APN's daily news review from Israel

Sunday November 25, 2018
 

Quote of the day:

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Front Page:

Haaretz

Yedioth Ahronoth 

Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)

Israel Hayom

News Summary:
Israeli statistics (57 women murdered since 2016) and personal stories marked International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (days after the coalition government brought down, with the help of 10 right-wing female MKs, an opposition bill to combat violence against women and that was despite weeks of extensive public protest against the phenomenon), more secrets were revealed about the botched Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip and now Hamas is making efforts to find collaborators, and the surprise among the Israeli newspapers at the statement by the “relatively moderate” Iranian President in which he called Israel a “cancerous growth in the region” (and neither the Yedioth or the ‘Israel Hayom’ articles mentioned the dire financial straits Iran faces since the Israeli Prime Minister convinced the US President to reinstate sanctions against Iran - OH], were the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers. Also, Maariv reported that senior members of the Jewish community in the US said that “Netanyahu is striving to cancel Trump’s peace plan” and the papers reported that Russia said it was ready to mediate between Palestinians and Israel. Meanwhile, Israel, Cyprus, Greece and Italy agreed on a $7 billion East Med gas pipeline to Europe.

According to a Lebanese report, Hamas is searching for eight Israeli soldiers, two of whom are women, allegedly members of the elite IDF intel unit who were involved in what became a botched operation two weeks ago. It published photos of the eight to crowdsource intel from the Israeli public and distributed photos in Gaza, believing that some of the soldiers may still be in the Strip.  The Israeli military censor forbade the Israeli press from publishing the photos and called on the Israeli public not to share information or even post the photos saying it can endanger lives, even though the photos are freely available online because foreign media, such as Aljazeera.com can publish the photos and anyone can share them.)
 Hamas is also looking for locals who may have collaborated on the Israeli spy operation and also looking for a second vehicle allegedly used in the operation. After Walla News reported and Israeli TV reported that that the IDF may have invented a fictitious aid group for the operation, Haaretz+'s Amira Hass wrote that this will now confirm what Hamas has been saying for some time and, thus, make it more difficult for foreign aid organizations to work freely in the Gaza Strip because they won’t be trusted by locals or the ruling Hamas party and also, Hamas might take precautions that will interfere with their entry into the Strip and their work. At present, a delegation of senior Hamas officials are in Egypt negotiating the long-term agreement with Israel and also reconciliation with the Fatah party. The Israeli papers failed to mention that very few Gazans participated in the weekly Friday ‘March of Return’ border protests: a few hundred as opposed to thousands, in a sign that Hamas is already restraining the masses as part of the agreement.

Quick Hits:

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Features:

This filmmaker moved to a settlement to make a movie: 'I felt bad about being a Jew there' 
Having previously talked with guests at a Haredi hotel in London and with customers at an Arab-owned hair salon, leftist director Iris Zaki set out for the West Bank settlement of Tekoa, to find personal stories behind the stereotypes. (Nirit Anderman, Haaretz+)
There's no going back 
Palestinians recruited to help Israel thwart terrorist attacks are given the cold shoulder once they outlive their usefulness • Facing certain torture and death threats in the PA, they rely on an unlikely ally – right-wing settler attorney Michael Teplow. (Yariv Peleg, Israel Hayom)
When Saudi Arabia Imported Teachers From Palestine 
Palestinian refugees once filled universities in the Arab world and energized the Persian Gulf's economy, as a result of an educational revolution due largely to UNRWA. What lessons can be learned from that era now, as the agency's fate hangs in the balance? (Maya Rosenfeld, Haaretz+)
 
