APN's daily news review from Israel
Thursday January 7, 2016
Quote of the day:
"Everybody's holy land except those people."
--A 'Tweet' by someone who took the #ExplainingTheMiddleEastIn6Words challenge.
--A 'Tweet' by someone who took the #ExplainingTheMiddleEastIn6Words challenge.
Breaking News:
Israeli Tourists on Tour Bus Attacked by Masked Gunmen at Cairo Hotel
Two masked individuals who opened fire at a bus next to the Three Pyramids Hotel, close to the Giza pyramids. Two Israeli tourists were on the bus. No casualties reported. (Haaretz and Ynet)
Front Page:
Haaretz
- Security establishment: Exceptionally good improvement in coordination with Palestinians
- Indyk: Netanyahu told me – if Rabin hadn’t been murdered – I would have defeated him
- In police and Shin Bet they think that the murderer from Tel-Aviv escaped to the police
- Under pressure from Justice Ministry, Elad’s flagship plan in Silwan goes back to discussions
- 80% of high school principals: Education Ministry does not advance excellent professionals
- Government to narrow immunity of Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline Co.
- Settler Government // Haaretz Editorial
Yedioth Ahronoth
- The escape path (of the Tel-Aviv shooter)
- My soldier, Alon // Col. Ghassan Alian, Commander of Golani Brigade
- The IDF’s grave revolution
- Parents discovered: Baby was given to another couple
- Only the truth // Nahum Barnea on Amb. Martin Indyk’s remarks
- TV transferring to computer: Netflix landed in Israel
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
- Assessment in Israel: Terrorist from Dizengoff hiding in Territories
- Revolutionary broadcasts – Netflix
- The N. Korean bomb
Israel Hayom
- L’Chaim, to their memory – 6 days after massacre on Dizengoff St.: Simta Pub reopened
- “Nuclear, but not hydrogen” – N. Korea continues to provoke
- More evidence for Iran: It pays off to ignore warnings // Boaz Bismuth
- Revolutionary broadcasts: Netflix makes ‘aliya’
- They received the baby and realized, “This isn’t our daughter”
- (Police commissioner) Alsheikh’s Staff Command: Halevi in capital, Edri in Tel-Aviv – and ex-Shin Bet and IDF (commanders)
- Captain Yishai Rusales was buried: “Everyone loved him”
News Summary:
The search continues for the Tel-Aviv shooter, who is believed to be hiding in the West Bank now and whose family said they warned the police about him, while Tel-Avivis return to Dizengoff Street in a show of solidarity, former US ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told him at Yitzhak Rabin's funeral that if Rabin had not been assassinated, Netanyahu would have defeated him, which Netanyahu denied having said and N. Korea tested a nuclear bomb, but doubtful a hydrogen one, making top stories in today's Hebrew newspapers. Also, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Netanyahu should not be concerned about the fall of the Palestinian Authority, whose only replacement was a Palestinian state.
The search continues for the Tel-Aviv shooter, who is believed to be hiding in the West Bank now and whose family said they warned the police about him, while Tel-Avivis return to Dizengoff Street in a show of solidarity, former US ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told him at Yitzhak Rabin's funeral that if Rabin had not been assassinated, Netanyahu would have defeated him, which Netanyahu denied having said and N. Korea tested a nuclear bomb, but doubtful a hydrogen one, making top stories in today's Hebrew newspapers. Also, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Netanyahu should not be concerned about the fall of the Palestinian Authority, whose only replacement was a Palestinian state.
