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Thursday, Nov. 17 '16, ט"ז בחשון תשע"ז
HEADLINES:
1. REPORT: PM REFUSED TRUMP MEETING 'SO AS NOT TO EMBARRASS OBAMA'
2. 'ISRAEL CANNOT BE DESTROYED'
3. 'WE NEED TO WAIT AND SEE'
4. KIDNAPPING ATTEMPT OR INNOCENT MISTAKE?
5. 'IS HE OR ISN'T HE DANGEROUS?', ASKED THE LAWYER
6. WATCH: ALAN DERSHOWITZ CALLS HARD-LEFT VERY ANTI-SEMITIC
7. 'I NEVER WANTED TO LEAVE THE HOUSE AGAIN'
8. 'THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING'
1. REPORT: PM REFUSED TRUMP MEETING 'SO AS NOT TO EMBARRASS OBAMA'
by Arutz Sheva Staff
US President-elect Donald Trump suggested to PM Netanyahu that they meet even before Trump's swearing-in ceremony, Walla reported.
According to to two senior Israeli officials, during a phone conversation between the two following the elections, Trump suggested that Netanyahu come ASAP, and the PM replied that he would be happy to do so. Even so, he requested from the President-elect to check what the protocols were, since, after all, from an official standpoint, Obama is still the President until the swearing-in ceremony.
Afterward, sources close to Netanyahu said that the PM "elegantly refused Trump's invitation so as not to embarrass Obama."
A senior diplomatic official explained to Walla the predicament: "There's only one President at any given time, you can work in parallel. Until January 20, Obama is still in the White House, and you have to keep the rules of the protocol with him."
Nevertheless, this position would seem to go against the previous decision of Netanyahu in 2015 to speak before congress - to the distinct disapproval of the White House.
2. 'ISRAEL CANNOT BE DESTROYED'
by Arutz Sheva Staff
The ninth chief of the Mossad, Ephraim Halevy, spoke today at the Schechter Center in Jerusalem which, in these days, is hosting a delegation of senior legal experts from Canada.
Halevi addressed relations between "the three points of the triangle:" Israel, the US, and Russia. "I don't think that Iran was, or will ever be, an existential threat to the State of Israel. More and more people are starting to think like this," Halevy said.
He added that this assumption does not mean that we do not need to take every step to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons: "Israel cannot be destroyed."
"If we have not succeeded in these past 70 years to create a certain degree of security that will help us in the face of every level of danger, then I think we have failed in our mission. I hope that we will not have to put what we have achieved to the test, but I believe that Israel will survive every threat."
Halevy praised the resilience that the State of Israel has shown over the years. "There is no intelligence agency or state in the world that has had to deal with the problems Israel has. I'm not saying we haven't had failures - you can't win them all - but we need to be very proud of ourselves. If, after the Holocaust, we lost a third of our people and still succeeded in rising from the dust and getting to where we have, nobody can threaten us, and we need to be sure of ourselves that we will survive."
Halevy surveyed relations with the two world powers, the US and Russia, from the founding of the modern State until our present time. He showed how the former decision of the USSR not to support and aid the fledgling State of Israel laid the groundwork for relations between the two countries and was, further, a mistake from the Russian point of view.
"In 1972 the Russians understood that they had made a mistake in relations with Israel, because it prevented them from getting a foothold in the region. In any event, the US and Russia will be around for many more years, and the bottom line is that we need to decide how we, with wisdom and efficiency and caution, will manage our relations with these world powers that stand to be around for many years to come."
Halevy added that the strategy for conflict management in the Middle East needs to be such that it doesn't strive to bring the conflict to a close, but rather to manage the conflict in the most efficient way. "We need to forget about the cliches inherent in our approach. We don't need to bring conflicts to a close, but to live with them and, to this end, reevaluate our strategy."
3. 'WE NEED TO WAIT AND SEE'
by Hezki Baruch
Minister of Defense Avigdor Liberman reacted to criticism against him yesterday after he made statements that he was willing to freeze building outside of "settlement blocs" in Judea and Samaria as part of agreements with the incoming US administration.
"We need to coordinate with the US to develop settlement," Liberman said this morning, and attacked Deputy Foreign Mininster Tzipi Hotovely for statements she made against him yesterday. "If Tzipi Hotovely wouldn't attack me, nobody would know she existed. It is unclear what she does at the foregin ministry."
Addressing the passage in preliminary reading of the Regulation Law yesterday, Liberman said: "The people of Amona and Ofra are normative people who go by the law. It's not their fault. Maybe we won't find a solution - we can't be delusional."
