Arutz Sheva Daily Israel Report
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Monday, Jun. 27 '16, Sivan 21, 5776
HEADLINES:
1. NETANYAHU: DEAL WITH TURKEY 'A STRATEGIC INTEREST FOR ISRAEL'
2. MUSLIM VIOLENCE ERUPTS AGAIN ON TEMPLE MOUNT
3. 'IT'S TOO EARLY TO PREDICT THE IMPLICATIONS OF BREXIT'
4. TURKISH PM: ISRAEL, TURKEY TO EXCHANGE AMBASSADORS WITHIN WEEKS
5. 'WHY DIDN'T ISRAEL DEMAND COMPENSATION FROM TURKEY?'
6. UK UNIVERSITY COMPENSATES STUDENT FOR ANTI-SEMITIC ABUSE
7. MORNING JOGGER DISCOVERS 900 YEAR-OLD LAMP
8. WATCH: ISLAMISTS HURL ROCKS AT POLICE ON TEMPLE MOUNT
1. NETANYAHU: DEAL WITH TURKEY 'A STRATEGIC INTEREST FOR ISRAEL'
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu officially announced Israel's reconciliation deal with Turkey, at a press conference in Rome on Monday afternoon.
The deal has faced fierce opposition within Israel, where many critics have blasted it as a reward to terrorism.
Under the deal, Israel will provide $20 million in compensation to the families of jihadists killed aboard the Mavi Marmara ship, which in 2010 attempted to violently break Israel's blockade on Hamas-ruled Gaza. That is in addition to an official Israeli apology - which has already been issued - and a deal to allow Turkish humanitarian aid into Gaza via Israel.
In exchange, relations between the two one-time allies will return to normal, and talks will commence on a potentially lucrative natural gas deal.
Speaking in Hebrew from Rome, Netanyahu repeatedly emphasized that - while he did not view the situation through "rose-tinted glasses" - such a deal was of critical "strategic importance to the State of Israel."
In particular, Netanyahu noted, paving the way to exporting natural gas to Turkey would provide an enormous boon to the Israeli economy - to an extent which shouldn't be understated, he insisted.
But he also highlighted several other concessions which Israel had garnered from Turkey.
Under the agreement, Ankara had pledged to "prevent any terrorist or military activity from Turkey soil against Israel" - including fundraising for anti-Israel terrorism. Such a pledge is particularly significant given the use of Turkey by Hamas's leadership as a hub for planning and coordinating terrorist attacks.
Netanyahu also addressed the parents of missing Israelis, both dead and alive, who are still held by Hamas.
Israel had received a letter from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in which the Turkish leader pledged to work for the release of the Israeli captives and bodies as a humanitarian service.
Turning to the families, Netanyahu assured them that Israel hadn't abandoned their loved ones. "We won't stop until we return them home."
On the contrary, he insisted, while the agreement hadn't secured their release - something he told reporters was impossible given that Turkey held only "influence" over Hamas, not "control" over its decisions - "without this letter there's no chance. With this letter there is a chance."
In addition, he said, Turkey has committed to supporting Israel's admission into international agencies which it is a member of - including, crucially, by supporting the opening of an Israeli mission in NATO's Brussels headquarters. Israel had long worked to open a mission at NATO, but Turkish opposition had blocked it from doing so. Jerusalem's recent breakthrough in Brussels was long speculated to have been the result of talks with Turkey.
The Israeli PM brushed aside charges by the deal's opponents that it was essentially a surrender to terror. In particular, he mocked left-wing politicians from the opposition, who he noted had for years loudly called on Israel to make even greater concession's with "the most powerful Muslim country," only to suddenly change their minds to score political points against him.
"I work in accordance with the interests of the State of Israel," Netanyahu continued.
He also referred to the fact that Turkey had in fact dropped its major demand: that Israel end the blockade of Gaza, telling reporters that the reason the deal took so long to strike was due to the fact that Turkey had initially refused to "drop certain demands we weren't prepared to meet."
"The second thing the agreement gives is continuation of the maritime security blockade off the Gaza Strip coast," he said.
Instead, Israel will facilitate the transfer of humanitarian aid via Ashdod - a purely symbolic concession given that huge volumes of such aid already pass via Israel into Gaza.
2. MUSLIM VIOLENCE ERUPTS AGAIN ON TEMPLE MOUNT
by Ari Soffer
[youtube:2016539]
Clashes erupted on the Temple Mount Monday morning, after Islamists attempted to violently prevent Jews from visiting.
Dozens of Muslim extremists - many of them masked - had barricaded themselves in the Al Aqsa Mosque since last night, and had actively stockpiled rocks and other projectiles for use against security forces and Jewish visitors. They also set up numerous obstacles to prevent police from closing the mosque's doors - a tactic often used by Israeli police to kettle in Muslim rioters.
