APN's daily news review from Israel

Tuesday May 05, 2020
 

Quote of the day:

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Front Page:

Haaretz

Yedioth Ahronoth

Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)

Israel Hayom

Top News Summary:

The lockdown on Israelis' movement ended (and malls will open on Thursday!), the Israel Institute for Biological Research declared it had developed an antibody and working on a patent and the High Court criticized some of the clauses in the Likud - Kahol-Lavan coalition agreement making top stories in today's Hebrew newspapers. Also, there was great criticism over the work of the man whose government job is to criticize.

Elections 2020 / Netanyahu Indictment News:
On Monday, the High Court examined the coalition agreement between Kahol-Lavan and Likud and questioned the clause banning making senior appointments in the first six months of government. Maariv's Ben Caspit noted that the Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's lawyer was keen to get a quick response regarding the clause giving Netanyahu veto power in the Judicial Appointments Committee. (See Election Commentary/Analysis section below for his reasoning as to why.) Netanyahu warned that High Court interference in the coalition agreement could drag Israel into a fourth elections. That said, the court told the parties to make corrections to a number of clauses and send them back to the court.

**Interestingly, 'Israel Hayom' published a poll and emphasized the 'lack of trust' in the High Court. However, it avoided comparing that to the trust in the legislature, which was far less. When asked whether they "generally believe the High Court of Justice," 46% of respondents said they do, while 40% said they don't. However, some 67% of respondents said they do not believe the legislature, while only 22% said they do.

Meanwhile, the State Comptroller Matanyahu Engelman published his annual audit report yesterday and provoked a wave of stinging comments over its content. Haaretz+ and Yedioth Hebrew noted that he significantly 'softened' criticism, avoided naming names and that he was serving the government's policy. Critics said the report lacked 'teeth.' "There used to be ground work, and its conclusions were to publish the names of those being criticized and when necessary to hold people responsible and that made the criticism much more effective and gave the state comptroller more 'teeth'," explained Shlomo Raz, a former spokesman for the State Comptroller's Office and for the Ombudsman. Raz said the reports look different from what they have seen for many years and that the comptroller used "laundered language." Engelman was appointed in June and was Netanyahu's choice for State Comptroller. He is the first non-judge to be elected to the oversight role in over three decades. Haaretz+ used the example of the Foreign Ministry, which Netanyahu was the minister of. The audit highlighted the underfunding of the Foreign Ministry and its services, but there was not a word about Netanyahu.

Corona News and Quickees:

Other Quick Hits:

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Features:

From India to the Kfir Brigade: Bnei Menashe join the IDF
Shavei Israel organization helps members of the Indian community make aliyah. Pvt. Baruch Chayim Gangte: I felt a strong need to fulfill my role in protecting my homeland. (Dan Lavie, Israel Hayom)

