Israel's Leftist youth do something good, but would they do it for 'settlers'?
The Jerusalem Post reports that a conglomeration of 'Zionist' youth groups has been collecting
winter clothes and blankets for Syrian refugees.
The items have been taken to a collection point, a representative
confirmed to JTA. From there, a partner aid organization is facilitating
the delivery of the goods to the refugees, who won’t know their country
of origin. The representative said the delivery date and method could
not be revealed due to the sensitive nature of the situation.
Because if the Syrians found out they were coming from the 'Zionist entity,' they'd probably burn them, even if they didn't really want to turn them away, because... 'Palestine uber alles.'
“I thought people would be reluctant to support an effort they would not
get credit for,” Gilad Perry, Dror Israel’s international
collaborations director, said in a statement. “I was amazed to see how
wrong I was. The generosity of people just caring for those who suffer
from the cold winter on the other side of the border, in an ‘enemy
country,’ overwhelmed me.”
Amazing. Leftist Israelis willing to do something for which they won't get any credit except in an article in the JPost.... Oh wait, how do you know they're Leftist? Well, if you're an Israeli, you recognize two of the three names of the groups involved, and there's a hint at the end of the article.
HaNoar HaOved VeHaLomed (Youth Who Work and Learn) is a sister movement
of Habonim Dror, long affiliated with the Labor Zionist movement.
So please forgive my cynicism. I'm all in favor of helping out Syrian refugees with clothes and blankets (but not with letting them unvetted into Israel, the US or any other western country). And there ought to be a lesson from the fact that Israelis are helping these poor people while they get nothing from any of the oil-rich Gulf countries.
But I have to ask another question. Suppose - just suppose - that there were Jewish revenants (known in the international media as 'settlers') who were expelled from their homes in Judea and Samaria and Gaza, who were out in the cold and the rain today who had no warm clothing and no blankets. Would the Leftist Zionist movements be willing to take up collections for them too? They'd even say thank you. You wouldn't have to cut out all the Israeli labels for them. And you could even get credit for helping them. So would the Labor Zionist movements help them?
Sadly, I think we already know the answer to that question. This is from a post I did in May 2012, citing statistics from the summer of 2011 - six years after
the Jews of Gush Katif in Gaza were expelled from their homes. Hint: There were no Labor Zionists lining up to help the Jews of Gush Katif, with or without credit.
Perhaps this is the time to look at some statistics regarding the Jewish
refugees from Gaza, who were expelled from their homes seven years ago
this summer. This is from a United Nations report(!) from June 2011.
About 230 of the 1,450 families from Gush Katif (16 percent) have moved into permanent homes, according to a December 2010 report released by the Gush Katif “committee”.
Unemployment among former Gush Katif residents is running at about 18
percent, while under-employment is 20 percent, said the “committee”.
Before the withdrawal, unemployment was 5 percent, with 85 percent
working in Gush Katif, according to JobKatif, an NGO created to help former residents rebuild their livelihoods.
While
unemployment is much worse in Gaza, the unemployment rate among the
evacuees is about double the rate of the general Israeli population.
Children have faced adjustment issues and the divorce rate increased,
along with financial problems, say former residents. Government
compensation that was received, was lower than the value of the land and
did not allow farmers to re-establish their farms, according to the
“committee”.
Shilat Kahalani, spokesperson for the Mateh
Binyamin Regional Council which covers 42 Israeli settlements in the
West Bank (known as Judea and Samaria to Israelis), told IRIN that many
former Gush Katif residents wanted to rebuild their homes and lives in
the West Bank, but were prevented from doing so by a building
moratorium which was only lifted in September 2010, having been in
force for 10 months.
About
380 farms existed in Gushi Katif (of which 240 were operational), but
only 28 percent of the owners of agricultural land have resumed
farming. Most business owners, too, have not returned to their trade
and were not appropriately compensated, according to the “committee”.
“Disengaging a community is not something that can be rebuilt easily,
and many families never received promised full financial support,”
Kahalani said.
A June 2010 report
on the findings of the Israeli “State Commission of Inquiry into the
Handling of the Evacuees from Gush Katif and Northern Samaria by the
Authorized Authorities”, placed blame on the state of Israel.
“The State of Israel failed in its handling of the evacuees,” it said.
“Five years after, most of the evacuees are still living in temporary
caravan sites; the construction of most of the permanent housing has
not yet commenced; and the decisive majority of the public structures
in the evacuees’ new settlements have not yet been built.”
“It
was a mission of the government to settle people in Gaza,” said former
Gush Katif resident Debbie Rosen, and “there must be a solution for
every settler”. She received half the value of her home in Gush Katif,
and she and her six children are still waiting for their new house to
be built, she added.
And for those who think that the
Ulpana neighborhood is going to be 'evacuated' quietly with the soldiers
called in to do the job embracing the residents in tears, consider
this.
“People in my community are unwilling to be evacuated
because on a personal level they witnessed the awful outcomes of such a
disengagement on the lives of the Gush Katif evacuees,” Binyamin council
spokesperson Kahalani said.
That might have something to do with the violence in Amona during my last trip to the US a couple of weeks ago (violence that I did not have time to cover).
If only the Labor Zionists cared as much for their own as they do for the other....
Labels: Gaza expulsion, Gush Katif, Judea and Samaria, Labor party, Syrian refugees
Oh my... Israeli opposition demands US commit in advance to support Israeli strike on Iran
Either Tzipi Livni and Buzi Herzog finally figured out which way the Israeli political winds are blowing, or there's been a massive double cross of US President Hussein Obama. Or perhaps it's a combination of both. In any event, Livni and Herzog, who were
backed by Obama in our recent Knesset elections, have issued a position paper which demands that the United States
commit in advance to supporting an Israeli strike on Iran.
