APN's daily news review from Israel
Thursday December 18, 2014
Quote of the day:
Quote of the day:
"Our biggest problem is that the Europeans have stopped talking with us, and have started talking
about us."
--Israeli diplomatic source tells Ynet following string of string of diplomatic blows Israel suffered yesterday.**
--Israeli diplomatic source tells Ynet following string of string of diplomatic blows Israel suffered yesterday.**
Breaking News:
Jordan has submitted the finalized UN Security Council resolution draft on ending the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, which is a merged text with the ‘softer’ French resolution. Agence France Presse received a copy of the draft resolution, which it details here.
Front Page News:
Haaretz
- After 54 years of rift, US and Cuba to renew relations
- President Obama’s surprise punch // Chemi Shalev
- Senior Palestinian officials yesterday: We will immediately submit proposal to UN Security Council for Peace and Security
- Elections 2015 poll: Most of the public does not want Netanyahu to remain prime minister; Joint list of Kahlon and Lapid would be biggest in Knesset; Deri and Yishai are close to not making minimum threshold; Right-wing likely to lose many votes
- Three jihadist organizations operating in the Syrian (unoccupied) Golan Heights swore allegiance to ISIS
- Economy Ministry decides which operas children are prohibited from singing
- Study: Forced hospitalization of anorexics is as efficient as voluntary hospitalization
Yedioth Ahronoth
- “Senior military intelligence officer is sex offender” – Colonel in secret IDF unit arrested
- Moral shake-up // Alex Fishman
- Eizenkot, for your attention // Yossi Yehoshua Mor-Yosef
- Storm in Givati Brigade: The Tzabar Battalion commander suspected of sexually harassment and went on leave
- Europe said ‘yes’ to Palestine
Maariv This Week (Hebrew links only)
- Netanyahu against Europe – Black day for Israeli in diplomatic arena: European parliament recognized Palestinian state and European court of justice took Hamas off list of terror organizations
- Abu Mazen insists on submitting request for recognition (of Palestinian state) to UN Security Council today
- Families of victims of Bus #37 in Haifa: Revoke citizenship of Hamas terrorist who aided in operation of terror attack in which 17 Israelis were murdered
- Mother of Givati soldier: “Suspend Brigade Commander Colonel Ofer Winter – the soldiers turned to him but he simply waved them away”
- Storm in Givati: Commander of Tzabar Battalion confronted by female soldier who claimed he sexually harassed her – and went on leave
Israel Hayom
- Anger in Israel: They didn’t learn anything – European anti-Israeli blitz: Hamas was removed from list of terror organizations, recognition ‘in principle’ of Palestine in Parliament, condemnation by members of Geneva Accords
- It’s final: Primaries for leadership of Likud and its list on 31 December
- Obama and the brother of Fidel present: new relations
- Commander of Givati’s ‘Tzabar’ battalion, Liron Hajabi, suspected of sexual harassment – and went on leave
- Tonight: 3rd Hannukah candle
- Storm on Internet: Why did anchormen receive enormous sums for government campaigns?
- People of the book? According to Central Bureau of Statistics, 30% of high school graduates don’t read
News Summary:
The triple blow to Israeli diplomacy in Europe and the suspicions of sexual harassment and misconduct by two senior IDF officers were the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers.
Not only did the European Parliament pass a motion expressing support "in principle" of the recognition of a Palestinian state and call for peace talks to be conducted in parallel, the European Union court ordered the removal of Hamas from the EU terror list and the majority of signatory states to the Geneva Conventions severely rebuked Israel for its settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, saying the practice violates its responsibilities as an occupying power. Israel, the US, Canada and Australia boycotted the conference.
Prime Minister Binaymin Netanyahu slammed the EU court decision as ‘European hypocrisy,’ And in a strong pro-Israeli-government stance, British Prime Minister David Cameron slammed British Labor party leader Ed Miliband over the British parliament's vote on recognizing a Palestinian state. Ynet’s Atila Somfalvi quotes an anonymous diplomatic source saying this string of diplomatic blows was a result of bad relations between Netanyahu and the European leadership.
The triple blow to Israeli diplomacy in Europe and the suspicions of sexual harassment and misconduct by two senior IDF officers were the top stories in today’s Hebrew newspapers.