Commentary/Analysis:
There Was an Attempted Coup in Israel This Week, and No One Noticed (Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz) Israel’s democracy, a marvel compared to its neighbors, is imperfect, tenuous and besieged. In Rome, visiting the most iconic symbol of Jewish exile and captivity, I doubted for the first time that Israel would survive a serious test of its freedoms.
Israeli Capriciousness as I Witnessed It at the Bethlehem Checkpoint (Anonymous, Haaretz+) The soldier seemed amused as she closed the gates and made Palestinian laborers late for work, not that this hard-heartedness did anything to enhance the country’s security.
A Jewish state is a guarantee for democracy (Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom) Former Zionist Union MK Zuhair Bahalul warned this week that the nation-state bill has pushed Israel to the brink of losing its democratic nature • But unlike Islam, democracy has been ingrained into the Jewish people's ethos since its inception. 
Zionism Is About Letting Jews Live (And Die) Without Humiliation (Chaim Gans, Haaretz+) The Jews' right to nationhood in their ancient homeland is actually anchored on two facts based in modernity.
Exposure: Arabs! (Einav Schiff, Yedioth Hebrew) [NOTE: Einav Schiff, the Yedioth TV critic, is responding to a Yedioth article, titled “Singing in Two Voices,” in which Lina Makhoul was attacked for not agreeing to be a part of the official Independence Day ceremony saying that it is the ‘Palestinian Holocaust Day.’ The article led to harsh reactions on social media networks and to allegations of racism on the part of the newspaper, Haaretz Hebrew wrote. - OH]  I was in the audience in March 2013, the night Lina Makhoul performed Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and won "The Voice.” I saw a talented young woman who captured the hearts of the viewers not because of her identity, but because her singing was like the secret chord that Cohen wrote about - that King David played and that God acceded to. But, as the next line of the song says, there are those who do not really care about music. They need first and foremost belonging, loyalty, to be ”one of ours." To my deep regret, this is the meaning of the report that was published last Friday in Yedioth Ahronoth, and in my opinion it should never have happened. Makhoul was put on trial there by her “associates“ and others, according to criteria through which the Culture Minister (Miri Regev) is trying to sow destruction and devastation. The statements quoted in her name - some of which she categorically denies - were taken from forums that should be safe and intimate and turned into a trap for her. So here’s the flash news, for someone who has somehow missed the last few years and is hearing about it for the first time: Makhoul is an Israeli citizen of Arab origin. Not a presenter of Zionism and not a soldier of the state. Nor is it known that there is a contract that requires artists of some sort to sing for the Syrian refugees. You don’t want to appear on Independence Day? Oh my God, a knife in the heart of the nation. Why stop there? Immediately obligate her to a minimum of three municipal performances plus a performance of "Hatikva.” The Jewish soul will already teach her a lesson. In her response, which was truly noble in light of the circumstances, Makhoul reiterated her Gordian knot to this place. On her Facebook page, she has published a picture from her days as a volunteer at Magen David Adom and has noted volunteer performances in synagogues. But the very fact that Makhoul feels the need to defend herself attests to the daily injustice to Arabs and Arabs in Israel, in a variety of areas. The struggles and obstacles facing them are transparent to most Jews, who can not imagine what it is like to live as an Arab in Israel - let alone if you are a successful and famous Arab. Because then you're not just a singer or a writer, a soccer player or a television woman; you're first and foremost an envoy. And as an envoy you are expected to behave accordingly, to say thank you very much for the stage you have been given and to get rid of all sorts of small things, such as political positions and feelings that may irritate readers / listeners / viewers. And if, heaven forbid, you dared to say something that seems to deviate from the consensus at the time, you will always have to worry that at sometime it will be used against you. And the saddest thing, at least for the undersigned, is that there will be a platform that thinks that things are worthy of publication without proper context, without regard for proportions and without serving the public interest. Of course there is room for criticism of the political and nationalist positions of high-profile figures. These artists are called "brave" because they are willing to stand behind their beliefs, even at the potential price of