The crux of Herzog and
Livni's plan is a call on the American administration to commit in
advance to approve an Israeli military strike on Iran's nuclear
facilities if Iran violates the framework agreement signed a week and a
half ago by trying to produce nuclear weapons.
The document was split
into three sections: In the first section, the Zionist Union criticizes
Israel's current official position, which takes serious issue with the
framework agreement reached between world powers reached and Iran, but
fails to articulate improvements.
Their own position paper, they claim, constitutes a practical and detailed proposal to what is considered a "good deal".
"Incessant criticism without constructive suggestions could
leave us at a loss," Herzog told Ynet. "To prevent that we must have a
brave and comprehensive dialogue with the US, down to the last detail,"
he said.
The second part of the position paper presents suggestions on
how to "close the loopholes" in the framework agreement and improve upon
its different sections. The proposed improvements mostly focus on the
conditions and limitations on easing the sanctions on Iran.
The Zionist Union demands that "the removal of sanctions will
only be done gradually in a predefined framework coinciding with the
Iranian deal," the document said demanding that should Iran fail to make
good on its part of the deal sanctions will be automatically reinstated
in full force.
The document also calls for enhanced oversight capabilities for
the UN nuclear watchdog – the IAEA – including access to officials,
documents and sites in which alleged Iranian nuclear activity is taking
place.
The third part of the document focuses on rehabilitating
US-Israel ties, and improviing coordination over Iran while the deal is
being implemented.
According to the opposition leaders, "Israel must change its
regional strategy… and work to strengthen ties with the moderate forces
in the region," a move they say will curb not only Iran's nuclear
program, but its destabilizing activates in the area through local
proxies.
"We must act quickly to change the final deal, and raise the
price of its infringement," Herzog said, indicating the deal itself was
not the true problem, but the aforementioned 'loopholes'. He said that
only a "painful" cost to Iran in the case of a breach in the agreement
would safeguard Israel's security.
The position paper was released after party members received
requests to issue the Zionist Union's official position on the framework
agreement.
Has the 'Zionist Union' finally understood that Israelis won't accept Obama's position on Iran? Or are they just trying to position themselves for what they hope will eventually be a 'unity government'? Either way, this is a massive defeat for the Obama administration, which has tried to depict Prime Minister Netanyahu as a lone wolf in opposing the Iranian nuclear deal.
Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, Iranian nuclear threat, Labor party, Tzipi Livni, Yitzchak Herzog
Labor party says it's going to opposition, Netanyahu may already have a coalition
More tweets from Israel Radio's Chico Menashe.
Translation: Former Labor party leader (and Israel Radio broadcaster) Shelly Yacimovich says that the people have spoken, that they want Netanyahu to be the leader, and that her party will be going to the opposition.
A similar announcement came this morning from Yair Lapid regarding his Yesh Atid party.
In the meantime, Prime Minister Netanyahu may already have enough MK's for a coalition.
Of course, he'd still have to get them all to agree on ministries....
In any event, it sounds like President Rivlin's push for a national unity government is already a failure. And that's good news for Israel.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, coalition government, Knesset elections 2015, Labor party, Likud party, Shelly Yacimovich, Yair Lapid
Sickening: Israel's 'charitable' Left taking election loss out on poor
Reeling from its election loss last week, Israel's 'charitable' Left has identified the enemy: Israel's poor. The Left has decided that since the poor vote for the Likud anyway,
the Left will no longer donate to charity.
The latest trend among leftists who were shocked by their defeat at
the polls Tuesday is an apparently spontaneous campaign called “Don't
Give,” which calls on people to stop donating to the poorer Israelis and
the socio-economically weaker regions known as “the periphery,” because
these Israelis insist on voting for Likud, in election after election.
The campaign's name in Hebrew, Lo Latet, is a reference to Latet (“To
Give”), a major charity group that collects donations for the needy.
The campaign started as a Facebook trend, which gathered steam after
it was reported about in the news, and has turned into a Facebook page
with over 3,000 likes.
"As the holiday of Pesach approaches, I would like to remind you that
there are hundreds of people who have no way of celebrating,” wrote one
Lo Latet poster. “It's important that you do not give them a single
shekel.”
He added sarcastically: “After all, elected a government that will
change their situation, so why interfere and ruin things? Happy
holiday!”
"From now on, I want peace of mind,” wrote another poster. “From now
on, it's every one for himself. Don't tell me about minimum wages and
people whose salary doesn't carry them through the month. I don't want
to hear about hungry children or single mothers in distress, about
distressed contract workers, or eroded pensions. Don't preach to me
about 'the people's choice and majority rule', I understand what
democracy is, but from now on, let every person take care of himself.”
Maybe the poor figured out that raising the minimum wage (which was part of Labor's platform) would put more of them out of work. Maybe they figured out that a nuclear Iran and a rocket-laden 'Palestinian state' within firing range of the center of the country would kill all our investments. And maybe - definitely - the Left has shown its true colors as the 'beautiful people' (
yefei ha'nefesh in Hebrew) who couldn't care less about anyone but themselves.
Labels: charity, Iranian nuclear threat, Israeli economy, Israeli Left, Knesset elections 2015, Labor party, Likud party, Palestinian state
Hmmm.... Lapid: We won't recommend Left form next government
For the Hebrew impaired, the tweet above from Makor Rishon columnist Haggai Segal says "[Yesh Atid party leader Yair] Lapid claims that his words were taken out of context, but the recording of the interview with Makor Rishon proves that he said 'you won't find me recommending [that] the Left [form the next government].' 'And Buzi [Herzog] is the Left,' we asked. 'Yes.'
