News Nosh 07.12.16

by APN 07/12/16
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APN's daily news review from Israel
Tuesday July 12, 2016
 
You Must Be Kidding: 
"(It is permitted to "breach" the walls of modesty and) "satisfy the evil inclination by lying with attractive Gentile women against their will, out of consideration for the difficulties faced by the soldiers and for overall success."
 -- Rabbi Col. Eyal Karim, who was announced on Monday as the IDF's intended new chief rabbi, has expressed support in the past for rape of Palestinian women.*

You Must Be Kidding #2: 
Some of the wet (organic) waste sorted out by hundreds of thousands of Israeli households in the belief it would be recycled into compost was instead being dumped in the West Bank, north of Jericho, Haaretz+ reported.**

You Must Be Kidding #3: 
“During the afternoon shift we launched an activity in Isawiyah to create friction with the residents.”
--Statement from a police report about how Border Police initiate “friction” with residents of East Jerusalem to provoke a violent response from them.***

Front Page:
Haaretz
  • NGO Law passed; Opposition attacks: a move that will harm Israel
  • Theresa May to be appointed the next Prime Minister of Britain
  • Lieberman appointed director of the Defense Ministry to examine the future of Army Radio  
  • Police reports reveal that Border Police initiate “friction” with E. Jerusalem residents
  • Not a military base // Haaretz Editorial
  • The bubble of the graduates of architecture school at Ariel University: Without settlements, army and Palestinians
  • ¼ page ad: Maybe we did not succeed in stopping the NGO Law, but the NGO Law will not stop us – Signed by 23 Israeli civil and human rights NGOs
Yedioth Ahronoth
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
Israel Hayom
  • The new iron woman (of Britain)
  • “Israel attacked in Sinai – with Egypt’s permission”
  • Within two days: half a million shekels for the family of the (‘Shooting’) soldier
  • First prison leave for former prime minister Ehud Olmert
  • It’s final: NGO law passed 57:48
  • Following the ‘satire’ on Yoni Netanyahu [by TV host Asaf Harel]: infringement procedure against Channel 10

News Summary:
Two more fellow soldiers of Elor Azariya gave him mixed support in his headline-making trial, a rabbi who expressed support for raping Palestinian women was appointed IDF chief rabbi, the Knesset passed a controversial law targeting human and civil rights NGOs and Israel reportedly attacked targets in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula - with permission making top headlines in today’s Hebrew newspapers, along with the Israel-friendly ‘iron woman’ who will become Britain’s Prime Minister. Also, Al-Arabiya news reported that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is willing to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a summit in Cairo.

On the one hand, the two soldiers testified expressing support for what Elor Azariya did. On the other hand, they said they felt no danger at the time when Azariya executed the wounded and incapacitated Palestinian assailant in Hebron in March. One said, "If I had known that Elor was going to shoot the neutralized terrorist, I would have stopped him." Yedioth’s military affairs analyst, Yossi Yehoshua, wrote that the young, inexperienced and confused soldiers are in a dilemma because they want to support their friend and up contradicting themselves.
 
Meanwhile, Maariv reported that the online fundraising campaign for Azariya’s private lawyers (the IDF offers free defense) received a 1000 shekel donation from Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman’s son Kobi. And the right-wing religious TV Channel 20 said it had no connection to the campaign, despite the campaign advertising that donors will receive a tour of the TV channel and a lecture there on the media. (Maariv) 
 
After a stormy debate in Knesset Monday, the ‘NGO bill,’ which was tailored specifically to target only peace and human rights organizations, passed to the satisfaction of Netanyahu and far-right Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked. "The purpose of this law is to prevent an absurd situation in which foreign countries interfere in Israel's internal affairs by funding NGOs without the Israeli public being aware of this," said Netanyahu. However, the law does not prevent the absurd situation in which wealthy foreign donors interfere in Israel's internal affairs by funding NGOs that receive donations from wealthy foreign individuals – mostly right-wing. The liberal organizations receive funding almost exclusively from foreign countries, while right-wing groups in Israel largely rely on donations from foreign rich people. 
 
