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Monday, May. 23 '16, Iyar 15, 5776
HEADLINES:
1. LIBERMAN REVEALS LIKUD TALKS HIT A 'DEAD END'
2. STABBING ATTACK THWARTED NORTH OF JERUSALEM
3. NETANYAHU: I'D FLY TO PARIS TOMORROW TO MAKE PEACE WITH ABBAS
4. TORONTO JEWS URGED TO MOBILIZE AGAINST ISLAMIST HATE RALLY
5. FORMER MOSSAD CHIEF: LIBERMAN MAY BE THE ONE WHO TALKS TO HAMAS
6. DENNIS ROSS: OBAMA CONSCIOUSLY DISTANCED HIMSELF FROM ISRAEL
7. OUTRAGE AT VIDEO SHOWING POLICE BEATING HAREDI MAN
8. 'SON OF HAMAS': ISLAM IS THE PROBLEM
1. LIBERMAN REVEALS LIKUD TALKS HIT A 'DEAD END'
by Hezki Baruch
Yisrael Beytenu chairperson Avigdor Liberman spoke about the coalition negotiations with Likud during a meeting of his party on Monday, and revealed the talks have hit a dead end.
"Unfortunately we still haven't reached agreements in terms of the pension reform, and we are waiting for another offer," said Liberman, who was given his request to be appointed Defense Minister, leading Moshe Ya'alon to resign last Friday.
"After the elections we went to the president and recommended Binyamin Netanyahu as Prime Minister. If after the elections they had offered us the defense portfolio and a pension reform we could have already reached agreements then," he added.
A third condition Liberman had claimed last week was applying the death penalty for terrorist murderers, but he apparently has folded on that demand.
Speaking before his party members, Liberman continued, saying, "the whole time we emphasized that we have no expectation to receive 100% of our demands. We managed the negotiations with an intention to end them as quickly as possible."
"We compromised on many topics in order to prove our good will. We compromised on matters of religion and state, we compromised on the matter of a death penalty for terrorists. On two matters we are unwilling to compromise - the defense (ministry) and the pension reform."
Liberman emphasized that the pension reform isn't only intended for new immigrants, saying, "we are talking about a pension reform for everyone, not only for immigrants from the Commonwealth of (Independent) States (i.e. former Soviet Union - ed.)."
"We want to fix injustices and we aren't (just) looking for someone to throw us a bone. The proposals we received from the Finance Ministry are proposals that we cannot accept," he said.
The Yisrael Beytenu head said, "I obligate myself to accept the offer proposed by (chairman of the National Economic Council) Prof. Eugene Kandel, if it is acceptable for everyone."
"The offer to spread it out until 2020 says that the addition for every family this year will be between 50 and 100 shekels - we didn't go to the elections for that. At least on this topic we reached a dead end and therefore we are waiting for other offers," he said. "With all the desire to receive the defense portfolio, without a positive response on the issue of the pension reform we will not be able to advance."
According to Liberman, "there is no ultimatum, I am not limited by time, I'm not rushing anywhere. I'm not managing negotiations, I'm waiting for a written offer that we can accept."
Later in his comments Liberman sought to take back his frequent harsh criticism of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in recent months, which he aired on numerous occasions, terming Netanyahu a "liar" among other things.
"I admit and confess, in the heat of the political debate unnecessary things were said. I didn't need to say that and I apologize for what I said - even if we don't reach understandings in the negotiations and I remain in the Opposition. My words were unnecessary. I'm not perfect."
He also referred to former MK Orli Levi-Abekasis, who suddenly quit his party last week in protest of the coalition talks.
According to Liberman the resignation came for personal and not political reasons, saying, "it's strange that for seven years I didn't hear any criticism but rather praise (from her). After she understood that she would not be a minister, suddenly she claimed that we aren't advancing social processes."
2. STABBING ATTACK THWARTED NORTH OF JERUSALEM
by Ari Soffer
An Arab terrorist attempted to stab Israeli Border Police officers manning a checkpoint north of Jerusalem Monday afternoon.
The female terrorist was shot and "neutralized" before she was able to harm anyone at the Ras Bidu checkpoint, according to police.
An investigation revealed that at around 2:30 p.m. an Arab woman drew the suspicion of Israeli forces at the checkpoint, who called on her to stop. When she did not heed their instructions and continued approaching, officers fired in the air, as per protocol, at which point the terrorist drew a knife and ran towards them.
Officers opened fire, fatally wounding the terrorist. Paramedics confirmed her death soon after.