Quick Hits:
- Israeli Security Officials: Abbas Cracking Down on Violence, Gestures to PA Are Urgent - The PA has markedly reduced incitement on its official media outlets, deployed personnel in the West Bank to prevent confrontations with the IDF, and resumed arresting Hamas operatives. (Haaretz+)
- Israeli cabinet to weigh tit-for-tat response to EU labeling - Government ministers to vote Sunday on whether to support a bill that would mandate labeling products from countries that label products from Israeli settlements. (Haaretz+)
- Breaking the Silence should be barred from campuses, says Knesset Committee - Education Committee chair accuses the NGO of 'showing disdain' for the Knesset by not attending the meeting. (Haaretz+)
- Civics textbook slammed: Focuses on Jewish, not democratic state - Teachers protest upcoming edition of 'Being Citizens in Israel,' saying Education Ministry did not include them in its writing; students claim 'the rule of the majority has turned into the tyranny of the majority.' (Ynet)
- Palestinians slam removal of Israeli-Arabs from Aegean Airlines flight - Two were disembarked from plane after Israeli passengers 'very vocally and persistently' demanded they be 'checked,' delaying flight for over an hour. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Airline apologizes for racist treatment of Palestinian passengers - Greek Aegean airlines on Wednesday apologized to PLO Secretary-General Saeb Erekat for the forced removal of two Palestinians from a flight after Israeli passengers 'very vocally and persistently' demanded they be 'checked.’ Aegean CEO in reply to Erekat’s statement acknowledged that “there was unwarranted and indeed unfair continued reaction by a large group of passengers.” (Maan and Haaretz)
- Establishment of New Druze Town on Lands of Destroyed Palestinian Villages Draws Criticism - For the first time, approval given for a new Druze town, but many Druze would have preferred to expand their existing communities and are wary of the implications for relations with Arab society. (Haaretz+)
- Justice Ministry Head Pushed for Review of East Jerusalem Center - Committee had voted to reduce size of project with the vote of a Justice Ministry official, but her boss attended meeting that reopened debate on the decision. (Haaretz+)
- Released Jewish extremist: Court swallowed the Shin Bet’s lies - Mordechai Meyer, no longer suspected in the arson attack on Jerusalem’s Dormition Abbey, was released Sunday after five months in prison. (Haaretz+ and Ynet)
- 2 Palestinian social activists arrested after barricading themselves in Red Cross building - The two residents of Jerusalem’s Old City, well-known among young Palestinians in East Jerusalem, are not identified with a political party but are social activists who refuse to abide by warrants ordering them to stay away from Jerusalem; 'submitting to the warrant constitutes a defeat to Jerusalemites and Palestinians,' they say. (Haaretz+ and Maan)
- New Mossad chief: Iran remains central threat for Israel - As he takes over Israel's national intelligence agency, Yossi Cohen says despite and even because of nuclear agreement, threat from Tehran has become more significant. (Yedioth/Ynet)
- Palestinian Muslim and Christian Clerics launch 'Jerusalem Capital of the World' campaign - It is hoped the campaign will raise international awareness of Palestinian Muslim and Christian heritage in the occupied city, and also "annul" Israeli claims that Jerusalem is the undivided capital of the state of Israel. (Maan)
- Israeli forces detain 15 Palestinians, including 6 children, in West Bank predawn raids - Palestinian prisoners' rights group Addameer estimated in December that Israel was holding 6,800 political prisoners, including 470 child prisoners. (Maan)
- 16 members of a terrorist cell that threw Molotov cocktails at Route 443 were arrested - The Shin Bet said that some of the detainees are former prisoners who served prison terms for similar activities. Two of them acted in an organized way. The detainees, including minors, were arrested over recent months from the village of Kharbata Al-Masbach, near Highway 443. (Maariv)
- Israeli forces confiscate tractor in Beit Ummar - Locals were told the tractor was confiscated because it was parked near a construction site whose owner, Adham Sabir Zamil, was issued a stop-work order. (Maan)
- More Than Half of Workplace Casualties in 2015 Were Construction Workers - A new Knesset Information Center says 60 percent of the people killed in workplace accidents in Israel in 2015 were construction workers. (Haaretz+)
- School principals believe Ministry of Education is unprofessional - Survey found 80% of dissatisfaction with the ministry in almost every area that relates to a principal’s work, ranging from professional assistance to work conditions. (Haaretz+)
- Researchers protest Bennett's candidate for academic council - Group of 45 academics warn that Bennett's plan to replace vice-chair of higher education council with a less experienced candidate politicizes the position. (Haaretz+)
- Palestinian families push Israel to return terrorists' bodies - Israel is holding onto to about a dozen bodies, citing security concerns, whereas Palestinians claim this measure stokes anger and worsens the atmosphere. (Agencies, Ynet)
