News Nosh 9.27.17

by APN 09/27/17
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APN's daily news review from Israel
Wednesday September 27, 2017
 
Quote of the day:
"One could argue that, in bowing to God, we are acknowledging a Force greater than white supremacy, hate - or even 'flag and country.'"
--Bradley Burston in an Op-Ed in Haaretz ahead of Yom Kippur about opposition to white supremacy.*

Front Page:
Haaretz

Yedioth Ahronoth

  • Sali, my hero; We are both from the same mountain  - Border Policeman and two guards murdered in attack at Har Adar
  • The back gate // Nahum Barnea at the site of the attack
  • The pain and the restraint // Yossi Yehoshua
  • Return to sanity // Ben-Dror Yemini
  • Time for change // Yifat Erlich
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
Israel Hayom

News Summary:
Questions over how Israel should react and whether Israelis should fear were the main stories and analysis alongside the pain of the bereaved relatives of the Border Police officer and the two private Israeli security guards who were killed yesterday by a Palestinian with an Israeli work permit at a checkpoint at the entrance to the Har Adar settlement. The other big story was that High Court Chief Justice Miriam Naor blocked a representative of the judiciary from attending a state event in the West Bank celebrating 50 years of ‘liberation.’

Unlike many other attacks by Palestinians on Israeli civilians or security forces, the papers appeared to be less sensationalist and critical of the Palestinian side. Although Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the Israeli right-wing blamed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the Israeli papers noted that the assailant, Nimr Jamal, 37, a father of four, who had worked for years with a work permit in Har Adar, was not affiliated politically and had personal problems with his wife who recently left him with the kids because of domestic abuse. They reported that Jamal sent her an apologetic message on Facebook minutes before the attack, apologizing for being a 'poor husband' and asking her to take care of their children.

Yoav Limor, Israel Hayom’s military commentator, who despite his newspaper’s pro-Netanyahu bend, is an objective analyst, explained how some Palestinians who have personal problems seek status by making a ‘heroic’ attack on Israelis. The U.S., EU, and France all condemned the attack. However, Palestinians blamed the Israeli occupation for the attack. Hamas spokesman, Husam Badran, released a statement calling the attack “heroic,” and saying it was “aimed at ending the occupation and (Israel’s) occupation of Palestinian land.” Meanwhile, Munir al-Jaghoub, a Fatah official, released a statement,saying that “Israel alone is responsible for Palestinian reactions to the crimes of the occupation…(and it) must be well aware of the consequences of its continued push towards violence, the policy of house demolitions, the forced displacement of Jerusalemites, and the successive incursions of settlers to Al Aqsa Mosque compound.” Maariv reported that Yitzhak Frankenthal, the bereaved father of Arik, a soldier who was kidnapped and killed by Hamas militants, wrote on a Facebook page that “Whoever fights for independence is not a terrorist, but a fighter for his people. I oppose all use of force, but as long as there is no peace and they are fighting us, don’t look at them as terrorists, but as fighters.” Following his son’s killing, he formed the ‘Bereaved Parents’ Circle’ for Israeli and Palestinian bereaved relatives, who meet to advance ideas of peace and reconciliation between the peoples, Maariv wrote on page 8.

The question arose whether Israel will cancel the Palestinian work permit policy. Over 100,000 Palestinians who live the West Bank have permits to work in Israel or in IDF-controlled areas (i.e. settlements). Another 40,000 Palestinians are believed to be working illegally. But Israel’s Civil Administration said Israel was unlikely to introduce major policy changes and he papers’ noted that the Israeli security establishment opposed the collective punishment of canceling Palestinians’ work permits. Most of the papers’ analysts, including Yoav Limor, agreed with that. That said the mayor of Beit Surik, the hometown of the assailant, slammed Israel for the collective punishment of the village after the Israeli army closed all entrances into the village and forbade anyone from leaving.