A wave of deadly knife and other terror attacks against Israelis since late last year has ebbed over the past few weeks, but Arab attacks and attempted attacks still continue.
Last week, alert police officers thwarted a stabbing attack inside Jerusalem, after noticing a 16-year-old Arab youth who drew their suspicion.
When the suspect alighted a bus, officers followed him and forced him to disembark. A quick search revealed a knife concealed in his clothes, and the suspect admitted he was on his way to carry out a stabbing attack near Damascus Gate - a site which has been regularly targeted by terrorists.
3. NETANYAHU: I'D FLY TO PARIS TOMORROW TO MAKE PEACE WITH ABBAS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu rejected a multilateral French "peace initiative" as he met his French counterpart on Monday, offering instead to hold direct talks with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas in Paris.
French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said he would speak to President Francois Hollande about Netanyahu's proposal.
Direct negotiations with the Palestinian Authority are "the only way to proceed to peace," Netanyahu said. He offered "a different French initiative" of face-to-face talks with Abbas in Paris.
Despite Netanyahu's rejection of the French initiative, the Israeli premier began by thanking Valls for his "commitment to Franco-Israeli relations" and "stalwart position against anti-Semitism and that of Francois Hollande."
Netanyahu also thanked Valls for his recent statement acknowledging that France's support for a UNESCO vote which denied the Jewish connection to the Temple Mount was a mistake.
"I have to be honest: I wrote a letter to Francois Hollande and expressed my shock that France had voted for a decision denying the Jewish people's link to the Temple Mount, which spans thousands of years," Netanyahu related. "And the reason that this vote was so troubling for us is that it implies that the Jewish people have no right to be here. And I think that remains the core of the conflict, the refusal to recognize the right of the Jewish people to have a nation-state in their ancestral homeland.
"I hope you encourage other nations that voted for this outrageous resolution to follow your lead and admit it was an error. And of course, the most important thing is that it doesn't happen again."
Moving on to the French peace initiative, Netanyahu stated: "though we have some disagreements on the best way to achieve peace, I deeply appreciate your commitment to pursue it.
"I know how much you care about ending the terrible violence that has plagued our region for far too long, and I want to thank you and President Hollande for your commitment to peace."
"We share the same goals: peace, two states for two peoples, an end to war," he added, but emphasized his position that the only way to end the conflict is via direct talks, without preconditions.
"This weekend you said that direct talks are very difficult right now," he told Valls, citing comments in which the French PM explained the rationale behind engineering a "peace summit" to which neither Israelis nor Palestinians were invited. "And you're right. They are, but they're the only way to proceed towards peace."
"Peace just does not get achieved through international conferences, UN-style," said Netanyahu. "It doesn't get to fruition through international diktats or committees from countries around the world who are sitting and seeking to decide our fate and our security when they have no direct stake in it.
"Peace is achieved through direct negotiations between the parties and in direct negotiations, the Palestinian leadership must face a stark choice and this choice is simple: recognize the Jewish state or continue educating your people that one day Israel will be gone."
The PA, he said, seeks to "create a Palestinian state not to live side-by-side next to Israel, but to eliminate Israel."
"The Palestinian leadership doesn't see the French initiative as an inducement to compromise, but rather as a way to avoid it," Netanyahu insisted. "In fact, the Palestinian Prime Minister, Hamdallah, let slip the other day his hope for an imposed timetable, rather than a negotiated peace.
Noting how Israel made peace via direct negotiations with Arab neighbors Jordan and Egypt, Netanyahu reiterated his willingness "to make difficult decisions," if PA leader Mahmoud Abbas would simply agree to direct talks.
"That's why I would gladly accept a different French initiative, and here's the one important change. This initiative can still take place in Paris, because that would be a marvelous place to sign a peace accord," Netanyahu offered.
"It's a marvelous place anyway. It can still be called the French initiative, because you would host this genuine effort for peace, but here's the difference: I will sit alone directly with President Abbas in the Élysée Palace, or anywhere else that you choose. Every difficult issue will be on the table: mutual recognition, incitement, borders, refugees and yes, settlements – everything.
"There is no issue too complex to solve if both sides are willing to talk to each other. And I am more than willing; I am eager. I was injured in battle; I lost a brother; I lost many friends in battle. Israel wants nothing more than peace. And I hope you encourage President Abbas to accept this French initiative: direct negotiations without preconditions, between the Israeli prime minister, the Palestinian president in Paris."
"I'm ready to clear my schedule and fly to Paris tomorrow," he added, before quipping: "well, I think tomorrow we're expanding the government, but the day after tomorrow."
