APN's daily news review from Israel
Tuesday January 13, 2015
Quote of the day:
“The political drift against Israel is expected to continue – and worsen.”
--From a confidential Israeli Foreign Ministry report on the diplomatic forecast for Israel in 2015.**
--From a confidential Israeli Foreign Ministry report on the diplomatic forecast for Israel in 2015.**
Front Page:
Haaretz
- France to decide whether to make harsher legislation against terror; 5000 police to guard Jewish institutions
- Today primaries in Labor party: Test of power of Yachimovich and Cabel
- After requesting to resign, Deri announced he will continue to lead Shas
- Beinish opposes Police Commissioner Danino’s flagship plan: I was in shock by the high number of unnecessary detentions
- One thousand survivors of massacre in Nigeria are trapped on island; Witness who escaped: “They killed people like mosquitoes”
- (Outgoing Chief Justice) Grunis and (incoming Chief Justice) Naor are last in reviews by lawyers
- ‘Boyhood’ and ‘The Affair’ by Hagai Levy won the Golden Globe award
Yedioth Ahronoth
- “The boycott of Israel will worsen” – Confidential report by Foreign Ministry
- It pays to work in the National Labor Union (Histadrut) – Average wage is 18,000 sh. a month
- Today: Primaries in Labor party
- Tomorrow: Pupils on strike – because of crisis over school trips
- The attack in Paris: The horror in the refrigeration room
- The winning cover of the new stinging issue (of Charlie Hebdo) [Photo of cover showing cartoon of Prophet Mohammed holding sign saying ‘Je Suis Charlie’]
- Life is hell – Exclusive to Yedioth: This is how the first victory over ISIS in Syria looks
- Red carpet – Golden Globe awards: Hagay Levy’s win, Ronit Elkabatz’s disappointment and the dresses that stole the show
- New chocolate milk – Fighting obesity in children: Terra presents chocolate milk without sugar added or artificial sweeteners
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
- Their last journey [Photo of graves at cemetery] – Coffins of the four killed in the attack at Hypercacher were flown last night from Paris to Israel – Will be buried today at noon
- Alert in France: Policecar next to every Jewish school
- Now what? // Gideon Kotz in Paris
- 15,000 French soldiers and police deployed across the country
- Elections 2015: Today, primaries in Labor Party; In Likud, still fighting over the results; As expected, Deri returned to head of Shas party
- “I will reserve the right to silence” – MK Faina Kirschenbaum announced resignation from politics and claimed: ״They made a character assassination” of me; Corruption scandal branches out: Mayor and deputy mayor of Afula arrested
- Conquered Mt. Hermon – Some 2,500 Israelis waited in hours of traffic to go up the snowy mountain, which opened for the first time this season
Israel Hayom
- To be buried in Israel – From Paris to Jerusalem: The murdered of the attack at the supermarket will be buried today
- The media on the Prime Minister in Paris: Reports of hatred and malice // Haim Shine
- Kirschenbaum resigns: “I will be silent in the (corruption) interrogation”
- Attorney General: The Hannibal Directive does not order to shoot a kidnapped soldier; the directive does not contradict int’l law
- Israel skis
- Today: Labor party chooses its list
- Hackers that identify with ISIS broke into the US military’s Twitter account.
- Israeli Globe Award: ‘The Affair’ by Hagai Levi – best drama series
News Summary:
The burial today in Jerusalem of the Jews murdered in Paris, France’s plans to protect Jewish institutions and the resignation of MK Faina Kirschenbaum, who said she will be silent in interrogations over the corruption scandal she is allegedly involved in were the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. Also in the news were the statements by the Attorney General over the decision to be made about opening a criminal probe into the actions by the Givati Brigade on ‘Rafah’s Black Friday’ and what is the controversial Hannibal Directive. Yedioth also reported on a secret document given to Israeli embassies across the world warning that Israel will face actions on the diplomatic front – and that it will cost the country dearly.
Israel prepared for masses to attend the a state funeral today in Jerusalem for the four people murdered at a kosher supermarket in Paris. The store's owner said he will sell his business and immigrate to Israel.
One of the four victims, Yoav Hattab, 21, is from Tunisia and his family in Paris threatened to boycott the funeral if they are not allowed to hold a private burial ceremony at the yeshiva of Rabbi Meir Mazuz in Bnei Brak, Maariv reported. But, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu asked the family to give up on the idea and join the joint state funeral ceremony in Jerusalem - and the family agreed. Nevertheless, it was decided that a wake would be held for Hattab in Bnei Brak before the burial ceremony. Ynet reported that Muslim friends of Hattab were sorry that he was being buried in Israel because they could not attend his funeral. They opened a Facebook page in his memory with eulogies and prayers for his soul in Arabic. Thirty years ago, the Hattab family lost another member of its family to anti-Semitism, Ynet reported. Yoav’s aunt Yehudit Bucharis was killed in the 1985 attack on a Tunisian synagogue.