There were a few interesting articles that shared the strange co-existence between the settlers of Har Adar and the neighboring Palestinians, who enter to work. Some residents of Har Adar told Ynet they wanted things to return to the way they, but they were feeling unsettled. “The terrorist always said hello,” said one resident who knew Jamal. “This makes you think. It hurts so much when it's someone you know,’” one resident, told Ynet. Yedioth reported that Jamal worked for the KAN TV weather forecaster as a house cleaner.  Ynet interviewed Palestinians who spoke about the humiliating treatment they received by the security forces at the checkpoint. "Sometimes the soldiers demean us and treat us as less than human. The status quo makes a lot of young people angry, and gets them thinking about attacks. How much can we take? It's a powder keg that will eventually explode," a man named Aamer told Ynet. Some 600 Palestinians enter Har Adar settlement early morning every day, Maariv reported. They go through a security check and then to their work sites. Maariv interviewed Shai Sela, who built about 150 houses in Har Adar and lived in the settlement for 22 years. Sela employed Jamal for 15 years and was a guest at Jamal’s wedding. And he too was critical of the treatment of Palestinians by security forces. "It's not that I’m being understanding of the murder," Sela told Maariv, "but in my time, the security checks at the gate were really humiliating." He said the attitude of the Border Police officers and the soldiers towards the laborers was sometimes inhumane, and he often went with his business partner to the mayor and demanded that the humiliations stop. "If these are the security checks it’s better not let them in at all,” they used to tell the mayor, he said. He described Jamal as “a man with a lot of confidence.” When he heard that Jamal was the killer, he was in shock. "If you had lined up all the people of Beit Surik, I would have told you that he was the last one who capable of doing this.” Haaretz+ has a 2015 article titled, “Har Adar Is Over the Green Line, but Its Residents Don't Like to Be Called Settlers.” The article says that “In this quiet and affluent neighborhood, harsh treatment of Palestinian labor is strictly enforced.”

Chief Israeli Justice Miriam Naor barred a judge from attending the West Bank settlements jubilee ceremony tomorrow, which was to mark 50 years of settlement in Judea and Samaria. But far right-wing Education Minister Naftali Bennett called on the opposition to attend the ceremony, saying that not attending “splits the nation," Maariv reported. Culture Minister Miri Regev said the judiciary’s no show tomorrow was "disgraceful" and she threatened to ban justices from attending all state events.
 