Valls is visiting Israel and the Palestinian Authority to advance his country's plan to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.
The "peace conference," scheduled for June 3, has been panned by Israel but welcomed by the PA. It would essentially involve world powers - without Israeli or PA representatives in attendance - deciding on a solution to the conflict, and would be followed by a second conference in the autumn to which Israelis and Palestinians would be invited.
France says the goal is to eventually restart negotiations that would lead to a Palestinian state.
Netanyahu in particular has criticized the initiative and called for direct negotiations between the two sides.
Negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians have been at a standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014.
Netanyahu has repeatedly offered to meet Abbas for direct talks, but the PA leader has declined to respond, instead taking unilateral actin via the United Nations and other international bodies, in violation of previous agreements with Israel.
AFP contributed to this report.
4. TORONTO JEWS URGED TO MOBILIZE AGAINST ISLAMIST HATE RALLY
by Ilana Shneider
On July 2, thousands of Islamists, radical anti-Israel activists and members of the fringe anti-Zionist group Naturei Karta will once again march in downtown Toronto to for an end to the Jewish State amid frenzied chants of "Zionism is terrorism", "down, down, Israel" and "Netanyahu you will see, Palestine will be free".
Jewish Defense League of Canada (JDL) is embarking on a public campaign to recruit supporters of Israel to join a counter-demonstration during which the pro-Israel side will carry signs under the ironic banner "Happy Al-Quds Day" showing graphic pictures of the hanging of gays in Iran, the savagery of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and the stoning of women under Shari'a law.
This macabre event, during which Islamists, communists and anti-Israel Jews unite in hate for a few hours once a year, was originally proclaimed in 1979 by Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini as a religious duty for all Muslims to rally in solidarity against Israel and Zionism.
In previous years, the Al-Quds rally in Toronto served as a platform for predominantly Shia Muslims to reiterate their unwavering Islamic commitment to "liberate" Jerusalem from Jewish presence. The speakers expressed their virulent hatred of Zionism, called Israel a "cancer which must be eradicated" and referred to Zionists as the "enemies of humanity".
In 2013, former President of Mississauga-based Palestine House was investigated for hate speech when he told a crowd: "We give them [Jews] two minutes to leave Jerusalem and then we start shooting. And that's the only way they'll understand".
Several members of Naturei Karta, a fringe anti-Zionist Jewish sect which allies itself with Khomeinists and pro-Palestinian organizations, is often seen in joint demonstrations with a variety of radical Muslims, leftist and Jewish groups, including the Islamic Society of York Region, Independent Jewish Voices and Palestine House, whose senior board member routinely and openly glorifies Palestinian terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and which was de-funded by the previous Conservative government for its "pattern of support for extremism".
5. FORMER MOSSAD CHIEF: LIBERMAN MAY BE THE ONE WHO TALKS TO HAMAS
by Ben Ariel
Former Mossad chief Ephraim Halevy said on Sunday that it is time to talk with Hamas, and added that he would not be surprised if incoming Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman is the one who starts those talks.
"Hamas is no longer linked to Iran. They are adrift from Iran and looking for ways to reach out to Israel," Halevy claimed in comments at the Jerusalem Post conference taking place in New York, adding that "American officials have heard such messages from Hamas in recent years."
Israel, said the former Mossad chief, "is indestructible" and faces no existential threats from Hamas or Hezbollah.
"Now is the time to talk to Hamas and I wouldn't be surprised if Liberman is the one to do this," asserted Halevy.
Liberman is set to be appointed Defense Minister after he reached an agreement with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on his Yisrael Beytenu party joining the coalition.
Over the weekend, Hamas issued an open challenge to Liberman, who in recent weeks stated that if the bodies of IDF soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin are not returned by Hamas, he will eliminate Hamas's leadership.
"If Liberman is a real man, let him approach Gaza," said Hamas leader Mahmoud Al-Zahar, who branded Liberman a "coward."
"If Gaza will want to hunt him, it will hunt him," he added in a threat.
6. DENNIS ROSS: OBAMA CONSCIOUSLY DISTANCED HIMSELF FROM ISRAEL
by Elad Benari
Dennis Ross, President Barack Obama's former Middle East advisor, on Sunday criticized Obama and his decision to distance himself from Israel during his time in office.
Speaking at the Jerusalem Post conference in New York, Ross said that Obama "is one of five presidents in modern history who have made a conscious decision to try to distance himself and his administration from Israel."
