passover holiday - Photo of Eritreans at Aviv matza factory
- Exodus from Egypt - When radical Muslims raided their estate in Alexandria, Omer and Hila Ovadia understood they need to escape. On Independence Day their daughter will be declared an outstanding soldier
- Religion, State - Dr. Anat Rott, a former Peace Now activist, refutes the image of settlers as violent in a new book, "Not an any price"
Israel Hayom
- Bennett: We will leave the government; Likud: No one is holding him back
- Between optimism and pessimism // Dan Margalit on peace talks
- State witness in gay youth bar affair: Zaor Hankishiev
- Rabbi Berland, in prisoner's uniform in Zimbabwe
- Cheaper ticket, you live in a movie - Just after the fee for ordering tickets over the internet was cancelled, movie theaters raised ticket prices
Peace Talk Highlights:
Economy Minister and leader of the pro-settler Habayit Hayehudi party threatened his party would leave the government if Israeli-Arab prisoners were released as part of a peace talks agreement, in a sign that there may be an agreement between Israelis and Palestinians to continue them beyond the looming April 29th deadline and making top story in today's Hebrew newspapers. Meanwhile, Israel has imposed economic sanctions on the Palestinians for petitioning to join international conventions and organizations.
Bennett threatened to leave the government coalition if the government passed the reported proposal to save the talks by freeing Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of spy Jonathan Pollard and an extension to the talks. Bennett had suggested that Israel annex settlement blocs in the West Bank and told Ynet that the majority of lawmakers in Israel support annexation. "Hold a referendum and you will see the results," said Bennett. "Why keep banging your head against the wall?"
Family members of terror victims staged a Passover protest outside the US consulate in Jerusalem with photos of the 183 people killed by the Palestinians released in the first three rounds as 'guests' at a Passover table.
All this comes in the wake of reports of progress in talks on resuming peace negotiations. One source told Al Arabiya that Israel has agreed to free the 26 prisoners that were supposed to be released last month as well as hundreds of other prisoners - including high-ranking ones - and a 'quiet' freeze to West Bank construction in exchange for the Palestinians backtracking on their UN bid and the US releasing Pollard in a final bid to save peace talks. But the Palestinians say that's premature and that if there is an agreement, it's between the US and Israel.
Meanwhile, Israel decided to punish the Palestinians for the petitions to join international organizations by freezing the transfer of Palestinian taxes to the Palestinian Authority. One diplomatic source told Ynet that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu cannot overcome a relentless need to punish the Palestinians. But today the Swiss and the UN accepted Palestinian requests to join international treaties and the Palestinians say they are ready with more applications.
Meanwhile, Haaretz's Yossi Verter has an interesting analysis on a Haaretz poll and finds that the breakdown of talks only strengthened the right-wing in the government. The poll is also about popularity of public leaders. More here.
Economy Minister and leader of the pro-settler Habayit Hayehudi party threatened his party would leave the government if Israeli-Arab prisoners were released as part of a peace talks agreement, in a sign that there may be an agreement between Israelis and Palestinians to continue them beyond the looming April 29th deadline and making top story in today's Hebrew newspapers. Meanwhile, Israel has imposed economic sanctions on the Palestinians for petitioning to join international conventions and organizations.
Bennett threatened to leave the government coalition if the government passed the reported proposal to save the talks by freeing Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of spy Jonathan Pollard and an extension to the talks. Bennett had suggested that Israel annex settlement blocs in the West Bank and told Ynet that the majority of lawmakers in Israel support annexation. "Hold a referendum and you will see the results," said Bennett. "Why keep banging your head against the wall?"
Family members of terror victims staged a Passover protest outside the US consulate in Jerusalem with photos of the 183 people killed by the Palestinians released in the first three rounds as 'guests' at a Passover table.
All this comes in the wake of reports of progress in talks on resuming peace negotiations. One source told Al Arabiya that Israel has agreed to free the 26 prisoners that were supposed to be released last month as well as hundreds of other prisoners - including high-ranking ones - and a 'quiet' freeze to West Bank construction in exchange for the Palestinians backtracking on their UN bid and the US releasing Pollard in a final bid to save peace talks. But the Palestinians say that's premature and that if there is an agreement, it's between the US and Israel.
Meanwhile, Israel decided to punish the Palestinians for the petitions to join international organizations by freezing the transfer of Palestinian taxes to the Palestinian Authority. One diplomatic source told Ynet that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu cannot overcome a relentless need to punish the Palestinians. But today the Swiss and the UN accepted Palestinian requests to join international treaties and the Palestinians say they are ready with more applications.