Not only did the European Parliament pass a motion expressing support "in principle" of the recognition of a Palestinian state and call for peace talks to be conducted in parallel, the European Union court ordered the removal of Hamas from the EU terror list and the majority of signatory states to the Geneva Conventions severely rebuked Israel for its settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, saying the practice violates its responsibilities as an occupying power. Israel, the US, Canada and Australia boycotted the conference.
Prime Minister Binaymin Netanyahu slammed the EU court decision as ‘European hypocrisy,’ And in a strong pro-Israeli-government stance, British Prime Minister David Cameron slammed British Labor party leader Ed Miliband over the British parliament's vote on recognizing a Palestinian state. Ynet’s Atila Somfalvi quotes an anonymous diplomatic source saying this string of diplomatic blows was a result of bad relations between Netanyahu and the European leadership.
Quick Hits:
- Israel to evacuate army bases to expand settlement - Defense Minister orders move, a month after then-Finance Minister Yair Lapid refused to foot $18 million bill without government approval. (Haaretz)
- IDF battalion chief questioned about sexual harassment, abuse of funds - Suspect heads battalion where soldiers were allegedly sexually molested by platoon commander. (Haaretz+)
- 100 Palestinian prisoners suspend hunger strike - After three days of negotiations, prisoners being held in Israeli reached an agreement with the Israeli prison administration. The strike was in support of Nahar al-Saadi, who is on hunger-strike and being kept in solitary confinement. (Maan)
- Hunger-striking Palestinian prisoner in solitary denied lawyer visit - Nahar al-Saadi’s lawyer said medical authorities at Israel's Ramla prison prevented her from visiting the prisoner who has been on a hunger strike for the last month. She fears this indicates that he is in "dangerous" condition. (Maan)
- 21 Palestinian women being held as prisoners in Israeli jails - The number of Palestinian women being held as prisoners in Israeli jails has reached 21, of whom three are minors, a prisoners' rights group said Wednesday. (Maan)
- Israeli forces arrest Shalit-deal prisoner in (E.) Jerusalem home raid - Israeli forces raided the house of Ibtisam al-Issawi, 46, before arresting her. The detention and retrial of the prisoners is a breach of the deal and could potentially have wide-reaching consequences for other freed detainees. (Maan)
- Israeli police detain Palestinian student, child in Jerusalem - Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli police detained Daliah Murad Muhammad Qarawi, 17, from Salah al-Din street in East Jerusalem while she was on her way home from school. (Maan)
- 15-year-old member of (anti-Arab) Lehava organization assaults his teacher - Student 'didn't like the lesson,' so he punched the teacher in his stomach and then kicked him while he was down in front of the entire class. (Ynet)
- Court: IDF cannot sue settler for uprooting his illegal vineyard - IDF barred Moshe Deutsch from plot, then demanded compensation for carrying out court demolition order. (Haaretz+)
- Israel hands 11 demolition orders to houses in Silwan - The Israeli municipality on Wednesday distributed demolition orders to several houses, some as old as 30 years, in the Silwan neighborhood for "building without permits." (Maan)
- Haaretz article leads to lie detector tests at Yisrael Hayom - Free newspaper wants to find out who leaked a speech made by the editor during a social gathering, (in which he said after the alleged Israeli-bombing near Damascus that Israel will go to war with Syria possibly within hours). (Haaretz+)
- 'Mossad operative was in charge of Nasrallah's personal security in Hezbollah' - Following reports that Hezbollah exposed a double agent working for Israel, Kuwaiti daily reports that the agent was a high-ranking operative who told Israel of Hezbollah plans to attack Israelis and Jews. Agent caused "immeasurable" damage to Hezbollah. (Israel Hayom)
- WATCH: IDF soldiers treating wounded Syrians on Israel border - Footage shot by a VICE News team; according to the IDF, more than 1,400 wounded Syrians have so far received medical treatment in Israeli hospitals. (Haaretz)
- Palestinian teacher injured by settler car near Qalqiliya - Imtithal Qushou, 30, was struck while walking to her school east of Qalqiliya. Palestinian police say the evidence indicates that it was most likely not deliberate. (Maan)
