APN's daily news review from Israel

Thursday May 29, 2014

Quote of the day:

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Front Page News:

Haaretz

• Soldier in (non-combat) IDF's communications unit opened fire with the combat soldiers in the incident in Beitunya (where two Palestinian youth were killed) [main photos]
• He was looking for action // Amos Harel
• (Former chief of staff) Gabi Ashkenazi transferred a commission of millions of shekels to associates of (arrested Ashdod Port labor union chief) Alon Hasson 
• Netanyahu supports Rivlin for the presidency
• He surrendered to the Likud party // Yossi Verter
• Prime Minister to heads of Judea and Samaria settler council: We will fight for you, but we have constraints
• Knesset approved taking DNA samples from demonstrators who were arrested for attacking a police officer
• Agriculture Ministry collects less than 5% of the fines for animal abuse

• Surrendered and hugged - Netanyahu tried till midnight to run Elie Wiesel (for presidency), by afternoon he was forced to support Rivlin
• Till the last minute // Sima Kadmon
• His loss // Amnon Abramovitch
• Job for every supporter - Yedioth investigation of jobs received by those who helped mayors win municipal elections
• A night with Justin (Timberlake)

• Lieberman: We won't support Rivlin for the presidency
• He opened the summer (photo of Justin Timberlake performing in Tel-Aviv)
• State selling its shares in Bank Leumi for a billion shekels
• 7-month-old baby infected with rare bacteria hospitalized in critical condition
• Sources in police: Rabbi Pinto found speaking truth in polygraph

• Race for the presidency: political maelstrom
• Timberland
• Drama at hospital: Baby infected with deadly bacteria (botulism) - and saved
• The paradox at the Knesset: Channel 10 gets help with a freebie, and Israel Hayom they want to close down? // Hezi Sternlicht
• Putting out cigarettes: Record number of non-smokers in Israel
• Next president of Egypt: Crushing victory for Al-Sisi in elections

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News Summary:
Today's top story in the Hebrew papers was Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's last-minute declaration of support for Reuven Rivlin, the man he tried so hard to sideline, as Israel's next president.

Wednesday was Jerusalem Day and the papers reported of right-wing MKs bill to annex some 90 settlement enclaves in the West Bank, while Justice Minister Tzipi Livni said she'd quit the government before that happened. Maariv's Yuval Bengo reports that Livni and Finance Minister Yair Lapid are "holding regular talks to coordinate future moves," after the alliance between Lapid's Yesh Atid party and Economy Minister Naftali Bennett's far right-wing Habayit Hayehudi party has come to an end.
 
Housing Minister Uri Ariel said at a Jerusalem Day ceremony there won't be construction freezes in Jerusalem or the West Bank, and that Jerusalem will never be divided. And Haaretz's+ Barak Ravid wrote a confusing report about a meeting Netanyahu held with settler leaders, telling them he is their 'greatest defender,' but his hands are tied by "international constraints." The confusing part was when Ravid wrote that Netanyahu "decided to place a freeze on planning and construction in an attempt to prolong the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks – and to maintain the freeze after the talks failed to avoid international condemnation, which could involve economic and political sanctions." However, such a freeze has not been reported on and Ravid and all the other media reported that a freeze was being negotiated in April. A Peace Now report published at the end of the nine-month period of peace talks revealed that the Israeli Government promoted plans and tenders for at least 13,851 housing units in the settlements and East Jerusalem.
 
At a special cabinet meeting in honor of Jerusalem Day, Netanyahu said "Jerusalem will never be divided." Maariv noted in equally large letters that opposition leader, Labor party chief MK Isaac Herzog, said: "The government is sticking its head in the sand." Herzog expressed support for a 'united' Jerusalem, but warned: "This city could get tomorrow a Palestinian mayor with ties to the Palestinian Authority if the almost 300,000 residents of the east side of the city decided to exercise their right to vote." Meretz party chief, MK Zahava Gal-On also gave a speech against Netanyahu, saying there would never be peace without the division of Jerusalem. She got a highlighted quote in Maariv: "When you hear these things, you understand why for nine months Netanyahu held aimless and pointless negotiations." 