France will deploy 5,000 police to protect Jewish sites across the Republic, with a police car at every Jewish school. The papers wondered whether France would decide to make stricter laws that would allow pre-emptive detentions and wire surveillance of citizens.
Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein made clear that the IDF prosecutor, not senior commanders such as the Defense Minister, decide whether to open a criminal probe on the so-called Black Friday events in Rafah. Weinstein was responding to a query by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, titled “The Hannibal Directive and its implementation in densely populated areas," regarding Rafah’s ‘Black Friday, which began with the deaths of three Givati Brigade fighters and the snatching of the body of one of them, Lt. Hadar Goldin, by Hamas fighters and ended with massive death and injury to Palestinians, most of them reportedly civilians. Weinstein also said that the controversial Hannibal Directive forbids killing kidnapped soldiers, despite the fact that it is commonly believed that this is the essence of the directive. Moreover, writes Ynet, “the chief legal counsel's statement runs counter to those of senior Givati commanders, who said they preferred the soldier be killed in action and not kidnapped alive.” However, Weinstein wrote that the operational order regarding the thwarting of a soldier or Israeli citizen's kidnapping is a classified command and thus its provisions cannot be revealed.
**“Israel’s forecast looks colder than ever,” writes Yedioth’s Itamar Eichner and goes on to describe a confidential document distributed to Israeli embassies, which describes a severe picture of the coming year: “The political drift against Israel is expected to continue – and worsen.” On the agenda: Harm to security imports, harsher boycott of products from the (occupied) Territories, reduction of joint investments and projects and the termination of business and academic relations.
The burial today in Jerusalem of the Jews murdered in Paris, France’s plans to protect Jewish institutions and the resignation of MK Faina Kirschenbaum, who said she will be silent in interrogations over the corruption scandal she is allegedly involved in were the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. Also in the news were the statements by the Attorney General over the decision to be made about opening a criminal probe into the actions by the Givati Brigade on ‘Rafah’s Black Friday’ and what is the controversial Hannibal Directive. Yedioth also reported on a secret document given to Israeli embassies across the world warning that Israel will face actions on the diplomatic front – and that it will cost the country dearly.
Israel prepared for masses to attend the a state funeral today in Jerusalem for the four people murdered at a kosher supermarket in Paris. The store's owner said he will sell his business and immigrate to Israel.
One of the four victims, Yoav Hattab, 21, is from Tunisia and his family in Paris threatened to boycott the funeral if they are not allowed to hold a private burial ceremony at the yeshiva of Rabbi Meir Mazuz in Bnei Brak, Maariv reported. But, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu asked the family to give up on the idea and join the joint state funeral ceremony in Jerusalem - and the family agreed. Nevertheless, it was decided that a wake would be held for Hattab in Bnei Brak before the burial ceremony. Ynet reported that Muslim friends of Hattab were sorry that he was being buried in Israel because they could not attend his funeral. They opened a Facebook page in his memory with eulogies and prayers for his soul in Arabic. Thirty years ago, the Hattab family lost another member of its family to anti-Semitism, Ynet reported. Yoav’s aunt Yehudit Bucharis was killed in the 1985 attack on a Tunisian synagogue.
France will deploy 5,000 police to protect Jewish sites across the Republic, with a police car at every Jewish school. The papers wondered whether France would decide to make stricter laws that would allow pre-emptive detentions and wire surveillance of citizens.
Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein made clear that the IDF prosecutor, not senior commanders such as the Defense Minister, decide whether to open a criminal probe on the so-called Black Friday events in Rafah. Weinstein was responding to a query by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, titled “The Hannibal Directive and its implementation in densely populated areas," regarding Rafah’s ‘Black Friday, which began with the deaths of three Givati Brigade fighters and the snatching of the body of one of them, Lt. Hadar Goldin, by Hamas fighters and ended with massive death and injury to Palestinians, most of them reportedly civilians. Weinstein also said that the controversial Hannibal Directive forbids killing kidnapped soldiers, despite the fact that it is commonly believed that this is the essence of the directive. Moreover, writes Ynet, “the chief legal counsel's statement runs counter to those of senior Givati commanders, who said they preferred the soldier be killed in action and not kidnapped alive.” However, Weinstein wrote that the operational order regarding the thwarting of a soldier or Israeli citizen's kidnapping is a classified command and thus its provisions cannot be revealed.
