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Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com ------------------------------------------------ Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday Monday, Apr. 03 '17, ז' בניסן תשע"ז HEADLINES: 1. JEWISH OBAMA HOLDOVER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR TRUMP SHIFT TOWARD PA 2. NETANYAHU PREPARING PACKAGE OF GOOD-WILL 'GESTURES' FOR PA 3. BENNETT: PM MISSED A BIG OPPORTUNITY 4. GAZA EXPLOSION INJURES THREE TERRORISTS 5. POLICE CALLED TO RESCUE SOLDIER FROM MEAH SHARIM 6. WOMAN MURDERED IN NORTHERN ISRAEL 7. WHERE DID THE TOWN OF KIDA DISAPPEAR TO? 8. 'ISRAEL - THE NEXUS FOR CANNABIS INNOVATION' 1. JEWISH OBAMA HOLDOVER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR TRUMP SHIFT TOWARD PA by Hillel Fendel "Although Trump's approach is generally favorable towards Israel, the fact that his administration continues to rely on Obama officials is not to Israel's benefit – and the most blatant example of this is Yael Lempert." So says a diplomatic official who took part in the talks with special Trump envoy Jason Greenblatt. Haggai Huberman reports that Lempert, very knowledgeable and experienced in Israel-PA relations and equally supportive of the PA position, has made herself available to fill in the gaps of the inexperienced Trump team – and the consequences have not been to Israel's favor. "This was an important lesson for me," the official told Huberman. "We cannot simply expect that as soon as we present our position, the Trump Administration will go along with us. Lempert knows the details so well that she can manipulate and convince those who know less than her." A former Clinton official said recently that Lempert tried to downgrade the US-Israel friendship under Obama, and that she is "one of the harshest critics of Israel on the foreign policy far left." Daniel Horowitz wrote on the Conservative Review website that she was "Obama’s point person in the White House orchestrating his war against Israel." Another Obama holdover still serving under Trump is Michael Ratney, who was appointed in February as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State after serving as Special Envoy for Syria. He was the U.S. Consul General in Jerusalem from 2012 to 2015. Ms. Lempert, whose parents were originally Israeli, accompanied Greenblatt in his recent visit to Israel and the PA. She met with Israeli diplomats, testing options for a change in Israeli policy. On the other hand, she tried to prevent Greenblatt from meeting with Yesha (Judea and Samaria) Council officials, but Prime Minister Netanyahu insisted that the meeting take place. 2. NETANYAHU PREPARING PACKAGE OF GOOD-WILL 'GESTURES' FOR PA by Ido Ben Porat Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is preparing a package of good-will gestures for the Palestinian Authority, the left-leaning daily Haaretz reported Sunday. According to the report, the Prime Minister informed members of the Security Cabinet last Thursday that the Trump administration had requested Israel reach out to the Palestinian Authority with a benefits package, and that the Israeli government would comply with the request. Earlier on Sunday, Education Minister Naftali Bennett discussed the cabinet’s agreement to restrain Jewish construction in Judea and Samaria. "Last Thursday evening the cabinet accepted the policies presented by the Prime Minister, balanced policies including continued construction in Judea and Samaria with no demographic limitations, but with certain [other] limitations." said Bennett. Bennett was referring to the prime minister's announcement that President Trump asked to buld within town limits in Judea and Samaria, unless there is no other choice, and to refrain from building outposts. "On the face of it, this looks like an acceptable arrangement," the Education Minister continued. "The real test will be in its implementation. I told the Prime Minister that [the arrangement] sounds perfectly fine, but we’ll check it when it’s implemented." 3. BENNETT: PM MISSED A BIG OPPORTUNITY by Hezki Baruch Education Minister Naftali Bennett criticized Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Sunday, slamming Netanyahu over what called a "missed opportunity" to change the direction of US-Israel relations. Earlier on Sunday it was reported that the Prime Minister had presented the cabinet with a package of good-will gestures for the Palestinian Authority. Last Thursday, Netanyahu also presented the Security Cabinet with plans to construct a new town in Samaria – the first officially sanctioned town to be built by Israel in Judea and Samaria in more than 20 years – along with restrictions to limit expansion out of town limits by Jewish communities in the area. In a post on his Twitter account, Bennett wrote that the plans presented by Netanyahu were "reasonable and balanced – assuming they are implemented as described." "There is no quantitative restriction," continued Bennett. "[But] from my experience we’ll need to ensure that [the plan] is implemented." But in a follow-up post Bennett lamented another aspect of Netanyahu's talks with Trump, what he termed a "missed strategic opportunity," arguing that the Prime Minister failed to present the new White House with alternatives to the two-state solution. "This was a missed strategic opportunity. Instead of laying out alternatives (like a plan for [Israeli] sovereignty in [Area C of Judea and Samaria], autonomy, etc.) we were passive, so we went back to the same old [idea] of two-states, which will lead us nowhere but despair. But I can’t complain, since that’s Netanyahu’s declared position (two-states)." "We, the Jewish Home, with eight mandates, have managed to stop the release of Israeli-[Arab] terrorists, to pass the Regulation Law, [find a solution for residents of] Amona, etc. But for a paradigm shift away from the retreat [declared in the Prime Minister’s speech at Bar Ilan in 2009] to sovereignty, we need 25 mandates." Bennett emphasized that he did not blame President Trump for the unchanged paradigm. "The story isn’t about President Trump; it’s about the position of the Israeli government. Because we did not lay out a firm Israeli initiative on the table, the vacuum was filled by the two-state solution." "Like I said, that’s a historic opportunity that’s been missed. In life you have to take advantage of opportunities." 