*Col. Eyal Karim, the IDF's intended next chief rabbi, not only interpreted Jewish law as permitting raping 'attractive Gentile women' as a way to keep up morale, he opposes women serving in the IDF and was behind an IDF booklet that stated that “the concept that non-Jews have equal rights with Jews in Israel goes against the opinion of the Torah, and the state’s representatives have no authority to act against the Torah’s will.” Female MKs and women's rights organizations have called to cancel his appointment. (Yossi Gurvitz examined his 2012 rape statement in +972mag.)
 
Quick Hits:
  • ***Border Police Deliberately Provoke Palestinians in East Jerusalem, Internal Reports Say - In one such initiation of 'friction,' a confrontation was sparked in which a boy was shot in the head with a sponged-tipped bullet, putting him in a coma. (Haaretz+) 
  • Judge says Israeli municipality was right to remove anti-racism signs - Ruled also that meeting be held between groups protesting alleged Jewish-Arab separation in maternity wards and local hospital staff. (Haaretz+) 
  • Two Members Quit Israeli Curriculum Panel Over Exclusion of Novel on Jewish-Arab Romance - Sigal Naor-Perelman and Pnina Shirav said they’d hoped for feedback on their criticism of the decision not to put Dorit Rabinyan’s ‘Borderlife’ on an advanced high-school reading list. (Haaretz+) 
  • MK Hanin Zoabi boycotted in Knesset - As part of an initiative by Zionist Union MK Eitan Cabel, a large number of MKs walked out and boycotted Hanin Zoabi's speech on Monday; Large number of Zionist Union, Meretz MKs stayed. (Ynet and Maariv)
  • Lieberman Blocks Israeli Pro-peace Group From Visiting Ramallah - The background for the refusal was the group's intention of meeting a Palestinian official barred from Israel for 'embarking on subversive activity within Israeli society that included an attempt to establish political parties. (Haaretz+)
  • Israel nabs 2 Palestinian intel officers for making, selling guns - In crackdown on illegal weapons in the West Bank, security forces seize firearms, ammo and equipment. (Times of Israel, Israel Hayom and Maariv)
  • **Israeli Organic Waste, Separated Out for Compost, Dumped in Jordan Valley (in West Bank) - Settler environmental organization called on the Environmental Protection Ministry to investigate to find the perpetrators and determine whether the terms of its composting licenses were violated. (Haaretz+) 
  • Report: Israeli forces torch olive trees on private Palestinian land - Israeli forces have reportedly torched 10 dunams (2.5 acres) of land planted with olive trees south of Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Environmental Quality Authority. The trees belonged to the al-Sawaada family. (Maan) 
  • Israeli cabinet approves 50-million shekel plan to 'strengthen' Kiryat Arba settlement - Israeli officials justified the increase in settlement funding, claiming it is meant to curb Palestinian attacks, but Peace Now reported that the plan would fund “community resilience” -- which would include education, culture, and sports -- public institutions, infrastructure, “neighborhood upgrading,” and a grant to the municipality. (Maan) 
  • French Fraud Verdict Suggests Netanyahu Received Second Donation From Mimran - Judges mention a meeting between the prime minister and the French tycoon in 2009, but Netanyahu still insists only one contribution was made, in 2001. (Haaretz+) 
  • East Talpiot terrorist sentenced to 135 years in prison - Bilal Abu Ghanem, who along with Baha Aliyan murdered three Israelis and wounded 7 others on Jerusalem bus, gets three life sentences and an additional 60 years; also ordered to pay compensation to victims' families, wounded, and bus driver. (Ynet) 
  • Palestinian commuters in Yatta race against Israeli bulldozers to find way out of siege - A Ma’an reporter in Yatta on Monday morning said that searching for a path to leave the town took almost two hours of trial and error. (Maan)
  • US: Israel to get 8 Seahawk helicopters, related equipment - In July 6 letter, Pentagon says sale of Seahawk equipment to Israel, at estimated cost of $300 million, will "contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a strategic regional partner." (Israel Hayom) 