**“Israel’s forecast looks colder than ever,” writes Yedioth’s Itamar Eichner and goes on to describe a confidential document distributed to Israeli embassies, which describes a severe picture of the coming year: “The political drift against Israel is expected to continue – and worsen.” On the agenda: Harm to security imports, harsher boycott of products from the (occupied) Territories, reduction of joint investments and projects and the termination of business and academic relations.
Quick Hits:
- Obama, Netanyahu discuss Palestinian ICC bid, Iran talks - Obama reiterates U.S. position that the Palestinian Authority doesn't constitute a state yet and therefore isn't eligible to accede to the Rome Statute. (Haaretz)
- Lapid: Netanyahu represented 'pushy' Israelis in Paris - Yesh Atid chairman adds to criticism of Netanyahu's last minute trip to Paris, criticizing the prime minister for video showing him skipping a line to get to the bus. (Ynet)
- Hamas slams Abbas 'hypocrisy' for attending Paris march - Senior official Mahmoud Zahar says Palestinian leader should be more concerned with own people, not trying to win sympathy of world leaders. (Ynet)
- French Israelis, fearing anti-Semitism back home, await wave of aliyah - Community leader: ‘I believe that within a few years, a very high proportion will move here.’ (Haaretz+)
- Accomplice of Paris kosher mart shooter caught on camera in Istanbul - Turkey denies blame for terror suspect's passage to Syria through its airport, says no intelligence received from France. (Agencies, Ynet)
- Anti-Semitic conspiracy theories surface after Paris attacks - ADL exposes US-based blogs, as well as international media outlets, claiming Jews are waging a war against Islam. (Ynet)
- Israel bans Islamist groups for allegedly funding Temple Mount unrest - Move comes after defense minister announces that the three groups, founded by radical northern branch of Israel's Islamic Movement, will be outlawed. (Haaretz and Ynet)
- Israeli man tried to join Syrian jihadists, tortured by Assad forces - 21-year-old Yusef Nasrallah was asked to provide information on Israeli military installations, Shin Bet security service says. (Haaretz+ and Ynet)
- New Bayit Yehudi hopeful was detained by Shin Bet for anti-disengagement (from Gaza) plot - Bezalel Smotrich secures ninth spot on HaBayit HaYehudi list after coming second in Tekuma primary; arrested in 2005 for plan to attack national infrastructure. (Ynet)
- Mayor of Philadelphia to wed Israeli diplomat in same-sex marriage ceremony - Elad Strohmyer, deputy consul general of Israel in City of Brotherly Love, will be the first diplomat married in a ceremony conducted by Mayor Michael Nutter at Philadelphia's City Hall. (Yedioth/Ynet)
- Number of Israelis traveling abroad hits all-time high in 2014 - Despite recession and war, 5.2 million Israelis took trips abroad last year, compared to 4.8 million in 2013. One-quarter of trips abroad took place during Operation Protective Edge. 31,000 Israelis left on Sept. 23 to spend Rosh Hashana abroad. (Israel Hayom)
- Erdogan: Netanyahu fomented terror in Gaza, now marching for peace in Paris - Recep Tayyip Erdogan also questioned the world's outpouring for the Paris attacks, juxtaposing them with the tragedies of the civil war in Syria. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Iran, US to explore ways to speed up nuclear talks - Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to meet with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Geneva on Wednesday. Meeting to be held ahead of next round of nuclear negotiations between Iran and P5+1 powers, set for next week. (Agencies, Israel Hayom)
- Middle East Updates / Egypt orders re-trial for Hosni Mubarak, one of last steps to his release - Iran's Rohani: Countries behind oil price drop will suffer; Turkish entrepreneur aims for university for Syrian refugees. (Haaretz)
- Syria denies nuclear allegations, weapons experts skeptical too - Der Spiegel says Syrian President Bashar Assad is building secret underground plant to develop nuclear weapons. (Haaretz)
- PLO faces US civil trial over terror attacks in Israel - New York trial to decide whether Palestinian Liberation Organization and Palestinian Authority should pay $1 billion in compensation over seven terrorist attacks that killed 33 people and wounded hundreds in 2001 to 2004. PLO, PA deny allegations. (Agencies, Israel Hayom)
Features:
How France and other countries around the world treat terrorists
The War on Terror is being fought across the globe without a fixed set of rules. Haaretz assesses seven countries' treatment of terror suspects. (Haaretz)
Commentary/Analysis:
The War on Terror is being fought across the globe without a fixed set of rules. Haaretz assesses seven countries' treatment of terror suspects. (Haaretz)
Commentary/Analysis:
Netanyahu’s Paris appearance was a PR disaster (Asher Schechter, Haaretz+) Benjamin Netanyahu finds out he missed the bus: An uncomfortable look at the
prime minister’s embarrassing trip to France.
