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Friday, May. 20 '16, Iyar 12, 5776
HEADLINES:
1. MINISTER YA'ALON QUITS; YEHUDA GLICK TO ENTER KNESSET
2. YA'ALON VOWS TO RETURN AND CONTEND FOR LEADERSHIP
3. NETANYAHU RESPONDS TO YA'ALON
4. MKS REEL AT YA'ALON RESIGNATION
5. STATE DEPT. CAUGHT LYING ABOUT UN'S ANTI-ISRAEL BIAS
6. TOP SAUDI ADVISER EXPOSED AS CLINTON FOUNDATION DONOR
7. EGYPTAIR FLIGHT DEBRIS FOUND
8. MK VOWS TO BOYCOTT YEHUDA GLICK'S SWEARING-IN
1. MINISTER YA'ALON QUITS; YEHUDA GLICK TO ENTER KNESSET
by Ari Yashar
Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon (Likud) announced on Friday morning that he is quitting politics, following Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's decision to hand his portfolio over to Yisrael Beytenu head MK Avigdor Liberman so as to bring his party into the coalition.
"This morning I let the Prime Minister know that due to his conduct and recent developments, and due to a lack of confidence in him, I am resigning from the government and from the Knesset and taking a timeout from political life," said Ya'alon.
Ya'alon's resignation is particularly dramatic as Liberman has not yet formally been given his portfolio as Defense Minister, and there had been speculation that Ya'alon would be named Foreign Minister in exchange.
On Thursday night Netanyahu spoke with Ya'alon on the phone and told him that "nothing is determined yet," but apparently Ya'alon was not willing to wait it out and be replaced.
His resignation comes after Opposition head MK Yitzhak Herzog (Zionist Union) invited him to join his leftist party on Thursday night.
Ya'alon's resignation will bring Temple Mount activist Yehuda Glick into the Knesset as an MK, given his placement on Likud's Knesset list. Glick survived an assassination attempt by an Arab terrorist back in October 2014, miraculously recovering after being shot four times at point blank range.
Glick told Arutz Sheva in response to the news: "I pray to God that He give me good counsel and accompany me as an emissary for the nation of Israel, to sanctify the name of Heaven and to increase peace and light in the world and work to unify the nation of Israel."
The outgoing Defense Minister is to give a press conference at 12 p.m. at Hakirya governmental complex in Tel Aviv.
A senior Likud official on Thursday harshly criticized Ya'alon for his conduct that he said harmed Likud, indicating the growing hostilities between the minister and those in his party.
The tensions heightened during Ya'alon's recent faceoff against Netanyahu, when the Defense Minister supported IDF Deputy Chief of Staff Yair Golan who compared Israel to Nazi Germany at a Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony, and told IDF officers to give their personal opinions regardless of whether they countered the policy of the political echelon.
Ya'alon responded for the first time to his imminent replacement on Thursday, when he struck out at Netanyahu for losing his "moral compass," without referencing the Prime Minister by name.
2. YA'ALON VOWS TO RETURN AND CONTEND FOR LEADERSHIP
by Ari Yashar
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After announcing his resignation Friday morning, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon (Likud) held a press conference scheduled for 12 p.m. to discuss his reasons for stepping down from the Knesset and the government, in a move which set Israeli politicians abuzz.
In his initial announcement, Ya'alon said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's "conduct" and Ya'alon's "lack of confidence" in the Prime Minister had led to his decision, in reference to the decision to hand the Defense Ministry over to Yisrael Beytenu head MK Avigdor Liberman to have his party join the coalition.
Speaking at Hakirya government complex in Tel Aviv, Ya'alon said "I have no intention of leaving public and political life in the state, and in the future I will return to contend for the nationalist leadership of the state of Israel."
Sources close to Ya'alon had emphasized that he is taking a "timeout from political life," and not an all-out resignation from politics, indicating that he intends a comeback.
Ya'alon in his speech said he always had his focus on the security of Israel during his time in office, in "ethical" matters as well.
He added that he worked in "harmony" with Netanyahu and thanked him for that, but said he recently found himself in "moral" disagreements with Netanyahu and other ministers.
"I fought with all my strength against phenomenon of extremism, violence and racism in Israeli society, which threaten its security," he said, adding that most of Israel is not "racist," and accepts others regardless of sexual orientation, race and religion.
