APN's daily news review from Israel
Friday May 02, 2014
Quote of the day:
"Netanyahu is completing the series of racist laws that have been emerging in recent years and is
leading Israel to become the first racial state of the 21st century."
--MK Mohammed Barakeh, head of Hadash party on Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's plan to
"legally anchor" Israel's status as "the nation-state of the Jewish people."**
Front Page News:
Haaretz
- Netanyahu: I will advance the law for a Jewish state
- The race for the Presidency: Who is likely to gain from (Silvan) Shalom's quitting // Yossi Verter; The candidates are waiting for Netanyahu's visit // Jonathan Lis
- The appointment process in the army remains defective/ / Amos Harel
- In the General Staff, they are losing the connection with the field // Amir Oren
- Young woman murdered in Migdal Ha'Emek, rising suspicion of nationalist crime
- Dozens of sitting judges received special permission to lecture for pay at academic institutions
- Why does the state discriminate against prisoners in court representation by public defender
- Asi Dayan: The end, the beginning and forever
Yedioth Ahronoth
- The end of the movie - Asi Dayan1945-2015
- He is gone // Sima Kadmon
- My brother, his sister // Yael Dayan
- The most Israeli // Raanan Shaked
- Suspicion of terror attack - Body of Shelly Dadon, 20, found in parking lot in Migdal Ha'emek
- The failure: the US version // Nahum Barnea on peace talks
- 23,169 - The number of fallen in Israel's wars and operations since the beginning of Zionism and until today
- 9 brothers, without mother and father
Maariv
- not published today
Makor Rishon
- not published today
Israel Hayom
- 76% of public: Oppose law whose goal is to hurt "Israel Hayom"
- Parting movie - Great loss for culture: Asi Dayan passed...
- We won't have Asi Dayan any longer // Shaykeh Levy
- Suspicion: 20-year-old murdered for nationalist reasons
- In remembrance of the 23,169 fallen
- Political storm following PM's initiative to advance a (new) basic law: Jewish homeland
Peace Talk and Diplomacy Highlights:
The death of iconic Israeli poet, actor, screenwriter, and film director Asi Dayan was a top story in Hebrew newspapers this Friday morning along with the suspicion that a young woman found dead in a parking lot was murdered on nationalist motives.
**Also making headlines was the political storm that broke out after Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's announcement that he would advance a bill to make a basic law enshrining the country's status as the nation-state of the Jewish people. Members of the Israeli opposition vehemently oppose the move, as does Justice Minister and chief Israeli peace negotiator Tzipi Livni, whose office has said in the past that she "will not allow the damaging, weakening or subjugating of [Israel's] democratic values to its Jewish values". One PLO official told Haaretz+ that "Netanyahu is using the Jewish state law to bury peace."
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State John Kerry said he would make details of the peace talks public. "These eight months - eight months plus - were not without significant progress in certain areas. And I don't think anybody wants to lose that progress," he said, noting it was time for the two sides to take a "pause." And, former US president Bill Clinton revealed an interesting detail of the negotiations that took place during his term: Israel offered the Palestinians the Temple Mount during the 2000 Camp David Summit, only disagreeing on a 50-foot passage leading to tunnels under the temple ruins. Clinton also said that far fewer Palestinians and Israelis died when he was in office.
And the left-leaning pro-Israel US lobby J-Street was rejected from membership into the Conference of Presidents, barely making the news in Israeli newspapers, but sparking threats by Reform Jews to leave the umbrella body for Jewish American organizations and for Conservative Jews to call for its overhaul.
The death of iconic Israeli poet, actor, screenwriter, and film director Asi Dayan was a top story in Hebrew newspapers this Friday morning along with the suspicion that a young woman found dead in a parking lot was murdered on nationalist motives.
**Also making headlines was the political storm that broke out after Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's announcement that he would advance a bill to make a basic law enshrining the country's status as the nation-state of the Jewish people. Members of the Israeli opposition vehemently oppose the move, as does Justice Minister and chief Israeli peace negotiator Tzipi Livni, whose office has said in the past that she "will not allow the damaging, weakening or subjugating of [Israel's] democratic values to its Jewish values". One PLO official told Haaretz+ that "Netanyahu is using the Jewish state law to bury peace."
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State John Kerry said he would make details of the peace talks public. "These eight months - eight months plus - were not without significant progress in certain areas. And I don't think anybody wants to lose that progress," he said, noting it was time for the two sides to take a "pause." And, former US president Bill Clinton revealed an interesting detail of the negotiations that took place during his term: Israel offered the Palestinians the Temple Mount during the 2000 Camp David Summit, only disagreeing on a 50-foot passage leading to tunnels under the temple ruins. Clinton also said that far fewer Palestinians and Israelis died when he was in office.