As Jewish visiting hours to the holy site began, the Islamists began hurling rocks and other objects at security forces stationed on the Mount.
Police, Border Police and Yasam riot police forces succeeded in driving the rioters into the mosque, enabling both Jewish and other non-Muslim visitors to continue at the site for a short period.
With the end of visiting time for non-Muslims - which had been considerably shortened due to Ramadan - security forces reopened the mosque's doors, and were immediately attacked once again by the rioters. Officers responded using non-lethal riot control methods, and eventually succeeded in quelling the violence.
It marks the second day of Muslim violence on the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism.
On Sunday as well, Muslim rioters attempted to prevent Jews - who are already massively restricted on the site due to Muslim pressure - from visiting. Several Muslim rioters were arrested.
In response, the Israel Police force released a statement saying it would not tolerate any attempts to foment violence at the site.
"Any attempt to disturb the peace in Jerusalem - including the Old City and Temple Mount - will be dealt with resolutely and firmly in order to maintain the status-quo on the Temple Mount and freedom of worship for all religions."
Despite the statement, only Muslims are actually permitted to worship on the Temple Mount, for fear of "provoking" Muslim violence.
3. 'IT'S TOO EARLY TO PREDICT THE IMPLICATIONS OF BREXIT'
by Eliran Aharon
[youtube:2016531]
Professor Dror Wahrman, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, in an interview with Arutz Sheva on Sunday, discussed the vote by British citizens to leave the European Union (EU) and what implications, if any, it would have on Israel.
"I think a lot of the voters who voted in favor of Brexit voted from the gut. They were not clear on what they expected to get out of this, and now that they're there, they're suddenly uneasy," he said.
"I think it's very significant that Boris Johnson, who led the 'leave' campaign, was the first to say, 'Let's not hurry, let's not be hasty here.' In other words, 'We wanted the symbolic victory. We don't want implementation, we don't know what it would lead to,'" added Wahrman.
"What will happen next? It's very hard to say at this point. The EU is worried that someone will follow Britain. If someone else exits – that will be the end of the European Union. They can contain the damage of one major player leaving. Two major players – that would make it look like the rats are abandoning the ship."
The EU, added Wahrman, is pressuring Britain to start the process of leaving right away so that it doesn't appear as though Britain came out on top with the move.
"That's why it's hard to know what this two-year process will look like. It's probably going to take longer than two years," he predicted.
It's premature to predict what the global economic implications of the move will be, said Wahrman, "because much depends on how these negotiations will go."
"What we see now in the world markets I think is just hysteria. It will stabilize in the next few weeks. Anybody who's trying to predict now what will happen in six months or a year is trying to sell you something. I don't think there's enough information on the ground to be able to say."
4. TURKISH PM: ISRAEL, TURKEY TO EXCHANGE AMBASSADORS WITHIN WEEKS
by Arutz Sheva Staff
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim hailed his country's reconciliation deal with the State of Israel, framing it as a victory for Turkey.
Speaking at a conference in Turkey's capital Ankara shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's own announcement, Yildirim also claimed the agreement had granted Turkey all of its demands.
Israel and Turkey would be exchanging ambassadors "as soon as possible," he said, as part of a re-normalization of ties between the two states. Ankara would appoint it ambassador within weeks, he added.
Under the deal, Israeli would be paying $20 million to the families of 10 Turkish jihadists killed aboard the Mavi Marmara ship, which in 2010 attempted to violently break Israel's blockade of Gaza.
The agreement also agrees to allow Turkey to deliver aid to Gaza, though crucially Turkey dropped its long-held demand for Israel to end its blockade of the Hamas-ruled enclave entirely. Humanitarian channels have always been open, but the Turkish PM cast that particular concession by Israel in particularly glowing terms, and said aid shipments would begin immediately.
"To this end, our first ship loaded with over 10,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid will leave for Israel's Ashdod port on Friday," he said.
Yildirim declared Turkey's intention to build a new 200-bed hospital in Gaza, among other construction projects.
Asked about a reported Turkish commitment to help prevent Hamas attacks against Israel, Yildirim said: "This is not a ceasefire deal. We reached an agreement with Israel to normalize relations."
AFP contributed to this report.
5. 'WHY DIDN'T ISRAEL DEMAND COMPENSATION FROM TURKEY?'
by Shimon Cohen
A former senior member of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's Likud party has blasted Israel's upcoming reconciliation deal with Turkey, and questioned why the Israeli government didn't attempt to extract concessions of its own.
Former Education Minister Gideon Saar said Israel should have demanded compensation for the Mavi Marmara incident, in which a Turkish Islamist flotilla attempted to violently break Israel's blockade of Gaza.