The way Israel's government works is that after the elections, the President calls in the leader of each party and asks who should be given the first opportunity to try to form a government. The President then charges the leader of the party who seems most likely to succeed to form a coalition. That's why sometimes,
even if a party has the most votes, it will not be asked to form the government.
Hmmm.
Labels: Israeli Knesset, Kadima, Knesset elections 2015, Labor party, Tzipi Livni, Yair Lapid, Yesh Atid party, Yitzchak Herzog
Israelis to Obama: 'The hell you'll tell us whom to vote for'
President Hussein Obama's efforts to influence Israel's upcoming election may be backfiring. This is Anshel Pfeffer, one of Haaretz's more Leftist writers.
Haaretz - for those who have forgotten - is Israel's Hebrew 'Palestinian' daily, probably the most Leftist rag among Israel's better known Leftist rags. (By the way, only about 5% of Israelis read Haaretz - they have a much wider audience among the elites in the US and Europe).
Here's the
weepy news about the latest polls.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud would win 25 seats and the Labor Camp would secure only 23 if elections were held today, a new poll conducted by Haaretz-Dialog found on Monday.
The poll, which was conducted under the supervision
of Professor Camil Fuchs with a representative sample of 514
respondents, showed Netanyahu gaining three more seats than what his
party was predicted to win in the last poll conducted in January. The
margin of error in the poll was 4.2 percent.
Naftali Bennett's Habayit Hayehudi weakened in this poll to receive 14 seats, compared to 16 in the last survey.
The Joint List (Hadash and Arab parties) strengthened, predicted to win
12 seats, while Yesh Atid weakened from 12 to nine seats.
Kulanu and United Torah Judaism were both slated
for eight seats, while Yisrael Beiteinu and Shas were predicted to
receive six seats. Respondents gave Meretz five seats and Yachad was
predicted to get four.
That would put the Right at 25+14+8+6+6+4 = 63, the Left at 23+9+5 = 37, the Arabs (who have never been in any coalition at 12 and Kulanu (which really could go either way) at 8.
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, Jewish Home party, Knesset elections 2015, Labor party, Likud party, Meretz, Shas, Tzipi Livni, United Torah Judaism party, V-2015, Yesh Atid party, Yitzchak Herzog
The Labor party? Zionist?
Hey - we wouldn't want to say anything controversial, would we?
Labels: Israeli Arab, Knesset elections 2015, Labor party, Yitzchak Herzog, Zionist
Tzipi and Buzi sing something stupid
With apologies to the Hebrew-impaired, this was too good not to share.
Let's go to the videotape.
Heh.
Labels: Balad, Binyamin Netanyahu, Jewish Home party, Knesset elections 2015, Labor party, Likud party, Meretz, Naftali Bennett, Tzipi Livni, Yitzchak Herzog
Netanyahu makes post-election deal with Herzog and Livni?
This is sole-sourced from DEBKA, so take it with a grain of salt, but I would not put this past him. DEBKA is reporting that Prime Minister Netanyahu is already cutting a deal to
share power with the Labor party after the elections.
The opinion samplings taken privately by party strategists indicate a
close run in the March 17 general election between Binyamin Netanyahu’s
Lilkud and Yitzhak Herzog’s opposition Labor, since he formed a
partnership with Tzipi Livni and her small Hatnuah. , Likud stays
marginally ahead with 23-24 (out of 120) Knesset seats compared with
Labor’s 20-22.
Instead of engaging in the excruciating, separate horse-trading for a
government coalition after the elections with a bunch of small factions,
Netanyahu and Herzog appear to have found common ground on the broad
lines of a power-sharing partnership.
Most significantly, this partnership would enable them to disempower
Naftali Bennett’s hard-line Jewish Home (16-17), Avigdor Lieberman’s
Yisrael Beitenu (sinking to 7-10), Kahlon’s new Kulanu (8-9) and Yair
Lapid’s Future (plunging to 6-7). It would also reduce the bargaining
power of the ultra-religious bloc.
Netanyahu has avowed an ambition to reduce Israel’s fragmented political scene to major blocs.
The backdoor negotiations between the prime minister and opposition
leader are not face-to-face, but through a mutually trusted go-between,
revealed here by debkafile as the Labor leader’s brother, Brig.-Gen (res.) Michael Herzog.
...
From May 2009 to March 2010, M. Herzog acted as special envoy in the
efforts of Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Barak to
resuscitate peace negotiations with the Palestinians. The prime minister
also attached him to his personal envoy Yitzak Molcho with the US team
that held talks with Syria from December 2010 until the onset of the
civil war in March 2011.
...
Towards the end of last year, Netanyahu, who was then building up to
calling a snap election, again added Mike Herzog as a secret envoy to
Molcho’s quiet contacts with the Americans and Palestinians. He was also
involved in diplomacy on behalf of the prime minister on other
strategic matters, including the Iranian nuclear issue.
Read the whole thing. It's all too plausible, and why no one on the Right should vote for Likud.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, Knesset elections 2015, Labor party, Likud party, Michael Herzog, Tzipi Livni, Yitzchak Herzog
'Unacceptable and ugly'
The title of this post doesn't just describe Tzipi Livni. It
describes some comments she made on a satirical television show on Saturday night.
Writing on Facebook, [former Shin Bet chief and Netanyahu critic Yuval] Diskin said that Livni’s remarks were “unacceptable and ugly”.
“I normally have a great appreciation for Livni’s attitudes and
values, but in this case I'm coming out against her in the most
aggressive manner,” he said.
“It is permissible and even desirable to criticize,” stressed Diskin.
“This is in part the essence of democracy. Personally, I too have
criticism over the conduct of the Prime Minister and his leadership
style and his lack of personal example. But there is a fine line in my
opinion, that once people cross it, they become what Netanyahu and his
friends were when they ignored the incitement of their supporters
against Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.”