"This isn't the Likud movement that I joined," said Ya'alon, calling on the majority of Likud voters to understand the "fracturing" of the party's nature.
He claimed that the "extremist minority" is controlling the "center," and struck out at "factionalization."
In another shot at Netanyahu and the other ministers, he emphasized that he acted based on his moral compass and not based on polls.
Netanyahu had offered Ya'alon the vacant position of Foreign Minister to have him stay on, but apparently Ya'alon was not satisfied with the offer.
Tensions between the two heightened during Ya'alon's recent faceoff against Netanyahu, when the Defense Minister supported IDF Deputy Chief of Staff Yair Golan who compared Israel to Nazi Germany at a Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony. Ya'alon early this week escalated matters further when he told IDF officers to give their personal opinions, regardless of whether they countered the policy of the political echelon.
Ya'alon responded for the first time to his imminent replacement on Thursday, when he struck out at Netanyahu for losing his "moral compass," without referencing the Prime Minister by name.
Ya'alon's place in the Knesset is to be filled by Temple Mount activist Yehuda Glick.
3. NETANYAHU RESPONDS TO YA'ALON
by Hezki Baruch
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu issued a statement on Friday afternoon, responding to Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon's (Likud) sudden resignation and press conference earlier in the day.
Ya'alon announced that he intends to return and contend for the leadership, after Netanyahu decided to give his post of Defense Minister to MK Avigdor Liberman as a condition to have his Yisrael Beytenu party join the coalition.
"I am sorry about 'Boogie' Ya'alon's decision," said Netanyahu. "I think he should have continued to be a full partner in the leadership of the state in the post of Foreign Minister."
The Prime Minister thanked Ya'alon for his service in the IDF, where he served as Chief of Staff, and said he appreciates the cooperation that the two shared particularly during 2014 Operation Protective Edge.
"The change in the distribution of potrfolios did not stem from a crisis in confidence between us, it stemmed from the need to expand the government, and that was in order to bring stability to the state of Israel faced in light of the great challenges before us," he said.
"I imagine that if 'Boogie' Ya'alon had not been asked to leave the Defense Ministry and move to the Foreign Ministry, (then) what he calls a crisis in confidence between us would not have developed - and he would not have resigned," said Netanyahu, shooting through Ya'alon's claims that his resignation was a moral decision based on a lack of confidence in the Prime Minister.
Netanyahu then referenced tensions displayed between the two in a recent faceoff, when Ya'alon supported IDF Deputy Chief of Staff Yair Golan who compared Israel to Nazi Germany at a Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony.
Earlier this week Ya'alon escalated matters further when he told IDF officers to give their personal opinions, regardless of whether they countered the policy of the political echelon, leading Netanyahu to summon him for a talk.
Commenting on the showdown, Netanyahu said, "now I want to clarify: the IDF is a moral army."
"It maintains and will continue to maintain the highest values of morality - and at their forefront the purity of the weapon," he said, in a possible reference to Ya'alon's criticism of IDF soldier Elor Azariya, who is on trial for shooting a wounded terrorist.
"There is and will be no disagreement on that. The IDF is also the people's army, and I am firm in my opinion that we have to continue to keep the IDF outside of politics."
"The attempt to bring the IDF and its commanders into a political argument is invalid, and dangerous for democracy," he said in a condemnation of Ya'alon's comments earlier this week. "In a democracy the military echelon is subordinate to the political echelon - and not the reverse."
Batting away Ya'alon's accusations that Likud has become "extremist," he said, "Likud believes in Democracy. Likud is a nationalist liberal movement, a movement that is obligated to defend Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. Likud expresses the central stream of the nation, and as such it is obligated to the security of the state and to striving for peace."
"The government is open to peace. There are opportunities in the diplomatic field, especially due to certain developments in the region that I personally am diligently working on. Therefore I made a great effort to bring the Zionist Union into the government."
"And therefore I leave the door open to this union (with Zionist Union) in the most serious manner, a union that will only do good for the state of Israel," concluded Netanyahu, renewing his offers of a unity government.
4. MKS REEL AT YA'ALON RESIGNATION
by Tova Dvorin
Several MKs were outraged at the resignation of former Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon (Likud) from politics Friday, in a move taken before he was ousted from his ministerial post.
Former Minister MK Benny Begin (Likud) expressed alarm in a special Arutz Sheva interview Friday, opining that Israel will "pay a high price" for the way the resignation came about.