Liberman also hinted an attack on Education Minister Naftali Bennett: "The attempt to spread catchphrases and all of the competition inside the right-wing camp is what caused damage. The Tehiya party brought down the Shamir governemnt - which led to Oslo, and Hanan Porat brought down Bibi - after which we got [Ehud] Barak."
"I am a practical man," Liberman said. "To my happiness, the Left has been completely erased, and I represent the practical Right, but there is also the Right of populism and catchphrases, and that doesn't interest me. I respect Bennett and we each have our opinions, [but] you need to have patience. What's the point of all the catchphrases if there's no building?"
Liberman emphasized that he would obey the order of the Supreme Court on Amona. "There is no way I won't obey the Supreme Court order, but we need to fight and try to find a solution. Maybe it's impossible, and we can't create expectations. Maybe we won't find a solution, we can't be delusional."
Liberman qualified statements attributed to him yesterday, when he was quoted as saying that he was willing to freeze building outside of "settlement blocs." "At the moment, everything is at the early stages. We have to lower profile and see the new government. But we can't continue the 'settlement enterprise' without understanding from the American government - we have to come to a mutual understanding. I only said that, under the Bush administration, there had been an understanding regarding building in settlement blocs. My statements are not the PM's, but he needs policies on the issue and needs to coordinate with the American administration."
4. KIDNAPPING ATTEMPT OR INNOCENT MISTAKE?
by Benny Toker
A 15-year-old Ulpana student who was travelling Tuesday on a 183 Egged bus from Modiin to Dolev noticed that the driver, an Arab, had left the regular route and was entering the area of the Palestinian Authority.
The girl's father, Yisrael Stieglitz of Dolev, described to Arutz Sheva the course of events. "My daughter was travelling home and was the last one on the bus. She was sitting in the middle of the bus near the rear door. Everything was OK until the turnoff to Dolev. The driver decided to leave the route and drive towards Ein Arik in the areas occupied by the Palestinian Authority. The driver knows the route and it was clearly intentional.
Stieglitz said that his daughter screamed "let me off, let me off" and then the driver reversed and went back to Dolev. She arrived home distraught and said that the driver had tried to kidnap her. I put up a Facebook post and received responses saying that it was not the only case that Arab drivers suddenly decided to drop of passengers in dark places or travelled to other locations.
Stieglitz added that in a similar case, a driver let pupils off in a dark place. That case ended well thank G-d but later it was revealed that the driver was under criminal investigation.
Stieglitz said that his daughter is scared to travel by bus. "She and other girls are scared to travel on Egged buses. The Arab drivers sometimes travel together with their friends and speak Arabic the whole way and it is very disconcerting. I approached the police and the Transport Ministry and have yet to receive a response. We suspect that this was a kidnapping attempt or even worse attempted rape.
Egged spokesmen responded by saying that "initial investigations revealed that the driver made a mistake and immediately after the passenger alerted his attention he stopped his car and reversed in order to return to his route."
5. 'IS HE OR ISN'T HE DANGEROUS?', ASKED THE LAWYER
by Yoel Domb
Yosef Pressman, a Shomron resident in his 20's, received a restrictive order Tuesday banning him from entering Judea and Samaria for the next three months. The order was signed by Central Command OC Roni Noma.
Yesterday attorney Menashe Yadu of the Honenu organization filed a petition in the military court appealing the order and demanding a delay in its implementation.
Among other reasons, Yadu cited the 19 day delay between the expiration of the previous order and the issuing of the present order. He said that The IDF's behavior is contrary to law and to military court decisions in similar cases of restriction orders which were adjudicated recently in the courts.
"The delay raises a simple question," wrote Yadu. "If there is a near certainty of harm to the public why does the IDF wait 19 days before reissuing a restriction order that expired? If, however, there is no near certainty of such harm- why did the petitioner receive an order at all?
Pressman received the order while he was walking in Jerusalem. Detectives from the Judea and Samaria police department detained him at the Moriah police station where he heard a speech by a GSS operative and received the restriction order.
In the course of his detainment, one of the detectives grabbed his phone when he tried to photograph them.
Pressman, who recently got married, had been served similar orders in the past with the last one expiring three weeks ago.
A few days after it expired, he received a notification from Central Command that OC Roni Numa intended to reissue the order against him as he is "known as one who orchestrates protest activities and provocations against public figures." Moreover, the army claimed that Pressman "tries to incite others into violent actions". The order did not claim that Pressman himself was involved in any such violent actions.