“I call on Tzipi Livni, as well as on many of my friends, to immediately apologize for her remarks,” said Diskin.
Livni, who appeared on the “Matzav HaUma” (State of the Union) satirical program on Channel 2 on Saturday night, took satire to a different level and was perceived to have gone beyond the realms of political correctness.
"Two potential Prime Ministers are better than an impotent Prime Minister,” Livni said of her unity pact with Labor leader MK Yitzhak Herzog.
"Yitzhak and I decided to take out the garbage together," Livni said,
hinting at Netanyahu. She later said, “The truth is that Bibi said that
we’re going to elections because of the 0% VAT. I thought there is a
zero in this story, but it’s not the VAT.”
The comments were criticized by Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz
(Likud), who said, "Since we cut off ties with [Palestinian Authority
Chairman Mahmoud] Abbas she has simply become unbalanced. She's addicted
to talks with the Palestinians and can't quit."
Coalition chairman MK Ze’ev Elkin denounced the derogatory comments as well, telling Arutz Sheva that Livni had “completely lost it” in her appearance on the show.
“What we saw last night is beyond who we saw during the previous
Knesset term. Even in terms of style and expression level it seems that
she completely lost it,” said Elkin, who added, “I want to see all the
reporters who attacked me for calling [Livni and Herzog] ‘the beauty and
the geek who will not pass the threshold’ speaking out against Livni
now. I used parliamentary expressions but she stooped to a new low. But I
guess the left is allowed to lash out using such crude expressions.
This is probably part of the rules of the game.”
I wonder
which one Elkin was calling the beauty and which the geek.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, incitement, Labor party, Likud party, Tzipi Livni, Yisrael Katz, Yitzchak Herzog, Zeev Elkin
It starts: Mayor of Ashkelon bans Arab workers from schools
It took a little longer than I thought, but good evening from 31,000 feet above the Atlantic. According to my trusty map, we are just about due south of Newfoundland right now, heading across 'the pond.' Air travel in the modern age is quite bizarre. First, we pulled away from the gate and they announced that we have a half hour hold because otherwise we will show up in London before their curfew ends at 6:00 am (you can't land at Heathrow before 6:00). And now we're going over 740 miles an hour and it keeps going up. I don't recall ever going more than a few miles per hour faster than 700....
In the wake of Tuesday's terror attack in Jerusalem, Ashkelon Mayor Itamar Shimoni has banned all Arab workers from his city's schools. 'Temporarily' of course. Here's what it gets rich: The workers were building shelters to
protect the kids from Hamas' rocket fire from Gaza. As you might imagine, the Left is seething....
The mayor explained that the increased presence of Arab workers in
close proximity to educational institutions is potentially harmful to
residents' security, and therefore their employment will stop until the
tense security situation improves.
The contractor which performs the work in the schools in the city is
employed by the Defense Ministry, and it should be noted that the work carried out in Ashkelon is done by Israeli Arabs and not by Arabs living
in Judea and Samaria.
The decision angered Meretz MK Issawi Frej, who accused Shimoni of "racism of the lowest kind.”
“Under the poor excuse of a 'sense of security', Shimoni wishes to
make the city of Ashkelon clean of Arabs and contaminate it with
anti-Semitic racism,” charged Frej. “I call on Interior Minister Gilad
Erdan and on the Chairman of the Local Government Center, Haim Bibas, to
publicly condemn Shimoni and ask him to reconsider his decision with
all its consequences."
The decision was also condemned by the President of the Israel Democracy Institute, former Kadima MK Yohanan Plesner.
But Shimoni was also condemned by Labor MK Nachman Shai of the 'sane' Left, as well as by Ofer Shelach of Yesh Atid, which is in the coalition (one has to wonder for how long). Here's guessing that Shimoni's decision will stand, at least for now. And here's hoping that every neighborhood in Jerusalem makes the same decision.
Labels: Ashkelon, Gilad Erdan, Labor party, London Heathrow Airport, Meretz, Nachman Shai, Ofer Shelah, Palestinian terrorism, personal stuff, racism, Yesh Atid party
MK's from Left urge Netanyahu to freeze 'settlement construction' rather than release terrorists
Fifteen MK's from Labor, the Tzipi Livni party and Shas (yes, on the 'peace process,' they lean Left) have urged Prime Minister Netanyahu to cancel the fourth terrorist release - scheduled for Sunday - and
freeze 'settlement construction' instead.
"A settlement freeze can always be stopped and 'thawed'," the MKs
wrote. "But to undo the release of more prisoners and murderous
terrorists cannot be undone. To the contrary, in releasing them there is
the danger that they will return to terror activities and will continue
to hurt Israeli citizens," they added.
"Therefore, we call on you
to act immediately in order to switch the gesture of freeing prisoners
and terrorists with the gesture of freezing settlements."
The MKs
wrote that the move would be welcomed by the Zionist Right and the
bereaved families whose relatives were victims of the terrorists.
In
addition to [Labor MK's] Bar and Bar-Lev, the letter was signed by Labor's Eitan
Cabel, Shelly Yacimovich, Nachman Shai, Moshe Mizrahi, Stav Shaffir,
Itzik Shmuli, Erel Margalit, Miki Rosenthal, Michal Biran and Avishai
Braverman. From Hatnua, MK David Tsur signed the letter and from Shas,
MKs Ya'acov Margi and Yitzhak Cohen signed.
Arutz Sheva has
more of the letter.
"Before the negotiations with the Palestinians began, Israel was
given the option of choosing between one of two gestures to the
Palestinians. One Israeli gesture was to freeze construction in the
settlements. The second option was the release of terrorist prisoners in
several batches,” wrote the MKs.
