A biweekly feature of news and opinion pieces from the Israeli and Palestinian press.
1.) In the wake of the Mercaz Harav massacre earlier this month, a number of leading Israeli Jews have made public calls for tougher measures to be taken against Israeli Arabs. Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, a prominent leader in the ultra-Orthodox community, has demanded that Arabs should not be allowed to work in yeshiva religious schools; similarly, Rabbi Dov Lior of the Council of Rabbis of Judea and Samaria has called for Israel to end the employment of Arabs all together, and even to stop renting them homes. Thankfully, Haaretz, in a recent editorial, strongly decries any such discrimination:
The two rabbis justify their rulings on the need to safeguard lives in view of the massacre, and not on hatred of Arabs. But there is a difference between the two: Kanievsky limits his ruling to employing Arabs in yeshivas, and he may genuinely hope this will narrow the threat to lives. But Lior broadens it to the general employment of Arabs and even to renting them apartments, which raises concerns that this is a way of taking advantage of the massacre and fear of Arabs to spread a view aiming to expel the Arabs from the country by creating conditions that encourage such a flight. Lior’s rulings also appear to incite racism.
Both rulings should be rejected completely because both call for disproportionate collective punishment. One murderer, who was not employed in the yeshiva where he carried out the massacre, and even some of the other acts of terrorism carried out by Israeli Arabs in recent years, should not result in a general boycott of the Arab community. It is neither right nor ethical, and will only exacerbate the hatred that already exists between the two peoples. After all, the Arabs who will not be able to find jobs because of their national identity will not be encouraged by this to be more supportive of Israel.
2.) In response to the popularity of Hamas’s extensive social welfare system, Fatah has plans to launch a similar program in the West Bank. With the backing of members of both the Quartet and Israel, the Palestinian Authority will set up a system to grant regular cash transfers to families living in poverty. There will also be benefits targeted specifically towards the unemployed and the disabled.
3.) Israel has decided to boycott Al Jazeera for their allegedly “pro-Palestinian” coverage of the recent Gaza invasion. A number of analysts have disputed this claim of bias, noting that Al Jazeera is the only Arab network to present interviews with Israeli officials, and give decent airtime to the “Israeli point of view.” Furthermore, as journalist Avi Weinberg points out in an op-ed for Ynet News, presenting a critical perspective is what journalists are supposed to do.
In fact, it is too bad that we don’t see many more boycotts in Israel by official bodies unpleased with media outlets and journalists – because a boycott on a journalist is in fact a citation. It means that the journalist is fulfilling its journalistic mission as the public’s representative, rather than serving as the representative of the government ministry or corporation is reports on. Journalism is, by its very nature, an opposition to the government. This is its role in a democratic regime and it should be critical and biting in its attitude towards the government, towards powerful economic bodies, and towards the legal system.
…The problem, therefore, is not al-Jazeera. The problem lies with the media outlets and journalists that are not boycotted on occasion. Perhaps this means they are not critical or biting enough. Therefore, here is yet another rule of thumb for the benefit of news consumers: Be careful of journalists who are loved by the government.
4.) Jesse Rosenfeld, writing for the website Electronic Intifada, chronicles a regular pattern of torture that is allegedly conducted by Israel’s security forces. In 1999, the country’s highest court ruled torture to be illegal. Nonetheless, a loophole was left for cases of “ticking time bombs.” The result is that little has changed since the court ruling. According to Rosenfeld, “90 percent of Palestinian detainees have been tortured or ill-treated.”
5.) According to a report from Ma’an News, “250,000 Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip have signed a petition demanding national reconciliation between the rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah.”
6.) In a sign of Russia’s growing involvement in the region, the country’s foreign minister visited Israel-Palestine this week. He called on the Israelis to stop building settlements and to end their siege of Gaza. In a controversial move, Israel and Russia also agreed to transfer 25 Russian-made armored vehicles to the control of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority. There are, however, worries that Palestinians will use these vehicles against Israeli forces. Meanwhile, while visiting Ramallah, the Russian foreign minister also called for the convening of a Palestinian-Israeli peace conference to be held in Moscow.
(Source: Foreign Policy Watch)