harm to their popularity and their income. They are also attacked because of their positions, and as long as the discourse is relevant and respectful, it is also okay in democracy. Makhoul does not even get close to these areas, and that is not the story now. Even the mention of Holocaust Remembrance Day cannot be fully understood without the full context of the conversation. In general, and again this may surprise some people, Arabs are not flooded with joy and happiness on Independence Day. You can devote whole volumes to the book of laws, but that too will not cause the Nakba to disappear. But we are at a time when it is acceptable and even popular to define loyalists and traitors, those with us and our enemies. And suddenly a personality like Makhoul, who for most of the year does not make it on the radar of the mainstream, has to prove that she does not have a sister. And if she has - then be a good and disciplined Arab, otherwise it will end badly. And in this atmosphere you understand why so few Arabs break through the walls, and when they do that they prefer to stay away: not to speak, not to stand out and sometimes simply to despair and emigrate. At the end of that evening [when she won ‘The Voice,’] , Makhoul was excited and optimistic. "There is another possibility between Jews and Arabs," she said. It's a shame that sometimes we are more concerned with putting a stick in the wheels of this vision than with advancing it.
*The significance of the disaster (Itamar Ronal, Channel 22’s Mako website) Yedioth Ahronoth's slanderous text against Lina Makhoul may have been full of lies, rumors and exaggerations, but one truth was clearly reflected in it. We are afraid to recognize the Nakba. If the Lina Makhoul really does not want to appear on Independence Day, we should and can accommodate her request. It takes just a little bit of empathy...Again, it is important to clarify that Lina Makhoul herself did not talk about the Nakba. But let's talk about the Nakba for a moment. On the Jewish side it is customary to see the Nakba as such - the great catastrophe that is the establishment of the State of Israel. While we celebrate our independence, our fellow Arab citizens mourn for it, hurt and hate our independence. So yes, the great catastrophe is indeed the establishment of the State of Israel, the results of the War of Independence, the expulsion/flight, the destroyed villages, the refugees and the ancient longing for the right of return. The establishment of the state left behind a considerable amount of destruction, houses were destroyed, families were separated (as in many other wars). It is possible to celebrate the state without denying that. To allow Israeli Arabs to mourn this loss does not require denying Israel's right to exist, it requires only a little empathy. They live with us, integrate into our society, pay taxes and obey the law. So they don't want to celebrate with us the day when our ancestors defeated their ancestors, does that turn them into enemies? On the day we celebrate our victory, they want to take a moment to mourn what they have lost, and what they are still losing. Because let's face it, if there were real equality for the Arabs of Israel, this discussion would be different.
Now Defense Minister, Netanyahu Suddenly Warms to Security Establishment's Demands (Amos Harel and Chaim Levinson, Haaretz+) The prime minister knows a military escalation will torpedo his political advantage.
Hamas again tries to manipulate (Yoav Limor, Israel Hayom) In releasing information supposedly related to the IDF operation in Gaza, Hamas is using psychological warfare. It has four goals: to embarrass Israel, gather information, understand what happened, and tarnish Israel in others' eyes. 
Israel's Iron Dome Defense of Saudi Arabia Aims to Avert Collapse of Trump and Netanyahu's Entire Middle East Strategy (Chemi Shalev, Haaretz+) But Democrats view it as yet another expression of the prime minister’s overzealous backing for a despised U.S. president.
Egypt in the role of policeman: This is how the secret agreement behind the scenes looks (Jackie Khougy, Maariv) Far from the limelight, Israel, Qatar, Egypt and Hamas reached an agreement to calm the violence on the border. Outlines of a creative agreement….The frequent visits of the senior Egyptian intel officer, Abd al-Halak, in Gaza are the result of secret agreements between Israel, Egypt, Qatar and Hamas. These agreements are conducted on two parallel axes. The first is the Israeli-Qatari-Gaza channel; The second is the Israeli-Egyptian-Gazan channel. Qatar is responsible for the money transfers. Egypt is responsible for getting Hamas to restrain the masses and themselves. This arrangement came to rescue the cease-fire that took effect on August 15, and which threatened to collapse. This is a strange hybrid, designed to overcome Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ refusal to accept the generous Qatari grant and legally transfer it to Gaza. The Egyptians mediated between Israel and Hamas. In order to coordinate the arrival of the dollars, Israel spoke with Qatar directly. As I wrote here a week ago, Doha and Jerusalem renewed the recent contacts between them, in light of the Gaza issue. This is much more than can be said of Egypt and Qatar. These two, the enemies of one another, did not exchange a word, even though they shared the same four-party agreement. None of the four officially acknowledged the existence of the understandings, so as not to embarrass themselves in the eyes of their people. The Israeli government is afraid to declare that it is talking to Qatar and is making deals with Hamas, contrary to its declarations that it will not negotiate with terror. The same fear exists in Hamas, which is accused by its opponents of selling its principles for dollars. Cairo, for its part, does not disclose the nature of its relations with Israel. Its silence on the arrangement is also meant to protect Hamas from domestic criticism.
Hamas and Israel move to psychological warfare (Yossi Yehoshua, Yedioth/Ynet) The Gaza rulers are making impressive use of the media to take control of the narrative, while the IDF censor is fighting Hamas efforts to spread more and more information allegedly tied to the botched mission in Gaza 2 weeks ago. 
Shadow of Russian Plane Still Hangs: Israel Worries About Conflict in North, but Its Hands Are Tied (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) The strategic blunder caused by the plane's downing is far from over. Does the Israeli public agree with Bennett that lawyers are limiting the army's operations? What the army warned about Culture Minister Miri Regev.
The government that cried 'wolf!' (Susie Becher, Ynet) The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of anti-Semitism is problematic, as there is a difference between hatred of Jews and opposition to the policies of the Israeli government. If Israel continues to cry 'wolf,' international Jewry may find that valid cries of anti-Semitism end up falling on deaf ears.
Push for Syria solution may hasten Iranian forces' exit (Zvi Bar'el, Haaretz+) By maintaining its status in Syria, Iran hopes to show endurance in the face of sanctions and diplomatic pressure. But the cost is high, and Tehran is looking toward Russia to break its shackles.
A dangerous game (Yossi Beilin, Israel Hayom) Israeli officials believe it is better to "manage the conflict" with a side that makes no demands of us – other than we leave – than engage a side that seeks to live alongside us. 
Israel’s Re-education Bill (Friday Haaretz Editorial) Giving a politician the authority to determine who is an inciter and who is not, who is sufficiently 'Jewish and democratic' and who is not, is an anti-democratic act.
By sending top security official on political mission, Netanyahu blurs line between right and wrong (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) Meir Ben-Shabbat denied his visit to a religious-Zionist leader had political content, but added he was pleased that putting off elections had 'prevented enemies from celebrating.’
Minister Hanegbi's unfortunate statement: It is forbidden to tell the truth when it is not nice (Prof. Rafi Carasso, Maariv) Everyone thinks the same as Tzachi Hanegbi, and everyone knows he's right (when he said that rockets hitting Tel-Aviv and Ben-Gurion Airport is worse than if they hit the Israeli communities around the Gaza Strip periphery. - OH)  Tel Aviv and Ben Gurion Airport are not like the Gaza perimeter. But we don’t dare say that, we have become accustomed to the situation where missiles fall in the south, and life in the center of the country goes on as usual.
How Hamas sold out Gaza for cash from Qatar and collaboration with Israel (Muhammad Shehada, Haaretz+) Israel’s botched military incursion saved Hamas from the nightmare of being branded as 'sell-outs'. Now feted as resistance heroes, it won’t be long before Hamas' betrayal of the Palestinian national movement is exposed again.
The experiment returns: The "Hebron First" initiative teaches that the left-wing does not learn from mistakes (Sarah Beck, Maariv) It is regrettable that in the Knesset building, the symbol of our renewed sovereignty in the Land of the Patriarchs, we are initiating a conference that is entirely forgotten. [Beck is referring to the conference this week calling for the eviction of Jewish settlers from the city of Hebron in the West Bank - OH.] MK Dov Khenin, MK Michal Rozin and B’Tselem director, Haggai Elad, have memories that probably extend back only 50 years…But we’ve already been to this film, which I believe was called, “Gaza First.” We carried out this exact strange experiment on human beings: We removed honest and nonviolent Jews from the homes they built so that terrorist