"Unfortunately," they continued, "the government chose the gesture of
releasing terrorists and not the other gesture it was offered - a
settlement freeze."
The MKs called on Netanyahu to “replace the gesture” and freeze construction in Judea and Samaria.
Well, yeah, if that was the choice at the outset, the government should have chosen the freeze. But it has never been clear that was the choice. It was more like the 'Palestinians' wanted both and were persuaded to make due with getting one officially and being able to protest the other.
In any event, there is no way that Obama-Kerry will let Israel do that without the 'Palestinians' consent, and you can bet that consent will not be forthcoming. Moreover, given that the 'negotiations' are doomed to failure (and were from the outset, but that's almost beside the point now), why should we make any substitute 'gesture' at all. Just cancel the terrorist release! So says Jewish Home MK
Motti Yogev (with whom I agree on this one).
"I'm not in favor of continuing negotiations. I am in favor of us
creating peace on the ground, first and foremost by annexing Judea and
Samaria in stages, first in area C,” he told Arutz Sheva. “The
Arabs would have better lives under Israeli sovereignty than anywhere
else. Am I in favor of blowing up the talks? Absolutely. Let’s take
things into our hands and give the Palestinians better lives than they
would get in any other state.”
Yogev added that contacts with the Palestinian Arabs should be ongoing, but certainly not with the PA, which continues to incite against Israel even as talks are held.
"We should continue our relationship with the Palestinians, but not
necessarily with the PA which seeks our destruction, and educates its
children and its future generations towards that destruction,” he said.
“There's nothing to talk to them about and certainly we should not make
any ‘gestures’ to them. As for the American pressure, we have to know
how to handle it.”
Yogev also made clear that he opposes the idea of releasing Jonathan
Pollard in exchange for Israel releasing more terrorists, in the wake of
recent rumors that the United States was considering releasing Pollard as a way of convincing Israel to continue the talks.
Tying the Pollard issue with the peace talks and with releasing terrorists is wrong and immoral, Yogev declared.
"Pollard should have been released a long time ago,” he said. “His
punishment has been far beyond proportional for such an offense. He is
in his thirtieth year in prison. They wouldn’t even let him go to his
father’s funeral or shiva. If we take into account the fact that he is
ill, there is a humanitarian issue here."
Yogev continued, "If the Americans are thinking about using Pollard
as a bargaining chip, then this is yet another step in the moral
deterioration of the foreign policy of President Obama and his Secretary
of State, John Kerry, and we should not cooperate with this. I do not
want to insult them. There is a lot of strategic cooperation between
Israel and the U.S., but they have been showing their immorality bit by
bit.”
“Pollard should be released unconditionally and murderous terrorists
should not be released under any circumstances,” he added. “The U.S.
would never release terrorists who carried out such cruel acts. Their
pressure on us to release terrorists so negotiations continue, as well
as pressuring us for a construction freeze, is one-sided and unethical,
and tying Jonathan Pollard into it is grossly immoral.”
Yogev also said that he believed that Pollard himself would not want to see terrorists released in exchange for his release.
There's just no point to these talks. In eight months, they have gone nowhere and accomplished nothing. In exchange for the privilege of talking to the Americans, Israel has released 78 murderous terrorists. A little common sense folks... Enough is enough!
Labels: Abu Mazen, Binyamin Netanyahu, Jonathan Pollard, Labor party, Palestinian terrorists, settlement freeze, Shas, Tzipi Livni
Knesset rejects 'two-state' bill
The Knesset on Wednesday turned down a bill that would have prevented the government from
unilaterally annexing land outside the context of 'negotiations' with the 'Palestinians.'
The bill, proposed by MK Hilik Bar (Labor) would have only allowed land
in the West Bank or Gaza to be annexed as part of a peace treaty leading
to two states.
"You are reaching a moment of truth, in which you
have to look in the mirror of history and realize that we need to
separate from the Palestinians," opposition leader Isaac Herzog (Labor)
said to the coalition. "If you don't take this opportunity now, history
will judge you, because we will become an isolated, binational state."
Herzog called for coalition MKs to "overcome narrow political interests and don't make promises you know you can't keep."
"If you don't face the historic challenge, we will replace you and do it ourselves," he added.
Despite Herzog's warnings, the bill was voted down with 44 opposed, including MKs from Hatnua and Yesh Atid, and 25 in favor.
...
Deputy Minister for Liaison with the Knesset Ofir Akunis responded to
Bar's proposal, saying that the government is in the middle of
negotiations and will bring whatever agreement it reaches to the Knesset
for approval.
However, Akunis added, the legislature cannot decide the guidelines for talks with the PLO.
"Why do you have such passion to give away parts of our homeland?" Akunis asked Bar.
Good question.
Labels: annexation, Israeli Knesset, Labor party, two-state solution
Labor seeks to stop Jordan Valley annexation
The Left wing Labor party has come up with its own answers to concerns about Israel's security: It proposes to
put the 'Palestinians' in charge.
A bill preventing Israel from unilaterally annexing territories will
be brought to the Ministerial Committee for Legislation for discussion
on Sunday and will be brought to a Knesset vote next Wednesday.
The "Two States Bill," proposed by Labor MK Hilik Bar, is a response to Likud MK Miri Regev's bill proposal to annex the Jordan Valley and apply Israeli law there.
The bill also requires that the final status of Judea and Samaria be
determined only within the framework of a two-state solution agreement
with the Palestinians.
The bill was a joint effort of Bar, the
grassroots movement OneVoice and diplomacy experts, and was signed by
MKs from Labor, Meretz and Shas.