- Rivlin: "We are ready for a religious chief of staff, and we should be ready for a Druze chief of staff" - President meets with 400 yeshiva students and says, "I'm sure, in the not too distant future, a religious chief of staff of the IDF will be appointed. However, he will be appointed to his position not because he is religious, but because he is talented. Because he is outstanding. Because he is willing to contribute." (Maariv)
- Arab share of Israeli school population is dipping - Taub Center says growth trend reversed three-to-four years ago and hasn't changed. (Haaretz+)
- Medal of Valor awarded to cop killed in synagogue attack - (Druze) Advanced Staff Sgt. Maj. Zidan Saif, who died fighting off the terrorists in the Har Nof synagogue attack in Jerusalem, was posthumously awarded a Medal of Valor on Tuesday at an Israel Police award ceremony. (Israel Hayom)
- Russia crisis poses biggest threat to Israeli farm exports - Farmers have come to rely on the Russian market as Europe becomes less friendly to Israeli goods and suffers oversupply. (Haaretz+)
- Prof. Manuel Trajtenberg to join Labor list in 2015 election - Former Communications Minister Moshe Kahlon had also reportedly asked the economist to join his new party, Kulanu. (Haaretz+)
- Bennett mocks 'hipsters', left in new election video - HaBayit Hayehudi leader makes fun of Tel Aviv's left-leaning young community for being too apologetic when it comes to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Israeli foreign relations. (Ynet)
- Habayit Hayehudi: Israel needs to stop apologizing - National religious party launches election campaign with video jibing Left's apologetic politics. "It's time to stop apologizing, love Israel," slogan says. Efforts to prevent split within Habayit Hayehudi continue, decision expected by week's end. (Israel Hayom)
- Poll: Under Abbas, most Palestinians say they can't speak freely - Critics say that after a decade in power, President Mahmoud Abbas is overseeing a largely authoritarian system with shrinking room for dissent. (Agencies, Haaretz)
- Hamas' deputy chief says it has patched up ties with Iran - 'I believe bilateral relations between us and Islamic Republic of Iran are back on track,' Abu Marzouk says after Iran, Hamas decide to mend ties after rift over Syria and support of Assad. (Agencies, Ynet)
- Report: ISIS kills 150 women who refused jihad marriage - Iraqi Human Rights Ministry posts on its website that the women, some pregnant, would not marry militants. (Haaretz)
- Alan Gross: It’s the best Hanukkah in a long time - After five years in a Cuban jail, US Jew set free as part of historic deal between US and Cuba says he's learned 'freedom is not free.' (Agencies, Ynet)
Features:
No more 'Buji', make way for Isaac Herzog
The Labor politician, once considered a nebbish, is undergoing a massive transformation both inside and out after
forming a unity deal with Tzipi Livni, putting the left back on center stage. (Nechama
Duek, Yedioth/Ynet)
Palestinian third-grader arrested by Israel Police
8-year-old Obeida Ayash was arrested on suspicion of stone-throwing in the village of Silwan in East Jerusalem,
which was brimming with Border Police officers. (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+)
Commentary/Analysis:
Israel needs Ya'alon to be defense minister, not settlements
minister (Haaretz Editorial) The defense minister's recent statements and decisions prove he is not
fit to serve as defense minister, neither in this government nor the next one.
Will US veto UN Palestinian resolution? (Yossi Shain, Yedioth/Ynet) There are three scenarios for Washington's response to UN recognition request: Convincing the Palestinians to postpone it, creating a competing resolution with Israel, and presenting a peace proposal unacceptable to Netanyahu.
Torturing justice: things Israel can learn from the US (Ran Adelist, Maariv) Since 2001, 850 complaints of torture were filed in Israel and not even one investigation was opened. Although we have sparks of light, such as the prosecution of soldiers who have transgressed, but a thing like this (report on torture by the state)? Us?
Obama's chance to get back at Netanyahu (Eytan Gilboa, Yedioth/Ynet) US president and his associates would love to punish Israeli prime minister for meddling in 2012 presidential election, but they had better restrain themselves. A blatant intervention in Israeli elections could achieve the opposite result.
Obama’s 2nd Cuban revolution and what it might say about Iran (Chemi Shalev, Haaretz+) The president seems to have regained what some observers said he had lost: He’s having a good time being president again.
The last to notice: The Palestinian move (in the UN) is a done deal, Israel closes its eyes (Tal Schneider, Maariv) Even if a Security Council veto were imposed, this is only a temporary hindrance. The process of recognizing a Palestinian state is already rolling. Only Netanyahu himself tied a bandanna around his eyes.