  • Israeli legal advocacy group sues Facebook for $1 billion over Palestinian violence - Suit, to be filed by Shurat Hadin [right-wing organization – OH] in New York, cites the families of American victims, including Taylor Force, a 28-year-old American veteran who was stabbed to death in Jaffa last year. (Agencies, Haaretz and Maariv) 
  • Justice Minister Shaked slams lawmakers who appeal High Court - But she stops short of supporting Likud legislation banning parliamentarians from petitioning High Court in such situations. (Haaretz+) 
  • Reform, Conservative leaders to Netanyahu: Incitement against us could lead to bloodshed - Giving up on hope for an egalitarian prayer space, non-Orthodox Jewish movements notify prime minister they plan legal battle to get their share of Western Wall. (Haaretz and Israel Hayom)
  • Former minister Avi Gabai: Netanyahu turned the division of the people into a start-up - "I am Mizrachi and proud of it…(Film critic Gidi) Orsher’s apology is fake, but so is the response of Netanyahu who spoke about unity when he is the one who is turning division of the people into a start-up. He should focus on appointing Mizrachi Likud members as ministers," the former minister wrote in a post on his Facebook page following the Gidi Orsher affair. (Maariv)
  • Following the (film critic Gidi) Orsher affair comes the racist post of the senior advertising executive who worked with Begin and Peres - Arieh Rotenberg wrote on Facebook that "Mizrachi Jews are inferior to Westerners because the East is inferior to the West. The question is what will be, how we raise our children and grandchildren. As children of progressive Western culture or backward Eastern culture?" (Maariv)
  • Harrowing Second Lebanon War battle immortalized in recently declassified audio - The Battle of Bint Jbeil in Southern Lebanon was a major event in the Second Lebanon War; eight IDF soldiers lost their lives trying to take over the Hezbollah stronghold, while displaying incredible courage under fire; one such story is that of Deputy Battalion Commander Roi Klein, who gave his life to save those under his command. (Ynet)
  • Former Prime Minister Olmert takes his first prison leave - Olmert began serving a 19-month term for bribery and obstruction of justice in February. (Haaretz) 
  • Knesset Panel Backs Law for Israel to Share Data With U.S. Tax Agency - Legislation, which still requires approval of plenum, will enforce U.S. FACTA law. (Haaretz)
  • Gal Gadot participates in pro-Israel campaign - The Israeli Wonder Woman joined a campaign aiming to highlight the talents and uniqueness of Israeli women, in an effort to showcase a different side of the local life and culture. (Ynet) 
  • PCBS reports Palestinian population growth to 4.81 million - According to PCBS, the occupied West Bank hosts an estimated 2.93 million Palestinians, while the besieged Gaza Strip is home to 1.88 million people. (Maan)
  • Israeli forces level lands near border in southeastern Gaza - Witnesses told Ma’an that four “D9” bulldozers and a giant excavator escorted by Israeli military vehicles crossed the borderline between Israel and the besieged enclave before leveling land on the Palestinian side of the border, leaving shortly afterwards. No gunfire or injuries were reported. (Maan) 
  • South Africans planned attacks on Jewish buildings - Four South Africans are in custody after it became apparent that they were planning to Jewish buildings and the US embassay in Pretoria; They were caught as they were trying to get to Syria. (Agencies, Ynet) 
  • Ryan Reynolds appreciates Israeli Scouts' giant Deadpool - The Canadian superstar shared a photo of a huge structure in the shape of his famous superhero; said one of the Scouts, 'We're happy that we made people all over the world smile.' (Yedioth/Ynet) 
  • Iran Announces Indictments for Three Dual Nationals, Foreigner - The four, who have ties to Britain, Canada and the U.S., all are believed to have been detained by hard-liners in Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. (Agencies, Haaretz)
  • Portraits of Loss: Victims of the Worst Bombing Iraq Has Seen in 13 Years of War - As friends and family sift through the debris of last week's attack in Baghdad, fond memories are recounted from lives cut short by this senseless and brutal act of terrorism. (Agencies, Haaretz)