Meanwhile, Haaretz's Yossi Verter has an interesting analysis on a Haaretz poll and finds that the breakdown of talks only strengthened the right-wing in the government. The poll is also about popularity of public leaders. More here.
Quick Hits:
- Soldiers stand by as Israeli settlers attack Palestinian school girls - A group of extremist Israeli settlers hurled stones at school girls in the village of al-Tuwani, south of Hebron, leaving them bruised. Israeli soldiers stood by and watched without taking action. [An Israeli group that aids these villagers posted a video. - OH] (Maan)
- **Soldiers dismissed because of shirt - Platoon commander, sergeant, and a combat soldier from the Nahal Brigades ordered shirts for the unit in which it was written: "Every Arab mother should know that the fate of her son is in our hands." Battalion commander conducted inquiry, decided to dismiss them from combat service. IDF: "They did not act according to IDF values." (Yedioth, p. 16)
- 2 US lawmakers tour Aqsa with right-wing Jews - Republicans Bill Johnson of Ohio and David McKinley of Virginia entered the compound with the "extremist" Chaim Richman, director of the rightist Temple Institute. Johnson and McKinley were hosted by the Israel Allies Foundation which is active in "disseminating extremist Zionist ideology in the United States." (Maan)
- Miliband: Negotiations are key to overcome Mideast crisis, Iranian threat - Visiting British opposition leader tells Hebrew University students that while Britain is 'under no illusion' about Iran, he 'doesn't see any good outcome which doesn't involve negotiations.' (Ynet)
- Israeli forces tear down tents housing displaced families near Nablus - He explained that the tents were donated by the Palestinian Red Crescent Association and had served as temporary dwellings for Palestinian families, whose homes Israel demolished last week. (Maan)
- Israel to confiscate vast area of Bethlehem village land - High-level Israeli military commanders and Civil Administration officers along with a group of settlers toured private Palestinian fields and left yellow posters reading “State properties! No entry" and which announced that 984 dunams of privately-owned land was slated for confiscation. (Maan)
- Housing Minister clashes with AG over plan to give Western Wall site settlement group - Right-wing Elad association tells court that the state prosecutor doesn't represent the government's position. (Haaretz+)
- Israeli forces injure four Palestinians in shootings near Gaza border - In once incident, sources said Israeli troops stationed on monitor towers opened fire at workers collecting small stones from fields to be used for making concrete, injuring three workers seriously. (Maan)
- Israeli forces detain Palestinian school principal in East Jerusalem - Israeli troops surrounded the Muslim orphanage high school and prepared to storm the school and detain the principal, Alaa Abu Shkheidim, but Abu Shkheidim went to the forces himself. (Maan)
- Israel demands dismissal of 'anti-Semitic' senior UN official - Israel's UN envoy Ron Prosor asks Ban Ki-moon to suspend Jordanian-born UN official for report in which she said Israel's polices reminiscent of 'worst crimes of the last century.' (Yedioth/Ynet)
- Archbishop condemns Israeli restrictions on Easter pilgrims - "It is the right of every Christian to reach the Church of the Holy Sepulchre without facing any obstacles, or impediments," Orthodox Archbishop Atallah Hanna said in a statement. (Maan)
- Israelis with Spanish citizenship could be exempt from draft - IDF order is response to Spanish law barring service in foreign army. (Haaretz+)
- Sheikh Salah convicted of obstructing police operations - "The accused sought to frustrate the search of his wife because to him it represented an affront to his honor," court rules. Raed Salah was recently sentenced to eight months in prison after the Jerusalem court finds him guilty of inciting violence. (Israel Hayom)
- Senior Hamas member freed after years of detention by Israel and PA - Ayoub Kawasme was questioned for five weeks by Israel and was held 38 months by the PA without ever being questioned before being released. Human rights organizations say the PA is arresting members of opposition groups on false security grounds in order to silence the opposition and enforce submission. (Haaretz+)
- Israeli court extends detention of 3 Jerusalemite prisoners - Two of them are lawyers Amjad al-Safadi and Shireen Issawi, prominent siblings of famed Palestinian hunger striking former prisoner Samer Issawi. (Maan)
- Islamic Jihad imam 'beaten' by al-Qassam members - An imam affiliated with Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad accused members of the the military wing of Hamas of assaulting him and firing shots near the Ibrahim Khalil mosque in the northern Gaza Strip. (Maan)
- Battle cry sounded at three-day anti-BDS powwow in London - Some 150 Israel advocates from 25 countries hold closed meetings; World Jewish Congress head vows legal, political battle against boycott movement. (Haaretz+)
- Boy George to kick off Eilat Gay Pride Parade in May - Culture Club vocalist who blazed trail for openly gay pop artists plans all-night DJ set on beach. (Haaretz+)
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Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.