- Israeli forces demolish mosque in Negev - Israeli forces on Wednesday demolished a mosque in the unrecognized Palestinian Bedouin village of Rakhama in the Negev Israeli MK Talal Abu Arar (Joint List) said he attempted to prevent the demolition in the unrecognized Bedouin village of Rakhama, but had been unable to convince the Israeli authorities. (Maan)
- Israeli forces demolish 5 Bedouin dwellings in E1 corridor - Dawood al-Jahalin, a spokesperson for the Abu Nuwwar Bedouin community, said that the Israeli authorities had repeatedly attempted to persuade the families to leave their land. "They offers us blank checks and alternative land, but we refused and will continue to refuse to leave our land, and we will rebuild the dwellings this evening." (Maan)
- Palestinian families decry punitive demolitions in (E.) Jerusalem - Two Palestinian families whose homes were demolished and sealed decried on Tuesday Israel’s policy of punitive home demolition for homes belonging to Palestinians who carry out attacks on Israelis. (Maan)
- Sheldon Adelson Pours $7m Into pro-Israel Propaganda Website, Only to Cut Funding - From the Grapevine is the third media outlet whose hidden ties to Adelson have been revealed in recent weeks. (Haaretz)
- University wins victory over BDS efforts - Spanish government pays compensation to Ariel Universy, which is in the West Bank, after lawsuit over decision to disqualify school team from academic competition because it comes from 'occupied territories'. (Yedioth/Ynet)
- Israeli TV reporter gets stabbed while testing protective vest - Eitam Lachover was testing the quality of vests that the IDF is supposed to receive in the wake of a wave of stabbings, but one knife got through. (Haaretz+ and Ynet)
- Gaza's first new hospital in a decade begins treating patients - Indonesia Hospital now serves 300,000 Palestinians in northern Gaza Strip, where many were directly affected by 2014 war with Israel. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Bahrain: Terror plot linked to Iran and Hezbollah foiled - Kingdom says Hezbollah leader Nasrallah personally met with main suspect in Lebanon, giving him $20,000 to aid his terror cell, which targeted security forces in the Gulf island. (Agencies, Ynet)
- Russia will not put Hamas, Hezbollah on list of terror groups, Kremlin official says - Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov's remark comes as Russia was discussing with U.S. the possibility of promoting steps to weaken ISIS, Al-Qaida and Jabhat al-Nusra. (JTA, Haaretz)
- Iran's Rohani: Saudi Arabia cannot hide 'crime' of Shi'ite cleric's execution by cutting ties - Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Sudan broke all ties with Iran and the United Arab Emirates downgraded its relations on Monday after the Saudi embassy in Tehran was stormed by protesters. Kuwait recalled its ambassador to Iran on Tuesday. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Qatar Recalls Ambassador to Iran Amid Regional Diplomatic Spat - Gulf state joins list of Middle East, African nations joining Saudi Arabia in reducing ties with Tehran. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Kuwait backs Saudi Arabia, recalls ambassador to Iran - United Arab Emirates announces it will downgrade ties to Tehran, while other nations issue statements criticizing Iran. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Jordan Summons Iranian Ambassador Over Tensions With Saudi Arabia - 'Iranian interference' in Arab affairs condemned by Jordan as Iraq offers to mediate in spat that has ignited fires of renewed Sunni-Shi'ite conflict. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Saudi Arabia: Iran Tensions 'Will Not Affect' Syria Peace Talks - Despite deteriorating relations between Shi'ite states, Sunni bloc, officials say UN brokered talks to end Syrian civil war. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Jordan Backtracks, Confirms 12,000 Syrian Migrants Amassed on Border - Officials admit that migrants remain stranded in desert region after denying UN claims, reports of poor humanitarian conditions. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Iran unveils new underground missile depot in possible violation of UN resolution - Depot houses Emad precision missiles that U.S. says could carry nuclear warhead. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Turkey Releases Vice News Journalist Mohammed Rasool After Four Months in Prison - The reporter, Mohammed Rasool, was detained in August along with two other Vice journalists. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- WATCH: ISIS weapons lab capable of creating surface-to-air missiles - A training video meant to show ISIS supporters in Europe how to build different types of explosives, smuggled out of Raqqa by an ISIS defector and obtained by Sky News, has been described as an intelligence 'gold mine.' (Haaretz)
- Besieged Syrian Villages Run Short of Food and Medicine - 'Life is miserable. People cannot find a pill of aspirin or painkillers,' says cleric. 'Their dream is to eat vegetables.' (Agencies, Haaretz)
Features:
'No such thing as Jewish terror' and more from the poster boy of Israel’s far right
Lawmaker Bezalel Smotrich wants Israel to annex the West Bank, calls gays ‘abnormal’ and thinks the burning to death of a Palestinian family was not a terror attack because it was done by Jews. (Danna Harman, Haaretz+)
Can You Explain the Middle East in Six Words?