Elections 2020/Netanyahu Indictment Commentary/Analysis:
Everything in order return to Balfour (Prime Minister's Residence) safely: Netanyahu will not give up on the Judiciary Committee (Ben Caspit, Maariv) When the prime minister's representative urged the High Court judges to hurry to decide regarding the committee - he revealed what is really important to Netanyahu, and at the same time put a number of question marks above the unity government scenario. The defining moment of the two fascinating High Court hearings was the discomfort of Binyamin Netanyahu's attorney, Michael Ravillo, on the issue of the Judiciary Committee. The learned counsel went out of his way to try to make it clear to the judges how important it is for him, on a personal level, for them to decide on this issue and not postpone it, as was hinted, to a date after the legislation itself (is passed). It should be emphasized: Ravillo is not the petitioner, but the respondent. Generally, the respondent has no interest in urging the court to decide. Just the opposite. He just wants to go home in peace. Is it possible we are on to something here? Attorney Ravillo wants to return home, to Balfour, in peace. He knows that Netanyahu will not make the unity government without (control in) the Judiciary Committee. This moment is the distilled essence of the film we are all in: Respondent Netanyahu is not only respondent, but also defendant. He needs the High Court plunger for two main issues: his ability to remain an "alternate prime minister" even after the rotation and his ability to control senior appointments in the system of the rule of law in general and in the Judiciary Selection Committee in particular. This is because he knows there is a high chance that the judges appointed by this committee over the next three years will sit on his trial, if and when he appeals his conviction in the district court or if the state appeals his acquittal there.
The Coronavirus Crisis Is Jerusalem Mayor's Finest Hour, but His Real Test Lies Ahead (Haaretz Editorial) The coronavirus crisis has given the national and local governments and their agencies exceptional opportunities to work for the good of East Jerusalem residents and earn their trust. Some agencies, like the police, have grossly wasted this opportunity. In one incident, police confiscated a food truck sent by an organization in Kafr Qasem; in another, they closed a clinic because it operated with help from the Palestinian Authority; and in a third, they conducted a demonstrative operation to remove PA signs from Kafr Aqab, which lies beyond the separation barrier. The Jerusalem municipality, in contrast, has taken advantage of this opportunity for successful cooperation. Mayor Moshe Leon initiated and maintained close contact with the directors of East Jerusalem hospitals and assisted them, including in getting equipment. The municipality also launched a major food distribution operation and coordinated the establishment of coronavirus testing centers with the Health Ministry and Magen David Adom ambulance service ….Nevertheless, Leon’s real test still lies before him. Food baskets and even drive-through virus testing stations are important, but East Jerusalem’s real problems require much more. Its neighborhoods need new planning that will include giving them additional land and massive investments in infrastructure. Home demolitions must be halted, given the situation in which people can’t get permits to build legally. The Judaization of Palestinian neighborhoods and Jewish settlement there must end, as must the police’s demonstrative but misbegotten operations there.
The basic error: We are moving into the trap of our electoral system method and our failed government (Adv. Uriel Lin, Maariv) All those who worked for the repeal of the direct election law are responsible for this situation: three rounds of elections without a decision, which cost a heavy price. In any case, the culprits probably won't admit their mistake.
From the remarks of the High Court justices, it appears they have decided not to thwart the establishment of the government (Mordechai Kremnitzer, Haaretz Hebrew) The questionable move represented by the coalition agreement must be stopped before it matures into a complete constitutional system. A comparison between the court's approach and the Attorney General's approach indicates the latter's weakness.
Judges also have ambitions (Dan Schueftan, Israel Hayom) This urge – ambition – is mostly a positive thing, as long as power isn't accumulated for oppressive purposes and doesn't lead to tyranny.
Israel's High Court Implies It Won't Foil the Proposed Netanyahu-Gantz Government (Mordechai Kremnitzer, Haaretz+) It could be that the justices believe that this is the only way to get Israel out of its political stalemate and faulty governance by caretaker government.
The unbearable ease with which elected officials disperse false promises (Attorney Ilana Shoshan, Maariv) Promises have turned into sand which cover the voters’ eyes in order to  get something from them in return. By the way, this behavior completely falls under the heading of "getting something fraudulently.”
Netanyahu-Gantz Deal Isn't the End of Democracy, and the Court Is Stronger Than Ever (Raviv Drucker, Haaretz+) The High Court is indeed threatened by senior Likud figures, and this is nauseating. But the past two days of hearings only proved how strong it is. Thirty or 40 years ago, the justices would never have considered drafting provisions in a political agreement not intended to be enacted in law. Viewers watched the justices delving into the nuances of the agreement between the two parties. It would be hard to overstate just how extraordinary this is. The court is not supposed to interfere in political agreements. There have been only a few precedents, involving insane provisions like demanding collateral payments to back coalition obligations. The High Court presumably will not disqualify Netanyahu, but not because it’s weak. The legal basis for disqualification simply doesn’t exist, especially when he has the support of 61 of the Knesset’s 120 members and when the law says explicitly that a prime minister can serve under indictment.
Believe in Israeli democracy? Then stop trying to override it (Jonathan S. Tobin, Israel Hayom) Asking the High Court to spike a coalition agreement, similar to efforts to encourage Washington to muscle its elected government, is an effort to upend democratic rule.
Majority rule is the heart of democracy - and the High Court is implementing that also in an expanded (11-person) panel (Adv. Ilan Bombach, Maariv) Is it possible for a person to serve as prime minister when the indictments are filed, if the law does not prohibit it, or to act against the expressed will of the Knesset members, who reflect the majority of the public? The very choice of an 11-judge panel actually was meant to end speculation. It is evident that the High Court is aware of the importance of the hour, and therefore bothered to convene in a particularly broad panel. In my view, the High Court will take the coronavirus into consideration, as well as the reluctance to go to another elections and the question of what is the meaning of the will of the majority. (The writer is an expert in administrative law and white-collar crimes.)
High Court Hearing on Netanyahu-Gantz Coalition Deal Offers a Pick of Reality Shows (Yossi Verter, Haaretz+) From Netanyahu’s standpoint, what's at stake in the agreement that the court has been examining is not the coronavirus or national unity, but ‘Survivor’ or ‘Prison Break.’
Stop the runaway constitutional train (Amnon Lord, Israel Hayom) It seems as if the High Court justices aren't thrilled with attempts to turn them into pawns in a game of political chess.
 
Other Commentary/Analysis:

Israel's Gatekeepers Have Become Enablers of a Dangerous Coronavirus Policy (Noa Landau, Haaretz+) The cabinet came up with a trick allowing the privacy violation of law-abiding citizens, in the form of Shin Bet tracking, to continue for at least another six weeks.
If only Israel was ruled by Germany's Angela Merkel (Netanel Azulay, Ynet) Merkel has proven once again that she is the kind of leader many around the world should aspire to be; especially because of her humility regardless of her success during the coronavirus epidemic.
Under Cover of COVID-19, Israel Seems to Intensify Its Attacks Against Iran in Syria (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) With Tehran still reeling from Soleimani's assassination, harsher U.S. sanctions and an economic crisis, the coronavirus outbreak may have dictated a change in Israel's regional strategy.
Israel's National Security Council Members: You're Carriers of Oppression and Exclusion (Roni Bar, Haaretz+) Immediately after reading the response of the National Security Council to the request by social action organizations, published Monday (“Israel’s National Security Council rejects call to add women and minorities to coronavirus expert panel”), I ran to my desk. My corset made it hard for me to run, and my heavy skirts got tangled between my legs. That’s why I slowed down. When I reached my desk, I sat down and took out the inkwell and the quill, which I use regularly, to write a suitable response. After all, the year is not 2020. At least, the NSC hasn’t been informed that it is.
Iran has not halted plans of entrenchment in Syria (Ron Ben Yishai, Ynet) The target of an alleged Israeli attack near Aleppo on Monday was an industrial complex where long-range precise missiles are produced, some intended for Hezbollah and its future war with Israel.
Israel After Coronavirus: One Crisis, One State – and That Includes the Palestinians (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) All of a sudden Palestinians can sleep in Israel, Arab health workers are garnering praise and Israelis are experiencing an 'occupation.' Maybe this crisis will show that we are all human beings?
 

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