Why did Hamas condemn Charlie Hebdo attack? (Ilene Prusher, Haaretz+) Hamas has almost nothing to gain by endorsing such a brutal and bloody attack on French soil, and everything to gain by condemning it.
Test year (Uri Savir, Maariv) 2015 will be conducted between the economic and social globalization and between fragmentation and terrorism, between leaders like Obama and between ISIS and Al-Qaeda. In Israel, we are convinced that we belong to the collective world of progress, but that's not at all guaranteed. In recent years, the light of the government’s policy of occupation and settlements, the West rejects us, especially in the European Union. The year 2015 will determine what kind of world we belong to: religious fundamentalism or liberal pragmatism. Only belonging to the collective diplomatic effort together with the West and the pragmatic Arab states for the establishment of a Palestinian state in peace, will ensure our participation in the family of enlightened nations. The answer to that will be given on March 17 (Israeli election day).
Netanyahu's campaign slogans come at French Jews' expense (Haaretz Editorial) Terror groups can consider it a triumph that even Israel’s prime minister is encouraging Jews to flee.
Je suis Bibi! Netanyahu brings Likud to Paris (Yossi Verter, Haaretz+) How PM Netanyahu elbowed his way into the front row at Sunday's rally in Paris.
Operation Protective Law (Alex Fishman, Yedioth/Ynet) Decision yet to be made to open Military Police investigation into so-called Rafah File – but someone is trying to forcibly prevent legal proceedings pertaining to one of the most controversial incidents in summer's Gaza war - the employment of the Hannibal Directive by Givati Brigade Commander Colonel Ofer Vinter. The leak of recordings of some of the brigade's communications during those dramatic moments indicates that commanders who played a part in the battle were already gathering evidence at the time, and got their hands on documents and recordings to save for a rainy day. No one has approached them, and no one has accused them of anything yet but they are already behaving like wanted men and are preparing for the possibility of a legal battle. Apparently they have good reason to be readying for the worst - from their point of view.
In dark and cold post-war Gaza, it may take a miracle to rebuild (Zvi Bar'el , Haaretz+) Tens of thousands endure bitter cold weather while waiting to receive money to rebuild their homes. Meanwhile, a few Muslims bought Christmas trees to 'spread a bit of joy'; maybe what Gaza needs is Santa Claus.
Where is the West’s outrage over Boko Haram? (Asaf Ronel, Haaretz+) Boko Haram sends 10-year-old girls to blow themselves up and massacres hundreds each week. To wipe out terror we must relate equally to all victims.
On the day after the attacks, Paris is already asking: what now? (Gideon Kotz, Maariv) France is debating whether make stricter laws and allow preventive detentions and wired surveillance of citizens. And also the Muslims are already afraid of turning into the “new Jews" after just in the recent days there were 50 incidents against Muslim targets in France.
France can't beat Islamic terror without a tight alliance with Israel (Seth Lipsky, Haaretz+) Correspondence between David Ben-Gurion and Charles de Gaulle reveals where things unraveled between the Jewish state and the Fifth Republic – and how wrongs can be made right now.
West's anti-Israel propaganda encourages terror (Ben-Dror Yemini, Yedioth/Ynet) The jihad's brainwashing machines are not alone; they are backed by the lies against Israel in the media and in the academia.
Radicalism doesn't come from a vacuum (Dr. Haim Shine, Israel Hayom) The Charlie Hebdo massacre shook the French out of their "Arab Spring" coma, but already the French Left is carefully distinguishing between Islam and fanaticism.
Israel must help French Jews remain in the Diaspora (David Fachler, Haaretz+) Netanyahu's mistake lies not in encouraging immigration, but in forgetting that Israel is obliged to support and secure Jewish life abroad.
A time to offer pride (Dan Margalit, Israel Hayom) Those who do not want to call on Jews around the world to come to their homeland would do well to keep their thoughts to themselves.
Paris saw the mother of all rallies (Nahum Barnea, Yedioth/Ynet) About two million people took part in the 'Republican march' in order to clarify their value system to the world. In this context, something should also be said about us. Had terrorists entered the offices of a media outlet in Israel and murdered its journalists, what would have happened on the street? The Israelis would have been shocked by the act of terror – there is no doubt about it. But would have they been shocked by the violation of freedom of expression?... Netanyahu immediately flanked to the right, allegedly in order to shake the hand of Mali's president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. In the middle of the handshake, he elbowed his way into the front row. The maneuver gave the march an Israeli charm. Our leaders are the only ones familiar with the elbowing doctrine.