In Jerusalem's Old City, the celebratory right-wing visits to the Temple Mount were ruined when Palestinian youth began throwing stones at police and heckling Israeli visitors in the morning, causing police to shut the holysite down to visitors. Four Palestinians were reported hurt by rubber bullets and tear gas. Ynet reported that a young Arab man was also attacked by a group of Jewish youths on Nablus Road, opposite Damascus Gate, while Israel Hayom reported that an Arab man was arrested after spraying tear gas on a group of Jews near Damascus Gate. 
 
In the Knesset, an MK of the far-right wing Habayit Hayehudi party called to make Jerusalem Day a holiday with a day off, while a Meretz MK Issawi Freij said 'Occupation Day' shouldn't be a national holiday in the first place and should get its holiday status revoked altogether. Freij said the annual flag procession "is nothing but a euphemism for a parade of hatred and provocation on the part of thousands of radical right-wing activists in the midst of the Arab neighborhoods."
 
In Hebron, settlers entered the disputed Rajabi building to mark Jerusalem Day, playing loud music and shouting anti-Palestinian slogans. Israeli forces closed the main highway connecting Hebron, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem to traffic so that Jewish settlers could safely hold a "bike rally" to mark Jerusalem Day, Maan reported. The Israeli media did not report on this.

Hundreds of Israeli peace activists spent Jerusalem Day elsewhere: meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah. However, the Israeli media seemed not to be aware of it. Ynet's Elior Levy wrote about it noting that Abbas said that the soon-to-be-formed Palestinian unity government won't take part in the peace talks and that Israel should accept whatever government the Palestinians choose in their upcoming elections. "The Palestinians have accepted every government that won the elections in Israel, said Abbas, and not unlike that, Palestinians will also have free elections, in which whoever wins, wins. Times of Israel reported on the meeting based on a Maan story, noting that Abbas vowed to uphold the ‘sacred’ security coordination with Israel and that Abbas said that peace talks are the only way forward.
 
Haaretz+ revealed that a non-combat IDF soldier used a weapon and opened fire in the Nakba Day protest in which 2 Palestinians were killed, even though he was not authorized to do so. The soldier was suspended, but a military investigation did not find evidence proving he was responsible for the deadly shots. Haaretz noted that the footage from CNN also shows the Border Police commander at the scene taking the rifle away from the soldier immediately after he fired the rubber bullet. Ynet writes that the soldier had asked the Border Police force's commander for his weapon and the commander gave it to the soldier, "who returned the rifle after firing the two rubber bullets." Military sources [probably the IDF Spokesman's Unit - OH] told Ynet that an examination of videos from the incident aired on CNN found the soldier fired the two rubber bullets at a different time to that in which the two Palestinians were shot and killed.

Quick Hits:

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Features:

Israelis in Baghdad
Not just in Israel: Also in Iraq, the Israeli film "Farewell, Baghdad" is receiving great interest. A contract to screen in Baghdad the Israeli film has already been closed. At this moment, the producers are trying to transfer a copy to Baghdad. The film is based on (Iraqi-Israeli) Eli Amir's novel, 'The Dove Flyer,' and tells the story of the Jewish-Iraqi community in Baghdad on the eve of the creation of Israel and how the families and the leaders of the Jewish-(Zionist) underground dealt with the hostility of the Iraqi regime. The initiative to screen the film in Baghdad belongs to a leading film industry figure in Iraq, who secretly made contact with a colleague in the Israeli film industry that he knows. The Iraqi prefers to remain anonymous. Now the only thing left is to pray that politics don't ruin it all. The producer, Moshe Edri, is excited: "This is a historic moment." (Yedioth, '24 Hours' supplement, cover)
A midnight stroll with Bennett to celebrate Jerusalem Day
On a Jerusalem Day walking tour, Economy Minister Naftali Bennett shared his version of the Israeli capital's history. (Roy (Chicky) Arad, Haaretz+) 
Jerusalem Day census reveals modern day battle for Jerusalem
After 47 years of unification, religious and secular communities in Jeruslaem remain divided in a battle for the character of the Holy City. (Noam Dvir, Ynet) 
**Jerusalem divided, unequal as Israel marks 1967 capture
There are huge discrepancies between East and West Jerusalem in terms of education, health, water access, and planning, while Israel has also revoked the residency of 14,309 Palestinians since 1967. Despite forming nearly half of the city's population, only 10% of Jerusalem's municipal budget is spent on Palestinians. "It's increasingly obvious that Israel is doing anything it can within its own legal structures to push young Palestinian families and couples out of town," said Micha Kurz from Grassroots Jerusalem, an NGO in East Jerusalem. (Charlie Hoyle, Maan)