4. GAZA EXPLOSION INJURES THREE TERRORISTS by Arutz Sheva Staff Three terrorists were injured on Monday in an explosion near Gaza's southern town of Rafah, Gaza's health ministry said. The explosion is assumed to be the result of an accident at a terrorist training camp. Arab news site Palinfo posted a picture showing smoke rising into the sky after the explosion. The accident comes one day after Egypt destroyed two tunnels running from Gaza into Sinai. Earlier on Monday, a human rights organization blamed Israel for not allowing its members to freely enter and leave Gaza. Though international human rights groups have accused "both sides" of committing war crimes, in fact the only steps taken are against Israel, with no sanctions placed at all on Hamas leadership. 5. POLICE CALLED TO RESCUE SOLDIER FROM MEAH SHARIM by Ido Ben Porat Police were called in to the predominantly haredi neighborhood of Meah Sharim in the capital on Sunday, after a soldier found himself surrounded by anti-Zionist extremists. The soldier entered the neighborhood while in uniform, and had planned to shop for books in one of Meah Sharim’s many bookstores. To his surprise, the soldier suddenly found himself surrounded by a group of anti-Zionist radicals shouting insults at him. Authorities were notified and dispatched a unit to extricate the soldier from the confrontation. The soldier was escorted to a police squad car and drive out of the neighborhood. Earlier on Sunday, a conference organized by the Yerushalmi Faction was cancelled by the operators of an events hall in Jerusalem. The hall’s management said there were concerns the gathering could serve as a platform for incitement against religious soldiers. The Yerushalmi Faction, led by Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach, has organized a number of demonstrations against the draft law, and encourages followers not to recognize the authority of the army. Members of the faction are thus instructed not to seek deferments from army service as yeshiva students, but instead are to demand a full release from the draft, allowing themselves to be arrested if necessary. 6. WOMAN MURDERED IN NORTHERN ISRAEL by Reut Hadar An Arab woman in her mid-30s was shot and killed Monday morning in the town of Rama in northern Israel. Authorities say the victim was shot while she was driving. MDA paramedics who responded to the shooting declared the woman dead on the scene. Police have opened an investigation into the shooting. MDA paramedic Rabiya Ayoub described the scene of the shooting. "When we reached the site [of the shooting], we saw a woman roughly 35-years old and was unconscious, suffering from a gunshot wound to her upper body. We performed a number of medical checks, but unfortunately we were forced to declare her death at the scene." 7. WHERE DID THE TOWN OF KIDA DISAPPEAR TO? by Arutz Sheva Staff New details are emerging about Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's meeting with US President Donald Trump's representative Jason Greenblatt. Army Radio reported that during one meeting in the Prime Minister's Office, they pulled out maps of Israel and spoke about specific towns in order to explain to Greenblatt where they would put a new town for Amona's expellees. White House National Security Council Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Israel, Egypt and the Levant Yael Lempert said, "The town of Kida isn't mentioned here - you've forgotten it." Those who were in the room with her were stunned by her familiarity with the topic. Lempert is a 43-year-old Jewish woman who began her current position during the last two years of the Obama administration. Prior to that, she served in Cairo, Baghdad, and Jerusalem, and was in Libya during the revolution and the end of Muammar Gaddafi's rule. On Monday morning, Yediot Ahronot quoted right-wing sources as saying Lempert tried unsuccessfully to prevent Greenblatt from meeting with Judea and Samaria leaders Yossi Dagan and Oded Revivi. Lempert's mother, Leslie Lempert, was active in human rights organizations in New York, and worked for years to advance Palestinian-Arabs' rights. Several years ago, Leslie married an Italian diplomat, and their wedding was held in the Italian embassy in Cairo. During the Cabinet meeting, Netanyahu told his ministers that even though the current building was not part of an agreement with the US, Trump would carefully oversee its execution. Netanyahu also emphasized to his ministers that the Israeli government must build within the set limits and not attempt to exaggerate, since the US knows about every home built in Judea and Samaria. 8. 'ISRAEL - THE NEXUS FOR CANNABIS INNOVATION' by ILTV [brightcove:2026566] ------------------------------------------------ Subscribe to this Daily Israel Report: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Subscribe/ | |
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