APN's daily news review from Israel

Wednesday January 08, 2014

Quote of the day:

"I've met many Palestinians who hate Israel. But I've never met one who attributes that hatred to street signs or textbooks. Instead, they talk about parents evicted from their homes, cousins jailed, lands taken, travel permits denied."
--Peter Beinart asks who is inciting more, the Israeli Prime Minister or the Palestinian President.**

Front Page News:

Haaretz

• (Education Minister) Piron's plan: Exemption from psychometric exam and reforms in matriculation exam
• According to the test of reality // Or Kashti
• Largest pension fund in Holland boycotts Israeli banks because of funding for settlements
• Masked (Israelis) entered a Palestinian village, were beaten and rescued
• Israel examined only 250 asylum requests out of 1,800: None of them were approved
• No place left in closed institutions for youth
• Israeli study: Atrophy of brain cells causes depression

Yedioth Ahronoth

• It's possible (to get accepted to university) without a psychometric exam
• "Like a wound that is opened and heals" - Former Miss Israel, Linor Abergil, on the rape she suffered
• Yedioth probe: The attitude in Israel towards infiltrators is one of the best in the world

Maariv

• Chairman of government coalition: I will separate in legislation between Muslim and Christian Arabs (Hebrew)
• Right-wing activists entered Qusra village to make a 'price-tag' attack and were attacked by angry mob and rescued by the village elders
• Havoc and destruction // Ar'el Segal (Hebrew)
• After five incidents of stone-throwing last month: Hwy 443 closed yesterday due to dummy road mine (Hebrew)
• "The Bedouin are not enemies, they must be shown hope and vision. If you just wave the stick, it means leaving them in the gutter, as they are" - Agriculture Minister Yair Shamir, who was appointed to deal with the Bedouin communities in the Negev believes he'll succeed where his predecessors did not (Hebrew)
• Former secretary of defense Gates vs. Obama: Weak and hesitating leader who only wants to withdraw
• The demonstrators' 'Police': They brutally beat an asylum seeker who broke his hunger-strike and went back to his job in the Carmel market

Israel Hayom

• Outlaws - Almost a lynch: settlers beaten with rods and stones after they apparently wanted to make a 'price-tag' attack
• Where is the punishment and the condemnation? // Dan Margalit
• Shakeup: Exemption from pscyhometric exam for academia
• Infiltrators plan to demonstrate today in Jerusalem
• Now it's the world's turn // Haim Shine
• (Defense Minister) Yaalon: "There is no discussion over a framework agreement, but about extending the negotiations"; Bennett: "We won't sit in a government that divides Jerusalem"
• "Sapir Prize unnecessary" - Literature researcher Prof. Dan Miron opposes prestigious prize
• For Knesset approval: Yeshiva students can serve in Shin Bet and Mossad
• Family of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef: "The rabbi's books will not be turned into a business"
• Boaz Bismouth on Dieudonne: Anti-Semite in guise of comedian
   

Peace Talk Highlights:
The top story in the Hebrew press today was about how a group of settlers who were likely planning to attack Palestinian property got caught and beaten by villagers, and then handed over to the Israeli military. Interestingly, the papers did not present the beating as negative, despite it being done to Israeli Jews by Palestinians. There was also more discussion over the US framework proposal, that has yet to be presented. Economy Minister Naftali Bennett said his party won't sit in a government that accepts  a peace agreement based on the 1967 lines. US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro said that the proposal draft will be ready soon and that the nine-month negotiating window could be extended, as per the Israeli request. Israel Hayom writes that the framework deal could refer to "1967" without the word "borders." US Secretary of State John Kerry has adopted Netanyahu's stance and seeks to include such Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state in the 'framework agreement,' Haaretz reported. Meanwhile, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal blamed Israel's 'unilateral policies and the continuing provocation in Jerusalem and the settlements' for endangering the US-driven negotiations.

Interestingly, the Israel Democracy Institute's December Peace Index found that two-thirds of Jewish Israelis believe that the US is committed to Israeli security in peace talks and a majority believes that the Netanyahu government would not be able to withstand American pressure, even if it thought the proposal were bad for Israel.
 

Quick Hits:

• Jewish settlers caught and beaten after trespassing in Palestinian village - Incident follows the uprooting by Civil Administration officials of olive trees planted by Eish Kodesh outpost settlers on Arab land. Palestinians of Qusra say protected settlers from locals' revenge. (Haaretz, Ynet and Maan)
• Interior Minister: Arab citizens not an object to be moved in peace deal - Gideon Sa'ar criticizes Lieberman's proposal for Israeli Arab land and population swap as part of a future deal with the Palestinians. (Haaretz)
• Intifada returns to Highway 443 - Yesterday it ended with a dummy roadmine, but the central and busy highway became the focus of attacks by Palestinians from the nearby villages despite the IDF's activities. (Maariv, p. 1/NRG Hebrew)
• Coalition Chairman advancing bill: Christian Arabs get rights over Muslim Arab citizens - Registering Arab Christians only as 'Christians' in their national ID cards, separate representation in local authorities and equal opportunities in the workplace: the legislation that (Likud) MK Yariv Levin is promoting is meant to reduce the power of the Muslim majority. Levin: "They are not really Arabs, make them our allies." (Maariv, p. 1/NRG Hebrew)
• Report: Israeli FM commends Thatcher in letting 1981 IRA hunger striker 'commit suicide' - According to a report in the Belfast Telegraph on Tuesday, FM Lieberman commended the deceased British PM's decision in letting Bobby Sands die in a hunger strike. (Haaretz)
• 'Hezbollah does not have Yakhont missiles' - Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon contradicts media reports that Hezbollah has smuggled into Lebanon components of advanced Russian anti-ship cruise missile system from Syria. Ya'alon: Palestinians are not interested in a "third intifada." (Israel Hayom)
• Bedouin 'will be consulted' over resettlement plan in Negev - Agriculture minister cites the Bedouin's better conditions in recognized villages and wants to spread this living standard wider. (Haaretz)
• Most Israeli college students are not afraid to express political opinions in class, study shows - Most students in a Hebrew University study said they were not afraid to express political views that did not match those of their teachers. (Haaretz)
• Bill: Drafted yeshiva students could serve in Shin Bet, Mossad - The latest version of the new national service bill will be presented to the Knesset for approval next week. Bill proposes alternatives to military service in "national-civil" and "security-civil" frameworks. (Israel Hayom)
• Academic group won't consider Israel boycott, but its mere discussion raises hackles - Activists on both sides of the issue say the success of individual boycott efforts is less important than the fact that boycotts are being discussed at all. (Haaretz)
• Largest Dutch pension fund boycotts Israeli banks over settlement ties - PGGM cites policy of 'social responsibility' in decision to divest millions of euros from Israeli banks that have West Bank branches and offer financing for settlement construction. (Haaretz)
• Sweden accepts dozens of Eritrean asylum seekers from Israel - Interior ministry announcement comes on the third day of a strike by African asylum seekers, with thousands gathering in Tel Aviv park to protest. (Haaretz)
• Syria ships out first batch of chemical weapon materials - International chemical weapons watchdog says materials were transported to the port city of Latakia and onto a Danish vessel. (Agencies, Haaretz)
• U.K. lawmakers arrive in Iran for first visit in years - British parliamentarians' trip marks fourth visit from European lawmakers since new Iranian president took office. (Agencies, Haaretz)

Commentary/Analysis:

Humiliated by Palestinians and army, extremist settlers could escalate violence (Amos Harel, Haaretz) The closer Benjamin Netanyahu inches toward a peace treaty, the more right-wing extremists will try to thwart his progress.
Let's swap Lieberman and keep Wadi Ara (Yigal Sarna, Yedioth/Ynet) Foreign minister's proposal to transfer Arab communities to a new Palestinian state is just aimed at inflaming tensions.
**Who incites more Palestinian hatred? Abbas or Netanyahu? (Peter Beinart, Haaretz) Their textbooks may sometimes preach hatred, but it is the humiliation of occupation that creates the most Palestinian rage against Israel.
When Netanyahu grows up (Amnon Abramovich, Yedioth/Ynet) What kind of prime minister does Netanyahu want to be remembered as in Israel's history?
An 'agreement' without agreement (Zalman Shoval, Israel Hayom) The media are abuzz with chatter about ambiguous issues in the peace talks, but Kerry has left, allowing weary negotiators a short respite.
So, did you see the malls in Gaza? (Daniella Peled, Haaretz) It must be comforting for right-wing agitprop trolls to picture Gaza as a seaside holiday camp bursting with glitzy malls.
Which Arab countries will survive 2014? (Dr. Yaron Friedman, Yedioth/Ynet) War between Islamic movements and Arab armies could be decided this year. Otherwise, countries like Syria, Iraq and Yemen may fall into anarchy or split between Sunni and Shiite areas.
 Violence of the settlers: the madness must stop (Ar'el Segal, Maariv/NRG Hebrew) I did not want to play into the hands of the settlement haters, but we must be fair: 'price tag' actions are not Jewish justice, but thoughtless bullying.
An Iranian bomb is not the end of the Zionist dream (Reuven Pedatzur, Haaretz) Prime Minister Netanyahu should stop fear-mongering and offer a new vision for dealing with a nuclear Iran.
Miri Regev, the thorn in Netanyahu's side (Yuval Karni, Ynet) The Likud MK is behind two bill proposals that would tie Netanyahu's hands in peace talks, and embarrass him in front of the Americans.
Why Palestinian recognition of a Jewish state really matters (Avi Shilon, Haaretz) If Jews are not perceived as a nation but as a religious community, they have no authentic claim for sovereignty over any part of the land.
Miri Regev, the thorn in Netanyahu's side (Yuval Karni, Ynet) The Likud MK is behind two bill proposals that would tie Netanyahu's hands in peace talks, and embarrass him in front of the Americans.
Monster borders are what Avigdor Lieberman wants (Zvi Bar'el, Haaretz) If Jewish fingers can be stuck deep into the West Bank to grant 400,000 settlers a Jewish homeland, the Palestinians should be able to stick fingers into Israel.
The moral case for ending America's cold war with Iran (Peter Beinart, Haaretz) The stakes are higher than restraining Tehran's nuclear program. Improved relations may be our last best hope of ending the Syrian civil war.

 

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