organizations can take their place, terrorize the Arab population and create a terrorist infrastructure that also threatens Tel Aviv. For some reason, there are elements on the extreme left who still think that Arab terrorism is a reaction to the actions of the Jews. This is a strange concept after the disengagement, but in the context of Hebron it is not only strange, it is shocking….where in 1929, almost four decades before what MK Rozin calls "the occupation,” there was a Jewish community that had not left the city for hundreds of years. In the face of internal Arab control wars between Haj Amin al-Husseini and the Nashashibi clan, Husseini encouraged the the Arabs of Israel [sic - there was no Israel then. OH]  to riot against the Jews. The riots took place in many places, but in Hebron the image of evil is the most monstrous: 67 people, including three children under the age of five, were brutally murdered, women were raped in front of their families and then murdered. The Jewish community became a slaughterhouse, and the Jewish community in Israel was shaken. The Arabs succeeded. The community left the city. The houses that were under their legal ownership stood deserted, to the chagrin of the neighbors who lived in peace with the Jews, and some even tried to protect them. Only 38 years later did the Jews return to their homes. They have resettled the desolate buildings, built synagogues and educational institutions, and now the distinguished Knesset members want to send a message to the Arabs: "You murdered and also inherited: Hebron is a Palestinian city."
Blaming Netanyahu Is No Solution to the Zionist Left's Occupation Complex (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) Not all of Israel’s disasters began with Rabin’s murder, and not all of its ills will end when Netanyahu is replaced. But when there is nothing to offer, all the blame is placed on Netanyahu.
The masochistic left-wing fantasizes that the IDF will throw Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas) into Gaza (Michael Kleiner, Maariv) The address for a long-term arrangement in Gaza is not the imaginary leadership of Fatah, which some of the middlemen and the left want to involve artificially, but rather it’s those who are actually running things there, (i.e. Hamas). 
Replace the Captain (Israel Harel, Haaretz+) Israel's large army, which is endowed with a bounty of resources, is incapable of preventing Hezbollah and Hamas from making Israelis’ lives an ongoing hell.
Iran's great nuclear deception (Ronen Bergman, Yedioth/Ynet) New details are revealed about the Mossad's special operation to seize Iran's nuclear archive, including a rare glimpse into Tehran's classified documents: secret tests, a plan to manufacture the first 5 nuclear bombs, and even a photo of proud Iranian scientists outside a nuclear facility. This is the story of how Iran tried to deceive the world… and almost got away with it.
Israel’s Creeping Gender Segregation (Haaretz Editorial) The Council for Higher Education's allowing of gender separation throughout university campuses is no necessary evil, even if it helps integrate the country's ultra-Orthodox community.
Boycott Airbnb, Unless You're Good With anti-Semitism (Jonathan S. Tobin, Haaretz+) Even if you fiercely oppose the occupation, you should still be able to see that denying Jews rights that you don’t seek to deny to others, even other occupiers, is bias. That bias is anti-Semitism.
How Airbnb's Settlement Ban Could Boost Israeli Tourism (Sari Bashi, Haaretz+) Erasing the distinction between Israeli businesses and settlement businesses puts the entire Israeli economy at risk.
  'Pinpoint operations won't work on Hamas' 
In an interview with Israel Hayom, Education Minister Naftali Bennett explains why he withdrew his demand to be made defense minister • Unlike former Defense Minister Lieberman, who ran from the battlefield when he failed, I took responsibility, he says. (Interviewed by Mati Tuchfeld in Israel Hayom)

Druze chef from Israel breaks with (Druze) tradition - and takes New York by storm  
In opening her own restaurants in New York, specializing in Druze cuisine, Gazala Halabi has forged a culinary and personal revolution. “I come from Daliat al-Carmel, a place I love very much, but everything there is so limited for a woman. I never had it easy and so what I did is considered a real revolution,” she says. “I’m a divorced Druze woman, living and working in New York, raising two kids alone. I’m more independent than many American women and I’m proud of it,” she goes on, adding: “I really don’t know how I did what I did, I didn’t have it easy in marriage, with the kids or in business. If I was able to do what I’ve done here with two restaurants, any women with strong willpower can do it,” she says. (Interviewed by Haim Handwerkker in Haaretz+)


 

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