"Why did we need to expand the government?" he asked. "Naftali Bennett, Ayelet Shaked, and Uri Ariel are sitting in this right-wing government."
"Do you think that Defense Minister Ya'alon did not want to build in Judea and Samaria? That such a decision is his personal opinion?" he added. "There's three Jewish Home ministers in the government and a construction freeze - and you think it's Ya'alon's fault?"
Earlier, Deputy Defense Minister Rabbi Eli Ben-Dahan implied to Army Radio that, in fact, the freeze could have been Ya'alon's fault - as the latter refused to honor a coalition agreement wherein Jewish Home would be given control over the Civil Administration, the government body responsible for Judea-Samaria.
Regardless, Begin believes the move was not worth expanding the government from 61 MKs to 66 or 67 - as MK Orly Levi-Abekasis resigned Thursday.
"It's a miserable decision," he added.
'A loss to Likud'
Many in the Likud mourned the decision.
"The resignation today of Ya'alon is a great loss to the national camp in general and in particular to the Likud Party," Equality Minister MK Gila Gamliel (Likud) stated Friday. "For decades, since his days as an officer and commander of Sayeret Matkal and later as chief of staff, Ya'alon has contributed greatly to the country and we are all, without exception, obligated to him for it."
"There is no doubt that if the way he was treated has been different, and not disrespectful, he would not have resigned today," she added.
MK Sharren Haskel (Likud) agreed.
"The resignation of Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and his retirement from political life is a loss for the Likud Party and the State of Israel as a whole," she said, calling Ya'alon "one of the most valuable people in the national camp."
Ya'alon "knew the balance of actions needed for the security of Israeli citizens, and had a human and moral worldview established on the basis of Likud values," she added. "This was a Zionist national responsibility which he took upon himself."
Immigration and Absorption Minister Ze'ev Elkin (Likud) expressed disappointment over the decision itself.
"You don't enter the political world for one role," he stated to Army Radio. "You don't say, 'I'm going to be Defense Minister - and, if not, I'm leaving."
One "senior Likud official" anonymously stated to Walla! News that the move could be dangerous for the party's future.
"Ya'alon's resignation is a fatal blow to the movement which may mark its demise," the official opined.
'Go to elections'
MK Erel Margalit (Zionist Union) called for elections.
"Ya'alon was a brave man, who exposed the moral nakedness of (Binyamin) Netanyahu to the world," he said. "We must ignite the streets and bring elections now."
"Who is next in line on the Likud list: Yehuda Glick," he added, referring to the Temple Mount prayer rights activist. "It's an appropriate substitution for this 'hilltop youth' government."
"The Netanyahu era coming to an end, and in his party major powers are expressing no confidence in his leadership," MK Manuel Trachtenberg (Zionist Union) added. "I call again on outgoing Defense Minister Ya'alon and Minister of Finance Kahlon: build us a new political platform and sane - along with forces from the Knesset and outside it, and this is an opportunity for us to miss the opportunity."
Left defends Ya'alon
Zionist Union's Tzipi Livni defended Ya'alon.
"I disagreed with the policy positions of Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon - but I appreciated and [still] appreciate his ethical positions," she said. "The problem is that his values are not the government's."
"The defense minister resigned, due to the lack of trust in the prime minister and the message is clear: the citizens of Israel cannot sleep peacefully at night anymore," MK Yoel Hasson (Zionist Union) added. "We have no one to trust and our fate is in the hands of a cynical and irresponsible prime minister."
"[Ya'alon] joins a long chain of security experts who have expressed a lack of confidence in Netanyahu: Shin Bet chiefs, institution heads, Chiefs of Staff, and generals all say: Netanyahu is bad for security."
"This is conclusive evidence of human moral damage the Prime Minister has caused to democracy and security," Meretz chairman Zehava Galon stated Friday. "With all the cynicism and cunning Netanyahu has, all this has made his defense minister the enemy, put only 5 seats in the coalition in exchange for a Defense Minister and major party player who despises you."
MK Revital Swede added, "Welcome to the Dark Ages and the rule of dictatorship of the Netanyahu government."
Colorful comparisons
MK Nachman Shai (Zionist Union) hailed the move as a "courageous decision" which "removes the mask from the face of the right-wing extremist government." He further likened Ya'alon to an "abused child."
MK Ofer Shelach (Yesh Atid) compared Ya'alon to a "circus clown."