Commentary/Analysis:

American Jews are running out of patience with Israel (Ori Nir, Haaretz+) While Israeli politicians flip the finger at the world to score points with right-wing voters at home, they are alienating Israel’s most important, loyal allies: Progressive U.S. Jews. 
E. Jerusalem was annexed, the residents were not (Dr. Amnon Ramon, Maariv) The answer to the question about whether Israel succeeded or failed in the annexation of Jerusalem after the Six-Day War depends on one's perspective. From an Israeli point of view, the success is in the creation of irreversible facts on the ground, 13 enormous Jewish neighborhoods over the Green Line. In contrast, Israel built only three small Palestinian neighborhoods - the majority of construction for Palestinian residents is private or illegal. There was also no attempt to integrate the two populations. The Palestinians in E. Jerusalem are not citizens, only permanent residents. [And Israel revokes that residency if the individual lives outside the city for over seven years. - OH]
Everyone in Washington talks peace, but the pope talks justice (Peter Beinart, Haaretz+) If Israel wants future popes to lay wreaths at Herzl’s grave, it must recommit itself to the liberal ideals in which Zionism's founder believed. 
Between liberation and unification (Yossi Beilin, Israel Hayom) As a 19-year-old soldier deployed in the Sinai Peninsula, I stood and cried like a child when I heard that the Old City of Jerusalem had been liberated.
Israel declares war on Palestinian banks (Sam Bahour, Maan) Israel has informed the Palestinian side that it will no longer allow Palestinian banks to transport their surplus Israeli currency to the Israeli Central Bank, an act that is unheard of in the world of banking. Israel is refusing to serve its own currency. 
Netanyahu’s endorsement of Rivlin: Forced by the hand of Likud (Yossi Verter, Haaretz+) PM feared being left standing alone in opposition to a candidate who enjoys almost wall-to-wall support within the Likud, and thereby losing the support of his party. 
Freedom has no borders (Smadar Bat Adam, Israel Hayom) The State of Israel must wage a war to the death for every Jew's right to live anywhere without fear.
Missing from Obama’s foreign policy speech: the peace process and the fire in his belly (Chemi Shalev, Haaretz+) The critics that Obama confronted at West Point are also Israel’s strongest allies: Those who see international diplomacy as weakness and military intervention as the only sign of strength.
Not a word about Israel (Orly Ashkenazi, Yedioth) Did he give up? In a celebratory speech Obama presented his foreign policy vision for the coming years - but avoided saying a word about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This likely reflects the White House frustration following the failure of the peace talks last month. 
The new-old Europe and us (Ari Shavit, Haaretz+) After the European Parliament elections, it has suddenly become clear that underneath the new Europe, the old Europe is still alive and kicking.
Reaffirming our commitment to Jerusalem (Nadav Shragai, Israel Hayom) The Muslims' anthology of falsities on Jerusalem balloons by the day, and obligates us to learn and deepen our roots.
A lawyer for every laborer (Amira Hass, Haaretz+) The industry of legal representation for Palestinians provides solutions for a few, while for many it creates hope that solutions can be found. Even when solutions are found, the achievement is a mirage. 
Emperor Netanyahu goes East (Carolina Landsmann, Haaretz+) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thinks he's the leader of world Jewry and it's us against the Western world. 
The Brussels mystery: Was shooting anti-Semitism or part of spy games? (Amir Oren, Haaretz+) Considering how professional the shooter looked on footage, and the fact two of those killed were former Israeli civil servants, maybe the attack was actually a battle in the covert war.
Don’t make a deal with Pinto (Haaretz Editorial) The stench of the relations between police top brass and the rabbi’s court ought to be fully exposed in a public trial.

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