Annexing the Jordan Valley would
"sabotage Israel in the diplomatic negotiations, harm the efforts of the
prime minister to come to a two state solution, deepen the rift that
already exists between us and the US, and permanently destroy the
chances for the two state solution, which is the only solution that will
guarantee Israel’s future as a Jewish, Zionist and democratic state," a
statement issued by Labor said.
Bar, the chairman of the Knesset
Caucus to Resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict, said the bill will
determine "once and for all" whether the coalition parties were for or
against the two-state solution.
What could go wrong?
Labels: Israel's suicidal Left, Jordan Valley, Labor party
Immoral but courageous?
Lahav Harkov reports on the reaction of coalition and opposition MK's to the announcement late Sunday night that the government intends to free 26 'Palestinian' murderers as a gesture in honor of the 'Palestinians' coming to the 'peace table.' Among the reactions was
this one:
Yesh Atid faction chairman Ofer Shelah also said releasing prisoners is immoral and undermines the government's sovereignty.
However, Shelah expressed support for the decision and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
"When
you see a prime minister begin negotiations despite opposition from
members of his party and others in the coalition, you understand that we
have no choice but to support him. A prime minister needs courage to
start talks, and we need to follow him," Shelah told Israel Radio.
So acting immorally and undermining the government's sovereignty is okay when some members of the coalition oppose doing it?
I would term such talk
Orwellian, but in a
tweet back to me, Lahav Harkov calls it
Machiavellian. After hearing his brilliant thinking, it will probably not surprise most of you that Shelah, like Yair Lapid, was a
journalist in his previous existence (with apologies to Lahav for pointing that out).
Labor's Omer Bar Lev didn't do a whole lot better.
According to MK Omer Bar-Lev (Labor), the government rejected alternatives to releasing terrorists for political reasons.
"In
the current situation, there is no doubt that the right thing to do to
ensure Israel's future as a safe and prosperous country is to release
prisoners, but it’s the worst alternative for our image, values and
strategy," Bar-Lev said.
If what he wanted to say was 'we should have chosen the settlement freeze instead' (which is correct if you assume that we had to accept one of the three alternatives - at least it's reversible) then he should have said so. But then, we shouldn't expect any better from a
founder of 'Peace Now.'
Anticipating more '
sacrifices for peace'....
Labels: Labor party, morality, Palestinian terrorists, Peace Now, Yair Lapid, Yesh Atid party
Jewish Home can be replaced?
Labor's Shelly Yacimovitch says that her party will
join the coalition to keep the government afloat in the event that Jewish Home leaves the coalition over 'peace talks.'
Opposition leader Shelly Yacimovich (Labor) said Tuesday night that her
party will "support positive, significant steps toward reaching an
agreement."
"If we are on the cusp of singing a treaty and [Economic and Trade
Minister Naftali] Bennett threatens to quit, we won't be the opposition,
and will reexamine entering the government," a spokeswoman for
Yacimovich explained Wednesday.
Labor responded enthusiastically
to Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani's announcement
in Washington that the Arab League would be willing to deviate from
pre-1967 lines. Nearly all of the party's MKs released statements
welcoming the change.
Netanyahu may not need the support anyway. Drunk on power, Bennett and Jewish Home are already looking for ways to stay in the government even if it makes concessions to the 'Palestinians.'
A senior Bayit Yehudi source explained that, the Bayit Yehudi doesn't
oppose negotiations, but is against the government giving up any
territory.
However, if such concessions are authorized in a referendum, the party will accept the will of the people, the source said.
Bennett
hopes to turn the current law, requiring a referendum before conceding
any land under Israeli sovereignty, in to a basic law, which has
constitutional status. He has been met with opposition from within the
coalition, as Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and her party are adamantly
against a referendum, and Yesh Atid is undecided.
The current law
does not include Judea and Samaria, which is not under Israeli
sovereignty, and the Bayit Yehudi is trying to find a legal solution for
them to be part of new legislation.
The Bayit Yehudi doesn't
oppose negotiations, faction chairwoman Ayelet Shaked said on Tuesday,
as long as there is a “give and take, not give and give.”
“There’s
nothing new [in the Arab League announcement. Former prime minister
Ehud] Olmert and [former US president Bill] Clinton talked about this.
No one thinks that 400,000 people can be removed from their homes,” she
said.
Meanwhile, one of the few MK's with integrity has already announced in a letter to his party colleagues that although he is a member of the Likud,
he will not cooperate with the coalition.
This Sunday, the 18th of Iyar, the Commander of the David Region called me and told me that by “direct instruction from the Prime Minister,” I would not be allowed to ascend to the Temple Mount the following morning.
At this point, the final mask has been lifted. I could no longer evade the issue and blame lower level officials. Nobody attempted to claim that there was a local security problem. After all, I was notified the day before my planned ascent, when the Mount was completely quiet. The situation became crystal clear: The Moslem wakf terrorizes Israel’s government, decides which MKs will ascend the Mount and which will not – and it is none other than the Prime Minister who implements their directives.
This is not a personal issue. Today, the police informed the Knesset Interior Committee that was scheduled to tour the Temple Mount next Tuesday, the 27th of Iyar, Jerusalem Day Eve, that it will not be able to visit on that day or any other day – due to the wakf’s objections. Whoever represents the sovereignty of the State of Israel in the eyes of the sovereign on the Mount – the wakf, is not allowed to visit there. Once again, the wakf demand is implemented by the government of Israel.
I do not have to explain the severe significance of these events to the Knesset Members of the National Movement. All the red lines of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem have been trampled and breached. This is in addition to the infringement of the law inherent in these decisions, the violation of the Jerusalem Basic Law and other Basic Laws. These decisions make a mockery of the immunity and sovereignty afforded to Israel’s Knesset Members. We are facing a new reality that obligates us all to act in an unconventional manner.
