APN's daily news review from Israel

Monday July 10, 2017
 

Quote of the day:

"I have known Mahmoud for 20 years. The entire family is an inseparable part of the kibbutz, and we see them as part of our lives."
--Kibbutz Elon security coordinator Moshe Amsalem said after the kibbutz voted to accept Bedouin family of Mahmoud and Hadil Mazal as members.*

---

Breaking News:
Israeli Soldier Wounded After Palestinian Attacks Soldiers Near West Bank Settlement and was Killed
Palestinian man tried running over a group of soldiers when his car hit a safety rail or a streetlight near Tekoa settlement, according to soldiers at the scene. He then exited the car brandishing a knife and was shot and died. (Haaretz, Israel Hayom, Maan)

---

Front Page:

Haaretz

Yedioth Ahronoth

Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)

Israel Hayom

News Summary:
The runoff today for the leadership of the Labor Party, (which Haaretz+ wrote could be affected by the heat wave,) Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s response to the UNESCO resolution on the Cave of Patriarchs, Iraq’s announcement that it defeated ISIS in Mosul and the tragic deaths of two youth were top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. Also in the news, Egyptian and Palestinian Presidents held ‘successful talks’ in Cairo during which they discussed power-sharing arrangements with Hamas.
 
In anger at UNESCO for its resolution recognizing Hebron’s Cave of the Patriarchs, a site in Palestine holy to Muslims and Jews, as a Palestinian heritage site, Netanyahu not only cut $1 million from Israel’s payment for UNESCO funds but unveiled a plan to use the money to build a Jewish heritage museum in Hebron. Netanyahu said that the UNESCO ruling calling the site Palestinian “means it's not a Jewish one,” and claimed that it doesn’t recognize the connection between the Jewish People and Hebron and the Cave of the Patriarchs (he read the Biblical story about the connection in Sunday’s cabinet meeting). Netanyahu was also angry that the site was considered ‘endangered.’ Israeli leaders called it ‘anti-Semitic.’ Yet, on Netanyahu’s orders, Israel's Foreign Ministry retracted criticism of anti-Semitism in Hungary and strongly attacked the Jewish Hungarian tycoon, George Soros, who the day before it had sought to protect, Haaretz+ reported.
  

Quick Hits:

---

Features:

Avi Gabbay, the outsider who would be king of the Israeli left
Starting out in an immigrant transit camp and rising to the top of Israel's biggest telecommunications firm, he now eyes the leadership of Israel's Labor Party. (Chaim Levinson, Haaretz+) 
Gaza border communities prepare for future wars
With the quiet surrounding Gaza since Operation Protective Edge always on the verge of ending, communities surrounding the Strip make efforts to implement the lessons learned following the operation, and do their best to prepare themselves for the all-but-certain reoccurrence of war. (Matan Tzuri, Yedioth/Ynet)
Floating over Jerusalem without ever seeing the city's Arab residents 
A planned cable car in the air will ostensibly bring tourists and worshippers to the Old City, but it's linked to a group settling Jews in Arab East Jerusalem. (Moshe Gilad, Haaretz+)
 