In an interview with Israel's Channel 2, Saar expressed his shock at the $20 million compensation package Israel will be granting to the families of the Al Qaeda-linked IHH terrorists killed aboard the ship - without demanding any compensation in return either for the injuries inflicted on IDF soldiers or the harm to Israel's security.
According to Saar, Netanyahu had in the past vowed not to offer compensation to the Turks over the incident - yet now the generous compensation package comprises a central aspect of the reconciliation deal.
"This is a bad deal," Saar stated, while noting that the conflicting national interests of Turkey - a key Hamas supporter - and Israel would continue regardless of the agreement.
The rapprochement deal will be formally announced today (Monday) at two separate press conferences.
In Ankara, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is set to declare a diplomatic victory, while at around the same time Netanyahu is scheduled to announce the deal at a separate event in Rome.
Apart from $21 million in compensation to the families of the slain jihadists from the Mavi Marmara incident - along with an official apology which Israel has already offered - the deal also calls for arrangements for extra humanitarian and other aid into Gaza, and the start of talks over a potentially lucrative deal for Turkey to purchase Israeli natural gas.
Despite Turkey's close ties to Hamas, however, the deal does not include the return by Hamas of either captive Israel civilian Avera Mengistu, or the bodies of Israeli soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, which have been held by the Islamist terror group in Gaza since 2014's Operation Protective Edge.
6. UK UNIVERSITY COMPENSATES STUDENT FOR ANTI-SEMITIC ABUSE
by Rachel Kaplan
In a startling form of recompense, University of York presented Zachary Confino with £1000, and an apology note from the student union, after turning a deaf ear to his complaints of anti-Semitic abuse for two years. Confino, 21, a law student and former treasurer of the student union, suffered bullying for being Jewish.
Confino reports that the anti-Semitic incidents spiked from 0 to 20 in his second and third years. "The far-left say racism is a black/white issue. They seem to think Jews are fair game," he added bitterly.
The university finally responded to Confino's repeated complaints, claiming "The University is committed to preserving the right to freedom of expression while also combating anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and any other form of race hate."
"We welcome students from all backgrounds, faiths and nationalities in our diverse community."
It confirmed that Confino accepted the apology from the student union, as well as the four-figure "token payment." Although he is still suffering from the trauma of his experience, Confino is willing to put it in the past.
But Jonathan Sacerdoti, Director of Communications at the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism, criticized the school's response.
"There must also be a commitment to fighting anti-Semitism properly, something they failed to do in Zachary's case," he insists.
"It should not be necessary for individual Jewish students to fight lengthy battles with their university unions over the course of many months or years in order to have Jew-hatred dealt with properly."
A spokesman for the chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, agreed. In a formal statement, he said he hoped the apology would send a strong message to other universities, including Oxford and Cambridge, that "there must be absolutely no place for antisemitism [sic] on our campuses."
7. MORNING JOGGER DISCOVERS 900 YEAR-OLD LAMP
by Rachel Kaplan
Tuesday morning started normally for Meir Amshik, a ranger (rescue personnel) for the Nature and Parks Authority.
As he jogged along the coast, however, "I saw a few pottery shards had been washed up by the waves, and I stopped to pick them up. To my surprise, I saw that a new part of the cliff had crumbled. I went to check it out, and I saw a strange lamp resting there, whole."
Guy Pitosi, inspector for the Israel Antiquities Authority, rushed to the scene. "NPA rangers, and rangers in general, are our eyes on the coast. They don't just save people, they save artifacts...Finds like this can be incredibly important for research, and for our understanding of history. Happily, more and more people are reporting ancient finds."
According to Saar Ganor, archeologist for the Ashkelon Center for the Israel Antiquities Authority, "This ancient oil lamp, which was used a light source, dates back to the 12th century. The signs of wear, and soot on its mouth, are well worth studying...The lamp demonstrates a part of the cultural wealth of the ancient city Ashkelon, which once was a merchant city. Ashkelon was a center of import from overseas, and from there products from the whole southern Israel were exported."
Meir Amshik relates: "To find an artifact like this, it's really exciting. You just feel a part of history. You can touch what was here long ago. I feel like I'm a part of the chain."
8. WATCH: ISLAMISTS HURL ROCKS AT POLICE ON TEMPLE MOUNT
by Arutz Sheva Staff
[video:2016556]
The Israel Police force has published footage from clashes on the Temple Mount Monday morning, after Muslim youths barricaded themselves in the Al Aqsa Mosque and hurled rocks at police and visitors.
In the footage, the Islamist rioters can also be seen erecting makeshift barricades to block the path of approaching Israeli riot police, who eventually succeeded in first kettling the rioters inside the mosque, and eventually ending the violence altogether.
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