I would like to make it clear that the last thing that I want is to find myself in a conflict with the Prime Minister, who I highly respect and am careful to honor. I clearly have nothing to gain from that. Clearly, I do not wish to create difficulties for the rest of the members of the faction. Just the opposite: When I was elected to the Knesset I made no demands. I was happy to accept the duties and tasks that were offered me and I believe that it was obvious to all that I have put every effort into giving the maximum for our common goals.
But what is all my work in the Knesset worth if the Knesset, as it turns out, surrenders Israel’s sovereignty in the heart of Jerusalem?
Who is the sovereign in Jerusalem when the Moslem wakf determines which Knesset Member is allowed or not allowed to ascend to the most holy of places – to the Temple Mount? Who exactly are we fooling? Have we forgotten our vow, “If I forget thee, Jerusalem, may my right hand be forgotten”? What is this vow worth if we ignore the terrible reality in which the wakf dictates to Israel’s government what to do on the Mount, in defiance of the law?
If we could have deceived ourselves until now that we are the sovereign and the wakf acts as an extension of our sovereignty, it has now become clear that it is the government of Israel that acts as an extension of the wakf. We are paving the way for them to rule the entire Land, as the poet of the National Movement, Uri Tzvi Greenberg, warned: “He who rules the Mount rules the Land.”
A red line has been crossed. It was forced upon me with no chance for discussion and does not allow me (and in my opinion, does not allow you, either) to continue to conduct “business as usual.” How can I face myself if, for the good of my political future, I will abandon the Temple Mount?
With a heavy heart and totally converse to my original intent, I am forced to suspend all my regular parliamentary activity. I know that we have just begun this Knesset term and we all have goals and ambitions to accomplish as much as possible. But there are moments in life when one must put everything aside and act according to his conscience. The Temple Mount, the rock of our existence, is calling us. This is the moment.
Respectfully,
Moshe Feiglin
Naftali Bennett and Co. have an awful lot to learn from Feiglin.
Labels: Arab League, Binyamin Netanyahu, Israeli Knesset, Jewish Home party, Labor party, Moshe Feiglin, Naftali Bennett, Temple Mount, two-state solution
Lapid and Bennett give Netanyahu an ultimatum?
With nine days left to form a government, Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid and Jewish Home leader Naftali Bennett
, along with Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz, have given Prime Minister Netanyahu an ultimatum:
Either he gives them the Foreign and Finance ministries, or they will refuse to go into his government.
The three parties together have two more MKs than Likud
Beytenu, and will not join the coalition if their demands are not met. However
if they receive two of the three top-tier portfolios, they will support Prime
Minister Binyamin Netanyahu for a full, four-year term, according to the source.
Netanyahu is holding the Foreign Ministry for Yisrael Beiteinu's Avigdor Lieberman.
Those two extra seats could be significant, because they raise the possibility that if Netanyahu cannot form a government, President Shimon Peres could ask Lapid, Bennett and Mofaz to form a government instead, rather than going to new elections.
I don't believe that the three could form a government. To form a government without the Likud, you would have to take in either the Haredim or the Arabs. Lapid will not sit the Haredim. And if Bennett were to agree to sit with the Arabs, his party will be eviscerated in the next elections. There has never been an Arab party as part of Israel's governing coalition (there have been Arab MK's the coalition as members of Jewish parties, but that's different).
Might Netanyahu try again to turn to Shelly Yacimovitch and the Haredim? Well, yes, but Yacimovitch (Labor) seems unlikely to respond favorably.
Meanwhile,
Attorney-General Yehuda Weinstein said on Wednesday that there is nothing
barring Netanyahu from reserving the portfolio for Yisrael Beytenu chairman
Avigdor Liberman until the trial against him is resolved.
A prime
minister can hold additional portfolios at his will and even without an
“arrangement,” the prime minister could give Liberman any post at any time
(presuming he is found innocent in the trial against him), the attorney-general
said. Weinstein added that all of the issues involved in the portfolio question
were political and not legal, giving him no reason to get
involved.
Further, he rejected any concern that Liberman “hovering” over
the future of the Foreign Ministry would pressure ministry workers into changing
their testimony against Liberman, out of concern that he might retaliate in the
future.
Weinstein announced his position on the issue, in response to a
request from Labor MK Merav Michaeli and OMETZ watchdog group head Aryeh Avneri
to rule on the issue and demand a commitment from Netanyahu not to follow
through with the alleged backroom agreement.
I'd be surprised - okay not astounded but surprised - if Labor agreed to go into a coalition where the Foreign Ministry was being held for Lieberman.
By the way, Lapid is denying that he issued an ultimatum. But JPost reporter Lahav Harkov has him figured out.
Yesh Atid
leader Yair Lapid denied Wednesday night that Yesh Atid and Bayit
Yehudi had given Netanyahu an ultimatum over portfolios.
In a
Facebook post, Lapid wrote that "it is not true and not
honorable...Netanyahu is the one forming the government and neither of
us would give an ultimatum to the prime minister."
Lapid has a penchant for dealing in semantics. Last week, the Yesh
Atid leader said he does not boycott any person, including haredim, but
that he refuses to sit in a government with Shas or UTJ.
Indeed.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, Jewish Home party, Knesset elections 2013, Labor party, Likud party, Naftali Bennett, Shelly Yacimovich, Yair Lapid, Yesh Atid party
Lapid to Netanyahu: 'Trust me'
In an
earlier post, I reported that Prime Minister Netanyahu is fearful that Yair Lapid will undermine or topple his government from the inside, and that is why he is trying to exclude the Haredim from the government. Lapid asked Netanyahu on Monday night to
trust him.
“We will not undermine you or topple you,” Lapid told Netanyahu. “We
want the next government to serve out its term. We have goals to reach
and accomplishments to achieve. Do not worry.”