"Ya'alon is a decent man, and he did the decent thing: he refused to be a circus clown to Netanyahu anymore, and left him in disgust," Shelach said. "This is the time of the decent people to differentiate themselves from those who make politics a circus, and time of the public, which is paying the bill, to put a stop to those who hold dedication to the public in contempt."
And MK Merav Michaeli (Zionist Union) called Ya'alon "another notch on Netanyahu's belt."
"We lost a balanced and sane man, and the right-wing cabinet Netanyahu is building is dangerous," she added.
Jewish Home bids farewell
The Jewish Home party released an official response Friday, thanking Ya'alon for his contributions to the State of Israel.
"[Moshe] Ya'alon was a man of values who made a conscientious decision that restores honor to Israeli politics," it said in a statement. "We thank him for his contribution to the State of Israel at all stations in life, and are sure he will come back to public activities for the State of Israel."
Defending the minister was Jewish Home MK Moti Yogev, who expressed support for Ya'alon despite the latter's history with Judea and Samaria (Shomron).
"In one word: shame," Yogev said. "Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon is an honest, professional and responsible man who was very active in strengthening the security of Israel, as well as strengthening the settlement movement."
"I regret his resignation," he continued. "I have no doubt that Moshe Ya'alon will contribute much to the people and to the State of Israel."
Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked was also sorry to see Ya'alon go.
"Ya'alon is a principled man and a great contributor to the State of Israel," Shaked said. "His place should be in the government. I regret his decision to retire from political life."
MK Bezalel Smotrich (Jewish Home) blamed the departure on Ya'alon's advisers, saying the "Achitophel of his office" caused Ya'alon's "vain and arrogant behavior" recently.
"It's too bad," Smotrich said. "There was no one government minister recently who thought differently from him that hadn't bore the brunt of insulting epithets from him and his advisers."
'Come back!'
Shas chairman and Interior Minister Aryeh Deri called on Ya'alon to return to politics.
"Moshe 'Buji' Ya'alon fulfilled the role of Defense Minister over the past several years with great success, dedication, and integrity," he said. "He is a man of principles who has dedicated decades of service to the security of Israel, and I call on him to take back his decision and continue to serve in the government."
Coalition chairman MK David Bitan (Likud) agreed, calling the decision a "reckless move."
"He was supposed to be appointed Foreign Minister, and he was able to bring his many skills to the State of Israel via the Foreign Ministry," he said, referring to conflicting reports that the offer may have been on the table; some reports claim this offer was never made. "Expanding the coalition is a matter of national interest, and for this purpose everyone needs to take national considerations into account over personal interest."
"I hope with my entire being that Ya'alon reconsiders, and that on Monday he returns to action."
MK Yoav Kish (Likud) concurred, saying he was "sorry" to hear Ya'alon would be quitting.
"The Minister of Defense is a good man and a great minister, and no controversy can change that," he said. "His departure will be a loss for the Likud and the entire people of Israel."
"I urge the Prime Minister to work things out and convince the Defense Minister to reconsider his decision," he added.
'Good riddance'
But not everyone will miss the disgraced Defense Minister.
MK Rachel Azaria (Kulanu) welcomed the resignation, adding she was eager to work with incumbent MK and Temple Mount rights activist Yehuda Glick.
"[Glick] is a sharp and liberal man with interesting views that sometimes are surprising," Azaria said. "I am sure we will have the opportunity to work together."
"I regret that Ya'alon did not understand politics: you can't always win," MK Oren Hazan (Likud) stated Friday.
Hazan noted that he demanded Ya'alon be transferred to a different department since last year, citing Ya'alon's "weak security policy, repeated mistakes in conduct, and dangerous construction freeze."
"In politics, you have to discover your nerves of steel, composure, and patience - and anyone who doesn't understand this will find himself thrown out."
5. STATE DEPT. CAUGHT LYING ABOUT UN'S ANTI-ISRAEL BIAS
by Ari Yashar
The US State Department was caught by UN Watch in a lie, as it attempted to minimize the UN Human Rights Council's (UNHRC) hostile anti-Israel bias in a justification of US President Barack Obama's support for the international body.
UNHRC was founded in 2006, and in response to its bias former US President George W. Bush withdrew from the body to cut its legitimacy. But in 2009, Obama rejoined it, with then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton defending the move by saying the US could "make a difference by working with (the UNHRC) on the inside rather than standing on the outside merely as a critic."