6. WATCH: ALAN DERSHOWITZ CALLS HARD-LEFT VERY ANTI-SEMITIC
by Gary Willig
[youtube:2021104]
Prominent Civil Liberties Attorney and Hillary Clinton supporter Alan Dershowitz called the hard-left "very anti-Semitic" in an interview with MSNBC.
Dershowitz defended former Breitbart chairman and newly appointed White House strategist Steve Bannon from accusations of anti-Semitism, though he did not go so far as to deny that Bannon is an anti-Semite.
"I don't know whether he is an anti-Semite or not." Dershowitz said. "I just don't think you should toss that phrase around casually, unless there's overwhelming evidence."
Dershowitz added that he had heard "no evidence to support that" Bannon is an anti-Semite.
Dershowitz acknowledged that Bannon is supported by bigots, but pointed out that if Muslm Congressman Keith Elisson were to be appointed to head the Democratic National Committee, "Hamas would support it...would cheer and yell," despite Ellison being "a good person."
"You can't always judge a person by the supporters."
Dershowitz said that the Republicans and the Democrats were moving to the alt-right and the hard-left, respectively. He noted that "The only thing the hard-right and the hard-left have in common-they hate Jews. They generally hate Israel. They generally hate America."
Dershowitz then elaborated on the anti-Semitism of the hard-left.
"Most of the anti-Semitic tweets come from the hard left. I know. I publish about every month an article in the Boston Globe. You should read the comments that follow it. Hard left anti-Semites go after me for everything in the world. So yes, Twitter is terrible in the sense that it publishes all these commentaries, but go and see where they are coming from."
Dershowitz said that there is an increase of anti-Semitism from the right, but that "It is almost catching up with the anti-Semitism on the hard left, which has been in existence for 20 years now, sometimes disguising itself anti-Zionism."
7. 'I NEVER WANTED TO LEAVE THE HOUSE AGAIN'
by Arutz Sheva Staff
[youtube:2021112]Hillary Clinton came out for the first time this morning since the elections, at a gala honoring at-risk children, to address her election loss.
"There have been a few times this past week when all I wanted to do was to curl up with a good book and never leave the house again.
"I know many of you are deeply disappointed about the results of the election. I am, too, more than I can ever express. But our campaign was never about one person or one election. It was about the country we love and about building an America that is hopeful inclusive and big-hearted.
"I urge you, please, don't lose heart, don't give up on the values we share. Look at the young people we are honoring tonight. If they can persevere, so must all of us.
"I know this isn't easy. I know that over the past week, a lot of people have asked themselves whether America was the country we thought it was."
Nevertheless, she urged her supporters to "believe in our country, fight for our values and never give up."
Regarding the future of American children, Clinton said: "I believe the measure of any society is how we treat our children and, as we move forward into a new and in many ways uncertain future, that must be the test for America and ourselves. No child should be afraid to go to school because they're Latino, or African-American, or Muslim, or because they have a disability."
8. 'THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING'
by Kobi Finkler
In accordance with the directives issued by the Coordinator of Government Activities in Judea and Samaria, Major General Yoav Mordechai, the Civil Administration for the first time cracked down on Arab coal manufacturing facilities in northern Samaria.
The enforcement action was taken by the supervising division of the Civil Administration in coordination with Menashe brigade army forces. The decision to take action came after the coordinator discussed possible consequences of taking action in the B area (which is under PA civil control) and after the failure of attempts to negotiate with the Palestinians to eradicate the phenomenon.
The coal manufacturing facilities are situated in the village of Yaabed in the Jenin district and manufacture coal by burning twigs and tree trunks which are generally sold to the Palestinians by Israeli farmers.
[video:2021114]
The facilities present an environmental hazard and cause severe air pollution in the area which affects both Arabs and Israelis living in the vicinity of the facilities.
The enforcement operation began this morning after the head of the Civil Administration, Colonel Achvat Ben-Hur, warned the Palestinians that if they would not close the coal manufacturing facilities the Civil Administration would act against the continuous pollution caused by the facilities. In the course of the operation, 160 tons of tree trunks as well as equipment were loaded on eight trucks and confiscated.
The Coordinator of Government Activities in Judea and Samaria, Major General Yoav Mordechai, stated that "We are determined to act against the coal manufacturing menace which harms the health of the Israeli and Palestinian public. In conjunction with the law enforcement action taken today and which will continue in the future, we intend to open a dialogue with the coal manufacturing facilities in order to find a suitable technological solution to the issue."
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