Quick Hits:
  • Settlers pelt rocks at Palestinian cars in Hebron, level lands in Bethlehem - Dozens of settlers, some armed, congregated on Road 60 near the Palestinian villages of Bani Naim and Yatta,  just outside  ultra right-wing Kiryat Arba settlement, and pelted rocks and empty bottles at Palestinian vehicles, damaging several. In a separate incident, settlers from Hitmar settlement leveled Palestinian-owned agricultural lands in the Bethlehem-area village of al-Khader. (Maan)
  • Israeli forces assault 3 Palestinians during raid in Hebron - Jabour said that Israeli soldiers had raided the village of Jawaya in the Masafer Yatta area of Hebron and assaulted three village residents. The residents sustained “serious bruises” on their bodies and were transferred to a medical clinic for treatment. (Maan)
  • Israeli officials deliver demolition notices for homes in Issawiya - Israeli forces and municipality officials had “conducted provocative tours” in Issawiya in E. Jerusalem, photographing streets and Palestinian-owned residential and commercial structures, while handing demolition notices to several homes in the neighborhood, said a member of Issawiya village. (Maan)
  • A new survey among parents: Is there religionization in the Israeli education system? - A third of the parents think that their children are learning too much Judaism, but half of them think that Jewish studies are important. The debate about religionization in schools is not about facts, but about feelings and attitudes. (Maariv)
  • Netanyahu refrains from denouncing German far-right gains, concerned over anti-Semitism 'on right and left' - As the Israeli PM falls short of mentioning Alternative for Germany (AfD) by name, Holocaust survivors in Israel are shocked and worried by the nationalist party's success: 'It's like cancer spreading, it's shocking that it's happening in Germany.' (Ynet and Haaretz+)
  • Israel refuses to stop arms sales to Myanmar, despite its campaign of rape, torture and massacres against the Rohingya - The state's lawyer tells the High Court that it shouldn't interfere in Israel's foreign relations. (Haaretz)
  • Palestinian gets life in prison for fatal drive-by shooting of Israeli in West Bank - Amjad Khamed was also ordered to pay $92,000 in compensation and got a $7,000 fine for his role in the murder of Malachi Rosenfeld in 2015. (Haaretz+ and Ynet)
  • New Israeli app replaces tradition of sacrificing chickens for one's sins - App Tikkun lets Jews anywhere in the world conduct sin-cleansing ritual of kapparot at gravesites of Jewish holy figures in Israel and abroad. CEO: This is what happens when technology and faith intersect. Kapparot payments donated to the needy. (Israel Hayom)
  • Decapitated toads found in 4,000-year-old Jerusalem tomb - Excavation ahead of residential construction unearthed Canaanite-era funerary offerings to the deceased, including the remains of date and myrtle as well as headless toads, that researchers say shed new light on burial customs of the period. (Israel Hayom)
  • Iraq Gives Kurds Three Days to Hand Over Control Over Airports to Avoid Flight Ban - Meanwhile, Tehran vows to stand alongside Baghdad and Ankara against the outcome of the independence referendum held by the KRG in northern Iraq on Monday. (Agencies, Haaretz)
  • Iraqi Kurdish leader says 'yes' vote won independence referendum - Masoud Barzani calls on Iraq's central government to engage in 'serious dialogue' despite Baghdad earlier ruling out possibility; asks world 'to respect the will of millions of people.' (Agencies, Ynet)
  • Turkey warns Kurds 'Israeli flags won't save you' - President Erdogan claims Israel will be only country to recognize Kurdish independence, but 'the world isn't about Israel; Iran rejects Kurdish referendum as 'Zionist plot,' says 'Muslim nations will not allow the creation of a second Israel.' (Agencies, Ynet)
  • Not Just Kurdistan: Four Arab Countries Torn Apart by Breakaway Nations - Once rare in the Middle East, the type of informal breakup now seen in northern Iraq has become far more common in the chaos that followed the 2011 Arab Spring. (Agencies, Haaretz)
  • In Historic Shift, Saudi Arabia to Allow Women to Drive - Trump and U.S. State Department welcome move: 'a positive step toward promoting the rights and opportunities of women in Saudi Arabia.’ (Agencies, Haaretz)
  • Syrian War Drags On, but Assad’s Future Looks as Secure as Ever - While the Syrian civil war is far from over, regional powers, foreign officials and Syrians themselves are increasingly operating as if Assad will rule for years to come, a bitter pill for many to swallow. (NYT, Haaretz)