This week, Capitol Hill held a hearing on the UNHRC to examine how it has functioned in its first ten years, and the State Department tried to justify Obama's decision in 2009 by portraying the body as having become less anti-Israel due to US participation, reports Washington Free Beacon on Thursday.
At the hearing, Erin Barclay of the State Department acknowledged that the UNHRC is still an "imperfect body" with a "strong bias against Israel," but she testified to Congress that its singling out of Israel has gone down since the US joined in 2009.
"Prior to our joining the HRC, over one-half of all country-specific resolutions the council adopted concerned Israel. Today, about one-fifth of the HRC's country resolutions deal with the Palestinian territories," claimed Barclay.
However, her assertion was debunked by UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer, who spoke after her and said her figures were wrong according to the research of his watchdog organization.
"We heard the number in the first panel that one-fifth of the resolutions deal with Israel. These are entirely inconsistent with the numbers that we count quite scrupulously," said Neuer.
"The State Department seems to be counting all country resolutions and that is not a meaningful metric. When we count we look at condemnations - how many condemnations of Israel versus condemnations of other countries."
He explained that many country resolutions are merely empty praise for some of the worst dictatorships and human rights abusers in the world, and therefore only an analysis of the condemnations gives a clear appraisal of how much of the UNHRC's focus is against Israel.
"There are country resolutions that entirely praise those countries. For example, there was a resolution on Sudan that 'welcomed the commitment of the government of Sudan to protect and promote human rights in the country,'" said Neuer, noting the repressive African regime.
"It is not meaningful to count all country resolutions - especially ones that praise dictatorships," he emphasized.
According to UN Watch's estimate, the UNHRC has made more condemnations of the Jewish state than it has for all other countries in the world combined.
While Neuer said he supports the American decision to engage the UN body to try and fix it, he warned that the effort could easily backfire if the US whitewashes the organization.
"UN Watch supports robust engagement to try and make the council work, but at the same time we think that it's important that the US not find itself in a position that it becomes an apologist for the council's worst abuses. We appreciate engagement - we support it - but it should not be at the expense of critical engagement."
6. TOP SAUDI ADVISER EXPOSED AS CLINTON FOUNDATION DONOR
by Arutz Sheva Staff
One of Saudi Arabia's richest men and an adviser to the Saudi royal family was revealed Friday to be a top donor of the Clinton Foundation, in a revelation that comes even as Hillary Clinton continues to battle it out in the Democratic presidential primaries.
Nasser al-Rashid has donated between $1 million to $5 million to the Clinton Foundation according to its site, placing him at the top of the foundation's donors, reports Washington Free Beacon on Friday.
His donations were accepted despite the fact that one of his sons, Ibrahim, pleaded guilty to brutally assaulting his estranged wife in 2014. All together his children have donated nearly $600,000 to Democratic campaigns in recent years.
The donations have raised concerns about foreign influence, particularly as they come from Saudi Arabia. The White House is expected to release a document said to reveal that the Saudi government was linked to the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, and just this Tuesday the Senate passed a bill allowing victims of the attack to sue Saudi Arabia.
"This raises a very simple question in my mind - why is this family of one of Saudi Arabia's richest billionaires and a key adviser to the royal family pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into our political system to elect and influence these Democrats?," said Ian Prior, a Republican political operative and Senate Leadership Fund spokesperson as quoted by Washington Free Beacon.
A former official from President George W. Bush's administration was also quoted by the paper as saying, "there are a wide range of donors to this foundation from a number of Gulf countries, where women are treated like second class citizens."
"Individuals from these countries, which are often weak on terrorism finance enforcement, also have outsized influence over this powerful foundation, with real international implications," warned the official.
The Saudi donor Nasser al-Rashid is the founder and chairman of Rashid Engineer in Riyadh, and he is one of Saudi Arabia's five richest people.
A senior political operative involved in tracking on the 2016 elections told Washington Free Beacon that the donations raise concerns about foreign influence in the American political system.
"Saudi Arabia is anti-Israel, anti-woman, and anti-human rights, yet Hillary Clinton's Foundation takes millions from the Saudi government and well-connected billionaires like this al-Rashid," the unnamed source said.
"Now we have down ballot Democrats looking the other way and taking money from al-Rashid's sons, one of whom committed domestic violence. This from the party that uses divisive 'war on women' rhetoric at every turn."