Why did Hamas condemn Charlie Hebdo attack? (Ilene Prusher, Haaretz+) Hamas has almost nothing to gain by endorsing such a brutal and bloody attack on French soil, and everything to gain by condemning it.
Test year (Uri Savir, Maariv) 2015 will be conducted between the economic and social globalization and between fragmentation and terrorism, between leaders like Obama and between ISIS and Al-Qaeda. In Israel, we are convinced that we belong to the collective world of progress, but that's not at all guaranteed. In recent years, the light of the government’s policy of occupation and settlements, the West rejects us, especially in the European Union. The year 2015 will determine what kind of world we belong to: religious fundamentalism or liberal pragmatism. Only belonging to the collective diplomatic effort together with the West and the pragmatic Arab states for the establishment of a Palestinian state in peace, will ensure our participation in the family of enlightened nations. The answer to that will be given on March 17 (Israeli election day).
Netanyahu's campaign slogans come at French Jews' expense (Haaretz Editorial) Terror groups can consider it a triumph that even Israel’s prime minister is encouraging Jews to flee.
Je suis Bibi! Netanyahu brings Likud to Paris (Yossi Verter, Haaretz+) How PM Netanyahu elbowed his way into the front row at Sunday's rally in Paris.
Operation Protective Law (Alex Fishman, Yedioth/Ynet) Decision yet to be made to open Military Police investigation into so-called Rafah File – but someone is trying to forcibly prevent legal proceedings pertaining to one of the most controversial incidents in summer's Gaza war - the employment of the Hannibal Directive by Givati Brigade Commander Colonel Ofer Vinter. The leak of recordings of some of the brigade's communications during those dramatic moments indicates that commanders who played a part in the battle were already gathering evidence at the time, and got their hands on documents and recordings to save for a rainy day. No one has approached them, and no one has accused them of anything yet but they are already behaving like wanted men and are preparing for the possibility of a legal battle. Apparently they have good reason to be readying for the worst - from their point of view.
In dark and cold post-war Gaza, it may take a miracle to rebuild (Zvi Bar'el , Haaretz+) Tens of thousands endure bitter cold weather while waiting to receive money to rebuild their homes. Meanwhile, a few Muslims bought Christmas trees to 'spread a bit of joy'; maybe what Gaza needs is Santa Claus.
Where is the West’s outrage over Boko Haram? (Asaf Ronel, Haaretz+) Boko Haram sends 10-year-old girls to blow themselves up and massacres hundreds each week. To wipe out terror we must relate equally to all victims.
On the day after the attacks, Paris is already asking: what now? (Gideon Kotz, Maariv) France is debating whether make stricter laws and allow preventive detentions and wired surveillance of citizens. And also the Muslims are already afraid of turning into the “new Jews" after just in the recent days there were 50 incidents against Muslim targets in France.
France can't beat Islamic terror without a tight alliance with Israel (Seth Lipsky, Haaretz+) Correspondence between David Ben-Gurion and Charles de Gaulle reveals where things unraveled between the Jewish state and the Fifth Republic – and how wrongs can be made right now.
West's anti-Israel propaganda encourages terror (Ben-Dror Yemini, Yedioth/Ynet) The jihad's brainwashing machines are not alone; they are backed by the lies against Israel in the media and in the academia.
Radicalism doesn't come from a vacuum (Dr. Haim Shine, Israel Hayom) The Charlie Hebdo massacre shook the French out of their "Arab Spring" coma, but already the French Left is carefully distinguishing between Islam and fanaticism.
Israel must help French Jews remain in the Diaspora (David Fachler, Haaretz+) Netanyahu's mistake lies not in encouraging immigration, but in forgetting that Israel is obliged to support and secure Jewish life abroad.
A time to offer pride (Dan Margalit, Israel Hayom) Those who do not want to call on Jews around the world to come to their homeland would do well to keep their thoughts to themselves.
Paris saw the mother of all rallies (Nahum Barnea, Yedioth/Ynet) About two million people took part in the 'Republican march' in order to clarify their value system to the world. In this context, something should also be said about us. Had terrorists entered the offices of a media outlet in Israel and murdered its journalists, what would have happened on the street? The Israelis would have been shocked by the act of terror – there is no doubt about it. But would have they been shocked by the violation of freedom of expression?... Netanyahu immediately flanked to the right, allegedly in order to shake the hand of Mali's president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. In the middle of the handshake, he elbowed his way into the front row. The maneuver gave the march an Israeli charm. Our leaders are the only ones familiar with the elbowing doctrine.
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.