Commentary/Analysis:
Why Germany's far-right party is reconsidering the country's relationship with Israel (Kirsten Rulf, Haaretz+) And why Israel should brace itself for further provocation from Germany's far-right AfD party.
Deadly Terror Attack Challenges Israeli Army’s Aversion to Collective Punishment (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) The military is still against it, but after the killing of three Israelis Netanyahu has pledged a hard line.
Despite the attack, the policy of work permits for Palestinians will not change (Yossi Melman, Maariv) The permits are intended to enable the population to earn a minimum wage and prevent them from deteriorating into situations of despair and frustration, which will lead to an increase in terror attacks. There are voices that suggest granting work permits even to residents of Gaza.
Israel Is Arming Criminals (Haaretz Editorial) Lawmakers from across the spectrum should come together to put an immediate stop to Israel's weapons sales to Myanmar, where crimes against humanity are being committed.
The tail wagging the dog: Instead of restraining the "price tag" punks, they control us (Ran Adelist, Maariv) The perpetrators of these activities [against Arabs, non-Jews and soldiers serving in the West Bank - OH] are part of the campaign "You chose us" of the nationalist religious wing, whose head is in the government and whose tail is making price tag (attacks). And that tail wags the dog, and we do not care anymore.
Israel’s missed opportunity with North Korea (Nahum Barnea, Yedioth/Ynet) Former Foreign Ministry Director-General Eytan Bentsur reveals Pyongyang’s repeated attempts to strike a deal with Jerusalem more than 20 years ago and how talks were eventually thwarted by the US. ‘It’s so easy to say there’s no partner,’ he says. ‘There was a window of opportunity, and we missed it. Now, North Korea is threatening world peace.’
The Israeli interest: Despite the terror attack, Judea and Samaria must not deteriorate into despair (MK Yaakov Perry, Maariv) Israel should not stop trying to reach a political compromise with the Palestinians. There will always be extremists who will not accept a political solution, but they must not undermine the advocates of stability on both sides of the divide. MK Yaakov Perry in a special column.
We white Jews must also #TakeTheKnee against white supremacy (Rabbi Michael Rothbaum, Haaretz) When we kneel in shul once a year on Yom Kippur we feel vulnerable. That’s how African Americans feel every day. And we Jews still aren’t doing enough to dismantle the American race privilege that we benefit from.
The attack on Har Adar: There was no intelligence failure, but the security circles must be improved (Lior Ackerman, Maariv) Once again a murderer came out one morning of his own accord, incited by the Palestinian media and authorities, only to kill Israelis and achieve one of two goals: to become a shahid or to be arrested.
Losing a sense of statehood (Dr. Haim Shine, Israel Hayom) The left-wing politicians who reportedly intend to boycott a state ceremony marking the settlement enterprise have forgotten who we are and what we set out to do.
*Take the Knee as an Act of Yom Kippur (Bradley Burston, Haaretz+) We take the knee for all the times this frightening past year when we, as a society and as individuals, needed to take a stand and failed to act.
The murderous attack: a test for Netanyahu's tense nerves and Lieberman's short fuse (Ben Caspit, Maariv) It is believed that the security establishment will not recommend changing the policy of preserving the fabric of coexistence with the Palestinians because of a single attack, but the reality can change this.
What if a war breaks out tomorrow morning? (Alex Fishman, Yedioth/Ynet) A clear answer on whether the IDF is properly prepared for war can likely be found in the Knesset subcommittee’s classified detailed report. The vague report issued to the public on Monday provides the following answer: It depends which war we find ourselves in.
This Yom Kippur, Let's Turn Down the Volume of Public Discourse in Israel (Shuki Friedman, Haaretz) A country that comes to a standstill for one whole day and doesn’t derive anything significant from it is missing the point.
6 observations on 'Foxtrot' (Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom) Yes, the cinematography and acting in Shmulik Maoz's prizewinning film are remarkable. But at its core, the movie is boring and an attempt to drill home tired post-Zionist clichés.
Netanyahu's (political) partners must bring him back into the fold or find a substitute for him (Nadav Haetzni, Maariv) In contrast to his global conduct, the prime minister is conducting a confused and illogical policy vis-a-vis the Palestinians, which stems from weakness and loss of the path.
In Gaza, Too, We Fall in Love. But There Are Fewer Happy Endings (Mohammed M., Haaretz) 'If you ever leave us, you will kill our souls,' her mom once told me. I cried for hours. I knew I’d never be able to marry her daughter.
Kurds and Palestinians? There’s no comparison (Yoaz Hendel, Yedioth/Ynet) Unlike the Kurdish people, the Palestinian people’s national identity is based exclusively on denying Zionism. Political independence for the Palestinians means harming Israel’s security; political independence for the Kurds means a contribution to regional stability.
Netanyahu's Overextended Stay in Power Is Turning Israel Into Bibistan (Chemi Shalev, Haaretz+) Other than the reelected Angela Merkel, only dictators and despots have ruled their countries longer.
Despite justified fears of the AfD, not all nationalism is Nazism (Alexander J. Apfel, Yedioth/Ynet) With the German elections resulting in third-place victory for hard-right party, Jews are justifiably concerned, but the best way to prevent their rise in the first place is by enabling Europeans who cherish their national heritage to talk about mass immigration without fear of being branded as 'Nazis.' If they are not given their say, they will simply express it through the ballot box by electing hardliners and the people who silenced them will wonder why.
The Three Lies That Shot Down the Lavi, the World's Greatest Israeli Fighter Aircraft (Moshe Arens, Haaretz) Thirty years ago Israel's government drew the curtain on the world’s best fighter aircraft at the time, for no good reason.

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

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