If you can, you can join the challenge on Twitter. (Haaretz+)
Commentary/Analysis:
Lawmaker Bezalel Smotrich wants Israel to annex the West Bank, calls gays ‘abnormal’ and thinks the burning to death of a Palestinian family was not a terror attack because it was done by Jews. (Danna Harman, Haaretz+)
Can You Explain the Middle East in Six Words?
If you can, you can join the challenge on Twitter. (Haaretz+)
Commentary/Analysis:
The Secret Relationship Between the Government and the Settlers (Haaretz Editorial) The government must be transparent regarding property transfers to the
settlers, and public officials must act in the public interest, not to please the tendentious political
leadership.
The Defeatism of Israel's Enlightened Zionists (Ari Shavit, Haaretz+) We of the center-left must rise from our depression, get out of our seclusion and take responsibility. We must seek out our brothers and sisters – the Israelis.
Sure, Oppose Murder, but What About the Atmosphere That Leads to Murder? (Alexander Yakobson, Haaretz+) A fellow Haaretz opinion writer chastises rabbis for not warning about the ticking bomb that led to the Duma murders. But that’s not enough.
Not the same kippah: There is no single constituency can be defined as religious Zionist (Avraham Tirosh, Maariv) The Duma affair managed to tarnish an entire population, but the story of religious Zionism as a flag, a symbol, a concept, a single unified ideology - has been shattered into pieces.
Netanyahu Fears Palestinian Authority Collapse That He Helped Induce (Peter Beinart, Haaretz+) The PA is a narcotic for Israelis: It allows them to control millions of stateless, disenfranchised Palestinians without paying the cost.
A moment of truth (Dr. Haim Shine, Israel Hayom) The Arab citizens of Israel must decide whether they are Israelis or Palestinians.
Is an armed intifada underway? (Alex Fishman, Yedioth/Ynet) Rate of shooting incidents has been increasing in recent weeks, alongside a gradual drop in number of riots and stabbing and vehicular attacks. Hamas, seeking to create an escalation that will lead to PA's collapse, is behind institutionalized terror threatening to take over conflict.
Wake Up, Arab Citizens of Israel (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) No Jew in the world, not even in 'anti-Semitic' France and probably not even in 'satanic' Iran, lives in such a regime of fear, deprivation and ostracism.
Fatal Attraction? Book Ban Mere Battle in Israel's War on Intermarriage (Asher Schechter, Haaretz+) Fear of miscegenation isn't some new craze of Israel's far right. It is an inseparable part of the Jewish State.
When the left turns into a radical right (Ben-Dror Yemini, Yedioth/Ynet) When it comes to hate crimes committed by Jewish individuals, everything the radical right says about Arabs is said by part of the left about Jews.
When the IDF just doesn’t respond: Why we need Breaking the Silence (Hillel Bardin, Haaretz+) Thirty years ago I, along with other reservists, asked the IDF to investigate claims of grotesque brutality against Palestinians in Jericho. I’m still waiting for an answer.
Islamic State's propaganda threat (Prof. Eyal Zisser, Israel Hayom) Measures against the jihadi group must include fighting for the minds and hearts of young Arabs in Israel and abroad.