Features:
How a Facebook post rekindled the row over Jew-on-Jew racism in Israel
Army Radio film critic suspended after sparking storm while appearing to play on stereotypes of Jews of Middle Eastern origin as superstitious and backward. (Danna Harman, Haaretz+) 
As Dallas debate unfolds, Israel shows 'killer robots' don’t have to be deadly
The killing of the Dallas shooting suspect ignited a debate over the use of lethal robots by police, but experts and developers in Israel say armed robots can help save lives of officers and suspects. (Allison Kaplan Sommer, Haaretz+) 
New NYC Play Showcases Unexpected Heroes of Oslo Accords
'Oslo' focuses not on the main political players who forged the 1993 agreement, but rather on the Norwegian couple that worked behind the scenes to help bring about a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (Yael Friedman, Haaretz+)
 
Commentary/Analysis:
Israeli Drone Strikes in Sinai Point to Close Defense Cooperation With Egypt (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) Egypt sees Israel as a vital strategic partner in the region. Even if President Sissi pays lip service to the Palestinian issue, his top priority is fighting ISIS.
Israeli attacked in the Sinai Peninsula? In the security establishment, they are angry about it (Yossi Melman, Maariv) The timing of the Bloomberg report that quotes “a former senior defense establishment official,” as acknowledging that Israel is attacking in Egypt with drones is interesting, and very problematic - for both sides. Egyptian opposition and Egypt’s opponents abroad, like Iran, could use the report to slam the Egyptian regime and call it a ‘collaborator’ with Israel. The Israeli security establishment is likely angry that someone leaked the information. 
For Diaspora Jews, the Occupation Can’t Just Be a Spectator Sport (Mira Sucharov, Haaretz) Seeing the reality of Hebron with groups like Breaking the Silence is important. But it’s even more crucial to take the anti-occupation message back into our Diaspora Jewish communities.
We won't break and we won't be silent (Itamar Segal, Israel Hayom) We IDF fighters promise that we will continue to battle the slander of groups like Breaking the Silence just as fiercely as we fight to defend the State of Israel.
A long quiet (Eitan Haber, Yedioth/Ynet) After a decade of quiet on Israel's northern border with Lebanon, a border which has never seen quiet for such a length of time in Israel's history, Eitan Haber argues that perhaps we should be thanking Olmert and his cabinet for their leadership during the war. 
Minister Naftali Bennett on Why Diaspora Jews Matter to Israel (Naftali Bennett, Haaretz+) Writing in response to an article by Rogel Alpher, Israel's diaspora affairs minister says the connection between Israel and Diaspora Jewry is a strategic asset for both parties.
Palestinians and Africa: The Egyptian FM's visit to Israel (Roi Kais, Ynet) Netanyahu's meeting with Egyptian Foreign Minister Shoukry caused surprise and fury amongst Egyptians; Visit was officially to discuss al-Sisi's peace initiative, but some Egyptians want to know why Netanyahu visited African Nile countries.
Theresa May Will Be a Formidable PM and a True Friend of Israel (Mike Freer, Haaretz+) Theresa May has been a firm, consistent friend of the UK Jewish community, committed to their security as Home Secretary, and unafraid to stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself. 
Common interests: The surprise visit indicates a change of direction in the Arab world (Yossi Melman, Maariv) The visit of the Egyptian foreign minister shows how Israel went from regional isolation to becoming a powerhouse whose friendship everyone wants. But Netanyahu knows that he has to pay a price to move forward.
The Silent Force That Could Break Iran - From the Inside (Zvi Bar'el, Haaretz+) Iran's Kurds suddenly woke up and even attacked the Revolutionary Guards, but their Iraqi Kurdish brothers would rather have them remain silent.
 
 
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.

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