And the left-leaning pro-Israel US lobby J-Street was rejected from membership into the Conference of Presidents, barely making the news in Israeli newspapers, but sparking threats by Reform Jews to leave the umbrella body for Jewish American organizations and for Conservative Jews to call for its overhaul.
Quick Hits:
- Israeli forces 'attack Palestinian woman, daughter' in Silwan -Israeli forces attacked a Palestinian woman and her teenage daughter in near Jerusalem's Old City Thursday. Israeli officers reportedly continued to beat Umm Kalawoon al-Tawil while they dragged her out of her apartment until she passed out.
- (Maan+PHOTO)
- Yitzhar settler couple with children suspected of price-tag attack in Umm Al - Fahm - The detentions of Ami-Chai and Nira Matoki was extended. They are suspected of vandalizing a mosque in Israel, after their car was recorded at the scene of the crime. Suspicions against the couple only increased after the they lied to police about their car. Meanwhile, MK Issawi Freij (Meretz) initiated a bill that victims of price tag will be recognized and compensated as victims of hostile actions. (Israel Hayom Hebrew and Haaretz)
- (Jewish) youth suspected of attacking Arab (Israeli) women with pepper spray - A Tayibe resident in her 20's claims she was attacked with pepper spray by a religious youth while walking down the town's boardwalk with her husband and three children. (Ynet)
- Israeli flags defaced with red paint in Jaffa - Some 60 Israeli flags mounted for Independence Day by Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality vandalized; police investigating. (Ynet)
- Hate crime culprits are terrorists, says public security minister - Yitzhak Aharonovitch says most of of the vandals in recent attacks are from the far right in the West Bank, and the state knows who most of them are. (Haaretz)
- Soldier who aimed at Palestinian becomes Facebook hero - Chief of Staff instructs commanders to tell subordinates that Facebook is not a replacement for dialogue between officers and troops. (Haaretz)
- Israeli Arab activist under house arrest for Facebook post - Jasan Munir, who ran for Lod city council in the most recent elections, was questioned and then put under house arrest for five days for a Facebook post critical of drafting Christian Arabs. (Haaretz+)
- Court rejects state's request to demolish Bedouin village - Judge rules on case pending since 2006, that there is no real public interest in uprooting 350 people from their homes. Al-Sura village was represented by Adalah. (Haaretz+)
- Israel celebrates 66 years with 8,180,000 Israelis - Israeli population grew by 157,000 since last Independence Day; Number of people who made aliyah in past year stood at nearly 24,000. (Ynet)
- Israeli helicopters hover over West Bank - Helicopters were seen flying at a very low altitude over Bethlehem. Israeli media reported a day earlier that Israeli forces were preparing for an air show to be performed May 6 marking Israel’s Independence Day. (Maan)
- Israel summons Jordan envoy over anti-Israel article - Former Jordanian FM Abu Jaber lashes out at 'the Zionist big lie about Palestine - a land without a people,' in article quoting Hitler. (Agencies, Ynet)
- Head of Israel's debt collection agency: Debtors selling organs to make payments - In letter to deputy attorney general, David Madioni says black market moneylenders using threats, extortion to force debtors to sell organs abroad. (Ynet)
- Israeli forces enter border area in southern Gaza - Israeli military forces escorted eight bulldozers as they leveled Palestinian land east of Khan Younis in Khuzaah. Israeli forces fired smoke bombs during the operation, witnesses added. (Maan)
- Israel, US, Canada to hold joint aerial anti-terror drill - Exercise, to be the first of its kind, will help improve coordination between the three countries in preventing terror attacks on civilian aircraft. Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz says cooperation in this realm is of "inimitable importance." (Israel Hayom)
- Minister ranks Israel Hayom among Israel's top 3 newspapers - Interior Minister Gideon Sa'ar announces that state public notices related to planning processes will now be published in Israel Hayom, Yedioth Ahronoth and Israel Post. In July-December 2013 TGI survey, Israel Hayom had top exposure rate -- 38.6%. (Israel Hayom)
- Jay Leno to host $1 million award ceremony in Jerusalem - Former N.Y. Mayor Bloomberg to get award on May 22; Bloomberg, a billionaire, says he will give the money to charity. (Haaretz+)
- Iran raps US report keeping it on terror list - Tehran accuses State Department of 'turning a blind eye to Zionist crimes against the Palestinians,' while keeping it on list of state sponsors of terrorism. (Agencies, Ynet)
- Saudi Arabia reveals country's ballistic missiles - The Kingdom unveils missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads purchased from China; but while Israel used to be Saudi's main target, Riyadh and Jerusalem now have a common enemy - Iran. (Ynet)
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.