"If you distance yourself from Israel, you'll gain with the Arabs," Ross described the premise of the Obama administration's policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, adding that Obama's White House worked under the assumption that "Israel is more of a problem than it is a partner."
But he also warned that "every administration that has tried to distance itself from Israel has gained nothing."
Ross further said that the Obama administration worked toward a two-state solution to solve the Israel-Palestinian conflict, believing it would bring peace to the wider Middle East, but added that assumption is flawed.
"If tomorrow you could solve this issue, it wouldn't stop one barrel bomb in Syria," he said. "It wouldn't change Iran's ambition in the region. It wouldn't change the challenges Egypt is facing."
The comments mark the second time in as many weeks that Ross has criticized Obama's Middle East policy.
Ross, who served as Obama's Middle East adviser from 2009 to 2011, published an op-ed on the Politico website earlier this week, in which he said that Israel and Arab countries are turning to Russia because of the United States' weakness.
7. OUTRAGE AT VIDEO SHOWING POLICE BEATING HAREDI MAN
by Arutz Sheva Staff
[youtube:2015525]
A video going viral on social media depicts serious abuse of authority by a policeman, and has drawn outrage over police brutality.
The video taken in Beit Shemesh shows a policeman appearing to unjustifiably use his Taser gun against an unarmed haredi man. The story accompanying the video explains how the haredi male exchanged words with the policeman. The situation then turned violent, he was struck by the Taser and downed to the ground and restrained.
In an interview with Kol Chai radio on Monday morning, the haredi man described his humiliation. "After everything I went through, the curses, beatings, bloodshed and disrespect – he dares smear my name claiming I swore at him. We [haredim] never utter such explicit words, especially not for a ticket of 1,000 shekels ($258)."
The man described the sequence of events, "I received a phone call while driving, I was pulling over and going about 5-10 kph (3-6 mph) when the policeman stopped me and ordered me to step outside my vehicle. He referred me to the patrolman, and I began to plead with him."
He continued to explain how he was in a difficult financial situation as he had just bought an apartment. "You know how it is with yeshiva students, scraping the last shekel, I'll tell you the truth, my eyes even began to tear."
"The officer laughed at me, he told me he does not like people begging and continued to laugh using blunt and nasty language. It really, really hurt me. Is it not enough that he was issuing me a ticket but he had to laugh and humiliate me too?" wondered the haredi man.
He claims that after telling the officer that "God will return the payment", the officer aggressively pounced on him and his first instinct was to flee.
"The officer was wild and when I asked if I can pick up my kippah (yarmulke) from the ground he just continued to laugh. He saw an opportunity to pick on someone haredi. There are videos of the same officer throwing stones at haredim – how can this person be responsible for upholding the law?"
"A man who has proven himself to be capable of such violence and hatred, cannot be entrusted with enforcing the law," he concluded.
The Justice Ministry has issued an investigation amid demands that the policeman should be suspended and held accountable for his actions.
8. 'SON OF HAMAS': ISLAM IS THE PROBLEM
by Yoni Kempinski
[youtube:2015519]
Mosab Hassan Yousef, son of one Hamas founder Hassan Yousef who in the past served as an undercover agent for the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), on Sunday told the Jerusalem Post conference in New York that "Islam is the problem" and that the free world must fight it.
Yousef, whose code name was "The Green Prince", risked his life working undercover for the Shin Bet, and during that time he supplied information that prevented dozens of suicide attacks and assassinations of Israelis and exposed numerous Hamas terrorist cells.
He ultimately converted to Christianity and fled to the United States where he was granted political asylum.
"At one point I thought that the Jewish nation is the enemy of humanity. I thought they were the enemy of our people, the Palestinian people, until I experienced what the Jewish nation truly is," said Yousef, who described Israel as "the only light in the Middle East".
"We can fool ourselves, but there is an Islamic problem," he continued, adding, "Al-Qaeda, Hamas, Hezbollah, the Islamic Jihad, the Islamic State (ISIS) and Boko Haram - all of them kill in the name of Allah."
"There is an Islamic problem and humanity needs to stand against this danger, because it is not directed only against Israel. This danger is against human evolution," warned Yousef.
"Humanity and the free world must unite. Today the free world should unite against Islam, not against Muslims but against Islam as a belief system. When the president of the free world says that Islam is a religion of peace, he creates the climate for the formation of more terror," he added.
Yousef praised Israel for its morality and its values, saying Israel is a "nation that managed to survive the Holocaust and instead of assuming the role of victim and blaming everyone they were able to establish a democratic state - a young country which developed in less than 25 years. This is a good example for everyone."
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