A source connected
to Likud Beytenu’s negotiating team downplayed the message from Lapid
and said it could not be taken seriously if it was delivered via the
press. He said he did not know whether the prime minister had also
received it directly.
Earlier, Lapid complained to his faction
that no negotiations were taking place with his party. He expressed
frustration that Likud Beytenu wanted to talk about ministerial
appointments rather than the government’s principles.
“What
matters is not portfolios but where Netanyahu wants to lead the nation,
to what goals, and according to what values,” Lapid said.
“Once he knows that, it will be easy to form a government.”
Bayit Yehudi party leader Naftali Bennett, who also faced Netanyahu’s wrath in his talk with Likud ministers, joined Lapid’s complaint about the lack of negotiations.
...
A senior Likud official responding to Bennett said that there have
been negotiations with his party on all the key issues, including
equalizing the draft, the peace process and security. The official said
Bayit Yehudi was offered to be the first party to join the government
but it rejected the offer and said it would not join a coalition without
Yesh Atid.
Likud officials maintained hope that if Yesh Atid and
Bayit Yehudi were left out of the coalition, Labor could join instead,
perhaps with Yacimovich becoming finance minister and acting Knesset
Speaker Binyamin Ben-Eliezer maintaining his current job. But Labor
leader Shelly Yacimovich said unequivocally that joining the government
was not an option for her party.
“There is a huge gap between us and Netanyahu,” she said.
What could go wrong?
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, Haredim, Jewish Home party, Knesset elections 2013, Labor party, Likud party, Naftali Bennett, Shelly Yacimovich, Yair Lapid, Yesh Atid party
HaKol Diburim (It's all talk)
Labor party leader Shelly Yacimovitch has just said
that she will try to block Netanyahu from forming a government.
Will Lapid go in with her? I'd bet Livni will.....
Labels: Knesset elections 2013, Labor party, Shelly Yacimovich
Could President Peres foil the will of the Israeli voter?
Israel's Presidency is supposed to be a ceremonial, non-political position. But Ezer Weizmann, who was President until 2000, often intervened in politics, and during the past seven years, Shimon Peres has only made matters worse. Now, with Peres' term ending this spring, he has one last ceremonial task to perform: To name the Knesset member who gets the first chance to form a government.
Traditionally, that role has always gone to the head of the slate that garnered the most seats in the elections. But four years ago, it was obvious that Tzipi Livni, the head of Kadima, would not be able to form a new government, despite having the largest party by one seat, and so the task was placed on Binyamin Netanyahu. So the President does have some discretion.
Now, with Likud-Beiteinu showing up as the largest party by far in the polls, Peres is being accused of trying to encourage the
formation of a Center-Left bloc on whom he could bestow the first chance of forming a government.
Two newspapers on Sunday quoted unnamed senior Likud ministers on their front page, who claim that President Peres is driving the recent moves toward greater coordination
between leaders of the three main center-left parties – which
culminated last night in a three-way meeting between Shelly Yacimovich,
Tzipi Livni and Yair Lapid. The anonymous Likudniks believe that Peres
is trying to create a situation where immediately after the elections,
Labor, Hatnuah and Yesh Atid join forces to create one parliamentary
bloc larger than Likud-Yisrael Beiteinu. This will allow Peres to give
the bloc's leader, rather than Netanyahu, the first chance to form a
coalition. Such a scenario currently seems less than feasible. But no
one has denied that Peres met with the three leaders separately in
recent days though his spokeswoman vehemently denied that he was
involved in politics in any way.
The denials, of course, are rather disingenuous. This is Peres' second
election campaign as president. During the previous campaign, he seemed a
lot more sanguine about Netanyahu's inevitable victory and spent the
months leading up to the vote in talks with world leaders, trying to
persuade them that Bibi had changed and he was much more moderate than
he was during his first term in the 1990s. I remember during his state
visit to Britain in November 2008, Peres' aides were very open about how
he was promoting Netanyahu at Downing Street, months before he was
elected. Now it seems he has lost hope in the candidate-turned-prime
minister. It is widely believed that Peres is the "senior national
figure" who was quoted two weeks ago in Yedioth Ahronoth warning of the
dire implications of another Netanyahu term for Israel's foreign
relations. Now he seems to be giving the opposition valuable
behind-the-scenes support.
To be sure, there's nothing new about this. The president's official
neutrality has often been compromised. No one knows this better than
Peres who, as Labor leader in 1990, was given a second chance to form a
coalition by his former party colleague, President Chaim Herzog, though
it was clear by then that he had no chance of commanding the necessary
majority. Three weeks later, it was Likud leader Yitzhak Shamir who
emerged as prime minister. Peres is also not the first president to
interfere on Netanyahu's watch. In 1996, frustrated at Netanyahu's
intransigence on the peace process, President Ezer Weizman took the
unorthodox -- and what many at the time saw as unconstitutional -- step
of inviting PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat to visit him at his private
residence in Caesarea.
Some, including Livni, have urged Peres to resign and openly lead the
opposition against Netanyahu. But at age 89 and after five-and-a-half
years as president, he is loath to jeopardize his hard-won public
popularity. So Peres keeps up the show of the president of all Israelis.
Sometime next month, he will welcome Netanyahu to his office, smile for
the cameras and yet again task him with forming a government.
Or will he? At the moment, the polls show the three Center-Left parties as being close to the same number as Likud-Beiteinu. The Right still leads on the whole, but the Likud is dropping in the polls and hemorrhaging votes to Naftali Bennett's Jewish Home party. And that's why Bibi's in a panic.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, Labor party, Likud party, Shelly Yacimovich, Shimon Peres, Tzipi Livni, Yair Lapid, Yisrael Beiteinu