7. EGYPTAIR FLIGHT DEBRIS FOUND
by Tova Dvorin
The Egyptian military confirmed it had found the wreckage of EgyptAir flight MS804 Friday, which crashed early Thursday morning in what could be a terrorist attack.
The "personal belongings of the passengers and parts of the plane debris" were found 180 miles (290 kilometers) north of Alexandria, Egyptian army spokesman Brig. Gen. Mohammed Samir stated.
The Airbus A320 carrying 56 passengers and 10 crew and security officers disappeared early Thursday over the Mediterranean as it flew from Paris to Cairo. It was flying at 37,000ft when it disappeared from the radar at 2:29 a.m.
However, Egyptian authorities revealed the plane emitted emergency signals some two hours later. At around the same time, sailors in a ship in the Mediterranean claimed they saw a massive fireball streaking through the sky.
Egypt's civil aviation authority confirmed a mid-air explosion had occurred, and after initially saying they weren't ruling any causes out admitted that a terrorist attack was more likely the cause than a technical failure.
A massive search ensued, with help in the air and sea from Egypt, Greece, the US, and France. Among them was a technical expert from Airbus.
Earlier Friday, Egyptian President Fattah al-Sisi released a statement of condolences.
"The presidency with utmost sadness and regret mourns the victims on aboard the EgyptAir flight who were killed after the plane crashed in the Mediterranean on its way back to Cairo from Paris," he said.
The British Daily Mail provided a profile of the victims Friday. Among them: a flight attendant who had joked about plane crashes on Facebook; Captain Mohamed Said Ali Ali Shoukair, 37, who had just been promoted four days before the crash; co-pilot Mohammad Mamdouh Assem, whose mother apparently sacrificed all her savings so he could go to flight school; and new father and British citizen Richard Osman. Also onboard was cabin manager Mervat Zakaria, a former TV actress promoted last month.
Shoukair was a very experienced pilot, the news agency noted, with 6,275 flying hours - 2,101 of those hours flying an Airbus 806.
The 56 passengers on board included 30 Egyptians, 15 French, and a host of other nationalities: one Belgian, one Iraqi, one Chadian, one Portuguese, one Briton, one Algerian, one Saudi Arabian, and several Canadians.
8. MK VOWS TO BOYCOTT YEHUDA GLICK'S SWEARING-IN
by Tova Dvorin
Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon (Likud) resigned from politics Friday, leaving space for Temple Mount prayer rights activist Yehuda Glick to join the government.
The appointment was met with mixed reactions.
MK Rachel Azaria (Kulanu) welcomed the resignation, adding she was eager to work with incumbent MK and Temple Mount rights activist Yehuda Glick.
"[Glick] is a sharp and liberal man with interesting views that sometimes are surprising," Azaria said. "I am sure we will have the opportunity to work together."
But the Left fumed over the replacement.
"It's an appropriate substitution for this 'hilltop youth' government," Zionist Union MK Erel Margalit stated Friday morning.
Fellow Zionist Union MK Yael Cohen-Paran said Friday she would boycott Glick's swearing-in ceremony.
"The Knesset went through an earthquake with the departure of a moral person [Ya'alon - ed.] and his replacement with an extreme, dangerous, and delusional person," Cohen-Paran claimed. "This is a reflection of the Netanyahu government that leads us from bad to worse. I'm not going to his inauguration."
Champion of right-wing values
Glick, a resident of Otniel in Judea, is number 33 on the Likud Knesset list, a spot that will now enable him to launch his political career.
"I pray to God that He give me good counsel and accompany me as an emissary for the nation of Israel, to sanctify the name of Heaven and to increase peace and light in the world and work to unify the nation of Israel," Glick told Arutz Sheva in response to the news.
Glick has long fought for Jewish rights on the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, where the Jordanian Waqf has been left with de facto control and bans Jewish prayer in a violation of Israel's laws guaranteeing freedom of religion.
His activism led him to be the target of an assassination attempt by an Islamic Jihad terrorist in October 2014, which he miraculously survived after being shot four times at point blank range.
In an indication of the positions Glick is likely to press in the Knesset, back in January he called on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to take a stronger stand against Arab terrorism after a woman was murdered at her doorstep in his town of Otniel.
Glick spoke with Arutz Sheva back in December 2014 as he recovered from the assassination attempt.
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