The Dr. Maya Furman case: It is appropriate that the prosecution does some serious should have the SAO will make some serious self-examination (Adv. Adi Niv-Yaguda, Maariv) The conduct of the prosecutor's office, in which it began with the vilification and persecution of a professional and honest forensic doctor, who testified in favor of Zadorov in the Tair Rada murder, and then turned her from a witness into an accused, delivers an extremely serious and unacceptable message: a medical specialist who does not suit his professional opinion to the legal position of the State, may find himself under attack. (Note: Similar conclusion in Haaretz Hebrew in 2014)
The true danger to democracy (Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom) Foreign criticism of Israel's NGO transparency bill smacks of hypocrisy.
A year after Charlie HebdoWestern liberals have folded, the killers have won (Brendan O'Neill, Haaretz+) The jihadist assault on the satirical magazine was more than an act of mass murder. It was a gruesome test of Europe’s commitment to Enlightenment values, one which many Western liberals have failed.
The Defeatism of Israel's Enlightened Zionists (Ari Shavit, Haaretz+) We of the center-left must rise from our depression, get out of our seclusion and take responsibility. We must seek out our brothers and sisters – the Israelis.
Sure, Oppose Murder, but What About the Atmosphere That Leads to Murder? (Alexander Yakobson, Haaretz+) A fellow Haaretz opinion writer chastises rabbis for not warning about the ticking bomb that led to the Duma murders. But that’s not enough.
Not the same kippah: There is no single constituency can be defined as religious Zionist (Avraham Tirosh, Maariv) The Duma affair managed to tarnish an entire population, but the story of religious Zionism as a flag, a symbol, a concept, a single unified ideology - has been shattered into pieces.
Netanyahu Fears Palestinian Authority Collapse That He Helped Induce (Peter Beinart, Haaretz+) The PA is a narcotic for Israelis: It allows them to control millions of stateless, disenfranchised Palestinians without paying the cost.
A moment of truth (Dr. Haim Shine, Israel Hayom) The Arab citizens of Israel must decide whether they are Israelis or Palestinians.
Is an armed intifada underway? (Alex Fishman, Yedioth/Ynet) Rate of shooting incidents has been increasing in recent weeks, alongside a gradual drop in number of riots and stabbing and vehicular attacks. Hamas, seeking to create an escalation that will lead to PA's collapse, is behind institutionalized terror threatening to take over conflict.
Wake Up, Arab Citizens of Israel (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) No Jew in the world, not even in 'anti-Semitic' France and probably not even in 'satanic' Iran, lives in such a regime of fear, deprivation and ostracism.
Fatal Attraction? Book Ban Mere Battle in Israel's War on Intermarriage (Asher Schechter, Haaretz+) Fear of miscegenation isn't some new craze of Israel's far right. It is an inseparable part of the Jewish State.
When the left turns into a radical right (Ben-Dror Yemini, Yedioth/Ynet) When it comes to hate crimes committed by Jewish individuals, everything the radical right says about Arabs is said by part of the left about Jews.
When the IDF just doesn’t respond: Why we need Breaking the Silence (Hillel Bardin, Haaretz+) Thirty years ago I, along with other reservists, asked the IDF to investigate claims of grotesque brutality against Palestinians in Jericho. I’m still waiting for an answer.
Islamic State's propaganda threat (Prof. Eyal Zisser, Israel Hayom) Measures against the jihadi group must include fighting for the minds and hearts of young Arabs in Israel and abroad.
The Dr. Maya Furman case: It is appropriate that the prosecution does some serious should have the SAO will make some serious self-examination (Adv. Adi Niv-Yaguda, Maariv) The conduct of the prosecutor's office, in which it began with the vilification and persecution of a professional and honest forensic doctor, who testified in favor of Zadorov in the Tair Rada murder, and then turned her from a witness into an accused, delivers an extremely serious and unacceptable message: a medical specialist who does not suit his professional opinion to the legal position of the State, may find himself under attack. (Note: Similar conclusion in Haaretz Hebrew in 2014)
The true danger to democracy (Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom) Foreign criticism of Israel's NGO transparency bill smacks of hypocrisy.
A year after Charlie HebdoWestern liberals have folded, the killers have won (Brendan O'Neill, Haaretz+) The jihadist assault on the satirical magazine was more than an act of mass murder. It was a gruesome test of Europe’s commitment to Enlightenment values, one which many Western liberals have failed.
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.