Commentary/Analysis:
Can Israel see the children of Gaza yet? (Marilyn Garson, Haaretz+) Three years after the Israel - Hamas war, I am still haunted by the Palestinian children killed by Israeli missiles on a Gaza beach near where I lived.
In order to be elected, the leftist bloc will have to act against the occupation, privatization and Jewish missionizing (Dr. Revital Amiran, Maariv) A new body will provide an alternative to those in power only if it decisively demonstrates the connection between control of the West Bank, the absence of a welfare policy, and the politicization of government systems, and fights against them.
For the leadership of Israel's opposition: Only Amir Peretz (Merav Alush Levron, Haaretz) As a Mizrahi, traditional leader from the periphery who is true to his roots and seeks peace, he has the greatest potential in the leftist camp to defuse Israel's divisions.
Where Did 'Democratic' Go? (Haaretz Editorial) The proposed nation-state bill undermines equality and would actually harm Israel’s legitimacy as a Jewish state.
Hillel's hypocrisy: Denouncing Israel's moves against pluralism, while quashing it at home (Elana Metz, Haaretz+) American Jews' fight for pluralism and against censorship and exclusion in Jewish spaces should begin at home - on our campuses. 
A chronicle of desperation (Yoav Limor, Israel Hayom) Israeli officials believe Hamas' current distress and urgent need for an accomplishment make it more likely to soften its own stance for a change. 
Gaza crisis leaves Hamas no choice but to play by Egypt's rules (Amos Harel, Haaretz) Closer relations between Cairo and the Strip would ease the pressure of the energy crisis, but the risks for Israel are clear.
Israel a key player in Syria ceasefire deal (Alex Fishman, Yedioth/Ynet) The agreement signed between the US, Russia and Jordan would likely have never been born without Israel’s involvement, in light of its alleged influence on rebel elements in the Syrian Golan Heights. If it lasts, the truce could remove the threat of an Iranian-Hezbollah front in the Golan, but that is unlikely due to the difficulty tin restraining the groups operating on the ground. 
Syria Cease-fire: Israel Will Have to Live With Russian Dominance on Its Border (Zvi Bar'el, Haaretz+) U.S. and Russia have shared interests in pushing Iran and its militias, like Hezbollah, out of the area. Working assumption in Israel is that American departure will leave stage completely open for Russia. 
Will the 'Jewish Taliban' Survive the Death of Their Spiritual Leader?( Allison Kaplan Sommer, Haaretz+) The followers of Lev Tahor, which was ruled a 'dangerous cult' by an Israeli court, followed Rabbi Shlomo Helbrans from country to country until his reported drowning this week 
The Western Wall? For Me, It's Like Stonehenge (Rogel Alpher, Haaretz+) There is no God and the beliefs of those praying at the Western Wall are no more or less serious or true than the worldview of the pagans who hold Druid rites at Stonehenge. 
The Arabic Language in Israel: Official but Inferior (Yonatan Mendel, Haaretz+) The Knesset is telling the Arab community that their language’s standing is in jeopardy, so they should be careful not to make any unexpected moves. 
Looking for a way out (Prof. Eyal Zisser, Israel Hayom) While it wouldn't hurt to force Qatar to comply with some of its Arab neighbors' demands, prolonging the crisis does not serve the war on terror. 
No one actually knows where Israel ends and the Palestinian territories begin (Shakked Auerbach, Haaretz+) Israel has worked hard since 1967 to erase the Green Line from public consciousness, even as the invisible border became increasingly impenetrable to Palestinians. 
When nothing is sacred, UNESCO ruling comes as no surprise (Shlomo Puterkovsky, Israel Hayom) The Arab-Palestinian side knows how to sanctify the things it deems important, while the Jewish-Israeli side’s actions convey the message to the Palestinians and to the entire world that nothing is actually sacred to us; UNESCO’s vote therefore, is hardly surprising. 
Does UNESCO Only Lack Pragmatism and Sensitivity for Jewish Heritage Sites? (Solon Solomon, Haaretz+) UNESCO has gone further than drawing a line to say: Palestine starts here. What they suggest: beyond that line, Jewish history and attachment no longer exists. 
A makeshift guy: The response of (Israel’s Ambassador to the UN) Carmel Shama-Hacohen to UNESCO was the essence of a farce (Ron Kaufman, Maariv) Our ambassador to the organization is not to blame. The blame is on those who sent a local politician with no diplomatic experience to represent the state in two international bodies that are supposed to be important for public relations. 
UNESCO Resolution on Hebron Isn't anti-Semitic at All (Odeh Bisharat, Haaretz+) It recognized ancient Hebron (Al-Khalil) as a world heritage site holy to three faiths, and located in Palestine. Period. 
Pawns and patriarchs (Annika Hernroth-Rothstein, Israel Hayom) The perpetuators of war are not those praying at the Cave of the Patriarchs, but those who comfortably sit far from the consequences of their hate.
Syria Cease-fire: For Israel, the Good News May Lead to Bad News (Amos Harel, Haaretz) Deal backed by U.S. and Russia could halt 'accidental' fire into Israel, but with Tehran eyeing the border area it could create more serious challenges in the long term. 
Left-center leaders must put their egos aside and unite (Uri Savir, Maariv) The people with the ability to lead the country should put their ego aside and unite to establish a democratic movement that will strive to realize the principles of the Declaration of Independence. 
Either Left or Nothing (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) Peretz and Gabbay have already passed through the meat grinder called the Labor Party and have become part of its flawed DNA, which is the DNA of everything that is termed left-center. 
Trump just made it harder to 'come out' as Jewish in Poland (Chloe Rose, Haaretz+) When the U.S. president joined Poland's leaders in airbrushing out Jewish suffering and identity, he affirmed the stigma many still feel about their Jewish roots, and that Jewish community groups are trying hard to combat. 
 

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