Netanyahu: Weak against Hamas, strong against Europe (Barak Ravid, Haaretz+) Netanyahu doesn't have a solution to the deep diplomatic isolation Israel has maneuvered itself into under his leadership; his most recent response to the accumulation of events was disproportionate and conveyed mainly hysteria.
A state of upheaval (Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom) The Likud party should be the political home of Zionist activists.
The U.S. must wean itself from its imbecilic automatic veto policy (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) The American veto of anti-occupation resolutions in the UN Security Council has been essentially a veto of justice, and it has corrupted Israel by enabling it to run riot.
A ballot initiative, in the UN (Dan Margalit, Israel Hayom) The Palestinians' statehood bid is bound to become a campaign issue in the Israeli elections.
Something is rotten in the IDF's Givati Brigade (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) Recent allegations of sexual harassment, improper use of funds and unexplained suicides indicate a severe problem of oversight.
'I'll kill you/buy you dinner' and other Arabic gaffes (Khaled Diab, Haaretz+) Speaking one dialect of Arabic to an interlocutor of another background can get you into all sorts of trouble. Whether these dialects should even be considered one language is not only a question of linguistics, but of history and politics too.
America still needs rough men (Clifford D. May, Israel Hayom) We also need coercive interrogations, which are not the same as torture.
The rabbis and the great Hanukkah cover-up (Yael Shahar, Haaretz+) What self-censorship in Jewish tradition teaches us about national survival.
Will US veto UN Palestinian resolution? (Yossi Shain, Yedioth/Ynet) There are three scenarios for Washington's response to UN recognition request: Convincing the Palestinians to postpone it, creating a competing resolution with Israel, and presenting a peace proposal unacceptable to Netanyahu.
Torturing justice: things Israel can learn from the US (Ran Adelist, Maariv) Since 2001, 850 complaints of torture were filed in Israel and not even one investigation was opened. Although we have sparks of light, such as the prosecution of soldiers who have transgressed, but a thing like this (report on torture by the state)? Us?
Obama's chance to get back at Netanyahu (Eytan Gilboa, Yedioth/Ynet) US president and his associates would love to punish Israeli prime minister for meddling in 2012 presidential election, but they had better restrain themselves. A blatant intervention in Israeli elections could achieve the opposite result.
Obama’s 2nd Cuban revolution and what it might say about Iran (Chemi Shalev, Haaretz+) The president seems to have regained what some observers said he had lost: He’s having a good time being president again.
The last to notice: The Palestinian move (in the UN) is a done deal, Israel closes its eyes (Tal Schneider, Maariv) Even if a Security Council veto were imposed, this is only a temporary hindrance. The process of recognizing a Palestinian state is already rolling. Only Netanyahu himself tied a bandanna around his eyes.
Netanyahu: Weak against Hamas, strong against Europe (Barak Ravid, Haaretz+) Netanyahu doesn't have a solution to the deep diplomatic isolation Israel has maneuvered itself into under his leadership; his most recent response to the accumulation of events was disproportionate and conveyed mainly hysteria.
A state of upheaval (Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom) The Likud party should be the political home of Zionist activists.
The U.S. must wean itself from its imbecilic automatic veto policy (Gideon Levy, Haaretz+) The American veto of anti-occupation resolutions in the UN Security Council has been essentially a veto of justice, and it has corrupted Israel by enabling it to run riot.
A ballot initiative, in the UN (Dan Margalit, Israel Hayom) The Palestinians' statehood bid is bound to become a campaign issue in the Israeli elections.
Something is rotten in the IDF's Givati Brigade (Amos Harel, Haaretz+) Recent allegations of sexual harassment, improper use of funds and unexplained suicides indicate a severe problem of oversight.
'I'll kill you/buy you dinner' and other Arabic gaffes (Khaled Diab, Haaretz+) Speaking one dialect of Arabic to an interlocutor of another background can get you into all sorts of trouble. Whether these dialects should even be considered one language is not only a question of linguistics, but of history and politics too.
America still needs rough men (Clifford D. May, Israel Hayom) We also need coercive interrogations, which are not the same as torture.
The rabbis and the great Hanukkah cover-up (Yael Shahar, Haaretz+) What self-censorship in Jewish tradition teaches us about national survival.
Prepared for APN by Orly Halpern, independent freelance journalist based in Jerusalem.